Statue of Liberty Moves to Kearney, Nebraska

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Volunteers help the statue lift her soon-to-be-golden lamp.

Brad Norton, courtesy of Kearney (Neb.) Hub

I'm a sucker for the Statue of Liberty.

Something about tired, poor, wretched masses yearning to breathe free really touches me. All four of my grandparents were immigrants from Poland and Latvia. I like the idea of the green lady watching over them -- and steerage passengers from all over -- as they pulled into New York Harbor nearly 100 years ago.

I climbed up to her torch when I was a kid. And, a few years ago, I got to prowl around her island after hours with a friend who was working for the National Park Service.

But, there's more than one Statue of Liberty. Plastic versions welcome tourists to Manhattan souvenir shops. There used to be a metallic blue, duct-taped version in front a Brooklyn hardware store near my house. I'm still mourning a crown that graced the top of a funky, now defunct, downtown restaurant.

Still, there's hope. Turns out I'm not the only extreme fan of the Statue of Liberty.

This week, thanks to a man named Ward Schrack, an eight-foot-tall statue was erected as part of a Veterans Memorial in Kearney, Nebraska.

Schrack is a longtime member of the Boy Scouts, but 57 years ago, when the organization celebrated its 40th anniversary by putting up aluminum lady liberties around the country, he missed out. A few years ago, Schrack found a liberty statue in Missouri and enlisted local scouts to raise funds to transport the statue, which had a dedication ceremony last night.

And, yes, the torch will light up.

Laura Silver

8:31 AM ET | 07- 4-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Synchronized Shelving: Battle of the Librarians

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Book cart drill teams let loose at last year's library conference.

On the show today, Julius C. Jefferson of the Library of Congress talked about the need for more African-American male librarians. He's in Anaheim, Calif., for the 2008 American Library Association Conference, where he'll convene a panel called "An Endangered Species: The Black Male Librarian." Other sessions will look at reaching out to teens, creating new uses for library spaces and evaluating cataloging systems ("Dewey or Don't We"). But one conference highlight mentioned by numerous librarians, including our own Kee Malesky, is the Book Cart Drill Team.

Jefferson has never participated in the event, but this year a colleague signed him up as a joke. He says the floor show is a hoot, but not necessarily a way to lure young black men to the profession.

Laura Silver

8:41 AM ET | 06-27-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

The BPP's Twin Radio Show

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Today during The Most I reported that astronomers are close to discovering Earth's twin. As the article explains, "Momentum is building: Just last week, astronomers announced they had discovered three super-Earths -- worlds more massive than ours but small enough to most likely be rocky -- orbiting a single star."

The truth is, astronomers are pretty far behind. I actually found Earth's twin a few weeks ago. It just took a little snooping around with my telescope. Anyway, I looked into it further and found that on Earth's twin, there's a Bryant Park Project twin. That's right, a show just like ours, but on this other planet. I hooked up a satellite in my apartment in Brooklyn and recorded some of it. Check it out:

I don't know about you, but I can't tell the difference. (Kudos to Matt Martinez for turning this bit up to 11.)

Dan Pashman

3:01 PM ET | 06-25-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

Storm Trooper Pride

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Gay Empire Attack!, artist Suckadelic

Christie's Images Ltd. 2008

 

Not everything on the block at Christie's Pop Culture auction has stood the test of time.

The artist Suckadelic created "Gay Empire Attack!" in 2007. But just because this Storm-Trooper art is recent, doesn't mean it's devoid of nostalgia or -- craftsmanship.

"These aren't painted, these are hand cast," said Simeon Lipman, the head of pop culture at Christie's. "This guy actually hand-makes all these figures."

In addition to this work, Suckadelic has a few other lots in the auction:

Graff-At, 2002, a Star Wars vehicle customized by professional graffiti artists, with tags in the Aurebesh language, a fictional letter system created for in-world use for the six Star Wars films. The largest tag on the side of the souped-up Graff-at--"Rebel."

Darth Blowout, 2005, a circus punk doll holding a light saber

Crucifett, 2003, an action figure assemblage which shows Boba Fett cruxified on the wings of an X-Wing fighter

Laura Silver

8:34 AM ET | 06-25-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

81 Days and Counting

Filed under: Stuff We Love

The Coen brothers were in the air at the BPP offices today. When I got here this morning, Dan and Tricia were in some sort of heated discussion over The Big Lebowski, and then while I was eating my lunch I noticed this:

It's the preview for the next flick by the Coens. It's called Burn After Reading. It seems to be about spies. Its cast includes everyone awesome who ever signed up to be an actor. Rachel Martin says it's going to make her head explode all over some theater come September 12.

Be honest now. Could anything in the world make this trailer better?

Jacob Ganz

3:54 PM ET | 06-23-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

More Than Little Dogs: The Amazing World of Balloon Twisting

Filed under: Luncheonette, Stuff We Love

Click to play.

Caitlin Kenney, NPR

 

Today on the show, we talked to Naomi Greenfield and Sara Taksler, about their film "Twisted: A Balloonamentary." While they were here, they were kind enough to twist some dogs and an NPR logo for us -- simple stuff for them, compared to their other work. The sculptures they feature in the movie are mind-blowing so I put together a gallery to give you a little taste.

Caitlin Kenney

1:33 PM ET | 06-20-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Brain Fun: Vocabulary Competition

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Quizmasters Jennifer Dziura and Jonathan Lill were on the show today to give us a taste of a vocabulary tournament they host for adults in New York City. The tournament is part of an event called Chelsea Mind Games.

Mike Pesca and I, "Jeopardy!" veterans both, were the contestants. We played four rounds and enjoyed the thrill of victory (synonyms: conquest, achievement, ascendancy, mastery, success, supremacy) and the agony of defeat (synonyms: drubbing, rout, vanquishment, overthrow, debacle, downfall, labefaction) endured. You can listen to the outcome here . And why not play along at home? Answers appear after the jump.

ROUND ONE

You get 3 difficult words. You get one point for using each word correctly and you can get up to two possible additional points for style. One sentence containing all 3 words, if you can.

1.) mendacious, oligarchy and palliative.

2.) panache, expeditious and yeomanly

ROUND TWO

In the following list of four words, three are eponyms or toponyms, and one is a fake. Identify the fake one to win one point. If you need to know what an eponym is, look it up!

1.) All of these are ice skating jumps: which one is not an eponym?
Triple Lutz
Cherry Flip
Triple Axel
Salchow

2.) These are all types of musical instrument. Which is not an eponym?
Saxophone
Sarousaphone
Flugelhorn
Theremin

Continue reading "Brain Fun: Vocabulary Competition" »

Tricia McKinney

9:17 AM ET | 06-19-2008 | permalink | comments (9) | e-mail post

Do You Have A Secret?

Filed under: Luncheonette, Stuff We Love

An anoynmous postcard sent to PostSecret.

A Lifetime of Secrets/William Morrow

 

Today on the show, we talked to Frank Warren, the founder of PostSecret. Warren's been collecting anonymous secrets on homemade postcards since 2004. Since then, he has turned these confessions into a traveling exhibition, a website, and several books.

If you want to send Frank your secret, mail a 4-by-6-inch postcard to:

PostSecret
13345 Cooper Ridge Rd
Germantown, MD 20874-3454

Caitlin Kenney

11:52 AM ET | 06-18-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

Live Long and Prosper, Til Death Do You Part

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Bob Lee and wife make it so.

 

When they get married in September, Mr. Sulu George Takei and Brad Altman are going to have wedding guests Trekkies can only dream of: Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, and Leonard Nimoy--Chekov, Uhura, and Spock respectively--are all going to be there. With some help from Bob Lee, who married his wife Starfleet style, I thought I'd send Takei and Altman some advice for the ultimate Star Trek wedding. Do you have any more advice for the happy couple?

Ian Chillag

9:23 AM ET | 06-17-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

The Big Jump

Filed under: City Living, Stuff We Love

BMX cyclist Kevin Robinson over New York's Central park, June 12.

Christian Pondella/Red Bull Photofiles

 

After hearing our BPP segment on BMX cyclist Kevin Robinson yesterday, I decided that I had to take my eight-year-old son Fred last night. Fred and I have gone to other BMX events, most notably the King of New York competition in the Bronx two years ago, but we didn't really know Robinson, or K-Rob, as his fans refer to him. We just knew that we wanted to see him on that enormous U-shaped ramp making BMX history.

Continue reading "The Big Jump" »

Paul Hechinger

11:40 AM ET | 06-13-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Wacky Packs Are Back

Filed under: Links From the Show, Luncheonette, Stuff We Love

Click to play.

Tricia McKinney, NPR

 

When I was a kid I used to spend my allowance money on Wacky Packages. I forget how much they cost, but for the money you got a piece of cardboardy gum plus a few stickers with parodies of common grocery store products. Like "Jail-O" instead of Jell-O and "Minute Lice" instead of...do I really need to spell it out? I thought they were hilarious.

Now, there's a book celebrating the 35th anniversary of Wacky Packages. I saw the book on a colleague's desk and immediately scooped it up and called the publicist. Today we talked to Jay Lynch, an artist from the underground comix scene of the 1960s, about a job he did strictly for the money--writing gags and mockups for Wacky Packages.

I interviewed Lynch, and found him slightly bemused by the interest in Wacky Packs (that's what we called them in upstate New York). He told me about how he and Art Spiegelman tried to make the stickers as subversive as possible. I honestly am not sure if that is the secret to their appeal. I think we might be more shallow than that--or maybe it's just me. I think we just really, really like package design, especially in a shiny sticker form. The ultimate expression of a Wacky Pack sticker was putting it in just the right spot on a lunch box.

Here are a few examples. Enjoy!

Tricia McKinney

12:06 PM ET | 06-10-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Vending Machine in Need of a Caption

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Seen in Ithaca, N.Y.

 

I just keep thinking about how many things are alive inside this machine.

Ian Chillag

10:06 AM ET | 06- 9-2008 | permalink | comments (10) | e-mail post

"I'm an Uncreative Writer."

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Writer Kenneth Goldsmith says he's opposed to artistic choices.

 

Poet Kenneth Goldsmith doesn't actually write his books, it's more accurate to say that he types them.

He typed an entire issue of the New York Times into an 840-page book called Day. He recently completed a trilogy, The Weather, Traffic and Sports. They are transcriptions of a year of radio weather reports, a 24-hour traffic cycle and the radio broadcast of a Yankees game. Ums, uhs and ads included. If you think that sounds unreadable, you're right. Goldsmith himself says, "I don't read them. I get bored."

So why does he bother? Goldsmith told us, "The conversation around the work is always much more interesting than the work itself. So I let you off the hook. I say, you don't have to read these books. You can just think about them."

Once I saw Kenneth Goldsmith read with some other poets at a bar on E. 11th Street. The "poem" he read that night was a transcript of the Larry Craig police report, and it was awesome, not at all boring. I love work that screws with the idea that good writing must be comprehensible and promote understanding. I like to be made to pay a lot of attention.

More about Kenneth Goldsmith:
- This morning's BPP Interview.
- He's the founder of UbuWeb, a massive online archive of hard to find, avant-garde materials.
- He hosts a weekly radio show on WFMU.

Lauren Spohrer

12:17 PM ET | 06- 5-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Uh-Oh, How Did I Become So Fashionable?

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Fashion fix: gladiator sandal

 

I have foot problems. I'm pronate and have fallen arches. I've been wearing orthotics in my shoes since I was a teenager. If I don't wear them, I feel pain from the bottoms of my feet up through my hips. But while my orthotics solve the pain problems, they cause other problems. Namely, it's really hard to find shoes. The orthotics push my feet up about half an inch inside my shoes, meaning anything I put on my feet pretty much has to have laces or straps or some other device to keep my feet firmly encased.

And that means no sandals. Ever. My toes haven't seen the light of day since (fill in the year because I don't tell).

I've tried experiments with velcro, with a toupee tape called "Top Stick" (thanks Alison Stewart for the tip!), I've even pondered learning shoe-making to see if there's some way I could combine orthotics and sandals to relieve my sweaty summer feet. But nothing worked until this summer, when I accidentally discovered the gladiator sandal.

(more adventures in foot fashion after the jump)

Continue reading "Uh-Oh, How Did I Become So Fashionable?" »

Tricia McKinney

12:24 PM ET | 06- 4-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

A Tribute to Harvey Korman

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Comic genius Harvey Korman passed away at age 81. On "The Most" today I tried to pay tribute to one of my favorite Harvey Korman moments, but describing sublime physical comedy doesn't made great radio.
I tracked down video of the scene I meant. It's from "High Anxiety." Korman plays Dr. Charles Montague, a debonair but secretly masochistic psychiatrist. Nurse Diesel (Cloris Leachman) has warned him not to be late to dinner, because "those who are tardy do not get fruit cup." What happens when he's 30 seconds late? Comedy gold.

The bit I mean starts at 7 minutes in. Enjoy.

Tricia McKinney

2:14 PM ET | 05-30-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

Clarence Carter's "Patches"

Filed under: Luncheonette, Stuff We Love

Courtesy of Nathan Deuel, a song that'll keep on breaking your heart.

Bonus: Wikipedia on Clarence Carter

Laura Conaway

1:15 PM ET | 05-29-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

No Title Necessary

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Nothing I could write could make this better than it is.

Dan Pashman

9:33 AM ET | 05-27-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Lunchtime Laugh-In in Memory of Dick Martin

Filed under: Luncheonette, Stuff We Love, TV

Dick Martin of "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" passed away over the weekend at age 86.

Martin was the comic half of the title comedy duo--the other being straight man Dan Rowan. (Want to know the difference between comic and straight man? Look it up in your Funk and Wagnalls.)

Although I am not of the generation for whom "Laugh-In" was made, as a lover of comedy, especially anything that has ties (however tenuous) to vaudeville, I have been a fan of the show forever. As a kid I was more interested in the zany characters like Ruth Buzzi's little old lady with the hairnet or any of Lily Tomlin's creations from Edith Ann to the telephone operator, than of Rowan and Martin themselves. But of course now I get the two mcs nattily dressed in tuxedos, carrying drinks and cigarettes as they kept the weirdness moving along. Or did I imagine the drinks and cigarettes? They made it seem like that kind of a party.

Coincidentally, yesterday I was surfing through youtube looking for Danny Kaye routines (see? the comedy thing again!), when I stumbled upon his brief appearance on "Laugh-In." And that started me down an hour or so journey laughing at "Laugh-In" clips. All before I heard about Dick Martin's death. Here, then, for your luncheonette pleasure today, is one of my favorites of yesterday's discoveries, in memory of Dick Martin.

Tricia McKinney

12:21 PM ET | 05-26-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Gallery: From the Zone -- the Twilight of My Youth

Filed under: Slideshow, Stuff We Love

Click to watch

Savannah College of Art and Design

 

OK, I admit it. I was watching TV at work. Well, actually, I was legitimately looking something up on the CBS site when I discovered that you can watch full episodes of their classic TV shows. The first one to catch my eye: the Twilight Zone. And it was all over.

Memories came flooding back, transporting me to another dimension . . . also known as 1983. Picture if you will a 9-year-old girl. An innocent scene of a young girl and her big sister, crossed-legged on the floor of their grandmother's house, an oversized, mustard-colored velveteen pillow their only shield from the black-and-white images of creepiness on the screen. God, I loved the TZ marathons on KTLA 5! And there was chocolate milk and Wonder bread, too.

Continue reading "Gallery: From the Zone -- the Twilight of My Youth" »

Angela Ellis

7:47 AM ET | 05-23-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Look Here, Hudson Valley

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Riley wears chain mail.

 

The BPP's search for the World's Awesomest Person is over, and we have a winner. Riley. In his awesomely awesome CraigList post he writes:

I'm tired of answering ads on these pages only to find poseurs, geeks and acoustic folk acts who want me to change my unique playing style to match their style. It's time for a band that is as unique and forceful as I am, and I'm taking no prisoners.

This monumental effort will require the cooperation of a thunderous bass player with the mind and skills to keep this beast of a freight train on its tracks while a talented drummer will unleash an unrelenting hailstorm of destruction down upon his kingdom of percussion....

As you can see from my picture, I wear chain mail to protect my body from the rigors of extreme playing.

It doesn't really matter whether this post is real. It's awesome. (Read the whole thing here.)

Dan Pashman

2:04 PM ET | 05-16-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Cloud and Unclear

Filed under: Stuff We Love

My Japanese is rusty. Can somebody tell me what is going on here? I'm also interested in your wild theories.

Ian Chillag

8:54 AM ET | 05-13-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

Ken Lee, We Hardly Knew Ye

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Today's segment about the Chinese version of American Idol reminded me of this recent Web gem, taken from the Bulgarian version of American Idol. You may have seen it before, but it really never gets old.

Bonus: A corresponding Wikipedia page that's hilarious in its own right.

Dan Pashman

11:21 AM ET | 05- 9-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Genius, Thy Name Is Waits

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Tom Waits announces his upcoming tour in a rather surreal press conference. Stick with it 'til the end...

Dan Pashman

9:34 AM ET | 05- 6-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

How to Make a Mint Julep

Filed under: Stuff We Love, Video

It's Derby time! BPP's Mark Garrison gives a tutorial on how to make a delicious mint julep. Have your own recipe? Share it here!

Zena Barakat

8:26 AM ET | 05- 3-2008 | permalink | comments (7) | e-mail post

N'SYNC

Filed under: Stuff We Love

If you're like me, you can never get your multiple metronomes synchronized. Fear not!
Thanks Neatorama!

Ian Chillag

8:14 AM ET | 05- 2-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

Bon Appetit: Frogs' Legs Recipe

Filed under: Stuff We Don't Love, Stuff We Love

Chef Bernard Loiseau's "Cuisses de Grenouille."

Samira Bouhin, AFP via Getty Images

 

On the show today we talked about the quintessential French dish, frogs' legs ("cuisses de grenouille" en français, which translates to frogs thighs). Our guest, writer Mort Rosenblum, mentioned his favorite recipe, created by 3-star chef Bernard Loiseau.

If you have some frogs' legs and goose fat handy, the recipe, courtesy of The Food Network is after the jump:

Continue reading "Bon Appetit: Frogs' Legs Recipe" »

Tricia McKinney

2:50 PM ET | 04-28-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Listener Checks In: A Gospel Squirrel

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Back awhile, when I lived in Maine, I used to stop by a small dairy farm for fresh milk. You went into the barn by yourself, whatever the hour, and filled your jug from a central tank. It was your responsibility to hose down the works when you finished. The farmer trusted you to put your money in the can on the shelf.

One winter's night, I slid open the barn door and found the cows inside all listening to John Coltrane on the local NPR affiliate. With a nod to the Jazz Cows video I never made or sent to MTV, here's @MarilynM's Gospel Squirrel.

Laura Conaway

8:05 AM ET | 04-21-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Mmmm? Guy Makes Food Art

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Peas.

Photograph by Zach Kowalczyk

 

The difference between Me and Awesome: Me sees the way cranberry sauce takes on the shape of the can it came in and eats the cranberry sauce. Awesome sees the way cranberry sauce takes on the shape of the can it came in and makes it into art. Photographer Zach Kowalczyk is Awesome. Check out his Flickr photoset of food that takes the shape of its container.

Got in touch with Zach. He's working on his BFA in photography at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. He says, "I took this series of photographs as a look at what food has become in our society of convenience and instant gratification."

Ian Chillag

7:42 AM ET | 04-18-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

I Could Just Watch Forever

Filed under: Stuff We Love

The Art of the Title Sequence gives you high-quality versions of the credits for movies and TV shows. Yep, Se7en is in there. And Six Feet Under. And Vertigo. And holy cow, Innerspace!

Seriously, I might not be able to come to work tomorrow.

Jacob Ganz

11:27 AM ET | 04-17-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Housebag: Get Housed!

Filed under: Stuff We Love

On today's show security expert Bruce Schneier came on to talk about his "Third Annual Movie-Plot Threat Contest." For this year's edition, he's asked people to come up with a product that capitalizes on fear. Some of the submissions are really funny. We were especially fond of one dreamed up by someone posting under the name chabuhi, so we adapted it into a radio ad:

Ian Chillag

8:35 AM ET | 04-17-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

White Stuff One Person Likes

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Leah Metz has at it on Oahu's North Shore this year.

Courtesy of Mana Photo

 

When we asked for help with a list of White Stuff People Like, Leah Metz of Hawaii sent this picture of herself. Kinda like heaven, no?

Laura Conaway

4:37 PM ET | 04-11-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Robyn Hitchcock Plays at the BPP Studios

Filed under: Music, Stuff We Love, Video

(Editor: We'll just go ahead and admit to loving Robyn Hitchcock.)

Zena Barakat

5:43 PM ET | 04-10-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

Nintendo. Who's He?

Filed under: Stuff We Love

I was just trying to find the Inside Edition sound effect and instead found this. What I like about it:
1)Bill O'Reilly
2)Super Mario Bros. came out in 1985
3)Everything

Ian Chillag

10:10 AM ET | 04-10-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Stuff People Like

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Has Stuff White People Like jumped the shark? It was the site everybody was e-mailing to everybody else a few weeks ago, but now some people are kinda tired of it. Maybe it's the book deal.

Whatever the case, the new Internet hotness of the moment is SWPL spinoffs, like White Stuff People Like and Stuff Nobody Likes. Both were created in the last week, and who knows how long they'll last. On today's show, we talked to people behind the satires, Scott Lamb and Alia Rose Connor, respectively.

Tell us what you think, and tell us if you think the original is really over.

Ian Chillag

6:47 AM ET | 04-10-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

What Do I Have to Do to See This Movie?

Filed under: Stuff We Love

About this video:

"What if you followed your dream and it led you to the middle of nowhere? 'Everyone But You' is a documentary about an independent musician who built a small home-studio in the desert of southern Colorado. It premieres in April 2008 at the Oxford International Film Festival."

(With thanks to Twitter pal @marilynm.)

Laura Conaway

6:23 AM ET | 04- 7-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

The Booty Is the Booty

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Rachel did a great interview on the show today about treasure hunters. We like talking about treasure around here, because we like talking like pirates and we like saying the word booty in a non-threatening context. That's how we roll: non-threateningly.

Anyway, I just pulled one of her questions and remixed it into a 15-second dance mix.

Beat by friends of the BPP Simian Mobile Disco.

Ian Chillag

9:03 AM ET | 04- 2-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

BPP Postcard: Maho Beach, St. Maarten

Filed under: Stuff We Love

BPP production supervisor Brian McCabe just got back from his honeymoon. (Congratulations, Brian and Amanda!) Brian's a pretty accomplished photographer, which came in handy when he visited Maho Beach on the island of St. Maarten. It turns out there's an airport near the beach. Really near the beach.

Brian McCabe, NPR

 

More great pics after the jump...

Continue reading "BPP Postcard: Maho Beach, St. Maarten" »

Dan Pashman

8:58 AM ET | 04- 2-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

Google Bids for Space-Time Continuum

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Don't be evil too often.

Laura Conaway

2:39 PM ET | 04- 1-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

Lirpa Loof? It's Safe to Tell

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Today's the day for being had -- April 1, April Fool's, whatever you want to call it.

Me, I can't recall being completely pranked, except by a vintage NPR report about a trustafarian named Lirpa Loof. Would I have fallen for the one about the Swiss spaghetti crop?

I wonder, too, if April Fool's has become the mostly another province of mass media. Whatever happened to the old-fashioned folk prank? Got one? Been the object of one? Do tell, will ya?

Laura Conaway

6:21 AM ET | 04- 1-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

How Slow Can You Go?

Filed under: Stuff We Love

Fiona King and Ed Gillespie with a guide, on horseback in Terelj, Mongolia.

Courtesy of Ed Gillespie

 

Ed Gillespie told us about his low-carbon, slow travel tour de monde. I'm relieved to know I'm not the only one who feels like flying can be, well...overindulgent and wasteful.

A few years ago, I was hopping a plane every chance I got: Weekends in Colorado, Ireland and a quick jaunt to northern Vermont. Then I took a long flight and stayed put: Three months in rural Senegal. Not a lot of quick transportation options there...I got around in shared taxis (seating room tight; windows optional), horse-drawn carts and plain-old walking, like the locals.

I looked like a tourist, but I didn't feel like one...until I headed to the airport to come home.

Here's what Ed Gillespie had to say in an interview with Rachel Martin.

How do you like to hit the road -- fast, slow, somewhere in between?

Laura Silver

2:25 PM ET | 03-28-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post