On the day I was born...

I signed us up for a NY Times subscription this morning (finally!). After I completed the subscription process, the website pointed me to its archive search, which is amazing. Its a free service that lets you search any NYT aritcle from as far back as 1851. Anyway, lets see what was happening on our birthdays...

Steph: President Nixon reassures the South that he is "firm and reasonable" in school desegregation

David: 76 American soldiers die in enemy ambush in Vietnam

Kath: Thousands wait in mile-long lines for up to 2 hours in bitter cold to say goodbye to Winston Churchill

Marty: Charles Lindbergh and family set sail for England to seek safe residence

Euge: Speech by Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt, Demecratic nominee for President, "evokes wild enthusiasm," proclaims day of the "Titans" over

Azalea

This pic was taken back in January, but is still worth sharing. I'm not sure why the hood has ears. What pink animal is she impersonating?

Funny guy, George Clooney

What is novel about this interview in Esquire is that the interviewer "googles" the actor's name and asks Clooney to respond to what people are saying about him. They begin by looking in vain for a positive review of Clooney's role in the movie Peacemaker:

The closest I can find are a handful of positive reviews of the Peacemaker DVD on Amazon. I also find this review, which Clooney reads aloud:

George Clooney is about as entertaining to watch as Michael Jackson being raped by the Gorton's fisherman.

"Wow, that's an angry cat right there," says Clooney.

One could argue that some would find that immensely entertaining -- but I agree that I think it is meant as an insult.

Ok, that is less a demonstration of Clooney's wit than the interviewer's. Its a fun read throughout, in particular, see Clooney's discussion of "ball ironing" (on page 2) and, even better, the part about the monkey butt YouTube video (on page 3).

Real Estate, Worker Mobility, and Detroit

There is a page one article in today's NYT by Louis Uchitelle that discusses the effects on worker mobility caused by the downturn in residential real estate.

The rapid decline in housing prices is distorting the normal workings of the American labor market. Mobility opens up job opportunities, allowing workers to go where they are most needed. When housing is not an obstacle, more than five million men and women, nearly 4 percent of the nation’s work force, move annually from one place to another — to a new job after a layoff, or to higher-paying work, or to the next rung in a career, often the goal of a corporate transfer. Or people seek, as in Dr. Morgan’s case, an escape from harsh northern winters.

Now that mobility is increasingly restricted. Unable to sell their homes easily and move on, tens of thousands of people like Mr. Kirkland and Dr. Morgan are making the labor force less flexible just as a weakening economy puts pressure on workers to move to wherever companies are still hiring.

What is also interesting about this article is the mention of Detroit property values, which I've dwelled on before. How can such beautiful, and in some cases historically significant, homes in the Detroit area sell for so little? The article doesn't say much about the Kirkland/Morgan home, which is currently valued at well south of $200K, but it looks to be impressive. Just goes to show you, there are only three things you need to know to value a home: location, location, and location.