Aloha, Suckers

As of this Saturday I'll be on my way to Hawaii!! Sweet. I'll be attempting to maybe check in and post a few things even when I'm gone, but in my absence I'm leaving a few tips on what to do until I return:

1) Cry.

2) Curl up in the fetal position in the shower and cry.

3) Curl up in the fetal position in the shower and cry and then get out and dry yourself and get dressed (optional) and then check my blog so you can:

4) Read this poem by Sharon Olds, a well-known poet and favorite of my roommate, Joris. Slate features a new poem every week and they're consistently good.

5) Visit Chicago-based publishing company Featherproof Books' website. They even have free mini-books that you can download, print, fold together and read. It's perfect for the bus, train or boring family dinner. I'd start with Elizabeth Crane's Donovan's Closet, but that's just me.

6) Check out one of my newest links, A Movie A Day. It seems like the cool new thing to do is give yourself a project to cram in a bunch of stuff during a certain amount of time and then write a blog about it (a la Julie & Julia by Julie Powell based on her blog). This guy watches one movie every day and then writes well-informed reviews about it.

7) Read the other of my newest links, BookSlut. This is already a pretty well-known website but they do get great interviews with interesting authors and I'd thought that since this is a blog about everything pop culture, I should include this.

8) For anyone that loves food, there's a ton of good food blogs out there. My sister turned me on to The Comfort Zone. She makes great stuff, takes great pictures of it, and then tells you how they came to look so good without rambling on over every single detail. She's also based out of Australia so you know she's cool because Australians are cool.

9) Read this column by Mindy Raf. Lauren got me hooked on the NY comedienne's blog, and she writes great columns for College Humor as well as other websites, too. This particular one is about all the stupid things guys have said to her on dates (you really won't believe some of them), but be sure to check out her other columns, too. Also, visit her blog to check out her letters to annoying New Yorkers, Forever 21, and other popular institutions.

That's it for now. I figure a Top 10 would be too predictable, so I'm leaving you with 9. I hope this amuses you all while I'm gone. Hopefully when I return I'll have pics to share with everyone.

Woo-hoo! I'm off to Hawaii!