Are you smarter than a spelling bee champ?

Odwalla has a new online game for everyone who loves spelling bees (I know you're out there). Hosted by a little animated Ken Jennings (of Jeopardy fame), it's surprisingly challenging once you get past the easy words. Check out the Soy Smart Spelling Bee.

Daisy update

Mike Daisey, the monologuist that I posted about the other day, got in touch with the guy who destroyed his notes. Here's what he has to say.

Theatrical Madness

On April 19, monologist Mike Daisey's performance was interrupted by 87 students and parents getting up and walking out - and one of the people poured water all over Daisey's notes. I read about this, and watched the video (below) and read Daisey's reaction on his blog.

I admire the grace that Daisey showed under the circumstances. I would have been devastated (okay, I would have laughed it off, and then gone home and been devastated) if that happened at one of my shows (and I have had people walk out of shows that I've been in or directed - no one ever sabotaged anything, though).

I don't understand how anyone could do that to a performer. If you don't like the subject matter, don't go to the show. If you don't like it midpoint in the show, wait for intermission and leave if you must. For god's sake, heckle if you feel especially compelled. But to do what these people did, and to deface and destroy as they did it without explanation or comment, that is incomprehensible to me as a performer and as a person.

Book of the day

I was just going through some new books and ran across this guidebook for micronations:



How wonderful is that?!

Book donation of the day

We get many donations at the library, but today one book stuck out (pun intended).

What if the Beatles were Irish?

Oh, BoingBoing, you bring me such joy. This week I found this video:

Passover Peeps

I know it's a bit belated, but I just ran across this at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, and I needed to share. Because the 10 plagues are always more enlightening (and funny) when they come in Peep form. Trust me, check it out!

I know I've had too many blood tests when...

...I can judge the skill level of all three phlebotomists at the lab. Sigh.

Supermarket 2.0

Bump!

Girl's night last night was at Bump, the lounge with pricey food and $3.00 martinis. Much fun was had by all and much drinking was done by most. Not that unusual occurrence, but what makes this night different than all other night (hee, Passover reference) is that sebethis was approached by the waiter and asked if she was from Kansas City. Turns out he lived there for six years and was on a radio station called "The Buzz" as Scoops, the morning guy. Holy coincidence, Batman! sebethis used to listen to him all the time - and they knew the same clubs, the same people. Here they are, reunited at last:



After some power martini drinking, some clumsiness from a participant who shall remain nameless, and much laughter and inappropriate conversation, Liz, sebethis, and I ended up at Capogiro for delicious gelato and conversation that skewed a bit more disturbing than I was expecting.

If you're one of my Flickr friends, you can see the photos online (Passover seder pictures coming soon, as well)

Sheer genius

I found this on Boing Boing today - a brilliant way to recycle those empty CD spindles lying around the house:



On another note completely, I've been told, yet again, that 300 is fabulous. I decided not to go last night with some friends because after a wonderful seder Tuesday night, and a week of having the amazing climbing_junkie visiting from Edmonton, I needed some quality me time watching the last few episodes of Project Catwalk Season 1 and going to bed early. Besides, my shoulder to bury my head in during the gory scenes couldn't come, so I'm going to wait for him.

It's raining 300 men

Thanks to bonemot, the following video caused much hilarity at the Chicken Soup cook-off (Jen won) and Coffee Cake bake-off (I won) last night:



I decided a while back that I wasn't going to see 300 because it looked way to violent for me. I have since reconsidered my opinion and might be easily convinced to go, even if it means having to hide my head on someone's shoulder for most of the fight scenes.

Present to myself

I've been coveting a stand mixer for a while now, as my little hand mixer was just too awkward to make cakes with. I was contemplating a kitchenaid, but the pricetag was really making me pause. And then I was inspired by human_loser and his new pet. He reminfded me that I love the mixer we had at home while I was growing up, an old Sunbeam Mixmaster. So I decided that since I have a cake to bake for this weekend, I was going to get one for my very own. Introducing my new kitchen toy:



Today I also used it for the first time to make the brownies that I loved growing up as well. And since I do not want to gain 500 pounds due to my new toy, you can see that they are already packaged up to take to work tomorrow so other people can gain weight instead:

My mallows are dreamy

I have the best friends in the world!

I was telling sebethis about Viva Puffs a while back, and about how much I love them. They are a graham cookie bottom, then a layer of jam, then a big puff of marshmallow on top, all covered in chocolate. They're delicious, and I've been unable to find them or anything like them in the States so far. I've been told that they sound like Mallomars, but Mallomars don't have the jam filling.

Anyway, on Monday sebethis walks up to me and hands me a box of Dreamy Mallows, which she found at Shop-Rite. Evidently she remembered me talking about Viva Puffs and realized that Dreamy Mallows might be pretty much the same.


Hopefully I'm going to get a Canadian care package from my sister soon, as she said that she would include Viva Puffs for me. Then I will have a side-by-side cookie taste test!

Queen of willpower

Sebethis went to Chicago last week and brought me back chocolates from Ethel's. They're amazing, but I only have one box. To make them last, I've been rationing them out. I got the box on Monday, and I've managed to only eat one a day!

See - only six gone (so far)!



Oh, and this has been a crazy weather week. On Wednesday it hit 28 celsius, and on Friday we had a huge snowstorm. Here's a picture of it what is was like walking home.



Bear in mind that it was more like an ice storm, and the snow was stinging. And the winds were crazy. Of course, I was just being a masochist deciding to walk home, but the good Canadian blood has to be handy for something.

I'm sad...

...because my favourite cafe in Philly - Dessert - is closing. We went there yesterday night to celebrate some good news, and there was a sign in the window saying they would be shutting down on March 31st. I'm so sad! Dessert is a great place to go and spend a few hours eating delicious sweets and playing trivial pursuit, or gathering with a group of friends for high tea. The atmosphere is fabulous and the owners are sweeties. I'm going to have to find a new place at which to be a regular.

Me Generation

According to that bastion of accuracy and comprehensiveness - Wikipedia, I am a member of the Me Generation. Or the Consciousness Revolution, or the MTV Generation,or Generation X, or Generation Y. I feel very confused.

Meme-alicious

Comment with the words "Top Ten" or "Top Five", and I will reply with a subject for which you will generate a top ten (or top five) list. Post the list and instructions in your own journal.

bonemot asked for the top 5 meals I'll never forget. Here they are in reverse chronological order, with one more as a bonus.

1. My first Passover seder last year. I took the day off work and cooked a full dinner for ten (with outside contributions for the soup and dessert). We had a bunch of little lesbians and one actual Jew at the table. Plus the best brisket ever.

2. Birthday dinner with Jen at Morimoto - $120 dollars (each), 11 courses, and no idea what we were going to get. Plus we got to say hi to and shake hands with Iron Chef Morimoto himself.

3. Birthday dinner in Scotland with Ruthie - I went traditional for this one. Deep fried Mars bar for starters, then after a cheesy movie we moved on to haggis and trifle. We didn't have birthday candles so we stuck an emergency candle in the trifle. Haggis is yum!

4. My first sushi experience with Susan just south of Whyte Ave - she ordered a plate of the stuff, sat me down, and wouldn't let me leave the table until I ate my half. She set me on the path of liking fish, both raw and cooked.

5. This one's fuzzy - I was in Israel with my family and was a bit overwhelmed by all the different food. I was about nine or ten at the time. I spotted pizza at a little food court type restaurant was relieved that it was something familiar. Unfortunately for me it was made with goat or sheep's milk, so that was an unpleasant shock when I started eating it.

Bonus round: Amy and I crashed a private dinner party that a Very Famous Canadian Actor was attending. It was very disillusioning as the actor, who is enormously talented and very very handsome, was also a chain smoker; swore like a sailor; and greatly enjoyed pontificating. Woe betide anyone who held a different opinion that he did.

Ew.

I am now extremely glad I do not eat pork. Usually.


What Happens When You Pour Coke On Raw Pork? - A funny movie is a click away

And the winner is...

aNobii!

Shelfari might look pretty, but it doesn't have the organizational abilities of aNobii. I can mark my books as finished (with date completed), reading, not started, or unfinished. Global editing is easy. Tagging is a breeze. There's a ton of sorting options. It warms the cockles of my little librarian heart.

Now, I wouldn't use it for cataloguing my complete personal library because it doesn't have some of the more powerful applications and tools, but that's why I'm a charter member of Librarything. But for compiling booklists, and especially for keeping track of what I read no matter who owns it, aNobii is the one for me!