1. "Doogie, I swear...": Blogger Eric Henderson, of the inimitable When Canses Were Classeled, writes what is probably the definitive statement on that whole Neil Patrick Harris thing.

["You may as well know that it wasn't incessant, tasteless goading from that ubiquitous, self-promoting blogger who shall remain unnamed that brought Doogie out of the transparent closet, but rather my fraternal patience and understanding. OK, that's a lie. It was my slow-burning, firm, Lauren-Bacall-in-Written-on-the-Wind-esque sense of moral self-righteousness that finally slapped the double life off his face. As I've previously revealed, my interest in his well-being and psychological recovery is complicated and bloody—in fact, I sometimes bolt awake in the dead of 8 a.m. from horrific dreams in which William Finley is trying to separate us with a rusty meat cleaver."]

["Jacques Rivette emerged out of the postwar milieu of movie love in Paris. As a young film enthusiast, he joined forces with the group of critics who would come to form the legendary film journal Cahiers du cinéma. From the start of his career, Rivette alternated between his twin loves of criticism and filmmaking, ultimately creating a self-knowing form of filmmaking, critically aware of its own place in film history. While much of Rivette's best work remains for the most part unseen, his 45-year career reveals a body of films that may be the most spectacular of all the French New Wave generation."]

["Filmed in austere conditions, the technical imperfections of Open City effectively contribute to the film's overall cinema verite appearance. The uneven film stock, salvaged from scrap reels, create a realistic, documentary appearance, blurring the distinction between the created story and the realized drama of postwar turmoil. The inconsistent lighting seems to reflect the frequent brownouts characteristic of fuel shortages and energy rationing. The rawness of Open City elicits a sense of realism to the film, as if experiencing an actual recorded document of a tragic period in history. It is also a testament to humanity's tenacity and perseverance, to the inexorable power of compassion and dignity. In essence, a chronicle of the soul."]

["We'll be brief: Hemingway once wrote a story in just six words ("For sale: baby shoes, never worn.") and is said to have called it his best work. So we asked sci-fi, fantasy, and horror writers from the realms of books, TV, movies, and games to take a shot themselves."]

["These are older words, above, but their urgency is no less deeply felt because of it. A viewing list, ten films whose role is to help in a struggle great or small, on some of which I promise to write in the next few months."]
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"Links for the Day": Each morning, the House editors post a series of weblinks that we think will spark discussion. Comments encouraged.