It takes a certain amount of bravado / innumeracy / cranial-rectal inversion [choose as many as necessary] to come up with a definition of “recorded human history” that lies entirely within my lifetime. — here So in closing, don’t ask for an opinion if you don’t really want it. Just save everyone the trouble and [...]

And so I am grateful to have mail order. I may use the Internet to request things, rather than a stamp and an envelope, but in some ways it’s really not all that different from my grandmothers’ day. — here “Dear incompetent ninny…” No. “Dear complete imbecile…” I suppose not. “Dear feeble-minded simpleton…” I’d better [...]

Classical music — at least in the United States — is one of those areas that tend to be something of a hole in a lot of people’s education. I’ve been continually surprised by the number of extremely intelligent people I know who can discuss politics, visual art, film, philosophy and popular music in detail [...]

If April had Ides, they’d be today, and the 15th of April has not been the happiest of days in world history, quite apart from the fact that if you’re in the States, your income-tax return is probably due today. — here It is a good time to pull out our fabric, needle and thread, [...]

I think this is just fine if the other side of this – namely my “genuine and sincerely held” conviction that prats like that need to be punched in the throat – will be respected. — here They are like living works of art, these ladies! — there Which equinox was that? — here It [...]

…probably the stuff that pushes most people’s buttons are things that are not actually true but that our Inner Critic TELLS us is true in our darker moments. — here “If the manager is setting workproduct goals that correctly meet his expectations, and the employee is meeting these goals, why on earth does management give [...]

Ah… here it is. I thought this was lost. I think that an uncomfortably large amount of comedy these days springs from the same mental space from which bullying comes. — here Ok, it didn’t hurt that I misunderstood the lyrics as ‘turn and face the strange‘ — there I am sure the guy in [...]

I still hear some people say that science takes the wonder out of life. Those people are utterly and completely wrong. Science takes us to the wonder. — here (via) Why do such different beasts play by the same rules? — there This is where you find out everything there is to know about the [...]

It just seems shabby to me to look at someone else’s life, where they’ve managed to carve something out that works for them, and say “You’re doing it wrong; my way is better.” — here Sometimes, I think the places I work are a computer-gamer’s dream world. I expect space-suited explorers of the abandoned facility [...]

If you were going to think of a NASCAR diet, the first things that come to mind are definitely not healthy. Unless you think the funnel bacakonator is healthy. If you do, you have issues. And I want to be your friend. — here “Too big to fail” is the functional equivalent of “too big [...]

I remain convinced that everyone, whether or not they subscribe to one of the Abrahamic faiths, needs a sabbath day. The human brain and human body are not made to work seven days in a row without a break. — here Think of it as a pair of conjoined twins, picking each other’s pocket. — [...]

I use cinnamon rolls as a sort of… well, anxiety calming drug. I don’t pop pills, I definitely pop cinnamon rolls. — here I can state without hesitation, if you ever want to make a completely shapeless garment that will make you feel unattractive and will hide all those pesky curves you worked out so [...]

…going around as if everyone’s out to get you isn’t very fun, even if they actually ARE. — here I don’t miss those days, but I do kinda miss the “Golly gee!” aspect of it all. — there THERE. i said tool and slut in the same post. let’s see my traffic NOW. — here [...]

How about a little fun? Does everything have to be about something? — here Art imitates life. Life imitates high school. — there “Stories aren’t required to be realistic, but they’re permitted to be.” — here American culture is just chock full of fun holidays which combine the celebration of competition with crass consumerism. — [...]

Since I was born long before the age of personal computers, I do not take the internet for granted. It still seems miraculous to me that I can order up rare books, gorgeous fabric, and knitting lessons from my office desk. — here Man, being a nerd is getting expensive. — there Any individual memory [...]

TV Tropes may be the most effective time suck on the entire Web; it’s the pixel equivalent of those potato chips you couldn’t eat just one of. — here If you went to school in the good old days, much of what you learned is wrong. — there (Yeah, we knew that. But if you’re [...]

The glass is definitely half full, not half empty. — here I’m still unsure if this is a prime example of German efficiency, or some sort of subtle psychological torture. — there You need to be thoroughly misinformed and you need the confidence to act precipitately on the basis of that misinformation. here It’s worth [...]

There’s a theme again this week. Less is more. But less is more difficult than it looks. — here Although explosions are most definitely a bad thing, it’s kinda awesome that I now get to add “dodged a gigantic fireball of doooooooom” to my list of accomplishments in life. — there I got paid to [...]

In celebration of my discovery of so many wonderful sewing blogs recently, this week’s quotes are all from sewing, fashion and quilting blogs. * * * * * I forgot what it feels like to walk home late at night shivering in a coat that is not appropriate for -15 degree weather (for my Fahrenheit [...]

What are we looking at? The optimistic future? A future of science, and of exploration? Or are we looking on twisted, mangled wreckage with some bad-ass villain standing in the middle of it? — here Things do not become “classics” by fiat of the advertisers. You can’t declare it and make it so. Things become [...]

Well, they’re only naked in the sense that they don’t have any clothes on. (I’ve used this excuse myself, in fact.) — here Lost in Space was the first science fiction TV show I ever got obsessed with as a kid and I especially remember being obsessed with the third season of the series. In [...]

I have always been a big advocate of RTFM. However, there are entirely too many instances of TM not being worth an F — here There are times when I think we should just appreciate what’s there and not try to analyze it to death. — there (I don’t usually do two from one source [...]

Oh how I hate wet days. My preciouses were soaked! — here This summer, I went to Mars (it’s possible that it was actually Newfoundland’s Bonavista Peninsula and Fogo Island, I can’t remember) — there We keep getting calls from the oddest people. — here The mag asked four experts — curiously all men, given [...]

Taking relationships with others for granted is a symptom of Entitlement, much like when one believes they deserve to get paid at a job just for showing up. — here “A story is a Swiss watch timed to a beating heart.” — there I had already decided that I was going to be a professional [...]

How about “no”? Does “no” work for you? — here The way you can tell when you’re sewing the last dress of summer is that it takes a real effort to finish it. When you started it, you were excited to get it finished so you could wear it, but then at some point … [...]