Jarrett House NorthSecond verse, same as the first.

… is the Internet’s way of telling you that it’s noticed you’re not blogging over the weekend. The primary reason is it’s been a quiet one. We slept quite a lot from Friday afternoon through early Saturday evening—probably about 14 hours—then hung out with Arvind and Kim, their golden lab puppy Sumi, and their friends [...]

Excerpted in Salon (membership or day pass required), the introduction to Al Franken’s Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look At The Right. Good parody even in the intro about writing nonfiction in the Internet age: “Look, God, I’m flattered, but I think you got the wrong guy. The [...]

Via Scott Rosenberg and the New York Times, “Red wine ingredient makes yeast live longer” (registration required, or try the usual). Resveratrol, a polyphenol found in red wine, extends the lifespan of yeast cells by as much as 70% by boosting levels of the Sir2 enzyme, which is thought to stabilize DNA and thus extend [...]

Salon: Lenny Bruce died for our sins (membership or day pass required). Fascinating look back at Lenny Bruce’s legal fights and the history of obscenity law, with a nod toward Singin’ John Ashcroft’s recent porn film busts. Quote from Supreme Court Justice William Brennan: At the end of his career, in an extraordinary interview, Brennan [...]

I didn’t write a lot about our Portland trip, and my Current Reading link is partly dishonest. What’s the connection between those two statements? Powell’s Books. We got into Portland late on Friday, went out for a quick dinner with Shel and Vik, and crashed. Saturday we visited Ponzi Vineyards for a quick tasting, went [...]

In the “I didn’t know August 24th was such a popular birthday” department: congratulations to Jenny and her husband, Harvard Business School blogger Adam Medros, on the birth of their first child, Nathan Daniel, on Saturday. My congratulations, guys, and I’m looking forward to hearing how b-school life changes with Baby.

In the “Say It Ain’t So” department: the Julie/Julia Project has finished its year-long romp through the recipes of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, with a meal of kidneys and beef marrow (Rognons de Veau a la Bordelaise), sautéed potatoes with mayonnaise collée, and Reine de Saba for dessert. As I have already written, [...]

From Russ and Caroline Swindell, a birth announcement for the newest member of their family, their first child, Catherine Jane, born Saturday. My heartfelt congrats to the new parents and a moment’s regret that I’m on the other side of the country… but all the more reason to go to my ten year reunion next [...]

Jim sent a bonus update yesterday which gives some fascinating insight about the logistics of hiking the Appalachian trail. Highlights: pack weight management, the economics of propane sales to people hiking on foot, trail food, and a most-Hobbit-like affinity for “second breakfasts.”

William Gibson comments about his own blog’s message board: “…while I’ve sometimes been tempted to comment on more threads more directly, I continue to think that that would turn into exactly the sort of tar-baby timesink that keeps books unwritten, so I don’t. It’s really all about *you*, a conglommerate of mediated selves in your [...]

MacNN: Apple to open Richmond, VA store on Sept 4. This is really good news for my favorite sister, not least of which because she now has my old Pismo. The 500 MHz G3 PowerBook with 512 MB RAM and a 30 GB hard drive survived two years of business school, and is now poised [...]

Jim writes from North Woodstock, New Hampshire, coming closer to the end of his through-hike of the Appalachian Trail: “It was a fortuitous time to receive my winter gear! Two nights ago, in a shelter, the temperature seems to have dipped below 40 (F), and it promises to get colder as we get higher. Mount [...]

My heartfelt condolences to Doc Searls on the loss of his mother. From what he’s been writing about her, she sounds like she was a heckuva lady. But then, what can you expect for someone with connections in both the Jersey Shore and North Carolina?

Salon: federal judge Denny Chin threw out Fox’s attempted injunction against Al Franken’s new book, which uses “fair and balanced” (a phrase trademarked by Fox) in its subtitle. The judge appears to have had a field day slamming Fox, suggesting that they could be in danger of losing the trademark if they pursued the suit [...]

We’re heading to Portland this weekend to visit Shel and Vik. That I have been focused on work and inlaws too long this week is evidenced by the fact that the only thing going through my head right now is Paul Simon’s “Graceland,” with these words: We’re going to Portland, Portland, Portland, Oregon, We’re going [...]