saving paper.

21 Nov 2009

The Empire of Light II, by René Magritte (b. November 21, 1898)

» published at 6:52pm

René Magritte (b. November 21, 1898)

» published at 11:00am

» NYT Book Review: Stephen King on Raymond Carver

As brilliant and talented as he was, Ray Carver was also the destructive, everything-in-the-pot kind of drinker who hits bottom, then starts burrowing deeper. Longtime A.A.’s know that drunks like Carver are master practitioners of the geographical cure, refusing to recognize that if you put an out-of-control boozer on a plane in California, an out-of-control boozer is going to get off in Chicago. Or Iowa. Or Mexico.

And until mid-1977, Raymond Carver was out of control. While teaching at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, he and John Cheever became drinking buddies. “He and I did nothing but drink,” Carver said of the fall semester of 1973. “I don’t think either of us ever took the covers off our typewriters.” Because Cheever had no car, Carver provided transportation on their twice-weekly booze runs. They liked to arrive at the liquor store just as the clerk was unlocking for the day. Cheever noted in his journal that Carver was “a very kind man.” He was also an irresponsible boozehound who habitually ran out on the check in restaurants, even though he must have known it was the waitress who had to pay the bill for such dine-and-dash customers. His wife, after all, often waited tables to support him.

» posted at 10:56am

“ Later in the interview, Palin said that President Obama’s economic plans were ‘back-asswards.’ Then Obama said that Sarah Palin is ucking funqualified to be talking about it. ”

— Jimmy Fallon

» posted at 9:44am

20 Nov 2009

Robert F. Kennedy (b. November 20, 1925), campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1968, announces the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to a crowd in Indianapolis.

“My favorite poet was Aeschylus,” Kennedy said in his remarks, which were entirely impromptu. “He wrote: ‘In our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.’”

» posted at 10:11pm

“ The problem of power is how to achieve its responsible use rather than its irresponsible and indulgent use — of how to get men of power to live for the public rather than off the public. ”

— Robert F. Kennedy (b. November 20, 1925)

» posted at 10:06pm

Robert F. Kennedy (b. November 20, 1925), the chief counsel of the Senate Labor Rackets Committee from 1957-1959, and his brother, then-Sen. John F. Kennedy, during one of the committee’s investigations in May 1957.

» published at 10:05pm

» published at 7:47pm

» published at 7:38pm

» Corey Flintoff Unleashes Sonorous, Pleasantly Modulated String Of Obscenities

WASHINGTON, DC—Upon injuring a toe Sunday, Corey Flintoff, newscaster for NPR’s All Things Considered, unleashed a string of rich, pleasantly modulated obscenities. “God fucking dammit,” Flintoff warmly intoned after dropping a heavy-duty router on his foot while working in his garage. “Stupid fucking cocksucking son of a bitch.” Added Flintoff in a lush baritone: “Goddamn motherfucking shit-for-brains. This is NPR.”

From NPR’s list of favorite Onion articles at NPR’s expense

» posted at 7:35pm

Amazing Juggling Finale, set to “Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End” (via ringoknowsbest)

» posted at 6:40pm

Typographic Character Coasters, by the Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories.

(via thedailywhat)

» published at 6:39pm

rejectednewyorker:

Ba-cock

November 23, 2009

» published at 7:27am

19 Nov 2009

“ The Democratic Party already has an opposition party arguing against its positions. It’s called the Democratic Party. ”

— durangodave, in response to Joe Klein’s “Republican-not” (via apsies)

» posted at 9:27pm

anidlersdream:

A diver dressed as Santa Claus welcomes visitors to an aquarium in Kaiyukan, Japan. (By Kazuhiro Nogi, AFP/Getty Images)

How many kids who came through the aquarium actually thought that Santa Claus had drowned?