Today I was reading  J.R. Briggs’ Blog, and I saw that he linked to a website called Flip Flop Fly Ball. I visited the site and it brightened my day. Flip Flop Fly Ball is the website equivalent of a candy bar. It’s positively delightful.

If you are a baseball fan you really need to check out Flip Flop Fly Ball. The creator of the site, Craig Robinson, makes infographics to illustrate baseball statistics and information. Here are a few examples of subjects:

• The American Town farthest from a MLB Team (I will not be moving to Turner, Montana)
• MLB Team Performance in Interleague Play
• 2009 MLB Ticket Prices
• The Native American Population in Cleveland, OH
• MLB Ballpark Orientation
• The Cumulative Distance of Every MLB Pitch in 2006

And so much more.

If you visit the site you should also check out the short essay written by Jake, the dove Randy Johnson killed in 2001 (the essay is sent from heaven).

Oh, and don’t forget to check out the legend for the blog header. . .

This afternoon I took a walk around the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts after I finished my daily experiment maintenance. The Arts Fest is very entertaining. I could spend hours wandering around. I think I’ll go back at least one more time this weekend. Here are some highlights from today.

I saw the Two Man Gentlemen Band (composed of four members, go figure) playing on the Allen Stage. Their music reminds me of the early-to-mid 1900s. From what I  heard their lyrics are quite witty and their musicianship is sharp. I was very entertained. In fact, if I ever get a chance to see them again I will.  

The Two Man Gentlemen Band on the Allen Stage.

Arts Fest takes over downtown State College every year. Some of the streets are closed to auto traffic and lined with vendors, artists, water features, landscaping, and all sorts of interesting stuff.

There were no cars on Allen Street today.

Despite attending Arts Fest numerous times I still have not eaten there yet. It’s not for want of options. The country fair-esque variety of food vendors set up along the street is impressive. Maybe I’ll pick something up this weekend.

Is there anything more artistic than a cheesesteak?

The first artist to really catch my eye was Rob Hagarty. He creates wire tree sculptures. They  are all different sizes and many tree species are represented. These trees are high on my list of favorite art I have seen at Arts Fest over the years. Very cool.

Tree sculptures by Rob Hagarty.

Another artists caught my eye by creating metal plants. This time it was William Colburn. He creates all sorts of steel and metal sculptures. The centerpieces of his display were large flowers. Each one stood between four and five feet in height. Many of the flowers had intricate patterns etched or ground on the individual parts. While I found them interesting, I had no real desire to buy one.

Big flower sculptures by William Colburn.

I saw and heard a kilted band playing many bagpipes in front of Old Main. They produced some serious sound. I can’t believe how powerful bagpipes are. I watched from far away and the sound was loud, I can’t imagine how loud it must have been close to the stage. I tend to think of a rock concert as being hard on the ears, but a bagpipe concert might be just as bad.

About an hour after the bagpipers wrapped up their gig I saw them at the Creamery getting ice cream. How did I recognize them if I never got close to the stage to see their faces during the concert? It was easy. At the Creamery I saw a big group of people wearing matching kilts.

By this time it was late afternoon. Instead of heading home I decided to catch a Spikes game. I think I’ll make that a separate post. . .

My brother opened an Etsy Shop recently called Iron Harmony. I suppose I might be biased, but I think his metal sculptures are pretty darn cool.  These are not wire coat hangers bent into shapes, we’re talking hot rolled steel with some structural integrity. The fellow on the right weighs in at six pounds.

The Iron Harmony line up contains two different guitarists and a music stand-holding roadie (at least I assume he’s a roadie, I think a roadie would be the kind of person who would hold a music stand for someone).

If you’re looking for music themed metal sculptures you might want to bookmark Iron Harmony. And even if you’re not you should stop by the site and take a look at the other guitarist and the additional photos of the sculptures.

I find Etsy to be a fascinating site. Perusing the artwork is quite enjoyable. If I become an eccentric billionaire I will likely have a massive art collection. . .