Happy pill, happy sewage

This is both very funny and slightly disturbing. How much fricking Prozac are these people taking?

Prozac seeping into water supplies

The anti-depressant drug Prozac is being taken in such large quantities in Britain that it has entered water supplies.

Experts from the Environmental Agency are calling for an immediate investigation after it emerged that quantities of the medication were found in rivers and groundwater used for drinking supplies.

[...]

A recent report by the Environmental Agency concluded the Prozac, dubbed the "happy pill" in the United States where it is hugely popular for its mood-lifting qualities, could be potentially toxic. It also branded its presence a "potential concern".

Experts have also voiced concerns that the drug, which they believe has found its way into the water system from treated sewage water, could seriously damage the human reproductive system.

[...]

"We need to determine the effects of this low-level, almost continuous discharge[.]" [...]

Children

The following was in the WBUR e-mail newsletter sent by Dick Gordon.

There's a part of the Russian school story that's not being told.

It's not a big thing, and it's not conspiracy stuff.

In fact, it's very simple.

It all began, we are told, on the first day of school. That explains why there were so many people caught inside the school. See, in Russia, the first day of school is a really big thing. The parents go. They meet the teacher. There was a time when they exchanged gifts. So the attackers chose their target and their timing with that in mind.

What's more, if I can be forgiven a generalization, Russians love children. They love their own children of course, but they also love EVERYBODY ELSE'S children. It's part of that old collective thing. When I lived in Moscow, walking down the street was a dreary affair. No one made eye contact. No one smiled...unless I was with one of my young daughters.

Then complete strangers were cheery, they'd step aside at the metro or the bread store. And they weren't bashful either. If they thought for a moment that one of our girls was not well enough dressed for the cold weather...they rush right over and start adjusting a hat or mittens...smiling at the child, and castigating me for being a bad parent.

I thought about this when the children were attacked in Beslan. It will always be an inexcusable act to intentionally involve children in war and terrorism. It was just that little extra bit nastier, singling out Russian children on that day.

Details on the deaths at the school in Beslan can be found here. I'm reminded a little bit of Oklahoma City, especially by the pictures of bloody children being carried by frightened- and exhausted-looking adults. How could any cause be worth this? I will never understand.

Bubble tea spawn

A fun little tip for my friends, who can actually get to a place which sells decent bubble tea, from Poopy Z. Brite:

A fun thing to do with bubble tea is position three or four of the tapioca pearls between your teeth and lips, open your mouth just enough to let your dining partner see them, and say, "I'm spawning!"

Lazy = fat ass

One Toque Over The Line on Atkins and "carbs" and chefs:

Can somebody answer this question? What the Hell is wrong with the American dining public?

Let me get this straight. We[']re fat because we eat carbohydrates? Well, that certainly explains all the obese Asian cultures. [...]

As Chefs we have enough to deal with the general running of the kitchen and cooking food for people without mental problems. But when every third person comes in with some silly carb free craze[,] it really just fucks us up. It makes people ruin the food we create and when that happens, the gloves come off. If you really think that [...] leaving off the rice or the gnochi that we've spent an hour and half making will make you Claudia Schiffer, you're wrong. Stop blaming starches and driving Chefs crazy with your bullshit.

You might want to consider getting up and going for a walk. If you're too depressed to do that, I don't know what to say. Put down the bon bons, get the fuck up you bloated sack and get to doing something physical.

'Course, it would help if more places were like NYC (and many of its surrounding 'burbs) and had sidewalks. The main difference between my life here and my life in CT is that I have nowhere to walk except the road. I don't even want to be on the road with these insane drivers when I'm in a car. Like hell I'll give them the opportunity to hit me without the tons of steel surrounding my o-so-squishable flesh. Hardly anyone in America (outside of NYC) walks anywhere anymore. I'm thinking of starting some sort of campaign to get sidewalks and crosswalks put in every town in the country. Starting with my pathetic burg. 'Cause like hell I'm giving up my fancy-ass, Italian-monk-made pasta.

Voice from outside (looking in)or, observations on colonial politicking

A comment from crack-of-the-ass-early today by the exhausted, possibly drunk Warren Ellis regarding the RNC's keynote speaker.

Is it me, or is Zell Miller (D - Georgia) actually Satan? I haven't caught any of the RNC circus until tonight, slumped in a very large bed waiting for unconsciousness. But this Zell Miller guy is deeply
disturbing. He is currently claiming that he has knocked on the door of
George Bush's soul and found someone in. "A God-fearing man with a spine
of tempered steel." Which, I guess, is why he's gone to New York to sell
out his party on live television.
The crowd are chanting "Four more years." In between chants, I can hear a
man in the back yelling "Sieg."
___
sent from Treo/time for the sleep of fear
Posted by Warren Ellis at 03:30 AM

Tee-shirt origami

Holy hell, man. The Japanese can even make folding shirts cool.

cheers to the anal-retentive Jubilee for finding it

Sad, yet I think some of my friends might score even lower

Jenny Turpish Slapped Me: Quizzes - Better Family:

20 Questions to having a Better Family

Your score as a human being is 30.

This makes you like The Sopranos.

Holy crap. This is some serious malfunction you've got in your family. It's like baked ziti of anguish set off by a romaine salad of conflict and a nice Merlot of denial. Your parents would cheat on each other in a heartbeat if they could find anybody but each other that could tolerate them. Your siblings blow hot and cold, and by "hot" and "cold" I mean "intractably selfish" and "desperately codependent."

Don't feel bad. This is the score my family gets, and we're not bad people. Mostly.

In honor of the RNC in NYC

Thought I'd display this AP report from a little ways back in the midst of the Republican National Convention.

I believe Freudian slip is a term with which we are all familiar, if only from college Halloween parties.

Bush misspeaks, says his administration seeking 'new ways to harm our country'
Thursday, August 5, 2004
AP Breaking News

(08-05) 10:48 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) --
President Bush offered up a new entry for his catalog of "Bushisms" on Thursday, declaring that his administration will "never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people."

Bush misspoke as he delivered a speech at the signing ceremony for a $417 billion defense spending bill.

"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we," Bush said. "They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."

No one in Bush's audience of military brass or Pentagon chiefs reacted.

The president was working his way toward a larger point. "We must never stop thinking about how best to defend our country. We must always be forward-thinking," he said.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Bush's misstatement "just shows even the most straightforward and plain-spoken people misspeak."

"But the American people know this president speaks with clarity and conviction, and the terrorists know by his actions he means it," McClellan said.

My favorite bit is how "no one in Bush's audience ... reacted," as if that phrase was to be expected.

I'd credit the writer, but the e-mail didn't have any further info.

p.s.

Hiya back, Jubilee! Sorry if I made you late for your ride, there. It was very nice indeed to at least get to IM with you. Cross fingers we can work out the timing in October.

Hope the triangle-karma thing is working out better now, Miss Shoujo-Anime-Life.

I spy with my little eye...Morpheus and Lord Jesus!

Go read this post by Mr. Sun.

Yet another HP4 flick update

In the best bit of Harry Potter-film casting news since Alan Rickman as Professor Snape, Miranda Richardson has been cast as Rita Skeeter. So, so glad. Like Rickman, she may not look the part, but she sure as hell can act it. Perfect.

Books of the summer

A pointless list of the things which I read this past summer. This is so I can clear out my "been done read" list, which probably won't be updated much now that classes are back in session. I read a lot of crap this summer.

• Liquor Poppy Z. Brite
  much, much better than I was expecting. recommend highly to all fellow foodies.
  
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix J.K. Rowling, read by Stephen Fry
  
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J.K. Rowling, read by Stephen Fry
  
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J.K. Rowling, read by Stephen Fry
  
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets J.K. Rowling, read by Stephen Fry
  
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone J.K. Rowling, read by Stephen Fry
  
• Lullaby Chuck Palahniuk
  a good read, if you like Palahniuk's style
  
• The Confessions of Max Tivoli Andrew Sean Greer
  
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time Mark Haddon
  a super-good book! read it!
  
• Remembrance of Things Past, Part Two: Within a Budding Grove, vol.2 Marcel Proust, adapted by Stéphane Heuet
  
• Remembrance of Things Past, Part Two: Within a Budding Grove, vol.1 Marcel Proust, adapted by Stéphane Heuet
  
• Remembrance of Things Past, Part One: Combray Marcel Proust, adapted by Stéphane Heuet
  
• Michael Chabon presents ... The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist
  kind of a disappointment
  
• The Tale of Despereaux Kate DiCamillo
  good kid lit
  
• Night Train To Memphis Elizabeth Peters
  
• Trojan Gold Elizabeth Peters
  
• Silhouette In Scarlet Elizabeth Peters
  
• Street of the Five Moons Elizabeth Peters
  
• Children of the Storm Elizabeth Peters
  
• Alphabet of Thorn Patricia A. McKillip
  yet again, McKillip kicks fantasy lit tushy
  
• Abhorsen Garth Nix
  this trilogy is super-good fantasy kid lit. read it!
  
• The Lord of Castle Black Steven Brust
  super-fun series! yay!
  
• and a boat-load of manga

God bless 'em for having a sense of humor

Today's the first day of the RNC. I'm sure my friends in NYC have already suffered for the stunts pulled by the protesters with more "ideals" than brains. I envy you neither the influx of Republicans or the coinciding influx of avid anti-Bushers. Still, I felt the need to show that not every any-Busher is a complete idiot, nor do they lack a sense of humor. Re: this past Sunday's events for Billionaires For Bush: RNC Extravaganza:

Billionaire Croquet Party
10am, Central Park, SE area of the Great Lawn (View Map)
500,000 anti-Bush protesters will be barred from Central Park so that we can play croquet. Part of our "Keep off the Grass" campaign to privatize Central Park. Bring your croquet sets, badminton sets, and other uppercrust lawn games. Billionaires should not gather in groups of larger than 20, as it would be awfully out of character to get arrested!

Million Billionaire March
Noon, Outside front of Plaza Hotel (59th & 5th)
Billionaires for Bush from all across America -- from Beverly Hills to Grosse Pointe to Wall Street -- will converge on the streets of New York for a massive "Million Billionaire March" to celebrate President Bush's favoritism towards the corporate elite. With a combined net worth of over $1,000,000,000,000,000, join the Million Billionaire March as we overwhelm UFPJ's tiny 250,000 person march. Limo and marching band to accompany; formal attire required.

I love the idea of protesters marching in ball gowns and white ties. How fahbulous. Anyone know if they actually pulled these off?

I am without box

What box do you get put in?




brought to you by Quizilla



Strangely enough, this is possibly the most accurate result I've ever received from an online quiz. (Yeah, actually, I do like classical music. What of it?) Cheers to BlueMedea for writing it and Angry Rabbit for pointing it out.

Yet even more fabulous English toilets

Ooh, check out the snazzy johns!

Loo in running for design award
A state-of-the-art public toilet has been shortlisted for a national architectural prize.

The design aimed to change the image of the dark, smelly public loo.

And yet, sadly, the public doesn't seem to appreciate entirely the fabulousness of their johns:

Parish council "snubs" modern loo
A public toilet shortlisted for a national architectural prize has been "snubbed" by a parish council who dislike its state-of-the-art design.

[...] In a letter sent to New Forest District Council (NFDC), Nina Ball, chairman of the parish council, described the toilets as "totally unacceptable to the village of Brockenhurst" and not "in sympathy with the surrounds".

However, they apparently already have plans for the old "dark, smelly public" johns the fabulous trophy johns have replaced:

Public convenience to become flat
A couple have applied for planning permission to convert a public convenience into a one-bedroom flat.

[...] Mr Cubby said: "By the time we've landscaped it, you won't be able to tell it was a public loo.

"The ladies is going to be a nice-sized bedroom and there will be a kitchen/living area where the gents used to be."

Fabulous!

I just loved the headline on this one:

City's fabulous loos recognised
Oxford is fighting off stiff competition in the race to win a top loo prize.

This dork's double-takes

One, Jude Law, master of pretty-boy hotness, is "an avid comic book collector."

"I still go to comic shops, Forbidden Planet, and look through back issues of the ones I love," he said. "I was a big fan of Johnny Nemo and Strange Days, Parallax, you know those? But I haven't gotten into anything recently, not like I did with [Alan Moore's] From Hell and Watchmen."

Which is just so durned cute of him, really. Care to come over and peruse my comic book collection, Mister Law? rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Two, aging master of hotness, Ralph Fiennes, is going to be playing ("say WHA?!") Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. This makes sense, in a way, as the actor kind of looks like the older version of the kid who played Tom Riddle in the second film. Still, they chose a short, ugly dude (albeit, very talented) to play Sirius and chose a handsome fellow to play freakshow Voldemort. Why? Why? Why do they do this to me? I'm so confused.

Connection between these items? Ahh.... Hm. Well, I do believe that Mister Fiennes starred in an ill-fated film adaptation of Mister Law's beloved Strange Days back in the day. Ta da! Oh, and they're both freakishly pretty yet shaggable Englishmen. There.

Language question for the general readership

Voldemort. Would that be translated as Flight of Death or Flight from Death? My French is super-rusty.

I'm bored, but I can't bring myself to look at my Japanese flash cards right now. They're such a mess.

Things I have done about which none of you will give a hoot

• went to NYC Ballet's evening performance of "Russian Tribute", part of NYCB's Balanchine 100 Celebration and their summer tour (Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY)
  
• went to Prince's Musicology tour concert in Hartford, CT (present from my eldest sister) with my mom, eldest sister J-- and her son S--
  
• went to a Yankees-Toronto game with Mom and my nephew S--
  
• seen As You Like It (Shakespeare & Company, Lenox, MA) and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Williamstown Theatre Festival, Williamstown, MA) with my mom, my sister J--, and my nephew S--
  
• visited Six Flags The Great Escape with my nephew S--
  
• went to the Manchester United-AC Milan match at Giants Stadium with my sister J--, my nephew S--, and my mom, mere hours before J-- and S-- flew back to France
  
• finally saw Shrek 2, Spiderman 2, Troy, and Fahrenheit 9/11

The ballet was lovely, but too modern for the angry lesbian sitting in front of me. She didn't like the fact that there was so much focus on the male dancer in "Apollo," and whispered harshly throughout that dance to her milder-tempered life-partner. I thought nasty thoughts at her and she had the decency to disappear after "Apollo" until the third act. Hoo-ray for the awesome power of my mind! Go 'way, stoopid, ill-educated lesbian! And get a better haircut! (Well, at least the first part took.)

As no one I know, outside of certain members of my family, cares for Prince, I won't rave for three paragraphs on how wicked awesome his concert was in spite of the deep-set lameness of the Hartford jerks in attendance. I will note that the floor of the Hartford Civic Center was so filthy that it took great effort on my part to detach my feet from said floor. So much effort, in fact, that I couldn't jump in time to the music when prompted to do so by the Purple One. Others in attendance complained of the same. Those floors were nasty, and not in a Janet Jackson kind of way.

Both of the Shakespeare productions were very good and managed to be fresh interpretations without going too crazy in the reinterpretation. Rosalind in the Shakespeare & Company production and Hermia and Puck in the Williamstown production were the stand-out performances. I sincerely hope to see all three of them go on to bigger and brighter productions, but not too soon, as we can actually afford to see them in regional theater.

Six Flags was kind of crazy, as we went on a weekday and there were nearly no lines at all. This meant we got to ride rollercoaster after rollercoaster with nearly no break in between. By the time I'd ridden The Comet twice in succession, I was feeling exceedingly nausiated and had trouble walking. My nephew was miffed by my weakness, but, in my defense, we'd had about three-and-a-half hours solid of rollercoaster riding and I hadn't eaten yet that day. (I was attempting not to hurl the warm bottle of water I'd chugged just before getting on The Comet, in case you were wondering.)

We went to the soccer match the next day, surrounded by Liverpudlians and Irish and English and Australians. It was fun. My nephew was sorely disappointed by Man U's loss, which shouldn't have happened. I discovered that professional soccer, when played by non-Americans and seen in person, is actually rather entertaining. It's like basketball, only on a much larger court and played with the feet. It continues to be mind-numbingly boring when viewed on television. I still prefer baseball.

"The filthy monkey, it plans..."

Check out the tiny piece of story by Warren Ellis.

That sort of thing had been a local problem since I was a boy, when Farmer Hobble contracted the fabled 'terrible cock-mange' from the sheep who ate the dumped army chemicals and learned to have sex in the missionary position.

baa-aaa-aaa!

(You might also want to look here for more Ellis short stuff.)