Monday evening roundup

Got mercury?

What's more romantic than Occupy DC?

The Post's website has way too much going on.

The Onion on Rick Perry.

Oh, here's a despicable comment about the First Lady.

Recycling hotel soap is brilliant.

Here's one thing I won't be making just because I can.

You've got to be f*ing kidding me. I've been thinking about how you really, really shouldn't change yourself. I mean, you should, in that you should always be thinking about genuine self-improvement. If you're an asshole, by all means, get some therapy and see if you can not be one. But changing who you are because of what you think other people want can only end in tears. You only end up confusing yourself.

Look, I'm not an expert on relationships or dating, but right now I'm in a very happy relationship with someone who not only accepts me for who I am, but likes me for who I am. And I am a talkative, crass, vegan with a cat. I just had dinner with a couple of friends who said, "when you told us you were vegan, we thought, 'does she never want to have sex again?'" I have another friend who implored me not to tell potential dates that I was a vegetarian, much less vegan. It may be that veganism a turn-off for 99 percent of single men--at least this is what many friends of mine appear to believe--but why am I going to date those men anyway? Years ago, I was out on a date with a guy who asked me if I'd ever deep-fried a turkey. When I told him I was a vegetarian, he damn-near fainted. Why on earth would anyone do that? "Meat is so good," he insisted. The concept of altering one's eating habits for ethical reasons was completely ridiculous as far as he was concerned. Now, do you think he would have been a good match for me? I would rather be "rejected" by an infinite number of those guys than attract one by lying about who I am.

You can, and you will, lose your f*ing mind reading "what men want" advice columns. They've made me sick, struck me as wrong, ever since I was a pre-teen. I recently came across one that made me wonder what century we were living in; one guy said, "just don't ask me to do the dishes."

You can go on "there's a Jack for every Jill," or you can question that sometimes and realize you're still better off on your own than betraying yourself.