"Our boss is a madman! I was in the sorting office and he said our system was outdated! I spat in his face! He fired me! I have to look for a job now!" Would Klaus Kinski have been so angry if he hadn't been so famous? A vintage column by Graham Linham (Father Ted, The IT Crowd) from the late lamented Neon magazine. (via).
posted by Artw at 11:26 PM PST - 46 comments

DING IT'S UP! [more inside]
posted by ottereroticist at 10:12 PM PST - 31 comments

How to eat spaghetti. Fufu. Phở. Injera. An artichoke. Chicken feet. A pomegranate. Indian food. Natto. If you're going to do it, do it right.
posted by Deathalicious at 9:31 PM PST - 87 comments

Odetta, folk singer and so much more, has died at age 77. The NYT has the final word with Odetta. “You’re walking down life’s road, society’s foot is on your throat, every which way you turn you can’t get from under that foot. And you reach a fork in the road and you can either lie down and die, or insist upon your life.”
posted by TomSophieIvy at 9:29 PM PST - 42 comments

Philippa Schuyler's bi-racial parents believed their offspring would be superior due to "hybrid vigor" and a raw food diet. She achieved national fame as a musical child prodigy. It's a sad story.
posted by Joe Beese at 9:04 PM PST - 17 comments

It wasn't a Merry Christmas A few years ago while visiting friends in Germany, we made a trek to Verdun, France. As an American, I had no clue as to what was there other than it was an old city dating to the (Pre)- Roman era.
I was shocked and humbled to what I saw. The greatest battle (possibly in the history of modern warfare) was at the very place I was walking. [more inside]
posted by shockingbluamp at 6:39 PM PST - 45 comments

Mykle Hansen (previously) has now shot a public service video about being eaten by a bear, to promote the book version of the podcast that's entertained many a MeFite. [more inside]
posted by nímwunnan at 5:04 PM PST - 21 comments

Each week, a decorated matchbox with a tiny present hidden inside is left by a girl (and sometimes willing friends) somewhere in her travels.
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 4:50 PM PST - 16 comments

5 Card Nancy A neo-Dada game invented by Scott McCloud, in the tradition of the Exquisite Corpse. It works by emphasizing the tendency to draw connections between juxtaposed frames, to impose meaning where none exists. Play the solitaire version here.
posted by klangklangston at 4:24 PM PST - 32 comments

Celebrate flu season with Phage Wars. (Flash sick-in-bed Tuesday)
posted by LordSludge at 4:06 PM PST - 10 comments

Rune Guneriussen takes photographs of inanimate objects in unlikely environments. [Via]
posted by homunculus at 3:55 PM PST - 47 comments

Comedy Musicians Paul and Storm have started "25 Days of Newman" where they are offering a free brand new Randy Newman-inspired movie theme song every day until Christmas.
posted by Del Far at 2:46 PM PST - 26 comments

The town of Jerome was incorporated on March 8, 1889 when Arizona was still a territory. A mining town of the real 'wild west' variety, Jerome was incorporated after three devastating fires within an eighteen month period that nearly destroyed the town. Jerome was a wild town with little law enforcement, building codes, or real government. It earned the title "The Wickedest Town in America" by the New York Sun in 1903 for being a hotbed of gambling, prostitution, and vice. [more inside]
posted by Bageena at 2:37 PM PST - 23 comments

There's always a few things they don't teach you at Driver's Ed that everyone should know. Like making sure the car is in park and not reverse when you finally surrender to the police. If someone honks at you, don't threaten them with a python. Try not to sneeze when driving near rivers. Don't try to eat cereal while driving. The trunk isn't a good way to get into your car. A six day roadtrip is too much for a "test drive."
posted by Deflagro at 2:32 PM PST - 36 comments

In 2007, Stuart Godard (alias Adam Ant) published his autobiography in which, among other things, he discussed his lifelong battle with manic depression (bipolar disorder). Our friends at YouTube have posted a tv special about his life: The Madness of Prince Charming Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 [more inside]
posted by wittgenstein at 12:34 PM PST - 35 comments

Domestic violence comes to work, whether executives realize it or not. Instead of firing employees who are abusers’ targets, some corporations in the US and elsewhere have instituted formal policies and programs to mitigate the impact of domestic violence, or Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), on workplaces. [more inside]
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 10:23 AM PST - 14 comments

Barack Obama has appointed several Third Culture Kids (TCKs) to his administration.
posted by gman at 10:22 AM PST - 80 comments

Ford's new Business Plan proposal has been released. Ford CEO Alan Mulally said he'll work for $1 per year if the company has to take any government loan money. [more inside]
posted by Mastercheddaar at 10:20 AM PST - 90 comments

Whole Foods looking to subpoena competitors records? Not content to do sneaky business the new way, Whole Foods is using it's court battle with the FTC to try and subpoena the business records and marketing plans of competing natural foods market New Seasons. [more inside]
posted by GilloD at 10:00 AM PST - 85 comments

Rex Sorgatz, the proprietor of Fimoculous, is the perpetrator of the I'm Just Sayin' Show, a series of 2-to-5-minute episodes featuring three hip and savvy women (Alisa, Jackie and Kristen), all of them "social media strategists" at New York dotcoms, in frenetic conversations over drinks on topics like language, New York City cops, identity theft, and what's cool, and iPhone apps they like. For your convenience, there are plot summaries like: "In less than 2 minutes: vampires, goth tattoos, Alisa's Mormon connection to Twilight, and True Blood."
posted by beagle at 9:54 AM PST - 86 comments

Feeling the crunch? Need to get a bunch of gifts for people on the cheap? Why not go down to a thrift store, pick up some old vinyl and make a bowl*, a candle holder (suitable for advent), or a cuff bracelet? If you have more to spend and are more adept in the craft department, try a record purse or a deconstructed album book. [more inside]
posted by piratebowling at 9:10 AM PST - 26 comments

Argentine-born pianist, conductor and composer Lalo Schifrin might be best-known for his Mission Impossible theme (previously), but the maestro has graced over seventy films and television shows (not to mention his non-soundtrack work) with his unique mix of jazz, funk and r&b. [more inside]
posted by The Card Cheat at 8:11 AM PST - 21 comments

Mark Leckey has won the Turner Prize. Quote: “I kind of hate the relationship the press in Britain has towards art,” he said. “I hate the way it’s all Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin and Banksy. They expect spectacle and shock. Art is not like that. The art world I know is not like that; it’s a whole other world.” [more inside]
posted by chuckdarwin at 7:34 AM PST - 17 comments

Long and short of it continues in part 2 I loved reading the first part of this series and it now has the second part that I have put link to. Long and short of it goes deeper into an important topic: Whether we should have a long sentence or a short one when describing things. I would well go with the long sentence as written by Charles Dickens on his novel Oliver Twist a century ago. But it seems quite a few people prefer short ones! What's your take on this.
posted by susanharper at 6:49 AM PST - 54 comments

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts has started videotaping its events and making them available online. Highlights include in-depth video interviews with Guillermo Del Toro, Mike Leigh, Anthony Minghella, and the Coen brothers, as well as a lecture by Will Wright. If that's not enough, BAFTA's online archives include treasures like this 1962 Academy publication on the making of Lawrence of Arabia.
posted by yankeefog at 5:35 AM PST - 6 comments

The Secret Life of Mark Trail [Via]
posted by minifigs at 4:53 AM PST - 21 comments