Sorry, Absinthe Trippers: Scientists Say You’re Just Really Drunk | Wired Science from Wired.com
The long-cherished idea that absinthe, an anise-flavored alcoholic beverage with a history of use by artists like Van Gogh and Picasso, is or ever was hallucinogenic might have met its death by data today.German scientists put old bottles of the substance to the test and found that the liquid is 70 percent alcohol (140 proof) and 0 percent hallucination.
Home-made fettuccine on a drying rack.
Two weeks ago I made a post called Perfect Shave, which I had picked up from Vedana.net that morning. It referenced this piece on MSNBC. Well, the article made a lot of sense to me and I ordered some of the items that were recommended: the Merkur Hefty Classic double-edge safety razor, a DOVO Travel Brush, and the Proraso shaving cream – the web site for the shaving cream sucks, but go here and select Proraso from the list on the left. I spent a little more on the brush than necessary, but what can I say, I wanted something to travel with, and brushed steel does it for me…
The shaving cream is fantastic and so is the brush. It is astounding how much water a good brush can hold!
I like the razor as well, but I will like it even more once I master it. The first shave was a bit of a blood bath, on the second occasion I sliced through a little bump on my chin, which had been there for decades and should have been remembered. Today there were no gashes, just a few minor slices, which means I am making progress. A lot of it has to do with undoing years of bad habits like pushing down hard on a disposable, whereas you have to handle this razor lightly, very lightly, and show it the respect this little weapon deserves…
All in all it feels like one of those great manly rituals, right up there with properly removing a champagne cork… I never learned shaving like this from my dad, because he and grandpa loved their Braun electric razors. But he taught me how to uncork any bottle without spillage!!
To sum it up: I am sold on this way of shaving. My skin gets less irritated and feels much better afterwards, and I especially like the fact that shaving has changed into an art rather than a chore.
Metropolis Magazine Has A Blog | Metropolis POV
If it seems like Eva Zeisel has been getting a lot of publicity lately, well, it’s no wonder. The legendary designer has continued to produce her signature curvy ceramics while hitting a string of milestone birthdays (she turned 101 last November), a combination that, obviously, no journalist can resist.
(Via Beyond the Beyond – Wired Blogs)
Reading: Assassin’s Cloak
You are having a monday… people are getting you down. You are not alone, my friend. Check out this diary entry by Noël Coward from 1958:
It is hard to imagine, considering the inherent silliness, cruelty and superstition of the human race, how it has contrived to last as long as it has. The witch-hunting, the torturing, the gullibility, the massacres, the intolerance, the wild futility of human behavior over the centuries is hardly credible. And laws, as they stand today, are almost always inconceivably stupid.
Doesn’t it seem as fresh and appropriate today, 50 years later? :)
