Sell the Vatican. Feed the World.

Sarah Silverman on Real Time with Bill Maher last week:

And, for those of you who missed The Great Schlep during election season last year:

The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.

The Fun Theory (sponsored by Volkswagen)

Using fun to change behaviors...

Hot Waitress Economic Index?

Stumbled across this New York Magazine article...

Article excerpt:

The indicator I prefer is the Hot Waitress Index: The hotter the waitresses, the weaker the economy. In flush times, there is a robust market for hotness. Selling everything from condos to premium vodka is enhanced by proximity to pretty young people (of both sexes) who get paid for providing this service. That leaves more-punishing work, like waiting tables, to those with less striking genetic gifts. But not anymore.

A waitress at one Lower East Side club described to me what happened there: “They slowly let the boys go, then the less attractive girls, and then these hot girls appeared out of nowhere. All in the hope of bringing in more business. The managers even admitted it. These hot girls that once thrived on the generosity of their friends in the scene for hookups—hosting events, marketing brands, modeling—are now hunting for work.”

http://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/58195/

New Michelin Star Ratings for New York

http://newyork.seriouseats.com/2009/10/2010-michelin-guide-to-new-york-the-stars-rea.html

I've not been to any of these restaurants - wasn't enough of a foodie when I lived on the East Coast - but the one I'd most like to visit on the list is Eleven Madison. I've only heard great things about it for several years now. I'm also interested in Momofuku Ko - they only have 12 seats so I imagine you need to get your reservations well ahead of time.

Also nice to see Daniel Bouloud get a third star at Daniel - I've only seen him cook on TV but his food looks delicious and he seems like the nicest man in the world. I think I just decided that I'll go to Daniel Bouloud Brasserie at The Wynn when I'm in Vegas next month. I've meant to go there several times - gotta try the $32 DB Burger! - but have always ended up somewhere else. This time it's time.

This Party Took A Turn For The Douche

Gotta love Garfunkel and Oates...

Like most people, I discovered Kate Micucci in her role on Scrubs as The Gooch...lawyer Ted's ukulele playing girlfriend. She and Riki Lindhome are the musical comedy-duo Garfunkel and Oates and they have several funny videos on youtube. Here's a recent one.

Speaking of douches...rings pretty true of the Scottsdale scene... Here's a classic in case you haven't seen it:

Negative interest rates in Sweden?

Well, kinda, sorta, but not really...

The daily overnight rate is still positive (0.15%) but the one-week deposits yield -0.25%. Not sure why anyone would use that (better to just hold onto the money.) Seems like most banks agree: there are 12 million SEK in the weekly deposits, and 90 billion in the overnights.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/01/negative-interest-rates-in-sweden/

Kill Bill: Vol. 3 Tarantino's next movie?

Quentin Tarantino said in an interview on Italian TV that his next movie may be Kill Bill Vol. 3. But, he wants 10 year to pass from the first one, to let Uma's character age and raise her daughter in peace.

I'm assuming this will center around the daughter of Viveca A. Fox's character seeking revenge on Beatrix Kiddo for killing her mom in Kill Bill: Vol. 1.

I'd rather see him do something other than revisit old characters, but I'd obviously watch it.

http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Tarantino-Promises-Kill-Bill-Vol-3-15004.html

Welcome October, Fall Weather

Ah - the heat of the desert summer appears to have subsided for the season. As I left for work this morning it was decidedly cool outside. Now we can look forward to eight months of wonderful weather. Here's the forecast for the next few days:

And in Celsius: