The Week: March 2, 2012

It’s been an odd week. I tried to figure out precisely what to say about it, but I’ve been at a loss for words. That extra day in the middle of it – February 29th – really threw me for a loop.

“How would you describe this week?” I asked Rand, hoping for a little guidance.

“It’s been a week of music and death,” he replied.

Which is true. It has. Kind of a hard thing to put a funny spin on, so I won’t even try. Instead, here’s to the weekend being a little bit brighter, and the music being a little bit cheerier.

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Davy Jones, lead singer of The Monkees, died this past week. I’ve taken the news far harder than I thought I would. I remember watching reruns of their show on MTV in the mid-80s, quietly dreaming that Davy Jones would be my boyfriend. I figured his diminutive stature would make it easier for us to hold hands (which, at the time, is all I assumed boyfriends and girlfriends did). I giggled every time he delivered a line.

With his death, I feel like a small piece of my childhood is gone. For those of you who loved Davy as much I did, I recommend watching the music video of “Daydream Believer” (which, to this day, remains one of my favorite songs). And reading Lyndsey Parker’s beautifully-written tribute to the 60s heart-throb. And then curling up into a ball and moping.

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Still confused about all this February 29th nonsense? I give you Leap Day, explained.

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Japanese photographer Tsuneaki Hiramatsu takes long-exposure photos of fireflies. Next up, he’s going to prove all those nuns wrong and show us exactly how you can hold a moonbeam in your hand (probably).

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How Samoa lost a day, and the malleability of time zones.

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Columbia architecture graduate John Locke is turning old pay phone stalls in the city of Manhattan into guerrilla libraries. Some of them have been used properly, others have been vandalized. But Locke plans to continue the project anyway.

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Russian scientists claim to have revived a plant that died 32,000 years ago. THIS IS HOW THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE STARTS, PEOPLE.

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Sometimes dark and grisly, sometimes sweet and light-hearted, Jim Benton’s sketches of the day are a delightful look into the mind of a celebrated cartoonist.

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As someone who has, in the parlance of dear Sir Mix-a-lot, a waist that is small and curves that are kicking, I have to get nearly everything I own altered. Apparently, a lot of celebrities do the same thing (but I doubt their tailors are their own mothers. And I doubt it’s because they ate too many cupcakes.)

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And speaking of cupcakes, no fewer than six people informed me about the new 24-hour cupcake ATMs that Sprinkles will soon be unveiling. Still no word yet on when I can get one in my bedroom.

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My friend Jessica (who runs a company that sells – I kid you not – fanny pack baseball caps) and recently achieved a level of internet fame for her Christmas card photo, clued me into one of the best things I’ve ever seen on the internet. The best way to describe it? A low-budget “We Are The World” type video from Russia, circa 1988. IT IS FULL OF WIN. WATCH IT.

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Fact: I am 31 years old, and I still haven’t tired of Sesame Street. This video featuring Kermit, Cookie Monster, and a mystery box proves the show is still pretty darn wonderful.

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