Aaron Weber

Liquids, gels, and aerosols on a plane

Last week I was sitting around with some people in a bar in San Francsico and we were trying to figure out the TSA’s regulations on things on planes.

Snakes are OK, as we know. Solid foods are OK. Laptops are OK, except Dell and Apple laptops on Quantas and Virgin (this because of the Sony batteries that some, but not all, models use).

But what about sort of intermediate things? What about gummi worms or avant-garde culinary foams? I can’t take a can of shaving cream with me, but could I squirt it into a bag and take that? What about oranges? If I take an orange into the screening area, and then juice it, does it suddenly become prohibited? It’s manifestly the same thing, but it’s changed phase to a prohibited phase. Same with ice, really. Since solids are OK but liquids are not, could I bring a bottle of ice onto the plane and let it melt so I could drink it? Would an icee or slurpee be acceptable, or does that count as a liquid?

Crucial issues here, folks.

A series of tubes

Om Malik, Sebastien Ripley, John Dvorak, and I discuss some current topics. And I get a word in edgewise. Maybe even two.

(Update 8PM: The video now works)

Notes from Napa

The PT Cruiser is capacious and comfortable but obviously an American car built on an SUV platform: it has the lines, the turning radius, the handling, and the fuel economy of a small yacht).

Beginning a day with champagne is wonderful.

Bookdwarf, as I knew, is a better driver and a better drinker than I am.

TSA Announcement

Have a look at the TSA list of what you can bring on planes.

You may not bring onto a plane: lip gloss, mascara, water, or toothpaste.

You may bring: lipstick, contact lens supplies (if wearing contacts) baby food (if wearing baby), and… KY Jelly?

(Snakes not listed.)

College Rankings

Everyone who thinks about colleges knows about the US News & World Report College Rankings. Maybe they’re fair, maybe they’re not. Slate accused them of fiddling with their criteria to make the numbers change more often than they otherwise would.

Washington Monthly has a different list, rating colleges as measures of social mobility: who helps the most poor kids get good jobs? Whose students are more likely to be working in public service or for the public good? That kind of thing. The results are quite interesting.

It may be against the rules of good blogging to post a link to the Times with little or no commentary, but…

According to a new survey, Americans are increasingly able to tell their own anuses from a hole in the ground.

Dan Savage Podcast: Awesome

Dan Savage is going to be doing a call-in podcast!

Have you ever wanted to ask me a question but lost your nerve or sobered up before you could send me an e-mail? Well, now you’ll be able to drunk-dial me and record a question from the comfort of that bar, washroom, bedroom, or dungeon. The number: 206-201-2720. Call and ask, I’ll listen and advise. When the podcast launches I’ll announce it in this space.

Transmission Complete

NYT has an article on FTM transsexuals, pointing out that there are a lot of complicated things going on in society. And that people feel hurt when you announce you’re switching to play for a rival team.

I guess I have a greater understanding of the betrayal the Red Sox fans felt when Johnny Damon moved to the Yankees.

Via Jalopnik, it’s a bitchin Camaro:

“>

Formal Events

Over the past year or so, Bookdwarf and I have been invited to about one wedding every two months. And last night, we began to think that the spurt of weddings was coming to a close.

This morning, we got a “Save the Date” announcement.