Follow the adventures of Beartato and Reginald at Nedroid.com, one of the funniest comic sites out there. The comic's creator, Anthony Clark, has a host of other stories (like Party Cat) and single-frame images in addition to the Beartato/Reginald line, and each has a fresh and surprisingly innocent vibe that is good for pure giggles. Like this and this and this.

You know the song that plays in cartoons when the sun comes up? Or what about the theme song from Monty Python's Flying Circus? You know the melody, you might have a little dance that goes with it, but do you know the composers? The titles? With Kickass Classical, you can find out about classical music from "movies, commercials, cartoons, songs, video games and ringtones." You can listen to excerpts and links are provided so you can download a song from iTunes. Go through composer by composer or check out the Top 100 List and see if you can name each tune's claim to popular culture fame.

This blog of pretty pictures runs the gamut, including imagery of the urban landscape, fashion photography, product design, illustrations, and an occasional inspired commercial. It's at times gorgeous, at others, bizarre, and at another turn, hilarious. Some highlights include monsters of the universe stamps, a 19th century toolbox, musical roads, and the Hidden Radio. Wander back through the archives and discover tidbits to send around. There's something for everyone.

I love bad movies. Occasionally, I also like to see a good movie, and this podcast has some very interesting things to say about both kinds. Hosted by Matty Robinson and Adam Kempenaar (a former Iowa City resident like myself), the reviews are insightful, especially because the pair’s conversations often flush out the subtleties of a film that may not be otherwise apparent. It’s best when they disagree; listen to their respective takes on The Fountain – a bizarre little film, I grant you – to get the flavor. I’m especially fond of the top five lists (Top Five Mancrushes, Top Five Oliver Stone Scenes, etc.) and Massacre Theater, in which Robinson and Kempenaar read a scene from a movie, often poorly, for listeners to try to guess.

Adam Liptak, the New York Times national legal correspondent, is the author of the Times' highly accessible legal column "Sidebar," which "covers and considers developments in the world of law, explaining the significance of legal developments, the stories of the underlying court cases, and the intersecting orbits of lawyers, clients, lawmakers, scholars and judges." Here, visitors will find an archive of that column and all of Liptak's writing for the Times since 1984. With the recent release of Supreme Court rulings from the last session, and debates over same-sex marriage, the rights of Guantanamo detainees, and capital punishment methods, it is clear that we should monitor these very important issues as they make their way through the court system. Liptak will help keep you informed and curious about the American legal environment.

My Monday morning blog-rounds are especially delicious because of 3 Quarks Daily; each Monday they present original and quirky writings on science, design, literature, current affairs, art and anything else "inherently fascinating." From sleep apnea to Facebook poetry, the columns never cease to introduce visitors to things we may have never learned without it. The rest of the time, this blog culls other interesting items from the Monster Web, such as an article on the politics of renaming in New York from the February 25th edition of the New York Times. The site's most important factor is its seeming randomness, a liberal arts way of looking at "stuff from all over," that makes it a great daily visit for any curious mind.

This site offers the curious and curmudgeon alike something to enjoy. Presented by the Public Broadcasting Service, this page details American English regionalisms, the effects of technology on language, the social value of accents (or lack thereof), and much more. Be sure to check out the phenomenon that linguists refer to as the Northern Cities Shift to understand why we in the Midwest speak the way we do, and the reason for the "R-less" Southern dialects.

Amid every person's group of friends, there is at least one with a bizarre name, the kind of name that makes for great conversation at a party. Mine, for instance, is the woman I went to junior high with named cruelly by her parents Crystal Chanda Leer. This blog showcases those names, of folks famous and otherwise. Name of the Year was founded in 1983 on the campus of an unnamed Ivy League college in order to "discover, verify, nominate, elect, and disseminate great names." Though not updated as often as I would like (which may change as the fall semester gets underway), the site spotlights interesting and real names nominated by visitors for consideration. Occasionally, there is a name of the week face-off, like the heated Elrazor Sharp v. Treasure R. Johnson race (Elrazor won with 71% of the vote). There are site favorites as well, such as Crescent Dragonwagon, to whom references appear occasionally. My favorite comes from the 2007 Name of the Year ballot, and winning the spot for eighth best name of the year according to visitor votes: Mario Hilario.

I'm not the kind of person who goes home to a house full of cats, decorated with funny cat posters from the 70's (Hang in there, kitty!), full of dusty cat knick-knacks and stuffed animals. Honestly. But I'm obsessed with cuteoverload.com, and I am not alone. Jason Schwartzman, of Rushmore fame, recently admitted the same to Nylon Magazine. Nah nah nah nah boo boo. But I often have to justify - to friends, to family, to colleagues, to myself - my love for this site. Yes, it is full of pictures of adorable animals in adorable situations. Yes, the site's owner, Meg, has delineated the Rules of Cuteness, which include showing off your paw pads and having a teeny tail. Yes, when a photo of an animal conquers multiple Rules of Cuteness, it has attained the Coveted Cuteness Trifecta. And, yes, there have been multiple recent postings of dogs in Halloween costumes. But the captions, people! Read the captions!

You may remember Christopher Lydon as the intelligent and sometimes smug host of The Connection on NPR. After leaving The Connection, Lydon began hosting Open Source, a 'web community that produces a daily hour of radio.' Presenting a wide variety of topics and knowing a lot about each one is Lydon's trademark, from fishing to war to poetry. 'Blog Boy' Brendan Greeley is always there, scanning the blogosphere and the Open Source community comments to make listeners' ideas and comments an integral part of the show.

You can listen live on XM Public Radio, or dowload the show as a podcast. Log in, suggest a show idea, and be sure to let Lydon know you want more Passion Thursdays.

Stuff + Cats = Awesome!

Cats. They think they are so great. But let's see how great they are when they're dressed in foo-foo bridesmaid's dresses, or covered tip to tail in refrigerator magnet poetry. Here is what you do:

1) Lull your cat to sleep with Fancy Feast and fine music.
2) Find all the junk you can in your apartment.
3) Place all the junk on your cat. (Extra points for architecturally impossible placement!)
4) Wake the cat up, muss up his fur, and be sure he's all surly and scowly.
5) Snap forty or fifty digital pictures.
6) Submit them to stuffonmycat.com and let other people enjoy your cat's humiliation FOR FREE!

Does your cat have too much dignity? Then this site is for you!