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I have a tendency to complain about first-world problems on Twitter; it’s not something I’m proud of, but I’m certainly not the only one with the problem. Lately I’ve been complaining about Facebook’s “Suggestion” box, the intrusive little widget of the right side of the main stream page. I won’t spend anytime explaining why it infuriates [...] No Suggestions, my first Greasemonkey script - Doug Hamlin

Last night I dreamed of a better world where we could all watch “Jeopardy” whenever we wanted. I dreamed of a simpler time before The Clue Crew. It was a world where Jeopardy.com let us watch every episode of “Jeopardy” that has ever been made, and we could search them all by question, answer, category [...] I dream of Jeopardy - Doug Hamlin

Wow. Read this. - Doug Hamlin

On paper The Lyndale Tap House looks like it would be my kind of place: a dark but welcoming neighborhood gathering spot with an ample selection of tap beers and a dedication to better-than-your-average-pub food. The Lyndale was on my list of places to visit anyway, but with Emily and Conner coming to its defense [...] Lyndale Tap House - Doug Hamlin

How long does it take to get the wrinkles out of a new restaurant? No, it’s not a rhetorical question, could someone tell me? And for that matter clue in the folks at The Butcher Block. The Northeast Italian eatery meets gastropub has been open almost five months now, and sitting at the bar listening to [...] Changes at The Butcher Block - Doug Hamlin

Kristy and Katie Barry have applied for 150 jobs since graduating Rutgers University 17 months ago. It’s a familiar story for recent graduates, though I wonder how much the fact that they both have journalism degrees has added to the long wait for a job. Good kids who went to good schools, the brassy, effervescent Barry [...] 2 journalism degrees, 17 months, no jobs - Doug Hamlin

Pro tip :) - Doug Hamlin

Pro tip :) - Doug Hamlin

Pro tip :) - Doug Hamlin

William Safire died today from pancreatic cancer. He may have worked for a crook (I refer here to Richard Nixon, not The New York Times), but anyone who cares about politics and/or language will surely miss his wit and… wisdom. That cliché seems fitting for his obituary. Mr. Safire called himself a pundit — the [...] William Safire - Doug Hamlin

I didn’t go. I don’t like crowds, and I don’t like paying admission to eat junk food. I can eat junk food anywhere. Just today I had a bag of chips. And a couple beers. Delicious. My Minnesota State Fair review on a stick My Minnesota State Fair review on a stick - Doug Hamlin

This isn’t a video and it isn’t funny. Only click if you want to read a cogent explanation of how Twitter works in theory and why it’s not banal. Not everyone we can see will hear us, as they don’t necessarily follow us, and they may not dip into the stream in time to catch the [...] Twitter in theory - Doug Hamlin

Worried about the future of The Pirate Bay? One user is and uploaded a 21.3 gigabyte torrent containing all 873,671 other torrents available on the site. Meta Pirate Bay Meta Pirate Bay - Doug Hamlin

David Leonhardt writes this week in the Magazine about the economics of being overweight: Two years ago, the Cleveland Clinic stopped hiring smokers. It was one part of a “wellness initiative” that has won the renowned hospital — which President Obama recently visited — some very nice publicity. The clinic has a farmers’ market on its [...] The case for a “fat tax” - Doug Hamlin

Picture of the Quito airport bring back scary memories. Thought we were going to crash into the side of the mountain. - Doug Hamlin

I’ve had more than a full week to recover now from the 2009 10,000 Lakes Festival. Let me say upfront it was more fun than I’ve had in a long time, with the jam bands, the blue grass and the hippies — oh, sweet Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, the hippies. In fact this [...] Original post: My 10,000 Lakes retrospective - Doug Hamlin

Previously on “Doug Tries Every Wing Flavor at Minneapolis’ The Butcher Block Restaurant”: house and spicy mustard. Marching right along today, I tried the sweet barbecue and spicy barbecue, which together only count as one of the 29 flavors, but don’t be fooled, they’re two different sauces. And forget yesterday’s wimpy wing size, today’s wings were once [...] Original post: Wing review: The Butcher Block sweet and spicy barbecue - Doug Hamlin

I stopped by The Butcher Block again today on my way home to try their house and spicy mustard chicken wings. The wings were a little scrawnier than the Incredible Hulk wings (which looked like they had graduated from the Barry Bonds school of doping), but I suppose you would want to save the largest [...] Original post: Wing review: The Butcher Block house and spicy mustard - Doug Hamlin

Yesterday I proclaimed on Twitter that I was making it my personal mission to try all 29 flavors of chicken wings at The Butcher Block. Today I’m here to say this is going to be delicious mission. The Butcher Block opened about a month ago, and on paper it’s perfect. Consider this: authentic Italian cuisine (no unlimited [...] Original post: Wing review: The Butcher Block Incredible Hulk - Doug Hamlin

The Miskito indians of Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast have a history of clashes dating back to the Spanish conquest and leading through to the Contra War. More recently their coast was badly damaged by Hurricane Felix in 2007, and largely neglected by Managua in the aftermath of the storm. The Miskitos, suffering under the same exploits [...] Original post: In Nicaragua, a Miskito separatist movement - Doug Hamlin

I think I was like a lot of kids in the fact that I never really cared for eating fish. Catching fish I loved (though I seldom did), but eating them? No thank you! My tastes, of course, changed as I got older. Sure I love a good dry-aged ribeye or slow-cooked pork loin, but now [...] Original post: Eating sustainable fish - Doug Hamlin

Woody Allen’s latest movie, “Whatever Works”, channels his neuroses through Larry David. Add Larry David’s own neuroses to that equation and you’re bound to get either a great comedy or a great flop. The trailer looks promising. This is also Allen’s first film set in Manhattan since “Melinda and Melinda” in 2004. “Whatever Works” is [...] Original post: Whatever Works - Doug Hamlin

A study from UC Berkeley compared the emissions of 11 different transportation modes starting from their manufacture. The study found, among other things, that trains can emit more greenhouse gases than planes, which I’m sure will piss off all those who think a network of rail lines that go slower than the ones in Europe [...] Original post: Full life-cycle emissions of train worse than plane - Doug Hamlin

A Harvard study began in 1937 has tracked 268 males (all Harvard students when the study began) to find out, put simply, what makes people happy. The study is intensely detailed with everything from one-on-one interviews to obscure measurements like the “hanging length of the scrotum.” Joshua Wolf Shenk is, if we believe him, the [...] Original post: Gauging Happiness - Doug Hamlin

U.S. embassies this year can invite Iranian officials to their Fourth of July receptions for the first time since the 1979 seizure of the American Embassy in Tehran. The receptions often include hot dogs, which apparently have a long history in U.S. foreign relations: There is no record of the founding fathers ever eating hot dogs, [...] Original post: Hot dog diplomacy - Doug Hamlin

Apparently today is the 25th anniversary of Tetris, which had me searching for free Tetris (clear the rest of your day before you click that link). Just think, people have been having Tetris dreams for 25 years. Original post: Free Tetris Original post: Free Tetris - Doug Hamlin

If that headline doesn’t tell you everything you need to know, try this on for size: Fleet Foxes, one of my favorite new bands from 2008, will be sharing the First Avenue Mainroom stage with Dungen come Sunday, August 9. Dungen is a Swedish psychedelic rock group whose music I’ve been loving since I first heard it three [...] Original post: Fleet Foxes. Dungen. First Avenue. - Doug Hamlin

The Economist this week leads its United States section with an overview of the cap and trade bill working its way through the House. It’s called Waxman-Markey and it’s not as great as you might think. On May 15th Henry Waxman and Edward Markey, the Democratic point-men on climate change in the House of Representatives, unveiled [...] Original post: Waxman-Markey - Doug Hamlin

The tagline on Jason Hawkes website reads simply “aerial photography.” That’s true, I suppose, but it hardly seems to describe why you should pay him any attention. Hawkes shoots landscapes touched by humankind and clearly inspired by some other greats: You see Edward Burtynsky in his shots of Hong Kong apartment blocks and an English landfill, Vincent [...] Original post: Jason Hawkes - Doug Hamlin

Looks tasty. Also heard good things from @pfhyper - Doug Hamlin

Huh. Earth Hour, which I was pretty cynical about, maybe made (some very minute) difference? - Doug Hamlin