During a break from his never-ending quest to stop the world (melting with you: optional), official Mindreader anti-lock brake consultant Tobin passed along two pertinent links.

1: Color Me Redd … or Bluue … or Both?
When it comes to politics, much is made of red states and blue states; the colors indicate the party each state supports. (I tend to think one color is embarrassed and the other has been holding its breath too long, but I don’t think that’s the intent of the colors.) This view reveals party affiliation, but that’s about it.

Another view of the political landscape is available by examining individual politicians; this is what a website called Red, White or Blue seeks to do. But it doesn’t just present dry information; it presents it in the form of of a friendly bar graph that shows just how much a politician leans one way or another. And it shows (again) that for all the blue and red talk, there are plenty of purple politicians out there.

RWoB is a fairly new site, so its list is a bit short at the moment. Check back often; the list will be growing.

2: That Grande Caramel Macchiato is really a cry for help, you know

Starbucks has grown from a small Seattle coffeeshop to an international caffeine cult. But it turns out that a visit to Starbucks doesn’t just put a cup of expensive coffee in your hand; it also provides an easy personality test.

So tell me: what does your Starbucks order say about you?

Bonus link: 10k Maniacs

Buttafly.com, the site that furnishes the Starbucks personality test, also has a wonderfully snarky article questioning the practicality of many fundraising events:

It’s a nice thought to raise money for a charity by running in a 10K, but if you’re really dedicated to the cause why not just ask friends for money directly? If it’s a good cause most people will get out their checkbook and see what they can do. Who has ever said, “Well, I’d like to help find a cure for breast cancer, but could I see you run around the block first?”

If they must do something physical to earn my donation, why can’t it be something useful? Why isn’t anyone offering to clean my oven for AIDS or pick up my dry cleaning for cancer?

Go read the rest of the article. Seriously. It’s quality humor.