but if UVA law were a training ground for criminals...

wouldn't we be the best criminals since we graduated? i mean, these people don't graduate before doing their crimes. we would be so much better at it!


i thought this was kinda epic. and glorious.

i realize this is just facts and statistics, but why can't a guy-themed movie open on superbowl weekend? the superbowl is on sunday night and most people don't watch movies then. but then again, i guess 1/3 of the weekend nights is taken up so that might be a problem. anything look interesting in feb?

i will watch this later.

oh i was wrong about the bb10 - this is what it looks like. it does have a keyboard. it looked like a touchscreen when i saw it.

did you know about this?

UVA Law: Training Ground for Criminals

This story came out a while ago, but apparently a second victim has come forward.

Speaking of criminals, they're getting started at an earlier age these days.

I didn't realize that the federal government is responsible for only 15% of public TV's funding.  I think Big Bird can definitely go on a diet.

And responses:

1. Duck fat should become a new part of our lives immediately.

2. Those suggestions seem reasonable.  They all seem to center around taking a step back and being a little more contemplative about what you are doing.  Makes sense.

3. See #1.  Also, see your doctor!

4. People want to do what they want to do.  There are plenty of people who started at UVA Law, racked up big-time debt, and swore never to do private practice.  And there are people who make it to law school for essentially free and make partner at a big law firm.  Maybe we should figure out why doctors aren't interested in general practice.

B

if you post next, i'll be knocked off the front page!

how about....yum?...

i'm a little blah about this trend of constantly trying to be happier and happier (the happiness treadmill_, but i thought this article was good.

this is poorly written but kinda describes my life. i think i might try to go vegan after the superbowl. at the very least, i think i should avoid dairy because of my cough (can i go that long without eggs?!!!!)

on med student debt

Crazy People

Embattled UVA Rector Helen Dragas was reappointed by Gov. Bob McDonnell, and the Virginia General Assembly has decided to approve the appointment.

Some people don't like VW's Super Bowl ad because they think it's racist since a white person is.  Not among this group: the Jamaican government.

Royce White, embattled draft pick of the Houston Rockets, is having lots of trouble because of his mental health issues.  He apparently thinks that everybody is crazy.

This totally doesn't apply to us one bit at all.

B

What's Your Salary?

Apparently this is a growing trend, but some firms are starting to reveal much more information, including salary information, the firm's bottom line, performance reviews, etc., about the firm and its employees.

I wish Virginia would eliminate its income tax.  I don't see it happening soon, but one can hope.

If the Manti Te'o story weren't in the Tyson Zone before, it certainly is now.

Oops.  Though, apparently, it's not a big deal.  I'm not sure it's good news...

You probably read this story already, but here's the chicken wing news.  I didn't realize this was such a big deal even in regular years.  Should we stock up on chicken wings in November this year?

I hereby retire from all womanly chores.  If you have a lawn that needs to be mowed, a car that needs repairing, or some heavy stuff to move, please let me know.

B

You're It!

This sounds like one of the best things ever.

I did not know that unmarried cohabitation was illegal in Virginia.  I guess technically is still is, though Bob McDonnell has indicated that he will sign the bill.

It appears that Let's Move! is over.

Ray Lewis is in trouble.  Though after murdering people, perhaps this is like getting a speeding ticket.

B

Hey look! It's North Korea!

Now Google Maps has (somewhat) detailed maps of North Korea.  You can even see the gulags where people are mercilessly tortured.  Imagine if this technology were available during World War II.

We should probably do this exercise three times a day.

This is probably our best chance for immigration reform - let's see if Obama can manage to screw it up.

Maybe I should stop being so hard on Atlanta.

How do you feel about Mean Girls: the Musical?

B

Epic Return

This is like tearing an ACL 1/4 mile from the finish line.

I imagine you're a big fan of this.

Hah hah, I'm reading the Billfold now!  I thought this debt article was interesting.
It appears that immigration reform is coming.

Here's an article talking about the Tampa Bay Rays and their "struggles."  I put struggles in quotation marks because, even though they are having obvious trouble attracting people to the ballpark, it is highly probable that the team is profitable and highly unlikely that public funding for a new stadium is a good idea.

Apparently, women pay more for stuff than men.  I was a little bit disappointed in the hyperventilating of the article, though.  I thought much of the price discrimination could be chalked up to supply and demand (it's testable, but I'd suggest that women buy more beauty/health products), haggling (as the article states), and actually different costs (in the case of health care).  Maybe this will change (e.g. the metrosexual moment has made more men interested in good hygiene products, which will probably drive prices up), but I think a law would be impossible to implement and economically harmful.  They noted one example: employers will simply raise the health insurance premiums of everyone in the name of equality.  That doesn't sound like the right answer.

That salad was amazing.  The dressing was the best part. :)

B

Responses to Responses to Your Responses!

This is getting insane:

1. Cornel West has been critical of President Obama, to name one.  But his criticism is very much from the left.  He thinks Obama is too moderate.

2. I don't know if S&C would pay for my move.  I think I would have to negotiate that point with them.  I wouldn't want a roommate, though.  At this point, I want my next roommate to be the person I'm going to marry (or else the person I am married to).  Or a puppy!

3. I'm referring to the skills associated with moving up in an organization or getting along procedurally in your professional relationships.  I think of networking - there are classes on how to network, but I wonder why it isn't more natural for some people.

4. To mailbox someone requires three steps: 1) person A starts talking to the target person (T) in order to distract him, while 2) person B gets down on all fours immediately behind T, after which 3) A pushes T, and T completely wipes out after tripping on B.  It's an old playground prank.

5. I have installed IMO; Gchat me at your leisure.

1. I am saying that it is ridiculous that we see bias and automatically reject the merits of a person's argument.  And I am saying that Mayor Bloomberg's policy to ban sugary drinks is ridiculous.

2. I'll wait. :)

3. Perhaps that is the case, but in that case the post is merely definitional and not especially interesting.  I tend to think that he was being more provocative than that, which is why I have a problem with the post.

4. Heh, we wouldn't have to worry about going over, I guess...

5. Yay, Great Wall!  And I really enjoyed dumplings and bok choy.  I could eat it once a week (maybe more).  Should we make some more dumplings?  We could do it this weekend!

B

Responses to your Responses!

1. I think the guy was stuck in the 50's, but then again it seems like
other people might be stuck there too. And I don't know if other black
leaders are critical of Obama because Al Sharpton talks up Obama as
much as possible on MSNBC. Or maybe he talks down repubs. hard to
tell the diff.

2. i think if you lived in ny, it might be nice to have a roommate. i mean, who
else would you explore the city with? would s&c pay for your move?

3. what skills are you talking about?

4. i don't know? i thought he was just backtracking as fast and as discreetly as
possible from really mundane promises. what does "to mailbox" mean? to send?

5. we can certainly try IMO.

1. I don't understand your 7-11 comment. are you defending 7-11 or the
small ethnic grocers? which opinion is correct on the merits - to ban sugary
drinks to fight obesity?

2. haven't read it yet but i certainly will. i do love reading about your life
and personality.

3. perhaps it's more a discussion of how a privileged mind works. this guy's
mind is probably warped. i wonder if he knows people who this has
happened to (or if he just reads all those articles by johnathan perkins and the
 like).

4. wouldn't it be hilarious if we went on the price is right and guessed exactly
correct price answers from the 90's? Yes, turtle wax is $2.69.

5. i've tried the great wall challenge -it's called my childhood. =P but you should
come sometime. i think the closest ethnic grocery store is grand mart in falls church
(which is apparently sketch) or one in alexandria. but there's great wall - it's just
traffic-city all the time and is particularly crazy on weekends. but if you want to go,
then let's go.

i didn't know you liked the baby bok choy with dumplings. that was news.

i really enjoyed his dissection of the different layouts of grocery stores. it's true
that a lot of american supermarkets marginalize the produce section but no
ethnic grocery store ever does. you always enter in on a huge produce section
and you don't spent too much time in the aisles - mostly because they're super
cramped.

Responses 2: the Reckoning

Starting with "7-11, the most dangerous lobby?":

1. I hate this idea that people with an economic interest can't plausibly advocate for something based on the merits.  If someone wants to eminent domain my house and I don't want them to because it's my house, does that mean that I'm biased and thus my opinion doesn't matter?  This is dumb - just as dumb as the dumb restriction on the size of sugary drinks.

2. The male bonding article describes my whole life.

3. I disagree with that privilege post.  Yes, many police officers would stop a black person carrying a TV in this way, and perhaps they would stop more black people than white people (though I am not willing to stipulate to that right now).  But he is basing his claim purely on how he believes the events would go down, which appears to be based on little more than conjecture.  I think a big part of the problem of race relations is that people on each side (meaning the allegedly oppressed side as well) assume that the other side has a certain set of preconceived notions and beliefs about their own side and act based on them, which only serves to inflame the person and prompt him to act negatively.

For example, a young black male is walking down the street in a hoodie when he sees a white police officer coming.  He assumes that the police officer is a racist who is going to harass him, so he runs.  The police officer sees a young man in a hoodie running at the sight of a police officer and plausibly assumes that the young man has broken the law, thus causing him to follow the young man and, well, harass him about his probable violations.  (Of course, I could give an example from the other side: a white police officer is walking down the street and sees a young black male in a hoodie.  He assumes that the young man is up to no good and thus confronts him in a somewhat antagonistic way.  The young man, innocently walking down the street, balks at such antagonism and responds poorly, leading to a trip to jail for nothing in particular.)  I'm not making a relativistic argument about how victims of racism are just as bad as racists or anything silly like that, but at some point I think we have to assume that the average person (police officer, nosy neighbor, or otherwise) is not a racist and act accordingly.

4. Would you ever go on The Price is Right?  I think I'd just want to watch because lately (and by lately, I mean the last 4 years) my guessing skills have eroded.  I think it's because of inflation.

5. Can we try the Great Wall challenge?  Maybe in March, since you just discovered Trader Joe's.  This article also reminded me of one of our better go-to meals: dumplings and baby bok choy.  Where did that go?  (I guess we need more dumplings.)

In any case, I do think that something resembling fear plays a role, but that makes it sound weird.  People like eating the same things because they don't want to mess with what works and they want to stay in their comfort zones.  It reminds me of my friend Laura's husband who doesn't eat vegetables and eats plain cheeseburgers without even ketchup, much less lettuce, tomato, and onions.  It sounds as though you have to have some cooking chops and a willingness to eat somewhat different food to shop at Great Wall, plus a willingness to navigate a completely different layout with all the language difficulties highlighted in the article.  I feel like that sounds either intriguing or daunting, with little room in between.  I, for one, am intrigued.

B

Responses!

Starting with "because it's all about the middle class":

1. I wanted to give the guy some credit, but then he said, "America does not really want a middle class," and proved this statement with an event from 1951.  I also reject his reading of the financial crisis.  I'm actually not surprised he blames Obama.  A lot of "black leaders" (for lack of a better term) have been harshly critical of Obama for not doing enough for black people and not being the President of Black People.

2. The average price of a Manhattan rental is almost $4,000.  That's insane.  But then again, it's also 30% of my income, which is what economists and real estate people say I should pay in rent/mortgage.  I was thinking about it some more, and I could probably be okay in NY - that is, after I'm done paying back my salary advance.  The advance takes an extra $900/month out of my check, and I think I could probably find someplace to live in NY for $3,100/month.  More generally, though, I do think that people are buying a lifestyle in moving to NY.  You're buying opportunities, job prospects (in terms of stuff you could do, not necessarily unemployment numbers), being in the center of the universe, etc.  The real question is whether that's how you want to spend your money.

3. The career group is an interesting idea.  That said, I wonder whether it is filling in for skills people really should have.  But as I think about that, I wonder where people would learn said skills.

4. Was the retraction about recess appointments?  If so, a federal court recently mailboxed Obama as he was backtracking...

5. I'm going to try using IMO.  Do you use Gchat at work?  If so, you can try to chat with me!

Responses to your last two posts are coming up!

B

this is the last one, promise

why man-man friendships are hard - no double entendre intended

privilege

the most important read of all: how to get on the price is right!

an economist goes to lunch shops at my mom's favorite grocery store. also, i commiserated with his phd student on getting lost at giant. i think you just have to get used to a supermarket. any new supermarket is confusing, even in the same brand. i looked all around a safeway once looking for beets but i knew just where to go at walmart (also walmart's food sections are smaller).

i found this article on a site also inviting people to go to "ethnic markets" citing fear as a main problem. (well any new supermarket is a little terrifying).  i thought it was just that they're so far away. and crowded. i mean, i guess merrifield isn't THAT far away but i only go to target when absolutely necessary and only to harris teeter when i get tired of gnawing at my cupboards. and then i'll probably try to go to cvs. i am that lazy. i also find that a big reason i bring my lunch is sometimes i'm too lazy to go downstairs to find food. i think my future place has to be near a grocery store - like that place where i got the couch. perfection.

7-11, the most dangerous lobby?

I obviously thought this law was bogus from the get-go but the lawsuit makes some good points. limiting sugary drinks but not applying that to the Big Gulp? or to supermarkets?

i went to trader joe's because any other store i would have to walk farther (whole foods) or drive and i didn't want to go home and then drive. i wanted to be home when i got home. so i figured i'd get off at clarendon and see what all the fuss was about.  

i'm currently eating a pretty big snack pack of edamame that i got from tj's for breakfast. it's such a well coordinated grocery store - it has all the stuff you want without making you circle through all sorts of stuff you don't. and the charcuterie is much cheaper too! the only thing they don't have is greek gods. and probably liberte.

i also bought some sea salted caramel but it just tastes like caramel. oh well.

i heard serena williams was beat. but people are saying it's a changing of the guard. she lost one match and she's got an injured knee or something. i think it's early yet.

google talk?

is google talk the same as gchat?

because it's all about the middle class

i suppose this is why there is no black middle class - educated, hardworking black people in the 50's and 60's couldn't get ahead - and now they don't even try to. it's weird that he blames 'the present administration.' i'm sure he meant to blame bush.

a very long article about the lack of middle class in new york city.

this is an interesting idea

obama retracts everything

random non-inaugural stories

increased parental support leads to lower grades

investment banking: Every generation of aimless Ivy League graduates has to have some job that it flocks to out of a hunger for prestige and avoidance of adulthood, and it's hard to imagine that that job will be, y'know, done well. And it's genuinely weird that investment banking was that job for a while. A tumultuous while, it turns out. You might ponder whether the flight from banking and into Teach For America is entirely good news for our inner-city schools.

how the new yorker gets stories - turns out, at magic shows.

Liars

I'm just going to assume that Manti Te'o knew more than nothing with respect to the actual existence of his fake girlfriend and include him here along with Lance Armstrong.  Here is the Malcolm Gladwell/Chuck Klosterman conversation I alluded to yesterday.  There's also this.

I know you don't care about the Lance Armstrong business, but the tidbit that concerns me is that he bullied other people - not just fellow athletes, but also people he worked with - with lawsuits and other outrageous tactics.  What a liar.

I wish I could buy Apple stock, but I'm not allowed without jumping through many hurdles and dealing with all sorts of other nonsense.

I'd be curious to see how well negotiation works with a large company like Archstone, but I think the problem we're facing is that the DC rental market isn't suffering quite as much.  I'd like to see the numbers, though.

It's time to give Matt Ryan his due!

The NRA is winning.

I'm struggling to find decent restaurants (that aren't completely booked on OpenTable - I've crossed off maybe 10 that are great but completely booked), so that'll be a separate post.

B

smallest allotted number of links to qualify as a post

is this the beginning of the end or time to buy apple stock?

this is interesting though probably wouldn't work too well around here

i unabashaedly loved this but i don't get the joke.

Responses!

Since you posted two in a row, I'll try to hammer out my responses first:

1. Why is there a national day of service?  Anyway, that's beside the point.  This sounds like a poorly conceived idea.  I'll just try to be a good person all year instead of when Obama (I feel like this is Obama's idea somehow) tells me to.

2. Those discrepancies in the Sandy Hook shooting story are not discrepancies, but rather oversights that are easily spotted when everybody in America is paying attention to the reporting of a story.  I will say, though, that #9 is just dumb.  I don't know what Mrs. Lanza could have done to prevent an adult who lived with her from accessing her weapons.  He was 20, not 2.

3. Did you write that article about the search for the perfect purse?  I get that the journey is more important than the destination, but I thought that was just for life stuff, not for buying goods.

4. Tuition.io seems like it might be helpful.  We'll see when my next payment comes in how useful it is, but I like the graphical representation better than what I see on Mint.  Also, I don't like the way Mint treats loan payments (I like to treat them as transfers to my loan account, but Mint doesn't totally agree except with respect to credit cards).  Anyway, I created an account, so I can show it to you at some point.

5. I'm still in need of an explanation for how Obama can unilaterally raise (or freeze) pay for Congressmen.

6. Obama's bill is such a waste of money.  I don't even have to narrow that down for the statement to be true.

7. Rick Perry was widely respected and highly thought of as a potential presidential candidate - that is, until he became a presidential candidate.

As much as I love football, stories like this one about Jason Taylor make me feel incredibly horrible.

The repair guy came early (it's a good thing I came early).  Upon examination, he determined that my couch is a piece of crap.  He took some pictures and said that he would file a report within 3 days.  He also said that it's not a guarantee that they won't try to fix it.  He suggested it would be a 3-4-hour job, but he also said that he has heard of 5-6-hour jobs being approved over simply replacing the couch.  I didn't pay that much for this couch, so the idea that someone spending 4 hours trying to fix it (and that includes new parts because the bottom of this thing is splinters) costs less than just giving me a new cheap couch is both hard to believe and somewhat depressing.

B

national day of service

so i keep getting emails from national day of service, probably because of my involvement with americorps, and i thought, i can be a good person. so i looked at the kinds of community service. seems like most of it is collecting donations, which seems like, well, who is giving these donations? if everyone's serving, who can be donating? then there are some gardening/building/cleaning things, but i don't feel like getting dirty. some virtual opportunities (those are weird), phonebanking (ugh), walking a red carpet and being in a video (not sure who this helps), writing to soldiers (c'mon, i already donated all my stickers to them!), food prep (seems like too crazy a day to do that) and helping unemployed people prepare for jobs (computer training and mock interviews, but if there are no jobs, not sure how this helps). there aren't even any blood drives that day.

i got my drugstore.com order. apparently lasership doesn't know what it's talking about.

someone just circulated a products liability article written by someone i went to high school with! at least i think so. kinda looks the same, same name, correct years for college. seems like we're all doctors and lawyers now. some engineers, too.

i wouldn't have looked for it if that yahoo article hadn't been so oblique. i think most of these can be answered easily or by the fact of shoddy reporting. i did wonder why there were no more recent pictures of the shooter. i mean, no one's taken a color picture of this guy in the last 3 or so years? not impossible but a little strange.

guns, hot girls and student loans

it's really a journey as old as time

what do you think of this?

is this racist? i do find it offensive that zhang ziyi is hottest chinese person. i mean, lucy liu is way hotter. it also would have been way weird for gq to list everyone's ethnicity and label them as hottest of that ethnicity. that would be like accounting/lawyer/nitpicky-level racism. but i guess we could learn something.

this is pretty great.

this just about negates the whole "it'd be too expensive to staff armed guards at schools" thing. put some of that cop money for cops at schools. and take it from "$50 million to help 8,000 schools “create safer and more nurturing school climates.” I don't think the school was having a problem being nurturing - except for that crazy gunman.

who knew rick perry was so eloquent?

Fruity Oil Ice Cream

Yes, that is the name of Alton Brown's generic recipe for flavored-oil-based ice cream.

I heard about Prof. O'Connell (I saw the link, and Kiara emailed the section).  That is very sad.  I also saw the Yin article - it is sad as well, but obviously less sad than a man dying.

The DC gun ban really was a terrible idea.

Joe at work believes that Groupon/Living Social/etc. make money based on people not actually using their vouchers after purchase.  This doesn't make sense to me because, to my knowledge, these firms don't pay the restaurants or whomever extra money when people redeem their vouchers.  Maybe this is like your situation with the Groupon for Mova Lounge (where a vendor refuses to honor your voucher based on terms that are not explicit in the voucher)?

What a great idea.  (Note: this isn't sarcasm, but I didn't think an exclamation point was warranted.  There needs to be some sort of intermediate punctuation that expresses interest but not exuberance so that the reader doesn't conclude that sarcasm is being used.)

Just in terms of taxes, if we were married, we would definitely end up paying more in taxes.  I used a basic tax calculator and ignored other considerations (probably irrelevant anyway), but we would pay about $6,600 more in taxes if we were married.  Even if we assumed a reduction of our respective rent/utility bills by half, that would still be over $4,000 more.  One of us would have to stop working for the tax situation to work out better, but then, of course, we'd have less money.

B

maybe on fb, this is old news

but it's new news here

outdated but it's nice that uva law is doing some hard-hitting journalism!

did you know o'connell died? probably found out on facebook. it was news to me.

this was weird

did you know this was going on? i'm not saying we should join - i just mention it as part of the reason this is a sinking ship.

ellen sent me this link but i think the computations are wrong. i think it would be cheaper for say, you and me, to be single in terms of taxes. i don't know what taxes benefit married childless people who earn similar high incomes (i guess housing but they might rent). i need more figures! the tax code is too complicated for people to say - yeah, i computed that exhaustively. i think the first commenter was like, well, if the woman earns more than the man, and then they file jointly, and you split the taxes evenly in two, then yes, the woman would pay less as a married woman but jointly, the couple doesn't pay less than 2 separate people.

And the Winner Is...

EatBar!  In case you're curious about the decision, I wanted someplace new, so Lyon Hall was out.  Your cringe in response to A-Town knocked them out almost immediately, and Sushi Rock might be a better bet when it's not rainy, windy, and cold outside (I'd like for us to be able to walk there from my apartment).  For the future, though, one thing in Sushi Rock's favor is that its happy hour ends at 7:30 instead of the usual 7.

Restaurant Week is coming: February 4-10.  We should pick a place or two!

Responses to your last post:

1. I like the idea of parchment paper for crispy food and dislike the idea of making fresh lunch in the microwave at work.  That said, I imagine that most of the food that we bring for lunch (e.g. pasta, soup) is pretty microwave-friendly, yes?

2. That's a pretty good idea.  Sometimes we get bogged down on lists, and then we completely forget about them.  Are you going to keep working on your list, or are you just going to finish it with "be more awesome than ever, which will be pretty hard..."?

3. The routine thing is really true for me.  One of the reasons I am trying so hard to start going to the gym in the morning (so far: completely unsuccessful) is that, when work comes back, I know that I'll be debating whether I should go to the gym in the afternoon and then work or get my work done first or whatever, and this ends up causing me stress.  But if I set it in the morning, then that's one particularly stressful decision I don't have to worry about.  Now it's just the execution...

B

interesting

i still haven't finished my resolutions list - the funnest part is coming up with the resolutions. i was thinking, what a sad little person i would be if i couldn't come up with fun things to resolve. but then i got stuck on my resolutions so i thought i was nearly there. this is a good jump start!

i nearly missed your sentence about paying off your car. good job, baby bear!

i'm totally stuck on lifehacker because i saw that first article a few days ago and lost it on my feed so i had to go on the site to find it - and i couldn't remember what it was - just an article that i thought i'd post on here - so i had to read all the articles to find it. but anyway, here's the last one.

Fear Oprah

Oprah confirmed that Lance Armstrong confessed to doping.  The only reasons I post this article are 1) you asked how everyone knew about it, though apparently people knew before Oprah talked (so Armstrong's people must have leaked it), and 2) I think the WADA people should realize that confessing to Oprah is just as strong as, if not stronger than, confessing under oath.  I mean, after James Frey lied to Oprah, he came back to recant the whole thing, and then after that Oprah had him and his entire family imprisoned and tortured.  That has to count for something.

This is the article I mentioned from the New York Times about how dating is over.

To which state would you like to move?

Here are Marco Rubio's thoughts on immigration reform.  I agree with what he has to say.

Here is the top 10 toy list that I mentioned.

Dumb.

I would like to make either this or this bourbon ice cream.  I want to try a non-custard ice cream.  What say you?

B

linkages

this is what your bachelor pad should really look like

what say you?

because you need to be prepared

there are so many alternatives listed here, my mind is boggling

if these are in style, then leather pants are definitely in style

does this make you want to spend more taxpayer money on welfare? it didn't for me. but apparently everyone else in the comments thought so. it's like, well if you gave them money, then they wouldn't do terrible things. in normal people lingo, that's called blackmail.

Holy Ghost Power!

Apparently Megan Fox is familiar with it.  Have you ever seen this in person?  That's what they do at my mom's church...

Find your perfect sleep position!  Sadly there was nothing in here about coughing up a lung every night...

Thursday's happy hour will come down to one of the following locations:

1. EatBar
2. Sushi Rock
3. Lyon Hall
4. A-Town

If you would like to weigh in, you should do so before the final decision is made at noon on Thursday.

B

On Affirmative Action

This is a take on affirmative action that I was not that familiar with but seems interesting.  The part I found the most interesting is that affirmative action students compare strongly to legacy students at many colleges (essentially, legacy students who get into a college but don't have the numbers to get in on their own merit struggle in many of the same ways as affirmative action students).

Our health insurance premiums are going way up.

I could watch this all day.  In fact, I probably will.

Here are the four horsemen of unhappy couples.

B

Changes to Monopoly

Apparently this isn't spitting in the face of tradition, but Monopoly is bringing in new blood with its tokens.  Just as long as the car remains, I'm happy.

Finally, there's an article that reports on what really happened with the AIG lawsuit.

Here's a little comparison for foods with respect to health benefits.

A Georgia mom blows away a home invader with a gun.  If I were the husband, I would have been doing exactly the same thing as this guy.

This is the article I mentioned about Girls.  Also, this is the article I mentioned about Led Zeppelin.

Apparently, Junior Seau, the former football player who recently committed suicide, was suffering from CTE.

I paid off my car today!

B

Leave charter schools alone!

I'm not really sure what the news is with respect to charter schools.  Besides, it's not that I love charter schools because they're better; it's that I love them because they can be different, which can be better.  Honestly, I think there's a profound social problem with how to deal with bad children in school.  All that said, I could probably point to 10 news stories (or just this one or this one or this one or this one) where the public school didn't expel, but rather called the police (which is to say nothing of stories like this where the school simply acts wildly out of proportion to the alleged offense).  Since corporal punishment is out of the question, society needs to figure out how to deal with these problem children.

Chuck Kloisterman on a podcast with Bill Simmons was saying that the 2000s are interesting because, unlike the last few decades that preceded them, there is really no unifying theme (his specific example was music rather than fashion).  I don't know if it's just too soon to tell or what, but maybe the 2000s will be known for decentralization more than anything else.  Or maybe, as the article suggests, we'll pick out one or two things from the decade that were big for a while (like bellbottoms in the 70s) and those will come to represent the entire decade for better or worse.

RGIII news: the current projection is 6-8 months for rehab, but with injuries like this, we'll just have to wait and see.

For some reason, everybody seems to think that, when Lance Armstrong goes to Oprah, he's going to admit to using PEDs.  It's as though Oprah is a celebrity priest to whom you go for confession.  "Forgive me, Oprah, for I have sinned..."

This might be relevant to our lives.

This could be an interesting development for Apple, but I wonder whether it runs into the fidelity problem.

For the first time since 1996, nobody was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Notable rejects from this year include (alleged) steroids users Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, and Sammy Sosa.

B

these are all from the billfold -directly or indirectly

defining the last decade in order to have properly attired costume parties

your beloved charter schools - although, and this would be surprising from me, i'm not sure throwing temper tantrums, even with punching and spitting, is worthy of expulsion from elementary school.

this was like watching a timeline of my grocery shopping life - well, past and future. but of course, it's not as much fun when you have a vegetarian narrating it.

news you can use

Goodbye Rob Parker!

His contract expired at the end of last year, and ESPN is not going to renew it.

Bret Stephens at the WSJ Opinion Page is not super thrilled with Chuck Hagel as Defense Secretary.

Beer apparently might be good for pain.  I will believe that without further need for evidence, but I do wonder whether the fact that the same healthy foods (e.g. olive oil, berries, vegetables, etc.) are just good for everything, and the same unhealthy foods (e.g. bacon, red meat, soda, gluten) are just bad for everything.  Like, they could put together a slide show of foods that are good and bad for losing weight, fighting disease, gettin' it on in the bedroom, etc., and I feel like it would be the same slideshow.

Cars that drive themselves!  Well, maybe we're not 100% there, but it's another step towards someone's dystopian nightmare...

Here's an interesting proposal from Bob McDonnell with respect to the gas tax and sales tax.  From a purely self-interested perspective, I'm not sure I like it because I don't drive that much, but it might be good policy.

B

The Pantry! A Variety of Takes

Martha Stewart

Eating Well

And then of course there is the New York Times.  I do like some of the suggestions, though.

Because Martha Stewart provides lists (always thinking ahead, that Martha), I'm probably going to print those out, cross off things that we already have, cross off things that I want, and then... shopping!

Finally, a little weekend homework!  You should read this before Sunday's Redskins/Seahawks game.

B

This is weird...

But maybe this is why Rex Ryan keeps playing Mark Sanchez?

From James Taranto: the first piece (which is why I'm linking it) deals with Tim Scott being called a "token."

I thought this was a thoughtful take on the use of the n-word in Django Unchained.  I'm not going to try to persuade you to see the movie with me, but I found it interesting in any case.

One final New Year's Resolution: cook more.  I'm thinking about making either an ice cream or something else (because we just made ice cream) that might last.  If I make ice cream, it will be either this or this.  Thoughts?

B

names and money

because it's way better to have kids named shatiqua than not to be able to name your kid blaer

i thought eat, pray, love was terrible and couldn't finish it but whenever elizabeth warren writes about money, i like it.

not that you need convincing to get a housekeeper but because i liked this quote:  Which brings me to the best money advice I got this year, from my friend Brandon, who works at a bank and votes for Ron Paul and has a sneering tattoo of Ayn Rand across his torso (OK only the first one is true, but still): He told me, “You pay $40 a month to never stress out about cleaning your apartment. She gets a living wage, you get a clean apartment. This is how the economy works. So shut the fuck up already.”

the article we were discussing earlier - i swear, i'm not p-bomb.

Tysons on the Move

Apparently the Silver Line isn't the only big change in store for Tysons - calling it Tysons Corner is passe, btw.

Have you heard of this?

I'm glad I don't work here.

My suggestions for our 2-3 joint resolutions:

1. Monthly picnics
2. Try a new hobby
3. Bike rides around DC/VA
4. Cooking class

I guess this would be in addition to learning Spanish and finding a go-to bar, but surely we can pick two from that list (or from ideas you may have).

Also, I've restarted GymPact, effective starting next Monday.  Get pumped.  Well, I'll get pumped...

B

Happy Hour Announcement

In the words, er, word, of Tim McKernan:  Announcement!  I move that new bar happy hour night be every other Thursday.  I have decided that every week is probably a little excessive, at least to start.  Also, since we're doing a cleanse next week, a happy hour probably isn't the greatest idea of all time.  Therefore, mark your calendar I'll mark the Google Calendar for two weeks from today.  The bar of choice will be named after the committee vote.

Slightly humorous coverage of Ray Lewis's retirement, among other things.

Hypocrisy much?

Yay corporatism (more coverage of the fiscal cliff compromise)!

RGIII just keeps impressing with his class.  Not going to lie - if that were me, I would have whispered, "Man, you guys really do suck."  Either that or, "Oh, Santa..."

I think two weeks is the consensus for how long hot fudge (or salted caramel or other dairy-based sauces of the same delicious ilk) would last in the fridge.  With that in mind, I propose that we delay making said toppings until after the cleanse (how long is this thing going to last again?), but when the cleanse is over, we're making both this and this to have on hand.  This is part of my New Year's Resolution either to make stuff or spend money on quality stuff.  No more ABP or other food purchases that I'll just end up regretting shortly after consuming them.  I thought to myself, It would be easy to buy hot fudge at the grocery store, but it would be easy and more satisfying to make it ourselves.

B

Goodbye Ray Lewis!

After the playoffs, Ray Lewis is retiring.  Now hundreds of NFL players will rest easy knowing that Lewis will no longer be coming after them, and millions of civilians will sleep no more knowing that he will have a lot more free time now.

Speaking of departures, here is a list of NFL coaches and front office people who have been fired in the last few days.

But Billy Cundiff has a new job.

In a nutshell, the fiscal cliff agreement was pretty lousy.

This is the Potbelly at my building.

So Valentine's Day is coming up...

This is going on at Graffiato.

One of my New Year's Resolutions is to find a go-to bar, and I think the first step should be trying new places.  With that in mind, I move that we designate one day a week (assuming work is not crazy) as "Go-to Bar Night."  I don't know what the requirements should be, but I think that an obvious one (being located near where we live) might be problematic unless you like sketchy billiards parlors or mall bars.  I will have three nominations for next week by Sunday.  The short list of contenders includes the following:

1. Lyon Hall
2. Bandolero
3. The rooftop bar at the Rosslyn Holiday Inn

Ok, just kidding about the third one...

Might I make a suggestion that your "me time" be Friday?  It seems as though you like to go to your parents' house that night so you can run Saturday morning, so I can just assume that you'll typically be out of pocket then, special circumstances aside (e.g. someone's hosting a party or we're doing other things separately on the weekend and want to switch things up).

I'll respond to your post in the comments.

B

i resolve

fun resolutions!

how to keep those resolutions

books to read? i actually only like where'd you go, bernadette and portrait of a novel but i like reading what books are about. if only to think, "Really?"

my resolution:
i vow to go to sleep by 11:30 and to turn off my computer at 9pm, unless i'm doing real work.
by the end of the week, i want to get rid of all emails in my inbox not finished in 2012.
wake up early

y'know, i hope you don't read the blogs in the email because i'm constantly changing posts after i post.

can i make up for flaking yesterday by offering bacon today? and the menu

or hushpuppies