Wednesday evening roundup

Here's another opera you'd have to pay me to sit through.

It's about time Google Maps shows cyclists some love.

The budget director makes some good points as he defends federal salaries.

This personal finance article on how wealthy surroundings--people and otherwise--can make you feel poor goes well with the news that Alexandria is just one of a handful of metro DC communities that makes it onto Forbes' list of wealthiest communities. The article is interesting, but the study is deceptive--that's an odd choice respondents are given. Would purchasing power stay constant? That would be a huge factor in my decision. The phenomenon she describes isn't limited to differences in wealth; it's also an issue of spending habits. Jay and I have a mutual friend who may or may not out-earn either of us, but who pays no attention to her spending, so that evenings out with her somehow end in exorbitant bar or restaurant tabs. I really don't care about splitting a bill evenly when it's a relatively small difference, but when one person ordered half the menu (the more expensive half, at that) and insists on splitting, that's just annoying.

Guess who partook in socialized health care?