Newsmakers & Random Thoughts

TIME SHIFTING: Space.com reports that the massive 8.8 earthquake that struck Chile Saturday may have altered the Earth's rotation and shortened the length of the planet's days, according to a NASA scientist. The seventh-strongest earthquake in recorded history, he says, might have depleted the length of a day by 1.26 milliseconds.

Great. And I just bought some new jeans from Gap. Now they're going to be out of fashion that much faster.

BABIES IN BARS: Let's see. Life's leading annoyances: double-wide strollers, children running in public without adult supervision, babies crying in planes... and kids in bars. You might think I don't like youngsters. Not so. It's bad parents I detest.

An article that appeared on CNN.com today, addressed the bad habit—here in Brooklyn—of stay-at-home daddy Matt Gross, who has stirred a mini-controversy by bringing his 14-month-old daughter out to drink with him. His claim: He gets stir-crazy at home and likes to enjoy a stout with his little girl. Others in the story claim that in New York, the cost of baby-sitters is prohibitive and apartments are too small to host guests. Gross whines, "I long for adult contact. ... I don't want to be excluded from the adult world." So he takes his wee one out to pubs in his Park Slope nabe.

Meanwhile, a post on blog Brooklynian begs, "Which bars in Brooklyn are child free?" It merited 150 responses.

The deal is, if a bar serves food, it's legally considered a "restaurant"—and in NYC, you pretty much can't get a tavern license if you don't—meaning that most every destination might as well be considered all-ages. Here's my deal: There are plenty of places for mommy and daddy to take the kids, where you can grab a drink. Go to Chuck E. Cheese, which indeed does serve beer (I just checked) and make peace with the fact that you're a breeder. In 18 years, we look forward to seeing you again!

HEY, IT'S CELINE: My pal Christa, who just took over the Backbeat society page in Billboard from our dearly departed Kristina—which I founded at the beginning of the decade—found space, alongside her rock and metal faves, for Celine! It's an exclusive, from the Miami premiere of her movie, "Through the Eyes of the World."PARTRIDGE FAMILY REUNITED: Good god, after I just mentioned the Partridge Family earlier today, in my post about Karen Carpenter, a few of the original cast united on "The Today Show": Cassidy, Danny Bonaduce, Suzanne Crough and Brian Forster.

I met the first hero of my life, David Cassidy, when he appeared with (everlasting love) Sheena Easton in Vegas for a sadly lame show, "At the Copa," in 2000. He was pretty much an arrogant ass. Sheena was not nearly as kind about him... At Billboard, I interviewed Danny Bonaduce a couple times during his run as an afternoon DJ in New York radio, and he was remarkably gracious. I met his wife, partied with them, had dinner and wrote some really good shit. A wild man, for sure, but appreciative of what history has granted him.

AND FINALLY: Because there's no big story to tell here, I simply offer Chuck at 16... with my beloved pepes of the day. This pic was taken around the turn of the decade (okay, the one that began 30 years ago), taken at J.T. Thornhill's summer lake house. We were all there... the ultimate group photo of the day. I look over these faces, and remember every name and so many stories associated from so long ago. Ain't life grand?(Okay, I get it: Where am I? The tall dude, center, back row.)