Yes the weather. Because only in Minnesota can I walk down the street when its forty degrees (four Celsius) out and have random passers by remark, "Lovely weather we're having." And mean it too.

Because after weeks of subzero temperatures, by comparison forty feels down right sweltering. Minnesota weather makes us tough, so when civilization inevitably collapses, Minnesotans will be ready.

"What about that ancient Mayan prediction?" I hear you say, "Those Mayans invented basketball centuries before the Canadians, surely the they knew when the end of the world was nigh." Well that's the thing. It turns out that the Mayan's didn't actually predict the end of the world.

You see, December 21, 2012 is just the end of the thirteenth B'ak'tun. Without going into the details of the Mayan calendar, the B’ak’tun is the largest unit of measurement regularly used in the Mayan calendar (it's about 395 solar years). In other words it's like we're rolling over from 1999 to 2000 (or 2000 to 20001 for you purists). Did the world end in 2000/2001? Nope.

We can also look to the previous ends of B'ak'tun to help us predict the future. The 12th B'ak'tun ended September 18, 1618, but the world kept on ticking. June 15, 1224: no end of the world. March 13, 830... I think you get my point.

So instead of all this doom and gloom, I think we should throw one heck of a party. A New B'ak'tun's Eve party, as it were.

But wait... didn't I say I also had bad news?

Oh yeah. Yellowstone is experiencing a swarm of earthquakes. The last time Yellowstone erupted it was 1,000 times more powerful that Mount Saint Helens and covered the western half of America with ash.

Happy New Year.

I love not working.

What is not to love? Sleeping in until ten, relaxing all day, actually getting to update Matthew J. Hanson.com? The slow depreciation of my savings? Okay well there is that. Which leads us to the central conflict in my life: the desire to not work verses the desire to have money. Not a lot of money, just enough to pay for food, rent, and a little left over.

So on my days off I seek a way to reconcile these conflicting goals. Alas my Matthew J. Hanson.com store is not yet selling enough merchandise to keep me in the black. Perhaps somewhere out there, there is a get rich quick scheme that isn't too good to be true.

In the mean time, I guess I just watch Japanese people sing about Barak Obama.