One of the interesting things I read today, alongside a tragic Hollywood death, the distinct possibility of global economic mayhem, the painful slow-motion collapse of lower-tier presidential campaigns and a new and shocking reaction to collective punishment upon a nation-state, is this article I read about how some of the highest quality fish out there, bluefin tuna, is filled with high levels of mercury.

On a personal level, Sushi gives me much joy, it saddens me to read that some of the best tasting items on the sushi menu are bad for you. Take away the thermometer fixings and the whole menu happens to be both good tasting and good for you. If the best of the best has quicksilver in it, I can't but wonder if the fish in my pay-scale come equipped with some type of heavy metal. One more thing to keep in mind for this omnivore's dilemma with seafood. (Say, for example, that whole, we-humans-are-eating-too-much-fish issue.)

What got me thinking is this nifty graph that came with the article. To research this, I suspect that the reporter used this as an excuse to eat at some of her favorite sushi joints at lunchtime. I envision her walking around midtown and snaking on an apparently dangerous number of bluefin nigiri, for a few weeks , all the while pocketing one or two pieces from each joint to give to the scientists. Doing this on a reporters budget, she'd probably skip the amazing places like Masa, and stick to the places that are either good or excellent....

I decided to make the following mashup to see if my theory is correct:

Quicksilver and Stars, an Unscientific Survey & Mashup

After doing all that cutting and pasting, I'll let you make your own conclusions.

Posted by Colin J Allen at 3:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The couch is in the house, and it is a great thing. It is big, it is soft and it is unquestionably the highlight of our rumpus room. Looks like I need to spiff up the rest of the house, just so the couch does not stick out as out as one nice item in the house. That is a problem that I am happy to have, as I am sure that my swaddled pillows contraption came with no notions of comfort, let alone class.

Well, here it is:

Yes, that is fake stone behind the couch. A good number of our walls are going through some sort of identity crisis. Another entire wall in the rumpus room has transformed into a mirror. That's right, floor to ceiling for a good two to three meters in width. (I did my best to cover most of it, but a full length mirror does come in pretty handy.) In the kitchen, the wall above the oven is pho-brick. That is, they took real bricks, cut off the brick's face and glued them upon the wall in a brick-like pattern.

I love the walls. In fact they are one of the bigger reasons we took our flat. I have no idea why I like them. Maybe it is just that they are so different from all those other walls out there. People just don't seem to put in as much effort into walls as they used to. It's a damn shame, too.

Posted by Colin J Allen at 4:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

If you read this site, you probably know that I am dating this girl Christy for a long time now. And if you know that, then you probably know that she spends a much of her time making art. I have been asked by many of you readers what this work looks like. Well, I now have an answer for you.

We have collaborated to make an official Christy Powers website, and it is now all spiffed up and ready for you to visit. All of the images have been loving optimized for your viewing pleasure. You can now make that Christy Powers studio visit from the comfort of chair where you now sit. I am betting that the site will inspire a few of you to come over to Brooklyn and check out her studio.

She loves to have guests come see her latest work. Feel free to drop her a line and make some plans.

Without any more delay, here is the link:

ChristyPowers.org

Posted by Colin J Allen at 11:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Colin J Allen at 11:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Been thinking about beards.

I had a beard at the beginning of the week. They tend to happen whenever I travel. I got into the habit when I went on one of my more crazy trips, a voyage across the Trans-Siberian railroad. As there would not be much time to shave while on the tracks, I decided that I'd forgo the the 'You need to shave' look, and go straight to the beard. It worked out well, and I've pretty much kept up with the habit since.

I was just in Arizona for Christmas week, which is just about the right amount of time to grow a starter beard. By the beginning of this week, it was looking pretty good, only the stubbly-ouchie factor was still high. It would take some time before the beard would become soft, and long story short, it came off.

Beards have been in the news this week, with Conan and Letterman turning outdoorsy in support of the writers strike. With that comes the question that the non-bearded always seem to ask. Why? What does it mean?

It is a good question, one I pontificated upon this week in deciding if I was going to fully commit again to the full face of hair. The two biggest factors in getting rid of it were, one, work-related and two, a hope to keep my kiss quota up. I have said before that girls are the biggest reason that more men do not have beards, and I stick to that now. (My girlfriend, who happens to like bearded-Colin, thinks that beards are a way for men to hide. I just don't buy that.)

This beard article I read in the New Yorker, got me thinking that there may be something more to bearding. For me it is a celebration of freedom. Find me without a job, and most likely you fill find me with my beard on. I am missing my beard today, so perhaps I am missing my freedom that I had during vacation. It does not look like growing back my stubblies would bring back my freedom, but nevertheless the idea does have some appeal to me.

Well readers, if I were grow my beard again, what should be the meaning behind it?

Posted by Colin J Allen at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I am back from vacation now, and it is nice to get back to the blog to do come catch-up with you. I was away for most of the holidays out in Prescott, Arizona with my parents. I finished up the holiday in New York, jumping into the new year from the top of a chair in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It was a great break, and the holidays never last as long as you'd like them.

I am pretty excited about what is in store for this year. I can not seem to get over that today is a huge election day. The first day of ten months of electoral battle. Right now, I have no idea who will end up in top. I kind of hope that these first few states all end up in a draw so that come my time to vote, it will actually mean something. I doubt it, but it would be nice. As a political junkie, this year looks especially interesting. There is a good chance that my horse may win the race this year, which would be a welcome change.

The Superbowl looks to be a dud this year, unless a certain undefeated team happens to slip up, but Beijing should pick up the slack. I heart the Olympics. Always a good time. Sure, I can not think of a singe athlete who will be playing, but there is always great stuff to watch. Of course, there are the obvious sports that I like along with everyone else, but maybe this will be the year that Handball will finally take off. That would be awesome.

Good friends are getting married. My brother is getting married. There are a lot of weddings to go to this year, in Texas, Washington state, upstate New York and a couple of other places that slip the mind right now. I'm always happy to see new places, dress up and celebrate.

Personally, I have a few projects that should come into their own this year, and once they do, you will be the first one to hear about them.

Fingers crossed, let it be a good year.

Posted by Colin J Allen at 4:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)