Mucho thrust the mike in front of her, mumbling, "You're on, just be yourself." Then in his earnest broadcasting voice, "How do you feel about this terrible thing?"
"Terrible," said Oedipa.
"Wonderful," said Mucho.

excerpt from The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon, 1965


Batman is the coolest superhero ever. Those who don't agree can kiss my batarang.

Yesterday was Douglas Adam's birthday. I remember being blown away by The Hitch-hiker's Guide to The Galaxy when it first made it to the states on NPR. I taped all the episodes and listened to them until I wore them out. Then I listened to them some more. When the last Hitch-hiker novel was published, I went to a book signing in Lansing, Michigan where he read a passage from the book, Mostly Harmless. My impression was of a soft-spoken, gentle, humorous man. Not a sign of arrogance in him. He signed my book and thanked me for coming. He was just 49 years old when he died on May 11, 2001.