Smells like Teen Spirit

I finally saw the MTV for Smells Like Teen Spirit today. I've always liked the song, but I heard it years after it came out and I've never been an MTV person. And I discovered another thing that makes me smile. Not the attractive face of Kurt Cobain (it's okay), but the very slow-moving janitor swaying to his music. Whoever casted that old man, that was genius!

I'm sorry

I was hanging around the exam room today in case the kids had any questions, and there she was: smart, blonde, black-framed glasses and pink ear plugs, writing.

I don't mean to use stereotypes. It's rather unfair to be blonde and have people take you less seriously. It's unfair when anyone has to go the extra mile to prove anything. But I couldn't help it when I noticed the bright pink ear plugs in her ears. An excellent exam strategy.

I looked back down to my copy of the New Yorker, and smiled.

Filing a Link

I can't help but notice that a certain article has remained in the top 10 most frequently e-mailed on the New York Times. You know which one I'm talking about -- Questions Couples Should Ask (Or Wish They Had) Before Marrying. It was first published Dec 17, 2006. 3 weeks is a really long time for an article to stay on that list. I am tempted to read more into why such an article stays on the list for so long but it would be inherently misleading -- news about events and happenings have a limited amount of time before they turn stale. There is little chance of those articles staying on for a long time.

There are also lists for the most blogged and the most searched items on the site. The most blogged articles this morning are recent news, mostly relating to the president. The most searched list is a mix of current and perennial topics, ranging from Iraq to college. Saddam's name comes up twice on this list.

It's all well and good to have most popular lists, but do they tell us anything? Before this morning when I committed my thoughts to paper (and in the process thought about it more), I was inclined to make something about the most popular e-mailed article list. I usually read the articles featured on that list first, because they are likely to be the more interesting articles. I was tempted to read more into what people find important and interesting to them, until I finally saw the most blogged list. Why don't the lists coincide at all?

I've seen at least one opinion about talking about politics, how it's becoming harder to talk about it with family and friends. I guess by extension, you wouldn't want to e-mail such an article. And since news is news, one also assumes that people have access to the same news whatever newspaper they read. Editorials, fashion and health articles don't usually show up simultaneously on all major newspapers.

Yay. I've spent my morning pondering the most popular lists on the New York Times. Time to get out and do some actual thinking that matters.