Evidence that I've really gone over the edge: I got very excited by what I perceived as a link between the most recent Girls Aloud single, 'The Show' and the current chapter of my PhD dissertation on Erving Goffman.

Really, it's not that far-fetched. Goffman describes back- and front-regions where people perform different aspects of their identities. Front regions are for high-stakes performances, and back regions are their opposites-- places where a person can relax, critique, and let off steam. Where Nadine, Sarah, Nicola, Kimberley, and Cheryl come in is that they sing about the loss of a relationship because of mistakes they made in front region performances:

Shoulda know, shoulda cared, shoulda hung around the kitchen in my underwear, acting like a lady-- you should have made me.
Oh, shoulda jumped a little high, shoulda fluttered my mascara like a butterfly instead of being lazy, it would've saved me.
...
Nobody sees the show until my heart says so, if it's not you, oh no, I won't do that.

I can see a really fun academic paper on the horizon.

(kidding)

(I think)
posted by AR Ross at 12:24 AM

I have 3 Gmail invitations to dole out, so if you'd like a Gmail account, send me an e-mail.
posted by AR Ross at 8:19 PM

Here's my idea of the perfect book group:
A bunch of my friends would read the book I'm finishing, Candyfreak: A Journey through the Chocolate Underbelly of America, delighting in Steve Almond's unembarrassed confessions of a life lived through confections. Then, after we've all been surprised by our genuine newfound interest in the cultural history of regional candy-bar producers and small-capacity sweets factories in the US, we'd all finished the book, we'd get together for an evening of discussion and a few of these. Perfect.





Of course, I'd bring along some of my own favourite candy bars: the ̃ristur (that first letter is a thorn, not a 'p', so it's pronounced 'three-stoor': hence the '3' on each of the bars)-- a chocolate-covered liquorish and caramel treat that even the most recalcitrant liquorish-haters seem to love.

And thanks to one lovely Bluejay, I'm about to be the proud owner of 10 bags of these!

So, any takers?
posted by AR Ross at 1:30 PM

Normally, when I think about contests and the exciting prizes I might win in them, I do not consider that this might be the outcome...

I imagine that somebody in the advertising department thought this would bring the Ribena drinkers to the shops in droves, buying extra juice boxes just for a chance at winning the grand prize. That said, this seems like a contest better suited to Peru than the UK.

Where would you keep it?
posted by AR Ross at 10:45 PM

I don't know quite what possessed someone to name a clothes shop this, but it doesn't inspire confidence in the local fashion in Hay-on-Wye, Wales. (Click the image for a complete view.)
posted by AR Ross at 11:25 PM