A weekly roundup of interesting stuff from the Internet:
The old adage is that you never leave a baseball game early. Never. Last Saturday, the Chicago Cubs and Atlanta Braves proved this adage to be true in one of the strangest innings of a baseball game ever. I was watching this game live and still cannot believe the way it turned out. I have never seen anything like it.
C.S. Lewis is known as one of the greatest Christian writers of all time. Many forget that he was once an avowed atheist. His experiences in the trenches during World War I changed his life forever.
Adventures in etymology: Why are bananas, nuts, and crackers the only foods that say "crazy"?
How a notorious art heist led to the discovery of six fake Mona Lisas.
English isn't logical and that's a good thing.
How Schoolhouse Rock became the "Jingle of a Generation". (hat tip Witnify)
Five ways to recover the lost art of note taking.
Five years ago, Brad Meltzer put out a plea on social media for a kidney donor to help save his beloved history teacher. He then rewarded the donor by making her a major character in his latest novel.
Could a move towards localism help heal our political divide? It's certainly a good place to start.
Myrtle Beach is known as a great place for a golf vacation. But it also happens to be the self-proclaimed mini-golf capital of the world.
Friday, April 20, 2018
Friday, April 13, 2018
Weekend Links 4-13-18
It's been a really full week of fun stuff on the internet. Here are the stories that caught my eye.
I'm generally not a fan of colorized photos but I have to admit these colorized photos of old baseball players are amazing.
Minor league baseball teams always have to be creative with their promotions. Case in point: the Richmond Flying Squirrels will have an Edgar Allan Poe Bobblestache night (Poe lived in Richmond).
Speaking of the minor leagues, here is a terrific profile of the brief, colorful history of the Saratoga Phillies, where baseball was played for the fun of it.
Disneyland has updated its monorails with some pretty cool Pixar themed artwork.
Many young girls dream of being a princess. The next best thing is to attend a royal wedding.
The idea of being a location scout always seemed interesting to me but once you know their secrets it's not as glamorous a job as you might think.
Strange but true: how a typographical error might have helped end World War II.
Matt Walsh has some interesting observations about how our culture destroys boys.
No doubt this was a shock among Purdue fans: head football coach Tony Levine has stepped down to run a Chick-fil-A in Houston. But read the whole article to discover why he made this unusual career move.
Tweet of the week:
I'm generally not a fan of colorized photos but I have to admit these colorized photos of old baseball players are amazing.
Minor league baseball teams always have to be creative with their promotions. Case in point: the Richmond Flying Squirrels will have an Edgar Allan Poe Bobblestache night (Poe lived in Richmond).
Speaking of the minor leagues, here is a terrific profile of the brief, colorful history of the Saratoga Phillies, where baseball was played for the fun of it.
Disneyland has updated its monorails with some pretty cool Pixar themed artwork.
Many young girls dream of being a princess. The next best thing is to attend a royal wedding.
This 12-year-old Manchester attack survivor has landed an invite to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding - and she couldn't be happier about it ❤️ pic.twitter.com/pbRiFcU5yB— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) April 11, 2018
The idea of being a location scout always seemed interesting to me but once you know their secrets it's not as glamorous a job as you might think.
Strange but true: how a typographical error might have helped end World War II.
Matt Walsh has some interesting observations about how our culture destroys boys.
No doubt this was a shock among Purdue fans: head football coach Tony Levine has stepped down to run a Chick-fil-A in Houston. But read the whole article to discover why he made this unusual career move.
Tweet of the week:
“I acted for what I deemed the best.”— DailyPlum (@DailyPlum) April 6, 2018
“Another time try acting for the worst. Then we may possibly escape with a mere flesh wound.”
-Right Ho, Jeeves
Friday, April 06, 2018
Weekend Links 4-6-18
A random collection of links for your weekend reading:
ICYMI: my review of Brad Meltzer's The Escape Artist is here.
This is one of my favorite stories of the week. A couple decided to open an independent book store in Ann Arbor, Michigan. One of its more notable features is a typewriter in the store available for anyone to use. Those contributions have been collected and published in a book.
Uncovering the secret of Chick-Fil-A's success.
Ranking the best westerns ever made.
Once a rare sight, the C-flap is becoming more common among baseball hitters. Here's the story of how it came to be.
Want to be a better writer? Study the habits of these famous writers.
This made me laugh out loud.
How to beat the Facebook algorithm by becoming your own curator. I don't really use Facebook for much of anything (except for friends who still want to stay in touch). It's definitely not the site to use to curate news.
Tweet of the week (watch the catcher carefully):
ICYMI: my review of Brad Meltzer's The Escape Artist is here.
This is one of my favorite stories of the week. A couple decided to open an independent book store in Ann Arbor, Michigan. One of its more notable features is a typewriter in the store available for anyone to use. Those contributions have been collected and published in a book.
Uncovering the secret of Chick-Fil-A's success.
Ranking the best westerns ever made.
Once a rare sight, the C-flap is becoming more common among baseball hitters. Here's the story of how it came to be.
Want to be a better writer? Study the habits of these famous writers.
This made me laugh out loud.
How to beat the Facebook algorithm by becoming your own curator. I don't really use Facebook for much of anything (except for friends who still want to stay in touch). It's definitely not the site to use to curate news.
Tweet of the week (watch the catcher carefully):
This is absolutely amazing. This is my buddy’s son up to bat but please watch the catcher. Let’s make this guy known! 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/M6goz7VYa1— Tony Austin ⚾™ (@TonyAustin_10) April 1, 2018
Wednesday, April 04, 2018
Book Review: The Escape Artist
Every once in a while a book comes along that I am hesitant to start because I know once I do start it I'm not going to be able to put it down.
Brad Meltzer's new book The Escape Artist is just such a book.
And it's no big surprise that it debuted at number one on the New York Times bestseller list.
The best thrillers are those where it's hard to separate what's fact from what's fiction. Meltzer intersperses his books with details that only come from meticulous research. For example, one of the main characters, Jim "Zig" Zigarowski is a mortician at Dover Air Force Base which is home to the government's mortuary. Any soldier killed in action is brought to Dover. So are CIA undercover agents that have died in the line of duty. And many others. Meltzer's description of the mortuary is so detailed you feel like you are right there. And I came away with a much greater appreciation of the work that is completed there by our unsung heroes who go to tremendous lengths to make sure that their fallen sons and daughters are properly prepared to be given a decent burial.
When a small plane crashes in Alaska with the Librarian of Congress and several others aboard it is up to Zig to deal with the bodies as they are brought to Dover. He is shocked to discover one of the victims is Nola Brown, a young woman who many years earlier had saved his own daughter's life. But as he completes his examination he realizes that the woman is not Nola Brown at all. Nola is alive and on the run. Why did she go to such lengths to fake her death? Who is she running from? And why? Zig is determined to get to the truth. But at what cost?
I would share more but that would be telling. Suffice it to say that because Meltzer does such a great job of grounding his stories in what is true that it makes the plot much more realistic and as a result the novel much more fascinating to read. Also he's a master at the unexpected plot twist - just when you think you know where the story is headed he brings an unexpected twist (or two or three).
Meltzer has made a career of constructing page-turning thrillers and The Escape Artist is no exception. Pick up a copy and then block out time to read it. Once you start it you won't be able to put it down.
My rating: 4 1/2 stars.
Note: this book contains adult language.
Brad Meltzer's new book The Escape Artist is just such a book.
And it's no big surprise that it debuted at number one on the New York Times bestseller list.
The best thrillers are those where it's hard to separate what's fact from what's fiction. Meltzer intersperses his books with details that only come from meticulous research. For example, one of the main characters, Jim "Zig" Zigarowski is a mortician at Dover Air Force Base which is home to the government's mortuary. Any soldier killed in action is brought to Dover. So are CIA undercover agents that have died in the line of duty. And many others. Meltzer's description of the mortuary is so detailed you feel like you are right there. And I came away with a much greater appreciation of the work that is completed there by our unsung heroes who go to tremendous lengths to make sure that their fallen sons and daughters are properly prepared to be given a decent burial.
When a small plane crashes in Alaska with the Librarian of Congress and several others aboard it is up to Zig to deal with the bodies as they are brought to Dover. He is shocked to discover one of the victims is Nola Brown, a young woman who many years earlier had saved his own daughter's life. But as he completes his examination he realizes that the woman is not Nola Brown at all. Nola is alive and on the run. Why did she go to such lengths to fake her death? Who is she running from? And why? Zig is determined to get to the truth. But at what cost?
I would share more but that would be telling. Suffice it to say that because Meltzer does such a great job of grounding his stories in what is true that it makes the plot much more realistic and as a result the novel much more fascinating to read. Also he's a master at the unexpected plot twist - just when you think you know where the story is headed he brings an unexpected twist (or two or three).
Meltzer has made a career of constructing page-turning thrillers and The Escape Artist is no exception. Pick up a copy and then block out time to read it. Once you start it you won't be able to put it down.
My rating: 4 1/2 stars.
Note: this book contains adult language.
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