I stink. I updated the links in the sidebar and now I'm done. I don't even have the ambition to go on a Robert-Toracelli-shoulda-dropped-out-months-ago-and-not-screwed-the-Dems rant. There's some good stuff over there in the links, though. Oh. Don't forget to watch Elvis Costello on Leno tonight.
When writing code always listen to Nick Cave. "Red Right Hand" is particularly helpful.
Has anybody heard "Amerika (Version 6.0)" from the new Earle album? Am I hearing things or is that literally the riff from "Jumping Jack Flash?"
Domestic Bliss I'm literally disturbed by how much happier I feel when my house is spotless. I blame my mother. I'm not a horrid housekeeper by any stretch. My place is always presentable these days. However, when I spend a weekend doing all the fine tuning I really feel happy when I'm done. Sometimes I wish I could still be the slob that I was in college.
Ticketed So I have a ticket to go see Neko Case tonight at the Bowery Ballroom in the city. I hope Dennis and Jim will forgive me as I'm not going. There are two opening acts and the listing when I bought the ticket said doors at 7:30, first act at 8:00. Well, that's now been changed to doors at 8:30, first act at 9:00. Neko is scheduled to go on at 11:00 and we all know that means closer to midnight. The last train leaving Grand Central for Stamford is 1:30. It's also a very slow local that doesn't get into Stamford until 2:45. I might not even make that if I stayed for her whole set. It's also a school night. Not a good combo. Sad.
New Addiction I know that Pirate's Booty isn't available in many places. I found it sometimes at Publix in Atlanta. It's widely available around here. I have a new addiction, though. Pirate's Booty with Caramel. Oh my god. You must try this if you see it. It's like caramel corn without the popcorn husks. Amazing. Only two grams of fat, too! Hey, which of my Michigan readers will volunteer to send me a 12-pack of Rock n' Rye? I'm having withdrawal.
So, I weighed doing a lot of things this afternoon. There's a big book fair in the city for New York is Book Country. I still need to get to the Cooper-Hewitt. Oktoberfest is going on today. In the end, the choice was easy.
Since so many of the people here are Michiganders at heart, I probably don't have to explain the warmth that listening to Ernie Harwell provides. For generations of Tiger fans Ernie is baseball. I remember sitting on my grandfather's lap as a tiny tike listening to Ernie with him. First hearing Ernie's voice each early spring from Lakeland (the Tiger's spring training home) would literally make me giddy. Meeting Ernie a couple of years ago at Lakeland and getting to hear him tell stories for the better part of an hour is something I'll always treasure. Today's Ernie's last call and listening to a game will literally never be the same.
Thanks to the wonders of the internet I've been able to tune into a few Tiger games this year. Yes, I'm a glutton that way. So this afternoon I'll be doing that one last time.
For, lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth;
The time of the singing of birds is come,
And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.
What, pray tell, is Peter Gabriel doing? This is not a career to emulate. My blog, my blog...
Please don't call Ms. Streisand even though her phone number is right here. Is it just me or does this not read like your normal letter to your congressperson? I've written plenty of such letters but I've never been this, well, audacious. Then again, I'm just Mike Wolf. Note to Babs' staff: spell check is your friend. "Gebhardt?" Nice.
The Fine Art of Surfacing, indeed
So who knew that Bob Geldof had a stake in the the Survivor juggernaut. I once shared a train car with Bob and the late Paula Yates. When I lived in England the trains were still pretty much inaccessible for someone in a wheelchair. I had to ride in, get this, the baggage car. Yep. I sat in the with the mailbags. Anyhow, Bob owns (owned?) a former monastery in Faversham (Kent). He and Paula were getting on the train with bicycles which they put in the baggage car. He saw me sitting in there with my friend Simon. He thought it was so funny that we were hanging out there that they sat with us and pulled out a six-pack of beer. Seemed like a really nice guy. I remember thinking that Paula was really fucked up. How brilliant of me.
The new Steve Earle album "Jerusalem" came out this week. It's another in a string of really great albums dating back to his, um, little incarceration issue. Unfortunately all the press he's getting is over one particular track, "John Walker Blues." Some idiot DJ in Nashville starting comparing Steve to Jane Fonda a few months ago when advance word of the track came out. I actually corresponded with that guy via e-mail for a bit after he started his schtick and the guy is completely off-the-wall. He's never really listened to the track, obviously. It's not a glorification of Walker's actions. It's just the story of a confused kid. As Steve says...
"I'm happy with the way the song came out, but I'm nervous, not for myself, but I have taken some serious liberties with Walker, speaking as him, in his voice. I'm trying to make clear that wherever he got to, he didn't arrive there in a vacuum. I don't condone what he did. Still, he's a 20 year-old kid. My son Justin is almost exactly Walker's age. Would I be upset if he suddenly turned up fighting for the Islamic Jihad? Sure, absolutely. Fundamentalism, as practiced by the Taliban, is the enemy of real thought, and religion too. But there are circumstances. Walker was from a very bohemian household, from Marin County. His father had just come out of the closet. It's hard to say how that played out in Walker's mind. He went to Yemen because that's where they teach the purest kind of Arabic. He didn't just sit on the couch and watch the box, get depressed and complain. He was a smart kid, he graduated from high school early, the culture here didn't impress him, so he went out looking for something to believe in."
So, as a public service, here are the lyrics. It's also on the cd that I'm gonna get sent out one day. I know, I promised. Oops!
John Walker's Blues
I'm just an American boy raised on MTV
And I've seen all those kids in the soda pop ads
But none of 'em looked like me
So I started lookin' around for a light out of the dim
And the first thing I heard that made sense was the word
Of Mohammed, peace be upon him
chorus:
A shadu la ilaha illa Allah
There is no God but God
If my daddy could see me now – chains around my feet
He don't understand that sometimes a man
Has got to fight for what he believes
And I believe God is great, all praise due to him
And if I should die, I'll rise up to the sky
Just like Jesus, peace be upon him
chorus
We came to fight the Jihad and our hearts were pure and strong
As death filled the air, we all offered up prayers
And prepared for our martyrdom
But Allah had some other plan, some secret not revealed
Now they're draggin' me back with my head in a sack
To the land of the infidel
A shadu la ilaha illa Allah
A shadu la ilaha illa Allah
This man lives a short drive from me. How strange is that? People always see him out and about (not now, they're on tour).
From PETA...
Zoos claim to educate people and preserve species, but they frequently fall short on both counts. Most zoo enclosures are quite small, and labels provide little more information than the species' name, diet, and natural range. The animals' normal behavior is seldom discussed, much less observed, because their natural needs are seldom met. Birds' wings may be clipped so they cannot fly, aquatic animals often have little water, and the many animals who naturally live in large herds or family groups are often kept alone or, at most, in pairs. Natural hunting and mating behaviors are virtually eliminated by regulated feeding and breeding regimens. The animals are closely confined, lack privacy, and have little opportunity for mental stimulation or physical exercise, resulting in abnormal and self-destructive behavior, called zoochosis...
More than half the world's zoos "are still in bad conditions" and treating chimpanzees poorly, according to renowned chimpanzee expert Jane Goodall.(6)
As for education, zoo visitors usually spend only a few minutes at each display, seeking entertainment rather than enlightenment. A study of the zoo in Buffalo, N.Y., found that most people passed cages quickly, and described animals in such terms as "funny-looking," "dirty," or "lazy."(7)
The purpose of most zoos' research is to find ways to breed and maintain more animals in captivity. If zoos ceased to exist, so would the need for most of their research. Protecting species from extinction sounds like a noble goal, but zoo officials usually favor exotic or popular animals who draw crowds and publicity, and neglect less popular species. Most animals housed in zoos are not endangered, nor are they being prepared for release into natural habitats. It is nearly impossible to release captive-bred animals into the wild. A 1994 report by the World Society for the Protection of Animals showed that only 1,200 zoos out of 10,000 worldwide are registered for captive breeding and wildlife conservation. Only two percent of the world's threatened or endangered species are registered in breeding programs.(8) Those that are endangered may have their plight made worse by zoos' focus on crowd appeal. In his book The Last Panda, George Schaller, the scientific director of the Bronx Zoo, says zoos are actually contributing to the near-extinction of giant pandas by constantly shuttling the animals from one zoo to another for display. In-breeding is also a problem among captive populations.
Mom, I'm all right, I'm just thinking, you know, so why don't you, like give me a Pepsi?
And she goes:
No, you're crazy!
All I wanted was a Pepsi, just one Pepsi, and she wouldn't give it to me, just one Pepsi.
I love this. Some wacko claims that if you listen to common recorded messages backward you'll hear messages that relate to the message being delivered. Of course, he also slows them down and picks out anything that sounds like words. Listen to some of those!
SUTTON COLDFIELD, England, Sept. 24 — Although Tiger Woods won't be playing for a $1 million this week, he insisted his motivation for the Ryder Cup won't be a problem.
In the process of winning the American Express Championship last weekend, Woods ignited controversy by saying he would rather win that event than the Ryder Cup, which begins Friday at The Belfry. Woods also said he could think of "a million reasons" why a win last weekend was more important, referring to the $1 million first-place check he received for winning the World Golf Championships event.
Those comments became scathing headline material in many publications, accusing Woods of being greedy and selfish. Hardly the quietest way for the world's No. 1 player to head into the Ryder Cup, the biennial match play competition between the United States and Europe. But Woods has remained unfazed, and his game has looked exemplary. On Sunday, he finished at 25 under par to win the American Express, and after today's practice round at The Belfry, he laughed at the controversy his comments had caused, secure that his career record answered any questions about his desire to compete, regardless of the money involved.
"I'm certainly not the rah-rah type of guy that's going to give great speeches before I play," said Woods, of his approach to the Ryder Cup. "That's not my personality. I'm going to be the guy that's going to compete. Everyone on the team knows I'm going to give it 100 percent. I've done that each and every tournament I've ever played. That's what I bring to the table."
Asked about last week's comments, Woods smiled and said, "I was trying to be funny. Things were taken way out of context."
Ooh boy. Check out this fine fella. What a fashionplate! He's also in search of his Tinkerbell. You can thank me later, ladies
So the week of October 20th I'm now going to three concerts. I had already purchased amazing tickets to see Elvis Costello for two nights at the Beacon Theatre. I'm pretty much in the front row. They were $75 each night and those shows are Tuesday and Wednesday of that week. I just purchased a ticket to see Billy Bragg on Sunday the 20th. Thanks to Mark for the tip. It was $36.90 after, get this, a total of $11.20 in Ticketbastard charges. How disgusting is that?
So, I've always assumed that the terrible lag on the ol' randomness was due to my Mindspring host. Appears not. This morning Blogspot, the free host for Blogger, is down for "scheduled maintenance" and things are just zippy. Maybe I should make some changes...
Since the side frame is making me veeeery angry I'll just put this here. *** WARNING*** Potty mouth content to the extreme. Not recommended for your place of employ...
I really want to bring this guy to my next staff meeting.
Yikes! Go here and look up the EPA's map of your zip code. I was shocked and ashamed to discover (to quote Morrissey) that there's a hazardous waste site across the street from me and my own building seems to be listed as an air polluter. I'm baffled by the whole thing. The site across the street is a park!! WTF?
Remember when were talking about keys-locked-in-car stories on the tagboard? I mentioned that my pal Bruce has the best story and he's agreed to share it. Thanks, Hippiebruce! Enjoy, and remember, it's all about life's lessons...
I have to share with you a story from our recent trip to Hawaii that proves I'm possibly the dumbest guy on the face of the planet. Every bit of this story is true.
The day we took our snorkeling trip to Lanai on the Navatek II, we were told to drive our rental car to the dock, then follow a shuttle bus to a nearby parking lot. We dutifully followed the shuttle bus to the lot and pulled into a parking space while the shuttle bus waited to take us back.
Now, we all have a kind of rhythm about things, like getting out of a car. It was early and I was going through my usual mindless get-out-the-car actions when Cathy suggested I leave the car seat pushed forward so the sun wouldn't hit it. This I did, then hit the button to lock all the doors, and closed the door. Immediately, I felt for the key in my hand. It wasn't there. With a sinking feeling, I squinted through the window. The key hung in the ignition. Locked out. Well, nothing to be done, so with a shrug we boarded the shuttle and returned to the dock. While waiting to board the boat, Cathy called AAA who said no problem, we'll have someone from Kehei Lock and Key meet you at your car at 3:30 this afternoon. And off we go.
We return to the dock six hours later, board the shuttle, and get off where our car is parked. Cars are starting up all around us while we settle in to wait 30 minutes for the locksmith in the blazing Hawaiian sun. Within minutes it felt like someone was poking my face with hot needles, and there was no shade nearby. One by one, cars drive away. Soon, we're the only ones remaining in the vast lot. And yet...I think I can hear a car engine running. Somewhere nearby. Like...on the car I'm leaning on...? About that time Cathy says incredulously, her voice rising, "Is the engine running?!"
Yes, the engine was running. The car had been idling for six hours in the hot Hawaiian sun. Wait. It gets better. A million panicked thoughts run through my mind. The car is out of oil. The engine block is going to crack. It won't have enough gas to get us to the nearest gas station. The locksmith is going to think we're total idiots. I'M GOING TO HAVE TO BUY A RENTAL CAR! What do we do...what do we do...?! It's a convertible, and I pull at the top in a futile gesture of hoplessness like some kind of cartoon character, as if I could somehow rip the top off and climb inside. I peer desperately into the car...and notice that the doorlock knob on the passenger side seems to be a little higher than the knob on the driver's side. With a growing sense of the surreal, I stroll around, put my hand on the door handle, pull up tentatively...and the door swings open. Cathy and I look at each other as our jaws drop to the hot asphalt and rebound into our heads. Yes, we left a car idling for six hours in a public parking lot in the hot Hawaiian sun with a door unlocked.
First, we ran to a pay phone to cancel the locksmith, more out of fear than anything else. We wanted no witnesses. Had the locksmith shown up only to open the passenger door with a single tug and bemused look, we would have had nochoice but to kill him. The next thing we did was drive back to our hotel, only stopping to get gas. It was a quiet ride back as we were a little too dazzled by the peculiar combination of mind boggling incompetence and blind monkey luck that had befallen us. I think I broke the silence first with a terse, "As God is my witness, I'll never bad mouth a Chrysler again."
Bruce
Can't we all just get along?
So I got up and schlepped into the city yesterday at 7:00 a.m. to go to the Friends of Animals conference. I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about what I saw.
See, there are two camps in the animal rights "movement." I put movement in quotes because many people feel that there really isn't a true movement at all. One camp, the abolitionists, believe that we should fight to eliminate animal exploitation altogether. No meat, no animal products, no animals in entertainment, etc. Their primary tenet is that animals are sentient (capable of feeling pain and pleasure) and, as such, are entitled not to be treated as property. The other group, the welfarists, believe many of the same ideals. However, they believe that we're very unlikely to effect such major change in our culture. As a result, they believe that any improvement in the quality of life for animals is step in the right direction. You'll see them fighting for changes like larger cages for battery hens. The abolitionists have literally no use for the welfarists. They think that their efforts are in fact counterproductive as they make people feel better about the status quo without really eliminating suffering. If you increase the size of the cage but still kill the chicken have you really done it any service? The two major animal rights organizations in this country are on opposite sides of this issue. PETA has a welfarist point of view while Friends of Animals is staunchly abolitionist. As a result, much of FoA's time is spent bashing PETA.
I fall somewhere in the middle. I don't ingest animal products. I've recently eliminated dairy altogether. But, to me, that's a very personal choice. I don't try to get others to make the same decisions. If asked, I could prattle off a litany of reasons for my choice. But it's just that, my choice. I know that I'm not going to get the entire factory farming industry turned on its head. I, however, have chosen not to participate. I also think that PETA does some good. The are in essence a marketing company. They've brought national attention to some of the real issues. Sure, they've done some bad and some goofy things. The FoA people are fond of talking about their "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" campaign and call it a very sexist message. I can see that. I just think that there's not enough of a movement to be so incredibly divisive.
I didn't go back today for several reasons. The primary one, though, was that I was too damn tired to wake up at 6:00 again. Call me lazy. I'm going to go to a museum or something today.
Rolling off my soapbox...
Missed this one in The Onion. Pretty funny.
Okay, I've avoided this silly practice that a lot of bloggers partake in. In case you weren't aware, every week there are five questions posted at www.fridayfive.org. You're supposed to answer them in your blog on Friday. Dumb, right? Well, I'm bored and avoiding doing some coding that I don't want to do. So, with no further ado...
1. Would you say that you're good at keeping in touch with people?
No. In fact I completely suck. This blog is partially an attempt to do better.
2. Which communication method do you usually prefer/use: e-mail, telephone, snail mail, blog comments, or meeting in person? Why?
Well, considering that I now live about a thousand miles from most of my friends, I've been using the electronic measures much more frequently. Blog comments have become the best. I wish more of my friends would start blogs. Well, only some :-) I never write snail mail anymore which is a pity, really.
3. Do you have an instant messenger program? How many? Why/why not? How often do you use it?
I use Trillian which allows me to integrate all of my IM programs in one application. So, I have them all - ICQ, IRC, AIM, Yahoo, MSN. I use ICQ here at work as that's how all the techs communicate with one another. I use Yahoo for my friends. You can also use the ICQ link over there in the right-hand column to get me if I'm online, you know? If you have a Yahoo IM name or an ICQ number and I don't know it get it to me, okay? Thanks.
4. Do most of your close friends live nearby or far away?
Sigh. Far away, I'm afraid. As I've mentioned here many times, if I could uproot all of my friends and move you to Manhattan I'd be the happiest boy on the planet. No exaggeration.
5. Are you an "out of sight, out of mind" person, or do you believe that "distance makes the heart grow fonder"?
Oh, whatever. If you forget your friends because they're out of sight yer an ass. If they grow fonder in their absence you're probably pretty self-involved.
Okay. I sucked it up. Now you have to do the same in the comments. Go!
So this weekend is the big animal rights event at the Algonquin. I guess we'll be talking about non-violent protests amidst the ghosts of the likes of Dorothy Parker and Robert Benchley. Groovy. It turns out that they have enough staffers from Friends of Animals going so I'm not going to have to help out. I can just attend free of charge. That's really cool of them. I don't know how much it normally costs but I know that it's not cheap. They're just operating under the assumption that I'll be back to help them later which, of course, is true.
you don't know so don't say you do -
you don't
you might think that things will change,
but take my word -
they won't
you paint a lovely picture but reality intrudes
with a message for you
and it's real bad news
i was undecided like you at first
but i could not stem the tide of overwhelm and thirst
you try to keep it going but a lot of avenues
just aren't open to you
when you're real bad news
i got love and anger, they come as a pair
you can take your chances but buyer beware
and I won't make you feel bad when I show you
this big ball of sad isn't worth even filling with air
baby let me tell you you can get some things confused
like whose secrets are whose
and that's real bad news
real bad news
real bad news
-aimee mann
Sweet geezus. I've never spent this much time talking about my disability in my entire life. It's quite tiring. Now for something fun.
(ed. note - I hope you'll excuse that I've added a bit here to clarify...)
I've decided not to rail on Reeve. It's just not nice. Let me just summarize my opinion with two facts...
1 - The documentary showed Chris receiving fairly standard therapy. What it did not show is that he has flown all over the world engaging in cutting-edge and experimental procedures. It's hard to tell how much of his "recovery" can be attributed to his admittedly very hard work or to these procedures.
2 - His nerves are severed in some cases and literally destroyed in others. He hasn't "fixed" damaged nerves. He has just retrained ones that were damaged to the point where they forget what they were supposed to do. Unfortunately, the majority of his "connections" have been destroyed to the point where he can't train them. That's why the brain scan bit was so important - his brain hasn't adapted other portions to control the movement. The correct areas are moving the correct parts. The only way that he'll be able to recover significant movement is through "rebuilding" his nerves which is where the stem cells come in. He seems to think that that's just around the corner. Good for him. It's not. It's not even on the map.
I guess my biggest problem with Reeve is that he's the most prominent disabled person in history. Well, FDR was more prominent but never open regarding his disability. Instead of helping society accept disability and instead of learning to live with disability Chris is going to fight it every step of the way regardless of the true possibilities. For most of "us" there are truly no possibilities but many people look up to Reeve and, in my opinion, that gives a lot of false hope. We need to learn to accept our situations and not dwell. I know that this fight is what keeps him going. I know that he thinks he can win. Good for him. My situation is much different. My disability isn't nearly as debilitating as his and I've never known anything different. That said, my quality of life is pretty damn good. I don't dwell on what I can't do. He does. I like to say that while my disability may describe me, it will never define me.
Like I said, that doesn't sound nice and it's significantly toned down from what I was thinking last night. Certain phrases he uses on a regular basis (in every interview) make me crazy.
It was very nice to see him doing better, though. When I met him in Atlanta in 1996 he really was in bad shape.
I'm shocked
One of those quizzes that I hate says of me...
You're just too cool for school, aren't you? You're pretty narrow minded and opinionated with regards to music (and probably most other things as well). But you're allowed to be, because you really are better than everyone else. You take pride in obscurity. You probably prefer vinyl too, you elitist bitch"
Why, I never...
1 in every 1000 children born in the United States are born with some degree of Spina Bifida. I guess we don't have a Superman, though. I'll have a full commentary on this tomorrow. It's really difficult and I don't expect that any of you can fully understand. I'll come off as callous. I'll come off as an ass. I don't wish Christopher Reeve or anyone with a SCI anything but a full recovery. Sadly, it's not happening.
Just got in from Cleveland. Thanks for missing me. You folks are too sweet! I wish I had some exciting tale from the Midwest to share. Alas, it was pretty boring. Oh! We did go to dinner at a horrible restaurant that was, get this, Dickensian in theme. Literally. Puffy shirts on the valets just like that Seinfeld episode. Other than that it was pretty boring. Didn't go to the Rock Hall this time. I'll go back next year if Elvis Costello gets inducted this year. He's on the ballot along with a bunch of others including ABBA. ABBA and Costello. Good, eh?
Glad to be back. It does a heart good to fly over the skyline of Manhattan and feel like you're home. Living here also makes you appreciate a good newspaper. Now, there are plenty of good papers in the country. I like the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the LA Times and I'll always have a soft spot for the Detroit Free Press. However, reading the Cleveland Plain Dealer every morning was frustrating. Sorta like reading those blurbs they have on Yahoo. Nothing, though, will ever compare to my snooty New York Times. Why, by the way, does the Times cost a dollar (as opposed to 75 cents) outside of the Metro area when there's less content in it (no local sections or classifieds)? Weird.
Oh, word of advice. If you're ever in Cleveland don't make fun of them about the time the Cuyahoga River caught fire. They're still kinda sensitive about it...
I can't sleep in hotels very well so my insomnia followed me. I'm gonna surf until West Wing and then watch this Christopher Reeve documentary on ABC and see how mad I get at him. Rant tomorrow, I'm sure...
Hey, kids. I'm leaving in a bit for Cleveland. I'll be back in a few. Nothing here in the interim. I MIGHT get access at some point but I dunno. Be good!
I get to go to Cleveland on business Monday to Thursday. Yeah. That's right. Cleveland. Eat your little hearts out.
I've actually been several times and done all the "cool" things that Cleveland has to offer. I've been to the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame twice and one time it sucked eggs and another time it was pretty amazing because they had a John Lennon exhibit that I really enjoyed. You may have heard about this. Yoko chose to include the glasses John was wearing when he was shot as a statement regarding handgun violence. It was an amazingly powerful image. Didn't need to sway me, I'm already vehemently anti-handgun. They also had an entire gallery devoted to his handwritten lyrics and a ton of really interesting memorabilia.
Did you realize that there's not really a "Hall of Fame" there? There's just this etched glass wall with facsimile signatures of all the inductees. Lame.
Since I've moved to the New York area many, many, many have you have asked why. Why would I want to live in such a place? Did M. have something to do with it? Do you really like it there?
In short: I feel at home here, no she didn't, with all my heart. In long: I couldn't express anything better than Magdalen Powers does here. Please read it. It's important to me that you do. It's brilliant and spot-on.
and nothing fuels a good flirtation
like need and anger and desperation
discuss...
If I could, I'd buy every last one of you this hat.
I got through high school eating nachos almost everyday for lunch along with an occasional pretzel. Perhaps that was the beginning of my vegetarian days. I did so because it seems like most of our lunches looked like these. I find this page to pretty fascinating. This selection is particularly foul. There are so many things wrong with it that I don't know where to start. Are those noodles in there, or what?
Can anyone please explain this site to me? Why would anyone want to buy a snake that carries the warning "be advised that these snakes for the most part, exhibit a shy character however will bite unpredictably with grave tissue destrictive with neuro effect and in many cases the bite of this animal will require amputation of a limb or death" as a pet. Is that kewl, or something? Oh, Brad, don't look at this page...
I belong to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It's probably the most amazing museum in the world. I've been a member since last November and have been probably 12-15 times and still haven't seen all of it by a long stretch. It's been worth the money, too. It's $85 a year and you get free admission and some other perks. Normal admission is $10 a visit. My question is this, should I renew or should I branch out and join a different museum? I love art museums and go all the time but I can't afford to join multiples. So, look at some of the other options and make a persuasive argument. That's this Thursday's contest. Look at The Met, The Guggenheim, The Museum of Modern Art (which I won't join until it moves back to Manhattan), The Whitney, The American Folk Art Museum, The New Museum of Contemporary Art and The Frick Collection. I also like to go to The Asia Society and El Museo del Barrio as both have great installations but they don't change enough to justify getting a membership.
My shoelace is caught in my front tire and i'm pissed. Anybody else ever have that problem? Oh. I guess not... Well, let me tell ya, it sucks because now I have to do this wheelie sort of thing until I can find a pair of scissors and perform some sort of Mr. Goodwrench-like repair. Not recommended. Just sharing because if Romper Room taught me anything it taught me that sharing is caring.
Some excellent, excellent points here (none of which are particularly 9-11 related).
No f'ing way. No f'ing way. NO FUCKING WAY!
Did you know that Kit Kat's are now available in a "limited edition" white chocolate variety? Yuu-mmy. Mind you there's 8 grams of saturated fat in each but who the hell cares. It's white chocolate. It's a Kit Kat. Its pure brilliance!!!
They're also available in a "limited edition" (I like saying that. A "limited edition" candy bar. They're collectible!) dark chocolate variety. However, dark chocolate as a rule tastes pretty close to ass. I'd stay away from those.
"Our generation has now heard history's call, and we will answer it. "
"We have no intention of ignoring or appeasing history's latest gang of fanatics trying to murder their way to power. They are discovering, as others before them, the resolve of a great country and a great democracy."
"We fight not to impose our will, but to defend ourselves and extend the blessings of freedom"
"Be confident; our country is strong. "
Geezus. He shouldn't have delivered this from Ellis Island. He should have delivered it from atop a tank.
The disturbing statement by far, though, was...
"We are joined by a great coalition of nations to rid the world of terror. And we will not allow any terrorist or tyrant to threaten civilization with weapons of mass murder. "
So I guess that a Baby Bush and Tony Blair now comprise "a great coalition of nations."
Look. I live in the NYC metropolitan area. I grieve. I hurt. I don't like that hurt being played upon.
Enough. I can't take it. I can't take the public spectacle. I can't take the sad crying eyes everywhere I walk. I can't take turning on the television and seeing "those" images again. I can't take hearing the stories anymore. Enough. Enough. Enough. I want to be in the quiet. I want be alone. I want to see someone smile. I want to hear someone laugh. I don't want anything forced. I don't want anyone to forget. I don't want anyone to stop their own grieving if they can't or don't want to. I just can't take it anymore.
Hate me if you must. I grieve. I've grieved for a long time. I'll continue to grieve. But really, in the grand scheme of things, is today different than yesterday? Should we feel better tomorrow?
Man was born into barbarism when killing his fellow man was a normal condition of existence. He became endowed with a conscience. And he has now reached the day when violence toward another human being must become as abhorrent as eating another's flesh. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction. The chain reaction of evil--hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars--must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation...
The past is prophetic in that it asserts loudly that wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows.
-- Martin Luther King, Jr. Why We Can't Wait, 1963
There will be no randomness tomorrow. Take the time you'd normally use to read my brilliant witticisms to reflect. I hope you'll not only remember the 3000 people from all nations, all walks of life, that were killed one year ago. I hope you'll also think about the Afghanis that have been killed over the last year in the fighting there. I hope you'll think about the Arab-Americans whose lives have been unalterably changed by the resentment and bias they've had to face. I hope you'll think about the Iraqi citizens who, it appears, are about to face another round of warfare. Can you imagine being an Iraqi in your middle thirties? They've never known anything but war. But I digress...
I'm sure you'll also think about where you were one year ago. I know I will never forget that day. I had very recently quit my job in Atlanta with an eye to move to the NYC area. I was on the phone with M. with Good Morning America on in the background. Weird. I literally never watch that show. As it was ending (9:00) I'll never forget Diane Sawyer saying "We're not sure what has happened but apparently there is a fire in the upper floors of the World Trade Center. We'll keep you posted as we know more." I told M. and she wasn't too concerned. I wasn't, either. We hung up and about three minutes later we were back on the phone. I'll never forget the feeling in the pit of my stomach as I saw the second plane hit on live television. We spent at least the next three hours on the phone only broken up for short bits while she checked on her friends and family. One of her cousins was supposed to be in one of the towers for a business meeting. He didn't have enough cash to park in the garage there so he turned around and went to park in one of the nearby surface lots. As he was walking from the lot to the WTC the first plane hit. He probably would have been fine, his meeting was on like the fourth floor, but there were a few panicked moments nonetheless.
I'll also never forget the first time I came to the city after 9/11. As I mentioned the other day, it was the second week in October and I was interviewing for jobs. The whole city was still virtually silent. I'll never forget taking the train. You could have heard a pin drop except for one guy laughing on his cell phone. The guy sitting next to me shook his head and said to me "My best friend died and this joker thinks it's just another day." And the smell. I can't describe it. It was almost gruesome and it, along with dust, blanketed the whole city. I still get choked up thinking about the line of firefighters in their dress uniforms that I passed on the street near St. Patrick's. So many images associated with that one short trip that I'll surely always remember.
I actually stopped communicating with two friends after 9/11. Two people in Atlanta who were so self-absorbed that when I asked them if they wanted to come with me to a candlelight vigil actually replied "Nah. We're really tired. I think we're going to stay in and watch a movie. Something other than all that New York stuff on television." That was on Wednesday night...
Our "elected" leader has chosen to call this Patriots' Day. To me that's way too much chest-beating. It's almost jingoistic. I don't think there's really a need for national pride on this day. I just think there's a need to reflect. So that's what I'm going to do. Reflect.
Is anyone other than me completely over these "who are you" quiz things? I mean, they're all so dumb and random. What anime character are you? What's your Hobbit name? What Spice Girl are you? What furry woodland creature are you? What grrrl rock star are you? I'm Mike. I'm tired. I'm sorta cranky. Deal with it. Oh, and that title will be the only time that you'll see Eminem quoted here.
Oh, and he's nice. I go to the vegan tea shop (Teany) that he owns on the Lower East Side from time-to-time because it has the yummiest hummus ever. Anyhow, he goes there for breakfast (at 3 p.m.) every day. I've seen him a couple of times and he takes time to stop and chat with people. It's a very unpretentious place and he seems to be the same. Good for him. I've never spoken to him, though, and most people who go there probably don't even know that he owns it.
I'm not a super-huge fan of Moby. I think he's pretty shrewd for making a gazillion bucks doing what he does, though. Oh, and he's a vegan. That's cool. I do, however, really like his blog. He's pretty funny and very much a New Yorker. Since I know you kids don't read what I tell you to, I have to bring it here. That's okay. That's what I'm here for. I thought this bit from the other day (the same post where he writes that he's straight) was pretty funny...
oh, we (a friend and i) invented a new word today. see, we feel that a weak point in the english language is the lack of an antonym for 'aphrodisiac'.
so we put forward 'apathadisiac' (someone or something that inspires complete sexual apathy) and 'pathosadisiac' ( someone or something that tries to turn you on but just makes you depressed.).
Have you read that Scott Ritter, the former U.N. weapon inspector in Iraq, said that Iraq has no infrastructure to build a nuclear device? He was in Iraq this weekend.
But former U.N. weapons inspector Scott Ritter dismissed the report, saying Iraq has no infrastructure to develop nuclear weapons.
"Where did it come from? Did they suddenly grow factories?" Ritter told CNN. "You build factories, not in a basement, not in a mountain cave. It's a modern industrial capability. Where did it come from?"
That's good enough for me. I'm hearing all these vague beliefs from W. and his cronies with no evidence. The only man speaking out who has practical experience says it's hogwash. I was almost throwing things at my television yesterday morning when Cheney was on saying that he "didn't have faith" in inspections and even if Saddam allowed unfettered access he "wasn't sold on the idea." Yup. Gots to keep feeding that military industrial complex, huh, Dick?
It's so frustrating. We said we were "at war" and we've just about run out of visible targets in Afghanistan. Time to look elsewhere, I guess.
So I'm helping out at and attending this next weekend. Raise your hand if you think I'm a freak. You have to act on your convictions, people.
I really intended on getting to the post office yesterday. I didn't make it so your CDs are still sitting here. I won't make it tomorrow or Tuesday. I promise I'll get them out on Wednesday (no comments, Meredith). Anyhow, I guess these means if you want one and haven't e-mailed me you better do so, stat. This is truly yer last chance.
Some people put silly little icons on their blogs to tell you what kind of mood they're in. You've seen them, right? In case you haven't yet figured it out, I choose to put up lyrics or snippets from songs. I listen to a lot of music. I usually choose something to listen to that fits my mood. So...
i keep going round and round on the same old circuit
a wire travels underground to a vacant lot
where something i can't see interrupts the current
and shrinks the picture down to a tiny dot
and from behind the screen, it can look so perfect
but it's not
so here i'm sitting in my car at the same old stop light
i keep waiting for a change, but i don't know what
so red turns into green turning into yellow
but i'm just frozen here on the same old spot
and all i have to is press the pedal
but i'm not
no, i'm not
people are tricky, you can't afford to show
anything risky, anything they don't know
the moment you try
well, kiss it goodbye
so, baby kiss me like a drug, like a respirator
and let me fall into the dream of the astronaut
where i get lost in space that goes on forever
and you make all the rest just an afterthought
and i believe it's you who could make it better
though it's not
no, it's not
no, it's not
- aimee mann
I thought that maybe I should save this for next week's "you just must" but it was too good to not share immediately. I love the fact that some guy is making good money crashing minature cars into bonsai trees. It's so insane that it's brilliant. Crash on in...
This thing claims that I'm nice. Like hell I am. What does it say about you? Take it all with a grain of salt. I mean, can you trust a quiz that asks "Which Adjetive Describe you?"
I certainly don't remember this. Do you?
Please spend some time reading this. I was living in Atlanta on 9/11/01. I was in Manhattan within three weeks on what seemed like a futile and almost selfish job hunt. The city was still reeling and you could literally feel the pain in the face of everyone you passed on the street. This is a very graphic reminder of the immense loss. That list seems to go on for miles in the tiniest font that you can read in a web browser. A quick search for the word "Stamford" reminds me that 11 families in my immediate vicinity suffered a loss. Some people are going to want to forget on Wednesday. Some people are already rolling their eyes at the anticipated wall-to-wall coverage. While I certainly do not like sensationalism, I hope we don't forget what happened on that day.
You know, I'd actually like to see this here. Lord knows I'd get a lot more done. Admittedly, it's the proverbial throwing out the baby with the bath water...
I dropped my cell phone last week and broke the LCD screen. It still works, it's just kinda like flying blind. Fortunately, I pay for the optional insurance. I went to file my claim today and, of course, got a gigantic flyer filled with legalese. This bit made me laugh...
B. Exclusions 1. We will not pay for "loss" caused directly or indirectly by or resulting from... use of any weapon employing atomic fission or fusion.
So, in the case of a nuclear attack you're on your own. I somehow think I'd have bigger concerns.
Those are all links in the sidebar. You knew that, right? There's a new thing there called "you just must." It'll be something that you just have to see (in my incredibly non-humble opinion) and I'll change it every Friday. This week we feature Detroit's finest, The White Stripes. Sorta...
Hmm... Not sure that I like it. I think I do. I do know that I like it much better than that cluttered mess. We'll try this for a couple of days. I also decided no more pictures. They cause too much clutter. This is supposed to be about enjoying my brilliant prose, right? Whatchu think about this one?
want to get it all behind me. you know everything reminds me
i can’t be myself without you. wanna crawl down deep inside
the springs inside the mattress where i cry my dirty secrets
'cause i just can’t shake this feeling that i’m nothing in your eyes
and if i knew heartbreak was comin’ i woulda set out runnin’
past the city houses and the ditches on the highway
weave between seasons and the bridges in the valleys
'til the winds out on the prairie whip the tears from my eyes
want to get it all behind me. you know everything reminds me
i can’t be myself without you. wanna crawl down deep inside
the springs inside the mattress where i cry my dirty secrets
'cause i just can’t shake this feeling that i’m nothing in your eyes
well if i knew heartbreak was comin’ i woulda set out runnin’
across the muddy rivers and the smokestacks on the bank
swallow the horizon. hunger beyond hunger
'til the cloudy blue pacific took the air from my lungs
if i knew heartbreak was comin’ i woulda set out runnin’
'cause i just can’t shake this feeling that i’m nothing in your eyes
-neko case
Take a look at the Idol website and note Kelly's look as the show progressed. Does anyone think that she would have won if they kept trotting her out in the first outfit every week regardless of her talent? That makes me sad, really. When push comes to shove it's always going to be a beauty pageant. The second photo doesn't even look like the same girl. I think that most of us would agree that Tamara was much more talented that Justin. She just didn't have his "sexy hair."
Okay. I've really spent too much time on "American Idol" here. Again, I must bathe...
The Neilsen ratings for 8/26 - 9/1
1. "American Idol-Wednesday," Yeah, yeah. I watched it. Whatever
Fox, 9.7
1. "Everybody Loves Raymond," I have honestly never seen this show in my life. Had no idea it was this popular. He's not funny!
CBS, 9.7
3. "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation-Monday," Again, I have never even watched a second of CSI. It's like "Quincy" meets "Law & Order," right?
CBS, 9.5
4. "Law & Order," I only watch the re-runs. I don't like the current cast. For some reason I really like the Chris Noth episodes.
NBC, 9.1
5. "American Idol-Tuesday," Bits and pieces
Fox, 8.7
6. "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," Nope
CBS, 8.6
7. "Dateline NBC-Tuesday,," Stone Phillips? I think not.
NBC, 8.5
8. "NFL Exhibition Football: Green Bay at Cleveland," If you watch primetime preseason football you have some issues, IMHO.
ABC, 7.8
9. "60 Minutes," I sometimes watch 55 Minutes. Andy Rooney makes me hurl myself off tall buildings.
CBS, 7.3
10. "Dog Eat Dog," Just stop.
NBC, 7.1
I'm burning CDs tomorrow. If you want one email me as soon as possible.
The unidentified Greenwich man, who is in his 70s, was the first patient to receive the treatment, said Dr. Gavin McLeod, an infectious diseases specialist at Stamford Hospital who is overseeing the patient's care.
I'm not worried about West Nile Virus anymore. Captain Stubing's on top of it!!
Okay. I bit. I'm watching f'ing American Idol. I don't like it. I feel a deep down grime that I'll never be able to wash clean. However, what the hell's goin' on with Kelly, kids? She's suddenly, like, hot and has lost the milquetoast attitude. She's hot and confident. Good for her.
These cast songs are killing me. It's like bad Up With People (as opposed to the good Up With People...).
It sure is nice to see that Ryan still dresses like '80s hooker.
I must bathe...
I'm really having a bad string of luck these last two days. Well, make that nearly bad. Things could have been much worse. I could have gotten a ticket yesterday and I could have gotten into a high-speed accident today. Let me explain...
I was driving to Westchester to a client's site. I was on I-95 between Stamford and Greenwich where they have been doing construction all summer. Traffic was fairly heavy and moving at a good clip. I'd guess that I was going about 60. All of a sudden I noticed that there was a pretty big bump in front of me where the surface of the asphalt under repair transitioned to the newly laid asphalt. There was no warning sign to be found. This lip, if you will, went across the entire five lanes. I had two options, slow down for the bump and probably get rear-ended or just let up on the gas and hit it. I chose, of course, to hit it. Not the best idea but I didn't have any choice in the matter. I did and I saw that there were four cars that had done the same and gotten flat tires pulled off the road. I knew that the alloy rims on my Sebring would be at least bent. I hoped they would hold air. Well, they held air. I got to the clients and saw that I knew one would have to be replaced. Two others were iffy. I did my work and waited two hours for roadside assistance to come change the worst of three to my spare.
Some of you may be groaning. You may remember that I've had to have two other rims replaced at about $700 each time. Yes, I'm looking at over $2k to replace the rims. Good news, though, my insurance considers this incident collision damage. My deductible is $500. I'll see if I can get the DOT to cover that but, frankly, who am I kiddin'? I think I'm going to replace all four wheels with steel wheels. The alloy ones are nice looking and the 17" tires are nice but it's just not worth this. Reading tonight on the Sebring user groups, lots of people have the same problem. I even overinflate the tires because I know that the rims are fragile.
All in all, not the best day but, like I said, it could have been much worse.
Wow. I nominate this for most boring post ever...
Turns out I can have the Jayhawks play my crib for just $2.5k. Check it out. Please explain to me, though, why Whoopi thinks she should get $100k?
I work on a very short one-way street. It is probably only about 200 yards long and has no intersections. It goes between two parallel streets. For the last several days they've been doing construction at the entrance to the street. Oftentimes it's closed so our only option is to go the wrong way down the street. The police who stand at the closed end have told us to do so. There's truly no other option. I should add that's is a very non-busy street. There are only two businesses and a few condos on it and there's no other reason to use the street.
Well, today I turned to go the wrong way only to have a cop come flying down the street after me. He was nuts. I'm not exaggerating. The conversation went like this:
Foaming At The Mouth Cop - What do you think you're doing?
Me - I work right there, officer, it's the only way to get to the building
FATMC - What?
Me - The road's closed at that end.
FATMC - So that gives you the right to go the wrong way down this street?
Me - I'm sorry. There's just no other way to get here.
FATMC - Don't apologize to me. You're just sorry that I caught you. License and registration...
Me - I just moved...
FATMC - I don't care
Me - I was just explaining why my driver's license says Georgia (I'm getting past being polite at this point)
FATMC - So let me ask you this, what if my family was walking down this street?
Me - What? I'm just trying to get to work it's...
FATMC - I don't care
Me - How else can I get here?
FATMC - I don't care. It's people like you that keep me from living in this town. Retarded. (something about drivers in Norwalk muttered under his breath)
Me - HOW ELSE CAN I GET HERE?!
At this point the UPS driver comes up to him and asks him a bunch of questions about how he can deliver. I honestly think that it was only at that point that it actually registered with him that the street was closed. It was amazing. He gave me my license back, noticed the wheelchair in the backseat and said "Well, you don't have much choice with this shit." Yes, he said "shit." He then watched me pull the 10 more feet into the parking lot.
He later pulled my boss over and when he explained the SAME situation to him he yelled "I'm gonna close my eyes and when I open 'em you better be gone!"
Maybe the guy was just having a bad day. Maybe he really thought he was doing what he needed to. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt but I haven't been so mad in a looong time. It takes a ton to make me mad but he more than pushed me over. He was screaming at me. Unreal. I hate screamers. I can't stand being screamed at. I recoil like crazy. I'm babbling but it still makes me feel upset even thinking about it.
Oops! I'm late!
Listening - Listening to the new Mark Olsen and The Creekdippers this weekend made me yearn for some old Jayhawks. Listening to a lot of "Hollywood Town Hall" and "Sound of Lies" I also spent too much time this weekend trying to organize my CDs. Nightmare...
Watching - I spent an hour and a half of my life that I'll never get back this weekend watching "Alien Resurrection." Who's seen that? Oh my. I watched it only because it was directed by Jean-Luc Jenuet who also directed "City of Lost Children," "Delicatessen" and "Amelie." What a train wreck. No suspense, pointless gore and horrific acting. Discuss...
Reading - "Girl in Landscape"
Another of my fine, fine readers has alerted me that using my real (and full) name here is a bad thing. Really? Might I get my very own stalker this way? Yikes! Advise...
Actually, now that I think about it, there are a couple of you who I'd really like to have stalking me. Interesting...
Yes, I know I'm yelling. Just a quick request to update your bookmarks. Your bookmark probably points to http://mikewolf1.home.mindspring.com/. Please change it to point to http://www.mikewolf.net. I'm going to be moving the site to a real server next weekend. I'll put something up at the Mindspring address to redirect you to the real address but you'll save yourself some headache if you change now. You'll still end up here!
Nothing's better on a depressing, long, rainy weekend than Audrey Tautou. You all must run out now and get the "Amelie" DVD. I would watch the "Fantasies of Audrey Tautou" feature on an infinite loop if possible. She even is cute when she swears. Swoon...
I listened to the new Ralph Stanley album tonight. Dr. Ralph could make "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" a dirge. Seriously. The man creeps me out. His new one is mostly covers, including a track called "Little Mathie Grove" that was written in 18th century England. It may be the most disturbing thing I've ever listened to. Creepier by far than the creepiest song I can think of, Elvis Costello's take on "Psycho." The kicker is that there's no "Parental Advisory" sticker on the album. Guess there aren't too many rebellious teens lining up to buy a Ralph Stanley album. As creepy as this song reads, it's a hundred times creepier in Stanley's eerie falsetto. I'll include it on my next mix CD...
little mathie grove
on a high, on a high
on a high holiday
on the very best day of the year
little mathie grove to the church did go
the holy word to hear
and some come in all dressed in white
some in purple and blue
and then come in, lord, arnold's wife
a flower among the few
she looked him
he looked at her
the like had never been done
'til she got up and took his hand
and made him come along
well they tossed and they turned
in the bed all night
'til they laid fast asleep
when they stood up in the newborn dawn
lord, arnold stood at their feet
he said get up, little mathie grove
and put your clothing on
for it'll never be know in old england
i slayed a naked man
i shant get up
i won't get dressed
i fear so far my life
for you have got two very sharp swords
and me not nary a knife
well, yes i've got two very sharp swords
they cost me deep in prayer
and you shall have the better of the two
and i shall take the worse
and you may strike the very first blow
and strike it like a man
and i shall strike the very next one
and kill you if i can
well, mathie struck the very first blow
it hurt, lord, arnold so
and arnold struck the very next one
left mathie lay dead in his home
he turned his eyes to his wife in her bed
the rage and the hate saw she
who do you like best now he said
little mathie grove or me
very well do i like your brow said she
very well do i like your chin
but I like mathie grove in all his boy
better than you and all your kin
well he took her by the hair of her head
he lead her through the hall
and with his sword cut off her head
and kicked it against the wall
Why haven't more of you done the annoying survey thing? C'mon. If I have to do it so do you... Just copy my entry and paste it into a comments box. Play along, would ya?
I don't think I mentioned here that I saw them filming "Sex and the City" at Grand Central several weeks ago. It was late, sometime after midnight, and they had the one track lit with floodlights and bunches of extras milling about. I caught a glimpse of Sarah Jessica but it was only a glimpse. I saw the episode they were filming tonight.
Three observations -
1. It was maybe a thirty second scene when they were walking to the train that they were taking to San Francisco. The interiors were not the train that was in the station. The train they were walking up to was a Metro North - Harlem Line train and the interiors were supposed to be an Amtrak train. For this they had a ton of crew, equipment and trailers set up. Amazing that they allocated so many resources for this quick shot.
2. The lighting was amazing. The floodlights made it really look daylight even though it very late.
3. Picky New Yorkers will have problem with this episode. They were obviously in Grand Central. Anyone who has spent much time there will recognize the ramp at the entrance and the platform that they walk down. However, you haven't been able to take anything other than a Metro North (commuter) train at GCT since, I think, the 1960's. Amtrak runs out of the horrible Penn Station which would have made for a much uglier shot.
Next week's the season finale already?! I understand that Sarah and Cynthia are both pregnant so they need to make the season shorter but that seems a little silly, don't you think? Discuss...
Read this article from today's New York Times. Don't worry, it's saved locally on my site so you don't have to hassle with their dumb registration bit. Anyhow, I think this guy is spot on. Not so much an indictment of the Rolling Stones, in my mind, but the whole marketing of music today (and in the not so distant past). Try not to take his comment about Billy Joel and pathetic too hard. :-)