NYTimes.com: Hahn-Bin Straddles Classical Music and Fashion

WHEN the young violinist Hahn-Bin appeared onstage for a recent matinee at the Morgan Library and Museum, a gasp trickled through the audience, which consisted mostly of silver-haired classical-music enthusiasts. Clad in a black sleeveless kimono, dark raccoon-eye makeup and a high mohawk, the soloist resembled an apocalyptic Kewpie doll.

Google Images of Hahn-Bihn

You really have to check out the images to understand.  Somehow I don’t think this is the way to draw new fans to classical music.

NYTimes.com: Inmates Help States Fill Budget Gaps

No inmates have escaped, and sometimes, Mr. Mullahey said, their criminal backgrounds are assets. Inmates with drug offenses already know how to grow plants, and when a university employee lost the key to a file cabinet, a prisoner with lock-picking experience helped him break in.

I wonder what other inmate skills have yet to be tapped.  Perhaps a ponzi scheme to save our economy?

Seriously, it seems to make sense to have prisoners as cheap labor for governments, but how does this help by taking jobs that would have gone to the private sector?

I’ve been running my own business since 1993 and I still can’t figure out how companies can make money selling products this cheaply. 

On slickdeals.net, I saw a deal from Mertiline.com- an 11-LED Adjustable Camping Light Lantern.  Listed at $5.14, the price dropped to $1.99 shipped with a coupon code.   Meritline.com is always on slickdeals.net, with incredible deals for cables and small electronic items.  I placed the order for the light on February 11 and it arrived eleven days later- from Singapore!
Inside the padded yellow envelope was a small box that contained lamp.  The lamp was a little smaller than I had envisioned- not quite pocket sized, but not much bigger than my iPhone as shown in the picture below.

The lamp body has a slightly rubbery plastic construction that is not excessively cheap feeling, but probably wouldn’t survive a drop on a hard surface.  But most importantly the lamp works with decent brightness and is a nice little lamp for power outages, keeping in the glove compartment, or camping trips.  It definitely exceeds my expectations for a $1.99 product.

This lamp has to be a loss leader for Meritline, but it seems like their entire catalog is full of loss leaders.  With free shipping it almost begs someone to buy just this one item.  And how can you make money just shipping this one item from Singapore for only $1.99?  I weighed the lamp with packaging and it would cost around $2.70 just to ship it anywhere in the U.S.  Shipping from Singapore has to cost nearly nothing since there has to be at least some cost for making the item.  In my mind, it really doesn’t add up. 

Since Meritline has been around for 16 years, they must have figured out a way to make it work.  That this is not just a case of losing money on every product, but making it up in volume.

ESPN.com: Caltech ends 26-year conference skid

The Caltech men’s basketball team ended a 26-year conference losing streak Tuesday night after posting a 46-45 victory over Occidental in the team’s regular-season finale on senior night.

It was the first victory for the Division III Beavers since beating the University of La Verne 48-47 on Jan. 23, 1985, a span of 310 games in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play.

Wow.

I hate getting a traffic ticket as much as the next person, but I still respect police officers for doing a difficult job.

Ohio Governor John Kasich doesn’t seem to share the same level of respect. It’s a little shocking Kasich’s level of arrogance and condescension as he repeatedly refers to an officer as an idiot for doing just doing his job.  Kasich is apologizing today, but I don’t see how an apology makes up for his scornful attitude towards the police.

AppleInsider.com: ‘Smurfs’ Village’ iOS in-app purchases reportedly catch Apple’s ire

“Apple has told Capcom in no uncertain terms that its freemium children’s game has been causing problems with an increasingly significant number of parents who have complained that their children have been racking up large amounts of in-app purchases without their knowledge,” the report said.

I downloaded this free app when it came out a couple of months ago and was shocked to see in-app purchases of up to $99.99.  $99.99 will buy you a “wagon of 2000” Smurfberries.  Smurfberries are needed to speed up tedious parts of the game, which to me is pretty much the entire game.  This game seems only designed to promote in-app purchases and to prey on those who are addicted to it.

NYTimes.com: With Etherea Concept, Infiniti Downsizes for European Market

Why not introduce it for the U.S. market?  Smaller cars don’t all have to be econoboxes!

If you love Battlestar Galactica like I do, then you’ll love the company Anovos.  They have the license to create uniforms for Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek.  They’re fanatical in creating exact uniform replicas using the exact materials and patterns.

Right now, they’ve begun selling the iconic Battlestar Galactica double tank tops that are worn in nearly every scene of the show.  I’m definitely getting one! 

ANOVOS is excited to offer the Battlestar Galactica Double Tank Top costume World Wide.  Using the exact same fabric and derived patterns used by the BSG costume department, there is no comparison to the authentic look and feel. Made from a finely-combed Rayon/Polyester/Spandex mix, the fabric is as stunning as it is comfortable.