Dave Itzkoff To provide the voice of the incomprehensible Young MacGuffin in the Disney/Pixar feature "Brave," Kevin McKidd revived the Doric dialect he spoke as a kid in the Scottish city of Elgin. "It's incredibly thick and very strange and contains some words that don't even sound like English," says McKidd, the "Trainspotting" lost soul turned "Grey's Anatomy" heartthrob. He says his countrymen are pleased that the film will give "the Doric" such wide exposure. "It's definitely a first," McKidd notes. And will probably be the last. The Meh List Greg Veis An "open bar" with just beer and wine The fourth inning The election so far "The Price Is Right" with Drew Carey Middle cars of roller coasters Weather tweets Wafer cones Flesh of My Flesh Maud Newton Long before Michael Herr collaborated with Stanley Kubrick on "Full Metal Jacket," he ascribed much of the brilliance of Kubrick's "Lolita" to the novelist and lone credited screenwriter, Vladimir Nabokov. In fact, as the critic Lary Wallace has noted, Nabokov all but attributed the writing to Kubrick. "Only ragged odds and ends of my script had been used," he said. Birds Have Feelings Too Hope Reeves Rovio, the Finnish company behind Angry Birds, is releasing a new animated series this fall that will explain why the birds are, among other things, so miffed. "It's about telling more engaging stories . . . and deeper thoughts, deeper feelings of the characters, such as why are they always so angry," Nick Dorra, the company's head of animation, announced. Those who want more insight will have to wait a year or two, when a feature film will be released. Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Flavor by Year of Retirement Marnie Hanel Economic Crunch: 1987 Ethan Almond: 1988 Sugar Plum: 1990 Fresh Georgia Peach: 1991 Rainforest Crunch: 1996 Cool Britannia: 1998 Peanut Butter and Jelly: 1999 White Russian: 2002 The Invisible Woman Matt Bai HBO's "Veep" is good for some laughs, but as a Washington satire, it falls flat. That's because its notion of the vice presidency - irrelevant, invisible, out of place in the Situation Room - is about 20 years out of date. The last three veeps have actually been serious players in their administrations. While Julia Louis-Dreyfus pines for the West Wing, Joe Biden hangs out there. A more accurate spoof would have the bumbling veep wielding too much influence, not too little. What I'm Drinking Mario Batali While in Venice, I noticed that during that magical moment of late-morning drinking referred to as aperitivo, everyone had what looked like an iced-down glass of orange soda. It's called spritz, and it's made of Aperol mixed with prosecco and served with a slice of orange and an olive (which seems to imply some sort of nutritional component). Until October, I'll drink at least one every day - for health! And the Venetians! The Polish Image Roger Bennett Poland, a host of the Euro 2012 soccer tournament, got off to a rocky start when the winger Slawomir Peszko was banned after a drink-fueled dispute with a cabby in Germany. As his coach said, "Once again [Poles in Germany] are mentioned only in connection with fighting and boozing." In December of my sister's first year in medical school, before she went crazy, she drove from Lincoln back to Naperville the day that a blizzard swept the Midwest. She left early in the morning and for eight hours stayed just ahead of the storm; she stopped only once, east of Des Moines, for gas and a bathroom. After pulling into my parents" driveway, she opened the car door and stiffly unfolded herself, and at that exact moment, the darkening sky exploded with snow. My sister stuck out her tongue and caught a flake. Brain Twister Will Shortz The title of what famous film, in eight letters, uses only the letters of the 4 and the 6 on a telephone? Hint: It's not "Star Wars"! Acting irresponsibly in a dream. Rose was so dreamiss that she woke up convinced that she overslept her SATs and then showed up in her underwear. See also: Slumbrage (to be angry at someone for what they did in a dream). Ask John Hodgman DAVE WRITES: I claimed to have read a book because I listened to an audiobook version of it. But my friend Aaron claims that reading implies that I actually "read" the book. Who is right? I do not mean to suggest that you didn't get the full experience of "50 Shades of Grey" (that's what we're talking about here, isn't it?) by listening to it on your commute. But words still have meaning. You read a book, but you merely listen to an audiobook. A One-Sentence Book Review Tyler Cowen Jugaad Innovation, by Navi Radjou, Jaideep Prabhu and Simone Ahuja: Why the poor are more innovative, illustrated through India. How to Get a Good Seat on a Plane Jimmie Walker Southwest is the way to go - you can fight for a seat. It's like a cattle-car deal. But bring a recording of a baby inside two baby carriers. You'll sit by yourself the whole time. Brain Twister answer: "High Noon"