antigravitas

Injunction not granted, City Paper

2008-10-09T19:15:00.004-04:00

This "journalism bankruptcy complaint" feature is possibly the worst, most bizarrely self-absorbed, lazy cover story our alternative weekly has ever published.

Know what, City Paper? It's not about you. Or maybe, We're just not into you.

Actually, I kinda am into the WCP, when they're not publishing lazy-ass cover stories and lazy-ass copycat stories that I have complained about in the past. Pick yourself up, kids, you're better than this.

The Obama ballet

2008-10-07T23:26:00.001-04:00

This is not a small thing that Michael Crowley highlights. I thought it was one of the more striking things about the debate.

A Physical Contrast

I think it's very much to Obama's advantage that he and McCain are freed from their podiums, roaming the stage. For one thing, this calls attention to Obama's height advantage. Obama is also just more fluid and graceful. McCain is stiff, awkward, and generally looks much less comfortable on the move.
(Pardon a bit of theater criticism, but I do think these things have an effect.)
--Michael Crowley [TNR]

OK, what next?

2008-10-06T11:56:00.005-04:00

The Dow is tanking, the world's mammals are going extinct, and Beverly Hills Chihuahua topped the box office last weekend. Enjoy your Monday.

Your corsage won't save you now

2008-10-01T08:22:00.003-04:00

Some new Couric-Palin interview material has been released. Here's what Palin has to say about staying up to date on current events. This is unbelievable.

Couric: And when it comes to establishing your worldview, I was curious, what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this to stay informed and to understand the world?

Palin: I've read most of them, again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media.

Couric: What, specifically?

Palin: Um, all of them, any of them that have been in front of me all these years.

Couric: Can you name a few?

Palin: I have a vast variety of sources where we get our news, too. Alaska isn't a foreign country, where it's kind of suggested, "Wow, how could you keep in touch with what the rest of Washington, D.C., may be thinking when you live up there in Alaska?" Believe me, Alaska is like a microcosm of America.

September Madness

2008-09-30T15:01:00.002-04:00

Currently making the e-mail rounds... (click to see full-size image, and believe me, you want to)

"All of this has happened before..."

2008-09-26T15:48:00.003-04:00

Excellent.

50K: check!

2008-09-22T20:18:00.003-04:00

As previously promised/threatened, I finally finished my first 50K race. That's slightly more than 31 miles, for us Amurricans. After the race I originally trained for got hurricaned out, I ended up running this trail 50K organized by the Baltimore Road Runners at Gunpowder Falls State Park, north of Baltimore. Here are some pics:

It was a blast. Even when I got all hypoglycemic and footsore on the third lap. Seriously.

But, no joke, my evaluation is that a typical marathon training program would prepare you for a 50K. I ended up doing more and longer long runs than in a typical marathon plan (3x20mi, 2x22mi, 2x24mi) and also doubled up on the weekends, running, say, a 20+ mi long run Saturday and then a 10 miler on Sunday. This was helpful, but I think you could still make it just with one long run a week. The thing is, most ultras are run on trails, which means that the impact damage and pain are less than with a typical road marathon (but definitely still there. Owwww.). Also, you're not running fast like in a marathon. It's really just a nice day out in the woods.

The things that it discovers will rock you in the head

2008-09-21T19:36:00.002-04:00

I'm really glad the Large Hadron Collider did not create a black hole and engulf the earth upon startup. I'm even gladder that CERN staffer Kate McAlpine created this rap about the collider and its mission, because it is awesome.

Health club kids

2008-09-18T10:36:00.004-04:00

Here's an interesting AP article about a new movement towards enrolling kids in adult-style health clubs to keep them in shape and help stave off obesity.

Initial reactions:

I barely have the attention span to work out on a treadmill at age 29; at 10 it would have been impossible. Kids on the stairmaster? The whole point of gyms is that being an adult is kind of sucky. You work in an office all day and there's no recess. Unlike kids, who theoretically get plenty of exercise going about their daily play, adults often have to make extra time and sometimes do very boring things to stay fit.

I also agree with a couple of experts quoted in this article about the importance of play, not just exercise, to kids' health and development.

Children should be outside interacting with other children, not playing video games in a musty basement, said Tony Sparber, who runs New Image Weight Loss Camps....And considering children's short attention spans, they may not find any of these expensive toys fun enough, said Cedric Bryant, chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise. He recommends simple games like Duck Duck Goose and Capture the Flag. "In the '50s and '60s, kids were playing and they were playing outside," he said. "We didn't have all these concerns about overweight, out-of-shape kids."

Hey, whatever works--but this whole notion strikes me as yet another example of the overall decline of American society. I mean, what happened to just making your kid go out for the basketball team, or something?

News flash: new Friedman meme introduced

2008-09-08T09:08:00.003-04:00

I like Tom Friedman. But sometimes he tries a bit too hard to coin new little Friedmanisms. Some of them succeed and some flop. You know what I mean. "The world is flat" was a winner; "the First Law of Petropolitics" got buzz for a few days; and "geo-green" never really took off.

The latest, on Meet the Press yesterday:

"...what I call ET, energy technology, is going to be the next IT, the next great industrial revolution."

OK, first of all, "ET" is taken. Secondly, you could have just said "energy technology is going to be the next great industrial revolution." There's no need to coin new terminology for this. No need at all.

To quote one of my favorite movies, "Gretchen, stop trying to make 'fetch' happen! It's not going to happen!"

McCain to Democrats:

2008-08-29T12:17:00.006-04:00

"I see your pantsuits and raise you one corsage."

John McCain just announced Alaska governor Sarah Palin as his VP pick, to the surprise of many. (WP) He is sure gunning for Hillary Clinton supporters and I imagine this choice fits into that plan.

Palin is young (44), anti-corruption, firmly anti-abortion, has posed for Vogue, and differs with her new running mate on the subject of drilling in the Arctic Refuge.

She also really likes to wear giant flowers on her lapel, a la Carrie Bradshaw in 1999. I thought the pic above, from her gubernatorial inauguration, was an anomaly, until I ran across this one too.

If you happen to have any other documentation of Governor Palin's floral fashion statements, send them my way. It is certainly a distinctive calling card.

Guess what: I'm wearing pants right now!

2008-08-26T11:10:00.001-04:00

I still don't understand the obsession with "Hillary's pantsuits."

ABC News: A Look Back at Hillary's Year of Pantsuits
Glamour Magazine Salutes Hillary Clinton's Rainbow Coalition of Pantsuits

You know, technically, Obama always wears "pantsuits." Not that he doesn't have the legs to carry off a tasteful above-the-knee hem.

And no one ever writes about those.

The Omnivore's Hundred

2008-08-22T19:41:00.005-04:00

My friend Joe Wang points out this excellent list of foods that "every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life" from Very Good Taste.

What a fun exercise! I am bolding the ones I have tried. I think "tasting menu at a Michelin 3-star restaurant" has got to be next on the list, and I will wait on "crocodile."

The VGT Omnivore's Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat's milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin [WORST FOOD EVER!!! The only food I have ever tried and not liked.--Ed.]
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald's Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs' legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

Speaking of suckers, I have a chupacabra in my crisper drawer

2008-08-19T21:40:00.005-04:00

This is ridiculous. I feel bad even calling further attention to it. Go ahead--ask CNN why they have been covering the bigfoot revelation story. *shakes head*

Researcher says bigfoot just a rubber gorilla suit
By JUANITA COUSINS
ATLANTA (AP) --Turns out Bigfoot was just a rubber suit. Two researchers on a quest to prove the existence of Bigfoot say that the carcass encased in a block of ice -- handed over to them for an undisclosed sum by two men who claimed to have found it -- was slowly thawed out, and discovered to be a rubber gorilla outfit.

Trust the kids and trust the facts: lower the drinking age

2008-08-19T20:30:00.009-04:00

Right now I am loving and supporting the Amethyst Initiative, which is enlisting the support of university presidents in a call to reexamine the legal drinking age in the U.S. (U.S. News & World Report) Especially after confirming more or less to my satisfaction that no beverage industry money is involved. It's a project of Choose Responsibility, a nonprofit founded by the former president of Middlebury College (you know those Middlebury kids...woo HOOOO! no wonder he's concerned).

I buy Choose Responsibility's arguments in favor of lowering the drinking age. For various reasons, some related to personal responsibility and some related to legal exposure, I spent an inordinate amount of time in college trying to keep people from killing themselves with alcohol. And I'm telling you,

1) A legal drinking environment is almost always safer than an illegal drinking environment, regardless of the age of the drinkers.

2) Our unusually high drinking age is unquestionably a factor in many college students' unhealthy relationship with alcohol, which includes binge drinking.

3) I'm much less worried about a college kid drinking a couple of beers and getting behind the wheel--not that it isn't cause for worry--than I am about a college kid drinking 20 shots of hard liquor and then falling asleep on his back and drowning in his own vomit. There is a good case to be made, as Choose Responsibility does, that the age 21 limit contributes to college-aged binge drinking in a big way, and that it's binge drinking that is the greatest threat to the health and well-being of teenagers and those around them.

Anyway, food--or drink--for thought.

Our bartender is running for Congress

2008-08-14T11:40:00.003-04:00

Well, shadow Congress...that's how we do it in the District. (CityPaper)

Julia Child was a U.S. spy?

2008-08-14T10:01:00.002-04:00

And Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.? And Ernest Hemingway's son?

Newly-released documents reveal a bunch of unlikely (or all too likely?) people as WWII era spies for the U.S. Office of Strategic Services, forerunner of the CIA. (AP)

This is all nuts, and further convinces me that Rachel Ray is actually a stone-cold assassin in her spare time.

And you thought McGruff the Crime Dog was tough

2008-07-31T17:16:00.002-04:00

WP: Marijuana Garden Found With Help of Researcher's Turtle

Yup. Some Chevy Chase kid was cultivating weed in Rock Creek Park. But he wasn't counting on a narc turtle running across his operation. It's like they say in College Park. Fear the turtle.

Only in DC...

The banality of graft

2008-07-29T20:11:00.004-04:00

The formidable Dirty Dozen regular Sen. Ted Stevens, (R-AK, seen below in his characteristic Incredible Hulk tie) has been indicted on 7 counts of lying about gifts he received from an oil company. (WP, also see Google News results)

Stevens, it is pretty convincingly alleged, took $250K worth of goods and services from Veco Oil in exchange for help with the company's legal troubles in Alaska. The offense was failing to report these gifts.

Offensive enough. But to me, the worst offense of all is what these gifts consisted of. Did Stevens send his nogoodnik son to school with these funds? Pay off his mortgage or something? Tithe to the church? Pay off debts owed to a dangerous mobster in order to save his life?

Nope. He remodeled his bathroom and installed some high quality kitchen appliances.

Is Elaine Donnelly for real?

2008-07-24T13:01:00.004-04:00

She's the president of a group that opposes gays in the military, and blessed us all with her own bizarre fantasies at a recent House Armed Services Committee hearing about Don't Ask Don't Tell. As Steve Benen at The Carpetbagger Report put it: "The way to win the DADT debate --hand the other side a microphone."

Highlights, as reported by Dana Milbank:

She warned of "transgenders in the military." She warned that lesbians would take pictures of people in the shower. She spoke ominously of gays spreading "HIV positivity" through the ranks.
"We're talking about real consequences for real people," Donnelly proclaimed. Her written statement added warnings about "inappropriate passive/aggressive actions common in the homosexual community," the prospects of "forcible sodomy" and "exotic forms of sexual expression," and the case of "a group of black lesbians who decided to gang-assault" a fellow soldier.

There's a screenplay in here somewhere. But don't worry, Elaine--there's still plenty of old-fashioned, red-blooded heterosexual harassment and assault going on in the military!

Toenails: A death is just a new beginning

2008-07-21T15:11:00.006-04:00

Thanks to runner/blogger Scott Dunlap for informing us of Jan Ryerse's "Ceremonial Toenail Necklace" project. Now I sort of wish I had kept all of those little fallen soldiers. :P

Doping: Ur doin it wrong

2008-07-15T14:21:00.003-04:00

HARSH BUZZ KILL Speaking of drugs, 19-year-old Czech archer Milan Andreas has tested positive for marijuana use, the CTK news agency reports, and may be dropped from that country's Olympic team. The decision will be made on Wednesday. [NYT Rings blog]

I did not realize until just now that marijuana was an IOC banned substance. Probably because I couldn't name the sport in which it would present, you know, a competitive advantage.

Though I guess if you had to pick one, snowboarding might be it.

Slammage

2008-07-14T16:22:00.002-04:00

Regular readers (hi, Dad!) may have noticed the silence recently. Enjoy it--as Depeche Mode would say. I'll be back as soon as work, ultra training, and my advanced graduate course in cat herding allow.

Because everything's better with jalepenos

2008-07-10T15:03:00.003-04:00

Officials Add Jalapenos To Salmonella Warning (WP)

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

2008-07-02T20:36:00.007-04:00

The things you learn on the Colbert Report. I would never have known, until watching last night's "The Word," that John McCain keeps using the word "transcendental" in a really weird way. To wit:

"I believe we are facing the transcendental challenge of the century of radical Islamic terrorism." (johnmccain.com)

I am pretty sure McCain is not proposing yogic flying or a devotion to the work of Ralph Waldo Emerson as key elements of the radical Islamic terrorist challenge. He, or someone on his staff, is dealing a few tarot cards short of a full deck, because what McCain really means is something more like "surpassing" or "overarching." Or maybe "existential?"