I don’t intend to turn this blog into a daily list of links, but today I’ve got a random assortment of stuff, some of which can’t wait until I get time to write a full post about it, some of which has been hanging around waiting for me to get around to write about. And some stuff which doesn’t deserve its own post. But I’ll let you guess which ones are which. It’s basically a whole bunch of random that I’ve somehow managed to connect together. Food, technology, courtship & marriage, and more!

We have a couple of visitors from the beyond. Not that beyond—though with all my shrine and temple visits of late, I’m sure there are some of those, too—Lia’s sisters are visiting for a couple of weeks. I’ll try to keep up with the daily posts.

Tomorrow (May 25th) is Carry Your Towel Day, in memory of Douglas Adams. Though as Neil Gaiman noted on his journal about two years ago, “He didn’t say you should carry it. He said you should know where it is.” I agree. And no, my memory isn’t that good, I’ve recently been reading through Gaiman’s journal archives. If you’ve ever wondered about some of the stuff behind the scenes in publishing—or a popular author’s life—he’s got some remarkable insights.

Yesterday was my and Lia’s wedding anniversary. It probably says something about my priorities that this next item comes after Mr. Adams. Actually, all it says is that my mind is random, marriage isn’t really news, isn’t likely to be forgotten, and for those of you who are wondering, yes, it’s still as fabulous as it was back in prehistoric times when we started out on this journey together. Actually, it’s gotten better. I’ll stop before I write something embarrassingly mushy. And no, I didn’t buy her flowers, and she didn’t buy me potato chips. So we’re even.

Onwards and linkwards:

In the spirit of romance, something pinched from Craigslist, with a title that renders an introduction or description unnecessary: Why Geeks and Nerds Are Worth It

Once you’ve got your guy (or girl) what do you feed them? The Omnivore: Learning to eat everything, is an article written circa 1996 by food critic Jeffrey Steingarten for Slate Magazine. It talks about overcoming food phobias.

And in the unlikely event that the relationship hits rough seas, Thirty-Eight Ways to Win an Argument, from Schopenhauer’s “The Art of Controversy.” It seems contemporary political debate has dissolved into number 38. My favourites are 8, 9, 18, 23, 27. There’s no need to tell Lia, she’ll probably be nodding her head and thinking “Aha!” as she reads them.

For those of you with kids, especially ones who like reading, The intergalactic playground describes itself as “A web site dedicated to children’s literature and particularly children’s science fiction.” I wish there’d been something like that when I was a kid. Neil Gaiman (linked above, under the Douglas Adams info) also has a lot of recommendations for young readers, but as far as I can tell, they’re scattered throughout his journal entries. I’m not sure if there’s a complete list anywhere on his site. And a lot of his picks are out of print.

Speaking of books, one of my former badminton adversaries—and Governor General’s Award-winning author—Art Slade has somehow gotten himself tangled up in a Jon Scieszka project. It’s called Guys Write for Guys Read, and is a book aimed at getting boys in the Grade 5-9 range interested in reading. For a bit of background, check out Jon Scieszka’s article Why Johnny Won’t Read in the Washington Post. As an aside, much as I enjoy Scieszka’s writing, I hope to never have to type his name again.

Back to the domestic front, here’s a useless but entertaining list: Blender settings, circa 1822, courtesy of McSweeney’s.

And for those of you who were entertained by my sushiPod Shuffle, Mike Davidson is having another contest: Great iPods in History. Anyone can enter. The Deadline is May 31st. Though the quality of entries doesn’t seem to be as high as with the food-based iPod contest. I haven’t yet decided whether or not to enter.