The United States Mint will commemorate Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday year in 2009 with four new penny designs. The familiar front will remain the same and four different designs on the reverse will depict four stages of Lincoln’s life. The first design will enter circulation on February 12, 2009 with subsequent ones released in 3 month intervals. The Lincoln penny was originally created in 1909 at Lincoln’s centennial.

A 478 carat diamond has been discovered at a mine in Lesotho. Said to be the 20th largest rough diamond ever found, the stone is of remarkable clarity and color. It could likely yield a 150 carat cut stone.

A lovely N.Y. Times obituary for John Peragallo Jr., president of the Peragallo Pipe Organ Company and keeper of the organs at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Building an organ “combines the skills of a musician (Mr. Peragallo was a good organist himself) with those of a woodworker (organs can have elaborate cabinetry), leatherworker (the valves that let air into the pipes are made of leather), electrical engineer (most organs’ inner workings are now controlled electronically) and game warden (Mr. Peragallo sometimes had to flush nesting birds from the forest of pipes before he could begin his work).”

Jerry Traunfeld (longtime Herbfarm chef) has opened his own restaurant Poppy on Broadway in Seattle. Positive reviews are trickling in on blogs and Seattle Magazine got a full scoop, following his journey over several months.

I don’t know if it’s a reality television influence or perhaps this isn’t a new trend at all, but the N.Y. Times has recently “embedded” reporters as a flight attendant on American Airlines and as a nail polish technician at Fashion Week. Both reporters underwent training for their roles and spent time on the job without telling their customers. The flight attendant had the harder job of course, dealing with air rage and long shifts, but the nail tech did have to deal with the widely varying conditions of toenails on fashion models.

Ice cream substitutes for those allergic to both diary and soy are limited. Rice Dream’s version is unpalatable enough to make sorbet and fruit bars the yummiest alternative. Recently a parent at our son’s preschool (they deal with so many food allergies that they’ve restricted birthday treats to a sanctioned list) made ice cream from coconut milk to celebrate their child’s birthday. An Internet search turned up not only recipes but two companies that sell coconut ice cream, both available at our local Whole Foods: Coconut Bliss and Purely Decadent from Turtle Mountain. Both are vegan, made from organic ingredients, and sweetened with agave syrup. Both companies are in Eugene, Oregon. Several flavors are available, but all have a distinct coconut flavor, so if you’re not a coconut fan that may be offputting. But that essential ice cream texture is all there. Turtle Mountain has also just launched a coconut milk yogurt. (thanks for the unintentional twitter nudge, mathowie)

The San Diego Zoo has two locations, the San Diego Zoo in Balboa Park which is a typical zoo (plus pandas!) and the Wild Animal Park which is a large, open preserve with animals roaming “free.” The Wild Animal Park used to have a monorail ride call the Wgasa Bush Line (it’s been replaced with a driving tour). The origin of the word Wgasa has been been passed down as a zoo legend which Snopes has confirmed as truth. Tired of trying to come up with an appropriate African sounding name for the monorail, chief designer Chuck Faust scribbled down “WGASA” on the plans. The name, an acronym for “Who Gives a Shit Anyway,” took off amongst the project team and soon spread to the press who were told that it stood for “World’s Greatest Animal Show Anywhere.”

Keeping Your Shoes Shipshape, a very useful and tip-full Ask Martha column. A few years ago I decided I’d rather pay more and have fewer, longer-lasting, better quality shoes. But I’m still taking care of them like they were $15 Shoe Barn specials, so I may not be getting my full money’s worth on the “longer-lasting” part.

It’s sad that the town of Duluth, Minnesota has decided to sell a Tiffany stained glass window located in their cultural center, which used to be a Union Railrod Depot. Duluth has a $6.5 million budget shortfall and appraisers have estimated the window’s value at $2.9 million. If a local buyer cannot be found soon, the window will be put up for auction. (via Luxist)

Kennedy Center Honors for 2008 will go to Morgan Freeman, George Jones, Barbra Streisand, Twyla Tharp, and Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of The Who.