Curious George: New Design Business I have quit my fulltime job to start and run my own design and creative services shop. I plan to provide all sorts of print and web design services, as well as web hosting and other services like copywriting and photography. But, with all my creative-fu, my business-fu has been a little shortchanged. I like to think I have a decent amount of common sense, and I'm already planning to go to the SBA and to meet with an attorney and a CPA.... But, I was hoping that monkeys out there had experience generally starting businesses, or specific experience with a design shop or setting up in CA/the Bay area.... What else can you all suggest?

AOL Wins $5M Judgment Against Spammer I hate to say it, but hooray for AOL! /newsfilter

Around Guilin. Sunrise and sunset are the photographer's friends. more inside

Will Homeland Security steal your stuff in a national emergency? According to Bellacio.org, they will, if you keep guns or gold in a safe-deposit box at the bank. Tinfoil hat time? No, but who cares? Personally I keep all my tinfoil in a secret stash at the bottom of the local swimming hole. via

Make the perfect poo. Bananas are good. Hamburgers no so much. Feed la machine a caca, while a Monsieur 'Ankey ripoff discusses your choices, and rates your output. Flash. Annoying music. And French. waiting for the political promises version via daddytypes

It's official. Canadian icon store The Bay, one of the oldest corporations in the world, will go into the hands of a South Carolina businessman. Grab your Point Blanket now.

Is your community intelligent? Surprisingly yes, if you're in Cleveland.. (Posted by a guy in Waterloo).

Identify this Lobster-beast - 'It looks like a cross between a crayfish and a lobster with some characteristics of a large prawn or crab but even the experts are stumped about the identity of this crustacean.' more inside

International Internet-Free Day? You must be freakin' kiddin me! Must. Log. On.

Holy Crap. The Most Annoying Girl In The World. Scroll to UPDATE 1, watch vid below it. Then cry at the multi-faceted jewel of pop culture desperation therein. Or just laugh like I did, icy-hearted scoundrel-ess that I am.

Cultural Mash-ups. . Reggae meet Japan [realaudio]. Calcutta meet Minnesota. I just love discovering over and over again that people all over the world are so fundamentally similar. Manifestations of the collective unconscious? Optimistically, perhaps.