libkitty, remove the "Pix" and you know who I am. I'm not terribly sneaky.

I keep trying to think of you as being terribly sneaky in other contexts, just for the quip, and I think it's possible that there are contexts where you are, but I just can't think of them right now. No, wait! I know! You were terribly sneaky with the whole Seekrit Santa thing. Wonderfully, terribly sneaky.

You, I had figured out sweetie. And I would do an emoticon here, only I just can't.

The board is single posts with regular speed for me. At least it has been.

I'm a shame to my Hungarian roots: I can't eat spicy food. Not even what people will consider as "but that's not spicy, Shir" food.

I used to blame my geographical tongue (I'm not sure if that's the term - it looks like it has a lot more "cuts" on it than other people's tongues) about it, but it has changed through adolescence so it can't be called geographical as much as in the past.

And I know I'm missing out some amazing food there, but I. Just. Can't.

Edit: and oh, just as an example? I can't have the salsa that comes with the chips without a glass of ice-cold water, toilet paper, tears and ice cream after it.

Shir, the palate's response to capsaicin (the hot in hot peppers) is mostly genetically determined -- if you have the usual genes, it gives you an intensification of taste as receptors mediate a painful stimulus into a pleasant buzz. But if you don't have that function, it'll just be unpleasant/painful, and no amount of moral strength is going to make a difference.

It's not you being a wimp, OK? It'd be like blaming someone for being color-blind or having red hair. Just tell the pepper-lovers that there'll be more for them.

According to Israeli, Syrian and Turkish press, Israel and Syria are having official peace talks in Ankara.

Now, it's not that it doesn't light the fragment of hope I had in my heart, but it looks way too much like a media spin after last night's headlines with the "hey, let's not kill each other as much as we used to" agreement with Hamas (Egypt is the mediate in this case) about Gaza Strip (which, btw, didn't address Gilad Shalit issue at all) dismissed as "yeah, we'll see what happen and kill accordingly", the investigations against Olmert and... well, let's face it, 90% of the other headlines. Not to mention the almost lack of reports about what the fuck is happening in Lebanon.

Oh, Theodosia, you're sweet (and hey, I'm also color-shade blind!). Now I'm feeling better that even carbonated beverages stings my tongue (but I can handle them).

Have any of you ever used BookMooch? [link] I have such a glut of books I don't want that need a new home. I'm thinking this is a doable solution.

I think Megan tried it, and ended up spending more money than she wanted sending books all over the world (esp. Europe), and not really seeing a lot that she wanted in return.

Also, I want to try all this super-spicy Thai food.

I just heard that some doctor predicts Ted Kennedy has less than a year to live, which makes me sad, and reminds me of the story my coworker told me yesterday. She said the family is cursed, because some Jewish family in Europe in the 30s or 40s asked Joe Kennedy for help getting out, and he refused. So the head of that family cursed him with the fate of his own family. Since they were killed, so were Kennedys.

(Not that I think my coworker literally believes this, and not that I think a brain tumor in your 70s is such an untimely death....)

In Junot Diaz's book he talks about how Dominicans believe the Kennedy family is cursed with fukú because JFK called for the assassination of Trujillo.

(the book so far is fab!)

According to Israeli, Syrian and Turkish press, Israel and Syria are having official peace talks in Ankara.

Yet in the US if anyone thinks about even talking with Syria or Hamas, they are accused of appeasement and betraying Israeli.

Oh well...