Here are some shiny things that caught my eye recently:
♦ A Hilltop Cottage in Nova Scotia. If there were trees in the yard, this house might just be perfect for me. I certainly love the view. Via.
♦ According to a 2010 study, our brains might be hardwired to fear creativity. Pretty interesting stuff. No wonder artists so often feel like outsiders, if not like freaks.
♦ My friend Cameron shared with me, given our mutual admiration for David Lynch, this bit about Lynch’s new nightclub in Paris. While I could never afford even the non-French resident membership fee, I certainly want to walk by the next time I visit the City of Lights.
♦ I really love J★RYU’s sculptures, like the one seen to the left and here.
♦ The Victorians were certainly serious about their anti-masturbatory devices. Imagine what more they might have accomplished if they weren’t so awkwardly (and painfully) restricted.
♦ Jane Yolen included in her latest journal entry a thoughtful musing on the current panic in publishing, which I highly recommend. Read the whole thing, but these bits stuck with me in particular:
The point is that NONE of us knows what to do. We spin around and listen to gurus. We dip our toes into various raging waters and hope not to be drowned.
And all the while what we should really be doing is what we do best: Writing. Illustrating. Telling stories.
♦ Little Free Library is a most excellent idea.
♦ Neil Gaiman gives a great interview, as you’ll hear in this conversation with Audrey Niffenegger at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. He talks a lot about fairy tales, which I found particularly interesting and entertaining, but also about American Gods, Doctor Who, Coraline, and Sandman.
♦ Will Young does a really lovely cover of Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill.”
Via.
♦ Find out why Supergirl and Zatanna fought over the romantic interests of a yeti by clicking here and scrolling down a bit (caution: the advertising on this site is NSFW). Via.
♦ Ron Clark, an award-winning teacher who created his own academy, wrote an essay for CNN.com about What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents. Parents, please read this article and don’t be like the parents described therein. Teachers have it difficult enough as it without parents contributing to the problem. Via.
