Monday, July 21, 2008

Thursday, July 03, 2008

Under The Boardwalk #2

I've posted this before but after a week with a sprained back, here it is again:

"Be grateful for the non-toothache."

Thich Nhat Hanh

Thursday, June 19, 2008

West Hollywood Wedding Tent

As same-sex marriages are no longer illegal in California, mass weddings were held Wednesday in West Hollywood, the epicenter for gay life in Los Angeles.

Saturday, June 14, 2008

Tim Russert

Tim Russert seems to have been an exceptionally fine
husband, father and son. I don't discount that at
all but he in no way can be considered the excellent
journalist that his co-workers are claiming him to
have been. I can't recall, and I haven't been able
to find anything on the Internet, in which he broke
or even challenged any kind of story despite operating
during a time when Washington was rife with scandal and
incompetence.

As a matter of fact, the endless recapping of his career
this afternoon is virtually empty as to any examples of
hard news that he uncovered. A savvy Washingtonian without
doubt but as to any pre-war skepticism, any Walter Reed-type
expose, it just never happened. And let's not forget about
the retired military men who were constantly brought out
for their supposedly objective analysis. Never a word
as to their current employment with defense contractors.
Russert was the head of NBC's Washington bureau and
said nothing but that would be expected as General
Electric, a big defense contractor itself, owns NBC.

Think of him as fine human being but not an especially
good journalist.

Monday, May 19, 2008

Franklin Canyon

This weekend I paid $72 to have my cat groomed. My plan to "Go Vegan" for 7 days lasted for three hours. I really enjoy the political columns by Glenn Greenwald.

Happy Birthday, Matt.

Last week I wrote about my letter to the editor of Harpers Week in Review. This week, they printed it. I'm listening to "Emotional Rescue" by the Rolling Stones from 1978, perhaps their last great album.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

It's Hard To Be A Saint In The City

1.) Dear Harpers magazine:

This is an unedited excerpt from your latest Week In Review:
".....Brazilian football star Ronaldo picked up and was blackmailed by three
transvestite prostitutes, and an eight-year-old boy
in Arizona died after a goal
post fell on him during a
soccer game. An Illinois newspaper carrier rescued
an
elderly woman whose leg had been pinned for four days under the dead
body of her obese 77-year-old husband.
"

How is an eight year old getting killed even remotely
appropriate to these other two items?

(I wrote you an e-mail harpers-weekly@harpers.org but
you still haven't responded.)

2.) California's having an election next month which
means prepare to be scammed by the propositions that
are not what they appear to be. Example: Proposition 98
appears to be about eminent domain but it will also
phase out rent-controlled apartments. Vote "No"

3.) Brown rice sushi is a bad idea.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

You Might Not Want To Read This

"...They started talking to this man and at first he was talking “I’m just a taxicab driver, I did nothing.” He claims he’d never try to hurt US soldiers that he picked up the wrong people. Then he stopped talking. They turned the lights out and slammed the door and left him there while they went down to cell #4. This man had been so fucked that when they grabbed his foot through the cell bars he began screaming and crying. After praying to Allah he moans a constant short Ah, Ah every few seconds for the rest of the night. I don’t know what they did to this guy. The first one remained handcuffed for maybe 1 ½-2 hours until he started yelling for Allah. So they went back in and handcuffed him to the top bunk on either side of the bed while he stood on the side. He was there for a little over an hour when he started yelling again for Allah. Not many people know this shit goes on. The only reason I want to be there is to get the pictures and prove that the US is not what they think. But I don’t know if I can take it mentally. What if that was me in their shoes. These people will be our future terrorist. Kelly, its awful and you know how fucked I am in the head. Both sides of me think its wrong. I thought I could handle anything. I was wrong."

-Sabrina Harman
an M.P.at Abu Ghraib
(New Yorker March 23, 2008)

Nighttime In The Switching Yard

Plant A Seed

Now's the time to buy some Sugar Snap Peas (with edible pods!), let them germinate for a couple of days and then put them an inch under ground. Believe it or not, within a week, signs of green life will shortly burst forth.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Shrine

Night of the Three Don'ts:
  1. Don't let the fan vents on your computer get clogged with pet hair;
  2. Don't forget the wheatgrass juice;
  3. Don't presume that mysterious charges won't appear on your cell phone bill.
Quote of the Night:

"Is is. Isn't isn't."