A New Level of Cool Has Just Entered My Life

One of the great things about knowing people of varying ages from 30 years younger to 30 years older is the diversity of the information you receive. My latest discovery comes in the form of an adorable little 20-year old boy I call "kitten" (a term of deep, unblemished affection, I assure you). Well, I've actually discovered two things through him...1) 20 year old boys are much cuter, more intelligent and far more effortlessly sexy now than they were when I was that age and 2) www.pandora.com.

Pandora is, quite simply, one of the greatest ideas of the new millennium. It brings Internet radio into a whole new age. Relying on an extensive database of music and brilliant musicologists, Pandora is the brainchild resulting from over 6 years of research called The Music Genome Project.

Instead of just turning you over to a particular genre of sound, Pandora analyzes a song or artist you choose as a starting point, comparing 100's of attributes to thousands of other songs or artists and making suggestions based on that analysis. Going farther, it allows you to give the "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" to any song they play (two "downs" to any one artists and they will be completely deleted from your preferences). You can refine the suggestions by adding additional songs or artists. All this creates a "radio station". You can create an unlimited amount of radio stations, allowing you to indulge your tastes in vanilla ice cream, watermelon bubble gum, Sour Jelly Bellys or hash brownies. It is also a fantastic way to discover artists and songs you've never heard of before without any commitment or investment.

I will warn you in advance that it is another deliciously guilty pleasure that will keep you from doing what you're supposed to be doing. I was misusing my wireless connection in class last night to tune in to trance electronica instead of learning about distributable net income. Good thing I brought my digital recorder and taped the class.

At the moment, Pandora is a free, commercial-free service. Ultimately, you will be able to choose the free version with advertising added or pay for an ad-free version. Unlike VH-1's program choices, this is actually something worth checking out.

As for The Kitten...well, his 21st birthday is coming up on November 21st. After that I can legally take him to a bar for a drink and think my bad thoughts over Kamikaze shots instead of hot chocolate. me-OW!