On Popularity Contests
A couple days ago Trish Wilson e-mailed a number of folks a blogging survey she was doing for an off our backs article on which she's working. One of the questions involved whether we'd ever been nominated for or won any blogging honors, and of course I never have, although I remain ever hopeful that, once I get back to regular blogging, someone will think of me later this year come Koufax time. I guess I don't deal too well with popularity contests, never having been on the receiving end of too many of them. I mean, when you set the record for the most service hours ever recorded in a pledge period and your chosen fraternity still almost blackballs you from membership, you get used to the idea that achievement and acceptance don't always go hand in hand.
Add to that the fact that I feel crappy this weekend (today's cold symptom was mostly sneezing so I'm hoping it's finally exiting my system) and face another week of hard work in the not-ready-for-prime-time office (where I play receptionist, secretary, property manager and at least five other infield utility positions), along with my frustration over not having had enough energy to post more to my blog (heck, to even read others' blogs), and I was fairly bowled over when Scoobie Davis wrote to inform me that, somehow, this weblog has cracked the Top 100 of Blog Influence Quotient as measured (doubtless arcanely) by Blogstreet, and I'm... well, a little taken aback.
I have no idea how it happened. I'd demand a recount, except that I really like the illusion of popularity contests, so I don't want to say anything to anyone in power in case they too realize they've made a mistake somewhere along the line. So I'll just say thanks to everyone who continues to visit here, and has been patient enough to bear with me through this enforced dry period. It looks fairly promising that by the middle of the month I'll be back to full blogging strength.
Monday, May 31, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Atrios, a very strange anti-Bush game, whose intro was so long that I didn't even feel like playing the game itself when it started. Fans of Hulk Hogan and Mr. T might find it amusing, I guess.
Via Atrios, a very strange anti-Bush game, whose intro was so long that I didn't even feel like playing the game itself when it started. Fans of Hulk Hogan and Mr. T might find it amusing, I guess.
Sunday, May 30, 2004
In Memoriam
Wonderful post by Mark Evanier talking about today's Doonesbury and other thoughts on Memorial Day. I found myself nodding pretty much straight through the entire post.
Wonderful post by Mark Evanier talking about today's Doonesbury and other thoughts on Memorial Day. I found myself nodding pretty much straight through the entire post.
Silly Site o' the Day
An oldie but goodie from Avedon Carol, which I thought I'd pass along before it becomes completely obsolete - Candidates and their cartoon equivalents.
An oldie but goodie from Avedon Carol, which I thought I'd pass along before it becomes completely obsolete - Candidates and their cartoon equivalents.
Fun with Linguistics
One of my favorite linguistics classes back in college (yeah, I majored in the stuff) had to do with US regional variations not only in how things were pronounced but in what slang words were used to denote various products. Mark Evanier has now found a site that charts generic names for soft drinks by county. I wondered if there were any out there which chart stuff like heroes/subs/hoagies, and found this dialect survey from Harvard. (My query above is question #64.)
One of my favorite linguistics classes back in college (yeah, I majored in the stuff) had to do with US regional variations not only in how things were pronounced but in what slang words were used to denote various products. Mark Evanier has now found a site that charts generic names for soft drinks by county. I wondered if there were any out there which chart stuff like heroes/subs/hoagies, and found this dialect survey from Harvard. (My query above is question #64.)
Saturday, May 29, 2004
Milestone Note
Happy belated blogiversary to Norbizness. I've decided to take it easy so far this weekend and not blog or read a heck of a lot, as I seem to have picked up something nasty amidst all the dust and tension at the not-yet-at-move-in-condition office. But I will try to break in here from time to time if I see a milestone worth noting...
Happy belated blogiversary to Norbizness. I've decided to take it easy so far this weekend and not blog or read a heck of a lot, as I seem to have picked up something nasty amidst all the dust and tension at the not-yet-at-move-in-condition office. But I will try to break in here from time to time if I see a milestone worth noting...
Friday, May 28, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Robin found another games site, Absolutist. I'm kinda getting into Bubble Snooker, myself.
Robin found another games site, Absolutist. I'm kinda getting into Bubble Snooker, myself.
Thursday, May 27, 2004
Milestone Notes
Happy belated anniversary to Peter and Kath! Wish I had more time and online access so I could have sent greetings yesterday... And Mark Evanier reminds us today is Harlan Ellison's 70th birthday.
Happy belated anniversary to Peter and Kath! Wish I had more time and online access so I could have sent greetings yesterday... And Mark Evanier reminds us today is Harlan Ellison's 70th birthday.
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Jesse Taylor at Pandagon, it's time to Find Those Weapons! After all, the government seems to need all the help in can get finding things and "suspect" people...
(In case you're wondering, I'm still the only one in my office whose computer can't connect to the Internet, and that situation is likely to remain that way at least through the beginning of next week. I haven't looked forward to a 3-day weekend this much in years!)
Via Jesse Taylor at Pandagon, it's time to Find Those Weapons! After all, the government seems to need all the help in can get finding things and "suspect" people...
(In case you're wondering, I'm still the only one in my office whose computer can't connect to the Internet, and that situation is likely to remain that way at least through the beginning of next week. I haven't looked forward to a 3-day weekend this much in years!)
Wednesday, May 26, 2004
Where Went the Internet?
They tell us we'll have Internet tomorrow. I'll believe it when I see it. If I do get online from work, I'll finally be able to catch up on blog reading (theoretically), as my office is pretty much set up now and I can close the door if I need to. But I'm not holding my breath, and as Robin tells me there's an outside possibility that our home connection may be down as well, mayhap one or both of my guest bloggers could pop in and see if I've written any new content by, say, 8 PM tomorrow, and if not please feel free to post something...
They tell us we'll have Internet tomorrow. I'll believe it when I see it. If I do get online from work, I'll finally be able to catch up on blog reading (theoretically), as my office is pretty much set up now and I can close the door if I need to. But I'm not holding my breath, and as Robin tells me there's an outside possibility that our home connection may be down as well, mayhap one or both of my guest bloggers could pop in and see if I've written any new content by, say, 8 PM tomorrow, and if not please feel free to post something...
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Still no Internet at work, and with almost a 2-hour commute each way until I get a car I haven't even been in the mood to read blogs by the time I arrive home, much less write one. Nowhere to go from here but up. Via Rana at Frogs and Ravens, try some online magnetic poetry.
Still no Internet at work, and with almost a 2-hour commute each way until I get a car I haven't even been in the mood to read blogs by the time I arrive home, much less write one. Nowhere to go from here but up. Via Rana at Frogs and Ravens, try some online magnetic poetry.
Monday, May 24, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Wish me luck on my first Westchester bus commute; I sort of know where I'm going... And to prepare you for this evening, you can write your own Bush speech and see how closely the "real thing" matches up... Via tgirsch at LeanLeft.
Wish me luck on my first Westchester bus commute; I sort of know where I'm going... And to prepare you for this evening, you can write your own Bush speech and see how closely the "real thing" matches up... Via tgirsch at LeanLeft.
Sunday, May 23, 2004
Off-Day
Still light blogging, and blog-reading, ahead. If you've done a post of which you're particularly proud and want to bring it to my (and Pen-Elayne readers') attention, please post the URL in the comments; I'm quite close to just marking Bloglines "all read" and moving on once I'm refreshed and have 'net access at work again (long story, but it probably won't be up in the new offices till Tuesday the earliest). Today was pretty much just collapsing exhaustedly 'round the house, though I did cook an English breakfast and plan to cook dinner as well. The big deal for us was finally hanging up Robin's mum's paintings in the living room, Alan's marriage present to us in the bedroom, and the mezuzah my parents gave me on the doorpost.
Still light blogging, and blog-reading, ahead. If you've done a post of which you're particularly proud and want to bring it to my (and Pen-Elayne readers') attention, please post the URL in the comments; I'm quite close to just marking Bloglines "all read" and moving on once I'm refreshed and have 'net access at work again (long story, but it probably won't be up in the new offices till Tuesday the earliest). Today was pretty much just collapsing exhaustedly 'round the house, though I did cook an English breakfast and plan to cook dinner as well. The big deal for us was finally hanging up Robin's mum's paintings in the living room, Alan's marriage present to us in the bedroom, and the mezuzah my parents gave me on the doorpost.
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Wil Wheaton, among others, someone actually sold an air guitar on eBay. Which, honestly, shouldn't surprise us in this age of naked emperors...
Via Wil Wheaton, among others, someone actually sold an air guitar on eBay. Which, honestly, shouldn't surprise us in this age of naked emperors...
Saturday, May 22, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Long day again, spent mostly sitting at the old office whilst the movers worked for over 12 hours. Finally got home about 10:15. Too exhausted to do much more than point you to PhoneSpell, courtesy of Maru Soze. I have too many zeroes in all of my numbers to create any useful mnemonics...
Long day again, spent mostly sitting at the old office whilst the movers worked for over 12 hours. Finally got home about 10:15. Too exhausted to do much more than point you to PhoneSpell, courtesy of Maru Soze. I have too many zeroes in all of my numbers to create any useful mnemonics...
Friday, May 21, 2004
Friday Cat Blogging (™ Kevin Drum)
Still working on the montage of pictures from last Sunday's shindig, but I don't think they'll be ready yet for another couple of days. I'm really wiped from this office move. So here's at least one to tide you over:
That's Julia's cat Pidget. Hope she's okay with me posting the darlin' one's picture!
Still working on the montage of pictures from last Sunday's shindig, but I don't think they'll be ready yet for another couple of days. I'm really wiped from this office move. So here's at least one to tide you over:
That's Julia's cat Pidget. Hope she's okay with me posting the darlin' one's picture!
Boxing Day
Just as Robin's been shifting us out of boxes at home (with his most recent deadline wrapped he finally had a chance to investigate the loft space above our apartment, and we can indeed store empty comics boxes and other light stuff up there!), I find myself sitting amidst even more here at the office. My stuff is all packed, my boss' huge office is likewise done, all that remains at this point is for me to stay out of everyone else's way (I sprained something near my right elbow a few weeks ago during our home move so I can't do any substantial physical labor anyway), keep communication flowing as best I can with a cell phone (the office phone lines were dismantled yesterday morning), and wait for the movers to arrive early this afternoon with more labels so I can stick them on everything in my boss' space. Staying out of the way will be easy; the electricity in the cubicles is currently being dismantled so I'm typing this last 35th Street blog entry from my boss' machine in his office. The network, e-mail and Internet are going down in about half an hour, so I can't even browse through Bloglines until I get home. I should have brought more to read. :)
This morning was my last weekday commute into Manhattan, at least until such time (if any) as I acquire another job, and with things having shifted so dramatically from last fall until now at my current position I don't think that's likely. For one thing, I no longer relish the idea of threading my way through the sidewalk throngs; for another, I'm damn glad to be getting away from The City given what's going down here in the next few months security-wise. I've been commuting into Manhattan for over 20 years, and I have absolutely zero sentimental attachment to the idea. We still live close enough to take day-trips in during the weekends if we so desire, but that's the key - when I go into The City from now on it'll be because I want to rather than have to, and that'll make all the difference in the world.
Tomorrow morning is my last "have to," as my boss wants people around to make sure the movers are doing their job correctly while, I guess, staying out of their way so they can do their job correctly. It's all a bit confusing. Then he drives me and a few others up to the new office in his Mercedes (life is rough), then I guess I find my own way back, which will be fun because I haven't had a chance to do a dry-run commute on the Westchester bus line yet. Ah well, at least I won't be bored!
Okay, I'll be bored for the next few hours. But you know what I mean. So long from the Garment District!
Just as Robin's been shifting us out of boxes at home (with his most recent deadline wrapped he finally had a chance to investigate the loft space above our apartment, and we can indeed store empty comics boxes and other light stuff up there!), I find myself sitting amidst even more here at the office. My stuff is all packed, my boss' huge office is likewise done, all that remains at this point is for me to stay out of everyone else's way (I sprained something near my right elbow a few weeks ago during our home move so I can't do any substantial physical labor anyway), keep communication flowing as best I can with a cell phone (the office phone lines were dismantled yesterday morning), and wait for the movers to arrive early this afternoon with more labels so I can stick them on everything in my boss' space. Staying out of the way will be easy; the electricity in the cubicles is currently being dismantled so I'm typing this last 35th Street blog entry from my boss' machine in his office. The network, e-mail and Internet are going down in about half an hour, so I can't even browse through Bloglines until I get home. I should have brought more to read. :)
This morning was my last weekday commute into Manhattan, at least until such time (if any) as I acquire another job, and with things having shifted so dramatically from last fall until now at my current position I don't think that's likely. For one thing, I no longer relish the idea of threading my way through the sidewalk throngs; for another, I'm damn glad to be getting away from The City given what's going down here in the next few months security-wise. I've been commuting into Manhattan for over 20 years, and I have absolutely zero sentimental attachment to the idea. We still live close enough to take day-trips in during the weekends if we so desire, but that's the key - when I go into The City from now on it'll be because I want to rather than have to, and that'll make all the difference in the world.
Tomorrow morning is my last "have to," as my boss wants people around to make sure the movers are doing their job correctly while, I guess, staying out of their way so they can do their job correctly. It's all a bit confusing. Then he drives me and a few others up to the new office in his Mercedes (life is rough), then I guess I find my own way back, which will be fun because I haven't had a chance to do a dry-run commute on the Westchester bus line yet. Ah well, at least I won't be bored!
Okay, I'll be bored for the next few hours. But you know what I mean. So long from the Garment District!
Silly Site o' the Day
It's past midnight, Rob and I just finished watching Chicago (the best crafted musical featuring the most reprehensible, unsympathetic characters that I ever recall seeing), I've uploaded the pictures from Julia's BBQ to our website but have yet to blog about it so only Julia's seen them so far, and dinner's just about digested - so before I hit the sack I wanted to pass along a "cool" product that Rob just found: the LavaPad! You just know you can't live without this one, folks...
It's past midnight, Rob and I just finished watching Chicago (the best crafted musical featuring the most reprehensible, unsympathetic characters that I ever recall seeing), I've uploaded the pictures from Julia's BBQ to our website but have yet to blog about it so only Julia's seen them so far, and dinner's just about digested - so before I hit the sack I wanted to pass along a "cool" product that Rob just found: the LavaPad! You just know you can't live without this one, folks...
Thursday, May 20, 2004
Silly Sites o' the Day
Fun with generators! Via Rana at Frogs and Ravens, try your hand at the Nostradamus Quatrain Generator. And via Scott at The Gamer's Nook, it's the American Military Operation Name Generating Device!
Fun with generators! Via Rana at Frogs and Ravens, try your hand at the Nostradamus Quatrain Generator. And via Scott at The Gamer's Nook, it's the American Military Operation Name Generating Device!
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Mark Evanier, just the thing for a busy office on the move (*sigh* don't ask) - a virtual stapler!
Via Mark Evanier, just the thing for a busy office on the move (*sigh* don't ask) - a virtual stapler!
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
"College is something you complete. Life is something you experience."
The Daily Show is in reruns this week, but thanks to Andante I got to read Jon Stewart's commencement address at William & Mary (the school I almost went to before opting for Rutgers), so I get my "fix" after all. Very nice speech.
The Daily Show is in reruns this week, but thanks to Andante I got to read Jon Stewart's commencement address at William & Mary (the school I almost went to before opting for Rutgers), so I get my "fix" after all. Very nice speech.
Short Milestone Note
Happy 23rd birthday to Matthew Yglesias - may Eris smile upon you! And happy 13th anniversary to Kevin and Marian Drum! Once Blogway Blabby gets going (target date: sometime by late June) I'll finally get some sort of social calendar in order... Update: Also a belated congrats to Andrew Lis and Christine Norrie on the birth of their daughter Josephine Astrud!
Happy 23rd birthday to Matthew Yglesias - may Eris smile upon you! And happy 13th anniversary to Kevin and Marian Drum! Once Blogway Blabby gets going (target date: sometime by late June) I'll finally get some sort of social calendar in order... Update: Also a belated congrats to Andrew Lis and Christine Norrie on the birth of their daughter Josephine Astrud!
Silly Site o' the Day
Why did the chicken cross the road, anyway? (Via Guy Andrew Hall at Rook's Rant.) If you ask me, it was to avoid having to move her office. On the plus side, I'm learning all about our new environs today, at least online... On the minus side, it's after 2 PM and I'm just now opening Bloglines, so that gives you a clue as to what kind of day it's been. And my boss isn't even in today! I don't expect any semblance of normalcy until at least next week...
Why did the chicken cross the road, anyway? (Via Guy Andrew Hall at Rook's Rant.) If you ask me, it was to avoid having to move her office. On the plus side, I'm learning all about our new environs today, at least online... On the minus side, it's after 2 PM and I'm just now opening Bloglines, so that gives you a clue as to what kind of day it's been. And my boss isn't even in today! I don't expect any semblance of normalcy until at least next week...
Monday, May 17, 2004
Light Blogging Ahead
Office moving. Busy in daytime, exhausted in evening. Boss in tomorrow, will probably get worse. Finally used oven and stovetop this evening; like kitchen muchly even though a bit too small. Haven't forgotten about past social weekend, will blog about it sooner or later. Not speak in fragments!
Office moving. Busy in daytime, exhausted in evening. Boss in tomorrow, will probably get worse. Finally used oven and stovetop this evening; like kitchen muchly even though a bit too small. Haven't forgotten about past social weekend, will blog about it sooner or later. Not speak in fragments!
Silly Sites o' the Day
Two good ones mentioned by Echidne a couple weeks ago: Men Who Look Like Kenny Rogers (and, you know, who doesn't?) and Banana Guard! As they used to say on the local news shows, separate stories.
Two good ones mentioned by Echidne a couple weeks ago: Men Who Look Like Kenny Rogers (and, you know, who doesn't?) and Banana Guard! As they used to say on the local news shows, separate stories.
Sunday, May 16, 2004
The Longest Day
Way too tired to blog about my day; will try to do so tomorrow. Pictures all downloaded but I want to put them into a collage-type format on our home site which will mean a bit of Photoshopping and I'm just not going to do it at this late hour. Suffice it to say I've had enough of real life for awhile, particularly when it comes to maintaining social engagements more than an hour away by public transit and/or at the mercy of someone else's car. From now until we get our own auto, I plan on commuting to and from work via bus, taking care of whatever errands need doing, and that's it. I know it's a wonderful time of year to see friends and family, but I'm sorry. Friends and family can come to us if they wish (although we'll likely put them to work helping us unpack), but I ain't a'budgin' for at least another month.
That said, thanks to Roxanne and Jillian for coming to the Food Fest with me earlier today, and to Julia for throwing a lovely soiree as usual. More (including links to pictures) when I get the chance, probably not until tomorrow evening at the earliest. Gonna be a crazy week what with the upcoming office move...
Way too tired to blog about my day; will try to do so tomorrow. Pictures all downloaded but I want to put them into a collage-type format on our home site which will mean a bit of Photoshopping and I'm just not going to do it at this late hour. Suffice it to say I've had enough of real life for awhile, particularly when it comes to maintaining social engagements more than an hour away by public transit and/or at the mercy of someone else's car. From now until we get our own auto, I plan on commuting to and from work via bus, taking care of whatever errands need doing, and that's it. I know it's a wonderful time of year to see friends and family, but I'm sorry. Friends and family can come to us if they wish (although we'll likely put them to work helping us unpack), but I ain't a'budgin' for at least another month.
That said, thanks to Roxanne and Jillian for coming to the Food Fest with me earlier today, and to Julia for throwing a lovely soiree as usual. More (including links to pictures) when I get the chance, probably not until tomorrow evening at the earliest. Gonna be a crazy week what with the upcoming office move...
The Wonderful Celebrations of Oz
I forgot to raise a toast yesterday to the anniversary of L. Frank Baum's birthday, but Ozophiles Laura and Eric Gjovaag didn't. Laura describes the Oz party she threw at the "pugless house of not-so-many horrors." Sounds just about as nice as the birthday Baum himself described...
I forgot to raise a toast yesterday to the anniversary of L. Frank Baum's birthday, but Ozophiles Laura and Eric Gjovaag didn't. Laura describes the Oz party she threw at the "pugless house of not-so-many horrors." Sounds just about as nice as the birthday Baum himself described...
Silly Site o' the Day
Alas, Debbie, I can't use your suggestion from yesterday, as Disturbing Search Requests seems to be out of commission. Shame, too; Anne would have loved it! So instead, I'll just pass on a disturbing site that Mark Evanier found, featuring Gollum as he should never be seen.
Alas, Debbie, I can't use your suggestion from yesterday, as Disturbing Search Requests seems to be out of commission. Shame, too; Anne would have loved it! So instead, I'll just pass on a disturbing site that Mark Evanier found, featuring Gollum as he should never be seen.
Saturday, May 15, 2004
NY Blogger Knosh 2004
Lots of fun - thanks to Roxanne Cooper and Dean Landsman for arranging it all! The food at Katz's was as wonderful as I remember it (although it felt a little strange not being there with any of my relatives), and I had a lovely chopped liver and pastrami sammich, a chocolate egg cream and all the pickled tomatoes I could eat! Here are some pictures:
Roxanne, Debra Galant and her daughter Margot
Roxanne and husband Earl
Dean and Susan
Not pictured: Roxanne and Earl's niece Jillian Lynch, who nonetheless took lots of digital pics herself. Looking forward to taking in tomorrow's Food Fest with the Cooper clan!
Lots of fun - thanks to Roxanne Cooper and Dean Landsman for arranging it all! The food at Katz's was as wonderful as I remember it (although it felt a little strange not being there with any of my relatives), and I had a lovely chopped liver and pastrami sammich, a chocolate egg cream and all the pickled tomatoes I could eat! Here are some pictures:
Roxanne, Debra Galant and her daughter Margot
Roxanne and husband Earl
Dean and Susan
Not pictured: Roxanne and Earl's niece Jillian Lynch, who nonetheless took lots of digital pics herself. Looking forward to taking in tomorrow's Food Fest with the Cooper clan!
Slight Change of Plans
I spent much of the morning on various household chores (getting finances in order, putting away laundered clothes, etc.) and I'm still achy and it's already way too hot (at least for me) to stroll around out of doors, so I'm skipping the Food Fest today and just doing a bit of local food shopping before heading down to the New York Blogger-Knosh 2004. This way I might be able to talk Roxanne or any other Knosh attendees into going to the Fest tomorrow...
I spent much of the morning on various household chores (getting finances in order, putting away laundered clothes, etc.) and I'm still achy and it's already way too hot (at least for me) to stroll around out of doors, so I'm skipping the Food Fest today and just doing a bit of local food shopping before heading down to the New York Blogger-Knosh 2004. This way I might be able to talk Roxanne or any other Knosh attendees into going to the Fest tomorrow...
Remembering 11 March
Continuing with emptying out my in-box: artist and friend Jesús Antonio Hernández writes to inform me about his participation in MARZO: Homenaje a las victimas, a tribute book to aid victims of the March 11 bombings. Here are a couple of pages from the story he's drawn.
Continuing with emptying out my in-box: artist and friend Jesús Antonio Hernández writes to inform me about his participation in MARZO: Homenaje a las victimas, a tribute book to aid victims of the March 11 bombings. Here are a couple of pages from the story he's drawn.
Silly Sites o' the Day
Time to clean out the e-mail a bit. Michele Naylor writes to inform me that she's started the Geoge Bush is a Boob website, replete with creative-looking boob-y pins of Bushisms for sale. After all, "There's no cave deep enough for America, or dark enough to hide"! And Andre Schwaer writes to announce he's written a new song called Don't Follow the Jerk (click on "hi fi" to listen to it) - he's got a lovely voice! Andre, that is, not Bush...
Time to clean out the e-mail a bit. Michele Naylor writes to inform me that she's started the Geoge Bush is a Boob website, replete with creative-looking boob-y pins of Bushisms for sale. After all, "There's no cave deep enough for America, or dark enough to hide"! And Andre Schwaer writes to announce he's written a new song called Don't Follow the Jerk (click on "hi fi" to listen to it) - he's got a lovely voice! Andre, that is, not Bush...
Friday, May 14, 2004
Friday Cat Blogging (™ Kevin Drum)
Just about everything goes with our carpeting, including the cats...
Believe it or not, Datsa is not as calm as he looks in this photo; it was taken in the half hour between administering his twice daily medicine and feeding him (we're obliged to wait a half hour after the pill). Had you fooled, eh?
Just about everything goes with our carpeting, including the cats...
Believe it or not, Datsa is not as calm as he looks in this photo; it was taken in the half hour between administering his twice daily medicine and feeding him (we're obliged to wait a half hour after the pill). Had you fooled, eh?
Silly Site o' the Day
B.J. at StoutDemBlog mentions that someone took that Flight Suit doll and decided to have a bit of fun with it, demonstrating Bush Yoga. I wonder if they derived inspiration from Tom Tomorrow's Zen Master George Junior strip...
B.J. at StoutDemBlog mentions that someone took that Flight Suit doll and decided to have a bit of fun with it, demonstrating Bush Yoga. I wonder if they derived inspiration from Tom Tomorrow's Zen Master George Junior strip...
Thursday, May 13, 2004
Blog Astroturf?
Curious that the same sort of e-mail seems to have been sent to both Josh Marshall and Mark Evanier. While I appreciate their responses, I don't know that it's ever a good idea to give attention to trolls or astroturf.
Curious that the same sort of e-mail seems to have been sent to both Josh Marshall and Mark Evanier. While I appreciate their responses, I don't know that it's ever a good idea to give attention to trolls or astroturf.
On Just Saying No
Rivka provides excellent historical context to the idea of consensual acts versus forced ones, a distinction with which many administration apologists seem to be having a great deal of trouble of late.
Rivka provides excellent historical context to the idea of consensual acts versus forced ones, a distinction with which many administration apologists seem to be having a great deal of trouble of late.
Ace in the Hole
I'm not only severely behind in my blog reading since the move, but also in reading the magazines and papers to which I subscribe. Among them is the Comics Buyer's Guide, so I didn't see the recent column where Heidi "Ace" MacDonald talked about blogs. Therefore, I kept out of things when the comics blogosphere went a bit ballistic over a few sentences in that column. (Yes, my political blogger friends, there's an active comics fandom blogosphere now. Yes, my comics blogger friends, there are millions of blogs out there that aren't about comics. Or even politics. :) ) Well, now Franklin Harris and John Jakala, among others I'm sure, note that Heidi has responded to their outrage or disappointment or offense taken on behalf of others (if you don't think your blog is "really dopey" then she's not referring to you so chill; if you do think your blog is "really dopey" then fix it and stop whining that she noticed). Of interest to me:
I'm not only severely behind in my blog reading since the move, but also in reading the magazines and papers to which I subscribe. Among them is the Comics Buyer's Guide, so I didn't see the recent column where Heidi "Ace" MacDonald talked about blogs. Therefore, I kept out of things when the comics blogosphere went a bit ballistic over a few sentences in that column. (Yes, my political blogger friends, there's an active comics fandom blogosphere now. Yes, my comics blogger friends, there are millions of blogs out there that aren't about comics. Or even politics. :) ) Well, now Franklin Harris and John Jakala, among others I'm sure, note that Heidi has responded to their outrage or disappointment or offense taken on behalf of others (if you don't think your blog is "really dopey" then she's not referring to you so chill; if you do think your blog is "really dopey" then fix it and stop whining that she noticed). Of interest to me:
What I wrote in a newspaper with no online outlet doesn’t matter to the blogosphere. That was for people who read CBG. Only the bit quoted out of context online is what matters online...Do I hate blogging? Of course not. I’ve been doing it since 1993. Do I hate bloggers? How can you hate half the human race? Do I hate the comics blogosphere? No. Why then the "dopey" comment? Cuz some of them are. Come on. I find it amusing that everyone thought I was talking about them in the dopey part and NOT the part where I praised blogging.I'm sure semantic quibbles will follow - after all, even I kind of go "well, no, blogging is a very specific kind of one-to-many forum, done in a certain way using certain tools, it's not the same as hosting a Delphi forum or having a web page" - but the point is, it's all of a piece when you get right down to it. I've been doing one-to-many communication since I was 13 years old, passing around story pages in class and taking on 150 penpals, then graduating to zines and apas and mailing lists and Usenet and message boards... only the tools are different. And there's probably the same amount of signal-to-noise ratio on blogs as on any of these other self-published communication methods (I was going to say maybe the noise ratio was a bit less with zines 'cause people aren't going to waste money printing and mailing out dopey stuff, but then I thought back and, oh yes, many of us did). I'd like to think Heidi, with whom I've been friends for years, reads and enjoys this blog; if she doesn't I'd probably be disappointed but it's not going to shatter my world. Everyone has their own tastes. I'm not competing with the other bloggers on my blogroll, many of whom I readily acknowledge write a whole lot better than me. If I'm competing at all, it's with that writer who passed around stories in class and had penpals and published INSIDE JOKE. Who has, on occasion, been kinda dopey. And that's okay too.
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Mike Fogg on last night's Comicart list chat: the Origami Boulder Company! You buy wadded up paper now, dumb dumb! Hilarious when read out loud in a "Young Guy" accent, as I will suggest this evening on Firesign chat...
Via Mike Fogg on last night's Comicart list chat: the Origami Boulder Company! You buy wadded up paper now, dumb dumb! Hilarious when read out loud in a "Young Guy" accent, as I will suggest this evening on Firesign chat...
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Food, Glorious Food
Just a reminder that the NY Blogger Knosh 2004 is this Saturday, May 15; RSVP to Roxanne Cooper. My plan at present is to run errands in the morning, maybe catch the express bus into Manhattan and get off around 63rd Street and Broadway (not that far a walk to 57th and 9th), spend maybe a half hour at most at the Ninth Avenue Food Fest, as it's supposed to be around 85? or so, then hop the "F" down to Katz's for the big get-together at 5. Anyone interested in checking out the Food Fest? Let me know in the comments.
Just a reminder that the NY Blogger Knosh 2004 is this Saturday, May 15; RSVP to Roxanne Cooper. My plan at present is to run errands in the morning, maybe catch the express bus into Manhattan and get off around 63rd Street and Broadway (not that far a walk to 57th and 9th), spend maybe a half hour at most at the Ninth Avenue Food Fest, as it's supposed to be around 85? or so, then hop the "F" down to Katz's for the big get-together at 5. Anyone interested in checking out the Food Fest? Let me know in the comments.
Silly Site o' the Day
Robin has been playing YetiSports' newest game, Albatros [sic] Overload, which presupposes the yeti and pingvins have made their way to Australia.
Robin has been playing YetiSports' newest game, Albatros [sic] Overload, which presupposes the yeti and pingvins have made their way to Australia.
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
Blogaround?
You're joking, right? I still have 551 unread entries from my Liberal Coalition friends... Not to mention 322 from the News+Views Gals and 182 from the News+View Guys... I'm half-tempted to wipe 'em all and start over, but that wouldn't be fair so I'm skimming as fast as I can...
You're joking, right? I still have 551 unread entries from my Liberal Coalition friends... Not to mention 322 from the News+Views Gals and 182 from the News+View Guys... I'm half-tempted to wipe 'em all and start over, but that wouldn't be fair so I'm skimming as fast as I can...
Blogiversary Congrats
Not even close to catching up on blogroll reading, much less being free enough to post stuff of my own. But I did want to wish Max Sawicky a happy belated second blogiversary, and Flea (aka Leigh Ann Wilson) a happy first blogiversary!
Not even close to catching up on blogroll reading, much less being free enough to post stuff of my own. But I did want to wish Max Sawicky a happy belated second blogiversary, and Flea (aka Leigh Ann Wilson) a happy first blogiversary!
Monday, May 10, 2004
Panda-Go!
Dang, I hate this still-being-behind-in-blog-reading stuff. Yeah sure, most of the kitchen stuff finally got unpacked over the weekend, and I got some much-needed rest. But I missed stuff like Ezra Klein's 20th birthday, and that's just not right... still fighting to catch up to y'all, folks, thanks for your patience!
Dang, I hate this still-being-behind-in-blog-reading stuff. Yeah sure, most of the kitchen stuff finally got unpacked over the weekend, and I got some much-needed rest. But I missed stuff like Ezra Klein's 20th birthday, and that's just not right... still fighting to catch up to y'all, folks, thanks for your patience!
More Changes
Blogger has changed its edit window again, which I don't really care for because it used to be a split window where you could read (and look up) your past posts in their entirety in the bottom window, and now I can't do it. I'm already aggravated at the absence of a calendar where I can just click on a specific day and reread all my posts. Now I only see the first few words of the opening sentence, which doesn't help me at all. And "Publish/Publish & Post" seems to have been changed to "Save as Draft/Publish Post." Bear with me while (in the middle of doing tons of other things both at home and at work) I get used to the new format (they seem to have their own comments section now, but I like Haloscan's so I'm not shifting that yet)...
Blogger has changed its edit window again, which I don't really care for because it used to be a split window where you could read (and look up) your past posts in their entirety in the bottom window, and now I can't do it. I'm already aggravated at the absence of a calendar where I can just click on a specific day and reread all my posts. Now I only see the first few words of the opening sentence, which doesn't help me at all. And "Publish/Publish & Post" seems to have been changed to "Save as Draft/Publish Post." Bear with me while (in the middle of doing tons of other things both at home and at work) I get used to the new format (they seem to have their own comments section now, but I like Haloscan's so I'm not shifting that yet)...
Sunday, May 09, 2004
Happy Mother's Day
Here's the original Mother's Day proclamation, timelier than ever today:
Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts, whether our baptism be that of water or of fears! Say firmly: "We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We women of one country will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From the bosom of the devastated earth, a voice goes up with our own. It says "Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance of justice."
Blood does not wipe our dishonor nor violence indicate possession. As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead. Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each bearing after their own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar, but of God.In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a general congress of women without limit of nationality may be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement of international questions, the great and general interests of peace.
Julia Ward Howe
Boston
1870
Here's the original Mother's Day proclamation, timelier than ever today:
Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts, whether our baptism be that of water or of fears! Say firmly: "We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We women of one country will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From the bosom of the devastated earth, a voice goes up with our own. It says "Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance of justice."
Blood does not wipe our dishonor nor violence indicate possession. As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead. Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each bearing after their own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar, but of God.In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a general congress of women without limit of nationality may be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement of international questions, the great and general interests of peace.
Julia Ward Howe
Boston
1870
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Trevor Blake, there's a new URL-shortening service called EvilURL. Not for those easily shocked by the Seven Dirty Words.
Via Trevor Blake, there's a new URL-shortening service called EvilURL. Not for those easily shocked by the Seven Dirty Words.
Saturday, May 08, 2004
My Afternoon Commute
Last Wednesday I listed some NY landmarks I pass on the express bus route on the way to my office. I'd mentioned that my return trip wasn't as picturesque, but it's not too bad in its own way. I see a few of the same landmarks on the way back:
Central Park , both CP South (where the hansom cabs hang out, and there are fancy hotels like the Essex House) and much of CP West, in addition to the 81st/79th transverse road
Columbus Circle
Lincoln Center, home of the Metropolitan Opera and the NYC Ballet
The Dakota
The Museum of Natural History
Marcus Garvey Park
Yankee Stadium
And there are other cool sights, like:
Bryant Park
A sculpture from Robert Indiana's famous LOVE series at 55th and Sixth (picture here)
The Squadron A Armory ruins
Some attractive religious buildings, like the Park Avenue Synagogue at Madison and 87th and a couple gorgeous churches in East Harlem, Metro Community Methodist and All Saints
Also twoYup Food Emporia, more garish Trump monstrosities than I'd care to count, and probably at least a dozen sushi places. Not a bad commute for the next couple weeks! After which, it's the south Westchester suburbs all the way in my 20-minute car commute, after my workplace moves right around here...
Last Wednesday I listed some NY landmarks I pass on the express bus route on the way to my office. I'd mentioned that my return trip wasn't as picturesque, but it's not too bad in its own way. I see a few of the same landmarks on the way back:
And there are other cool sights, like:
Also two
New York Blogger-Knosh 2004
Next Saturday, May 15! E-mail Roxanne Cooper to RSVP! Next Saturday and Sunday (May 15/16) is also the weekend of the Ninth Avenue International Food Festival, one of my favorite street fairs - between the Rox Populi get-together and the possibility of the car purchase that weekend I might have to skip it, but we'll see how it plays out...
Next Saturday, May 15! E-mail Roxanne Cooper to RSVP! Next Saturday and Sunday (May 15/16) is also the weekend of the Ninth Avenue International Food Festival, one of my favorite street fairs - between the Rox Populi get-together and the possibility of the car purchase that weekend I might have to skip it, but we'll see how it plays out...
Friday, May 07, 2004
Friday Cat Blogging (™ Kevin Drum)
Yeah, I think they like the new place pretty well. Amy's taken to the windows...
...and Datsa just likes to curl up on various soft places (the bed, the couch, boxes not yet unpacked) and be uncharacteristically cute.
Meanwhile, on last night's Firesign Chat, folks were showing off their new kittens. Here are Ken DeBusk's, and below are Cat Simril Ishikawa's:
Says Cat, "The top one is Blues, the bottom one is Jazz."
Yeah, I think they like the new place pretty well. Amy's taken to the windows...
...and Datsa just likes to curl up on various soft places (the bed, the couch, boxes not yet unpacked) and be uncharacteristically cute.
Meanwhile, on last night's Firesign Chat, folks were showing off their new kittens. Here are Ken DeBusk's, and below are Cat Simril Ishikawa's:
Says Cat, "The top one is Blues, the bottom one is Jazz."
Same As It Never Was
Ever since I was old enough to understand the concept, I've been dealing with misplaced nostalgia - the idea that the world was better in a far-off yesteryear and if we could only somehow get back to that dimly-remembered past Everything Would Be Okay. Of course, the truth of the matter is that there's a reason such a past is dimly-remembered; by and large, it didn't exist. Oh sure, the recollection of individual comfort zones is a very real thing; as someone once said regarding comics, but which I think can be applied to just about anything, "The Golden Age is 12 years old," rather than a specific date one can pinpoint. But expanding it to include a whole range of people, each of whom looks back with fondness on different things, is a little trickier.
Thus it is with politics, an endeavor pretty much designed to appeal to voters via misplaced nostalgia for a Morning in America that never existed. The history of this country, as in so many, has been a constant struggle (to put it in the most basic terms) between people who have power and want to keep it and people who think that power should be shared for the common good. We've never lived up to the ideals upon which the United States was founded, but that hasn't stopped true patriots from continuing to try, and false patriots from attempting to circumvent those efforts. Appeals to a mythic America come from all ends of the political spectrum, but the difference between progressives and reactionaries is that progressives' idealized version looks toward a future America to which we should strive, and reactionaries' idealized version looks backwards at an America that never existed but which they may be able to convince enough people once did.
As eRobin Stelly notes, this "Hypothetical America" was identified in last night's Daily Show by a spot-on observation from Rob Corddry, regarding "how the America that tortures prisoners isn't the America that BushCo wants Iraqis to know" and that Bush, indeed, claims to know himself. His knowledge is, of course, hypothetical and based on false nostalgia, likely having much to do with being raised in privilege and never knowing want. In reality, Bush's America is a country where your rich daddy and his friends will hand you everything on a silver platter, a country where anything unpleasant is hidden from your incurious eyes behind walls of class and circumstance. But in theory, Bush's America is heroic and never does anything wrong. And, as Corddry observed, actions don't actually matter; this hypothetical America is all that counts in this image-over-substance presidency. Said he, "Don't judge us by our actions, judge us by our ideals" (shades of the old Mom standard "do as I say, not as I do"?) and "just because we did torture prisoners it doesn't mean that it's something we would do."
Ever since I was old enough to understand the concept, I've been dealing with misplaced nostalgia - the idea that the world was better in a far-off yesteryear and if we could only somehow get back to that dimly-remembered past Everything Would Be Okay. Of course, the truth of the matter is that there's a reason such a past is dimly-remembered; by and large, it didn't exist. Oh sure, the recollection of individual comfort zones is a very real thing; as someone once said regarding comics, but which I think can be applied to just about anything, "The Golden Age is 12 years old," rather than a specific date one can pinpoint. But expanding it to include a whole range of people, each of whom looks back with fondness on different things, is a little trickier.
Thus it is with politics, an endeavor pretty much designed to appeal to voters via misplaced nostalgia for a Morning in America that never existed. The history of this country, as in so many, has been a constant struggle (to put it in the most basic terms) between people who have power and want to keep it and people who think that power should be shared for the common good. We've never lived up to the ideals upon which the United States was founded, but that hasn't stopped true patriots from continuing to try, and false patriots from attempting to circumvent those efforts. Appeals to a mythic America come from all ends of the political spectrum, but the difference between progressives and reactionaries is that progressives' idealized version looks toward a future America to which we should strive, and reactionaries' idealized version looks backwards at an America that never existed but which they may be able to convince enough people once did.
As eRobin Stelly notes, this "Hypothetical America" was identified in last night's Daily Show by a spot-on observation from Rob Corddry, regarding "how the America that tortures prisoners isn't the America that BushCo wants Iraqis to know" and that Bush, indeed, claims to know himself. His knowledge is, of course, hypothetical and based on false nostalgia, likely having much to do with being raised in privilege and never knowing want. In reality, Bush's America is a country where your rich daddy and his friends will hand you everything on a silver platter, a country where anything unpleasant is hidden from your incurious eyes behind walls of class and circumstance. But in theory, Bush's America is heroic and never does anything wrong. And, as Corddry observed, actions don't actually matter; this hypothetical America is all that counts in this image-over-substance presidency. Said he, "Don't judge us by our actions, judge us by our ideals" (shades of the old Mom standard "do as I say, not as I do"?) and "just because we did torture prisoners it doesn't mean that it's something we would do."
An Escort's Diary
Ever wonder what the life of a Los Angeles escort is like? Wonder no more; Pen-Elayne reader Lindsey has started her own Little Diary blog to tell you all about it! Says Lindsey, "After all of my work to get it up and running I still can't seem to get anyone to read it. I really want someone to read it so I feel validated for all that work... Any feedback you could give me would be appreciated." Send some support Lindsey's way!
Ever wonder what the life of a Los Angeles escort is like? Wonder no more; Pen-Elayne reader Lindsey has started her own Little Diary blog to tell you all about it! Says Lindsey, "After all of my work to get it up and running I still can't seem to get anyone to read it. I really want someone to read it so I feel validated for all that work... Any feedback you could give me would be appreciated." Send some support Lindsey's way!
Pantsless?
Thanks to a heads-up from Amanda Marcotte, I just found out that today's supposed to be No Pants Day. Uh, I'll pass, thanks.
Thanks to a heads-up from Amanda Marcotte, I just found out that today's supposed to be No Pants Day. Uh, I'll pass, thanks.
No Such Thing as Safe Art
As someone who grew up Jewish and embraced the peaceful way quite early on, one of my constant frustrations is the conflation of "anti-Semitism" with "anti-Israeli policy," particularly by right-wing Jews. I can't tell you how many times I've encountered the "self-hating Jew" epithet aimed at folks who don't think Israelis should be, you know, killing people and bulldozing homes and mowing down olive trees and building walls. To me it's pretty simple - Jews have had enough prejudice directed at us through the millenia that we shouldn't keep doing things that engender more. There's little to be done about people hating you just because you worship differently (short of educating them that, no, you don't have horns and a tail); but why on earth give them actual logical reasons to hate you (like if you've razed their house or killed their relatives) on top of that?
This is what makes Israel such a difficult topic for many American Jews to discuss like adults. Israeli Jews who don't agree with their government's actions seem to have it easier; you never hear the Israeli press denounce peace groups as "self-hating Jews." But elsewhere this guilt card is often played to such a ridiculous extent that it effectively curtails reasoned discourse. And that's just when dealing with surface facts, not representational stuff.
When it comes to art, which is supposed to be controversial and subject to interpretation and to, you know, make people think, things get much trickier. David at Barista reports on the latest controversy, this time in Australia, where an art exhibit condeming Israel's treatment of the Palestinians has been dismantled. CIRCA Art Magazine also discusses other recent controversies involving artistic critique of Israel, including Zvi Mazel going nuts in Stockholm over Snow White and the Madness of Truth, and the portion of the Out of Line free speech exhibition at the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam which includes caricatures comparing Ariel Sharon to Adolf Hitler. These exhibits weren't designed to be taken any more literally than Piss Christ or Sensation - but nuance and passion and symbolism appear lost on the uninitiated, as we've seen time and again when the arts are attacked and free speech curtailed.
You want to go after idiots who vandalize synagogues and mosques with swastikas, I'm with you all the way. You seek to tear down art you don't understand that happens to criticize a government steeped in atrocities against fellow human beings? You won't get much sympathy from me. Even if I do happen to have a religion in common with the heads of that government.
As someone who grew up Jewish and embraced the peaceful way quite early on, one of my constant frustrations is the conflation of "anti-Semitism" with "anti-Israeli policy," particularly by right-wing Jews. I can't tell you how many times I've encountered the "self-hating Jew" epithet aimed at folks who don't think Israelis should be, you know, killing people and bulldozing homes and mowing down olive trees and building walls. To me it's pretty simple - Jews have had enough prejudice directed at us through the millenia that we shouldn't keep doing things that engender more. There's little to be done about people hating you just because you worship differently (short of educating them that, no, you don't have horns and a tail); but why on earth give them actual logical reasons to hate you (like if you've razed their house or killed their relatives) on top of that?
This is what makes Israel such a difficult topic for many American Jews to discuss like adults. Israeli Jews who don't agree with their government's actions seem to have it easier; you never hear the Israeli press denounce peace groups as "self-hating Jews." But elsewhere this guilt card is often played to such a ridiculous extent that it effectively curtails reasoned discourse. And that's just when dealing with surface facts, not representational stuff.
When it comes to art, which is supposed to be controversial and subject to interpretation and to, you know, make people think, things get much trickier. David at Barista reports on the latest controversy, this time in Australia, where an art exhibit condeming Israel's treatment of the Palestinians has been dismantled. CIRCA Art Magazine also discusses other recent controversies involving artistic critique of Israel, including Zvi Mazel going nuts in Stockholm over Snow White and the Madness of Truth, and the portion of the Out of Line free speech exhibition at the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam which includes caricatures comparing Ariel Sharon to Adolf Hitler. These exhibits weren't designed to be taken any more literally than Piss Christ or Sensation - but nuance and passion and symbolism appear lost on the uninitiated, as we've seen time and again when the arts are attacked and free speech curtailed.
You want to go after idiots who vandalize synagogues and mosques with swastikas, I'm with you all the way. You seek to tear down art you don't understand that happens to criticize a government steeped in atrocities against fellow human beings? You won't get much sympathy from me. Even if I do happen to have a religion in common with the heads of that government.
Thursday, May 06, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Via Carolyn Ibis, it's time to create and meet your mystery date, with SpeedDater!
Via Carolyn Ibis, it's time to create and meet your mystery date, with SpeedDater!
Wednesday, May 05, 2004
We Have Met the Product, and It is Us
Mark Morford asks "Is it OK to laugh when small European cars maim cute fuzzy animals?" as part of a fascinating look at viral ad marketing, a phenomenon with which I was heretofore unfamiliar.
Mark Morford asks "Is it OK to laugh when small European cars maim cute fuzzy animals?" as part of a fascinating look at viral ad marketing, a phenomenon with which I was heretofore unfamiliar.
Silly Site o' the Day
Via a whole bunch of bloggers (including Moi at Bloggg), it's Burger King's Subservient Chicken. You can make him do all sorts of things...
Via a whole bunch of bloggers (including Moi at Bloggg), it's Burger King's Subservient Chicken. You can make him do all sorts of things...
My Morning Commute
Still way too packed at home, and way too busy at work, but at least my commute's gotten better in the short term. Here are just a few things my express bus passes on the way to my office:
Yankee Stadium
Marcus Garvey Park
The Duke Ellington Memorial and circle
Museum Mile, including the Met
Central Park (via 79th Street transverse road)
The Museum of Natural History
The Dakota
ABC television studio
Lincoln Center
Time Warner Center
Columbus Circle
Ed Sullivan Theatre
Times Square
Not as picturesque on the way back, but with the sun shining and me stretched out over two cushiony bus seats for a little over an hour, it's a hell of an improvement from the down-and-dirty subways.
Still way too packed at home, and way too busy at work, but at least my commute's gotten better in the short term. Here are just a few things my express bus passes on the way to my office:
Not as picturesque on the way back, but with the sun shining and me stretched out over two cushiony bus seats for a little over an hour, it's a hell of an improvement from the down-and-dirty subways.
Two of My Favorite Curmudgeons
Mark Evanier linked yesterday to two good articles, one on comedian Lewis Black and the other on the distribution difficulties for Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 911. Update #1: More on the Disney flap from Tom Burka. I don't know if I trust a bunch of drawings with no pants... Update #2: Apparently it was all a cheap publicity stunt dreamt up by Moore (thanks for the tip, Alex!), which obviously worked even though I should think it's cost him some more credibility. Which you'd think a documentarian wouldn't want to risk, but what do I know? Update #3: Okay, Moore was aware of the possibility of Disney not distributing the movie at least a year ago, but says it wasn't a done deal until they met last week. So I don't know whether to characterize this as a publicity stunt; if the basic fact that they're blocking Miramax from distributing the film (which isn't necessarily censorship, just a stupid and petty business decision) remains, then when Moore suspected the possibility and when he knew for sure is all rather secondary, isn't it? And of course he's going to shout about it more on the eve of its release than during the time he was putting it together...
Mark Evanier linked yesterday to two good articles, one on comedian Lewis Black and the other on the distribution difficulties for Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 911. Update #1: More on the Disney flap from Tom Burka. I don't know if I trust a bunch of drawings with no pants... Update #2: Apparently it was all a cheap publicity stunt dreamt up by Moore (thanks for the tip, Alex!), which obviously worked even though I should think it's cost him some more credibility. Which you'd think a documentarian wouldn't want to risk, but what do I know? Update #3: Okay, Moore was aware of the possibility of Disney not distributing the movie at least a year ago, but says it wasn't a done deal until they met last week. So I don't know whether to characterize this as a publicity stunt; if the basic fact that they're blocking Miramax from distributing the film (which isn't necessarily censorship, just a stupid and petty business decision) remains, then when Moore suspected the possibility and when he knew for sure is all rather secondary, isn't it? And of course he's going to shout about it more on the eve of its release than during the time he was putting it together...
Tuesday, May 04, 2004
The Superstition Connection
JuliusBlog has collected a number of pictures featuring Geoge W. Bush rubbing bald pates. I was relieved to see it wasn't just black guys' heads (as I've mentioned in the past, that carries some nasty racist connotations), but I'm surprised that nobody seems to have applied Occam's Razor here - to me, the simplest explanation for the head-rubbing is that it may be a baseball-related superstition. I just saw some head-rubbing very recently, in a shot of the Yankee dugout during a game last week. This makes a heck of a lot of sense to me, since I think religious fanatics tend toward that kind of thinking in the first place, which is probably why some Christians note, "The Bible warns against trusting unknown forces that work behind the scenes. Those who trust in Christ must reject the idea of luck or chance. God is all-knowing and sovereign over the events of our lives, and He wants us to trust Him alone." I guess they want to corner the market on superstition...
[Still way, way behind in blogroll reading, by the way. And still behind in work stuff too, so I don't expect to catch up much before the coming weekend. Congrats to Julia, who I hear was on Air America last night...]
JuliusBlog has collected a number of pictures featuring Geoge W. Bush rubbing bald pates. I was relieved to see it wasn't just black guys' heads (as I've mentioned in the past, that carries some nasty racist connotations), but I'm surprised that nobody seems to have applied Occam's Razor here - to me, the simplest explanation for the head-rubbing is that it may be a baseball-related superstition. I just saw some head-rubbing very recently, in a shot of the Yankee dugout during a game last week. This makes a heck of a lot of sense to me, since I think religious fanatics tend toward that kind of thinking in the first place, which is probably why some Christians note, "The Bible warns against trusting unknown forces that work behind the scenes. Those who trust in Christ must reject the idea of luck or chance. God is all-knowing and sovereign over the events of our lives, and He wants us to trust Him alone." I guess they want to corner the market on superstition...
[Still way, way behind in blogroll reading, by the way. And still behind in work stuff too, so I don't expect to catch up much before the coming weekend. Congrats to Julia, who I hear was on Air America last night...]
Silly Site o' the Day
I never came across it as a kid, but Johnny Bacardi fondly remembers the game Ka-Bala, and locates an online version.
I never came across it as a kid, but Johnny Bacardi fondly remembers the game Ka-Bala, and locates an online version.
Monday, May 03, 2004
Silly Site o' the Day
Via David at Barista a few weeks ago, a test from the Beeb to determine how good you are at spotting fake smiles.
Via David at Barista a few weeks ago, a test from the Beeb to determine how good you are at spotting fake smiles.
Back But Busy
Hey y'all, miss me? :) Let's have a nice round of virtual applause for guest blogger Hanan Levin, whose posts I can hardly wait to read (even though it looks like I'll have to 'cause I have a lot of catching up to do here at the office as well)!
Briefly: I was sick much of the weekend, a combination of tension and a bad reaction to that Indian dinner from Wednesday night, so I didn't get as much of the kitchen unpacked as I'd hoped. Robin did an amazing job figuring out where all the furniture worked best. His studio is set up in the alcove opposite the kitchen, the third bedroom will be the comics library (that gets unpacked last, which is kinda unfortunate as I suspect my bedside comics reading box is among the boxes I can't get to for awhile), and the second bedroom is the office/computer room. The computers are all set up and awaiting DSL activation later this week. Most of the important stuff is unpacked, but we have a very long way to go.
I took the express bus into Manhattan for the first time this morning; had I known it would be an hour and fifteen minutes (twice the time it takes by subway) I would have caught an earlier bus, which I'll do tomorrow. Even with the length, though, it's a much more pleasant commute than the subway (more comfortable seats, above ground all the way, etc.), and I look forward to getting into the rhythm of it for the next three weeks until the office move to New Rochelle. By which time I'll likely have a car, as Mom and Dad will start shopping this week; I told them how much I liked the Hyundai Elantra we rented so that's probably what they'll buy me. Things seem to be happening way too fast, but maybe they'll settle down by June. Back to work now!
Hey y'all, miss me? :) Let's have a nice round of virtual applause for guest blogger Hanan Levin, whose posts I can hardly wait to read (even though it looks like I'll have to 'cause I have a lot of catching up to do here at the office as well)!
Briefly: I was sick much of the weekend, a combination of tension and a bad reaction to that Indian dinner from Wednesday night, so I didn't get as much of the kitchen unpacked as I'd hoped. Robin did an amazing job figuring out where all the furniture worked best. His studio is set up in the alcove opposite the kitchen, the third bedroom will be the comics library (that gets unpacked last, which is kinda unfortunate as I suspect my bedside comics reading box is among the boxes I can't get to for awhile), and the second bedroom is the office/computer room. The computers are all set up and awaiting DSL activation later this week. Most of the important stuff is unpacked, but we have a very long way to go.
I took the express bus into Manhattan for the first time this morning; had I known it would be an hour and fifteen minutes (twice the time it takes by subway) I would have caught an earlier bus, which I'll do tomorrow. Even with the length, though, it's a much more pleasant commute than the subway (more comfortable seats, above ground all the way, etc.), and I look forward to getting into the rhythm of it for the next three weeks until the office move to New Rochelle. By which time I'll likely have a car, as Mom and Dad will start shopping this week; I told them how much I liked the Hyundai Elantra we rented so that's probably what they'll buy me. Things seem to be happening way too fast, but maybe they'll settle down by June. Back to work now!
Sunday, May 02, 2004
"Don't be so serious all the time" -
A very funny MP3 of Peter Sellers reading "A Hard Day's Night" in a fake Tony Blair's voice
LOOK DOWN! - Photos by Marc Schiller of the Streets and Marketplaces of Cambodia and Vietnam - 2003
Some Lovely Pixar Shorts
Bogus names, (like Dwayne de Tubb, Colin Oscopy and Benny Fishery)
A very funny MP3 of Peter Sellers reading "A Hard Day's Night" in a fake Tony Blair's voice
LOOK DOWN! - Photos by Marc Schiller of the Streets and Marketplaces of Cambodia and Vietnam - 2003
Some Lovely Pixar Shorts
Bogus names, (like Dwayne de Tubb, Colin Oscopy and Benny Fishery)
Instructions to start the day rightly:
1. Open a new file in your PC
2. Name it "George W. Bush"
3. Send it to the trash
4. Empty the trash
5. Your PC will ask you: "Do you really want to get rid of George W. Bush?"
6. Answer calmly "Yes" pressing firmly on the mouse's button
"Wolfie's Fuzzy Math", By MAUREEN DOWD -
"What can you say about a deputy defense secretary so eager to invade Iraq he was nicknamed Wolfowitz of Arabia, so bullish to remold the Middle East he froze the State Department out of the occupation and then mangled it, who doesn't bother to keep track of the young Americans who died for his delusion?"
"The voices! They never stop! 'Kill! Kill! Kill!'" complained U.S. President George W. Bush today at a press conference in the White House Rose Garden...
"Think the Republicans got lost somewhere in cyberspace? Think again. The GOP's underreported e-campaign may lack the media razzle-dazzle of the Deaniac phenomenon, but it promises to leave no less a mark on the annals of political campaign history..."
The GOP Masters the Internet - By Michelle Levander, April 22, 2004
1. Open a new file in your PC
2. Name it "George W. Bush"
3. Send it to the trash
4. Empty the trash
5. Your PC will ask you: "Do you really want to get rid of George W. Bush?"
6. Answer calmly "Yes" pressing firmly on the mouse's button
"Wolfie's Fuzzy Math", By MAUREEN DOWD -
"What can you say about a deputy defense secretary so eager to invade Iraq he was nicknamed Wolfowitz of Arabia, so bullish to remold the Middle East he froze the State Department out of the occupation and then mangled it, who doesn't bother to keep track of the young Americans who died for his delusion?"
"The voices! They never stop! 'Kill! Kill! Kill!'" complained U.S. President George W. Bush today at a press conference in the White House Rose Garden...
"Think the Republicans got lost somewhere in cyberspace? Think again. The GOP's underreported e-campaign may lack the media razzle-dazzle of the Deaniac phenomenon, but it promises to leave no less a mark on the annals of political campaign history..."
The GOP Masters the Internet - By Michelle Levander, April 22, 2004
Saturday, May 01, 2004
Food Links:
The Last Dinner on the Titanic - The First-Class Menu as served in the first-class dining saloon of the R.M.S. Titanic on April 14, 1912:
First Course
Hors D'Oeuvres
Oysters
Second Course
Consommé Olga
Cream of Barley
Third Course
Poached Salmon with Mousseline Sauce, Cucumbers
Fourth Course
Filet Mignons Lili
Saute of Chicken, Lyonnaise
Vegetable Marrow Farci
Fifth Course
Lamb, Mint Sauce
Roast Duckling, Apple Sauce
Sirloin of Beef, Chateau Potatoes
Green Pea
Creamed Carrots
Boiled Rice
Parmentier & Boiled New Potatoes
Sixth Course
Punch Romaine
Seventh Course
Roast Squab & Cress
Eighth Course
Cold Asparagus Vinaigrette
Ninth Course
Pate de Foie Gras
Celery
Tenth Course
Waldorf Pudding
Peaches in Chartreuse Jelly
Chocolate & Vanilla Eclairs
French Ice Cream
GOLD Kiwifruit is New Zealand's new national treasure. Its tropical sweetness makes it the perfect refreshment for a summer day. Cut the fruit in half, and scoop out its golden flesh.
The Kosher Pickles song
American High Tea Menu -"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony know as afternoon tea."
The Last Dinner on the Titanic - The First-Class Menu as served in the first-class dining saloon of the R.M.S. Titanic on April 14, 1912:
First Course
Hors D'Oeuvres
Oysters
Second Course
Consommé Olga
Cream of Barley
Third Course
Poached Salmon with Mousseline Sauce, Cucumbers
Fourth Course
Filet Mignons Lili
Saute of Chicken, Lyonnaise
Vegetable Marrow Farci
Fifth Course
Lamb, Mint Sauce
Roast Duckling, Apple Sauce
Sirloin of Beef, Chateau Potatoes
Green Pea
Creamed Carrots
Boiled Rice
Parmentier & Boiled New Potatoes
Sixth Course
Punch Romaine
Seventh Course
Roast Squab & Cress
Eighth Course
Cold Asparagus Vinaigrette
Ninth Course
Pate de Foie Gras
Celery
Tenth Course
Waldorf Pudding
Peaches in Chartreuse Jelly
Chocolate & Vanilla Eclairs
French Ice Cream
GOLD Kiwifruit is New Zealand's new national treasure. Its tropical sweetness makes it the perfect refreshment for a summer day. Cut the fruit in half, and scoop out its golden flesh.
The Kosher Pickles song
American High Tea Menu -"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony know as afternoon tea."
Profitless Profiteering - Is it war profiteering if you barely make a profit on your war work?And why can't Halliburton make good money in Iraq?
It's clear what the Republican Party had to gain by welcoming women into its upper echelons and executive ranks. What's less clear is what's in it for the women themselves
Anyone But Bush Classic Thong
It's clear what the Republican Party had to gain by welcoming women into its upper echelons and executive ranks. What's less clear is what's in it for the women themselves
Anyone But Bush Classic Thong
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