Poppin’ good time

There’s no better way to rack up some quality idle time than by doing something mindless such as, say, popping bubble packaging. If you’ve never had the pleasure, thanks to Katherine Fernie, you can – even if you don’t have any of the stuff hanging around. At http://www.virtual-bubblewrap.com/, a pristine cyber-sheet of the wrapping is there for your amusement, complete with addictive popping sounds. Fernie, a Web designer in Centreville, Va., has many fans, among them Sealed Air Corp., the maker of Bubble Wrap, which has given her permission to use the name of its product.

– NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE