wow fact for the day

courtesy of the latest addition to my legible list, which i'm proud to say comes from somewhere other than the new york times or the new yorker. (okay, it's from the boston globe, which is owned by the nyt, but still counts -- separate editorial staffs). a really nice read that talks about the gaping holes in the logic behind the current eat-local craze (one which i definitely jumped on the bandwagon for prematurely).

And for cattle, the greatest climate impact comes not from hauling cows and milk and steaks around the country, but from cow burps. Cows are impressive emitters of methane, a greenhouse gas that is 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide (contrary to popular belief, most of it comes out the front of the cow, not the rear). A cow with a bit of indigestion can contribute as much to global warming in a day as the average SUV.

hopefully, this means i can start ordering wine from around the world again (just for variety sake).

get sent to this

back in the day when i plyed my trade as a programmer, i got sent to these tech conferences to see which technologies deserved the buzz they were receiving. and i had no qualms about attending because circa-2000, the parties always outnumbered the information sessions and everyone got wet before happy hour arrived.

of course, if i had one ticket to use for a tech conference this year, i select the office 2.0 conference. not because i'm enthralled by the "collective experiment organized every year in San Francisco, CA and aimed at discovering the future of online productivity & collaboration" (whatever the fuck that means) but because i want the free iphone or playstation 3 -- straight to ebay for both, so whichever would fetch more ducats -- they give to all registrants.

damn, i wish i had an educational budget.

the strangest compliment i've ever received

a friend and former classmate of mine confided (which is why i'm blogging about it now) in me that a mutual friend of ours repeatedly impressed upon him how cute she thought my dimples were.

great. dimples are cute and a welcome addition to nearly any face.

only problem, i don't have dimples. i'm quite sure, as i spent a good 15 minutes (additional to normal grooming time) contorting my face in various ways as to try and manipulate my skin such that a cavity in my cheek would appear. minimal success.

it's like a girl telling a bald man how much she loves his long flowing locks.

should he feel good about it? is a compliment even a compliment if it's plainly untrue to all?

if someone insults you but doesn't remember, does it still sting?

not that laying eyes on me conjures images of beckham or brad pitt from fight club, but when looking in the mirror i've never understood how someone could find me physically unappealing. perhaps, that's why i'm having a little trouble shaking this zinger a close female friend dropped on me near the end of a bright red evening.

"if we ever went out, you'd have to work out way more."

from a stranger, i'd simply realize that she was a feminista of poor taste. or visually impaired. or the wrong sexual orientation. or in an abusive relationship. or all of the above. but from someone who sees me regularly -- and who's bluntness grows in direct proportion to increased blood alcohol content -- none of those explanations make a whole lot of sense. which only leaves the truth. ugh.

a friend from college briefly dated a woman who incessantly abused him verbally, repeating as if an incantation "how skinny his arms were" and how most guys she dated had way more muscle. i loved when he told that story, because a) he told the story well b) it could never apply to me because i was just too damn attractive. as they say, ignorance is bliss.