Nero fiddled, Larry naps.

As though the fright over the Conficker virus and swine flu wasn't enough, several of Shopgirlove's friends were laid off yesterday from a rather large and important vendor on the West Coast. Not that New England has a great deal to crow about. But, what to make of this poor man in Belgrade who actually removed the pinky from his left hand with a hacksaw to keep his union deputy from cutting off her own: "I could not allow her to do that." Talk about taking one for the team! The saddest news is the link between unemployment and suicide. Add to this the likely spread of civil unrest, and the picture gets grim indeed! 

Not to fret, my lovelies! Uncle Larry  is on the case! In the meantime, there's always gin!

21 Gun salute

The sport of kings and 21 dead in Florida.  Shopgirlove has always wondered why the public is so eager to condemn the sport of the worker but allows the rich to ride off into the sunset without one word of condemnation.  She has already made her case against racing the immature horse, and not without reason.  More to the point, doesn't it seem as though the wealthy incur such minimal penalties for their sins as compared to the the poor?

Mischa Barton, tarred and feathered

Shopgirlove was well-chastised by the brilliant Mr. Craig Ferguson on why making fun of celebrities is cheap and beyond the pale...BUT SHE CAN'T HELP IT!!!!!!  What, what was Mischa thinking?????????  Shopgirlove had just finished the fascinating article in Vanity Fair about TR's conservation efforts (the first being a bird sanctuary in Florida to protect the native species from becoming feathers in ladies' caps. Irony upon irony.)

And then, she saw this...

Oh, help us, Baby Jesus!

Ah, Mother Russia!

Things are decidedly weird in the motherland lately.  People are leaping from tall buildings.  They are Killing their neighbors over lice. Alcoholism has always been a bit of a problem for the strapping men; now some would like to see equality for women. Medvedev has vowed to fight corruption. But we've heard that before, no? In the meantime, things are getting worse.  Shopgirlovelove has no idea how to fix this mess, but she would like to propose that American consumers develop a certain wariness surrounding Russian goods. After all, we might have saved the sturgeon.

Eye candy

Do you remember the Brothers Quay?  Or, if you are old enough, those wonderful short animated films that rained down on us from Canada in the 70s as though that were a nation of artistic giants and enlightened government funding for the arts?  Animation has always captivated Shopgirlove and she is thrilled to discover Patrick Boivin.  Enjoy my lovelies.

Happy Easter from our family to yours!

Happy Good Friday!