Randomly interesting, often unusual, pieces of news and opinion that can’t otherwise be categorized.
Like most of you, I spent some time this morning browsing through the Mahabharata looking for material for a class. And I was struck by the courtly fashion in which hospitality-related customer complaints were resolved back in Vedic times: And the king having signified his assent, entertained Utanka duly. And Utanka seeing that the food […]
Customer complaints, the old-fashioned way Read More »
haphazard worldSince my last stint on grave shift a few years back, I’ve always known that working nights is not completely healthy behavior, either physically or mentally. But now the WHO says that it causes cancer. From Reuters: Shift workers and firefighters have a higher risk of cancer than the general population and such work should
Grave shift is a carcinogen? Read More »
haphazard worldUsually, winning a million dollars is an unambiguously good thing. But for ex-con, a winning scratcher might be a ticket back to jail. From the Boston Globe: His odds of winning $1 million on a scratch ticket were 1 in 1,247,400. His odds of being busted if he won? A pretty safe bet. Timothy Elliott
Win the lottery, go to jail Read More »
gambling & culture, haphazard worldThere’s a popular story that every year, when the NFL’s final sole remaining undefeated team goes home a loser, the surviving members of the 1972 Miami Dolphins pop champagne corks and celebrate the fact that their perfect season will remain the only one in NFL history. The story might not, strictly speaking, be true. But
’72 Dolphins & history Read More »
haphazard worldI was going to write a lengthy post about the proliferation of public art in my neighborhood, but I’ll save that for another day, when I have the pictures to prove my point. I’ve also got a major announcement about an author event at the Center for Gaming Research, but I’m doing that later. I
It took a big story to get me back into gambling. From the Telegraph: Yudhisthir lost Draupadi gambling. Centuries on, another woman of Malipada village in Khurda, about 20km from here, was put on bet. Binodini Moharana (19) was hurriedly married off to 28-year-old Kailash Moharana, a carpenter, on September 19 after her brother-in-law lost
After my last entry, I’ve had a hard time tearing myself away from this Rush midi page. If you watch The Office, can you honest tell me that you heard this Tom Sawyer midi and did not think of Dwight Schrute? As far as I’m concerned, that’s his unofficial theme song. If you said no,
When I signed on to teach in Reno one day a week, I didn’t know what I was getting into. This morning, I got an email alert that I’d like to share: University Police would like to inform you that two bear sightings on campus have been reported during the early morning hours of September
Bearing down on Reno Read More »
haphazard worldThere was a problem a while back with a Nye County cat sanctuary’s operators mistreating a few hundred cats. As it only could be in Nevada, a casino is making the problem go away…sort of. From KLAS: Best Friends Animal Society’s great cat rescue continues, as 41 lucky kitties found their forever homes at the
Cats hit jackpot at casino Read More »
haphazard worldIt’s Friday the 13th, so get out those broken mirrors…or not. From the Buffalo News: Today is Friday the 13th, traditionally a day to avoid black cats, ladders and broken mirrors. But in the year 2007, does anyone care? Once, people feared bad luck when the 13th day of the month fell on a Friday.
I’m amazed at the amount of press the hot-dog eating contest got–and even more amazed at the results. From the LVRJ: There is something all-American, though, about contests where the ultimate goal is to consume more food than the eater next to you. This is a country, after all, where two-thirds of adults are overweight
I was just given a copy of the minutes of a meeting that a researcher found in UNLV’s University Archives. I’ll let you read the funny part: Meeting of the Biology Faculty October 9, 1968 MINUTES Meeting called to order at 10:05 AM. Members present: Murvosh, Deacon, Niles, Yousef, Austin, and Storm. Babero arrived late
If you don’t mind humiliating yourself for a few bucks and a free trip to Vegas, check out Claiborne’s contest on styledenial.com. To “purge your fashion sins,” you’re supposed to take a photo of yourself in your “worst outfit” and send it to the site. Registration closes on May 14, and voting starts May 16.
Dress badly, win a Vegas vacation Read More »
haphazard world, life in vegasTo really appreciate that line, you got to read it with Marvin the Paranoid Android‘s voice in your head. This is my lead for an article in Scienfitic American about the fleeting nature of elevated happiness: An experimental psychologist investigating the possibility of lasting happiness, Lyubomirsky understands far better than most of us the folly
Don’t bother winning–you won’t enjoy it Read More »
haphazard worldI guess I’ve got to change my take that it’s impossible to successfully rob a major casino and get away. From IHT: Four masked robbers stole at least €600,000 (US$800,000) from a Brussels casino early Sunday, Belgian television reported. The men, armed with a machine gun, forced staff at the Grand Casino Brussels to open
I’d be remiss if I didn’t let KLAS tell you about the Stardust implosion: The excitement of the implosion is over and now the massive clean-up effort begins bfore the old Stardust property is turned into the $4 billion Echelon resort. The legendary Stardust hotel tower on the Las Vegas Strip was brought down by
Implosion, and thoughts on a goat man Read More »
haphazard world, life in vegasComing on the heels of the anti-casino archive, this could be the coolest story ever. From Radio Free Europe: Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov has called on the city’s gambling halls to eventually be turned into libraries. “More than 2,000 gaming halls were opened in a short time in Moscow and we are now actively closing
Casinos into libraries Read More »
gambling & culture, haphazard worldI’ve always hoped that, just as I spend most of my working (NOT waking) hours documenting and preserving the history of the gaming industry, there is someone, somewhere who is cataloging the decline and demise of gaming. My wish has come true. From the Evening Sun: The battle fought over a failed proposal to build
Anti-casino archives Read More »
gambling & culture, haphazard worldI’m going to warn you: this story has nothing to do with casinos. Not on the face of it, anyway. From the AC Press: When Gary E. Pettus retired Dec. 1 after more than 26 years on the resort’s police force, he planned to live off his $4,600 monthly police pension. Instead, he and about
Jack Potts to the rescue Read More »
atlantic city, haphazard worldI covered this story when it happened in Novosibirsk, so did you think I wouldn’t post on it when it happens in my hometown? From the AP: An Atlantic City woman playing the penny slots Saturday morning left the Resorts Atlantic City casino with her own little jackpot – a new baby boy. Eight-months pregnant
Casino maternity ward Read More »
atlantic city, haphazard world