News from Imponderables Central:
Pirates Is Now in Paperback
Why Do Pirates Love Parrots? has gone soft. Soft cover, that is. You can order it from Amazon or at your fave bookstore.... More
The Master Index of Imponderability Is Finally Online
At last, our index of the first ten Imponderables books and Who Put the Butter in Butterfly? is up. Click on the "Index" button on... More
Why Do Pirates Love Parrots? The newest Imponderables book.
Get it from Amazon.com
May 14, 2008
Ashton Kutcher and the Cougar Effect
Why is Ashton Kutcher's career on the upswing? Maybe because his leading ladies are more mature?
May 10, 2008
That's Who
Michael Nesmith of the Monkees. I couldn't identify the Nez.
May 07, 2008
Who's This?
Two clues: 1. The category icon here. 2. I scarfed the image from Steve Simel's most excellent blog, PowerPop.
Answer tomorrow.
May 05, 2008
Fun with Google Maps
What with the price of gas and all, perhaps a nice long drive isn't the greatest idea. That hasn't stopped one intrepid blogger from finding the longest routes on Google Maps (be sure and read the comments from readers, too).
May 02, 2008
Why Are Kids Crazy About Animals?
This is an Imponderable I've received before. Stephen Dubner, and even better, the readers of the Freakonomics blog, weigh in.
May 01, 2008
The Potsie Syndrome
When bad things happen to TV characters...
[Thanks to Jon Delfin]
April 29, 2008
My Favorite Feline
I'm a dog person, but this is my kind of cat.
[Thanks to Terry Joseph]
Sneezecount
I just hope this guy doesn't get a book or movie deal.
April 28, 2008
PlayCafe
Want to play trivia against Ken Jennings? You can tonight, at 9:00-11:00 P.M. E.S.T. tonight.
April 25, 2008
YOUNGME - NOWME
April 24, 2008
David Gest (and Tito Jackson)
Now we see what Liza saw in him.
April 23, 2008
My Christmas Gift To You (sure, a little belated)
April 21, 2008
Rube Goldberg Would Be Proud
[Thanks to Joel Derfner]
April 18, 2008
Nonrandom Wags
Does it matter in what direction a dog's tail wags? Evidently, yes.
April 17, 2008
Pennsylvania Polling
Why is Hillary Clinton ahead by 20 points in one poll and behind by 3 in another? As usual, the Mystery Pollster offers some good ideas.
April 16, 2008
Glen Campbell and Stevie Wonder
Here's one of the better versions of Blowin' in the Wind, one that outstrips Stevie's solo version. Two consummate musicians having a ball:
April 15, 2008
How Many Cannibals Could Your Body Feed?
I can feed 17.
[Thanks to Michael Feldman]
April 14, 2008
What the World Eats
Less than me, evidently. [Thanks to Susan Thomas]
April 07, 2008
Time.com's First Annual Blog Index
Time picks its 25 favorite blogs and asks us to rate them. Although many of the usual suspects appear, including Indexed (as this is written, rated #1 by Time readers), I'm now subscribed to a couple of blogs I hadn't even heard of before.
April 06, 2008
If Jim Cramer Were a Meteorologist
His work would probably look (and sound!) something like this:
[Thanks to Wesley McGee]
April 04, 2008
I Can't Make You Love Me
The contender: George Michael. Verdict: Bad haircut. Good vocal.
Reigning champion: Bonnie Raitt. Verdict: Decent haircut. Brilliant, heartfelt vocal. And great Bruce Hornsby keyboard.
Bonnie Raitt, still champion.
Of all the showcase songs that get trotted out on talent competition shows, this masterpiece written by Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin is the only one that hasn't paled.
April 03, 2008
April Fools Day on the Web
How's this for a niche: a compilation of the myriad April Fools stunts on the Web.
[Thanks to Gin Petty]
March 31, 2008
Why LBJ Resigned
Historians have pondered why Lyndon Johnson chose not to run for reelection in 1968. Most assumed, in the midst of an unpopular war, LBJ concluded he couldn't win. In an OpEd piece in the Los Angeles Times , LBJ's appointment secretary contends otherwise. If true, this story makes LBJ seem more human and more admirable.
Oddest Book Titles
Shoot. Why Do Pirates Love Parrots? didn't even make the shortlist, let alone win the coveted title.
March 26, 2008
Talk to the Editor
My pal, Merrill Perlman, head of the copy editing at the New York Times, is answering questions from readers about the role of copy editing. She tackles questions ranging from what a copy desk is to why the Times now states 1990's as 1990s. The first installment is here but she'll be answering questions all week.
March 25, 2008
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
Yesterday, I saw this movie directed by Sidney Lumet and starring a wonderful cast of Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke (at his best), Marisa Tomei, and Albert Finney.
It is one of the most relentlessly downbeat movies I've ever seen.
I'm trying to think of any other movie I've ever seen where there is not a single light or humorous moment, even a moment of irony. Can anyone else think of other examples of a movie without one moment of hope or humor?
March 23, 2008
Things for Sale That I Will Mail You
Someone will think about you for a minute -- a bargain at one dollar. [Thanks to Paul Fryd]
March 18, 2008
The Shorty Complex
Are short people truly more insecure about their height? Researchers in Spain and the Netherlands weigh in.
March 16, 2008
Starlings on Otmoor
March 11, 2008
If Celebs Moved to Oklahoma
Warning: It ain't pretty.