blog catch-up...

I've been derelict in my duty as a blogger of late. (blogging is hard work during the summer!) So, other than the longer posts that I will disseminate forthwith, here are some of the (perhaps) interesting points that I've been meaning to share with you all over the past week:

• Now that it's summer, I've started to wonder why Seattle doesn't have more outdoor seating establishments... why is that?
• Ah ha! - here's an explanation.
  

• Do you like optical illusions? Of course you do! - here's a new one.
  

• They're on to you... and they know what you did with your 'stimulus' money.
  

• I don't have a car, so this whole expensive gas thing isn't hitting me too hard. Ultimately I think it will be an overall good thing. I mean, it's already made people appreciate public transit even more (as noted before). I'm reminded of how good (and cute) a healthy appreciation of public transportaion can be by this story, though I doubt gas prices are at the root of the kids' enthusiasm.
  

• The only reason I would consider becoming vegetarian/vegan is right here... and it's compelling. Animal cruelty is up there (for background see: a recent episode of 30 Days), but the cruelty-free meats and products are available.
  

• Speaking of animal cruelty... check out a story from my hometown paper describing recent antics at my alma mater, Colby College. It involves a pot bellied pig terrorizing a town and a hapless police force driven towards drastic measures... (spoiler: taser) [disclaimer: may actually be somewhat amusing, despite "animal cruelty" lead-in]
  

• For anyone who ever wanted to win a debate with a creationist, here's a blueprint. This follows up on the publication of a pretty remarkable set of experiments that demonstrate strong support for Darwin's theories. 149 years and counting...