Stopover in a Quiet Town

Can Buffalo ever come back?

A blogger for The Economist concludes that strict U.S. border controls hamper Buffalo's recovery.

The Economist also examined the future prospects for rustbelt cities as a whole.

And, apropos of nothing: young love.

Dim Sum

I often wondered when I was younger: Who was (is?) D.B. Cooper? We may now know.

The CBC produced an interesting intro to the NHL All-Star Game that reminds me of a long-forgotten game for the Commodore-64.

Is the road to prosperity francophone or anglophone?

Dim Sum

An interesting tale about an online predator.

What a better way to deal with depression than to develop a new language?

What happened to the author of Peyton Place? Unfortunately, she didn't fare so well.

Marrying for money is never good.

Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?

An albino (?) town in Argentina.

What's the deal with blond Melanesians?

Were Neanderthals redheads?

Are paedophiles short?

I Sing the Body Electric

In a deleted scene from Pulp Fiction, Mrs. Mia Wallace asks Vincent Vega if he's an Elvis man or a Beatles man. You're one or the other, and on the thirtieth anniversary of the King's death, I must declare myself the former.

That said, the King may be dead, but modern music isn't. To wit:

* "Respect" has nothing on Aretha's best. Jim and Dan are at their understated best here as well. Best, I says.

* "I saw her naked... twice!"

* Here's Ted Leo not bloodying his forehead on a microphone.

* Man Man puts on a show. Give me a Man Man/Gogol Bordello/Boredoms live triple bill, and I can die a happy man.

More to come... including some older performances and a recent Frank Black gig that trumps anything he's done in recent memory.

Number 12 Looks Just Like You