The Week: April 6, 2012

My heart is light. Sorry. You just gagged a little, didn’t you?

But it is. My husband is home, the sun is peeking through the clouds, the weekend is here, and, holy crap, life is amazing. I mean, really, isn’t it?

Enjoy these links while I go do cartwheels on the lawn. (Note: I don’t know how to do cartwheels, and I don’t have a lawn, so I’ll likely be writhing around on the patch of grass outside my house. Whatever. Things are still awesome.)

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I’m so darn honored to have been featured on Michael Hodson’s wonderful travel blog, GoSeeWrite. Read my answers to his Lucky 13 Questions, or just browse through his own posts, which are delightful.

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A world map showing the density of metal bands by country. Guess who has the most? (via my pal Stephen)

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I know that April Fool’s was last week, but I can’t help sharing this post about how Etsy has acquired the city of Portland. If you’ve ever visited the Rose City, you’ll understand how brilliant – and not that crazy – the idea is.

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Turns out that becoming an overnight success takes more time than you’d think.

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This made me weirdly nostalgic: 25 foods you’ll never be able to eat again.

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Stumbled upon this rubber-walrus-protector clip from Ren & Stimpy and erupted into giggles. God, my childhood was bizarre.

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My friend Mike sent me a link to What Should We Call Me with the brief message that it is like crack. I checked it out. I laughed. I couldn’t stop staring. So it’s basically better than crack. Yeah.

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Slate analyzes the names of the main characters in The Hunger Games. And while I’m on Team Peeta, I still agree that his moniker is so ridiculously, it might as well be “Flatt Bred”.

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And speaking of The Hunger Games, for those of you who haven’t quite gotten teen dystopian angst out of your system (ME! ME! ME!) here’s a list of ten books to read when you’re done tearing through Katniss’ adventures.

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One last link about the end of the world: “Calamity Song” by The Decemberists has been in my head all week. It is wonderful and glorious. The video ain’t too shabby either: our demise will come at the hands of children on a tennis court.

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The Guardian explains exactly what to do to land a plane in an emergency.

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OMG OMG OMG. The Simpsons’ Guide to Runway Style. Yes, you can find something comparable to Ned’s Assassins.

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Have a blissful weekend, folks. I’ll see you Monday. I’ve LOADS to tell you about the last few weeks of travel.