At certain periods in the 8+ year lifetime of this weblog I’ve had time to research posts at greater depth, attempting to add value and usefulness to this vast Internet instead of just linking to interesting things. Working a full-time job and also being a parent doesn’t leave me much time for research these days, just finding interesting things to point to takes enough time. Which is all a self-centered way of me leading up to pointing out that Andy Baio does what I wish I had time to do with a weblog. Not only does he have interesting links on the side, but he has now committed himself to adding interesting weblog content to the World Wide Web on waxy.org. And his latest is just a mind-blowing doozy to someone like me who worshipped both Infocom and Douglas Adams. So, instead of trying to find anything interesting today to link to, I’m taking the time instead to read about his amazing find from the “Infocom Drive” which I’m sure will be on every popular linksite in a matter of hours: Milliways: Infocom’s Unreleased Sequel to Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Thank you Andy!

The Seattle P.I.’s Edibles column has been focusing on what fruit trees grow well in the area. The first column gives high marks to Italian prunes and describes exactly what we went through with our apple tree (and why we decided to remove it when we landscaped the back yard): apple maggots appeared here in the mid 1980s and apple trees are no longer low maintenance. The second column details all the things that can go wrong when you grow cherries, peaches, and apricots. I’m sure I’ll never see a recommendation for an outdoor citrus here, but I’m going to try an indoor pot of Meyer Lemon again one day.

“A dozen plump tomatoes, sea salt, cayenne pepper and Demerara sugar” in a traditional glass bottle from Heinz will appear on food store shelves in the U.K. this month. This gourmet ketchup for sophisticated palates won’t be released in the U.S., but now that Heinz has discontinued their kid-friendly pink, blue, purple, green colored EZ Squirt line, maybe they’ll go after the American adults soon.

Former (and current) New Englanders take note: herein lies a photo of the dismantling of the “last original Dunkin’ Donuts sign standing anywhere.” It’s a neon original from 1957, now rusty and in bad condition. The Brighton Dunkin’ Donuts franchise is putting up a new-fangled flourescent backlit plexiglass sign instead. The old sign is sitting in a yard, with an uncertain fate. (via Serious Eats) Speaking of sign replacements, blog comments about this sign led me to the very old news that Boston’s landmark Citgo sign went LED in 2005. It uses half as much energy and stands up to the weather better. But some people actually miss the buzzing.

In 2006, Ralph O. Esmerian bought luxury jewelry retailer Fred Leighton using a loan from Merrill Lynch. He defaulted on the $185 million loan in January, prompting Merrill Lynch to call in the collateral. Christie arranged an auction of the jewelry collection Esmerian put up for the loan, which includes a pink diamond ring ($15 million estimate) and a diamond brooch ($6 million estimate) that once belonged to the wife of Napoleon III. But Esmerian took legal action to block the auction, calling it a “fire sale” and stating that the jewelry would fetch better prices in private sales. The auction was called off, but you know Merrill Lynch wants to see that money soon. Shiny jewels aren’t liquid and Merrill has had enough. Esmerian had also hired Peter Bacanovic as CEO of Fred Leighton which didn’t impress his creditors. Bacanovic used to work for Merrill Lynch and had his 15 minutes of fame and 5 months in prison for being Martha Stewart’s stock broker.

Considering that Merchant & Ivory’s production of “A Room with a View” is my favorite movie, I took it incredibly well when I read about PBS’ Masterpiece new version of the E.M. Forster novel. Since ultimately it is the book that is the heart of the film, I’m open to this new “Room” that debuted last night, much as I’d welcome a fresh production of a classic play. This version is not reimagined in a different era or departures of characterization, but it is wrapped within a flashback that provides an ending twist that several critics have called out as alarming to purists. Of course it’s unlikely that my favorite movie will be replaced anyway.

This article on posh barbershops that offer salon services for men (“don’t call them spas”) briefly discusses the difference between hair stylists and barbers. The skillset for cosmetology and barber’s licenses are different. These upscale barber shops often hire stylists with cosmetology licenses to give massages, manicures, and facials in addition to haircuts. The cosmetology license is more versatile for the range of services these shops offer, but barbers take 300 hours of training with clippers and are skilled in that ultimate luxury service, the straightedge razor shave. Shop owners are hiring stylists who specialize in straight-razor shaves instead. Some states have combined their cosmetology and barber licenses, but that means aspiring barbers have to sit through learning how to do nails and updos. Barbers and barbershops continue to decline in number as stylists grow.

I bought my husband a Sony Reader Digital Book and he likes it.

A real estate agent for a house in Novato, California went completely beyond what one may think is reasonable to make a sale. After putting money into improvements and then watching the asking price dip lower and lower, the owner could no longer afford mortgage payments. The lender began foreclosure proceedings and was ready to sell at a loss on the steps of city hall when an offer finally came in that would not have cost the lender any money. The agent called the lender to hold off the foreclosure. When he got nowhere with the lender representative, he tried to escalate up the management chain but failed. Unwilling to stop there, he looked up the names of the lender’s executives and concocted email addresses to try to get through to someone. He actually reached the Chief Executive and was ultimately granted another 30 days to close the deal. Whew.

They got shut down by the health department a few times, but the shiny silver Airstream Skillet came back to the streets of Seattle earlier this year to dish out deluxe street food. A “roach coach” gone upscale, the trailer is outfitted with a gourmet kitchen that can travel to wherever it’s welcomed and serve up lunch specialties like Kobe beef burgers, poutine, and also fancy breakfasts. They do events too.