What a week! From making a decision regarding Erin’s college (UC Berkeley, meaning a whirlwind one-day trip to visit the campus tomorrow), to a last-minute birthday dinner for my mother-in-law, to my back going out and being beat up by a chiropractor, to learning this morning that my step-mother had a small stroke (don’t worry; my understanding is that the prognosis is a full recovery) — it’s been a roller-coaster ride. Add to this having a load of material to review at work, and I didn’t get much chance to catch up on the news. Still, I saved a few items of note:
- Origin of Doritos. One of the more fascinating history articles this week has to do with the creation of Doritos. It turns out they were created at Disneyland, as a by-product of leftover tortillas at the Fritos restaurant.
- Myths of the Future. Two articles relate to things that, in the future, might be subjects for Mythbusters. The first is whether carmageddon (that is, when I-405 was closed for an entire weekend) resulted in a local baby-boomlet. The second has to do with a weightlifter, who supposedly dropped a dumbbell on a bullet lying on the floor of his apartment, shooting himself in his shoulder.
- Antisemitism in Northridge… and unlikely heroes. I don’t know if it made the national news, but there was an antisemitic incident here in Northridge, where a women’s house had swastikas drawn on their driveway in maple syrup, and feces thrown at the house. Some teen girls admitted doing the prank, which wasn’t a hate crime because there was no permanent damage. The mother who drove them to the house has been charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. What is interesting is who brought this story to the attention of the media, and who got the girl’s school to take action against the girls who did it: the comedian Jon Lovitz.
- Art from Unexpected Objects. An interesting mental floss piece on 11 works of art made with road maps. Prefer comic books instead? Look at the website of our congregation’s Mr. Lucky*, who does really neat Judaic art from cut up comic books. (*: Why “Mr. Lucky”? When I was at Temple Beth Torah with Rabbi Sheryl, someone once asked Ari, her husband, what we should call him. His answer: “Lucky”. TAS’s Mr. Lucky is the husband of Rabbi Shawna.)
- High School Costs. This is an expensive year, what with yearbooks, college applications, upcoming college fees, and, oh yes, prom. USA Today is reporting that prom spending is now almost averaging $1,100 per person. Ouch!
Music: Debbie Does Dallas (2002 Original Off-Broadway Cast): The Tennis Court
