American Madness

I like to be on top of the birthday wishes especially of those I am a fan of, and I am sorry to say I missed the big 5-0 of one of my favorites.

On Monday, January 28th, everyone’s favorite building blocks, Legos turned 50.

Though Ole Kirk Christiansen started his business in 1932 and the company name was changed from Leg Godt to Lego in 1934 (Leg Godt is Danish for ‘play well,’ Lego is Latin for ‘I put together’), the original patent for the Lego blocks we all know and love was filed at 1:58pm on January 28th, 1958.

To celebrate, the folks at Gizmodo put together a Lego timeline (that little picture on the left) and created a list of the best Lego sets as well as a bunch of facts about the inter-connecting blocks. And of course there is always more fun to be had on the Lego website.

I know a guy at WSJ.com (the online part of the Wall Street Journal). He is keenly aware of many absurd stats, like by how many milliseconds the WSJ had posted an article ahead of its competitors.

I just laugh at this mentality, because most readers (and even focused readers like myself) have no interest in these games, nor would we notice who broke a story.

What I want is good coverage, not the first coverage. And, actually, it’s hard for breaking coverage to be very good since it’s focused on its firstness instead of its completeness. No editor will admit that quality is sacrificed in a rush, but it’s an obvious outcome.
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I know I have been slacking recently on my posting duties. Hopefully I will be able to make up for it a bit this week.

Jonathan Harris’s work has made an appearance on AM before. He is the guy who created WeFeelFine.org. Well, little known fact, he also created the Universe.

The Universe takes full advantage of the concepts behind Web 2.0. It is kind of like a cross between a search engine and an unorganized index, but with an incredible graphic interface. The concept of theUniverse is that it is a night sky filled with constellations. Just as our tradition constellations were formed by what was important to the people who saw them in the sky, the constellations of Harris’s Universe are created by our own mythology today. (more…)

A video from BlackBoxVoting posted on YouTube. It doesn’t make any claims that voter fraud has occurred in New Hampshire, but it does show the conditions that ballot boxes arrive at the counting center in. Although it is almost 10 minutes long and a bit depressing for anyone with faith in our system it is pretty interesting.

My “no alcohol/no coffee/no carbs after 2pm/no dinner after 7pm” diet has zapped 12 lbs since Jan 2.

Do you have a book agent? I think I could get my inspirational tale made into a movie.

Well-fed journalist eschews privileged expense-account-driven nightlife to suffer in private so that he can avoid having to buy new pants.

It’s American Beauty meets Thinner crossed with In Good Company.

The final wine review of the Wine Six-Pack Party Pack is a nice Italian white. The FreshDirect write-up does this one proud, so I’ll just let them take it from here: “Kinda like a pear-kissed Chardonnay that hasn’t been violated by oak.” Exactly.

Winery: Salvalai
Grape: Pinot Bianco
Region: Italy
Year: 2006

Source: FreshDirect.com
Price: $8

Color: Pre-harvest wheat

Nose: Grass and green vegetable notes that merge well with melon, kiwi and iceberg lettuce.

Taste: Crisp celery, strawberries and melons come out at first in this Pinot Bianco, leading the way for pear, apricot, pineapple and the slightest hint of mint through the mouth. The wine is light in body and low in acidity until the end, when the exit provides a tart cherry flavor mellowing to a dry nutmeg which lingers nicely. We paired our tasting with roasted brussel sprouts, which brought out a butter popcorn flavor as well. (more…)

Today, I’m going to see Rambo. I hear it’s a carnage-heavy piece of crap, but I’m hoping for more empirical evidence of that.

The official web site (with trailer).

The consensus at Rotten Tomatoes.

NYTimes critic A.O. Scott trying to hide his enthusiasm.

A suspiciously wrinkle-free Sly Stallone trying to look introspective.

I recommend attendance. “Go live your life while you’ve got a good one.” Words of wisdom, Mr. Rambo.

If a grapefruit and a nectarine hooked-up for a night of hot passion, the resulting love child would be this fruity French muscadet. A little cold and distant at first, the wine warmed up well to our advances, bringing out a great low-acidity, citrus blend. Another nice wine to add to the collection.

Winery: Prieure Royal Saint-Laurent
Grape: Muscadet
Region: Côte de Grand Lieu, Loire Valley, France
Year: 2005

Source: FreshDirect.com
Price: $11

Color: Yellow with amber hues, like a glass of flat Bud Light

Nose: At first whiff, I picked out a strong pineapple, followed by a sweet grassy, clover scent. As the wine warmed and opened, complimented with a few gentle swirls, there came forward more strawberry, blueberry and watermelon notes. Mrs. Wines of FreshDirect offered a sensation of crisp sea air.

Taste: To start, the wine comes to the mouth with a mix of citrus flavors complimented with a nice minerality sensation. Through the tasting and through the mouth, these initial flavors are joined by a grassy essence with grapefruit and nectarine flavors. The finish is ushered in with a nicely balanced grapefruit, nectarine mélange, but is corked with a strange, unidentifiable “tang.” More medium than light bodied, I found the wine to be rather dense for a white varietal. (more…)

I caught a guy I work listening to a youtube video of Josh Groban — he who driveth the palpitations of many a teenaged heart.

My colleague claims this is OK, because Groban is a country singer.

First, is he a country singer? How is this possible?

Also, when did it become OK to listen to country in a non-ironic way?

My boss has is deeply sarcastic:

Thanks everyone for working so hard this month. As a result, I have requested the US government to give you some extra cash, and they’ve agreed.

You’ll each get $600. If you are married and have kids, you’ll get even more! (depending on your total number of kids and if your family income exceeds $150,000, you wont get quite as much.)

This may not apply to the foreigners not paying US taxes, of course.

Please remember that when you start to yell at me or burst into tears.

Woops–I just heard that they’re already cutting it back.
Well, folks, I tried

- Michelle