kerplink, kerplank, kerplunk

Everyone on the Internet
Here's an issue that really concerns me - the technological gap - and in this article, Patrick Schabe takes the cynical point of view, that even if the underprivileged classes are given computers and cheap access to the internet, that the most salient outcome of that will be their falling deeper into debt and becoming more avid consumers. I don't know that I agree entirely with Schabe's theory, but I am intrigued by his phonebooth-style idea of providing low-cost public access to the 'net. Thoughts? Share 'em.
Friday, August 4, 2000 05:14 p.m.

Ax-Man, Purveyor of Fine Surplus Goods
If I'm ever in the Twin Cities, I will be making a beeline for the nearest Ax-Man store. Who needs the Mall of America when you can have access to bails of shredded money? Or a huge shelving unit holding disembodied doll heads? (Link via nylpm, but in a sort of round-about way.)
Friday, August 4, 2000 12:50 p.m.

notebooks
Via evacuate & flush. The interesting musings of one Cosma Rohilla Shalizi (and if that's not one of the coolest names, ever, I don't know what is) on topics ranging from QWERTY to Demonology to Voltaire.
Friday, August 4, 2000 12:49 p.m.

Secret Celebrity Boyfriends Revealed!
Jackie Collins, the vastly entertaining writer of Journalese, presents the second report on her readership's Secret Celebrity Boyfriends. And she totally takes the piss out of me. Which is fine and fair, because with my 10 SCBs, I sound like, well, kinda daggy. What can I say? It's just not right to limit my badass self to one or two SCBs. Share the wealth, I say!
Friday, August 4, 2000 10:15 a.m.

Tuesday Weld-iana
This is maybe more than you wanted to know about Tuesday Weld, whose good girl gone naughty face lights up the cover of Matthew Sweet's album Girlfriend. Now I'm going to have to track down her cheeseball-sounding movies. Via Scrubbles.
Friday, August 4, 2000 10:13 a.m.

Towards a YA Human Sexuality Collection
From the Progressive Librarian, always an excellent source for topics worth thinking about.
Friday, August 4, 2000 10:11 a.m.

Loobylu
I am in serious like with everything about this thoroughly charming personal site. The design is adorable and cozy, her links are worth following, and her writing voice is warm and inviting. If sites could be snuggly and fashionable sweaters, Loobylu would be one.
Thursday, August 3, 2000 10:03 a.m.

The BBC on Buffy
This is really cute. They've only broadcast the first two seasons of Buffy The Vampire Slayer on British TV, so this site is full of exposition stuff. I wish they'd expand their "Slayerspeak" section.

File under: Oy, Vey! It seems that Britney Spears will be making at least one guest appearance on the next season of Buffy. Let the eye-rolling begin.
Thursday, August 3, 2000 10:00 a.m.

Cameron Crowe's New Movie
I've been waiting a long darn time for a new movie from Cameron Crowe. Jerry Maguire was ok, but I'm way ready for something along the lines of Singles or Say Anything. I hope the new film is a return to form.
Thursday, August 3, 2000 09:58 a.m.

There's Something About Jane
Yes, another Jane Austen link. Courtesy of Arts & Letters Daily, it's all about why contemporary authors can't leave her plots alone, and why they ought to.

"Modern readers are, I think, starved for [Austen's] precise combination of satisfying romance and socially astute wit. The bitterness of the latter allows us to guiltlessly enjoy the honey of the former, which would choke us if swallowed pure. Austen's enduring appeal is not costume-drama elegance, and it is not romance alone. It is woman-centered comedy that criticizes the follies of humanity."

Full disclosure: I read and loved both of the Bridget Jones' Diary books and recently paid 50 cents for Julia Bennett's sequel to Sense and Sensibility, The Third Sister. So, you know, grains of salt and all that.
Wednesday, August 2, 2000 12:57 p.m.

The Vine
The Tomato Nation advice column. Not only does Sarah give excellent and thoughtful counsel, she's snarf-inducingly funny.
Wednesday, August 2, 2000 10:32 a.m.

Map of the Republic of Pemberley
An online resource for all things Jane Austen, including this hypertext edition of Pride and Prejudice, complete with search engine! I think they've got the entire Austen canon available in that format, actually. Very handy for those times when you desperately need to know how many times Lady Catherine de Bourgh cuts off one of Mr. Collins' obsequeous speeches.
Wednesday, August 2, 2000 10:28 a.m.

Clueless Script
Jen, this is for you - the script to Clueless, in all its amusing & quotable glory.
Wednesday, August 2, 2000 10:27 a.m.

Red Balloon
A site for makers, listeners, and lovers of mix tapes. Though Nikki & Charlene haven't updated in a while, they promise a site re-design and updates soon. They provide you with a theme each month, and subscribers then make tapes based on their interpretation of the theme and submit the track listing and contact information, in case other folks want to request a copy. Marcus, I think you'd particularly enjoy this site.
Wednesday, August 2, 2000 10:24 a.m.

Slate article on W Hotels
"What's interesting is that W, whose first hotel appeared in Manhattan in 1998, aims to replicate this particular atmosphere all over the country and the world. There are already something like 20 Ws, in San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle, New Orleans. W's goal is not to be an enclave of fauxhemian exclusivity; its goal is to be the McDonald's of fauxhemian exclusivity."

And it is very tempting, (caution: horrible audio pop-up!) and not nearly as expensive as I'd thought it would be to stay there. Still, if I'm going to shell out the big bucks to stay somewhere sumptuous, I'd rather go to Mohonk Mountain House.
Tuesday, August 1, 2000 04:21 p.m.

Eric Conveys an Emotion
Not Eric the half-bee, Eric the guy with a camcorder and a plethora of amusing facial expressions. My favorites (today) are Hardcore Gangsta Eric and Eric Doing Mr. Burns' "Excellent" Face. Snarf alert: not for those currently sipping beverages! All praise to gmtPlus9.
Tuesday, August 1, 2000 04:19 p.m.

Guardian Film Trailer Page
More fun with the Guardian - a page of movie previews. I love movie previews. I would be content to pay full ticket prices for the privilege of watching 2 hours' worth of previews new and old. For the moment, this is as close as I can get to that dream. Salon also has several pages of trailers. (RealPlayer required for the Salon trailers.)
Tuesday, August 1, 2000 11:05 a.m.

Shopping, American Style, in the UK
I adore The Guardian. This is so funny - they sent an intrepid reporter on a shopping trip at the first WalMart in the UK. He writes, "Visitors hoping to find a treasure trove of genuine American rubbish - confections of celebratory disgustingness, perhaps, or Confederate flag windscreen stickers - will be disappointed." Silly! You find those things a much smaller, family-run stores, not the big sanitized chains!
Tuesday, August 1, 2000 10:59 a.m.

Anti-Child Movement
Ok. I think everyone has the right to determine his or her own reproductive future. And I am sympathetic to folks without kids, whether through reproductive problems or by choice, who are hassled by relatives, employers, and acquaintances about it. But there are people who take this too far. And this Salon article is an excellent rebuttal to some of the more offensive and patently anti-child sentiments popular in the child-free movement.
Tuesday, August 1, 2000 10:54 a.m.

The 6 Faces of Stephin Merritt
You know, I should probably just call this the Merritt blog. Anyway, thanks to pearls that are his eyes for this interview w/Stephin. He cracks my shit up, especially his Justin Timberlake (the curly blonde in NSYNC for those of you who don't follow the boy bands) impression.
Tuesday, August 1, 2000 10:49 a.m.

nyplm's "I'm Lonely (And I Love It)" Review
Is there anything better than arriving at home, tired and wilted after a day of soul-deadening work, to see an oversized envelope full of new music peeking out of your mailbox? I think not.

How appropriate, then, that my new arrival is the latest Future Bible Heroes cd-ep, "I'm Lonely (And I Love It)", reviewed just yesterday by Tom at nyplm. The title song is by far the best track in the lot, the layers of OMD-esque synth and wall of sound-style vocals creating the aural equivalent of the layered sponge cake described in the liner notes.

Tom has serious reservations about Stephin Merritt's "forlorn sealion" vocal delivery. From a purely technical perspective, I agree - the arrangement is so smooth that his cracking voice does jar one a bit - this is a song Dudley Klute (who hits every note just right on "The Luckiest Guy in the Lower East Side" and "Long-Forgotten Fairytale" on the Fields' 69 Love Songs) was born to sing.

But when I look at and listen to "I'm Lonely" as a whole, I begin to see Merritt's occasional braying as a calculated decision - the narrator of the song is so overwhelmed with the relief and excitement of being rid of a relationship he didn't realize was so awful that he gets a bit carried away with his enthusiasm.
Monday, July 31, 2000 06:48 p.m.

Handbag! #6
Bwahahahaha! This is like The Onion, British version. And for women, primarily. So funny, so nasty! I thought it might actually be about handbags, but was pleasantly surprised to find a very well done skewering of middle-class life. mavis minge, I am forever in your debt. I'm going to go wipe the tears of mirth from my eyes now.
Monday, July 31, 2000 04:58 p.m.

20th Century Pop-Up Books
Pretty self-explanatory. North Texas University's got an exhibit of some great pop-ups, and they've been kind enough to web-ify them. Via librariness.
Monday, July 31, 2000 04:56 p.m.

Celebrity Morgue
Chairman Mao and The King, in all their lying in state glory. The web is just full of the darndest things.
Monday, July 31, 2000 12:45 p.m.

Chinese Takeout Fabric
You knew the Mao-Elvis connection wasn't going to stop with Maovis, didn't you? Repro Depot has some of the most drool-worthy fabrics around. If I were sewing-inclined, I'd be blowing many many dollars here. This beauty is just $7.95/yard! And you can purchase it in fractions of yards. So cool.
Monday, July 31, 2000 12:43 p.m.

Mao as Elvis
Thank you to mr. pants for this bit of bizarreness. It's Elvis! It's Mao! It's...Maovis!
Monday, July 31, 2000 12:41 p.m.