5 Horrifying Food Additives You've Probably Eaten Today

You didn't think I'd bring my own funny did you? Cracked.com's article "5 Horrifying Food Additives You've Probably Eaten Today" makes you look at shiny new apples in a new way.

Keep From Getting Bored Out of Your Skull at Work

The article, "30 Things to Do to Keep From Getting Bored Out of Your Skull at Work" from zenhabits has made me realize why government workers (city or federal) are so ineffective and inefficient at work. It's because they can't keep themselves busy when they don't have enough to do. I'm not suggesting to start finding new work on top of your lazy office mate's desk. I mean work that stimulate's some gray matter, like finishing that novel, posting to your blog, figuring out who Maria Theresa of Austria is (Marie Antoinette's mom) or playing a brief game of solitaire. Stuff that betters yourself and uses your brain.

Some of the things on this list are better done with an office door closed (sadly, goodbye, crunches). But most of the ideas are intelligent and instructive (hello, hunt for a new job).

Yes, I'm complaining about bureaucracy and government again, because, basically in the microcosm of the government world, it's impossible to get anything done with half the websites on the internet blocked. Including my own. And probably yours. And all the tech experts at Microsoft's. I'll make up for my bitchiness with the hilarity of my next post. Promise.

Obama's Race Speech

Sometimes Freshsnaps and I talk about the same things. Tough Buns. Everybody should read this.

"Obama's Race Speech" from the Huffington Post.

How Google Got Its Colorful Logo

Random? Yes. Insightful? Indubitably so.Ever get sick of reworking that draft of novel, poem, cake recipe, or website?Seeing how Google's infamous logo could have gone so horrible wrong in Wired's "How Google Got Its Colorful Logo" will instantly make you feel better.

The Necessities of PBS

Now that Jane Austen week is over on PBS there is a void in my evenings that is not filled by my daily dosage of Science Fiction shows. Little did I know that the void could become permanent.

The New York Times ran a thoughtful article a couple of weeks ago, “Is PBS Still Necessary”, about the decline of Public Television both in funds and in programming. At least Public Radio still has an edge.

FireFly is the Underbelly of our Future

Dare I say, millions of viewers will never forget the artistic and intellectual crime perpetrated by Fox executives when they canceled Joss Whedan's FireFly series. I for one, thought it was a good approximation of our far future, as long as one took into account that the "Alliance" of planets was a synonym for the "Federation" from Star Trek the Next Generation.

So did I brake out in a cold sweat when I read this article from the News Tribune which ran in last month's Washington Express about "Cultural Translation"? More than a little. Get your Chinese on by checking out the children's program. And face the facts that in 500 years, English will be the new Spanish.

By the way, if you are not sure you should get into FireFly, just watch the Fruity Oaty Bar commercial from the movie "Serenity". That should clinch it.