Time to Clean House

In catching up on my dorky Science magazines, I came across an article on the clutter that afflicts museums, which is akin to the clutter that afflicts everyday people. Makes me thankful for my personal mantra that loosely translates to "throw away things that you don't need!" It's a good thing too, since I am also frequently reminded that I need to save things that I might need, because I'm always looking for that thing that I threw away too early in the interest of not saving junk. Maybe a 450 sq ft living space has something to do with it?!

My Favorite Thing to Read...

Mail. That personalized writing always has a hook for me. My favorite application for reading mail, GMail, is going to get undergoing some cool new changes soon and I am pretty excited! Not that the updates will do much for my standard, government-issued, IE6-only computer here at work, but they should make GMail even easier to use from FireFox or IE7+.

Hogwash

When JK Rowling came out with her latest announcement, I couldn't possibly believe that she had actually decided to "out" Albus. It seemed so irrelevant and silly to me that she would comment on the sexuality of the "greatest wizard of all time." It would have made ever so much more sense if she casually mentioned an ex-boyfriend in the storyline or made reference to a wife that he could never love because...

I was glad to see today that I am not the only one who thinks that the assertion is silly. This explanation of characters after the fact is never actually about the characters, it's either to soothe the consciences of doting fans who just can't let go without an explanation or it's to give authors just a little longer with their fleeting audience.

I like an epilogue just as much as the next resolution-loving gal, but this is just ridiculous!

I wonder what I would think of the assertion if I was gay and not just trying to be PC?

Math is hard, right Barbie?

Not anymore, all of you pink-loving, bubblegum-popping youngsters. According to Danica McKellar, being good at math doesn't make you less cool or less of a girl. Since Danica had the good fortune of playing a beautiful and desirable object of affection on The Wonder Years, she is in a good place to help tell the next generation of beautiful mathematicians, scientists, and engineers that they are on the right path!

On my list

The Abstinence Teacher - I'm not sure if I want to read it or if I just want to watch the eventual movie... I think it just reminds me so much of Saved, which was painfully hilarious. Hats off to awkward religious comedies! New York Times gives us an absolutely wonderful review of the story, which is even more appealing!

Aren't Headlines Supposed to be Informative?

When I saw the above headlines on my iGoogle page, my first thought was (no kidding): "why are they criticizing those encouraging people who were cheering on their clients at the Army Ten Miler? They can't possibly blame them for the problems with the course and the death of a runner!"

Imagine my surprise when I found that the actual article is entitled, "GAO: Poor Staffing Cited in Youths' Deaths at 'Boot Camp.'"

Now I know I'm skewed because I did run in this weekend's race, but come on people... a little accuracy for goodness' sake.

USA Today

Why must people always crap on government workers for wasting money? Yes, I know that it occasionally happens, but for the most part, these are the people who take lower salaries and work in crappier offices for the good of the rest of the country.

If you really want to halt Fraud, Waste, and Abuse, take a look at some of the things that get done over and over because no one reads the reports... or the things that have to be done three times because the person requesting them always wants them tomorrow. Or think about it from another perspective - it's all money that is coming back into our economy for gosh sakes!

Social Impacts

Though it's not really like me to get through such a heavy book without being tragically affected, I read The Kite Runner earlier this year (courtesy of Sharon, thank you very much). As is the case with almost any book that is popular these days, they're now making a movie about the story. Apparently, this production has caused quite a stir.

This raises quite a few questions for me, including:

• Why does a best-selling, stirring, educational book not encite people but a movie will?
• Are the actors and families really concerned for their lives, or is there some sort of cultural mismatch going on here that we don't understand?

The simple answer would be that uninformed and uneducated people get all hopped up things that portray painful truths about humanity, automatically assuming an inflammatory stance/statement about their particular culture - and uninformed and uneducated people don't read "hard" books like these. But as for the concern for the movie participants, is it really happening or do we just have a Balinese real estate situation on our hands (see: Liz buys Wayan a house in Eat, Pray, Love)?

Not read but observed nonetheless

At Olives, in downtown DC:

The pots that they use Are so old and dirty but They make such good food

Happy first days at work!