Day: March 26, 2009

Birthday

I want to thank everyone for the birthday wishes. I had a rainy, but overall very nice, day. I also got a couple of really neat gifts — including, unexpectedly, a brand new camera.

I’m still trying to figure out half of its buttons and settings, but I’m so far really impressed by it.

Thursday various

  • Today is my thirty-second birthday. Among others, I have outlived “Grigori Nelyubov by more than a month. He was an a skilled pilot and Soviet cosmonaut who was expelled for drunkenness. He died of suicide by stepping in front of a train on February 18, 1966…” Good to know. [via]

  • Of course, if you went by today’s Writer’s Almanac, you might assume nobody but Joseph Campbell had been born today. I don’t know why, but I’m always intrigued when Keillor devotes the entire daily program to one single person. Campbell’s influence is arguably still deep enough to warrant it — though I’ve never read anything by him or seen the Bill Moyers PBS specials. Does anyone recommend them?

  • Speaking of growing up/not growing up: every time I watch this trailer for Where the Wild Things Are, all I want to do is watch it again. I have no particular attachment to Maurice Sendak’s original book — I’m not even sure I’ve ever read it — but the movie looks incredible. (Lucius T. Sheppard doesn’t think so, but that’s possibly a good sign. Seriously, his curmudgeonly scorn for all things pop cultural is getting rather tired.) [via]

  • My favorite story of the day? Easily a toss-up between this story of an Australian coach who uses a live crocodile to encourage speedy swimmers — or at least did back in 1998. I couldn’t find anything more recent than this 2001 Telegraph article, which suggests it was no fun for the crocodile either — and this story about the Egyptian government being forced to dispel rumors that a text message can kill anybody who receives it. At least, they say they’re only rumors… [via and via]

  • My least favorite? Easily this story about a massive “space storm” that could any day now wipe out civilization as we know it. I think I’m going to go back to thinking happy birthday thoughts. [via]