Food
A satisfying lunch
The best, best, best, best, bestest thing about having my weekdays off work this week is that I can eat at Pine State Biscuits without waiting in line for an hour.
Latest
History
American freedom
[…] [People emigrated to America] largely to get away—that most simple of motives. To get away. Away from what? In the long run, away from themselves. Away from everything. That's why most people have come to America, and still do come. To get away from everything they are
History
Democratic unity
Tonight's Democratic National Convention lineup is scheduled to include Jimmy Carter and Ted Kennedy. To continue the theme: * Tuesday night will have Walter Mondale and Gary Hart * Wednesday night will have Michael Dukakis and Jesse Jackson * Thursday night will have Bill Clinton and Jerry Brown
Life
Submitted for your approval...
During the summers when I was a kid, I would watch two old television shows every weekday: Perry Mason and The Twilight Zone. The first one would have been no surprise: I loved mysteries and puzzles, and had an unhealthy fascination with Los Angeles. The latter one, though…I have
History
Newspaper control
Newspapers have a much greater importance in America than they do in Europe. You must not conclude, however, that the press is more free in the New World than in the Old. With us it is the government that watches over and controls the newspapers; in the United States, the
Does online research lead to superficiality?
James Evans, a sociologist at the University of Chicago, writes about his research into the costs of having more research materials available online. The benefits of having the materials online are obvious: Ease of finding, ease of searching, ease of printing. Evans wondered whether there were costs along with those
Commerce
Retro handset
OK, now, this is just awesome right here. (H/t to Smashing Magazine.)
Music
Five at random
All available from iTunes: 1. "Waters of March" by Cassandra Wilson 2. "Mout me fut grief" by Ensemble Anonymous & Claude Bernatchez 3. "Far Away, By My Side" by Peter Bjorn and John 4. "Torture" by King Khan and the Shrines 5.
Food
Sweet tea and yardwork
When I lived in Texas, I heard that there was nothing like drinking a glass of iced sweet tea after a couple of hours in the yard under a hot sun. I can now verify this remark. I'm almost ready to go out for another hour. Almost.
Chapbook
Knowledge
[Gustave Flaubert's comic characters Bouvard and Pécuchet] discovered through their friendship a common purpose: the pursuit of universal knowledge. To achieve this ambitious goal […] they attempted to read everything they could find on every branch of human endeavor, and cull from their readings the most outstanding facts and
Life
The Great Vacation begins
My next day at work will be September 2, the day after Labor Day. I will be staying in town, working on projects around the house and starting to get ready for Portland-to-Coast 2009.
Music
Steely Dan and steel clippers
I was up early both days this weekend to weed the backyard before the sun cleared the neighbor's trees (9am, more or less). Too hot this weekend to weed in the sun. I time my weeding by using the Steely Dan albums on my iPod. A short weeding