Happy Halloween!

Save the Flowers - Would-be scent engineers aim to resurrect lost floral fragrance

No one knows what's responsible for this waning of fragrance by roses and other ornamental-flower varieties, including carnations and chrysanthemums, but scientists who investigate floral scent suspect that the flower breeding that's led to an estimated 18,000 rose cultivars in an ever-widening spectrum has run roughshod over fragrance.

"Pigment compounds are derived from the same biochemical precursors [as scent compounds are], so it makes sense that if you make more of one you get less of the other," notes floral-scent biochemist and geneticist Eran Pichersky of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

I, for one, often choose my roses strictly on scent. That's one thing I missed most at our new house: not having my rose garden. Gonna have to start one next year...

Rip and Goodbye (@ What Do I Know?)

I started working on a new project this past weekend...the complete dissolution of my library of compact discs.

I've been wanting to do this for a while now, and especially since we moved this year: What's the point of carting around and storing my wall of CDs when I never listen to them? Put everything in iTunes, keep a limited number of CDs, and maybe get Airport Express to share music throughout the house. Perhaps this would be a good winter project...

The Red Sox were eliminated from the playoffs one week ago today. And since then, here in New England it's rained every single day, with more to come in the next couple days. Coincidence? Well, yes, but still...

Why Do-It-Yourself Photo Printing Doesn't Add Up (NY Times)

Despite the ceaseless efforts of manufacturers to convince consumers that printing at home is fast, convenient and a whole lot of fun, the evidence shows that many people are tuning out the marketing.

I have to say, I gave up printing photos at home last year. I bought a Canon i950 photo printer early last year (or was it 2003?) and really liked it for a while. But soon I got sick of color correcting, fading photos, and replacing ink. Now I just order my prints right from iPhoto and my life is easier and our photo album looks better. So if you're interested in a slightly used i950 printer, let me know...

A short summary of the '05 Sox: Red-letter moments: Sox' season marked by series of ups and downs

A Test of Faith @ Surviving Grady

What a difference a year makes. Last October, this would have been a profanity-filled rant with all sorts of illogical reasons why the Sox are doomed to break our hearts and spirits again. Now, I know better; this is simply a test. For all the fans who swore up and down after the 2004 ALCS that they would never lose faith, it is time to put up.

Yes, we are down 2 games to none. Yes, last night was a nut-buster. Yes, the sins of the 2005 season were all repeated and wrapped up in a nice little one-game summary; poor defense, no timely hitting, swinging at first pitches and a serious lack of hustle. But still I have faith. The Red Sox have been in this situation before. In 1999 to Cleveland and in 2003 to Oakland. In both cases, they prevailed, and against better teams than the White Sox.

I gotta tell ya, I really enjoyed this past year of watching the Red Sox and not hearing anything about Babe Ruth, 1918, Bucky Dent, Bill Buckner, or "86 years." Very nice...