brainylady

Happy Friday

There's lots to read today. Shall we begin with the most disturbing news? No, I'm not talking about the latest photos from Abu Ghraib that show cheerful soldiers posing with Iraqi corpses. I'm talking about reports that Ice-T is planning to produce a rap album by David Hasselhoff. Oops, I hope you haven't just eaten. This has to be a practical joke, doesn't it? Ice T is quoted as saying,

"He's gonna come out as Hassle The Hoff -- I promise you. The Hoff will surprise people with his rap skills and humour."

Um, sure. Wait, don't start eating again yet. Rupert Everett has come out of the closet again, this time as a dumb-ass. Seems that he "reckons he's gay because he wasn't breast-fed as a baby."

"Theft spree made the bride's big day": the photo is even better than the story. This woman stole her wedding dress, a stereo, and seventeen tumbler cups for her big day; the man she married has left; yet she has the chutzpah to give a big thumbs-up to the camera, bless her.

The Guardian's "Sidelines" covers bigots, the Pope, Apple Paltrow-Martin, and Posh Spice's hair. Another story in the Guardian ("Skeletons in the closet") is about the Order of Skull and Bones, an exclusive Yale club -- "a strange hybrid of debating society, group therapy and Epicurean club" -- that both Dubya and John Kerry belonged to as students.

"Chinese films in Cannes Film Festival": Of the eighteen films on the shortlist for the Palme d'Or prize at Cannes, six are Asian. Gong Li is also set to receive a special acting award. The article includes a list of award-winning Chinese and Taiwanese films from past Cannes festivals, which is great if you're at a loss for titles to rent this weekend.

The current Time magazine has a feature on retro style: "How retro can you go?"

Even a sophomoric reversion might be understandable at the moment, given that the past looks so much better than the future. But these backward glances aren't mere escapism. They help to ground us, to sort through the clutter that surrounds us -- and they're there when we need to be reassured that technology can never replace human beings.

There are photos to look at, too. How much do I want this mixer and toaster? Not now, of course, since I have nowhere to put them -- I already have a toaster oven and a blender on my kitchen floor and a refrigerator in my hallway.

Still with me, knitters? There's a feature in the Christian Science Monitor today on our fine and trendy craft: "A ball of yarn, two needles, and a latte."

Have a great Friday.