The Curator's News Feed: June 15, 2012
As we ease into summer here in Seattle (maybe? sorta? hopefully?) we're reading about how The Oatmeal is turning a lawsuit into a charity windfall, a bizarre Groupon offer, innovative inventions and the Sonics rally that happened in our own backyard.
Turning threats into philanthropy, The Oatmeal. Ever wonder what would happen if you threatened to file suit against an ingenious internet comic with an army of loyal followers? Find out how a laugh can raise over $100k for charity in less than a day. – Matthew
Why the World's Most Perfect News Tweet Is Kind of Boring, The Atlantic. Interesting reading on “The Perfect Tweet.” - Dan
Groupon Offers to Name Babies ‘Clembough’ for $1,000,Good Morning America. We’ve all been witness to the exploding popularity of deal websites like Groupon and Living Social. But, this week, Groupon took the idea offering deals from quirky and unique vendors to a whole new level. For just the small fee of $1,000, expecting parents struggling to decide on an original baby name can purchase a Groupon deal to have their child claim the name of Clembough. Is this for real? Turns out it’s not only real, but at least one person as already purchased the Groupon. Have we really become that much of a ‘deal-driven’ society? I guess so! – Annie
32 Innovations That Will Change Your World Tomorrow, New York Times. Could our near future hold such wonders as mind-reading shopping carts, edible recycling—and, wait—a world void of hangovers? At the onset, the hackneyed maxims ‘anything is possible’ and ‘learn from your mistakes’ come to mind, but afterward, I have renewed faith. Maybe now I’ll have the courage to create that out-of-thin-air-fabulous-wardrobe machine. Read on for more gems and while you’re at it, picture yourself on the set of Iron Man. – Megan K
Blake Gopnik Picks Ten Great Unknowns At the Art Basel Fair, The Daily Beast. The Daily Beast and Newsweek’s art and design writer visited Art Basel and found some great unknown artists. More known for $78 million Rothko’s then smaller up-and-comers, Art Basel is on my bucket list to visit. In the meantime, I love to see what respected writers in the art world are talking about. How interesting that one artist put an ad in the local paper on the first day of previews that simply said “This Stays Between Us" in German as his art submission and then sold editions of the paper following its publish date for 3,000 pounds. Makes you wish you spent the 2.80 Swiss Francs to buy the paper the day it came out… – Julia
'Bring back our Sonics' rally in Seattle'Bring back our Sonics' rally in Seattle, Seattle Times. While I must admit that I’m not a big NBA or Sonics fan (like, at all) I can appreciate the passion that people have towards bringing the team back to Seattle. The conversations and tight-knit community that comes as a result is exciting to watch, even from my seat on the NBA-agnostic sidelines. – Megan A
With or Without a Lake of Melted Cheese, The Stranger. Many people who live in Seattle – okay, specifically, people from California – have strong opinions about Mexican food in the 206. Basically they think it sucks. As a Seattleite I can’t claim to have a born-and-bred knowledge of authentic Mexican cuisine, but over time I’ve found favorites in the area that come closest to the dining experiences I’ve had on visits south of the border (like, for example, on this little expedition.) This self-described “Digressive, Incomplete History of Mexican Food in Seattle” is a compelling read because it covers the evolution of Mexican dining here and also nods to my newest restaurant crush, Fonda La Catrina in Georgetown. – Lisa
End of School, Pinterest. As Alice Cooper once said, “School’s out for summer!” Today is officially the last day of school at the Ricard house. I’ve spent the last week or so cruising Pinterest to find great teacher’s gifts, end-of-school-party ideas and general summer fun. Simply type in “end of school” and see what other folks have shared. I {HEART} Pinterest. – Ann Marie