- “US pop star Britney Spears, seen here in August 2009, took aim at some of the tabloid stories that have dogged her through 2009, publishing a list of the top 75 articles deemed to be the most ridiculous.” Number one on the list? That she used to be an internationally famous and successful recording artist.
- “Everywhere I turned, I found pain and loss, a procession of wasted lives, people who never fought Ali and, thus, won’t ever have someone come looking for them.” Muhammad Ali fought 50 men. Only one disappeared.” [via]
- “The gases which formed the Earth’s atmosphere — and probably its oceans — did not come from inside the Earth but from outer space, according to a new study.” [via]
- MC Frontalot uses Dungeons & Dragons to quit smoking. [via]
- And finally, “Are the Stars?” [via]
Month: December 2009
The masks we wear
From Love Sick: A Smoldering Look at Love, Lust, and Marriage, text by Michael J. Nelson:
As we go through life, at work and in relationships, with both friends, strangers, and loved ones, we all wear masks. Some of us wear plastic dime-store Sandy Duncan masks, while others prefer the less expensive Burt Reynolds model. The downside to wearing them is that people don’t get to see our true selves, plus they’re itchy, and cut down on peripheral vision.
Christmas various
- Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
- xkcd on the physics of Christmas. (For the record, I’m pretty sure Heisenberg celebrated the holiday.)
- What’s on the White House Christmas tree? (As if Glenn Beck didn’t have enough to ineptly rant and spume about over the holidays. [via]
- 15 Toys Not to Buy Your Kids This Christmas [via]
- I don’t know about you, but with the first part of The End of Time airing in the UK this weekend, it looks like I will be spending Christmas with a Dalek.
- I’m sure you’ve heard that Bob Dylan has a new Christmas album out. You may even have heard how awful it is. (And believe me, it is awful.) But now you can see for yourself. This may be the most wonderfully, horrible strange cover of “Must Be Santa” ever.
- And finally, Patton Oswalt on what may be my least favorite Christmas song ever.
Happy holidays!
Random 10 12/25
Last week. This week:
- “Dry the Rain” by the Beta Band
This is the definition of my life - “The Time Warp” from The Rocky Horror Picture Show, guessed by Kim
Madness takes its toll - “You Can Never Hold Back Spring” by Tom Waits
You can be sure that I will never stop believing - “Haunted” by Poe
And these shadows keep on changing - “Jake Summers” by Fight Like Apes
Those geese were stupefied - “The Legionnaire’s Lament” by the Decemberists
I am on reprieve, lacking my joie de vivre - “Baltimore” by the Tamlins
Hard times in the city, in a hard town by the sea - “Across the Universe” by the Beatles, guessed by Kim
They slither while they pass - “Jailhouse Rock” by Elvis Presley, guessed by Kim
Spider Murphy played the tenor saxophone - “Build That Wall” by Aimee Mann
She’s feeling nostalgic and feeling that fall
Good luck!