The Good, the Bad, and the Curious (Links for the Week)

Yes, yes. I know these are late. I'm starting a new job next week (a week earlier than my little planning-happy self anticipated) and I've been somewhat discombobulated. Without further ado, the things that made me smile, sigh, and think this week:

The Good

How to Be a Dad ran a photo battle that comes to the conclusion that everything is cuter when it's a baby. 

Jon Bauer has an excellent article about bonding with strangers (h/t blue milk):

I'm not alone in experiencing this seemingly disproportionate reaction. Many of us have had a moment where, at a critical time, or even just a mildly stressful or lonely one, someone stepped from the shadows and did something. Not necessarily anything heroic or dramatic, but because they're strangers and they act at a particular moment, their kindness takes on extra significance. 

My once-housemate, Jane, was in Thailand when the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami hit. "There was a rush of survivors to higher ground, everyone sleeping out in the open in tight rows, all of us strangers and yet all of us holding hands," she recalls. "For those few days after the tsunami I felt like I was falling in love over and over again, with everyone I met. Every connection was heightened and intense."

Take the Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge! Here's 250 books Rory reads or mentions on Gilmore Girls. How many have you read? (I'm at 72) (h/t Offbeat Mama).

The Bad

Women Olympiads (on a better-performing team, no less) fly economy while their country's male team flies business class. (Thanks Kat for the link!)

An Ebola outbreak is spreading across Uganda.

The Curious

That anti-Obama ad about how those workers' hands built their business and how insulting his "you didn't build that" comment is? (I wrote about it here). Well, turns out the business featured in the got their start with hundreds of thousands in government loans. (I know. It should probably be in "The Bad" but it was just too funny.)

Black Girl's Guide to Weight Loss has two great posts on how to shop at Whole Foods without breaking the bank. It got me thinking about some tips I need to incorporate in my own grocery shopping. 

What have you been reading?