Friday, June 15, 2012

Best of the Week #63

Soooooo I just listened to "Call Me Maybe" 9 times in a row to hear all these versions. “9 Best and Worst Covers of Hit Song ‘Call Me Maybe.’” I am not ashamed. THEY ARE ALL GOOD. Especially this one by Ben Howard.


The corresponding gchat:
  • LLC:  i was just going to say the same thing. i love this song. so damn catchy. THEY ARE ALL GOOD.
  • me:  i want to sing along. resisting hard. this is why i need my own office
  • LLC:  I LIKE THEM ALL
And there's this card. Hilarious.

And there is a corgi version. Someone hold me.


Ok, I hope that I have now successfully set the tone for your Friday (and guaranteed that you spend the rest of your day and potentially the entire weekend with Carly Rae Jepesn‘s voice in your head). We have quite a bit to get through this Friday, so get excited!

My most popular post this week was "The Best Pool Running/Aqua-Jogging Workouts" -- because summertime means pool time. (Though ideally I prefer my pool time to lean toward lounging and away from pool running...)

In a vain attempt to regain your respect after that pop music meltdown...this is a great infographic. "The African network."
  • The U.S. military has established small air bases across Africa to spy on al-Qaeda affiliates and other militant groups. Shaded areas indicate the presence of those groups, according to U.S. Africa Command. Read related article and learn more about the surveillance targets.


Manatee vs. Glass. You’re welcome.



Anyone who has ever entered into the topic of podcasts with me knows that I LOVE LOVE LOVE The Moth. "Stories That Will Plain Curl Your Eyelashes: A Love Letter to the Moth."
  • It’s basically the storytelling version of the high-diving board. Each performer pads out to the edge of the stage, curls his toes around the lip, and—pausing to consider what’s involved in dropping to his knees and scuttling backwards to the green room—recognizes there’s only one honorable way off that stage. And the story begins.
  • I’ve had more than one public emotional display in sync with the timing of the story on my iPhone and out of sync with my surroundings. I have no idea what people see when sitting across from me on the subway, or as I run, earbudded, through Prospect Park, no idea what they make of the wrenching emotion, whether it comes with eyes brimming or an honest-to-goodness hearty laugh. When a story gets you, it gets you. It doesn’t matter where.
Friends share things like this on my Facebook wall. Not sure exactly what these say about me...actually I DO know what they say...not sure if it's good. 


I would love a Mupcake. Obviously.


Everyday Fingerprints. Awesome.


From As You Like ItAgreed!
  • “Chicks. WEAR DRESSES.” Because you look cute in a dress.  In a dress you can say “motherfucker” like 20 or 30% more without disturbing your femininity quotient.  And actually its easier than pants.  Less to match and a lot of them just feel like pajamas.  So you can be cute AND secretly lazy.   
I 100% agree with Whit on this (and also want someone to grill me some apricots):
  • Not to pull the whole “women can’t do everything men can..” thing, but grilling is sometimes overwhelming for girls. I say this only because I am one of these women. I get stressed out about bringing everything outside, and temperatures and grill tools. It’s a whole new ball game out there.


Worth the read: "The Ultimate Guide to Writing Better Than You Normally Do." Coincidentally, this is written by Colin Nissan, of "It's Decorative Gourd Season, M************" fame.
  • Writing is a muscle. Smaller than a hamstring and slightly bigger than a bicep, and it needs to be exercised to get stronger. Think of your words as reps, your paragraphs as sets, your pages as daily workouts.
  • There are two things more difficult than writing. The first is editing, the second is expert level Sudoku where there’s literally two goddamned squares filled in. While editing is a grueling process, if you really work hard at it, in the end you may find that your piece has fewer words than it did before. Which, is great.
This is old-ish (from April), but Hillary is awesome so I thought it worth sharing.

Well this exists: “Puppies the size of soda cans.” A puppy and a Diet Coke…what more do I need in life?


I'm going to see "Big Easy Express" at a documentary film festival next weekend. Pretty psyched.
  • L.A.’s Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Nashville boys Old Crow Medicine Show, and Londoners Mumford & Sons climbed aboard amid the massive rail yards of Oakland and set out for New Orleans on a “tour of dreams.” 



I have been calling this “mystery root vegetable” for over a year now. It appears in my weekly share of veggies, and I blindly cook it into something. Turns out it’s a kohlrabi.


I realize this is old news. But OMG I love this little girl.




Totally weird. “In Japan, fax machines remain important because of language and culture.”

  • Japanese still fax party invitations, bank documents and shopping orders. Business people call the fax a required communication tool, used for vital messages, often in place of e-mail.

And that, my friends, is that. Happy Weekend!!!