The city and this site is abuzz with news of new public restrooms that cost only $.25 and are self-sanitizing. The standalone units give one 15 minutes to do your business before scrubbing itself down in advance of the next user. Sounds like a nice convenience, although some people wondered who needs 15 minutes in a restroom other than those with gastro-health problems, drug users, and couples looking to engage in some quasi-public-private sex. Commenter JenChungsBra wondered if his experiences in Central America and their free market ass-wiping conventions could improve Gotham's space-age installations:

I liked the system in Chichicastenango in Guatemala. An old man sits at a table outside the public restroom (some grungy holes in the floor of a tin shack) and sells you toilet paper. Put down your two quetzals and he measures off a length of paper with his arm, tears it from a roll and hands it to you. If you think it's not enough you can give him another two quetzals and get some more. more ›

The best way to reuse plastic bags is to let your young children play with them! They make wonderful and amusing toys. A great favorite of all children is playing 'Spaceman', using a plastic bag as a make believe Flash Gordon style helmet!

Today we looked at Mayor Bloomberg's snacking habits. Was the banisher of trans-fat recently seen with an open bag of Cheez-Its on his desk? We'll likely never know (at least, not until his greasy fingerprint-laden desk set is back from the lab). While we await the results of the faux cheese traces, let's take a look at what some of our commenters had to say: more ›

Mayor Bloomberg's trip to the University of Oklahoma to caucus with a bipartisan group of current and former politicians and grouse about Washington gridlock only fueled the fires of speculation that he is preparing a Presidential run. People are already strategizing about who his ideal running mate would be. Bloomberg is sticking to his (anti-)guns, however, and still claiming that he is not a candidate. But his pollster told the LA Times that our Mayor is seriously considering a run and will make a decision in the next two months. more ›

Image cropped from Madison Square Garden, by howsentimental at flickr more ›

Today we wrote a post on one-time Long Island Lolita Amy Fisher's contention that she was not appearing publicly to celebrate the release of her sex tape, but simply that she got paid a lump sum of money for the video of her having sex with her husband and that she agreed to talk about it publicly as part of her deal with the porno verite's distributor. She also didn't appreciate the editing that made her look bad on her Good Morning America appearance. Unless the show digitally edited that fake leopard fur vest onto her, we doubt that was the real problem with her appearance. more ›