10.30.2003/07:50
Wizard's effects
"The obvious cure for this malady -- that is, taking a break from reading -- was rejected by two of the patients, who preferred acetaminophen instead."

10.30.2003/07:46
What kind of tree?
Leaf key.

10.29.2003/18:26
Meagan and Henry, Dot Com
One of the things I most like about the Internet is that although it is a medium that works for communicating with millions of people, it is also one that works well for communicating with a few hundred or even a few dozen widely dispersed people who share an interest. A great example is the new practice of couples with weddings using handy services to create web sites about their upcoming weddings. For one, this site for our friends Meagan and Henry.

10.28.2003/07:42
Tales of the crypts
"Though 60 percent of the mausoleums are endowed, the money is not typically enough for proper protection and preservation. Many builders assumed servants would take care of things in perpetuity."

10.27.2003/11:15
Recipe for success
As happens to all of us, I am asked from time to time by the checkout clerk at our local supermarket what I am planning to do with a certain less-than-commonplace item or other that is going through the price scanner. South Louisiana is food-crazed country, so it's not unusual for this to spur a conversation in which recipes are described, or even exchanged.

This led me to wonder if there's ever been someone who took a job at the checkout in order to find out what sorts of things could be done with say, jicamas and red wine vinegar. I imagine a chatty and industrious month or two in one store, and then begging the management for a transfer into a new (and ethnically different) neighborhood.

Maybe I'll drop around the grocery chain today and pick up a job application...

10.26.2003/22:37
Mystery at sea
What is causing these fishermen to suffer staph infections?

10.26.2003/17:58
Map reading
A weblog with great information and news about maps and mapping.

10.26.2003/17:56
Public problems
"Toilets have also been closed in North Devon but the council has reinvested the money in a new generation of super-loos, which are more efficient for cleaning purposes, easier to use and more difficult for vandals to besmirch."

10.26.2003/17:48
Gone Yankees

The Marlins win, the Yankees are gone. All in all, October has been a very satisfying month of baseball, with good matchups and interesting games in all three playoff rounds. The Red Sox and the Cubs can wait till next year. Of course, all the rest of the clubs are waiting till next year, too, including the Marlins...and the Yanks.

10.25.2003/18:27
House of horrors
"As part of its crackdown, the department had employees search the Internet for haunted houses across New Jersey and then instructed local building code officers to make sure the places were inspected."

10.24.2003/22:34
Little big man

A fascinating collection: hundreds of caricatures of Napoleon.

10.24.2003/22:26
Why did it cross the road?
About armadilloes.

10.24.2003/22:14
Our friends at Microsoft
"Microsoft is not a charity, they're not going to fix security out of the kindness of their heart."

10.23.2003/21:20
Search the text
This new Amazon.com feature is truly breath-taking.

10.23.2003/09:06
Go Fish
I have totally forgiven the Flordia Marlins for defeating the hallowed Cubbies, and cheer them on against the Yankees.

10.22.2003/23:03
Yes, it's...
Porno karaoke.

10.22.2003/20:31
Toll yuks
The Massachussetts Turnpike Prank.

10.22.2003/20:23
Time for a change... to no change
A site for those who oppose daylight saving time and wish for it, presumably, to fall back out of use.

10.22.2003/20:18
Wabbit Wescue
Save the rabbits.

10.22.2003/20:16
Bird land
The good news is, a new bird species has been found. The bad news is, it's only known habitat has just been destroyed.

10.22.2003/20:14
Mummy secret unwrapped
"Modern science has finally found the secret of why some mummies can last for thousands of years."

10.22.2003/08:03
Arts building
If you build it, they will come. But if you build it, who will maintain it?

10.21.2003/08:59
Crack operation
I had a nice note from the folks at Plumberpants Clothing the other day, whose visit to Poor Clio reminded them of their decade-plus in Louisiana. As you can see, they've gone on to productive pursuits!

10.21.2003/08:40
Gold in them thar ex-commies
Here's how to find out about the untapped regional markets of Russia - 89 of them.

10.21.2003/08:37
Old Wyoming
"By 2020, Wyoming is expected to have the nation's highest percentage of residents 65 and older and one of every two people in the state will be over 60."

10.20.2003/08:01
Arachnoid lore
Spider myths.

10.19.2003/20:51
Taken
The DVD collection of the Sci-Fi channel's Spielberg production of Taken is due out this week, and Susan just ordered it for me as my birthday present! Yo!

10.19.2003/17:34
High cotton
"The United States has no business growing 16 million bales of cotton a year."

10.18.2003/09:22
Super idea
Great idea: a SETI-like virtual supercomputer, with a regional basis and identity. Cyber civic pride.

10.17.2003/17:44
Hmmmm!
Some pretty darn good hummingbird nest photos. Also, a whole site about hummingbirds.

10.16.2003/08:56
Freedom
Escaped gorilla (still) in the news.

10.16.2003/08:53
Don't just scatter ashes...
"A LifeGem is a certified, high quality diamond created from the carbon of your loved one as a memorial to their unique and wonderful life."

10.15.2003/13:39
Help him!
If you see this person, try to offer him your protection. He may need it.

10.15.2003/08:55

Boys to men
Columbus Park in Chinatown in Manhattan.

10.15.2003/08:53

American Thread
American Thread Company building on West Broadway in Tribeca.

10.15.2003/08:50

Hope
Manchester Festival String Orchestra performs at St. Paul's Chapel on Broadway in lower Manhattan.

10.15.2003/08:34
Reptile Health
Sites That Are What Their URLs Say They Are Dept.:
reptilehealth.com

10.15.2003/08:28
How about those Cubs fans!
"It has nothing to do with the curse," Cubs manager Dusty Baker insisted. "History had nothing to do with this game. Nothing."

10.14.2003/19:05
The Thump
"Savvy pumpkin purchasers would be well-advised to practice the pumpkin thump."

10.13.2003/08:56
Welcome back
Blue crabs in the news.

10.13.2003/08:48
Damn Yankees
A nice little spot for haters of the New York Yankees.

10.13.2003/08:46
Baseball conflict
In a conversation with my friend Dick over the weekend, I realized that I wanted the Red Sox to beat the Yankess, and then for the Cubs to get into the World Series against the Yankess, and for them to beat them, too. This does not follow the logic of the playoff rules, but it is a very satisfying thought.

10.12.2003/19:55

Marble Cemetery
The Marble Cemetery in Manhattan's East Village was open today for visitors as part of the first Open House New York.

10.12.2003/11:39
Back to life
If the Academy of Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, LA, opens a boys' school in the old Sunset High School, it will be a good thing for area educational options and also a good thing for architectural preservation.

10.11.2003/14:23

Join hands
Fence decor for public garden at 6th St. and Ave. B in Manhattan's East Village.

10.11.2003/14:21

A little Paris
Not a Paris street, but Orchard St. in New York's rapidly upscaling Lower East Side.

10.11.2003/13:55
Super!
MXYPLYZK

10.10.2003/13:09
Spill
The fragile strand that is I-10 in Louisiana.

10.9.2003/07:37
Fall colors
When and where for fall foliage.

10.8.2003/18:02
The Body
Here is someone connecting the dots in a way that I have been thinking these last few days: California may be thinking of Arnold Schwarzenegger as the next Ronald Reagan, when he might turn out instead to be the next Jesse Ventura.

10.8.2003/08:18
Violent Sox fans
"Boston officials yesterday promised a police crackdown for the remainder of the playoffs and said security would grow tighter if the Red Sox move closer to a World Series championship."

10.8.2003/08:17
Swiss rain forest
A rain forest ... in Switzerland.

10.7.2003/10:48
Room for more
"Also, over time, everything disintegrates. A wooden casket could be added every few years ad infinitum. Most vaults have not been used since the late 1800s and would now appear empty."

10.6.2003/20:11
Throw up stuff
Puking pumpkin. And the best thing is, you can make it at home yourself!

10.6.2003/20:08
That's news!
Dog bites man, not news. Man scalds dog, that's news!

10.6.2003/20:06
Old times
"This discovery has come out of the blue. There is no evidence of the site from air photography and no history of fieldwork."

10.5.2003/19:40
Flying high
Pretty darned good balloon picture.

10.5.2003/16:17
Bloodbath
A project to compose an opera about a really bad sort of gal.

10.5.2003/10:16
Stick 'em!
Vlad the Impaler, better known to us as the fictional Count Dracula.

10.5.2003/10:14
Big tapestry
World's biggest tapestry will have home in Bristol museum.

10.3.2003/21:11
Big ship
The Really, Really Huge Queen Mary 2.

10.3.2003/17:20
New CD
I spent the better part of the day today putting sample tracks on the web site of Ghanaian-born pianist William Champman Nyaho, who is in the midst of releasing his first solo CD, Senku. (Senku is the word for keyboard instrument in the Fanti or Ghanaian language.)

The CD is subtitled "Piano Music by Composers of African Descent," and draws together a compelling and exciting mix of classical music of the African Diaspora. We have put in generous enough samples on the site for you to really get an idea of the music, and even one full cut to be nice guys! When the CD is actually available from the publisher, I'll post again about it with the link, since I think you're going to want to buy it!

10.2.2003/21:08
The Bottom Line
A Sirius rescue of the Bottom Line. For now.

10.2.2003/20:53
Information, please
Cell phone walkking tours in New York's Lower East Side.

10.2.2003/12:01
Pet shock
"Let the father answer his daughter's question as to why her favorite cat has been taken away."

10.2.2003/09:02
Investment opportunity!
"This palace is the ideal investment for the setting of a highest-luxury standard hotel in Iran, which could attract the tourism and the businessmen."

10.1.2003/07:40
Sit me next to her!
RSVP Dinner Party game.

10.1.2003/07:34
Ballet tempest
"Volochkova, a stylish blonde who exudes movie-star glamour, was fired amid a contract dispute and claims by theater officials that they could not find partners to dance with her because she is too big. "