Lessons from 2009

Having a blog makes me look at things a little differently. I’ll be out with friends and think “I could write about this … as long as I changed the names to protect the guilty and placed black bars across their eyes in incriminating photos.” Everything is possible source material for a blog post/essay.

When I ended up in front of a sushi boat sometime in the beginning of the year and tried octopus for the first (and last) time, I thought it’d be interesting to keep a log of things I learned over the year. Okay, maybe it’s only interesting to me and to one or two of the six of you who read the blog.

My iPhone addiction came in handy. When I realized I learned something, I added it to a running Notes. It’s not a long list. And it’s not a profound list. My life hasn’t radically changed this year. I didn’t discover the secret to cold fusion or learn a second language. It’s just a list of odds and ends that I picked up. The list isn’t in order of importance, but in chronological order. Continue reading

March Links

It’s the last day of March. Insert cliches about lions and lambs here. The Ides has passed (which, by the way, is not always the 15th of the month, more often than not it’s the 13th. True story)

So as the month comes to close, here’s what I’ve been looking at the Internet.

From The Onion: “Obama Depressed, Distant Since ‘Battlestar Galactica’ Series Finale”

The funniest thing I’ve read on Twitter’s public timeline:  “Mother told me to remove my black nail polish for church on Easter. I think that’s kinda fucked. U can b religious and wear black!” Best person to follow on Twitter (if you’re not following me, of course): darthvader.

to boldy go...

to bodly go...

Stories like this one make me believe that with Legos all things are possible. What would Michelangelo have done with Legos as his main medium instead of marble? And, come on, Seurat would have gone crazy building up his colors with lego blocks instead of dots. Continue reading

Earth Hour

8:30 p.m. Lights are out at my house. Some candles are lit. The laptop screen seems incredibly bright.

Did you turn your lights out? Are you wondering what I’m talking about? This site should explain it. Pictures from around the world are here.

It’s a simple thing to do. Flip the switches. Turn the dials. Push the lamp switch the other way. Yes, it will be dark. Light a candle. Grab a flashlight. It’s for one hour. 60 minutes. 3,600 seconds. Not a lot of your life.

Vote for the planet by switching off your lights. I double-dog dare you.