The Aztec Death Whistle is shaped like a human skull and produces a hideous shrieking sound, as if conjuring up 1000 piercing human screams. These whistles have been discovered in burial site excavations. Scholars believe that they played a role in warfare or burial ceremonies. Either way, they make a pretty awful sound. Here’s a ..read more

This Thursday, Feb 27 marks National Toast Day, an important annual celebration that commemorates this versatile form of bread. Toast for breakfast? Toast for brunch? Snack? PB&J? Is there anything toast can’t do? National Toast Day is celebrated on the last Thursday of February each year, which means that this year it overlaps with National ..read more

So what are you doing on Feb 26th? I hope you can join me for the 2025 BakerHostetler Master Class on Labor Relations and Employment Law. This is our group’s signature annual event, and we are bringing it back to Cleveland. Be ready for a full day of high-level discussion on cutting edge topics and ..read more

I ran a search for songs about Washington DC. I didn’t recognize any that popped up, but there is one that caught my eye — and ear. “Washington DC Hospital Center Blues” is a 1966 release by blues guitarist Skip James. You can check it out here. Although it may seem like nothing newsworthy is ..read more

They paved paradise and put up a parking lot. When Joni Mitchell wrote “Big Yellow Taxi,” she had just arrived in Honolulu. She was inspired by the view outside her hotel window, with beautiful green mountains in the distance and, closer to the hotel, a “parking lot as far as the eye could see.” Ugly ..read more

Everyone has New Year’s Resolutions. Except me. My wife asks me every year, and every year I politely decline. She doesn’t like when I do that. Some people pledge to lose weight, to get skinnier. This post is about getting skinny with your handbook for 2025—just for temps. Do you provide your employee handbook to ..read more

There have been many notable Bills in rock music. There’s Billy Joel, Billy Idol, and Billy Ocean. Remember Billy Ocean? “Carribean Queen”? Subtitled “(No More Love on the Run).” Billy O gave us this ridiculous video that screams 1980s and includes such bad lip synching that you know, right away, he never could have pulled ..read more

A South Korean man was sentenced to one year in prison for binge eating and getting too fat. It isn’t always illegal to get fat in South Korea, but it is if you do it to dodge mandatory military service, which is what this guy did. His friend, who created the weight-gain plan, was sentenced ..read more

Remember Rick Astley? Yes, this guy. And this song. I assume he had other songs but I know of none of them. I recently read a Reddit post that offers the Astley Paradox. And it’s a good one. If you ask Rick Astley for his copy of the movie Up, he cannot give it you ..read more

This clever illustration of sampling bias is from @sketchplanator. Marketers, under California law, provide “professional services.” So do photographers, fine artists, travel agents, barbers, foresters, human resource administrators, and a grab bag of other miscellaneous service workers. But not construction workers, lawyers, electricians, nannies, or dog walkers. Why does this matter? Well, California’s new Freelancer ..read more