These should keep you busy:

It's the Queen's blogiversary! Drop by and wish her well!

Fat: Bad or not? Wizbang, McGehee and the MUSC Tigers weigh in.

Middle East:
1. The Carnival of the Liberated was held yesterday at Dean's. Drop by for your weekly Iraq/Afghanistan blog update
2. Michael Totten and Spirit of America, live from Lebanon
3. Rusty Shackelford blogs part 2 of his interview with Susan Hallums (part 1 here)

Babalu contributor Julio Zangroniz has exciting news about a new park in Miami and a memorial to those who have lost their lives fighting communism in Cuba.

The Paladin's got Mexican Food on the brain (constantly)

Mrs. SMASH is back at it, at least, in a limited way. Yay!!

Humor for Dreaded Wednesdays from VW Bug. While you're there, check out the Karnival of the Kidz.

Speaking of Kids, check out Sadie's new talents: Splashing and Standing

Idol Chatter from Marie

Shocking News from the Laughing Wolf..... Congrats LW and Bou!

That's the lot for now. I'm going to go read my book and rest.

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Found this from Aussie Wife Amanda. Click on the link and it takes you to a flash game where you can listen to snippets of SW music and decide which movie they're from. You can choose OT (classic Star Wars films) or Episode II.

I got all of the OT ones right after about 1 second each. Yes. I am a Star Wars nerd. Yes, I went to all of the premieres of the rereleases at Mann's Chinese. With my hair in appropriate Princess Leia hairdos. No, I will not wear the metal bikini.

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Today's thoughts can be found over at Ith's place where I've been guest blogging

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Idol begins in 5 minutes on the East Coast.

Predictions?
Thoughts?
Reaction?
Comment away...
Update below the fold! more...

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It seems strange to me that it's been 10 years since the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. I was home sick that day, curled up in Mom's chair with a blanket trying not to hurt. I was in the same place two years earlier when the Waco complex was blown up by the ATF/FBI/etc. Funny.

Four years and one day after Oklahoma City I was working on a paper in my bedroom with the LA news on when they broke in with the Columbine shooting story.

This week in history mostly sucks. Let's get on with it.

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Rusty Shackelford has the story of the American hostage you've probably never heard of. In an exclusive interview, Rusty interviews the family of Roy Hallums to discuss his situation and what has and hasn't been done to secure his release. Part one of his interview with Roy's family is here. Part 2 tomorrow, and 3 and 4 to follow.

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...going on over at Dean's World about the bible and homosexuality. Read the comments.

I'm going to post my personal opinions here (Below the fold in case you don't care):
more...

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Stolen from Blackfive and Harvey....

What Movies are you embarrassed to love?

Well, that could be quite a list....

Pure Country
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Sixteen Candles (several of you can guess why)
Deuce Bigalow
Big Daddy
Nothing to Lose
The Mask of Zorro
Remo Williams (heck yeah, Blackfive)

I'm sure there are more. This list is just a start.... What are yours?

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1 Oh Man, Deuce Bigalow, you gotta be kidding!!!! hehehe Anyways for me is as follows: The Sound of Music Ghost Four Weddings and a Funeral (except for Andie McDowell) West Side Story Beaches (sadly, I cry at the beginning now, cause I've seen it so many times) Happy Gilmour American Pie

Posted by: amanda at April 18, 2005 11:37 PM (cqrWD)

2 You can't be embarrassed about Four Weddings and a Funeral! That's a GREAT frickin' flick!!!

Posted by: Boudicca at April 19, 2005 12:29 AM (z7nbM)

3 Stuart Saves His Family (with Al Franken, gaggola... she hangs her head!) anything Naked Gun -- almost anything with Leslie Nielsen, really Caltechgirl... Pure Country!!??!! Really!!?? That's making me laugh! You seem so NOT Pure Country!

Posted by: Marie at April 19, 2005 10:47 AM (cRiTs)

4 Well, being I have no shame, its hard to be embarrassed by movies... Deuce Bigalow is good stuff, as is Nothing to Lose. Remo Williams, man none of my friends know what that movie is. I would add in 99% of the movies on the SciFi Channel. Any movie made staring Bruce Campbell. Undercover Brother. Out Cold.

Posted by: the Pirate at April 19, 2005 12:19 PM (SksyN)

5 Joe Dirt. Me, Myself & Irene. Merlin. Hee.

Posted by: Princess Jami at April 19, 2005 02:18 PM (0gPLe)

6 Battle Beyond the Stars Kaiju movies (Godzilla, et al.) Remo Williams (had the first 56 books in the series) Wizards (Ralph Bakshi) Aaaaaaaaaaaand... Hudson Hawk.

Posted by: Doug McKay at April 19, 2005 04:01 PM (Cp5LT)

7 don't get me started on cheesy horror movies...I love tons of them. Too numerous to list, but the cheesier, the better. cube

Posted by: cube at April 19, 2005 04:10 PM (yW/42)

8 I forgot one: Howard the Duck.

Posted by: Doug McKay at April 19, 2005 06:33 PM (Cp5LT)

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I win! Yay! I was one of four bloggers to get a nod for this week's Jawalicious caption contest!!!

WooHoo!!!

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As you may remember, I went to Savannah for a conference the first weekend in April. I've finally managed to download some of the photos I took. Click for a bigger picture

Here's the view from our hotel room, complete with container ship:

This is the Savannah convention center, where our convention was held and more famous for hosting the last meeting of the leaders of the G8 nations:

And at night:

Here's an interesting car carrier ship:

and the obligatory shot of flowers in Savannah; Azaleas growing on River St.:

Finally, my favorite shot of the weekend. You might have to look carefully to read the graffito's opinion of the local paper.....

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An article from BBC News today discusses a minor blow to Tony Blair's bid for re-election. Seems one Derek Cattell, a member of the Labour party's executive board in Sedgefield, which is Mr. Blair's home constituency, has resigned from the Labour party in protest ove the war in Iraq (now??? why not 2 years ago??-ed.) Mr. Cattell has announced that he is now supporting Reg Keys, the father of an Iraq casualty, who is running independently for Mr Blair's seat. An explanation of why Mr. Blair must run again is below the fold...

But what's rather funny about all of this are the names and party affiliations of some of the other candidates up against Mr. Blair:

Jonathan Cockburn, Blair Must Go Party
Fiona Luckhurst-Matthews, Veritas
Baroney Maroney Staniforth, Monster Raving Loony Party

Heh. The joys of a multi-party system.

More Brit election analysis as we get closer to the big day (May 5), I just had to share my amusement at the candidate list...

Kudos to the Beeb (who rarely ever get my praise) for a wonderfully comprehensive webpage listing all of the issues and all of the party platforms (or manifestos as they call them in th UK) here and especially here.

more...

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Ok, so it's Monday. Which sucks. I hate Monday mornings because of lab meeting at 9. Which means I have to be here BEFORE 9. (I usually come in 9-9:30). Ahh the advantages pf Academia.

Really, I think that's the only reason I didn't go for something else. Where else can you come in at 10 and go home at 6? Fits my sleep schedule SOOOO much better.

Anyway, the point of this post was to let you know that I have great plans for this week:
a roundup of British political news, focusing on the upcoming election
a link fest
pictures from my trip to Savannah (there aren't many, but I will put up a few)
a recipe for the CotR
Maybe some pictures of the Azaleas in my back yard...
and more!

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Now, I've said someone was full of sh*t before, but this guy really is. I think he was the model for one of Caltechdad's favorite jokes....

See the extended entry.... more...

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1 OK... I'm having a hard time getting past, "the patient underwent manual disimpaction under general anesthesia". Whose job is that? Blech.

Posted by: Boudicca at April 17, 2005 12:15 AM (z7nbM)

2 Yeah...but try draining an oral abscess sometime!

Posted by: Flap at April 17, 2005 01:19 AM (xHzi+)

3 Ouch. No other word for it.

Posted by: Karen at April 17, 2005 10:52 PM (HWTma)

4 Not my fave. topic to discuss while I am eating my lunch.

Posted by: Rachel Ann at April 18, 2005 02:32 AM (IJkka)

5 Damn, I was shifting in my seat uncomfortably just looking at that. That has gotta hurt! And do they have the equivalent of apprentices in surgery, 'cause you know they always get the crap jobs to do!

Posted by: Amanda at April 18, 2005 02:56 AM (yQjzp)

6 I fear that I have the unfortunate honor of relating to how this person felt... somewhat, at least. I learned that surgery shuts down the um, "system" for days...

Posted by: Marie at April 18, 2005 02:07 PM (cRiTs)

7 Oh my! That's not good, not good at all.

Posted by: Paladin at April 18, 2005 02:49 PM (Rfqkp)

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Due to unforseen work circumstances, the Carnival of the Recipes is now up. Head on over to Countertop Chronicles for all of the yummy goodness this week!

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The Bear Flag League has filed an amicus brief in the Apple case many of you have heard so much about.

Here's the press release (lifted from SoCalLawBlog):

Irvine, CA.
April 15, 2005.

Today, the Bear Flag League -- a coalition of 80 bloggers who are current and former California residents -- filed a friend of the court brief with the California Sixth District Court of Appeal in O'Grady v. Superior Court. The O'Grady case is an appellate proceeding arising from a lawsuit filed by Apple Computer in Santa Clara County in December 2004. Apple sued unnamed individuals who are accused of leaking information regarding Apple's new products to several news websites. Apple has initiated discovery procedures available under California law to identify the source of the leaked information, including serving a subpoena to the Internet service provider for one of the news websites. Apple hopes that the subpoena will reveal the identity of its employees or other parties involved in the leaks. The publishers of the news websites have asked the Santa Clara County Superior Court to block Apple's discovery in order to protect the publishers' confidential sources. When the Superior Court denied that request, the publishers filed a petition with the Sixth District Court of Appeal. The lawsuit involves the competing interests of the First Amendment guarantees of a free press on the one hand and Apple's rights to protect the unlawful dissemination of its trade secrets on the other.

The Bear Flag League is an unincorporated association of current and former residents of the State of California who operate and/or contribute to 80 blogs. The League was formed in July 2003 in order to collaborate and publish articles concerning California culture, current events, legal issues and politics for the reading public.

The brief filed by the League today urges the Sixth District Court of Appeal to afford these website publishers and all bloggers the same privileges and protection from discovery that traditional print and broadcast journalists enjoy under the United States and California Constitution. Because these website publishers targeted by Apple are engaged in the same news gathering and reporting activities as print journalists, broadcast reporters and Internet bloggers, they have the right to protect their confidential sources and thereby maintain a strong, independent and free press.

The League's brief was prepared by a number of the League's lawyer members, including, Justene Adamec of Pumilia & Adamec LLP and Jeffrey Lewis and Benjamin P. Pugh of Enterprise Counsel Group, ALC.

The brief can be found here. (PDF format)

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Here it is again, Tax day. Most of you probably have not even pulled out the forms. I realize taxes are quite a chore for most people, but for us (no kids, no IRA, no self-employment tax) they're pretty straightforward. So I usually do the forms in February, as soon as I get the W-2s and interest statements. This year I filled them out, figured out what we were getting back, and then promptly forgot to make them pretty (redo them in ink) and send them. Until about a month ago.

See, if you send in your forms on March 15, then April 15th isn't Tax day, it's REFUND day! WooHoo!

State refund was in the mail last night and the Federal refund was in my checking account this morning! Yay!

In case you're wondering, assuming I get a Postdoc, that $$ is earmarked for our moving money for the trek back to Cali.

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What kind of American English do you speak?

(h/t Jay and Deb)

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Today, being Thursday, is Survivor day. I can't wait to see Stephenie freak out over the creepy things in the jungle while she's out there alone. She ought to get a free pass for the next few days just for being out there alone and beating out all of the other Ulongs. Will they merge tonight or is Stephenie in for another few days of torture while Koror goes to tribal council? That would be just like the bastards who run the show.

I know at least a couple of you are big fans of the show, so here's your chance to chime in. What do you think will happen? If you've already seen the show by the time you run across this post, leave comments anyway. I'll update it and repost this after the show with my thoughts.

Spoilers and Update below the fold for you west coast folks and Aussies more...

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1 I said to Nin last week that I just didn't get it. What if she loses? She just goes away with no tribal council, or will they make her haul her stuff up and snuff out her torch? I guess since this is the first time a team has been so horrible that they've been picked off one by one, they decided to go with it. I'm never good at paying attention to numbers, so I can't remember at what point they usually merge. Maybe they'll merge in the morning. After we get her seeming all alone for a night in the jungle segment. Her and her camera crew The dynamics are going to be interesting this time with the other team, and no merging of two different groups.

Posted by: Ith at April 14, 2005 05:27 PM (JdMk4)

2 I'm surprised they waited to merge as long as they did. I missed the first 15 minutes of the show last night. I saw from when Stephanie arrived at the Koror camp. I think Coby made a tactical error when he gave Stephanie the low-down on the "aliances". He tipped his hand and I'm sure that info got back to Tom/Ian/Katie. Janu looked seriously surprised that coby was voted out. I think she's ready to go and was hoping she would be the one voted off. Personally I was glad Coby got voted off, I was tired of his constant complaining about Tom and Ian.

Posted by: Contagion at April 15, 2005 08:28 AM (Q5WxB)

3 I thought it was classy that they just folded Steph into Koror rather than have to come up with another tribal name and new buffs. Coby gave up. Plain and simple. He quit playing the game, and that's why he was gone. I'm sure Janu is next, unless Greg and Jen heat up. But then again, I'm not sure what the fall out from the vote is going to be.... In any case, Tom, Ian, and Katie just solidified their alliance against Greg and Jen's scheming. If I was in their alliance, I would vote off Greg, Jen, Caryn, and Janu, in that order, since Greg is quite a threat and Tom and Ian are plenty good at providing fish and fire.

Posted by: caltechgirl at April 15, 2005 10:48 AM (5VQpT)

4 I missed last week when they left her alone. My first thought this week was "huh?" My second was "why didn't they do this sooner?" It is Survivor. Make 'em survive. Steph fell apart so quickly that I kept asking my daughters how long they had left her there. Now the previews show that someone else will end up alone next week. Ok, let's not overdo it.

Posted by: Justene at April 15, 2005 09:50 PM (yryJ0)

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Ok, it's not really a quiz since you just enter your name... but it's funny
(again stolen from Michele, who is on a roll this week)

What are your boobies' names?

According to the quiz, Caltechgirl's boobies are:

However, my boobies' real names are:

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Found TODAY for the first time ever in Chapel Hill:
(drumroll.....)

And it's actually pretty good. Tastes like cherry coke mixed with cream soda and a little Dr. Pepper. Go here for a more in-depth review

Don't worry, Darling Husband, there's one in the fridge for you. And I won't hold it against you either. I know you don't frequent the med school snack shop

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