Happy birthday to you, (Happy birthday!)
Happy birthday to you, (Happy birthday!)
Happy birthday, dear To-om...
Happy birthday to you!

The Incredibles was really well done. Very fun, quite funny. Chef recommends!

I almost cried when I read this article.

Way to watch out for your pocketbooks, Oregonians.

May you be blessed, now, with such sprawling ugliness as we see here in Southern California. May you enjoy the steady erosion of public services that will only be accelerated by the rampant spreading of sub- and exurbs. May you find happiness in the new cars and Sub Zero appliances you'll get to buy with your quick profits. May you complete the Californication of your birthright.

Now, please don't move to escape the sprawl. After all, you'll only be getting what you want.

Poll:
What does everyone think about kids calling parents by their given names, rather than Mommy and Daddy? On the one hand, it reinforces the fact that Mom and Dad are real people, too. After all, do you want your kids' respect and consideration because you're the parent or because you're a person? On the other hand, I feel it kind of de-ephasizes the rather central role a parent plays in the life of his or her child; it almost adds an impression of distance. Anyway, we were just curious to hear other thoughts/opinions on this.

Movie review: Mean Girls

Mean Girls is like Heathers, only without the multiple deaths and with more "jokes."

Pretty funny stuff, and I was gladdened to find that the main character's redemption came at the hands of math. Groovy.

I recommend it to all.

Are you freaking kidding me? Somehow, a handwritten note inserted itself into the big omnibus spending bill last week?

This book is wild. Apparently The End Was Near in the 90s. At least prognosticators in Southern California thought so.

My friend Kartik went to a party last weekend with his girlfriend. It was somewhere in Orange county and thrown by the parents of one of the gf's medical-school classmates. Apparently there's at least one current Young Republican and futre doctor who doesn't believe in evolution.

Awesome.

Oh! I forgot to write: we got absolutely pounded by rain last night! It was coming down at a 45 degree angle, more than an inch an hour! We had thunder and lightning and crashing cars and everything. Pretty swell.

Stay mad, people.

Nice ponchos.

Jeez. Don't throttle the damn thing; it's supposed to be receiving clemency!

Damn that Kant, infecting the debate about a British national ID card! Why won't he just butt out?

I can still hear the haunting music: Doogie's Theme...

Hunting via the net? (shudder) I don't like this idea at all.

Here's a riddle: "What is the smallest whole number that requires, in order to be specified, more words than there are in this sentence."

Care to know the temperature ~100m from my office? Well here you go!

Holy creepy dragon eyes, Batman! This optical illusion is the most amazing thing I've ever seen. My office-mate pointed it out to me, this morning. I watched the video and I was completely dumbfounded.

So we've all heard of vicious circles, or downward spirals, but what about virtuous circles? It's an elegant phrase, despite the prosaic, if pleasant, meaning.

While I'm at it, I read sometime ago a word I'd never really thought of, though I've used synonyms many a time: ambiguate. The meaning is obvious, but I like how it recalls to mind the idea of "triangulate" (at least to me) and then negates it.

That is all.

Says Bush of Palistinian leaders after Arafat's death:

"We'll hold their feet to the fire to make sure that democracy prevails."

Yep, freedom is on the march all right. Only now you can hear it coming from farther away ("Ooh! Aah! Ow! Ooh! Ow! Aah!").