8 Ways to Sunday

Oscar Hill, author of the great EZ Subscribe to Comments script used on this site, has posted QuickTime movies of a couple of funny Australian beer advertisements.

Having lived in Chicago for a few months during college, and visited there again a couple of years ago for a conference, I have a special place in my heart for what I consider one of the best towns in America. I recently ran across a couple of excellent Windy City blogs that I’d recommend to everyone:

• Mimi Smartypants — Absolutely the best diarist / humorist on the web. When I first discovered her site last week, I read about a dozen entries. Collectively, they were the funniest thing I have ever read in eight years online. The blog (which she refers to as “the Thing”) chronicles her life in Chicago as she makes the transition from late 20s to early 30s, recounts her drug-addled past, ponders her sex life, rebels against draconian workplace regs about Illegal Teakettles, adopts a baby, and generally lives her life. All is carried off with the trademark whimsical style and wry humor that prompted HarperCollins UK to call her up and beg her to write a book. Far from “chick-lit,” this is brain candy for anyone who appreciates smart, sassy, real women.
• Chicago Uncommon — A photoblog with a twist, this site covers Chi-town from top to bottom by neighborhood and environment. With this unique organizational setup, it doesn’t take long for past residents to construct their own self-guided trip down memory lane. The pictures, by Chicagoland photographer Dawn M. Mikulich, do an excellent job of capturing the “vibe” of this amazing city.

I had this whole screed planned. It was going to be a good screed, too — all full of pith and fire and constitutional arguments. But Andrew Sullivan, gay (former?) Republican and prominent Web pundit, went me one better.

Starting on the day of Bush’s announcement with a post giving his own stance, Sullivan has continued to blog the debate in the form of news bits and e-mailed reader reactions. Start here, with Sullivan’s own take, and scroll up to read the evolving coverage. It’s better than anything I could’ve written, notably because it comes from the people whose rights are on the line. Not that all our rights aren’t on the line in one way or another…

In a trend that has consumer privacy advocates up in arms, tax preparation has joined the increasingly long list of formerly-secure “white collar” jobs being exported to India.

The Associated Press reports reports that several U.S. accounting firms, including industry giant Ernst & Young, are having clients’ tax returns completed by overseas accountants on the subcontinent.
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Someone has adapted the concept of Ambrose Bierce’s The Devil’s Dictionary — a compendium of satirical definitions — to the digital age. The Devil’s Dictionary 2.0, as it is called offers such gems as the following:

ROFLMAO

acronym — Polite form of the acronym IAYSDAH: “I acknowledge your strangely depressing attempt at humor.”

Semantic Web

proper noun — An attempt to apply the Dewey Decimal system to an orgy.