Inside a research proposal review committee - yet more great reasons I left the university career *cough cough* ahem...track.

Ready. Set. Write! . Make your mark Monkeys...

Curious George: Best Internet? I had had SO much trouble with trying to keep up an internet connection lately. I mean HOURS, total days even trying to get Verizon dsl to work a simple (I won't even mention, Netgear - may their router AND their "switcher" cum "ladder" become crushed, and then ground into dust, before being burned...) But we don't even HAVE cable TV right now. They do make curious offers. I would love some kind of advice! Should I switch?

The post that catalysed it all has been deleted from its original home, but was captured from Google cache. But the result is worth a look - a wide ranging discussion on how it is possible to make 9 times the US median income, and not feel rich. more inside

The Atlantic is getting bigger - for hurricanes that is. And this is only the second recorded time (the other was in 1926, for 6 hours) that there are two simultaneous Category 4 storms.via

Restore Sanity or Keep Fear Alive? Either way (or both), this is gonna be AWESOME. more inside

The Squirrel In Our Window.

Shoes every monkey wants

Umbra

That nostalgic neon . East... The Neon of Old New York West... Vegas strip And across the nation... Road trip! Let's see some neon. more inside

Three Minute Fiction more inside

Now this is underhanded viral catnip IKEA releases 100 cats inside one of its UK stores.

Top New Zealand scientist quits - didn't actually know the "Cool Runnings" guys. Or was an ex-Marine, apparently. Also, China's top UN diplomat apparently got good and plastered recently and then admitted that he didn't like Americans. Or his boss. more inside

Woman's persistence pays off in regenerated fingertip.

Beneath Gunung Mulu National Park.

Illuminated by galactic starlight

Coming into spring here so antihistamines on standby. A gallery of pollen images from here. (First link is to the Telegraph; URL exceeded 140 character limit)

Magnitude 7.2 earthquake near Christchurch, NZ. Hope all you monkeys are OK.

The Sonic Society is a clearinghouse for small independent radio theater troupes all around the world. Some of my own favorites for passing the drive time: Decoder Ring Theater and Icebox Radio Theater. more inside

Yes, you can promise too much - Australia is still without a government, but the conservative leader has not had a good week. Aside from getting burned for offering A$1B for a new hospital in Hobart, turns out there is about A$7B worth of issues with their proposed budget. Something for the politics junkies out there.