Yup, I have been sick over the past few days - hence the hiatus. Well, let’s get back to it:

- Teenage Pregnancy Implementation Manager is a real job title.
- Here is a great article about the years when Barack Obama came up.
- Golf is declining in its popularity. (via arts and letters daily).
- Paper airfare tickets are just about to be a thing of the past.

- In case you missed it, here are the details of Scarlett Johansen’s Tom Waits cover album.

- Oy, what a big list! Here is a comprehensive list of Yiddish words, phrases and expressions.

- The next trends in mass food consumption. That’s right, sushi is so yesterday.

- The NBA is perusing the option of establishing a European division.

• - Learn the difference between various screwdriver heads
• - Making the environmental case for nuclear energy.
• - Check out the cover to this year’s Vanity Fair Hollywood issue.
• - Daily Mitzvah, a blog that promotes and suggests what good you can do each day.
• - Controversy and criminal charges come out of New York Fashion week as Marc Jacob’s company may have bribed its way to holding its show at a coveted venue.
• - 10 dumbest quotations from mixed martial arts fighters

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- Volkswagen and Apple may be collaborating on designing a car.

- Certain U.S. municipalities are banning the wearing pants too low. What freedom of speech?

- The UK’s wealthiest artists, Damien Hirst, is selling his diamond skull to himself and others.

- Russia is going to make a moon base.

- How to make a fake hand.

• -The first season of the NBC TV show Friday Night Lights is out on DVD. The notable point is that it comes with a money-back guarantee (via pop candy).

  -There has been a lot of talk about the rise of China as an economic beast (maybe, maybe too much talk). The American has an article that takes us back to when the US was in fear of Japan and its economic power (via arts & letters daily).

  -Looks like I missed this one - Sustainablebusiness published (a month ago) its top 20 sustainable businesses list, comprised of the top 20 publicly traded companies that make this world a better place.

  -Here is how to carve a life-sized skeleton pumpkin.

  -Aston Martin has something special coming in early 2008 - the DBS. You might remember it from Casino Royale.

- The paying Cerberus to take Chrysler off of its hands.

- Palm Jumeriah is an artificial island in Dubai is now open for living, but at high prices.

- According to new research, the leading scientific theory on how the HIV virus attacks the immune system is wrong.

- A review of the Moroso design showroom in New York. I wanna go!

- With the depletion of tuna stock in the world’s waters, Japanese sushi chefs must adapt.

- A man loses a 13 year court battle with his claim that he invented Trivia Pursuit.

- A New York Times profile of TMZ.com and the brains behind the site.

- Ford Mustang is the highest selling cologne at Sears in the US. (see the third item).

• -A 16 year-old student got some of his friends to pull a heist and steal his report card with his bad grades (do not ask me why Yahoo put a picture of Korean students next to this story).
• -The hotest bossa nova music is coming from Belgium. Yes Belgium.
• -Tainted food is a common problem in Asia.
• -Yahoo’s troubled CEO Terry Semel is out - co-founder Jerry Yang is in (for now).
• -A European public sphere is both a reality and an illusion - so says Polish journalist Adam Krzeminski
• -Sid Lee’s Sit! furniture/design collection

- The Iranian government’s crackdown on anti-Sharia law and dissenting activities rounds up 150,000+ citizens

- How to buy a watch

- Bono guest edits the latest issue of Vanity Fair

- Crowded House are making new music and LA Weekly has four new songs up for listening