Disgustingly Cute: the Splendors of Feline Heterochromia

Jeepers creepers, where'd ya get those peepers?  Jeepers creepers, where'd ya get those eyes?

Nerd News: 2 More Depressing Looks at Higher Ed

One and two.

Life Imitates Aldous Huxley?

Kyle Smith ponders Brave New World in 2012.

Quirky Euro Files: Germany's Pirate Party

In all honesty, I just wanted to post this little picture of one logo which is, undeniably, quirky-humorous-cute.  Read more about the Pirate Party here and here or go right to its website.  What started as a kind of joke, computer geek/nerd political satire, and protest vote tweaking the stodgy political establishment has morphed into something else - something that actually seems to be generating a bit of real political steam.

Another Reason I Love Jimmy Kimmel

A real comedian takes potshots at everyone, and Kimmel's hilarious.  Here's a sampling from the recent White House Correspondents' Dinner as he riffs on this kerfuffle:

“Mr. President, I know you won’t be able to laugh at any of my jokes about the Secret Service so cover your ears if that’s physically possible,” said Kimmel. “If this had happened on President [Bill] Clinton’s watch, you can damn well bet those Secret Service agents would have been disciplined with a very serious high five.”

Bwahaha!

Meet Chen Guangcheng, the Blind Chinese Dissident ... Who Just Escaped House Arrest

READ THIS.  Blurb:

The dramatic nighttime escape of a blind rights lawyer from extralegal house arrest in his village dealt a major embarrassment to the Chinese government and left the United States, which may be sheltering him, with a new diplomatic quandary as it seeks to improve its fraught relationship with Beijing. 

The lawyer, Chen Guangcheng, one of the best-known and most politically savvy Chinese dissidents, evaded security forces surrounding his home this week and, aided by an underground network of human rights activists, secretly made his way about 300 miles to Beijing, where he is believed to have found refuge in the American Embassy, according to advocates and Chinese officials.

Headline Shenanigans at NPR

*eye roll*  Our self-proclaimed intellectual betters can be real idiots.

Ave atque Vale, Sydney Wignall

This brief bio reads like one heck of a thriller.  Someone make a movie!  Blurb:

Sydney Wignall, who has died aged 89, was an adventurer who, in 1955, led the first Welsh Himalayan Expedition with the intention of climbing Gurla Mandhata, at 25,355ft the highest peak in Chinese-occupied Tibet; in his book Spy on the Roof of the World (1997), he recounted how he was captured by the Red Army and held in jail accused of being a CIA spy.

I just put that book on my to-read list.  Goodness, is it just me or do the Brits really publish some smashing obits?  Wignall then became a marine archaeologist excavating shipwrecks from the Spanish Armada.  Wow, what a glorious bad@$$!

Friday Fun Video: Awesome Yo-Yo Trick

Fugly or Fabulous: Guys In Shorts

P.J. O'Rourke has some thoughts.  Nobody wants to look at your pasty legs.  Sorry.  On the other hand, I am on the record as being very much in favor of good suits and the iconic crisp white shirt.  Even if it's all rumpled, it looks fine.  (If it's any consolation, I stopped wearing shorts in public a long time ago myself.  A summer dress, be it cute-pretty or sleek-sophisticated, is just as cool and comfy - and far more charming and age-appropriate.)

Quote of the Day: the Secret Service's Naughty Antics

The Insta-Prof has this thought:

If the federal government can’t keep the President’s bodyguards from drinking and whoring on duty, how likely is it to be able to run anything competently?

Bwahahaha!

Killing CISPA

Too much power.  You know, probably the most troubling thing about bills like this and SOPA/PIPA is how the people behind them seem to know/care waaaaay too little about the Internet, technology, reality, etc. and then get all defensive when actual geeks, nerds, and Internet users object.  Anyway, CISPA's pernicious:

What sparked the recent privacy outcry over CISPA -- including a petition signed by nearly 800,000 Internet users -- are portions of the law that would allow Internet companies to open their networks and customer databases to the Feds for cybersecurity purposes. 

Probably the most controversial section of CISPA says that "notwithstanding any other provision of law," companies may share information with Homeland Security, the IRS, or the National Security Agency. By including the word "notwithstanding," CISPA's drafters intended to make their legislation trump all existing federal and state laws, including ones dealing with wiretaps, educational records, medical privacy, and more.

Seriously?  Come on, Congress.  Orwell was meant as a cautionary tale, not a playbook.  So, sure, cybersecurity is a real issue, but we mustn't settle for horrible "solutions."

MM in the Kitchen: Eggs Benedict

Hey, breakfast is the most important meal of the day!  Or something.  Any excuse to eat eggs Benedict is a good one.

Awesome: the Best-Dressed, Most Polite Protest Ever

Brilliant!  Stay classy, everyone!

Nerd Fun: Animals Disappointed In Your College Performance

This is hilarious.  Here's an astute slice of undergrad education that's especially piquant as the semester rockets to a close and students who haven't done anything all term now begin to panic.  An example:

Netanyahu on Iranian Sanctions

Running out of time and patience.

LOL: Craptastic Fantasy Book Cover Poses

Don't try emulating them unless you have a really good chiropractor.  Exhibits A, B, and C, with an additional thought.

The Imperial Presidency, Updated

*Sigh.*  I found this bit of the article interesting (my emphasis in bold)

William G. Howell, a University of Chicago political science professor and author of “Power Without Persuasion: The Politics of Direct Presidential Action,” said Mr. Obama’s use of executive power to advance domestic policies that could not pass Congress was not new historically. Still, he said, because of Mr. Obama’s past as a critic of executive unilateralism, his transformation is remarkable.

Heh.  YOU DON'T SAY!  

Quote of the Day: Friedman's Fresh Folly

Indeed: "Let our mockery of Thomas Friedman reach the very heavens."

Monday Therapy: the "PhD Comics" Movie!

First there was this delightful comic strip about grad school.  Now it's a movie!  RELATED: In case you think that once you're out of grad school you're out of the woods ... Tenure: the Movie.

Happy Birthday to the Bard! Celebrate with "Talk Like Shakespeare Day"!

GLORIOUS.

Movie Review/Rant: Nicholas Sparks Is a Talentless Hack and Not Even Ryan Gosling Can Save "The Notebook"

All washed up.

I finally forced myself to see The Notebook (2004) in its excruciating entirety a few days ago, and when the last scene faded to black, I heard an irate screech of "I hate this!" and realized I was yelling at my TV.  Yeah, that really happened.  Yeah, the ending is that bad.  In fact, the entire flick is that bad.  Not even Internet sweetie-pie and damsel-rescuing meme-meister Ryan Gosling could save this turkey, though millions of sappy moviegoers disagree with me.  Sure, that famous "kiss in the rain" was kind of hot, but that was one scene out of two hours of deplorable scriptwriting, hyperinflated melodrama, overcooked sentimentality, and bluntly obvious, ham-fisted emotional manipulation of the worst tearjerking sort.  Also, much as it pains me to say this, Ryan Gosling isn't worth your subjecting yourself to the torture that is this flick.  For your own sake, please, please go watch ANY OTHER RYAN GOSLING MOVIE.

MM in the Kitchen: Red Wine Chocolate Cake

Sheer madness.  And you'll love it.

Taiwanese News Animators vs. "Iron Man 3"

Film Culture Commentary: In Defense of Superhero Movies

MM blows a kiss to Tom "Loki" Hiddleston.  Do read his very nice editorial about superhero narratives as meditations on being human.  Here's a bit of it:

"The Hulk is the perfect metaphor for our fear of anger; its destructive consequences, its consuming fire. There’s not a soul on this earth who hasn’t wanted to ‘Hulk smash’ something in their lives. And when the heat of rage cools, all that we are left with is shame and regret. Bruce Banner, the Hulk’s humble alter ego, is as appalled by his anger as we are."

Indeed.

Life Imitates The Onion: China, India, and Missiles

LOL!  Size does matter?

Fresh Thoughts on US-Taiwan Relations

Check out Michael Turton's latest round-up.  Apparently a lot of eggheads are reiterating that Taiwan is still a vital interest of the US.  Well, DUH, though of course one can never say the obvious clearly enough or often enough, especially when there is so much bad "analysis" of Taiwan out there.

Steyn on the Secret Service's Not-So-Secret Services

Trust Steyn to make you laugh about this entire debacle of incompetence mingled with feckless venality and general dirtbaggery.

Nerd News: A Survey of Professor Salaries

I showed this to an assistant professor friend of mine, and she burst out laughing (bitterly): "These numbers can't be real!"   Even more bloody depressing: the gender gap in salaries.  This is 2012, people!  What the hell!  (This is just the sort of thing that drives me to drink  silly postings.)

Too Much Copyright

Via Techdirt (with commentary) comes this video.  Look, nobody is advocating that it's OK to filch other people's stuff, but the point is that fair use is a legitimate concern for the consumer and the legal maximalist terms of copyright have become stupid and becoming stupider by the moment (cf. the recent SOPA/PIPA debacle with a side of censorship and entertainment industry shenanigans).

Quirky Asia Files: Chinese Company Names Sunglasses After Helen Keller

Um .... yeah.

Quote of the Day: the Higher Edu-cracy and Its Discontents

I guess nothing is so blindingly obvious that it doesn't need to be repeated ad nauseam for people who think they're smart:

"We need to get back to thinking like educators."

YOU DON'T SAY!  

Holy Moly! Disney Really Does Have An Army of Killer Cats?!

Alessandra and I were just a teensy bit flabbergasted when we read this little write-up today about 10 Secrets from the Wonderful World of Disney.  Just look at #2, will ya?

Each night at Disneyland, after the sunburned families and exhausted cast members have made their way home, the park fills up again - this time, with hundreds of feral cats. Park officials love the felines because they help control the mouse population. (After all, a park full of cartoon mice is more enticing than a park full of real ones.) But these cats aren’t a new addition to the Disney family. They first showed up at Disneyland soon after it opened in 1955, and rather than spending time chasing them away, park officials decided to put the cats to work. Today, there are plenty of benefits to being a Disney-employed mouser. When they’re not prowling the ground, these corporate fat cats spend their days lounging at one of the park’s five permanent feeding stations. Of course, Disney also goes to great lengths to manage its feline population. Wranglers at the park work to spay and neuter adult cats, and any time kittens are found, they’re put up for adoption.

OK.  We had first heard about this feline army in a hilarious exchange between Conan O'Brien and a certain charming Canadian, and I frankly didn't think much about the cat story.  I kind of assumed it was mostly a shooting-the-breeze kind of half-joking story.  But apparently it's for real.  This thing about Disney's army of commando kitties is for serious.  Good Lord! ... Ryan, I'll never doubt you again.

Friday Fun: the "Dogs Against Obama" Blog

This is darn funny.  I give you an example of the hilarity:

Remember, this election is about eating dogs!  Heh.  Well, remember that Dogs Against Romney has already been out there.  So basically the election is a choice between a guy who put a dog on his car and a guy who put a dog on his plate.  Choose you this day whom you will serve  vote for!  The fur flies!  


(Oh, laugh already, because it's better than crying/ranting that this election campaign season is the most stupid example of unserious political "leadership" and idiotic media rabble-rousing that happened in recent memory.  OMG, people, this campaign season is now nothing more than a series of facepalm-worthy memes by all sides.)

Obama Dog-Eating Kerfuffle Achieves Inevitable Internet "Downfall"

Oh, the world of Internet memes!  A news item is not fully exhausted as a news item until it receives the "Downfall" treatment.  This one made me laugh out loud:

Nerd News: Open Access Science Research

Revolution?

Nerd Journal: Priorities Schmiorities

So I just got some emails from my Nerd Lords howling about wanting something done AS SOON AS POSSIBLE OR ELSE.  This should explain precisely why I just did a completely frivolous post and am about to have a John Hughes movie marathon while I study.  I hate it when people scream about RIGHT THIS MINUTE!  The passive-aggressive bloody-minded contrarian in me wants then to let 'em sweat just a second longer ... a minute longer ... than absolutely necessary.  Oh, I'll get things done by deadline.  But don't you shriek at me about how IT HAS TO BE NOW and how I BETTER DROP EVERYTHING AND PANIC JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE.

Hey Girl, You're Hotter Than Global Warming

As a rule I'm totally contemptuous of Greenies and celebrity environmentalism, but there are exceptions to every rule.  You go ahead and drive that Prius of yours if that makes you feel better, babe.

Wait, WHAT?

Wait, WHAT?  I'm away from my computer for one day, and I get this weird news waiting for me when I get back from classes.  President Bites Dog?

UPDATE: #ObamaDogRecipes on Twitter.

The Onion Vs. "Hope and Change"

Sometimes humor makes the point far, far better than punditry.  Look at this fake headline: "Obama Launches More Realistic 'I Have Big Ideas But We'll See How It Goes' Campaign Slogan."  

Admit it -- the whole "Hope and Change" hoopla from 2008 might as well have been more truthfully called "Smoke and Mirrors,  You Gullible, Naive Sucker."

What Fresh Hell Is This? Hey, Let's Give the IRS the Power to Confiscate Your Passport, Comrade

WHAT.

LOL: Snarky Response of the Day

A message board in the Writing Center of St. Mary's University:

Taliban Leader Turns Self In, Demands Finder's Fee

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

Falklands Facepalm

*Sigh.*  UPDATE: More *sigh.*

Thoughts on Tax Freedom Day 2012

Indeed.

Handwriting Font!

Make a font from your own handwriting.  Very cool -- provided that you have legible handwriting.

Thoughts on Patent Trolls

The Real Culture War: NYC vs. LA?

Heh.  I love both cities, though they have very different personalities.

The Difference Between North and South Korea

Sometimes a cartoon by a famously snarky artist makes the point best.

George Washington Named Britain's Greatest Ever Military Opponent

I give you the patriot, general, father of his country, and acknowledged all-around glorious bad@$$, George Washington!  In a recent survey by the National Army Museum, Washington easily beat out the likes of Napoleon and Rommel as the greatest foe the British ever faced on the battlefield.

Tax Rant 2012

I rant about taxes every year.  This time I have too much work to do to rant to expectation.  Please read tax rants from previous years.  The only good thing about tax season is the fact that there is e-filing.

I Can Haz Historee: Precursors to the Modern LOLCat

Cats + photography + humans = a long history of silliness.  Did you know that proto-lolcats already existed in the 1870s?

Χριστός Ανέστη!

Happy Easter to all of MM's Orthodox friends.  Christos anesti!  Remember last year's gloriously musical flash mob by Lebanese Christians?  UPDATE: Via text from the lovely La Parisienne: "Happy Real Easter."  Good thing I saved one Cadbury Creme Egg from last Sunday!

Newark Mayor Cory Booker Pulls a Gosling: Chivalry Lives ... And Is Hot Again, Thank God

I've noted Booker before and his undeniable flair, but look at this!  He just saved a woman from a burning building!  (Here's even a tweet from him.)  The Internet, of course, went bananas immediately.  Here's a hilarious example:

OK, last I heard, the beneficiary of Booker's heroics hasn't written any self-involved silliness for Gawker, but these are early days, hm?

Here's something more important: there's going to be a Gosling-Booker superhero comic on Tumblr done by some playful artists!  Bookmark http://goslingandbooker.tumblr.com/.  Check out the cover art at the link where one of the artists also mentioned another real-life hero, Captain Sully (of the "Miracle on the Hudson"). On a related note, is the greater New York/Newark area some kind of hotbed for dashing heroes?  

OK, guys of the universe: the bar's just been raised.  Just kidding ... or am I?

Look, I'm just happy that there are people out there who are still willing and able to lend a helping hand when they see a need.  They're real human beings and real heroes.  And that's something all of us can aspire to. 

"Titanic" in 3D in China

It's missing a certain scene.  Which scene?  Take a wild guess as one disgruntled Chinese moviegoer grouses,

"I've been waiting almost 15 years, and not for the 3D icebergs."

Government censorship is BAD! I couldn't help but giggle a little, though, at the thought of Kate Winslet's ... uh ... assets becoming a rallying cry for freedom.

Althouse on the "War on Women" Meme

Read.  Oh, and there's more on the topic from the Insta-Prof.  UPDATE: Here's what a real war on women looks like, along with this notable quotation (not from Althouse, just to clarify):

The entire episode illuminates just how isolated the political class has become. Women and girls should take heed and not allow themselves to be traded on the media market as political chattle. Vote with your pocket book, stay informed and speak for yourself.

Friday Fun Video: "Quiet Ryan"

Since the name of Ryan Gosling has been splashed all over this blog for the last few days, let's just go whole hog and finish out the week with this fake movie trailer from Funny or Die that's really a supercut of a ton of Gosling's wordless movie moments.  It's actually not a bad demonstration of non-verbal communication.  Ryan doesn't say a single word during the entire two minutes.  I don't know if I've been quiet for two whole consecutive minutes in my entire life.

Tasteless Titanic Mania? Re-creating the Last Dinner

Is this delicious or demented? ghoulish or gourmet?  Still, here's the 11-course menu.  Those first-class passengers were really living it up ... until they weren't.

Nerd News: UCLA Mistakenly Congratulates 894 Students

Oh, that's just bad: "Congrats, you've been admitted to UCLA! ... Just kidding, sorry, my bad."  I also smell a lawsuit.

Failure to Launch

I'm not talking about the awful Sarah Jessica Parker movie, either.  Let's take a moment to look at (a) North Korea's faceplant and (b) a little example of how it's done, people.

UPDATE: A friend just laughingly reminded me that some North Korean missiles are called "Nodongs."  OK, you can snicker now.  (And, yes, that friend was a guy!)

Ave Atque Vale: Fang Lizhi (1936–2012)

Astrophysicist, dissident, and human rights advocate Fang Lizhi fled China in 1994 with help from the US State Department and eventually became a professor of physics at the University of Arizona.  More here.

This Should Be Hilarious(ly Bad)

Girl gossip site Jezebel attempts to explore "yellow fever."  Oh, boy.

Good Grief, People

A former student of mine just tried to argue that 9/11 was really just "a cry for help" by the terrorists who felt "excluded" by the West.  REALLY?  I thought the cries for help came from the thousands of innocent people they purposefully and deliberately incinerated.  I think I need to lie down before I have a gorram aneurysm.  I am not making this up.  My God.

Thoughts on Foreign Policy in the 2012 Election

OK, so there's this piece arguing that Romney can't beat Obama on foreign policy.  Huh.  I have three quick thoughts as I run off to my nerd obligations:

1. What did I just say about Romney and campaigning?  It's the Economy, Stupid.  Hammer the opposition about the economy!
2. Despite Romney's squishiness on foreign policy, I can't believe there are that many people out there who actually seem to think that Obama knows what he's doing with foreign policy either.  You cannot be serious!  
3. Actually the entire non-debate about foreign policy all around the political sphere is just depressing.  When the Secretary of State is more effective as an Internet meme than as a Secretary of State, you know you've got some problems, dude.

Forgotten History: Canine Companions on the "Titanic"

I don't know about you, but I've just about had enough of all the "Titanic" hoopla (magnified by the re-release of the movie in 3D and all).  Still, this story about dogs on board is worth a look because ... well, DOGS!  And puppies are the only things cuter than you-know-who!

You Go, Girl: Katniss 1, PETA 0

Jennifer Lawrence appears to be more awesome than I had given her credit for!

Putin: Term Limits For Thee But Not for Me

Sure, Vlad.

Taiwanese News Animators Vs. Ryan Gosling

Two of my favorite online amusements collide.  And Ryan's invaded Taiwan.  Oh, dear. I hadn't even thought about how to say "Hey girl" in Mandarin before this.

Quirky Asia Files: Japan's Schoolgirl Falconer

Just the title sounds like it'd make a great anime show.

Vancouver Bans Bagpipes

Oh, my!

This Would Be So Post-Modern

The Laurie Penny-Ryan Gosling kerfuffle hasn't answered a rather relevant fundamental question.  It doesn't change the fact that Penny's post-incident antics happened, though, or that she emerged from them as a twit.  The entire question, though, would turn Ryan into some kind of weird Rorschach test -- OK, more than he already is.

LOL: Airplane Lavatory Self-Portraits in the Flemish Style

This is so insane it just might be brilliant.

Forgotten History: The Titanic and Harvard's Widener Library

Did you know that Hahvahd's famous library is a consequence of the Titanic disaster?

I Prefer New York-Style Pizza Myself

When the moon hits your eye like a pizza pie, that's amore your stupid Detroit political fundraising du jourrrrrrrrr!

Let's Add $340 Billion to the Already Ludicrous Deficit

That's just great.

Meet W.A.R.G. - "Women Against Ryan Gosling"

Is Laurie Penny their leader?  Oh, well. Check out this little piece, and I say: to each her own.  The rest of us will keep right on swooning.  I do love how the acronym is "W.A.R.G". - how Tolkienesque!  RELATED:  "And Now an Opposition Viewpoint: A Ryan Gosling Rant."

I leave you with this multilayered joke!  

Günter Grass's New Poem "What Must Be Said"

"Controversial" doesn't even come close to describing the poem and its fallout both at home and abroad.  FYI, here is the English translation of that poem.

Do the Math: It's Romney

Well, at least it's not Santorum.  All right, that's not saying much.  Here's some free advice: run on the economy first and foremost, not on the ever-proliferating mass of social-issue distractions, not on religious issues, not on pandering to the fringes.  Duh.  

MM in the Kitchen: Easter Lamb

It's not Easter without yummy lamb.  Try a pot roast shoulder of lamb with ale and young vegetables.  I'd put some baby potatoes on the side too.

Edupunk Nerd News: The Minerva Project

Oh, online Ivy League-challenging higher education initiative, you had me at "Minerva."

LOL: Hey Girl, It's NYC's Gosling-Themed Easter Egg Hunt

I laughed out loud.  Creative fandom can be pure comedy.  Or, as someone mused, does Ryan Gosling have the best guerrilla PR team in the world?  Oh, who cares?  This Twitter-pated silliness is absolutely hilarious. It did make me forget all that recent nastiness. PS: Mashable has found the brains behind this holiday fun, so kudos to Jenna Livingston for making us laugh.  UPDATE:  Someone just tweeted a photo of the egg that she found.  Oh, my!

Disgustingly Cute Easter

Happy Easter to Everyone!

The Resurrection of Christ 

(1570)

Paolo Veronese

Gemäldegalerie, Dresden, Germany

Jon Stewart vs. GSA Spending Boondoggle

You can't help but make fun of this latest incident of government "hubris and incompetence."

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Gaia's Health Matters More Than Yours, Mere Human

Good grief.

Eggs-Cellent Easter Humor

Look at these delightful Easter eggs!

Hey Girl, No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: A Rant

A few days ago, a woman was about to step into the path of a cab in New York because she was looking the wrong way, and a bystander who was paying attention said, "Hey, watch out!" and pulled her out of the way.  Squishification was prevented, a good deed performed, and life goes on, right?  Right?  NOPE.  Not if the girl is an annoying loudmouth journalist with pretensions of grandeur and if the bystander is Ryan Gosling.  I cannot believe the sheer eye-swiveling extent of the aftermath.

Good Friday Fun: Peep Art

The annual Washington Post contest of marshmallow Peep art continues to amaze and amuse!  Just look at this hilarious image gallery.  UPDATE: A related link from Koz and Alessandra: Peep-tastic nail polish!  Oh, my!

Quote of the Day: Alexis de Tocqueville on Big Nanny Tyranny

This thought about the ultimately tyrannical power of a massive nanny state is more applicable than ever.  It seeks to turn confident, self-reliant individual citizens into meek dependents.  Just Say No!

That power is absolute, minute, regular, provident and mild.  It would be like the authority of a parent if, like that authority, its object was to prepare men for manhood; but it seeks, on the contrary, to keep them in perpetual childhood: it is well content that the people should rejoice, provided they think of nothing but rejoicing.  For their happiness such a government willingly labors, but it chooses to be the sole agent and the only arbiter of that happiness; it provides for their security, foresees and supplies their necessities, facilitates their pleasures, manages their principal concerns, directs their industry, regulates the descent of property, and subdivides their inheritances: what remains, but to spare them all the care of thinking and all the trouble of living?

World Leader Democrats vs. Dictators March Madness

I had been so preoccupied with actual March Madness (congrats to Kentucky and Baylor!) that I forgot to post this link to Foreign Policy's world leader democrats vs. dictators brackets.  The final was Putin versus Merkel, and it was not pretty.

Fun with History: Famously Bad Opinions

This is delightful!  History indeed is 20/20 hindsight.  When some people got it wrong, they got it really wrong.

I Got Your Apocalypse Right Here: the Acid Volcano

No, really.

I'm Going to Throw Myself Into Traffic Now, Mmmkay?

No fewer than four people -- including my own dear sweet cousin -- emailed me this news story, so I have no choice but to mention it: apparently Ryan Gosling just saved a woman from being hit by a cab in New York City.  Here's the Gothamist writeup.  I like this quip and this headline.  Anyway, this is getting ridiculous.  Gosling's driving me crazy.  Absolutely crazy.  Could he be more perfect?  Don't answer that.  Because just when I think it couldn't get more unfairly stacked against my ability to resist, he goes and proves again that chivalry lives.  Gah!   

All right, fine, part of me wants to hate Gosling for turning me into a giggling schoolgirl, but some other part of me is having too much fun to care.  There's precious little fun to be had in Nerdpocalypse Now!  And still another part of me is not so secretly pleased that I can still even be a giggling schoolgirl after all this time being a cynical angry grad nerd and research-rat.  Hell, I should probably thank the man!  And as we've discussed before, being a serious scholar and dedicated teacher doesn't mean that you have to give up being a girl.  And if aside from annotated bibliographies and journal articles and academic monographs and conference papers and lesson plans I also like shoes and manicures and lip gloss and Ryan Gosling, FINE.  If you don't think I'm a real scholar because of those things, then I'm not going to bother with you.  OK, back to the delightful Ryan (though I still hate The Notebook and will continue to hate it).


UPDATE 1:  "And how much longer can he keep up this bonkers trajectory of human perfection?"

UPDATE 2: A hilarious open letter to Gosling by a frustrated guy: "Dear Ryan, Please, on behalf of all men, STOP IT! You're making us ALL look bad ... REALLY!? What's next? Are you going to rush into a burning orphanage and rescue babies holding puppies?"

UPDATE 3: Of course the Internet meme must comment:

UPDATE 3:  Behold the ugly aftermath.  I rant about it here: "Hey Girl, No Good Deed Goes Unpunished."

Public Service Announcement: Free Ice Cream!

It's the annual Free Cone Day at your local Ben and Jerry's Scoop Shop from 12 noon to 8 PM!  The lines are huge, but they move pretty quickly.  Come on, free ice cream.

March Madness Finals!

It comes down to this!  Kansas versus Kentucky, and my hoops-loving peeps and I are beside ourselves.  I'm picking the Jayhawks tonight, and then tomorrow I pick the Lady Bears.  Nerds are too poor to bet much, but I have a nice dinner out riding on tonight's game.  Then when it's all over, I'll be back to my usual bloggy griping about politics and foreign policy.


UPDATE: It's all over!  Kentucky gets bragging rights for the year.  Here are highlights to the traditional "One Shining Moment":

For a parodic look at the lowlights, see this.