Blogs

A couple of things from my blog-reading:

NATIVES GRINDING RICE IN A MORTAR OWNED BY ALL (and more) from This Public Address

and

Public Diaries from Alex Halavais.

That first one has really stuck with me.

Yay! I can now use that phrase with impunity. Mystikal was recently absolved of some ridiculous copyright charges. Mystikal used some Cajun phrases in "Shake Ya Ass," and it turns out that a company called Emanation Inc. "makes a hand-held toy called "Cajun in Your Pocket" that plays several Cajun phrases, and got a copyright for the word arrangements on Dec. 13, 2000."

That's wrong on at least two levels--cajun in your pocket?! How incredibly offensive. And then getting a copyright on colloquialisms? Please. The article goes on to say that

The appeals court agreed with a district judge, ruling that the sayings - "We gon pass a good time, yeah, cher," and "You gotta suck da head on dem der crawfish" - are not original and therefore are not protected under copyright laws.

Well, laissez les bon temps rouler!

Cross-posted to Kairosnews.

Take the quiz! I got a perfect score.

Cyborg Mommy has created an online resource about blogging. It's designed for students, but I think it's good for anyone who's new to blogging.

Cross-posted to Kairosnews.

Feministe has blogged about KEI, or "Kids with Entitlement Issues," who often throw god-awful tantrums. I think they grow up to be like Adrienne Samen, a Connecticut bride who went ballistic on her wedding day:

Restaurant managers had trouble keeping some of the 80 or so guests from repeatedly raiding the bar Saturday when it closed after the agreed-upon four hours, said Helmar Wolf, 58, co-owner of the converted gristmill.

But the real drama didn't begin until the newlyweds got into a screaming match in the idyllic restaurant's parking lot.

Samen - who sports a tattoo on her right arm and one above her left breast - "spit on her ring and smashed her wedding cake on the ground," Wolf said.

Then she took out six or seven flower-filled vases, he and cops allege.

The bridegroom "started driving off and she took a run at the car and, like an eagle, spread herself on the hood in her wedding gown and fell onto the ground," said Wolf, who noted he had never seen anything like it in his 19 years as a restaurateur.

What a comment on class, both in the economic and mannerly senses. Ugh, and they just had to point out that she has a tattoo. She must be a reprobate!

The Shifted Librarian has a post reviewing Book Magazine's list of the bestselling classic novels of 2002. Per the Shifted Librarian's request, Eliot Landrum enhanced the list to reflect each book's public domain entrance status. The Great Gatsby will enter the public domain in 2020 if F. Scott Fitzgerald's estate doesn't file for an extension--but of course they will! Right now I'm trying to imagine works of literature, postmodern literature and any other 21st-century literature that isn't "postmodern literature," that are being inhibited right now by practically-perpetual copyright laws. Gah.

As an addendum, I have to wonder about Book Magazine's definition of "classic." The Red Tent by Anita Diamant is on there, which is a very new book (other newbies are on there too). Don't get me wrong; I loved the book and really think you should read it if you haven't, but is it already considered a classic? I'm proud to point out that The Red Tent is a brilliant derivative work of a public-domain text: the Bible.

Cross-posted at Kairosnews.

Send it to BUST! Deadline is imminent (September 1), but they only want 2,500 words or fewer.

Declare your independence in BUST's upcoming "Independence" issue !
Friday, August 8, 2003 What does independence mean to you? Is it leaving the nest? Leaving a relationship? Leaving an addiction behind? Is independence overrated? If you

Yesterday, some of my friends decided to do a little Sex and the City-style girls' night out (in Minneapolis, not NYC. We did our best. :)). We were fierce!

First we went to this trendy new place that, thankfully, had a buffet, to help offset the horrendous cost of parking. It had framed photographs of celebrities such as Hugh Grant, Cameron Diaz, and Sarah Michelle Gellar on the walls and high-finance, power-suit-wearing happy hour attendees all over the place. Then, we went to another pricey place before deciding on a seafood place for dinner. I had oysters on the half-shell, which I hadn't had for about 20 years. Heaven. Then salmon pasta, yum--and after that, I called it a night...a great night of girl talk and fun. Tomorrow some of us are going downtown again for the sales at Marshall Field's and Neiman-Marcus. I'm still looking for some Doc Martens sandals.