random thoughts

The Observatory's new album will be out in September. Can't wait!


Jasper Fforde, whom I had the pleasure of interviewing last year, is back with a new book. This time, no more Thursday Next investigating classics gone wrong, instead the Nursery Crime Department attacks nursery rhymes gone bad!

The Big Over Easy tracks Humpty Dumpty's ...er... downfall.

What will Fforde write about next?
Hansel and Gretel?
Sleeping Beauty?
Cinderella?

I'll tell you more once I get to read the book.

I'm a fan of his previous books - The Eyre Affair, Lost In A Good Book, Something Rotten. (And was obviously thrilled to meet him - I made him sign my copy of The Eyre Affair and the copy of Something Rotten the publisher had given me. I'm afraid I still don't have Lost In A Good Book - should probably pick that up next time Kino has a sale)

And his website even offers book upgrades.

3: Earth the book by touching it lightly against a dictionary.

4: Disable any third party ancillaries such as bookmarks, pressed flowers, old bus tickets, etc.

5: Using a fine black pen make the following corrections:
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.
.
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18: When you have finished the corrections reset the book by closing it and then turning it cover uppermost.

19: Congratulations! You are now the proud owner of The Eyre Affair V1.4. To fully authenticate your copy download the file 'upgrade1.4.jpg', print out the download, cut it out with scissors and affix it to the title page of your copy. Thank you for using the jasperfforde.com upgrade service.


Bill Gates' billion-dollar high school experiment in Seattle

Mountlake Terrace High was one of those to accept the Gates Foundation grants and as part of the plan was divided into 5 smaller schools, with smaller class sizes.

Achievement, Opportunity and Service (AOS), a "traditional high school experience in a small school setting"; Discovery, where students "design your own projects instead of taking tests"
Innovation, "aimed at creative thinkers: writers, artists, inventors"
Renaissance, a bridge to four-year colleges with the bulk of Mountlake's advanced placement classes
Terrace Arts and Academic School (TAAS), a 2-D and 3-D arts-oriented program. Each school would offer the basics—English, math, science, and history—but try to do so in different fashions. The Mountlake Terrace High School building, designed to be divided into subject areas, would now be divided into entirely different schools. Teachers' classrooms would be moved, depending on which school they were attached to.

But it seems no matter what you do, kids will always be stereotyped.

Lisa Bao, who just finished her freshman year, agrees. "Kids say AOS is the preppy, white school, Discovery is the Asian, gangsta, druggie school." "The Discovery School is mostly about self-discovery, but kids call it the 'ghetto school,'" says upcoming senior Morgan Redfield, who attends the Innovation School.

The Business Times decided to go on a rate the burger spree.
But why did they miss out on the american diners like Seah St Deli, Blooie's and Hard Rock Cafe?
And other gems like Handlebar?

More than just a mere burger

HERE'S the dining question of the week: Can a fast-food burger be as good as a gourmet burger?

That question came to light with the entrance of Carl's Jr to the local dining scene. At $7.90 for a double bacon burger (and a little over $10 for a combo meal that includes a drink and choice of fries or deep-fried zucchini), it's just a couple of dollars less than what some proper restaurants are charging for their gourmet burgers. Les Amis Cafe at the Botanic Gardens, for one, charges $11 for a regular burger and fries, while Baize and China One charges $11.80.