Today In Alternative Music History: March 31, 2010

The Libertines perform an acoustic set at a London pub as part of a press conference announcing their reunion following a six year hiatus. Pete Doherty, Carl Barat, bassist John Hassell and drummer Gary Powell play eight songs. Of course they are a half-hour late for their own press conference.

Today In Alternative Music History: March 31, 1994

Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain walks out of the drug treatment Exodus Recovery Center in Marina del Rey, California and with him goes any chance of survival. Cobain entered the treatment center only three days earlier. He is dead (of a self-inflicted gun shot wound) a week later.

Phrase Of The Day

In the fight between you and the world, back the world. Frank Zappa (1940 - 1993)

Word of The Day

osculate\AHSS-kyuh-layt\ DEFINITION verb : kiss EXAMPLES "I've been osculated by everyone in the building!" Kevin exclaimed, wiping his cheeks to remove the vestiges of kisses planted there by adoring family on his wedding day. "When a pretty girl steps forward fully puckered up and expecting an appropriate response, it would be ungentlemanly to turn away…. But is there a correct way to osculate…?" -- From an article in The Sentinel (UK), February 22, 2010 DID YOU KNOW?" Osculate" comes from the Latin noun "osculum," meaning "kiss" or "little mouth." It was included in a dictionary of "hard" words in 1656, but we have no evidence that anyone actually used it until the 19th century, except for scientists who used it differently, to mean "contact." Today, "osculate" is used in geometry for the action of a pair of curves or surfaces that touch so that they have a common tangent at the point of contact. When "osculate" is used to mean "kiss," the context is often humorous.

The Discreet Charm of Morrissey

"Rejection is one thing - but rejection from a fool is cruel."

Phrase of the Day

The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh at it.

Bill Nye, Interview with Wired.com, April 2005

News From Outside of The Bubble

Fans Go Knuts Over Loss Of Polar Bear

Fans of Knut the polar bear have been lining his enclosure at Berlin Zoo with flowers after his surprise death.
Knut as his legion of fans will remember him
The four-year-old - who enjoyed worldwide celebrity - died suddenly on Saturday afternoon.
He waded into the water at his enclosure before having a short spasm and then dying in front of hundreds of zoo visitors.
Wild polar bears live between 15 and 20 years, but animals in captivity can last much longer.
According to some reports, Knut collapsed after mating with several females.
Berlin Zoo has said it will carry out a post mortem on Monday to establish the cause of death.
Knut was rejected by his mother after his birth on December 5, 2006, along with his twin brother, who died a few days later.
He first attracted attention when his main keeper camped out at the zoo to to give him his bottle every two hours.
Fan clubs soon sprang up across the globe, including in Japan and the United States.
In 2007 Knut even appeared on the front cover of Vanity Fair alongside Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio.
Knut retained his legion of fans despite piling on the pounds and his fur turning a yellowy colour.
News of his death quickly spread via Twitter, Facebook and text messaging.