Badassbuddy.com
For the free-time and DSL-connection minded, America Online and its yackity yack producing device, Instant Messenger, is a gift from the cyber communication gods. So much faster and more unnecessary than e-mail, IM has lost its shine a bit in recent years. Until now. Equally free-time possessing souls, with graphic and creative knowledge to boot, have come up with a snazzy way to personalize your IM in ways handles like “JustinLuvR,” “CoolGal” and “Kim87659” never could. With animated icons to decorate your screen as well as your chat partner’s, hundreds of musical, humorous and down right-raunchy renditions of the IM’s yellow man logo to choose from, you’ll smile even when the cyber convo is less than stimulating.
— AR
Ancora Lemon Grass Tea
No stranger to esteemed publications like USA Today and this very column, Ancora Coffee House has been known to warm the coldest soul. So while its caffeinated cousin may be more popular, one cannot overlook the importance of tea in these days of ever-fluctuating temperatures and nights full of studying. The lemon grass tea offered at Ancora is a light and tasty blend of lemon and grass — no, only kidding, the magic of this brew remains a mystery. But what is clear is the refreshing change of pace and taste. So move over coffee. A small cup will run you just a $1.35 and will last just long enough for it to stay hot in your mug. But your soul will keep warm hours after the last drop has been sipped.
— AR
“In Depth” on C-Span 2
Once a month, I take it easy on Saturday night. That’s right, no after, after-bars or late night snacks during the first weekend of the month. I really make an effort for lights out by 12 a.m. Why such sacrifice? All for my beloved “In-Depth on Book TV.” Seriously, if People magazine were to be compared with a television program (the hollow Entertainment Tonight, for example) this three-hour, commercial-free program weighs in like one of those special issues in The New Yorker, the ones that take a whole summer to read.
Hosted by the venerable Brain Lamb, each episode combines direct in-studio Q&A with calls from around the country in an attempt to delve deep into the subject at hand. This week’s program features controversial Lyndon B. Johnson scholar Robert Caro talking about the Senate years of our 36th President. In the middle of the program, the lively 70-year-old went off topic and expressed his deep appreciation for “In-Depth.”
“Where else on television do you get to examine matters at such depth? I usually get three minutes, let alone three hours to explain myself. If that allotted time is not enough, I probably shouldn’t be talking.”
Past subjects have included Peggy Noonan and Ken Burns. “In-Depth”‘s formula for success is quite simple. Get well-prepared, intellectuals with good memories to tell stories all day. Throw in a few photos/videos and hope for some probing callers (who always appear). A fantastic way to start your thinking week.
— MR
I got a new book on Saturday, in the section of discount reference books at Barnes and Noble on 7th ave. It’s called “The Dictionary of Cliches.” Or something like that. I think it’s great fun. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to buy it though. So I kept coming up with cliches in my head and said if the origin of these cliches was in there, I’d get the book. Curiously, there was another book close by called “Why We Say It” or something, and was also a book focusing on the origin of famous cliches. I wonder if one book sparked the other. Competition is the best motivator, isn’t it? Anyway, the second book had a much more confident explanation on the origin of “getting down to brass tacks,” but the first book seemed more scholarly, citing historical and literary origins, whereas the second book just sort of said this is how it is. Anyway, Caryn said I shouldn’t have bought that book, because a)I use too many cliches already, and b) anyone trying to be a writer should steer clear of cliches like the plague. What does she know about nuthin’?
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