Erin H

With just 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice, you can go from knowing absolutely nothing to performing noticeably well. That's the message from Josh Kaufman, author of The First 20 Hours. In the video above, he reveals the four steps to learning any new skill, fast.

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An outpost of the Denver-based burger restaurant opens next week in Lincoln Park. [ more › ]

What magic is this?? All I know for sure is that this guy is certainly handling the seasons of his life.

Meet Tyler Marcum at 20 and Tyler Marcum at 30 — both versions of the same man perform a delightful experimental dance to the Dixie Chick's cover of Fleetwood Mac's Landslide. I smiled like an idiot throughout the whole thing.

“The indignity of the suburbs”

The first few times I tried kimchi it was not, I must admit, my favorite food. Then I met my Korean-American partner, Gregory, moved in with his mom — a superb cook — and within a few months I was wholly converted. These days my mouth waters at the slightest whiff of pungent, fermented cabbage and I'll eat it with everything from fried rice to dumplings, summer rolls, or, ahem, straight out of the jar. I still have a lot to learn from Mom when it comes to kimchi making (there are over a hundred different kinds!) but this mak kimchi, or simple kimchi, recipe has been a great place to start. 

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Ready to get your skep on? It’s time to register for one of the Chicago Honey Co-op’s upcoming beekeeping classes. [ more › ]

A few years back...ok, make more than a decade ago, I purchased my first dedicated home theater audio system. It was a glorious behemoth of a system, with left, right, satellite surrounds, center, and get this...two discrete subwoofers. It was fine and dandy when I was sharing a large home with a then girlfriend. But then we broke up right before I moved from LA after accepting a job in San Francisco where I found myself in a 300 sq. ft. studio, situating such a system proved challenging... 

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(425): Whenever I see women with terribly drawn on brows, I just wanna tackle them and redo them and run away. I'll be Brow-lady. The beauty superhero.

[Photograph: Max Falkowitz]

Ever since I first tasted Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream back in 2007, I've been that slightly preachy convert. I've told just about everyone who would listen about the amazing flavor combinations and creamy texture. In fact, I once packed my luggage with pints of the stuff to show off to the Serious Eats crew in New York, only to have it all confiscated by the authorities at the airport because I was keeping it cool with dry ice (how else was I supposed to keep it cold?!). While my life has gotten easier since Jeni's started shipping pints to a few speciality shops around the country, you can imagine my elation when I heard that Jeni's was set open a shop in Chicago. Owner Jeni Britton Bauer is also thrilled.

"We're really excited," said Jeni during a phone interview. "Chicago is a big city with a great food culture, which has supported us since the beginning." Currently, the company has numerous outlets in Columbus, Ohio (its home base), along with a couple in Cleveland and Nashville. But Jeni is especially looking forward to a shop in Chicago. "I grew up in Peoria, IL, so Chicago was always where I went as kid."

All of the ice cream will still be made in Ohio, which Jeni says is crucial: "Our kitchen is so specialized—we have some very expensive machines. Plus, all of the milk is sourced from one specific dairy in Ohio, which would make transportation difficult." Instead, the finished ice cream will be shipped regularly on freezer trucks.

This does mean that Chicago will finally be able to taste the full range of flavors, from classic Signature Flavors to the ever-changing monthly specials.

The shop will be located right by the Southport stop on the Brown Line, and Jeni hopes to have an outdoor patio set up by opening (which is set for August). "The shop will look a like the first location on High Street in Columbus," says Jeni, "and service will be very important to us."

If you can't possibly wait until August for the shop to open, or if you simply need a great pint of ice cream, click here to see where you can currently find Jeni's in Chicago.

Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream Shop

3404 N Southport Ave‎, Chicago, IL 60657 (map)
jenis.com

Everyone loves a do-it-yourself-er.

Rihanna leaves her NYC hotel wearing a provocative t-shirt, 05/15/2013, 247PapsTV/ Splash News

You can't judge a book by its cover, and you can't judge a woman's sexual activity by one look at her vag or butthole. But if you ever wondered exactly how misinformed people are about vaginas and buttholes and what they do and do not do during or after or because of sex and/or childbirth, look no further than this tweet from Teen Mom/newly minted porn star Farrah Abraham, who joked, " I can't believe the one time I have sex in the past year has turned in to this ‪#UNREAL," only to land on the receiving end of a flurry of comments indicating that, basically, there was no way on earth she hadn't been fucking someone or something the last year, as evidenced from the hefty gape of her vagina and anus. ZOMG.

First of all, I haven't seen the James Deen/Farrah Abraham sex tape, but I've seen some clips and some of the Twitter comments linked to screenshots meant to serve as evidence of her "whorish" size down below. Mostly, though, it's comments like this:

@bethanizzle @kerrybbn @f1abraham it was like throwing a hotdog in a hallway. ������

— Monica. (@_mona0910) May 7, 2013

@kerrybbn @f1abrahamlol gotta agree. Just watched it with the bf and she is #busted and a sucky wanna be #pornstar. 8 fingers-wow just wow

— Heidi(@0xheidix0) May 7, 2013

@_mona0910 @bethanizzle @kerrybbn @f1abraham one time? ha maybe one time with a horse #wornout she is so gross #XXX #Farrahsextape

— Heidi(@0xheidix0) May 7, 2013

@f1abraham I smell bullshit. you're way too loose in both holes to not have had sex for a year...

— NiKK0LE (@nikkoleMTV) May 7, 2013

@f1abraham the 1 time in the past yr u have sex.... bawahahaha... right... ur a-hole & vjay says otherwise.... stop pretending 2 be innocent

— Fuckyeah_0_o (@Fuckyeah_o_0) May 7, 2013

bitch stfu somebody should whoop your ass its #unreal that you can shove that shit in your ass! #gross @f1abraham

— jenna shea (@iamjennashea) May 7, 2013

It goes on, not just as a spectacle of slut-shaming, not just as proof of how often it's (sadly) women policing other women about their sexual activity, but of proof that no one has any idea how vaginas or buttholes work. Vaginas and rectums are designed to expand and contract! You do not get loose from fucking in your vagina or your anus as a general rule! Muscles don't atrophy from USING THEM! Sigh. Nonetheless, let's explore these holes one at a time.

YOUR VAGINA

Hello, vagina, you are full of many things, but perhaps most of all, myths-a-plenty about how you work. This enlightening piece over at Psychology Today breaks down the four most common myths about your vag when it comes to sex:

• VIRGIN VAGINA IS SUPER TIGHT
• DEFLOWERING MAKES YOU LOOSER
• WHORING AROUND MAKES YOU SUPER LOOSE
• CHILDBIRTH MAKES YOUR VAG LOOSE FOREVER

The truth is, a vagina is elastic, and it has "tightly folded muscle" like an accordion. As Michael Castleman, who's penned multiple books on the physiology of sex, writes:

Try this: Pull the corners of your mouth out toward your ears then let go. What happens? The mouth immediately snaps back to its pre-stretched state because the tissue is elastic. Do it 100 times. There's no permanent stretching. The mouth quickly returns to its pre-stretched state and no one would ever know you'd stretched it.

The same goes for the vagina, with two exceptions I'll discuss shortly. When it's at rest–all the time except sexual arousal and childbirth–the vagina's muscle tissue remains tightly folded like a closed accordion. Anxiety makes the vaginal musculature clench even tighter. That's why young girls sometimes have problems inserting tampons. Their vaginal muscle tissue is tight and contracted to begin with, and many girls feel anxious about touching themselves and inserting anything, so the muscles contract even tighter.

Sexual arousal/relaxation is what loosens those muscles so you can receive the peen/fingers/dildo you so desire. But still, when this happens, Castleman explains, it doesn't make a "big open cavity" like a loose sock or an empty potato chip bag, dumdums. There is no possibility for the aforementioned "hotdog in the hallway," AKA "bee bee in the boxcar" scenario, as funny to imagine as that may be.

A locked up, squeezed up, shut-down vagina is a tense, non-aroused one, not a virginal one. Sure, virgins may be less comfortable with their bodies or sexuality (MAYBE! NOT ALWAYS) in ways that make intercourse more tentative due to inexperience, but usually, the reason a vag is not good and ready to take a dick is because it hasn't been made to feel that way. It doesn't want to. (In fact, extreme tightness is more likely to be vaginismus, not virginity.)

So I suppose if Farrah Abraham's vag looks loose to you, it's because she was relaxed, sexually aroused, and game for some action, which would make sense because she WAS FILMING A PORNO. The only gaping hole here, per the usual, is the Internet's stupid slackjawed face. Because the thing is people, after opening up for sex, your vagina goes back. It GOES BACK! Usually.

Castleman:

…vaginal muscle tissue naturally contracts–tightens–again. Intercourse does NOT permanently stretch the vagina. This process, loosening during arousal and tightening afterward, happens no matter how often the woman has sex.

The vagina stretches a great deal during childbirth, like an accordion opened all the way. Post-partum does it re-tighten completely? Yes, usually, at least in young women, that is, women in their late teens and early twenties. Within six months after delivery, the typical young woman's vagina feels pretty much how it was before she gave birth.

So you can't fuck yourself loose, people, sorry to say. You can't fuck yourself loose. There are exceptions as to the permanence of elasticity for the vagina, of course, to say nothing of individual spectrum of experience.

If you stretch elastic a great deal, over time, it fatigues and no longer snaps back entirely. That can happen to the vaginas of young women after multiple births. Their vaginal muscles fatigue and no longer fully contract. In addition, aging fatigues vaginal muscle. Whether or not women have given birth, as they grow older, they may complain of looseness.

Today, many woman delay childbearing until after 30, and some have children after 40. Combine the rigors of older childbearing with the effects of aging on the vaginal muscles, and many women complain of looseness. Women who give birth after around 30 may notice persistent looseness after delivering only one child. Individual differences account for the fact that birth- and age-related looseness happens to some women and not others.

So basically, save your old whore jokes for ACTUAL old whores, OK? Not 21-year-olds with one baby who haven't had the sheer time to lose negligible elasticity to that extent. (Kidding! Please stop shaming women's bodies.)

YOUR BUTTHOLE

Now let's talk about your butthole. Your butthole is also made of muscles, in this case, ones that constrict and relax to control/eliminate waste. Google questions about what the risks are for anal sex (aside from STDs), and most people want to know one thing:

"Do ppl who have alot of anal sex get loose buttholes?"

No, the answer is no. The general wisdom here is that regular anal sex (which is on the rise in hetero couples) does not make your butthole loose. This informative site for gay teens explains that anal incontinence as a result of anal sex is not likely:

Despite a lot of people's fears, having anal sex will not lead to an enlarged or loose sphincter or anus or a loss of bowel control. Some people actually believe that regular anal sex actually gives people better bowel control. According to author Tristan Taormino this can occur because, "In order to take something inside your rectum, you have to learn how to relax your sphincter muscles. The more you practice controlling these muscles, the more you are exercising and toning them (just like any other muscle). You are not stretching out or loosening the sphincter muscles, you are simply relaxing them to allow penetration."

This roundup of anal sex myths chimes in, arguing that:

Many women fear that anal sex will cause hemorrhoids, fissures or tears. Some even fear that they may become incontinent and spend the rest of their lives in adult diapers. Pleasurable anal sex does not cause harm to your anus or rectum. And as long as your partner does not have a sexually transmitted infection, neither semen nor sperm are harmful to your rectum.

The key word here is "pleasurable." It doesn't mean there's no chance for tearing or injury when having regular anal sex if you're rough and careless about it. Painful anal sex, or the use of large objects on a regular basis — extreme, rough play you may see commonly in porn – is another matter. This is why it's so important for regular old non-porn stars to use lubrication and take your time to relax the muscles, because your rectum doesn't self-lubricate. This Salon piece reiterates that info, indicating no large-scale studies have been done to find anal incontinence to be a significant issue.

From Salon:

So, whence did this myth arise? There have been two studies to report a marginal risk of incontinence from repeated anal sex — but one included passing gas in its definition of incontinence, and the other used subjects who had experienced serious anal trauma (either through assault or unsafe sex of the sort that Glickman mentioned earlier). More reliably, a 1997 study found no higher incidence of fecal incontinence in gay men who bottom and nonreceptive hetero dudes (a control group — what a concept!)

In conclusion, aside from real actual risks like STDs and unwanted pregnancies, the major issue with using your vagina or anus for sex is not loose anything. In fact, chronic pain is more likely, and thought to be experienced vaginally in 9% of women, and perhaps in 10 to 15% of women who have anal sex.

Besides, penises have impacted our world enough as it is — let's not grant them magical orifice-loosening powers they don't actually possess. Looseness as a problem, or a thing used as "proof" of women's whorishness, has a convenient function: Policing female behavior, putting all the onus of male sexual pleasure on a woman's body, and particularly, on aspects of her body she can't control — always fun. Plus, it gets us all scrutinizing everything but the more likely culprit of what makes sex feel loose in the first place in any hole: a small dick.

The 1950s were apparently a terrifying time to be a child. If a train wasn't coming out of nowhere to decapitate you, a seemingly harmless and endlessly fun game of "hide in a pile of leaves!"* ended when you were run over by city workers.

Buzzfeed's Copyranter got a hold of this amazing manual, and you have to see the whole thing. Titled "It's Great to Be Alive!", it was written by someone who knew how truly careless children can be. I'd encourage you to print it out and pass it around at your local elementary school but STRANGER DANGER. (Actually, that one is just good advice.)

[Buzzfeed]

Boobs: they’re nature’s pillow. The ComfyBreasts Relaxation System: a long-ass pillow with a boobie-sized hole in it. There’s a Kickstarter campaign raising money to bring the glorified titty pillow to the masses. That’s great. I think we should all do the right thing and pitch in. Because we’ve all been there — you attempt to sleep on your stomach, but your tatas make it impossible to get comfortable and you’re in for a long, sleepless night unless God forbid you change positions. Damn you, tatas! Jk jk I take it back. Without you I would not be who I am today. 

(443): Taco trucks are like ice cream trucks for drunk adults. They should have a mariachi tune they play super loud to bring people out of the bars for tacos.

Marine Corporal Juan Dominguez, who lost both legs and his right arm in an explosion in 2010 while serving in Afghanistan, married the love of his life, Alexis, on April 27, 2013 in Temecula, California. People from the town celebrated Juan's service by gifting elements of the wedding to Juan and Alexis — including the reception venue, rehearsal dinner, entertainment, photography, flowers, cake, and makeup. The result is as heartwarming as you'd expect it to be. Damn these spring allergies!

[Hoopla Ha]

In news that will make you squee like you’ve never squeed before, break your keyboard over your head, and dive out your office window because you’ll never experience something so cute again in your life, here’s Einstein the goldfish rocking a life jacket. The poor little Fintail got a bladder infection which lead to him losing the ability to swim. His person, Leighton Naylor, built this teensy life jacket made from recycled tubing. It helps Einstein swim on his own. Yaaaay! Also: Daaaw! Oh no — ASLDKFJALSDKFJCRASH! SMASH! THUMP! Annnnd now we can just assume I’m fired.

Judy Blume, iconic writer/patron saint to confused tweens that she is, needs no introduction. There's a pretty solid chance that you, dear reader, felt less alone in the world after reading her books, whether you were obsessed with getting your period, grappling with recently divorced parents or considering whether to name a penis "Ralph." (Don't do it. It won't be cute "forever.") So how come no one in Hollywood wanted to make her fucking movie?

On June 7, Tiger Eyes — based on Blume's 1981 book about a teenager coping with the murder of her father and so much more — will be released on demand and iTunes, and in a few theaters. Even this limited release was slow in the making because, according to an interview in Entertainment Weekly, the dudes who control Hollywood never quite caught Judy Blume fever like the rest of us:

“It’s a Judy Blume movie. That should be enough, you would think,” says Lawrence, 49. [Judy's son, who directed Tiger Eyes.] “What shocked me was that a big segment of the business knew who Judy Blume was but they didn’t understand who she was. Part of it is that the film business is run mostly by old white men—and some young ones, too—who didn’t grow up with her books.”

The piece chronicles some of Blume's other struggles to gain control over possible film and TV adaptations of her books, as well as how hard it is these days to write successful YA without invoking the magical (and lucrative) power of zombies or vampires:

After Tiger Eyes wrapped, the deal with Amber Entertainment eventually fell apart. “We fought for a year to get control of the film,” sighs Lawrence. “Once we did, we thought, ‘Surelysomeone will want this.’ ” But it wasn’t that simple. While Hollywood was deep in the throes of its love affair with YA—thanks to Harry Potter and Twilight—Tiger Eyes didn’t fit its template. It was a movie about real teenagers dealing with real problems: no magic, no thrilling danger, no fangs. It didn’t have a big producer backing it, nor was there an A-list star attached. Sure, there was a name on board—Judy Blume—but that wasn’t enough on its own. So Lawrence commissioned a three-minute sizzle reel showing the scope of his -mother’s influence on pop culture to bring with him to pitch meetings.

Also: Judy wanted Abigail Breslin to play Margaret for a movie that never came to fruition. If only!

[Entertainment Weekly]

Image via AP.

Merida, the boundary-breaking heroine of Pixar's Brave, officially gains the title of Disney's eleventh Princess today — one which, ironically, she would not give a crap about. But she appears to have stopped into a Sephora, a Weight Watchers, and a BCBG on the way to her coronation. And they took away her bow and arrows. Not cool.

The heroine of Brave is a welcome departure from other Disney princesses: Her plot wasn't moved along by a sacrifice-worthy crush on a dude, e.g. Little Mermaid's Ariel (giving up her voice! Hello there, on the nose metaphor). In fact, there's real love interest for Merida at all; she simply gives zero fuqs. Meanwhile, in the magical world of Disney, even the tomboy heroine Mulan had a thing for her captain (voiced by Law & Order SVU's B.D. Wong, in case you wanted your mind FUCKING BLOWN THIS MORNING).

As you can see, her eyes are wider, her waist is smaller, her hair is sleeker, and her dress is sparkly as shit. A petition on Change.org that's already garnered 78,000 signatures urges Disney to return to the original character design.

By making her skinnier, sexier and more mature in appearance, you are sending a message to girls that the original, realistic, teenage-appearing version of Merida is inferior; that for girls and women to have value — to be recognized as true princesses — they must conform to a narrow definition of beauty.

'Merida From 'Brave Gets An Unnecessary Makeover' [HuffPo]

View Serious Eats Neighborhood Guides: Jesse Divine's Logan Square in a larger map

Pastry chef Jesse Divine moved to Chicago a couple years ago to help open Roka Akor. Previously Divine lived in Arizona, where he was the pastry chef at the Scottsdale outlet of the restaurant. He's originally from Connecticut and has known he wanted to be a pastry chef since he started culinary school at 13.

When he first moved to Chicago, Divine lived in River North: "It was terrible," he says. "It was very loud at night with lots of sirens." He much prefers the quieter, more laid-back scene in Logan Square, and Divine is also impressed with the restaurants in his neighborhood. "Pretty much every place I've gone to eat was really good," he says. "There are so many good dining options within walking distance." And he still has plenty of places he'd like to try, including Intelligentsia, Kuma's, Scofflaw, and Katherine Anne Confections. Find out where his favorite places to get food (and dessert!) are in his 'hood.

The Logan "Poser" Ramen [Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

Essential Neighborhood Spot: Yusho. I think Yusho is one of the best restaurants around right now. It's really, really good. They have amazing drinks, really good food. It's easy to enjoy everything you eat. I love their maitake mushrooms, twice fried chicken, lobster chawanmushi and poser ramen with pig's tail and hen egg.

Burger at Longman & Eagle [Photograph: Daniel Zemans]

Burgers: I've been wanting to get to Kuma's since I moved here two years ago, but for some reason I just end up in other places. I can't remember the last time I had a burger. I do really want to go though. Actually, the last burger I had was at Longman & Eagle and that was pretty good with the beef fat fries.

The Daily Specials Menu at Hot Doug's [Photograph: Huge Galdones]

Hot Dog: Hot Doug's is excellent. I've only been there a few times but it's always interesting. There was one that had smoked Provolone cheese on it and pesto mayo—the Roman Luganega. I have it as a picture on my phone and I even texted it to one of my old chefs.

Breakfast: Cafe Con Leche is pretty nice. I like their chilaquiles. I normally get out of work between midnight and three so I don't see the morning too often.

Fried Chicken & Waffle at Longman & Eagle [Photograph: Joe Roy]

Brunch: Longman & Eagle. They have a really nice little brunch. It's pretty laid back, nothing fancy, so it's a good spot to go and enjoy the company that you're with. Maybe get their chicken and waffles. Brunch is not something that I get to do a whole lot.

The Brownsville Girl at Telegraph [Photographs: Roger Kamholz]

Drinks: Telegraph for wine and maybe Billy Sunday or Yusho for cocktails. They have the same bartender. Probably Yusho wins for ambiance.

Coffee: I like New Wave. They have one called the Hail Mary which is really nice. It's an espresso with chai tea.

Joong Boo Market [Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

Groceries: If it's for the house, I just go to Jewel-Osco but I also find myself going to Joong Boo Market a lot. It's a Korean market off the Belmont stop on the blue line. You can get all different sorts of food and they have a little eatery inside where I've gotten some ramen at. You can also buy plates and cooking utensils, but usually I look for different fruits and I might buy rice flours that I can't find at a normal grocery store. It's always interesting. I like to always taste something new. So I'll randomly buy a snack or a drink. You might find something you can cook with or get an idea.

Soft Serve with Thai Basil and Coconut Crunch at Yusho [Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

Dessert: Yusho has really good mochi and soft serve. I'm always really happy with it. It's not just soft serve; they throw a couple extra things in there, like sesame crisps. I was pretty disappointed that the last time I went they were sold out of a dessert I saw on Twitter, something with dehydrated bees and honeycomb candy.

Butternut Pizza at Reno [Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

Pizza & Pasta: Reno. They're pretty new, but they're basically pizza and pasta. They're right around the corner from where I live. I had a pizza called the Beetza that was pretty good. Anytime I see beets on something I'll usually try to order it. And for pasta, the lamb neck pasta and mac & cheese are great.

Cheese: I think Telegraph has a great pastry chef, Katie Wyer, but they also have a really nice cheese plate. If you don't want dessert at the end, try the cheese plate. Most of the cheese I've had there I haven't had in the past, and it's sometimes hard to do that and also have ones that are good. They serve the cheese with some different fruits, nuts, chutney and bread. A couple of times they had a really nice honey and they sprinkled jasmine tea on the honey so it had a jasmine crunch.

Barbecue: Pork Shoppe's not bad. They have great ribs really nice cornbread compared to some of the other ones I've had. It's got a nice crunch on the outside, it's a little sweet but also a little spicy.

Recently two friends shared the same post on my Facebook page. I clicked to find a photo of a girl holding a cover of the April 8 issue of Time featuring a photo of me kissing my wife, and I read the story of a brave girl doing something I wouldn't have had the courage to do at her age.
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From ras el hanout to herbes de provence, herb and spice mixes are essential to many cuisines around the world. Bringing these blends into your own kitchen can lend authenticity to international dishes and provide creative inspiration for your everyday cooking. Ready for this trip across the globe? No passport required!  

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Square just announced a new product meant to replace traditional point-of-service systems: the aptly named Square Stand. The hardware turns an iPad (2 or 3; support for the Lightning connector is coming later this year) into an all-in-one POS with an integrated card reader that accepts cash, plastic and Square Wallet payments. Available for pre-order today, the stand will set business owners back a rather steep $299, but the sleek design has a decidedly smaller footprint than the cash registers of yore, and it offers merchants real-time analytics for tracking sales via the Square Register app. Of course, if you want the full retail setup, you'll still have to spring for Square's receipt printer, barcode scanner and cash drawer.

Though the Square Stand won't be available until July 8th, several merchants throughout the country, including Cafe Grumpy in New York City and Morelli's Ice Cream in Atlanta, will be operating the device starting tomorrow. And given Square's partnership with Starbucks, we wouldn't be surprised if the system soon shows up at the coffee chain as well.

Filed under: Software, Apple

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Source: Square

The Smithsonian has been experimenting with 3D scanning for some time now, using tools like laser arm scanners to map models of whale fossils and other ancient artifacts. Now the museum is utilizing the technology to preserve its collection for posterity. Its "laser cowboys" Vince Rossi and Adam Metallo are working full-time to record items for future generations, as part of an extensive effort to digitize 14 million prioritized objects (a list that also includes artwork and lab specimen). After the break, check out a video of the team working to preserve a digital copy of the Philadelphia gunboat, America's oldest fighting vessel.

Filed under: Science, Alt

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• Chicago’s street violence will be getting more national attention this weekend.
  
  CBS News’ ’48 Hours’ will air “The War In Chicago” on Saturday at 9 p.m.–the result of a six-month investigation into the gang and drug wars blistering the city’s South and West Sides.

NEW YORK -- The government has filed a last-second appeal that will delay the sale of the morning-after contraceptive pill to girls of any age without a prescription.

The appeal was filed shortly before a noon Monday deadline.

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When a friend told me he was considering planting two trees to celebrate the birth of his friends' new baby twins, I must admit I swooned. Birth-trees! Such a sweet idea, but there are a few things to consider...

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There are over 100 varieties of heirloom seedlings to choose from during the sale this weekend. [ more › ]

When Austin-based photographer Jaime Moore was deciding how to snap photos of her daughter Emma to remember her 5th birthday, she combed the Internet for visual inspiration — and, naturally, came across a ton of young girls dressed up like Disney princess on their birthdays.

Jaime wrote on her blog, via F Stop Lounge: "It started me thinking about all the REAL women for my daughter to know about and look up to, REAL women who without ever meeting Emma have changed her life for the better."

So she chose iconic photographs of five such inspirational women and snapped similar portraits of Emma. They came out fucking great — not to mention an amazing alternative to the horrible mall Glamour Shot option they offered in my day, which was the complete opposite of this.

Challenge: See if you can ID them all without looking at the captions.

'Real Women: Forget the Disney Princesses' [F-Stop Lounge]

The New York Times reports that Seth Meyers will replace Jimmy Fallon on NBC's Late Night. To all those people who were pulling for Kate McKinnon doing her Jodie Foster impression to take over the Late Night hosting duties: life is full of disappointments.