before the strawberry social
"miss beatrice, i've waited 23 years to ask you this: may i have this dance?" -jimmy joe in to wong foo
asia is twentythreesome
i recently returned from a tour of southeast asia, a land rife with my favorite number.
the entrance to the bali airport is lined with ads for the 23rd anniversary of the double six nightclub in kuta:
we flew to kuala lumpur where we checked in at desk R23 for our flight to siem reap...
...and the kuala lumpur airport security folks slapped a twentythreesome sticker on my bag:
when we landed in siem reap, i noticed the 23s on the wing of our plane...
...and that we'd landed on a twentythreesome runway:
the hotel in hong kong had a subtly twentythreesome elevator:
...and i couldn't look out the window without seeing other buses on route 23:
and finally, a hong kong street gutter:
H is the 8th letter of the alphabet. 8 = 2^3. just saying.
first stop: bangkok, where we stayed at my friend rob's house:
next stop: indonesia. we were seated at table 23 for lunch at the bali zoo:
next stop: indonesia. we were seated at table 23 for lunch at the bali zoo:
the entrance to the bali airport is lined with ads for the 23rd anniversary of the double six nightclub in kuta:
we flew to kuala lumpur where we checked in at desk R23 for our flight to siem reap...
...and the kuala lumpur airport security folks slapped a twentythreesome sticker on my bag:
when we landed in siem reap, i noticed the 23s on the wing of our plane...
...and that we'd landed on a twentythreesome runway:
the hotel in hong kong had a subtly twentythreesome elevator:
our bus to central seated 23 people...
...and i couldn't look out the window without seeing other buses on route 23:
and finally, a hong kong street gutter:
H is the 8th letter of the alphabet. 8 = 2^3. just saying.
you're in serious trouble if you share this
NPR's planet money got a hold of the search terms lawyers are using to assign blame at lehman. as a result, they've released a list of the 23 terms not to use in an email.
stupid
huge mistake
big mistake
dumb
can’t believe
cannot believe
serious trouble
big trouble
unsalvageable
shocked
speechless
too late
uncomfortable
not comfortable
i don’t think we should
very sensitive
highly sensitive
very confidential
highly confidential
do not share this
don’t share this
between you and me
just between us
unhelpful AND preachy
i'm on hold with AT&T (for the record, probably the least customer-friendly company of all time) to talk to them about my text plan, and their hold "music" includes an admonition that people who text while driving are 23 times more likely to be in an accident.
pork bun
hanging out in a bar in washington dc, my buddy ryan and i started talking about dim sum, and i suddenly had an insatiable craving for a char siu bao (steamed pork bun). he told me that he knew a place that might still be open, and i was set on it. after frantically waving down a cab, speeding over there, and then begging the hostess to let us in, we succeeded in our epic feat to acquire said bun. we finally made our way to the menu, where i found my bao waiting for me: #23.
superstruct
i finally watched jane mcgonigal's TED talk about how gaming can change the world. as part of her work at the institute for the future, she's creating world-saving games to teach collaborative problem solving skills. one of her most recent games is called superstruct and the premise is that a supercomputer has calculated that humans have only 23 years left on the planet.
wassail mug
today is the one year anniversary of twentythreesome, and it seems only fitting to post something about my alma mater, which has been getting a lot of attention lately on my real blog.
every year (when i was a student, at least), claremont mckenna college hosted a madrigal feast -- it's a throw back to medieval times when people ate unidentifiable meats, drank wassail from special mugs, and kissed each other in exchange for fruit. or maybe those were just our traditions.
in any case, i was at my friend's house the other night, enjoying a nice mug of beer, when i noticed my mug was "permanently borrowed" from one such madrigal feast. imagine my delight when i noticed that this particular mug was from the 23rd annual madrigal feast, which occurred in 2005. the year 2005 is particularly notable here because it is my graduation year, and the last year i attended a madrigal feast. cheers!
every year (when i was a student, at least), claremont mckenna college hosted a madrigal feast -- it's a throw back to medieval times when people ate unidentifiable meats, drank wassail from special mugs, and kissed each other in exchange for fruit. or maybe those were just our traditions.
in any case, i was at my friend's house the other night, enjoying a nice mug of beer, when i noticed my mug was "permanently borrowed" from one such madrigal feast. imagine my delight when i noticed that this particular mug was from the 23rd annual madrigal feast, which occurred in 2005. the year 2005 is particularly notable here because it is my graduation year, and the last year i attended a madrigal feast. cheers!
out of san francisco...
as usual, i flew out of gate 23 today. i was on flight 3234 (which is almost my birthdate, save the 8, which is 2^3 and the sum of 3+2+3, incidentally).
coit tower
the ground floor of coit tower in san francisco is lined with public works era murals, one of which depicts bars of gold from 1923. bar number 7023 is right in the middle of the mural.
after taking the elevator to the top, i had to climb 23 stairs to get outside.
after taking the elevator to the top, i had to climb 23 stairs to get outside.
vodka martini, hold the wedding
southwest's in-flight magazine had an article about america's priciest cocktail: $10,000. the algonquin hotel's blue bar serves the grey goose martini with a customized diamond ring at the bottom of the glass. price of the drink sans commitment? $23.
my sunday
had brunch with mom at huckleberry, and the bill was $23.
had my double bat mitzvah birthday dinner at a mexican restaurant, and they said because of the size of my party, i'd have to do a $23-per-person fixed menu.
before bed, i read one page of infinite jest by david foster wallace and came across this quote: "Still: Twenty-three human beings lost for all time: that'd be some hoax, no?"
had my double bat mitzvah birthday dinner at a mexican restaurant, and they said because of the size of my party, i'd have to do a $23-per-person fixed menu.
before bed, i read one page of infinite jest by david foster wallace and came across this quote: "Still: Twenty-three human beings lost for all time: that'd be some hoax, no?"
what is sex?
i adore mark morford, columnist for the san francisco chronicle. his column this week was inspired by a kinsey institute survey indicating that there isn't a lot of consensus about what constitutes as sex. i was disturbed to read this twentythreesome statistic:
23 percent of the over-65 men in the survey, who seemed to think that not even penis-vagina penetration was to be considered the real thing. Translation: Do not have sex with weird old men in Indiana.
23 percent of the over-65 men in the survey, who seemed to think that not even penis-vagina penetration was to be considered the real thing. Translation: Do not have sex with weird old men in Indiana.
in my opinion, this was the real money quote from the column:
Was there penetration? Orgasm by at least one party? Was there some comment along the lines of, "I'd like to have sex with you," followed by nodding and the removal of clothing and then direct cash payment from the Republican senator/Vatican official to the gay prostitute? Was Tiger Woods involved? You had sex. I mean, obvs.
sex, drugs, and 23 cocoa puffs
my friend cullen sent me an email this week:
I’ve been reading Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs. In the book, Klosterman presents a list of 23 (I know. Calm down.) questions he must ask before people deciding if he can truly love them. This is one of the questions:
“A novel titled Interior Mirror is released to mammoth commercial success (despite middling reviews). However, a curious social trend emerges: Though no one can prove a direct scientific link, it appears that almost 30 percent of the people who read this book immediately become homosexual. Many of these newfound homosexuals credit the book for helping them reach this conclusion about their orientation, despite the fact that Interior Mirror is ostensibly a crime novel with no homoerotic content (and was written by a straight man). Would this phenomenon increase (or decrease) the likelihood of you reading this book?”
Thought you might enjoy that.
I’ve been reading Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs. In the book, Klosterman presents a list of 23 (I know. Calm down.) questions he must ask before people deciding if he can truly love them. This is one of the questions:
“A novel titled Interior Mirror is released to mammoth commercial success (despite middling reviews). However, a curious social trend emerges: Though no one can prove a direct scientific link, it appears that almost 30 percent of the people who read this book immediately become homosexual. Many of these newfound homosexuals credit the book for helping them reach this conclusion about their orientation, despite the fact that Interior Mirror is ostensibly a crime novel with no homoerotic content (and was written by a straight man). Would this phenomenon increase (or decrease) the likelihood of you reading this book?”
Thought you might enjoy that.
superbowl saint
as soon as i saw #23 -- the new orleans saints' pierre thomas -- i said, "he's going to score their first touchdown." count it.
most worn words
spreadshirt released their analysis of the most worn words in 2009 based on sales of their t-shirts. "i" was very popular, as were "obama" and "team." i checked to see what was the 23rd most popular name: jordan, of course.
we are always 23.
hat tip to garrison keillor's the writer's almanac on november 6, 2009.
Twenty-three
by Liam Rector
When he was 23 and beautiful
He liked to hang around
With other beautiful people.
He liked to get intoxicated with them,
Have sex with them, make money
With them. Among them,
He found, one did not have to strain.
Other people
Wanted to hang around with them
And came bearing gifts,
A little something. (These
Gift-bearers were a lot like
Politics itself is, "Showbiz
For ugly people.") In this world
If anything went wrong there
Was always enough money around
To cover it. After he was through
With this crowd he started hanging
Out with a bunch of academic
Gangsters. These were
A different crew altogether:
Smart, on the main, but mean
And eaten alive by resentment.
They never had enough money
And were bitter beyond belief,
Compared, say,
To a troupe of electricians.
Freud said somewhere
In our unconscious
We are always 23.
Twenty-three
by Liam Rector
When he was 23 and beautiful
He liked to hang around
With other beautiful people.
He liked to get intoxicated with them,
Have sex with them, make money
With them. Among them,
He found, one did not have to strain.
Other people
Wanted to hang around with them
And came bearing gifts,
A little something. (These
Gift-bearers were a lot like
Politics itself is, "Showbiz
For ugly people.") In this world
If anything went wrong there
Was always enough money around
To cover it. After he was through
With this crowd he started hanging
Out with a bunch of academic
Gangsters. These were
A different crew altogether:
Smart, on the main, but mean
And eaten alive by resentment.
They never had enough money
And were bitter beyond belief,
Compared, say,
To a troupe of electricians.
Freud said somewhere
In our unconscious
We are always 23.
not that i watch trashy tv....
i was watching "the biggest loser" tonight, and there are 23s everywhere! weighing in at close to half a ton, the brown team twins (james and john) are the biggest team ever on the show. they both lost 23 lbs this week.
also, patti, the mom on the purple team, lost 23 lbs -- the largest amount ever lost in one week by a female in the show's history.
also, patti, the mom on the purple team, lost 23 lbs -- the largest amount ever lost in one week by a female in the show's history.
