The (Shortened) Week: November 21, 2012

I was trying to write an intro for this week’s roundup, and felt uninspired, so I just came up with some placeholder text instead.

“Blah blah blah turkey turkey turkey football family pie.”

And looking back on it, I realize it pretty much sums up everything I wanted to say. To those of you in the U.S., have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. I’ll see you all on Monday.

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Someone took thirteen different lists of “Top 100 Books”, and condensed them into one. (Lots of overlaps, but it still leaves you with 623 awesome reads. Enjoy.)

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Loving the street art of Alice Pasquini.  My favorite is the one of a girl peeing on the sidewalk, next to some graffitti that reads, “non fare pipi.” (Which is Italian for “Don’t pee.” But you could probably have guessed that.)

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And speaking of street art, much of David Zinn’s work is literally that: art on an actual street. The result – often featuring animals, monsters, and aliens – is delightfully sweet.

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ESPN’s NFL Kickoff tries to stuff as many Princess Bride references as they can into one episode. It’s … it’s inconceivable! (Sorry. I had to.)

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Did you hear about the collaboration between Denny’s restaurants and The Hobbit? The chain apparently has an entire menu “inspired” by the film. A columnist suffers through one of the dishes, but never comes closer to figuring out why anyone thought this movie-tie-in would be a good idea. (I suspect they’re targeting the scores of kids who come in at midnight, after an evening spent boffering in the park.)

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New York Magazine’s Nathan Heller asks when, exactly, the internet became so nice. And whether or not its sweetness and light might be to the detriment of us all.

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A septegenarian grandfather in China starts modeling clothing for his granddaughter’s shop. And, man, does he have the legs for it.

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My pal Philip posted a link on Facebook with the following explanation: “Picasso as Popeye. Because Picasso as Popeye.”

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Black Friday is coming; like always, I will be avoiding it and eating leftover pie with family, instead. This SNL sketch sums up why you, too, should consider abstaining from the busiest retail shopping day of the year.

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A baby red panda is startled by its caretaker. The results are adorable. (Warning: includes awwww- inducing footage)

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Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go stuff my face and give thanks for all the awesomeness in my life.