Got that Paaandemic

Can you get swine flu from reading Charlotte's Web?

PS I was gonna write something here about how it's interesting that all young people do now is make jokes about every scary thing that happens in the world (specifically swine flu right now). And it's especially easy for the young Americans who use the internet most/create every meme to do this because most of them have never had to face anything particularly bad or scary in their lives (although seeing 1000+ unread items on Google Reader is pretty daunting), so it's hard for them/me to fathom actually being uncomfortable in serious way for a serious amount of time. On the other hand, the fearmongering of the MSM is much worse. So I decided to stop thinking about this and make an easy joke.

PPS Swine flu is an interesting experiment in branding and clearly has made the disease sound much worse than it appears to be so far!

PPPS This is the link I wanted to include in the title of the post.

I know it's a meme but...

...Citi Field is amazing. I won't bore you with details, but I will dispense a few words of advice that are actually boring meme-tails:

• Do not wait on line for the Shake Shack. It's great, but there are a ton of other excellent food options (Lobster Roll, Pulled Pork from Blue Smoke, Tacos even...) that you can get much faster.
• Do not spend the whole game in your seats. Make sure to walk all the way around the stadium. There are fantastic vantage points everywhere.
• Make sure you catch the ever-exciting Forklift vs. Light Tower race during one of the middle innings. Wait, what?

With a beautiful new stadium (I still think they should have kept the seats different colors, but I'll survive) and improved subway access (post-game 7 express trains), all that's missing is a team that lives up to expectations. At least they won last night. Oh, and I made my first ever Jumbotron appearance singing "Sweet Caroline" during the 8th inning sing-a-long. My nose looked pretty big.

1 BR in 3BR share!!!! (UES)

1 very spacious bedroom with private bathroom in large 3 bedroom doorman/elevator building (with its own name) on Upper East Side. Full gym facilities, close to shops and restaurants. Comes fully furnished with miniature versions of world monuments, straight A 6th grade report cards, and large Sports Illustrated collection (including 5 Swimsuit Issues!!!).

Roommates are two lawyers (one stays at home a lot...don't be alarmed by her Fox News habits) and one grad student who treats his room like a bear treats a cave during the winter. Be prepared to discuss the latest in British television with the lawyers and the finer points of comedy with the grad student (although he'll be pretty accommodating about everything).

Utilities/cable/internet/toiletries/milk/cereal/bagels are all included and rent is $0/month. Just promise to put your clothes in the hamper, dishes in the sink, and don't invite too many friends over.

Tweet Tweet

Everyone's always talking about the Fail Whale, but how about this other meme in the lower left corner of the screen that always catches my eye while I'm waiting for an hour to see someone's Twitter page:

I've been busy...

...working on this:

Go with the Qlo

In my younger and more vulnerable years, my brother gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. "Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone's clothes," he told me, "just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had in knowing how much nicer Uniqlo is than H&M."

Now, folks, that advantage is all yours and H&M, consider yourselves On Notice!

Once upon a time I would get excited by the prospect of walking by an H&M store. I would think back to one of my favorite shirts, bought at H&M on the cheap in Paris, and wander in looking for a new great deal. More often than not, I would be disappointed. Not only would there be no good deals, there would be no good clothes. In my head, H&M was a brand that offered mostly cool, cheap clothes. In reality, it was a brand that offered mostly poorly made, high concept garbage. There were still some gems (I hear it's better for women), but on the whole, definitely not somewhere I should be stopping in on a whim. Enter Uniqlo.

My first Uniqlo experience was in their temporary Soho shop on Grand Street. This was a small space, meant to be a stopgap before the flagship opened, but with their deals on Merino sweaters, I already had a feeling that their brand was onto something. And when their flagship store opened, I knew I was right. With impossibly high ceilings and walls filled to the top with an impossibly bright array of colors, Uniqlo is undoubtedly a fun store to explore. Better yet, it's a store that actually offers good clothing at good prices. The clothes are simple, but attractive, and sturdy enough to be worn comfortably on a regular basis.

In summary, Uniqlo offers better clothes at better prices in a more organized and more attractive setting than H&M. Case closed.

Fans Roused From What Was At Times A Blog Nightmare

New York (AP) - April 1, 2009 - Two words have shaken the blogosphere to its core today: "I'm Back." This announcement, from The ACTUAL God's lips to your ears, ends nearly two years of speculation about the fate of the blogger many consider to be the greatest of all time.

The public hopes that this is not another false dawn, such as the August 24, 2008, "sneeze heard round the world." The ACTUAL God has declined to expand upon his two word declaration, but his fans have pushed #actualgod to the top of the Twitter search topics. While most fans believe he can return to the peak of his 2005 powers, there is a growing minority who aren't sure if he will be able to adjust to the way the game has changed since his retirement. With Google Reader making blog visits almost obsolete and engulfing the majority of comments as well, these dissenters think that the altered landscape might be too much of a hurdle for him to overcome.

Furthermore, there are the other bloggers. With The ACTUAL God out of the picture, many of these secondary stars were able to come out of the shadows and attract regular readers who used to prefer refreshing The ACTUAL God's blog to the hassle of trying to find new content. Add to that a new crop of young and hungry writers with Web 2.0 credentials and infrastructure, and the competition is fierce. But not fierce enough. Another Columbine and the pecking order should be restored.