Celebration, Florida, the Walt Disney Company master-planned community, had their first murder over Thanksgiving weekend, and a police standoff last night that ended in a suicide. (The police standoff and the murder were apparently unrelated.)
Cracks in the facade.
December 3rd, 2010All linky, all the time.
December 1st, 2010Jason Kottke has a link up to Give Me Something To Read’s Best of 2010 list.
I was previously unaware of “Give Me Something To Read“, which looks like an interesting attempt to combine two things; a regular blog of interesting articles, and a way to send links to those articles to a mobile device for later reading.
I have my qualms about the list itself, specifically the number of articles from The Atlantic and Mother Jones. But there are a couple of pieces on it that interest me; Jon “Them
(Regular readers of WCD know that neuroscience in general is one of my interests, and the Molaison story in particular fascinates me.)
“…a lurid demimonde”?
December 1st, 2010We have previously noted the problems of Albert Trummer and Apothéke in NYC; Mr. Trummer likes flaming drinks, and that has brought him some unfavorable attention from the local authorities.
Today’s NYT has a longer article about the goings-on at Apothéke. In addition to Mr. Trummer’s troubles with the law (there was another alleged incident involving fire in October, but Mr. Trummer denies the charges), Mr. Trummer and his partners have had a falling-out, complete with charges of physical violence and wrongful imprisonment.
I do so love a good soap opera, and if it takes place in the world of cocktails, that’s even better.
“This is indeed the father and mother of a tapeworm.”
November 30th, 2010I don’t have a lot that’s profound or interesting to say about WikiLeaks, and much of what I could say has been said better elsewhere.
But as it happens, I’ve got a copy of John Brunner’s The Shockwave Rider
I’m increasingly convinced that Brunner got it right. Not the small details of what the society of the Internet would look like, but I think he’s batting close to 100% on the big picture.
We’re not going to white collar resort prison…
November 30th, 2010Dear members of the Imperial Stars:
Here’s a link to the guitar tab for “Folsom Prison Blues”.
I think you might need that where you’re going.
TMQ watch: November 30th, 2010.
November 30th, 2010So what has Gregg Easterbrook up in arms this week? Would you believe Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer?
Alto! En nombre del amor!
November 30th, 2010Cranston, Rhode Island, a town I have a passing familiarity with, has a small problem.
Some of their stop signs were put up illegally.
And when I say, “some”, I mean, “692 out of 2,600“.
Hilarity has not, so far, ensued, but the city council is working on it.
I just read it for the articles.
November 30th, 2010Every issue of Playboy from 1953 to 2010, on a USB hard drive, for $300.
(Hattip: Jimbo.)
I don’t see this on Amazon yet, or I’d throw up a link. In any case, if I was going to get a complete magazine archive, Playboy is pretty low on my list. The Complete New Yorker
Seasonal administrative reminder.
November 29th, 2010This is a general administrative reminder that purchases made through Amazon links on Whipped Cream Difficulties, such as this one
You can also use the new Amazon search box on the sidebar to get the same effect, just by searching for products on Amazon. (I’ll leave that box near the top for now, but I’ll probably move it lower after the holiday season ends.)
To repeat what I said last year, “Think of it as like a PBS or NPR pledge drive, but without all the annoying program interruptions, and not so much Three Tenors or Wayne Dyer.”
Things you don’t want to read before breakfast.
November 29th, 2010More local moms taking placentas home.
Am I evil? Because the first thing I thought of was the SNL “Placenta Helper” skit.
(I am unable to find a transcript online, but here’s a “Straight Dope” column referencing the skit.)
Firing watch.
November 29th, 2010Oh, yes, please! Having Leach coach at Miami would be awesome! However, current speculation seems to be that they’re going after Jon Gruden. Which would leave an empty space in the MNF booth.
Surely you can’t be serious!
November 29th, 2010Obit watch: the late great Leslie Nielsen. (WP. LAT.)
It is somewhat unfortunate that people of my generation mostly remember him for Airplane, the Naked Gun movies, and possibly for Naked Gun‘s precursor, the short-lived and little-watched but screamingly funny Police Squad!
But before all that, he had a serious dramatic career, as the obits note. He knocked around various TV series doing guest shots, played the Captain in the original Poseidon Adventure, and had lead roles in at least two TV series during the late 60’s/early 70’s.
Back when Austin still had an RTN affiliate, I was able to record episodes of The Bold Ones (which really needs to have a DVD release) on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. For those who don’t remember The Bold Ones, it was an early “wheel” show, where each week was devoted to a different profession; doctors, defense attorneys, police and prosecutors, senators…
Leslie Nielsen starred in “The Protectors” portion of the wheel, playing the police chief of a medium-sized California town. You could see where a lot of “Police Squad”/”Naked Gun” came from, just watching Nielsen act. But at the same time, “The Protectors”, like the other parts of The Bold Ones, was a serious and honest attempt to deal with contemporary social problems in a fictional setting. If you still have RTN in your area, see if you can catch “Memo from the Class of ’76” sometime; you’ll see what I’m talking about.
The last time I saw Mr. Nielsen in anything, it was during the short-lived CBS “Gameshow Marathon”. I remember thinking at the time that he didn’t look good, and it seemed like he was just a touch out of it. I’m actually a little surprised he lived this long, and even more so that he was still working (though, granted, the work he was doing didn’t exactly live up to his talent: “Spanish Movie”?)
Rest in peace.
Sad news.
November 26th, 2010Mangia Pizza, a local chain that specializes in a pretty good version of Chicago stuffed pizza, filed a Chapter 11 petition on Tuesday.
- I was previously unaware that those two locations were independently owned.
- “At the Domain”? If there’s a location at the Domain, I am unaware of it. There is a location in a strip center near-ish to the Domain, but not “at the Domain”.
Jihad declared.
November 24th, 2010In my capacity as president and chief operating officer of the Society for the Preservation and Restoration of Classic Cocktails, I hearby declare jihad against the Bubblegum Martini.
In the immortal words of a great philospher:
Policy statement.
November 24th, 2010This came up in a previous thread, but I’m promoting it to a post of its own:
Personal friends of the proprietor are always welcome to pimp things here, within reasonable limits.
The proprietor has an expansive definition of “personal friends” and “reasonable limits”. Basically, follow the Wheaton rule and you should be okay. If you have any questions, drop me an email. (The preferred addresses are on the “Contact the proprietor” page.)
Spammers continue to be cordially invited to die in a fire.