The New York Times: The Diluted Mystery of Absinthe starts out with a headline of “Care for an Absinthe? Ptooey!” which made me giggle. But the best stuff I must quote:
If absinthe were a band, it would be Interpol, third-hand piffle masquerading as transgressive pop culture. If absinthe were sneakers, it would be a pair of laceless Chuck Taylors designed by John Varvatos for Converse. If it were facial hair, it would be the soul patch. If absinthe were a finish on kitchen and bath fixtures, it would be brushed nickel.
and then later on:
You could say that absinthe is a kindred spirit of so many falsely subversive things: ear piercing for men, tattoos on women, those cigar bars, pole-dancing-aerobics classes, mind erasers, blogging about one’s bikini grooming, naming one’s bong after a cartoon character.
and tops it off with:
“It was lots of people who knew each other through the online absinthe community,” he added. (Like Chuck Norris ephemera and role-play games, absinthe has a big Internet presence.)…”
I hope it wasn’t just me who was ROTFL