Newley Purnell

Though I love living in Washington, one thing that’s always bothered me about the city is that everything closes so early at night–restaurants, bars, stores.

This article, in yesterday’s Post, laments DC’s early-to-bed nature. The piece also refers to a new vending machine in the Adams Morgan neighborhood–it’s an enormous contraption that offers everything from milk to snackfoods to DVDs night and day. While it’s controversial (some say it’s an eyesore and that it hurts local businesses), I love it: it’s very Japanese. And Japan, of course, is the vending machine capital of the world.

Here’s a practical, comprehensive description of how non profits can use email newsletters to communicate with their constituents.

Rat poison may be responsible for a mass outbreak of food poisoning in China. More than 100 people may have been killed.

“Fighting the Menace of Unwanted E-Mail” is an interesting op-ed that offers some ideas for dealing with spam. (New York Times; free registration required.)

Here’s an exceptional site devoted to mesh cap appreciation. Don’t miss the community section.

The Gallery Of “Misused” Quotation Marks is excellent. My favorite: “Sign on friend’s front door: Doorbell ‘out of order.’ Please ‘knock’ or ‘rattle’ letterbox.”

Britney Underground. “The Britney Spears Live from Las Vegas ads assaulted the Big Apple for weeks, amidst the post 9.11 trauma and heartbreak. To mimic the question penned on one ad poster, can we afford this anymore? The message this scantily clad teen offers in a time of war is uncertain, but several NYC subway riders didn’t hesitate to express their thoughts.”

“Hello to rap fans, I am ILL Mitch. I come from Russia to America now I am free to do 3 favorite things. These are rap and ride on my skateboard and hit my boxing bag. But most favorite thing is rap.”

Have a hankering for, say, a few POUNDS of Silly Putty? You’re not alone. People are “banding together in ‘putty pools’ to buy industrial quantities directly from the manufacturer, Dow Corning Corp.”

First it was giant cockroaches, and now it’s blue-ring octopi. In Thailand, they love exotic pets.

Looking back on September 11th, 2001: