I am a nerd queen! Bow to me and bring me books!

Additionally (from the website):

One of the biggest advantages of living in Morgantown is that because of the university, we get to see a lot of musicians, speakers, comedians, etc that we wouldn’t if we lived elsewhere in West Virginia.

Last night, we have the privilege of seeing Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.

They started out with a John Coltraine set–five pieces I think. There was also a set of pieces written by one of the Orchestra members, Ted Nash, that were based upon modern art paintings.

They also did a couple pieces were more big band and New Orleans jazz, which I have to admit is my favorite, but they covered a good variety.

What I had forgotten, was that (being the good public radio listener that I am) I really like Wynton Marsaliss speaking voice. I’m not sure I can tell you precisely what it was, but his voice is enjoyable to listen to.The Orchestra itself was fantastic–an ensemble of talented players, most of which who played at least one solo.
However, the one thing that really stood out to me was that there were no female members. Why there are so few female jazz musicians (aside from singers and singer/pianists) I don’t know, but it was a very strange recognition.

But despite the lack of women, it was a fantastic show, and I highly recommend you see them if you get the chance.

Goats sacrificed to fix Nepal jet

Nepal’s state-run airline has confirmed that it sacrificed two goats to appease a Hindu god, following technical problems with one of its aircraft.

Really, I don’t think there’s anything I can add to that.

I knew there was a reason I never go to Think Geek.

That would be because I never knew until now that I NEEDED a Working Wooden Trebuchet. But I do.

However I’m going to sit on my hands.

Because I saw a bunch of other stuff I needed more.

That place is possible more dangerous than Despair.com.

Ack! Now I found something ELSE I need.

Must. Sit. On. Hands.

Oh! Look! They’ve got MISTAKES as a t-shirt….

For the incredibly cute archives, we have baby hedgehogs who have adopted a brush as their mother. And of course there are lots of adorable pictures of the baby hedgehogs and their “mother.”

For those who read fantasy, Bookslut looks at fantasy book covers with wizards. Snark included.

For something even more strange, foam attacks an Australian beach. I realize this was natural, but I associate foam like that on a body of water–especially that color–with pollution. So the pictures kinda squick me out.

And less cute and even more strange, Mike the Headless Chicken. I vaguely remember hearing about this years ago, but now there’s a website. And it has pictures. It also explains how Mike the Headless Chicken lived, including how they fed him.

And one last cute thing… if you haven’t been by in awhile, Stuff on My Cat is putting up new pictures every hour.

Note: My Grandmother had ten siblings, eight of who lived to adulthood (and many of whom lived to 90 years old). Her older sister was Sophie.

Grandmom: …because you could barely see it at the end of her life, I almost forgot about the big burn on Sophie’s leg. She never let it bother her and went to the beach and everything and wasn’t at all self-conscious about it.
Dad: Nor should she have been!
Michelle: How did she burn her leg?
Dad: Was that the fire that they thought was why Grandma lost the baby?
Grandmom: Yes, that’s what they said, because she was trying to put the fire out, but I don’t think….
Michelle: But HOW did Aunt Sophie burn her leg? (Trust me–interrupting was the ONLY way I was going to find out the answer to my question.)
Grandmom: (matter-of factly) Oh, the boys (their brothers) tied her to a stake and set her on fire.
Michelle & Dad: WHAT?!
Grandmom: (still matter-of-factly) They were playing cowboys and Indians. (To my Dad) You didn’t know that?
Dad: No! I didn’t know that! You never told me that!
Grandmom: I thought you knew that.
Michelle: Your brothers set Aunt Sophie on FIRE?
Dad: And you were mad at ME for ACCIDENTALLY setting the garage on fire?!

After almost 2 1/2 weeks, my finger is now mostly healed.

And after those 2 1/2 weeks, I feel that I can now give an expert opinion on bandages.

First, if you have a wound on your finger, the most effective bandage is most likely going to be Non-Stick Pads, gauze, and tape. Nothing else will stay on as well. Unfortunately, this combination isn’t waterproof, so you have to do digital acrobatics when washing your hands to keep the bandage dry.

But if you need a band-aid, the only thing you should bother to pick up are Band-Aid Activ – Flex Premium Adhesive Bandages. They’re waterproof, latex-free, hypoallergenic, and extremely flexible, and were the only bandages that were the slightest bit effective. Don’t bother with the “waterproof bandages” of any make. I tried both Band-Aid brand and Nexcare brand. Once you move your finger, the seal is broken and you end up trapping water under the bandage instead of keeping water out. Which is no good.

The bad side of the Activ-Flex bandages is that the highly effective seal to keep out water also sticks slightly to the wound, which is not so great. I got around this by cutting a small piece of non-stick pad to put over the wound. This worked just about perfectly.

Of course my first recommendation is don’t hurt your fingers in the first place, but if, like me, you’re a klutz, Band-Aid Activ-Flex is the only bandage to bother with. Unless, of course, you want to change your bandage every time you wash your hands. Which for me would be able 27 times a day.

So there you go. Avoid all waterproof bandages except Band-Aid Activ-Flex.

And maybe if I’m lucky, someone from Band-Aid will read this, and in gratitude for my glowing review, send me free Band-Aids. God knows I’ll end up needing them.

Happy Sevens!

Comic Book Characters Grouped by Religious Affiliation

Book Buildings i.e. structures made from books.

That made me very happy today.

Steampunk Workshop including Steampunk Keyboard and Monitor.

Steam Punk Star Trek About 10 minutes, and long in places, but still amusing

Totally safe for work yet rather disturbing Robot Romance

xkcd webcomic I’ve been reading this regularly for awhile. Here’s a recent favorite

Girls with Slingshots webcomic, you really have to start at the beginning and work your way forward. Not for everyone.

ARRRRRRG. Fucking sweet potatoes. Cats are bad enough. I definitely don’t need a dog.

Pawsense I’d somehow managed to forget about this. Probably because both of my cats stay off our computers

Warning: Cat Vomit I keep meaning to order one of these signs.

100% off on Amazon Make sure you read the reviews.

Naturallycurly.com (This is a reminder for me to check here. If you’ve seen my hair you’ll understand.)

Culled from here and there and my memory.

DHL won this years Great Package race. However, given the choice, I’ll stick with UPS, because I really like the UPS guys (and they’re almost always guys) who deliver loot to my house. They are usually grinning when I open the door after running to the door yelling “LOOT! LOOT! LOOT FOR ME!”

But the idea of a Great Package Race is pretty fascinating.

The race results are often mixed and entertaining. Two carriers once showed up at the exact same time to deliver their packages. One package was carried back-and-forth across the Atlantic nine times before delivery. Another was sent to Costa Rica instead of Croatia. And one carrier claimed that the destination country didn’t exist at all.

Here’s a reminder of why I check Defective Yeti every day, even when he isn’t posting regularly.

Internet Access Captchas

Make sure you refresh, because he made more than one.

The USPS is coming out with Star Wars stamps, and is letting people vote on their favorite stamp, which will come out in a full sheet.

“Jedi Master Stamps”

My favorite?

But only because they didn’t have a stamp of just R2-D2.

(via This is not my blog)