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Saturday, May 26, 2007

EARLY SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER'S IN JUDGE POSNER??!! 

The renowned jurist's response to a recent question (posed in Slate to ten prominent writers):
I usually ..... But I cannot for the life of me remember why I chose that! I used to ..., which I like a lot. ... And I ..., which I also liked; but I no longer remember why I did that, either.
Alarming at first blush, indeed, but why anyone goes to the trouble of selecting a particular FONT (or typeface), much less has a reason for doing so, is beyond me.

Yes, that's what Slate asked, apparently to make a three-fer (an essay, documentary film and exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art, all on the font Helvetica) into a four-fer. The writers all struggled to come up with un-boring answers to this dry question. The writer/producer of the TV show Sex and the City seemed to work the hardest to please (not surprisingly):
I talked to my therapist, and she said my love of Courier stems from my childhood. Back before I knew what deadline, hack, or rewrite meant. When the most fun I could imagine was a trip to my father's office, where I could be alone with the IBM electric typewriter. Another chance to tickety-tick-tick something that would make me laugh. And then show it to my mom and she'd laugh, too. So, I guess my loyalty to Courier is a way for me to maintain my bond with my mother. In other words, it's all her fault. That's what my therapist says, anyway.
While several others plausibly responded that they used the font that came with the machine they composed on, they pretty skipped the why part and fluffed their response up with a personal reminiscences. Posner, not surprisingly, answered the query fully and unsentimentally (in case you're interested, the ellipses in the quote above hid his choices of "Century Schoolbook," "Baskerville," "Garamond " and "Verdana").

So, clearly not Alzheimer's. Perhaps Asperger's?

Sunday, May 20, 2007

LOOK INTO THIS CRYSTAL BALL, AREN'T YOU GETTING SLEEPY? 

Right:
Left:
And psychologists? I believe, with no study whatsoever, are merely astrologers with degrees. Or is that sociologists?

Saturday, May 12, 2007

RISKY BUSINESS 

Despite being a mom myself (eagerly anticipating my haul of homemade gifties tomorrow morning) I am perversely pleased when I come across evidence that contradicts a Mom-ism. The latest: bicycle helmets attract cars. Add it to the heap:
But licking a frozen flagpole in winter really will make your tongue stick. Especially in Minnesota. Just ask Atomizer (who did it twice in one day! What's up with that?).

Happy Mother's Day!

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

IN THE SPRING A YOUNG MAN'S FANCY LIGHTLY TURNS TO THOUGHTS OF EX-POST OPPORTUNISM 

An economist muses on why some relationships that should end, don't:
Relationship-specific assets [knowledge of each other’s tastes and quirks, routines that allow them to coordinate their schedules" etc.] give both partners partial protection against market competition, which means they can reduce their contributions and still remain attached. Partners may let themselves get fat, shave less frequently, refuse to have sex as often, cut back on household chores, etc. They can do this as long as the reductions in quality are not so great as to swamp the value attributable to the relationship-specific assets.
Myself, I have not attended a Killdozer concert since I went through the dating investment phase of my relationship. Of course, the band broke up in 1996 (and the lead singer is now a tax lawyer in Los Angeles), so I have some backup excuses.

For more romantic thoughts, such as the Annual Rite of Overdue Dumping and the cause of the Spring Mating Season, click here.