Darwin T’s
Saturday, February 21st, 2009
Mike Rosulek, a grad student at U. Illinois, has hit upon an excellent T-shirt design. Check em out at his Obama’s Elf
Saturday, February 21st, 2009Welcome to Texas: We Shoot Pigs from Helicopters!
Friday, February 20th, 2009
In what has got to be a very complicated metaphor, Rep. Sid Miller is proposing a bill to allow people to go up in a helicopter and gun down wild hogs. There is some concern that something might go wrong if this plan were implemented, but I just don't see how that could be. The report at the Huffington Post is really quite funny. Read More
If I had a heart–Fever Ray
Monday, February 16th, 2009There’s Really No Such Thing as Bad Publicity?
Sunday, February 15th, 2009
The Blue Flower by Penelope Fitzgerald
Friday, February 13th, 2009
A friend of mine once said that England and America are separated by a common language. While not entirely sure what this means, I'm often surprised at how much the predominant sensibilities of the two countries differ. We both have our forms of The Office, sure, and who doesn't love Hogwarts, but it is startling how many things fail to translate even though no actual translation needs to be done. The works of Penelope Fitzgerald might be an example. This woman had two books shortlisted for the Booker… Read More
Happy Birthday Chuck!
Thursday, February 12th, 2009
Today is Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. The theory of evolution by natural selection might be the single most fertile and elegant scientific hypothesis of all time. To celebrate the bicentennial, I've been reading the two volume biography by Janet Browne, Muzak Bankrupt
Thursday, February 12th, 2009
It's not just a metaphor anymore. The company responsible for setting Beatles tunes to pan flutes in order to hypnotize Gap shoppers is going under. I, for one, find this encouraging. Now, if only Michael Bolton and Kenny G would go bankrupt, this economy would have hit the crap trifecta! Read More
The Glories of Uncledom
Wednesday, February 11th, 2009
I normally don't put a bunch of private lifey posts up here, but I thought it needed to be said: being an uncle is underrated. I just spent a weekend with my brother's family in Bend, Oregon and the time I enjoyed with my niece Marly and my nephew Finnegan was, well, rejuvinating. One day I might very well have critters of my own, but the affection/responsibility ratio of the avuncular life is pretty damned good. Read More