A Kestrel’s Nest repeat, from September 9, 1999:

I’ve never really been interested in abolishing the electoral college, that quirky part of our presidential elections created by those men in powdered wigs. Now, more than ever, after reading this article, I’m a firm supporter of the system. Of course, as the election draws near, this’ll be a hot topic in the media. And now I’ll be ready.

The original article has been AWOL for the better part of this year, but Jorn at Robot Wisdom found it again. It really is the most eloquent argument for the electoral college that I’ve seen.

It’s late October, and that means soup season. I kicked it off with my own recipe for a nice potato chowder, embellished with fresh garden parsnips. I’d be happy to give you the recipe if you want it, but you can do much better by visiting Soup of the Evening, Beautiful Soup, a Web page devoted to all things soup.

Perhaps you are familiar with Sister Wendy and her Sister Wendy’s Story of Painting. She’s the British nun who has her own TV show where she raoms the halls of art museums, giving us a detailed survey of the history of western art. Even if you’re not, you may still appreciate BBC America’s irreverent answer, Sister Randy, the chain smoking, shave needing, art critic nun. (Requires a plugin, but the automatic download is painless.) For example, here’s what she has to say about modern art:

<A piece of modern ar hangs on the wall. It looks like colored blurs. Sister Randy walks on, sporting her usual “Flying Nun” attire.> “Art of the twentieth century raised many bold and daring questions. " “Is this painting upside down, sideways, or right side up? Was this painting done by a monkey? Exactly what the hell is this painting? Was this painting done by a colorblind monkey, or is this painting done?” “Is it done? What the hell is it? Good lord in heaven, is it done? Is it too late to kill this colorblind schizophrenic monkey before he paints again?” <She’s on her knees now.> “Oh God and Jesus in heaven, please don’t let this monkey paint again! " <She takes a long, slow drag on her cigarette, and then walks off.>

If you are offended by potty humor, you really don’t want to see her lecture on impressionism.

BBC America has recently begun showing an odd game show called Can’t Cook, Won’t Cook. Strangely appealing, this show features two contestants, brought on by a friend because of their utter lack of cooking ability. The host, a wildly popular British chef, walks them through the creation of a gourmet dish. His walkthrough is quick – no time for lollygagging – and he criticizes the inevitable mistakes (burnings, spills, and the like) with an over the top faux anger. He also sings to the food and dances little dances, and makes the contestants do the same. At the end, the friends are blindfolded and taste the two dishes. The one that tastes best (the chef votes in the case of a tie) wins. Usually a food processor, though I did see one fellow win a toaster. The loser gets a bottle of champagne (to wash the taste out) and a meal out. It’s no Iron Chef, but it’s amusing nonetheless. The good folks at BBC America have collected the recipes on-line so you can follow along.

October suprise? The military may be getting ready to unveil Aurora, possibly before election day. Aurora is the long-rumored secret aircraft that has been supossedly undergoing test flights for years.

Discovery.com has a very nice Halloween group of pages up. Sure, there’s educational things there, but there’s a bunch of fun stuff, too.

Mr. Beans everywhere, rejoice! The last of the three-wheeled Reliant Robins rolls off the assembly line in December.

At a pro-environmental rally here in Athens yesterday, R.E.M. made a surprise appearance, performing on the courthouse steps. I missed the show, but thanks to a handheld digital video camera and my local newspaper, I could watch in Quicktime or RealVideo.

Mister Pants finds the best stuff ever. After the revolution comes, he’ll be the only one weblogging, and the rest of us will be bowing before the master. Case in point: Rabbi Phunkiewsky’s school of new communication. Requires flash, and is wickedly funny. Oh, and if you aren’t subscribing to Mister Pant’s pantsmail, you’ve really missed the boat. It’s too late to learn about his experience eating a soggy sandwich really fast over the sink, but it’s not too late to become a subscriber.

The User Meeting’s over. I’m resting now. It has been a very long week.