East vs. West

I thought this was an especially telling piece. Makes you question our own perceptions of ourself as a nation.

[via Newsweek. Good and short read.]

So Easy to be Ignorant

Check out all of Ms. Palin's lies in her book here!

MLS Champs!!!

Awesome and amazing.
Real Salt Lake won Utah's first professional title today, beating out the LA Galaxy 1-1 (5-4), once again taking the game into penalty kicks! It was a tough first half, seeing LA score off a perfect lead-in from David Beckham to Landon Donovan who sent a crisp cross over to Mike Magee who drilled it home. However, after the second half started, RSL took over the game, leading possession 87%-13% at one time. A hard fight in the box--and some lucky bounces--led to RSL capitalizing on their domination as Robbie Findlay drilled one with his left stick under keeper Donovan Ricketts' stretched arms.
RSL continued their domination into both periods of overtime, maintaining a 75%-25% possession lead over LA. As time dwindled and RSL saw many of their chances just miss, we knew we had Rimando to seal the deal.
PKs were very reminiscent of last weeks, and Robbie Russell put in the game winner after we saw Landon Donovan sail his over the crossbar and Rimando block 2 more PKs (that's a total of FIVE this postseason!)
It was amazing. They deserved it. They showed that they were the better team for at least 95 minutes. Everything--their composure, their hustle, their possession--paid off while they made their own luck.
Congrats RSL!! We love you!

ps-let it be known, November 22 will forever be RSL day!

Eastern Conference Champions!!!!!

Real Salt Lake defeated Chicago Fire today, 0-0 (5-4), to win their first conference championship, and earn their first berth into the MLS Cup Final!!! It was a super exciting win, going into PKs and all, although the other 120 minutes truly showed Real deserved it.
So, here's a congratulations to them! Now I gotta figure out if I can make it to Seattle next Sunday...

Cirque du Soleil...

...is obviously something I've GOT to check out someday...

The Magic of H20

Makes complete sense, but it's still quite neat. This is probably the best (on most non-cliche) use of high-speed photography I've ever seen.

History of Male Friendship

I ran across this today, and I have to agree with many of the ideas presented. As I was working yesterday, facilitating a distance education class in social work, this very idea was presented, so I figured the double contact with the subject was a good indicator that I should share. First a little intro:

...men used to enjoy much closer bonds with each other than they do today. In the 19th century, men felt completely free show their buddies physical affection and tell their friends just how much they meant to them without any fear of being called a “fag.” It was only in the first half of the 20th century, when homosexuality started being analyzed, written about, and denounced, that men started to feel self-conscious about whether or not their actions might be construed as being “gay.” Some modern men still can’t get emotionally or physically close to other men because they don’t want others to think they’re a “homo.”
No matter your stance on the morality of homosexuality, men today should feel secure enough in their sexuality not to care if they come off as “gay” to others.

(Emphasis mine. The actual "History of Male Friendship" article can be found here.)
It's interesting to me that in this author's examination, an emphasis is placed on the American male friendship. I have to concur. From my experiences abroad (which might be construed as limited), it almost seems as if Americana represents a backward culture of fear. Perhaps other cultures have never allowed this analysis of homosexuality, perhaps these cultures have already plowed through it. I just don't know...any thoughts?

Improv Anywhere: Lunch, the musical

I love Improv Anywhere. I also really respect what they do. This time they've gone above and beyond, and they even got some awesome NBC equipment to help them. Check it out:


[via Gizmodo]

Tip for the Week

Just read this tip, which I think is most fantastic.

A simple tweezer session might free your hands of wood slivers, but sometimes they're just too tiny, or too many, to try and remove with micro-surgery. If you're fiending for a fix, try applying some glue to the afflicted skin, then peel it off to take the splinters with it. That's one of the more powerful splinter fixes, but you might be able to get away with a banana peel or bath and pumice stone to pull out those ugly little remainders of your latest wood project.

[via Lifehacker]

Sigur Rós - Glósóli

Just came across this. It is beautiful. Absolutely up there with my favorite music videos.