Day: January 17, 2015

Finally, after a before meal appetizer or two, here is the remainder of the link chum stew. Even though we’ve reduced the mix a little, there are still some tasty tidbits:

• Podcasts. I listen to too many podcasts, it’s that simple. I recently added one on the recommendation of Ars Technica: the Reply All podcast from Gimlet. It allowed me to find out what happened to that obsession from the 1990s, Jennicam. What else do I listen too? Funny you should ask: Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, Quirks and Quarks, Science Friday, This American Life, Startup, 99% Invisible, Invisibilia, Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour, Reply All, Planet Money, Freakanomics, The Producers Perspective, LA Observed, Opening The Curtain, The Moth, NPR Technology, Backstory, Radio Diaries, Strangers.
• Things That Go Boom. Courtesy of Justine Bateman’s blog, a collection of GIFs of things that go boom in interesting ways. Don’t try this at home.
• I’m Sorry…. Not. I’ve got a post brewing in my head about Bill Cosby and apologies. But while it brews, with a h/t to Andrew Ducker, here are 10 things you should never apologize for.
• Gluten Free Goodies. Over the last year, my wife and I have been watching the increasing availability of gluten-free stuff. It has it’s plus, and its minuses. Here’s a good article from NPR on why the gluten-free craze is both boom and bane for those with Celiac Disease. Related to this: Pizza Hut announced they are doing gluten-free pizza, and unlike Domino’s, claim to be doing it right.
• Cleaning the Shelves. If you’re like me, you have loads of books on the shelves, and are loath to get rid of any of them. But clutter is clutter. Here’s one guide on how to decide to get rid of books.
• Drama Teachers and Tony Awards. One of the formative forces in my daughter’s educations were her drama teachers at Nobel Middle School: Fanny Araña and Jean Martellaro. Someone should nominate them for a Tony award.
• Uber Competition. We’ve all seen the battle between taxis and Uber (and Lyft). Uber has easy to call vehicles and crappy tactics. Taxis were hard to call, but at least had safety and insurance standards. What if you could get the best of both words? You can. By August, Los Angeles has mandated an easy to use taxi hailing app.
• A Thrill Ride. One of the scariest thrill rides in Los Angeles isn’t the taxis, it is the Arroyo Seco Parkway nee The Pasadena Freeway. Built for the traffic style of the 1940s, it is woefully out of date today. However, there’s a plan to address the thrill ride that is the 110.
• In The Valley. Lastly, CicLAvia has finally announced its valley route. Of course, Valley == NoHo and Studio City, not the “real” valley. Where’s the route that is using all the new bicycle lanes in the North-West Valley, in Northridge and Chatsworth and Reseda and Tarzana?

As I was preparing to clean the link list, I discovered that I have far too many for a single post. Here’s the first chunk, grouped together because they are all about specific people, or at least use specific people as their starting points.

• Ayn Rand. We all know Ayn Rand — patron saint of libertarians, former resident of Northridge. But can you imagine what it was like to have her as a relative. Here’s a story about Ayn Rand’s niece, and what happened she asked to borrow $25 from Ayn for a dress. She offers to do so, with some very strict repayment conditions and loads of guilt. An interesting read.
• Sarah Brightman. You probably remember Sarah — ex wife of Andrew Lloyd Weber, star of Phantom of the Opera. Guess what’s she’s doing in October? You probably didn’t guess: Going to the Space Station for 10 days. The internationally acclaimed singer and actress paid approximately $52 million for the round-trip ride aboard the Russian Soyuz capsule.The 54-year-old Brightman will be the first professional singer to ever visit the orbital outpost.
• Zoey Tur. Those who have lived in Los Angeles a long time probably remember the name Bob Tur. He was a TV news helocopter pilot who covered major stories. He was also transgender, and finally came to the realization a few years ago. He just got back from sex reassignment surgery in Thailand. This is his story, and it makes for a fascinating read. Stories like this really help those of us not dealing with this to understand those going through it better, and I think it might provide some encouragement to others. Well written piece.
• Gene Spafford. Those of us on the Internet a long time know Gene from all his work on Usenet; some of us know Gene better because we work with him in the security community. Gene recently had some interesting medical issues. I found this particularly interesting as it concerns issues for folks over 50 (and I turn 55, if you can believe it, next week). If you’ve ever wondered why your doctor asks you about issues with your vision closing down light a curtain, this explains it.
• Mrs. Wolowitz. Carol Ann Susi passed away recently. She played the voice of Mrs. Wolowitz on Big Bang Theory, and her death was — in many ways — the death of a stereotype. The Jewish Mother is essentially gone from our TV screens. I’m not talking about mothers who are Jewish (although there are fewer Jewish characters on TV; they are all doing podcasts). Rather, I’m talking about the stereotypical Jewish Mother — the meddling, screaming, overprotective, “eat eat eat” image that goes back to Molly Goldberg and continued through numerous sitcoms. What’s replaced her? According to the article, the Tiger Mom, and gives as an example the mom character in the new Fresh Off The Boat.

Later today… more links!