Stagnance unto Death

Posted on November 11, 2008 - Filed Under

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A few fascinating data points on the Times’s demographic comparison of counties that went deeper red vs counties that went deeper blue in 2008 vs 2004. (Please click on the Voter Shift Multimedia Graphic for a frame of reference.)
Not surprising that the strip of deeper red is in the white rural south, but a [...]

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bad language

Posted on November 9, 2008 - Filed Under

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Oxford’s 10 most irritating phrases. (BTW, I personally am not absolutely sure how I feel about a single word being counted as a phrase).

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Update in the Global War on Terror

Posted on October 22, 2008 - Filed Under

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This week the US has abandoned its pursuit of criminal charges against eleven Gitmo detainees despite “plenty of evidence to convict all of them” because of the Bush Administration’s pig-headed efforts to abandon all appearances of deference to the rule of law. That is, because “there were systemic problems with the fairness of the [...]

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blargh

Posted on September 5, 2008 - Filed Under

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schmancy
hockey mom
sammich
goddess
all-time
quirky
upstart
vacay
cheesy
info stat

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The (decidedly British) voters have spoken

Posted on April 5, 2008 - Filed Under

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And they have decided that Sunshine of Your Love is not one of the Top 25 Guitar Riffs Ever.
1. Smoke On The Water - Deep Purple (1973)
2. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana (1991)
3. Walk This Way - Aerosmith (1975)
4. Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix (1967)
5. Sweet Child O Mine - Guns N’ Roses (1987)

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Songs Which Cause Me To Forget I’m In Public

Posted on March 6, 2008 - Filed Under

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(an incomplete list)

The Replacements - Left Of The Dial
Mercy Rule -Spark
Pavement - Summer Babe
Broken Social Scene - Major Label Debut (Fast)
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - Little Dawn

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Yeah I said it

Posted on March 4, 2008 - Filed Under

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I’ll admit it, I went so far as to say, “pinnacle of 20th century western music.” And I may walk away slowly, but I’m not going to run. In fact, I may even stand by it until the next time I’m under the influence and skynyrd comes on over the juke box. [...]

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A Good Morning So Far

Posted on January 15, 2008 - Filed Under

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Laughed out loud on the subway at this line: “The Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James acknowledged driving 101 miles an hour on the highway on his 23rd birthday, and he gave no assurance he would not go that fast again.”
Happily stumbled across a new favorite blog, one-minute sketches of subway commuters.
If you like Granddaddy, you’ll [...]

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Huckabee is a dirty toenail

Posted on January 4, 2008 - Filed Under

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Obama is a stalk of wheat
Romney is a dimestore comb
Hillary is a toasting marshmallow
Edwards is a daffodil
Rudy is a damp cigarette butt
Richardson is a saddle bag
McCain is a chicken bone

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Power Rankings: Best of October 2007

Posted on November 1, 2007 - Filed Under

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So Nebraska did not win a single game, the average daily high temps have dropped 30 degrees, and I’m a year older. But October had its moments to be sure.
Best communal vegan dining experience in some dude’s loft: 4 course vegan
Best 8-month pregnant rock show: Mates of State
Best bar to close out my 32nd [...]

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Power Rankings: 10 Reasons I hate a Village Voice article

Posted on October 10, 2007 - Filed Under

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As Young MC once said, “break it down for me, fellas”. And so I do. If only.
Reading this piece of Village Voice “I’m slightly more aware than the supposed hipsters I’m pandering to” journalism, I struggled1 to continue to the Okkervil River payload promised in my goolge alert. But dammit. Three paragraphs of what is/is [...]

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Power Ranking, signs of the Apocalypse

Posted on October 10, 2007 - Filed Under

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Not really scandalous per se, but roadsigns reminding us of the path we’re following?
1. Last Saturday’s Times crossword puzzle–ever the standard for class and erudition–weighed in with “Screw It” as an answer for 32 across.
2. Last night’s episode of “Aliens in America” marked the first time I heard the nom de [...]

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21 MC’s ate up at the same time

Posted on August 10, 2007 - Filed Under

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At Lit Kicks, Levi has an interview with Brian Coleman, the author of Rakim Told Me and Check the Technique. The two titles ignited a suspicion that we would have similar tastes emcee-wise. This suspicion was soon confirmed as the Levi & Brian discussed MC’s from what I consider the golden-era of hip-hop — a [...]

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words

Posted on August 7, 2007 - Filed Under

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in the semi-recent past, it seems to me these words enjoyed a brief spike in usage, only to be used not-so-much nowadays.

gobsmacked
de rigueur
detritus
nonplussed

In other news, I continue to subscribe to google news alerts for the words “sincerity” and “authenticity” and it still seems that most hits come from Asia. Could it be that Asians are [...]

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Power Rankings: Still More Geography, This Time Through the Lens of Music [sic]

Posted on July 31, 2007 - Filed Under

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This list started as my best live music shows ever list, which got too long too fast. So I decided to limit it to one show per venue, but even that was hard to manage. Throwing my hands in the air, I limited the criteria to one per State. Highlighted are the [...]

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Power Rankings: More Geography

Posted on July 27, 2007 - Filed Under

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Top 25 cities, criteria: I tied one on there.
1. NYC–not just because of Interpol and notwithstanding Interpol, I shall forever sing the praises of my wife’s hometown. The bars are open till 4, the dealers come to your home, and you can find indonesian food and banjo-infused klezmer jazz on a random Tuesday [...]

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chicken|egg - Power Rankings Edition

Posted on July 19, 2007 - Filed Under

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Do I like Britt Daniel because he sounds like Billy Joel?
Do I like Billy Joel because he sounds like Britt Daniel?
while I ponder that, On to the Power Rankings!

5 favorite records from high school (as of today):
1. ATCQ - The Low End Theory
2. Ice Cube - Amerikkka’s Most Wanted
3. The Pharcyde - Bizarre Ride II [...]

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OTT…NOT / Power Rankings: Hated Cross Words

Posted on July 9, 2007 - Filed Under

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“OTT”, “ALAI” not NY Times top 300 crossword answers.

So while we’re at it, I’ll throw in my top 5 most hated crosswords (as of right now):

ETE
ERNE
OLLA
ERLE 1
ERAT

Though to be honest, I can’t get terribly worked up over 4-letter crosswords … I guess familiarity breeds contempt after all.
1Not sure why, some of my happiest afternoons were [...]

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Power Rankings: Lemonade

Posted on May 27, 2007 - Filed Under

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1. Burma Superstar - With ginger in their recipe, this lemonade is a must-get when eating lunch or dinner.
2. Brickhouse Cafe - Good fresh lemonade at one of my frequent lunch stops. Lots of ice with a good fresh lemon flavor.
3. Purity Organic - Good lemonade for on the go. According to their web site, [...]

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