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Panel By Comic Panel, A Retail Clerk Exacts His Revenge
by Michael Barbaro, New York Times
Revenge comes in many forms. For Norm Feuti, it is a comic strip.

Bitter Brew
by Michael Idov, Slate
I opened a charming neighborhood coffee shop. Then it destroyed my life.

Ah, Those Innocent Days Full Of Magic
by Julie Myerson, The Times

Three Generations, One Vacation
by Joanne Kaufman, New York Times
Maybe that's the secret. Maybe multigenerational vacations are one of those practice-makes-perfect things.

Nick's Cultural Revolution
by David Barboza, New York Times
Viacom and other media giants are betting that China will change and develop a taste for some of the same hyperactive programs that are so attractive to young people in the United States, Europe and other parts of the world.

Brooklyn Angel
by Tristan Taormino, Village Voice
Joanna Angel builds a New York porn empire one sex comedy at a time.

In The Land Of The Brother Leader
by Michael J. Totten, LA Weekly
Vacation in Libya? Totalitarian tourism and the search fo truth... and a good meal.

Yeah, But The Book Is Better
by Thane Rosenbaum, Forward
When it comes to making a movie based on a book — or ultimately watching that movie — being too invested in the integrity of the novel is probably a bad idea.

It's Like 'Sex And The City,' Only The City Is Moscow
by Sophia Kishkovsky, New York Times
As much as modern-day Moscow can seem like New York, what with fast-paced lifestyles, pressure-cooker careers and comlicated relationships, Vera, Alla, Sonia and Yulia are not quite Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte.

Pen Vs. Sword
by Philip Kennicott, Washington Post
Editor Iryna Vidanava is pushing change in Belarus. The government is pushing back.

Chowing Down With The Hound
by Joe Yonan, Boston Globe
Jim Leff, a founder of the food-obsessed website CHowhound, explores the culinary delights of Framingham and Worcester.

The Lost Strudel
by Nora Ephron, New York Times
I don't mean food as habit, food as memory, food as biography, food as metaphor, food as regret, food as love, or food as in those famous madeleines people like me are constantly referring to as if they've read Proust, which in most cases they haven't. I mean food as food. Food vanishes.

Ensnared: Intenet Creates New Group Of Sexual Addicts
by Mariane Szegedy-Maszak, Los Angeles Times
Adding 200 sites a day, internet pornography seduces with never-ending variety.

For A City Unafraid Of A Little Public Snooze
by Patrick McGeehan, New York Times
The capital of "keep moving, keeping moving" is inviting its residents to kick back, relax and watch the rivers run.

Mealhada, Portugal: This Little Piggy Is A Tasty Lure
by Florence Fabricant, New York Times
Suckling pig is to Mealhada, a town in central Portugal, what cassoulet is to Toulouse: a culinary specialty that it calls its own.

Wish List: No More Books!
by Joe Queenan, New York Times
Cavalierly foisting unsolicited reading material upon book lovers is like buying underwear for people you hardly know.

Calendar Of Dreams
by Washington Post
A week is too short, a season too varied. But a month, roughly spanning the progress of he moon from null to full, turns out to match perfectly the human need to divide time into psychic units.

A City Bereft Without Its Living Room
by Francesco Guerrera, Financial Times
In most cities in the world, refurbishment of a hotel would barely register with long-term dwellers. But in Hong Kong, news that the lights at the Mandarain will go dark to allow for refurbishment has caused consternation and disappointment among the bankers, lawyers, ladies-who-lunch and, if truth be told, journalists who make up the expat community.

Family Values
by The Economist
Capitalism and sex-toys in China.

The Semi-Free State
by Laura Laing, Baltimore City Paper
When it comes to gay and lesbian families, Virginia's loss is Maryland's gain.

Finding God On Broadway
by Jesse McKinley, New York Times
It's a show with little advertising, no stars and a bok that is much older than your average matinee audience. But every Sunday evening, the 6 o'clock Mass at St. Malachy's, the Roman Catholic church on West 49th Street known as the Actors' Chapel, draws a regular crowd of religious-minded actors and other theater professionals who come seeking something that not even the applause of thousands of strangers can provide.

Transit Strike Throws Off The Meter Of N.Y.
by David Segal, Washington Post
The first transit strike in 25 years was timed for maximum impact, just days before Christmas, when the city is full of touriss. Great news for the 12,778 taxicabs circulating throughout New York, right? Well, it isn't.

It Will Lunge Towards You If You Stray Too Close, Or Try To Snatch Anything You Put In Its Mouth. Now It Has Become The Most Terifying Beast Of All - This Year's Must-Have Christmas Toy.
by Oliver Burkeman and Jonathan Watts, The Guardian
How did a plastic dinosaur with a brain the size of a pocket calculator take over the planet?

A Land Of Northen Lights, Cybercafes And The Flat Tax
by Mark Landler, New York Times
Estonia, one realizes after a few days in the abiding twilight of a Baltic winter, is not like other European countries.

With Pastries, They Pass Along Italian Tradition
by Emily Schwab, Boston Globe
Three generations of the large Italian-American Scavotto family gather at Diane and Jeff Kehoe's house every year to make cannoli.

A Christmas Chronicle
by Maile Meloy, Slate
How I learned the secret of Santa Claus' annual visit.

Just Another Displaced New Yorker
by Jeremy Seal, New York Times
Though Santa's home may no longer be in Manhattan, his spirit remains here, in the city so influential in his creation.

Lolita At 50
by Stephen Metcalf, Slate
Is Nabokov's masterpiece still shocking?

The War On "Munich"
by Michelle Goldberg, Salon
Neoconservatives launch a preemptive strike on Spielberg's latest, which dares to break the rules of post-9/11 political correctness.

They Can't Just Refill The Chairs
by Matea Gold, Los Angeles Times
Raging technology has forced the networks to rethink anchors' roles and the concept of nightly news.

Worlds Collide
by Jim Benning, Sun-Sentinel
Who needs duck a l'orange when there are fajitas, and a Frenchman in a cowboy hat, just around the corner?

Paradise Lost
by Michelle Boorstein, Washington Post
After years of hiding their love, Barbara Kenny and Tibby Middleton found a place where they felt comfortable being a couple — until Virginia's lawmakers chased them across the Potomac.

The Late, Late Corner
by Marc D. Allan, Los Angeles Times
Craig Ferguson can't speak for the nation the way Jonny Carson once did. He certainly can't outperform Leno or Letterman. But he can (and does) deliver late-night TV's most daring and inventive monol.

Lutes + Synthesizers + Rock Beats = America's Most Popular Christmas Music?
by Jody Rosen, New York Times
"Chip Davis owns Christmas. He is the Christmas king."

Pursuing The Scarcer Moviegoers
by Sharon Waxman, New York Times
With evidence increasing that the American moviegoing habit is in decline, theater owners are undertaking a concerted campaign to bring it back.

The Tannenbaum Equation
by Daniel Gross, Slate
Are holiday tree sales a leading economic indicator?

Finding The Perfect Tree Can Become A Perfect Outing
by Leslie Land, New York Times
Even if you'd rather save the picnicking for a football game, cutting your own Christmas tree feels festive.

King Kong's Monkey Love
by Joshuah Bearman, LA Weekly
Intimacy on the primate family tree.

The Great Xbox Shortage Of 2005
by Tm Harford, Slate
Never attribute to conspiracy that which can be explained by incompetence.

Becoming Mary Poppins
by Caitlin Flanagan, New Yorker
P.L. Travers, Walt Disney, and the making of a myth.

A Storybook Beginning
by David Mehegan, Boston Globe
Like most winners of a big prize, Jeanne Birdsall is bemused, stunned, and happy. But winning the 2005 National Book Award last month for her first children's novel, "The Penderwicks," seems not to please her as much as bonding with her lifelong literary heroes.

Japan Loves Its Little Villages, But Wants Fewer Of Them
by James Brooke, New York Times
Tokyo is resorting to a financial sleight of hand that is largely invisible to visitors to the countryside. It is cutting the numbers of towns and villages nearly in half.

How Do You Say 'D'oh!' In Arabic?
by Ashraf Khalil and Jailan Zayan, Los Angeles Times
'The Simpsons' travels to the Middle East and undergoes a few changes along the way.

Sesame Street Goes Global: Let's All Count The Revenue
by Doreen Carvajal, International Herald Tribune
The makeovers — in places like Bollywood, Paris, Tokyo and South Africa — are transforming what it means to be a Muppet.

'Tis The Season To Obsess About Food
by Ayelet Waldman, Salon
Thanksgiving yams, Chanukah latkes, Christmas cookies... for me, they all add up to a holiday-size serving of self-hatred.

Questions Of Faith
by Candida Crewe, Financial Times
What should you tell your children about God?

From "Toy Story" To "Chicken Little"
by The Economist
The introduction of digital technology has transformed animated films. But will computer-animated humans ever look realistic on screen?

It's A McWorld After All
by Ira Boudway, Salon
A writer and a photographer visit 30 families around the world to show us what the world eats — and how industrial food is creeping into every corner of the globe.

The Price Of Motherhood
by Steven E. Landsburg, Slate
Ready to have a baby? You'll earn 10 percent more if you wait a year.

Baccarat For Lovers
by Pandora Young, LA Weekly
Winning is a high, a buzz, a rush. It never feels random, even when it is. You're special, the chosen one, the fucking prom queen. Add to that the thrill of falling in love, and I was on one serious roller coaster.

Smithsonian Trades Its Cachet For Cash
by Blake Gopnik, Washington Post
If the Smithsonian bigwigs have really decided that money can be front and center in how they fill their spaces, then all sorts of options open up.

When Christmas Falls On Sunday, Megachurches Take The Day Off
by Laurie Goodstein, New York Times
Some of the nation's most prominent megachurches have decided not to hold worship services on the Sunday that coincides with Christmas Day, a move that is generating controversy among evangelical Christians at a time when many conservative groups are battling to "put the Christ back in Christmas."

Real Food Doesn't Hold Still
by Andrew Scrivani, New York Times
It's impossible to forget that mealtime was once sacrosanct, that life revolved around food and the family dinner table. The love of beautiful cookbooks is evidence that people still appreciate these values.

Could A New Reading Scheme Turn Britain's Children Into Bookworms?
by Steve McCormack, Independent
Synthetic honics can teach children how to read, but getting them to enjoy reading is the next challenge. An American method, currently being tried out in Britain, does just that.

Found: Old Wall In New York, And It's Blocking The Subway
by Patrick McGeehan, New York Times
Depending on which archaeologist you ask, it was built in the 1760's or as lolng ago as the late 17th century.

When We're Treated Like Criminals, Not Victims
by Natasha Walter, The Guardian
The tension between progress in women's equality and backlash is evident in our atitudes to sexual violence.

Some Advice To Katie: Look Before You Leap
by Ray Richmond, Hollywood Reporter
Couric's desire to move into the nightly news slot appears to be a case of chasing a dream that no longer exists.

Constant Travelers Wear Their All-Nighters As A Badge Of Pride
by Francine Parnes, New York Times
Most travelers view insomnia as an affliction.

Germans Told To Cheer Up. 'Why Should We?' Some Say.
by Richad Bernstein, New York Times
A broad campaign is Germany is trying to cheer up the presumably gloomy population, nudging Germans toward an unaccustomed optimism.

The Stay-At-Home Mystique
by Rebecca Traister, Salon
A new magazine, Total 180, is targeted at moms who have "opted out." But its papers are full of despairing screams, no sex, and women who are "let out" weekly by husbands.

Japan's Kamikaze Pilots And Contemporary Suicide Bombers: War And Terror
by Yuki Tanaka, Japan Focus
Ritualized violence and brutality as exemplified by suicide attack may constitute the most negative manifestations of a human being's desire to let one's own people live by sacrificing one's own life. However, war and violent conflict inevitably brutalize not only suicide attackers, but all human beings.

Why You Need Me
by William Raspberry, Washington Post
Some of us still need columnists.

Sex, Please — We're Young And Chinese
by Hannah Beech, Time
A generation after Mao suits, China is coping with an epidemic of free love.

Not Really A Morning Person?
by Matea Gold, Los Angeles Times
It's a tough choice for the networks: Nighttime has the prestige; daytime's where the money is.

The Soul Of Sundance's Machine
by John Clark, New York Times
The festival has become so famous it is practically synonymous with independent film, but until now, the process by which films are selected has remained a mystery within the industry.

The End Of Shopping
by Walter Kirn, New York Times
Will the high-tech perfection of shopping mean the end of shpping?

Blogging L.A.
by Scott Martelle, Los Angeles Times
The view from the web offers a different perspective on Southern California, whether it's politics, relationships or neighborhoods.

Our Brilliant Blues
by Regina Schrambling, Los Angeles Times
Creamy, rich and intense, the new American farmstead blue cheeses are uniquely linked to the land.

Cocktails: Raising The Bar
by Providence Cicero, Seattle Times
Are you ready for a Pumpkin Martini? How about an Evil Banana — or a Qince Mustard Margarita? Imbibers of the world, raise your glasses to the new golden age of the American cocktail.