Duncan Hunter Stays in the Race

Copyright © 2009 National Public Radio®. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.

ALISON STEWART, host:

Hey, welcome back to THE BRYANT PARK PROJECT from NPR News. I'm Alison Stewart, along with my guest host today, Daniel Holloway from Metro newspapers.

You know, these are stories, Daniel, that won't be on the front of your newspaper.

DANIEL HOLLOWAY, host:

Or any other one, right?

STEWART: Probably not the New York Times, Washington Post. I really doubt the Wall Street Journal.

HOLLOWAY: What about the Cleveland Plain Dealer?

STEWART: You know, maybe.

HOLLOWAY: Okay.

STEWART: I've been to Cleveland. Cleveland rocks.

These are the stories that are quirky, that do indeed rock. We call it The Ramble.

(Soundbite of music)

STEWART: First up: This one is from Time magazine, an article that reports that more and more people are bringing their babies to work.

HOLLOWAY: Babies?

STEWART: Yeah, that 70 U.S. companies are allowing little guys in the office.

HOLLOWAY: They're so tiny.

STEWART: They're so tiny. They don't take up much space, and they tend not to put disgusting things in the refrigerator. Well, maybe that's not true. This is according to Parenting in the Workplace Institute. A lot of businesses are saying they're not really that disruptive in terms of the productivity for people who might have to stay home instead of bringing the baby to the office. It's not that big a deal.

A study out of Virginia Commonwealth University says having babies around, it doesn't have a negative impact on productivity - can even boost morale.

HOLLOWAY: Oh, yeah?

STEWART: Have little Eva and Jacob popping around the office.

HOLLOWAY: Eva and Jacob.

STEWART: This is my favorite quote from one business owner. She says, I don't think a baby is more distracting than talk about "Dancing with the Stars."

(Soundbite of laughter)

HOLLOWAY: I wish I could talk about "Dancing with the Stars" with a baby.

STEWART: Yeah. Well, you know…

HOLLOWAY: They'd be like…

STEWART: …you probably could.

HOLLOWAY: …well, I mean, but the baby wouldn't talk back.

STEWART: You never know. I saw "Look Who's Talking Too."

HOLLOWAY: Have you seen the Blue Man Group, though?

STEWART: I have seen - yes, I have.

HOLLOWAY: Ah, segue.

(Soundbite of laughter)

HOLLOWAY: Well, a 57-year-old Californian named Paul Karason turned blue nearly 10 years ago.

STEWART: His face was blue?

HOLLOWAY: Like for real blue, yeah.

STEWART: Yeah.

HOLLOWAY: He had been drinking colloidal silver to treat a bad case of dermatitis. And colloidal silver, as you know, fights infection, but has given him a condition called argyria.

STEWART: Argyria.

HOLLOWAY: Argyria. He was on the "Today Show" yesterday, and he's blue. His nickname's Papa Smurf. He's a…

STEWART: That's wrong.

HOLLOWAY: Yeah.

STEWART: Papa Smurf.

HOLLOWAY: Papa Smurf.

STEWART: Really?

HOLLOWAY: I would have - don't you - wouldn't you want to be Brainy Smurf?

STEWART: Yeah.

HOLLOWAY: Or Hefty Smurf? Papa Smurf has got the striped beard.

STEWART: Bad Ass Smurf.

HOLLOWAY: Yes.

STEWART: Yeah. I don't know.

HOLLOWAY: And he's also - he's reclusive, and he tries to avoid the stares and the scrutiny of others.

STEWART: Yeah, I can understand that. A little music, please. I mean, would you drink something called kerosene wine?

HOLLOWAY: No.

(Soundbite of song, "Kerosene")

STEWART: Take a listen.

(Soundbite of song, "Kerosene")

Ms. MIRANDA LAMBERT (Singer): (Singing) I'm waitin' on the sun to set, 'cause yesterday ain't over yet.

HOLLOWAY: Oh, maybe.

STEWART: But yeah. What if the wine were named after a country star's music, after the song "Kerosene?" Would that change your mind?

(Soundbite of song, "Kerosene")

Ms. LAMBERT: (Singing) Dusty roads ain't made for walking, spinning tires ain't made for stopping.

STEWART: Not changing Daniel's mind.

HOLLOWAY: Not changing my mind, sorry.

STEWART: Well, this story is kind of cool, anyway. Miranda Lambert's family owns a winery, and they're in Lindale, Texas. And they keep naming wines after her songs. The latest wine is named Kerosene, after that song. The winery is called Red 55, named for the star's first truck, a '55 Chevy. There's a blush wine called Electric Pink, named for one the singer's guitars. There's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Gunpowder and Lead.

HOLLOWAY: Lead?

STEWART: Yeah, and they're both named after singles on Lambert's newest record. I don't know if - you know, I kind of like the idea, but as a sales tactic, marketing…

HOLLOWAY: I would drink the Crazy Ex-Girlfriend wine. I would.

STEWART: Okay. We'll talk about that during the break.

HOLLOWAY: That's for private talk. It also reminds me of the last Ramble story today. From The Guardian, we have: "Happy New Year, Let's Get Divorced." Apparently, yesterday was the first divorce day in Britain. Divorce day is the first working Monday of the new year, and I guess that's when divorce requests hit their annual peak, because couples spend so much time together over the holidays, they can't stand each other anymore.

STEWART: That's an amazing - well, you figure, okay. So you're not that happy in September, and then you've got - well, you've got a couple of months, and you got Christmas and New Year's. You can't get divorced around Christmas. You can't get divorced around New Year's.

HOLLOWAY: You have to stay together for the kids for Christmas.

STEWART: Not on Boxing Day, for sure.

(Soundbite of laughter)

STEWART: You got to stay together until the first legal working day of the new year.

HOLLOWAY: And then you can just - you could call it quits.

STEWART: That's it. That's it. Well, I'm sorry for all you people in the U.K. who are bored with your spouses.

I think that's it for The Ramble. Thanks, Dan.

HOLLOWAY: Thanks, Alison.

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