POSTED // Dec 31,2008 - nARIES (March 21-April 19)nIt’s a great privilege to live in a free country. You’re fortunate if you have the opportunity to pursue your dreams without having to ward off government interference or corporate brainwashing or religious fanaticism. But that’s only partly useful if you have not yet won the most important struggle for liberation, which is the freedom from your own unc...

POSTED // Dec 31,2008 - Curses, Foiled AgainnLuis Lora-Martinez, 29, was charged with using counterfeit money to tip dancers and pay for drinks at a go-go bar in Secaucus, N.J. U.S. Secret Service agent Cindy Wofford said workers at the club quickly realized the five $20 bills that Lora-Martinez passed were bogus because they were produced on a computer printer using regular quality paper and were of poor quality.nn&bull...

POSTED // Dec 31,2008 - As I stare into the beautiful dark sky above my home in Hawaii and see all the stars and satellites, I ponder the possibility of “space accidents.” With all those satellites up there, are there any collisions? I don’t suppose anybody is handing out OUIs (for orbiting under the influence), but how do they decide what satellite should go where? Who oversees all those orbits? Is it ...

POSTED // Dec 31,2008 - I want to know why Mexicans have such incongruous nicknames. In English, people have nicknames that have some relation to their given names—for example Kenny is the nickname for Kenneth, or Jenny for Jennifer. Granted, there are some nicknames that seem like a stretch of logic, like Jack for John and Peg for Margaret, but there are none so incompatible as Pepe for José, Pancho for Fra...

POSTED // Dec 24,2008 - nARIES (March 21-April 19) Most people spend their entire lives immersed in three modes of awareness: waking, sleeping, and dreaming. But there are many other modes that have been explored down through the ages by the pioneers of consciousness. Some of them aren’t very interesting to me—like those sought out by people who use cocaine or methamphetamines, for instance—while others...

POSTED // Dec 24,2008 - Curses, Foiled AgainnRobert E. Dendy, 59, dropped off a Christmas wreath at police headquarters in Tonawanda, N.Y., explaining it was a token of appreciation for the officers on duty. Believing that Dendy could not have afforded the wreath, suspicious officers called the supermarket next door to see if one had been stolen. According to the police report, store officials “stated that the wrea...

POSTED // Dec 24,2008 - I came across a piece of information that said that in the first half of the 20th century, pink was a boy’s color while blue was a girl’s color. But it didn’t say why the colors switched. I figured if anyone knew, it would be you, Cecil. Or at least you’d make up a good story and pretend you knew. —Jay B. nQuiet, churl. I never pretend. I merely put the truth in a dar...

POSTED // Dec 24,2008 - Dear Mexican: I was driving home on old King Road in San Jose, where a bunch of Mexicans live, and I noticed that almost every house has their Christmas lights still hanging from the rafters and reindeer and Santa Claus decorations weathered by the hot sun on the roofs. It’s the middle of May, ¿qué onda? I took it one step further, ‘cuz I figure I have to have another sou...

POSTED // Dec 17,2008 - nARIES (March 21-April 19)nWhat I foresee for you in 2009 is an upgrade in your approach to creating and maintaining your alliances. I envision you having dramatically enhanced intuition about how to connect with people in satisfying and interesting ways. I picture you being able to push beyond your habit-bound ways of conducting your relationships, ensuring that you’ll be entertained and mo...

POSTED // Dec 17,2008 - Can animals sense earthquakes? I’ve heard stories about cats carrying their litter of kittens out of a building just prior to a quake. Is there any truth in it? We’ve had two quakes in the last three hours, and my goldfish didn’t do a thing. —Nick E., Manchester, England n nOf course animals can sense earthquakes. Human beings can sense earthquakes. Some years ago, a frie...