Oh cruller fate. Dunkin Donuts has ceased production of that New England staple: the cruller. The twisted straight donut was incompatible with their new fully automated donut making process. Human hands are no longer a part of the Dunkin Donut creation process, and human hands are apparently a requirement for twisting a cruller. (via Obscure Store)
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Seattle's Museum of Flight has announced that it will be receiving one of the retired British Airways Concordes. The supersonic aircraft is scheduled to land at Boeing Field on November 5th at approximately 3pm. Public tours of the aircraft should begin by the end of the month.
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Thursday, October 30, 2003

Problems worthy of attack, Prove their worth by hitting back. -Piet Hein
Take a break and have some fun playing with a virtual SOMA cube, written as a Java applet.
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San Francisco Chronicle columnist David Lazarus was greatly concerned over the news that a Pakistani sub-sub-subcontractor for UCSF Medical Center threatened to reveal confidential patient data if she was not paid by the man who had hired her. The woman sent an email, with doctors' dictation files attached, directly to UCSF, demanding restitution. Her employer's employer ended up paying her and she withdrew her threat, but UCSF has no guarantee that the data is safe, and no one there was aware that patient data had been sent overseas. This week Lazarus calls our attention to Bank of America's decision to open a subsidiary in India which would potentially be handling "sensitive customer information." His point is not that offshore employees are less trustworthy than American ones, but that we can't depend on the enforcement of privacy and extortion laws overseas. If the Pakistani woman had been a U.S. worker, U.S. law enforcement would have been on her case immediately. As customers we are not aware of, nor do we have control over, the transfer of our personal data to locations with lessened protection.
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Wednesday, October 29, 2003

Annie Lennox has recorded vocals for the theme song of "The Return of the King." The song also features soprano Renee Fleming and flautist Sir James Galway.
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If you've ever entertained the notion of commissioning your very own piece of music, now there's a guide to help you out. Published by the composer advocacy group, Meet the Composer, the booklet tells of the experiences of others who have commissioned works and offers a pricing guide (solo or duo work: between $2,000 and $20,000, depending on the length, full-length opera: $465,000 or more). It's just the thing for that fabled someone who has everything.
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Tuesday, October 28, 2003

Better start practicing. There's only a couple months remaining before the annual Rutabaga Curling (Hurling) Contest in Ithaca, NY.
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Our local paper, and perhaps yours, has started running old strips of The Far Side to publicize the release of Gary Larson's "Complete Far Side" two volume set. Talking cows, chickens, and blah, blah, blah, Ginger.
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Which is better for measuring the length of a cat's tongue: the "Beefy Bovril" or the "White Wine" method? (via leuschke)
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Monday, October 27, 2003

Eric Idle is back touring the U.S. and Canada again, advertising "songs, skits, and skirts" for his Greedy Bastard Tour.
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When I went to college in Massachusetts, BayBanks ruled. You didn't go to the ATM, you went to "a BayBank" because they had machines on every corner. When I moved to California, Bank of America took over in my head as the dominant local bank. In 1996, Bank of Boston bought BayBank and formed BankBoston Corporation. In 1999, BankBoston and Fleet, New England's two largest banks, merged and became FleetBoston Financial Corp. Now it's 2003 and Bank of America is expected to announce today that they are buying FleetBoston. So goes the last of the big Boston banks. Welcome back to my wallet.
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80's-retro is reportedly hitting stores with full force. The fashion report: "leggings and tapered pants, bangle bracelets, black jeans, miniskirts, thick and colored pantyhose, and endless chains and zippers." The movie report: Wonderland and Party Monster. The toy report: Care Bears, Strawberry Shortcake, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Transformers, My Little Pony. And for the accompanying soundtrack, there's electroclash: "music made with synthesizers and keyboards, very similar to the music of the '80s," major influence being New Order. There's also retro video gaming. The catch is, the people playing "Asteroids" and "Centipede" are returning to their memories of simpler times. The people wearing the bangles and big earrings, however, are unaware that the first time around we eventually decided that legwarmers were better left to the ballerinas.
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Friday, October 24, 2003

Seattle Spicing Guide for Bay Area Eaters (based on an unscientific sample of 3 ethnic restaurants):
Bay Area no spices (aka why bother) = Seattle mild
Bay Area mild = Seattle medium
Bay Area medium = Seattle spicy
Bay Area spicy = Seattle non-existent or look like you really mean business
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Farewell Concorde transatlantic service. And if all goes well, welcome Concorde to Seattle's Museum of Flight, which is on the shortlist for potential resting places. I may get to see the inside of one yet.
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Ahh the Old Boston Post Road, or, as I knew it in Connecticut, "Post Road" or "Route 1." The N.Y. Times Driving column takes a journey from New York City to Boston, searching for old road markers along the way. Originally an Indian trail, the Post Road began its official life as a mail route in 1673. Legend has it that Benjamin Franklin added the mile markers during his tenure as postmaster general, using a mechanical odometer attached to his wagon. "For years after the markers were first placed, taverns and inns prided themselves on being located near them for the prestige they carried and the business they offered from riders measuring the distance they had traveled and rewarding themselves with rest, hot food and entertainment." Nowadays you stop at Swanky Franks. In true Internet age fashion, the article mentions various web sites devoted to the road and its markers. When shall we wax nostalgic about the old markers along the Information Superhighway?
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Thursday, October 23, 2003

Administrative Note: If you would prefer to subscribe to a full RSS feed of this weblog, send me an email. I'd like to learn what aggregator/reader you use, how you feel about pulling content versus visiting this page, advantages for you the reader and advantages for me the writer. I'm not against syndication, but I'd like to know a little more about where you think my content will end up and how that would benefit you. Do you like to surf or gather? If you would like your email content to remain private, please indicate. Thanks!
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The Woodland Park Zoo has photos up of their adorable tapir baby. Born in September, the calf has a spotted coat that will fade to adult coloring in 8 months.
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For Serious West Wing Fans Only
While we are greatly enjoying The West Wing in syndication, the joy will lessen soon as I sense we are nearing the point where we began watching the show a couple years ago. All the twists will no longer be a surprise. And meanwhile over on the brand new weekly episodes, someone apparently turned off all the lights when Aaron Sorkin left, and I mean literally. The set is lit like a winter morning in Seattle. So I've decided that the best way for the cast to continue without Sorkin is to start again from the very beginning. They should film all the episodes again -- except with a catch. The male-female roles should be swapped: Stockard Channing gets to be President and Martin Sheen gets to be First Gentleman. Janel Moloney and Bradley Whitford should swap and Josh can ask the naive questions while Donna acts all superior. Remember the scene where Ainsley Hayes, played by Emily Procter, meets the President while she's dressed in a bathrobe, drink in hand, and singing? Put Rob Lowe in her place. And Ainsley gets to be the supportive friend of a prostitute (male or female?). C.J. and Toby should switch places, or maybe C.J. and Danny, the reporter. Margaret and Leo can swap. You get the idea. And the lines should stay exactly the same. It's a mind exercise on gender roles. I think it'd be fascinating for many key scenes. Not only that, I think the actors, superb as they are, would completely pull it off and sell it.
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Wednesday, October 22, 2003

The Read Regular typeface is designed to have very unique characters, supporting the needs of dyslexics. Designed by a woman with dyslexia, the font isn't yet available to the public as licensing issues need to be worked out. The best design approach for accessible content is to never prevent the reader from customizing their view of the text. It may be impossible to change the font in a printed book, but a computer should be able to reformat words in a jiffy. Internet Explorer has accessibility options to ignore font styles and sizes.
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Hollywood caterers receive an average of $15 a day for each person they feed on a movie set. Competition for business has become fierce as the number of catering companies has grown while the number of movies filmed in L.A. has shrunk. To keep the upper hand, caterers attempt to differentiate by offering not just the fanciest feasts, but smoothie bars, kettle corn, pasta stations, and on-site pizza ovens. In addition to the per-head fee, caterers who are also chefs can pull in plenty of dough. The chefs on movie sets are classified as Teamsters union drivers, which translates to $80,000 a year for an assistant chef and $110,000 for a chef. And if the article is correct, it seems that the caterers don't pay their chefs, it's the movie production company that picks up their union wages, making that $15 a head look even better.
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Tuesday, October 21, 2003

It's Dilbert Mystery Artist week. So far, it's easy to guess who wields the pen.
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It's the BOO! time of year and haunted house attractions are popping up all over. Two quarterly magazines support this shocking industry: HauntWorld and Haunted Attraction. They cover the latest innovations in scary contraptions and also list used equipment including ready-to-go prefab haunted houses. Buy your very own mansion of horrors and join the International Association of Haunted Attractions.
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Monday, October 20, 2003

Massachusetts' gift certificate laws have been extended to cover gift cards, all the better for consumers. I've noticed a few recent mentions in the local paper of people who were surprised to discover that gift cards they had received 6-12 months earlier had a monthly fee, which eventually reduced the cards' value to nothing. Imagine saving your gift card for when you really need a pick-me-up and finding out it's worthless. In Massachusetts at least, you'll get seven years to spend the full amount. A California law banning most fees goes into effect in January. It's a lot easier for retailers to dock the amount on an electronic card. Perhaps in this case we gain more by sticking to paper certificates.
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After 16 years and 274 million dollars, hassles with earthquake code changes and sound-proofing for police helicopters, Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall holds its inaugural concert this Thursday. Designed by an architect who was relatively unknown at the time, the building has the curvy hallmarks we have come to expect from Frank Gehry. Gehry's willingness to work closely with Yasuhisa Toyota of Japan's Nagata Acoustics made a positive impact on the aural aspects.

Press coverage revs up this week with critiques of the building itself and recountings of the hall's lengthy genesis beginning with a $50 million donation from Lillian Disney. But the music critics will likely wait until after the first concerts to declare whether the Gehry and Toyota partnership was a success. They'll have plenty of material to work with as the inaugural concert runs the gamut of acoustic range with a Bach solo violin work, a piece for 8 brass, a choral number with solo voice, a Mozart Symphony, and, the capstone, Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring. The Los Angeles Philharmonic is set to prove that all the money and delays have achieved Lillian Disney's goal to create one of the finest concert halls in the world, a suitable tribute to her late husband.
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Friday, October 17, 2003

Amidst the hubbub over the launching of the largest cruise ship ever, Cunard's Queen Mary 2, I learned that the first Queen Mary is docked in Long Beach, California. Launched in 1934 it had its final cruise in 1967 after which it was turned over to the city of Long Beach. It's now a hotel and is available for weddings, meetings, location filming, and fine dining.
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Seen in official portraits and stamps, a diamond and ruby necklace owned by Eva Peron was sold at a Christie's auction for $466,700, more than double the estimate, on Wednesday. An antique from the 19th century, the necklace and gems survived the dismantling that would often occur as fashions and tastes changed. It is not known how Peron acquired the necklace nor who the selling owner was. The buyer was "a member of the jewelry industry in Asia."
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Thursday, October 16, 2003

Gaze upon the remarkable new stove installed at South Seattle Community College. It's a "cooking suite" made by the Molteni Company of Lyon, France. Along with the usual gas burners and ovens, the stove also has a grill, rotisserie, deep fryer, and sink. More stove details are on the school's website.
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Sharpen up your adjustable cheese slicers. To achieve optimal taste, it is imperative to slice each type of cheese to its ideal width. This information comes to us courtesy of Dr. Len Fisher who also brought us the scientifically proven perfect biscuit dunking technique, the evidence that milk is better than tea or coffee for your dunking liquid, and the advice that Italian Ciabatta is the best bread for soaking up gravy. So remember, it's 2.8 millimeters for cheddar, 4.5 millimeters for Caerphilly, and 3 millimeters for Blue Stilton. Truly this is science for better living. (via FOODBlog)
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Wednesday, October 15, 2003

The "bottle-can" from Japan (link is in English, ignore language pack warning) has arrived in the U.S. It's an aluminum can with a screw cap and its first use in this country was the packaging for Capri Sun Island Refreshers. They can be reclosed, unlike cans with pop tops. They are lighter than plastic bottles and easier to recycle. If the cans look familiar, maybe you've seen the very old "cone top" cans.
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Research scientist humor, finely honed, is displayed in the "Experimental demonstration of the tomatotopic organization in the Soprano." Herein, the multiple effects of tomato throwing on Cantatrix sopranica L. (the healthy female soprano) are described and quantified. An automatic tomato thrower, capable of launching 9 fruits per second, was employed in the experiments. Following each round the singer was "perfused with olive oil, and 10 % GlennFiddish, and incubated at 421 °C in 15 % orange juice." Sadly, the report is lacking any data on the effects the sopranos had on the tomatoes.
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Tuesday, October 14, 2003

The world must be coming to an end. Featured yesterday on Martha Stewart Living: How to make duct tape wallets. I wonder if she's going to offer kits for these?
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Imagine gaining a pound an hour. That was the growth rate of the 1,385 pound monster pumpkin that won Oregon's Canby Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off last week. Grown by Steve Daletas, the five foot, five inch pumpkin was also named the world's largest. It netted Daletas a $4,770 cash prize. He was at it again this past weekend, winning $5,900 in Half Moon Bay, California with a 1,180 pound giant. Organizers of that competition added a "Most Beautiful Pumpkin" category this year. It was won by a lovely fruit weighing a mere 514 pounds.
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350 cats and 25,000 people turned up this past weekend for the New York CATS! show which returned to Madison Square Garden after a three-year absence. A seven month old Ocicat named Wild Rain Distant Drum of Dot Dot Dot won Best in Show. Ocicats have a fur pattern similar to a wild cat, but they are actually the result of crossing the Siamese, Abyssinian and American Shorthair breeds.
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Monday, October 13, 2003

Duraflame logs are made from the sawdust remains of pencil manufacturing and they now have competition on the firelog environmental front. Java Log has arrived. No, it's not the by-product of late-night object oriented programming sessions. Java Log is a firelog composed out of used coffee grounds. The company claims they burn brighter than sawdust logs and produce less carbon monoxide. Invented in Canada, the Java Logs are now going on sale in the United States. Some people detect a slight coffee aroma while the logs burn. (source N.Y. Times Patents column)
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The clouds have settled in with the forecast seeming to cycle between "partly cloudy" and "partly sunny." What's the difference? It's all psychology -- unless the sun has set. Meanwhile I am trying to make sense, if there is any, of the term "full spectrum lighting." Turns out that's mostly psychology too, at least according to Seattle's Lighting Design Lab. Their consumer guidance states: "The phrase 'full-spectrum lighting' is not scientific terminology, it is primarily a marketing term. It can mean anything you want it to, and usually does." Typically a full-spectrum light is designed to simulate daylight with a blue color, however this actually reduces the level of light produced. Research on seasonal affective disorder (SAD) shows that the key to effective treatment is morning exposure to high levels of light. 2500 lux (lumens per square meter: lighting terms) is the recommended minimum. Four flourescent light tubes, as are used in the light boxes sold for SAD therapy, will suffice.
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Friday, October 10, 2003

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You scan them every day. They determine how you are going to spend your precious reading time. You groan over the bad ones which tend to involve alliteration and puns. You unsuccessfully try to avoid the ones at the supermarket checkout aisle. Misguided ones get read on late night TV. You could probably take a few minutes and define what you believe a good one is. But you might not have considered all the nuances of what it takes to write a good headline. Everyone agrees, it's an art. Newsprint folks have to consider points and picas. Journalists can take special classes to brush up their skills. The worst abuse of headline writing rules are seen in the hints the "Internet Marketing" companies give to spammers. But remember, without content, there is no headline.
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The new twenty dollar bill is out and the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing has a map to tally up sightings. I am interested to find out if my colorblind husband can distinguish the new peach tones from the green.
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Sugar cane fiber, a by-product of sugar manufacturing, can be made into paper. Reprograf paper is comparable to office copier and laser printer paper made from trees. I assume it can also be thrown into the same recycling process, but perhaps it needs different treatment.
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Thursday, October 09, 2003

Not all California counties voted for the governor's recall. San Francisco County led the "No" pack with a whopping 80.4% voting against the recall.
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103.83 carats of internally flawless, color grade D diamond goes on the auction block at Sotheby's in November. Only three other perfect diamonds over 100 carats have been sold at auction before. The last one, the 100.10 carat Star of the Season, was purchased by Sheikh Ahmed Fitaihi for $16,548,750 in 1995. He also owns the 100.36 carat Star of Happiness which he purchased and named for $11,882,333 in 1993. Will he get to name a new Star in November?
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Wednesday, October 08, 2003

A wonderful interview with Alton Brown reveals that he never intended to be the host of his show. He was just going to write and direct it. He was close to signing a deal with Discovery Channel when a Food Network exec caught snippets of his filmed pilot on the Eastman Kodak website. Although Food Network had passed on Good Eats at first, this twist of web surfing fate landed Alton Brown a deal as the network's first commissioned show. (via Medley and Faz)
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With the minor avalanche of new concert venues opening in the past year or so, I have to wonder over how a booming economy creates new symphony halls which are built in the ensuing years, only to open after the boom has gone bust, ready to cheer up a down economy. The Detroit Symphony is the latest to enjoy the fruits of the late 1990s with the new Max M. Fisher Music Center opening this week. As the Associated Press puts it, it's "a venue to match its reputation." They could have also added the word "finally" to that statement, as the Symphony and its audience have suffered long years with inadequate facilities and climate control. The Center is Phase Two of a three part, $220 million project to revitalize the neighborhood around the hall. Next up is a building to house the Detroit High School for the Fine, Performing and Communication Arts.
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Tuesday, October 07, 2003

Workers from a myriad of cultures continue the work on Steinway No. K0862 as the N.Y. Times continues its series on the creation of this one piano. Woodworkers build out the rim and arms like the fine piece of furniture that it actually is. The braces inside the case and the keybed are specially fitted. A former auto-body shop worker sprays on multiple coats of lacquer and a former parking attendant carefully applies the distinctive Steinway & Sons gold decals.
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Singer-songwriter Lisa Loeb and her partner Dweezil Zappa approached Food Network to promote her album "Cake and Pie" and ended up with a television show of their very own. On tour to support the album, the couple had a friend come up on stage to make a pie during the concerts, which was then served to audience members. Food Network decided a show about the couple's lives would be of interest. Their Food TV show will not be a cooking show exactly, but will follow Loeb and Zappa trying out restaurants while traveling and at home. It is scheduled to air in January.
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Monday, October 06, 2003

My favorite photo of last week was the underwater view of baby hippo Jazi being nudged by her mom at the San Diego Zoo. Hippopotamuses are usually born underwater and also nurse underwater, quickly learning when to hold their breath and come up for air. (And no, I don't want one for Christmas. [(lyrics w/audio])
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I haven't even thought about a Halloween costume yet and the Christmas catalogs are starting to hit the mailbox. Neiman Marcus will not be burdening our mailperson, but their 2003 Christmas Book is ready with its over-the-top suggestions for those who are feeling particularly magnanimous this holiday season. Perhaps you've always wanted your very own ice fishing house? Their model is hand-built for you, insulated, and heated. For the couple that has everything or who can't train their dog to do anything worthwhile, how about His & Hers multifunction robots (at $400,000 you'd think they'd be smart enough to plug themselves in when they run out of juice). For the art collectors, there's an environmental art installation (but I think you have to provide the half acre of land to put it on) and a strange device that projects butterflies that interact with your shadows. And if you haven't figured out what to do about Halloween either, perhaps you can put a rush order in for the personally fitted mermaid suit. It comes with swimming lessons.
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Friday, October 03, 2003

Vancouver Day Trip

Last weekend our friend, Jack, introduced us to the wonders of Vancouver, Canada with a nicely planned one day trip. We headed out at 9am and were back almost twelve hours later. It's a 2.5 hour drive, minus any border crossing wait time. We had no trouble at the borders and made great time on our drives. Our first stop was actually Richmond and the Yaohan Centre's Asian food court for yummy Chinese street food. I had a preserved duck leg and most of the very fresh tofu that came in my husband's noodle dish.

Next we drove to Granville Island and perused its Public Market with grocers, bakers, butchers, and crafts. We picked up baked goods at Terra Breads and gathered cheese and deli meats for lunch. After browsing the stands and taking a quick ramble outside, we drove over to park on Beach Avenue and walked down the paths at English Bay Beach towards Stanley Park.

It was a gorgeous, perfect day and plenty of boats and sunbathers were out. We ate our Granville Island lunch on a bench surrounded by genuine Canadian geese. At the beach we observed the patient handiwork of rock balancing artists. Then we drove to Robson Street, the tourist shopping mecca. I stopped in Lush to smell all the soaps and to see with my own eyes how huge those bath bombs are. We browsed for a while at the Virgin Megastore where I purchased the aforementioned Bowie CD.

Then we drove a short distance to admire the architecture of the Vancouver Library, which is shaped like the Roman Coliseum. Someone had apparently told them we were coming because they were having a Book & Magazine Fair. Hooray!

As evening approached we headed to Yaletown for dinner at Glowbal Grill & Satay Bar. We started with a platter of their satays. I had a spinach salad with oranges (not the advertised blood oranges though), candied walnuts, and shaved fennel. I decided on another starter, Dungeness crab and shrimp cakes, for my entree. For dessert I had an individually-sized tart which tasted like a tiny pecan pie with none of the flavor of the advertised poached pear. We headed home, very full, and declared our "two CDs and a loaf of bread" at the border.
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Thursday, October 02, 2003

From the Useless Information website, gaze upon the wonder of a violin made entirely out of matchsticks. Jack Hall began a matchstick construction hobby while bored as a sailor. He ultimately created thirteen musical instruments. Their sound was reported as surprisingly good. He also made cases for the instruments out of, appropriately enough, matchboxes.
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The N.Y. Times' Online Shopper unearths a wave of nostalgia this week with Girl Scout uniform reminiscences. In this casual age, many Girl Scout troops don't even require uniforms, but any official wear that is deemed necessary may be ordered online from the Girl Scout site and J.C. Penney's. Back not too long ago, acquiring a uniform involved, for many of us, a special trip to an authorized retailer many towns away. There in a corner of the store would be their limited selection of official Girl Scout dresses, jumpers, shirts, socks, beanies, and sashes. Sometimes there would be a display of insignia accessories too, headbands, purses, belts, and earrings. You had to browse the printed catalog to see all the available products though. As the article mentions, white gloves were de rigueur for parades and ceremonies, especially if you were part of the color guard. By the way, they still have Brownie beanies ($5.75 in rayon/wool felt).
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Wednesday, October 01, 2003

Did you read the story about the California cat who was returned to its owner after ten years? It reminded me to submit an update for our cat's microchip contact information.
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"Smoking or non?" was our unexpected welcome to dining away from California's strict no smoking laws. Today Connecticut joins California as a new law banning smoking in restaurants goes into effect.
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As a good little former GRiD employee (a Tandy subsidiary), I knew that Radio Shack's parent company had its origins as Tandy Leather Company, but as a lapsed Connecticut resident I had forgotten that Coleco started out as the Connecticut Leather Company. (via leuschke)
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