June 2012
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“What I mean by that is I think a lot of what enabled Woody to be a director and...”
– Louis C.K.’s New Louie Editor Susan E. Morse Compares Him to Her Old Boss, Woody Allen — Vulture
Actually, it’s more like Vulture trying to shoehorn comparisons as much as possible…but a good read anyway if you are a Woody Allen and Louis CK fan.
May 2012
29 posts
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“They may shower with their clothes on, so they don’t have to see themselves.”
– Transgender at five - The Washington Post
I know, I know. Poignant story about transgender children, but I read that sentence and my immediate thought was Tobias Fünke in cutoffs crying in the shower, a.k.a. nevernude.
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“Fists and feet were responsible for 745 murders in 2010, or 5.7 percent of all...”
– George Zimmerman claims he was fighting for his life. How deadly is an unarmed teenager? - Slate Magazine
You are a deadly weapon.
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“Decay had begun to show in some HP offices. Mice skittered in the corridors....”
– How Hewlett-Packard lost its way - Fortune Tech
This article on HP’s recent troubles reads more like European history of constant warfare and shifting alliances.
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“He lets the sorry truth land: “White woman’s life is valuable.” He then asks the...”
– Why Comedians Were Afraid of Patrice O’Neal — New York Magazine
Patrice O’Neal had so much comedy left in him when he died a few months ago. Sometimes, when I have problems with dumb guys, I ask the Obi Wan ghost of Patrice to guide me.
He made comedy dangerous with his no-holds-barred...
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WatchMichael Laiskonis, formerly of Le Bernardin, makes his pastry chef interpretation of pizza. Pâte scurée, lightly candied cherry tomatoes, cream cheese spheres, etc.
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“He salutes every flag, closes every gate, kisses every hand,” she said.”
– A Rare Form of Dementia Tests a Vow of ‘for Better, for Worse’ - NYTimes.com
Wife of a frontotemporal dementia patient describes his behavior.
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“They are shocked by the rare flesh of the lamb, although it’s the most perfect...”
– Culture Shock: 2000s Archive : gourmet.com
From 2005: three chefs from Sichuan enter the French Laundry… “World’s best restaurant” is in the palate of the beholder.
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“He bought his AAirpass in 1987 for his work in investment banking. After he...”
– The frequent fliers who flew too much - latimes.com
American Airlines used to sell unlimited first class fight passes anywhere from $250k to millions of dollars. The pass holders’ flights cost the airline too much. So, of course, loopholes were exploited, people were blackmailed, etc. by the...
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“A better answer as to why people dislike Nickelback is tautological: They hate...”
– Taking in a concert doubleheader with Creed and Nickelback, the world’s most hated bands - Grantland
Irrational hate toward certain popular culture institutions: I feel it.
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“There’s an art to telling jokes well. Shorter is better. Word choice is crucial....”
– Being Blanche | Longform
Blanche Knott is my comedy mother. (Akatsuka Fujio is my comedy father.)
I don’t even know how a tattered copy of Truly Tasteless Jokes fell into my hands in elementary school. Murky concepts like blowjobs and racism crystalized in my mind reading these jokes. If...
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“Having seen the Seinfeld finale and knowing when you depart from who you are it...”
– Friends Oral History: Inside the Ratings Juggernaut’s Secret Past | Hollywood | Vanity Fair
Friends isn’t a comedy connoisseur’s comedy, necessarily, but peep this oral history if you’re curious about how shows like this come together.
Regarding the above quoted passage,...
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“This means operating in countries where many multinationals fear to tread;...”
– A Giant Among Giants - By Ken Silverstein | Foreign Policy
At some point in modern times, being outraged became the preferred pastime for the intelligentsia. If you want to feel like you got punched in the gut, read this piece on Glencore and how crazy rich they are and just how plain crazy they...
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“Outbreaks of influenza, measles, severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS,...”
– Fighting Illness and Germs on the Road - NYTimes.com
Ah, the silver lining for 9-11. Thanks, Grey Lady!
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“There is a reason, of course, that the semen that Badger-Bluff Fanny Freddie...”
– The Perfect Milk Machine: How Big Data Transformed the Dairy Industry - Alexis Madrigal - Technology - The Atlantic
Good thing desirable traits for humans aren’t as clear cut as traits for dairy cows or we’d have a Boys from Brazil situation on our hands. Reading about genetics is...
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“If they represented America’s power then Blakley, like most medics, represented...”
– U.S. military advisers forged close relationships with Iraqi soldiers. - Slate Magazine
The story of one death, of many, in Iraq. Reading about one death gives me a huge lump in the throat and teary eyes. I can’t even comprehend that there are countless stories like this of lives lost,...
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“B. was my first long-term boyfriend, and thus the first man I looked forward to...”
– From Sex Cake to Spurned Salad
Since I grew into a fantastic home cook, every guy I saw long-term ended up gaining 10-15 lbs. And after breaking up, I knew he was over it when those 10-15 lbs would be gone.
I don’t miss dating, courtship, whatever but I do miss making someone fat and happy.
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Watch16 minute Thomas Keller tribute wankfest maybe worth watching or listening to in the background. If you don’t want to watch, most salient part is Keller won’t hire you if your golf game isn’t good, and he makes his hires caddy for him. That changed my view of him, for sure.
April 2012
35 posts
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“When I was in college I studied under this guy named John Glavin who was a...”
– Wag’s Revue - Mike Birbiglia
We are all two-hearted, aren’t we?
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“But obviously if you’ve got a wage that’s under a dollar a day, it’s gonna take...”
– Outside at Tribeca: Town of Runners Q&A - Page 1 | Trail Running Fitness Plans and Advice | OutsideOnline.com
The town of people who can’t afford running shoes produced two long distance runners who won 4 Olympic gold medals total in 2008 at Beijing. Meanwhile, some people who can afford...
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“The timeline of the activity tracks USA TODAY’s reporting on the...”
– Misinformation campaign targets USA TODAY reporter, editor – USATODAY.com
Creepy online misinformation and harassment of USA Today reporter on the Pentagon beat. How great is the Pentagon at shooting its own foot?
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Wag's Revue - Issue Eleven →
Noice online-only literary journal. This issue has an interview with Mike Birbiglia and 3 essays on Louis CK, amongst other offerings.
My only quibble: the third Louis CK essay written by a woman about CK and feminism is half-baked and weak, especially in comparison to the other CK pieces…not to mention having a woman approach via the feminism angle.
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“The National Potato Council, which had opposed the attempts to limit the serving...”
– New Rules for School Meals Aim at Reducing Obesity - NYTimes.com
Potato man is very passionate about the potato being treated like a second class vegetable. In the end, the potato’s civil rights were not violated. School lunches can still feature tater tots.
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“As you might be able to tell, it was vigorously uncomfortable — more than a...”
– I had a transvaginal ultrasound: My perspective on the mandate that touched off 2012′s War On Women | The Raw Story
Read this before you jump into the transvaginal ultrasound debate. Informed argument is always better, no?
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“Both sources can rattle off a list of Hollywood H.G.H. users, starting with...”
– Vial of Youth? Hollywood’s Burgeoning Addiction to Human Growth Hormone | Hollywood | Vanity Fair
I only knew of HGH abuse in sports doping that Hollywood’s flippant attitude in using it to enhance appearance is completely alien to me.
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“For the projection aspect, a San Diego company called AV Concepts used a...”
– Tupac Shakur ‘Hologram,’ Seen at Coachella, May Go on Tour - WSJ.com
Best piece of information about Hologram Tupac! Holo Tupac is a Pepper’s Ghost, digital but Victorian through and through.
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“You’d see this brand-spanking-new KFC in the middle of this sea of brown shacks,...”
– KFC’s Big Game of Chicken - Businessweek
Fastfood colonialism. KFC sales are sagging in the US but booming overseas in countries such as China.
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“D&T: What do your friends say when you tell them you don’t like Ryan...”
– W.A.R.G.: Women Against Ryan Gosling | Death and Taxes
Oft underrepresented voices of women who are, like, totally not “Fuck yeah, Ryan Gosling!”
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“Only one problem: Nobody could find any certified organic and fair-trade farms...”
– The Undiluted Genius of Dr. Bronner’s
You should dilute Dr. Bronner’s soap, but take in their amazing ethos full-strength. A feel good story that will leave you tingling like their peppermint soap.