Looking for a break from the headlines dominating your workday? Weary from breaking news about March Madness, Malaysia Flight 370, Hobby Lobby and Obamacare at the Supreme Court?
Here’s a few fun, quirky, noteworthy and just plain happy bits to chew on during your Hump Day lunch break.
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In a rare showing of bipartisan cooperation, support in Congress is growing for the building of a national museum on women on or near the National Mall, the New York Times reports today.
Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have passed versions of legislation in support of such a museum over the last decade, but never during the same Congress. Some have raised doubts about whether supporters could come up with the estimated $500 million needed to build it.
“I don’t know of a national museum anywhere in any of the capitals of the world that chronicles the achievements of women,” Representative Carolyn Maloney of New York said. “I find that astonishing.”
The group pushing the project said that it had already raised $14 million for the museum.
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Ever wonder where emoji — those cute, quirky pictures that show up in texts and tweets — come from? The Wall Street Journal has the answer, along with a graphic that has everything you’ve ever wanted to know about those little characters.
Spoiler alert: It turns out there really is an emoji “governing body” of sorts.
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Per this piece in Salon, fans of the long-running television series “The Office” can now while away their workday hours viewing “The Office Time Machine,” an online catalog of every cultural reference ever made in episodes of the show.
There’s more to the compendium than just fun, though, creator Joe Sabia said:
I created this project to advocate for copyright reform and highlight the importance of fair use in protecting creators and their art. To prove culture is not only everywhere, but that certain references to films, songs, and works of art are critical for our collective understanding of comedy and to the importance of relating to content, I found every cultural, real-life reference from every episode of The Office.
Here’s a clip of references from 1993:
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No, it’s not necessarily new (now playing on YouTube with more than 140 million views), or offbeat (you’ll see plenty during March Madness coverage), but the Pharrell Williams video “Happy” is just that, and a great way to get over the hump today.
Happy Wednesday!
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