Guy Tested, Woman Approved.

Zen Habits article for you boys and men out there looking to impress your ladies. He doesn't list anything all that innovative, but I'm fairly sure they serve their purpose well. My personal favorites include: picnics, anything involving the beach, water, or hiking, watching the stars (it's the Space Camp kid in me), and museums.

Work v. Life?

MSNBC article discussing the divergent viewpoints between men and women concerning the balance between working hours and other hours. As I volunteer with the Work/Life Law center for my school, I am obviously in the camp of cutting back hours for proportional pay.

The “health diagnosing” occupation, which Golden said includes physicians and physician assistants, had the highest overemployment rate of 20 percent, compared to 14 percent of lawyers and judges who reported being overemployed.

Just something to think about as I head into the legal profession as a woman. Whether or not because of household or child care responsibilities, I still have a feeling that having a life outside of law is an important factor in my future work decisions.

Do You Ever Feel More Creative than Usual?

I have to say that lately I've been feeling more creative and expressive. Whether it's making personalized cards, or giving oral argument, or dancing at culture week, or singing in the shower, I am just really enjoying it. Maybe I missed my calling as an actress. Oh well, here are some pictures...haven't posted any in a while.

Hear No Evil, Smell No Evil?

Because recently I heard a story and saw some gruesome photographs of a guy who got his ear almost completely torn off by a dog bite, I was drawn to this Slate article discussing the ability to hear or smell if your ears or nose is cut off. The situation, granted, was a little different...

On Saturday, Taliban guerrillas punished a group of Afghan truck drivers suspected of collaborating with U.S-led troops by chopping off their ears and noses.

but all in all, the same result. The consensus is that you are probably able to hear and smell, but it's just more difficult and probably not as well as before.

The most interesting part of the article, in my opinion, are the reconstructive surgeries available to fashion new ears and noses. Neither of them sound particularly pleasant, but I'm sure the results are amazing. In fact, if you're curious to see a prosthetic eye, ear, and nose, check them out here.

My thoughts are with you BP, hopefully your surgeries won't require any prosthetics or reconstruction.

Don't Do This to Your Kids

This is even too much for me, the biggest advocate of liberal and honest sex education. And probation sounds pretty lenient considering the child is probably scarred for life.

During an investigation by the state child welfare authorities, Prata, 33, said he and Arnold, 36, had sex "all the time" in front of the child and that "we don't believe in hiding anything." He told an investigator that they did not force the girl to watch.

Having sex in front of your children to teach them about sex is horrid, especially a nine year old. Come on now, having open and honest conversations with your children about sexuality and risk and harm reduction is something I believe and support, but to have intercourse in front of them has got to be so traumatizing. I know children are growing up faster and faster, but I do not think a nine year old needs live action sex shows, especially of their parents.

Re-Imagining of Oz

Maybe I'm the last person to find this out, but the Sci Fi channel is going to begin filming a miniseries based on The Wizard of Oz. I am really excited about it; read the article to find out more about the futuristic storyline. Best part about it, Zooey Deschanel is starring as "DG" the re-imagined Dorothy and Alan Cumming is starring as "Glitch" the re-imagined Scarecrow. She's so nutty and awesome and he's so...nutty and awesome. Hooray, I hope this doesn't suck.

Are YOU Prepared?

These unconventional advertising techniques about being prepared for a natural disaster are getting a lot of attention. I must say I don't know all the procedures for preparing myself in the case of a big earthquake and I like the techniques this campaign is using, but it reminds me a little bit of those "Truth" ads about smoking, which I don't think do all that much.

How could a creepy picture like this not at least pique your curiosity?

While you're at it, why not check out the Red Cross Bay Area Prepare website if you're in the Bay Area, or find your local Red Cross for information about keeping yourself safe in your area.

Google Bus

Google's bus service is creating headlines. I have to say, the company knows how to take care of its employees. I talked to a Google employee once who confirmed a lot of what was said in the article; in a place like San Francisco providing a stress free commute goes a long way.

This is a Sample of Why I Love Ask Metafilter

Answers to wildly obscure and curious questions. Relationship advice, ranging from sappy and emotional to a certain stern almost harshness. Rational advice to practical problems. And folks, this is just from the last 48 hours.

Weekday Update #1

All, I am taking time out of my regularly scheduled programming to say that I will be in Hawaii this Friday through Tuesday on my Spring Break. I know that there are a few of you reading this from Honolulu, so I expect that we'll be hanging out. After that I'm back in good old SF, with two more birthdays to celebrate with some of my new favorites. Let me know if you're available to get together during one of my many voyages.

Beautiful=Smarter?

Slate Article discussing whether beauty makes people smarter. Choice quotes with little actual scientific data; just how Slate likes their articles. But it does lead to a valid question of how and why this correlation comes about. Moreover, it's unclear whether beauty corresponds to smarter, or just more preferable, which we're charmed by and unable to see through. Uh oh future lawyers of America, not even our scholarly pursuits are free from this preference.

It is not just politicians whom we prefer to be beautiful. A number of studies, many involving American economist Daniel Hamermesh, have found that "ugly" people earn less in many walks of life, from advertising to law. The beauty premium seems to apply even in professions where there is no reason to expect that beauty counts.

Safer Sex Made Easier...

Condom applicator deemed Most Beautiful at design conference, but obviously the benefits of this device are far more important than beauty. Basically, this is a condom applicator developed in South Africa to make wearing a condom as easy as possible by pre-packaging a plastic applicator in each wrapper that allows it to be put on in one fluid motion. Head on over to the Pronto Condoms website for a demonstration about how it works. Currently only available in South Africa, but I'll be keeping my eye on this. Frankly I'm surprised that this hasn't been done before, but it's a great idea and will hopefully be successful in reducing the risk of being exposed to sexually transmitted infections or HIV.