December 2009
November 2009
For the moment, Mr. Lehrer, who reluctantly gave up his manual typewriter when the show moved to computers, is drawing the line at one digital update. Asked if he planned to use Twitter, he exclaimed, “Are you crazy?” Then he relented, adding, “I will never say no.”
“Last Christmas,” The Swingle Singers [eMusic]. Because the world needs more versions of this Wham! classic. (/sarcasm)
I can listen to this one on constant repeat; I just love the harmonies. via cheia:
Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson - Winter Song
This is my winter song to you.
The storm is coming soon,
it rolls in from the sea
My voice; a beacon in the night.
My words will be your light,
to carry you to me.The great thing about this song is that it’s kinda christmassy, but you can already listen to it without feeling the slightest bit guilty.
Despite his mention of “universal rights,” Obama, in the view of rights activists, “didn’t strike as hard of a tone on human rights as some of us had hoped for,” said Sam Zarifi, the Asia-Pacific director for the London-based group Amnesty International. “It’s tough to wag your finger about human rights when your hand is stretched out for more money.” —Activist who challenged China on quake deaths gets 3-year sentence - washingtonpost.com. Ouch.
ewwww
As cities have grown rapidly across the nation, many have neglected infrastructure projects and paved over green spaces that once absorbed rainwater. That has contributed to sewage backups into more than 400,000 basements and spills into thousands of streets, according to data collected by state and federal officials. Sometimes, waste has overflowed just upstream from drinking water intake points or near public beaches. There is no national record-keeping of how many illnesses are caused by sewage spills. But academic research suggests that as many as 20 million people each year become ill from drinking water containing bacteria and other pathogens that are often spread by untreated waste.
Earlier this fall, a little shockwave of terror zipped through the foodie Web: We were facing a canned pumpkin shortage. Local news stations ran stories explaining how poor weather conditions the previous year had led to smaller crops. Bloggers followed up with jokey posts about hoarding. Commenters on Serious Eats replied to the news with statements like, “I had to go to 3 stores before I found pumpkin last week. I bought 4 cans, but now I’m going back to buy 4 more!” and “Oh no I love pumpkin pie…im gonna have to go stock up before all the other pumpkin pie fiends find out.” But only one commenter said what I would’ve thought to be obvious and will paraphrase as follows: “Dudes, just a cook a pumpkin.”
