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Joe Coulombe, founder of the Trader Joe’s chain of grocery stores, dies at age 89. “[H]e found a new way to offer products like a then-exotic snack food called granola and California-produced wines that compared with anything from France. And he tried to make shopping for them fun.” [more inside]
posted by sallybrown at 6:36 PM PST - 88 comments

Mefi's Own beijingbrown misted up my spectacles with his comic for the New Yorker Finding Relief from Coronavirus Anxiety.
posted by Mrs Potato at 1:56 PM PST - 33 comments

An (Almost) Comprehensive History of Rat Kings [Mental Floss] “Behold the rat king! A ball of furry fury, a rat king occurs when the tails of rodents become twisted, wrapped, and warped into a knot so impossible that not even the world's most loyal Boy Scout could untangle it. Rat kings have been reported since the mid-16th century (almost entirely within Germany), and everything about them—from their name, to their cause, to their very existence—remains suspended in mystery. [...] The rat king's existence is debatable; while there are several preserved specimens, they might be fakes perpetrated by hoaxers who wanted to make a quick buck. Owing to a lack of solid contemporary evidence, zoologists remain skeptical of rat kings—but open to the possibility that they are freak accidents.” [more inside]
posted by Fizz at 12:10 PM PST - 39 comments

Located in the center of the coastal state of Veracruz, a 30-minute drive from its capital, Coyolillo (Google maps) is one of the few towns that takes pride in the country's African roots and presence, identifying itself as an Afromestizo, or "Afromixed," town. Preparing for Carnaval in Coyolillo (Pulitzer Center). The carnival in Coyolillo [...] dates back more than 100 years. [...] The event is known for the colourful robes, capes and animal masks – of bulls, deer, goats and cows – worn by participants. As such, the carnival is a unique expression of African-Mexican folk art (Guardian, in pictures). [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief at 10:54 AM PST - 2 comments

“You’re faced with an early choice here: do you back Kim up in this rather straightforward situation (against a character who, I reiterate, is labeled only as Racist Lorry Driver), or do you, the guy with such extreme amnesia that he has a dialogue option to ask about the concept of money, suggest your partner is overreacting?” I Played Disco Elysium as an Absolutely Gigantic Fascist
posted by The Whelk at 10:46 AM PST - 20 comments

The Truth About Alligators in the Sewers of New York [SLNYT]
posted by chavenet at 10:38 AM PST - 9 comments

The secret link between jazz and physics: How Einstein & Coltrane shared improvisation and intuition in common. [more inside]
posted by youarenothere at 8:51 AM PST - 6 comments

"Pete Buttigieg is leading at 63 percent. Andrew Yang came in second at 46 percent. And Elizabeth Warren looks like she’s in trouble with 0 percent. These aren’t poll numbers for the U.S. 2020 Democratic presidential contest. Instead, they reflect which candidates were able to consistently land in Gmail’s primary inbox in a simple test."
posted by clawsoon at 8:33 AM PST - 87 comments