McCain did something maverick-ish and picked Sarah Palin, one time runner-up for Miss Alaska and current Alaska governor, as his running mate.
The Wonkette had the first scoop on their new campaign ad poster. It is lovely. See it here.
Excellent work, Wonkette. Excellent work.
Off to Maine and then posts are limited because I some of the mineral water I was drinking for my gross guts spilled into the effing keyboard of my laptop. As I heard the fizzle fizzle of what lies beneath, I filled with dread and sadness. Then I decided to read. Then I fell asleep. Now it's way later than I planned for leaving for Maine. So bye!
This Week in WTF
STUPID MOTHER-****ING ***HOLE BA****RD SONOFA***** ****HEAD LOSER TRASHY PIECE OF **** D*****BAGS
Hmmm, I think I might be a little angry about this story:
http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=glbt&sc2=news&sc3=&id=79593
All I can say is, I hope they are caught and get the longest, harshest sentence possible.
Hmmm, I think I might be a little angry about this story:
http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=glbt&sc2=news&sc3=&id=79593
Police are currently investigating a possible hate crime after three people were viciously attacked by four men shouting homophobic slurs on Columbus Avenue in the early morning hours of August 24.
The victims, four friends in their mid-20s, told Bay Windows that they were walking home at around 2:45 a.m., along Columbus Avenue, somewhere between Dartmouth and West Canton streets, after a night clubbing at the Roxy in downtown. One of the victims, a Jamaica Plain woman named Jenna, said that she and her friends heard a group of men shouting at them from a parked white sedan. They kept wal king, but before they could go far, the four men got out of their car and started coming towards them.
All I can say is, I hope they are caught and get the longest, harshest sentence possible.
600 Posts: Speech Day
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm
Excerpt:
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."²
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
Dont Stop Thinking about Tomorrow...
Did anyone else think of that scene from Primary Colors when the opponent gets cranky & quiets down the crowd so he can speak when Clinton got fussy and quieted down the crowd at the convention?
After that, the rest of the speech was very good and Clinton Classic, with the dynamism and great lines and all that.
Favorite was when he drew comparisons to how the critics said he, Clinton, was too young & inexperienced to be Commander in Chief but he won the election because he was on the right side of history and so's Obama. Good times.
But did anyone notice the long-haired Monica look alike that was on the side of the stage to shake his hand after the speech? Yikes.
Still Love Her
Did anyone else watch that Hillary speech? =sigh= I loved her.
We speculated on her future: Health and Human Services secretary? Supreme Court? 2016?
heaven only knows...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67EaRjQs-SI
Regardless, that orange pantsuit (sisterhood of the traveling pantsuits! ha!) looked great on her! Who knew she was a fall?
I 'heart' Sam
Just like that time back in 2003 when Mom & I went to the Adams National Historical Park, which was just minutes from where I lived until I was five, after living so close to the Samuel Adams Brewery, I finally went on the tour today.
If you've never done a tour of the brewery, I highly recommend it. For a two dollar donation, you get to taste test two possible flavors and vote on the one you prefer.
If you need to use the restroom, don't fear this porta-potty trailer.
It's probably the nicest public restroom I've ever seen.
Every 45 minutes is a tour. So, then we finally went on a tour of the facility. Our tour guide was a student at Northeastern named Corey. She was hilarious.
We learned about the four main ingredients of beer: barley, hops, water and yeast (I got yeast when no one else did...I was sorta a beer suck up on the Sam Adams tour. More on that to follow.)
Then we tried barley, which, as I expected, tasted just like Grape Nuts, because Grape Nuts and beer have a lot in common*.
Next we saw the steaming copper kettle boiling the mash. And the giant vats of yeast and mash and water interacting.
Finally came the very special time: when we got to go to the tap room and learn how to properly drink beer. There are five steps. Heck if I can remember them. But it's something like smelling, looking through the glass to see your fingers, tasting then talking about them. But I think I lost a step in there. Regardless, when it came to trivia time in the tap room as we drank Boston Lager and Summer Ale, I was the first to get a Perfect Pint pint glass, with a laser cut glass for the perfect pint. I also knew that Summer Ale was brewed with lemon zest and what West African considered an aphrodisiac, Grains of Paradise.
I got to have the first prize of the perfect pint pint glass because I was smart. When we went to Real Deal Deli and Sugar Bakery for lunch before going the brewery, I bought whoever our tour guide may be a freshly baked, delicious, giant, chocolate chip cookie. While were moving from one station to the other, Corey ended up next to me in the shuffle so I said, "Hi. I brought you something. This is a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie from Sugar Bakery in West Roxbury. I got it because I figured you'd like it and also to suck up." And I handed her the white paper bag filled with wholesome deliciousness.
She laughed, and in the end, I got my perfect pint.
BUT THEN, I also got some other special stuff. Octoberfest doesn't come out to next week, so we'll be picking a case of that up then. However, my very supercool friend from grad school, T igh, works for Sam's and he gave me his 2 employee cases for the month. Plus I got to get a gift from the gift shop on his expense account. So I got this awesome hat.
No, I'm not trying out for a spot in the Newsies musical.
And I got a case of Cherry Wheat. It's in the cooler. I got to go into the Giant Cooler Room of Cases. It was a little overwhelming. But the Cherries were singing to me like sirens in the Odyssey.
And now I shall go enjoy a glass.
*Grape Nuts ingredients: Whole Grain Wheat Flour, Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Salt, Dried Yeast. (No grapes. No nuts.)
If you've never done a tour of the brewery, I highly recommend it. For a two dollar donation, you get to taste test two possible flavors and vote on the one you prefer.
If you need to use the restroom, don't fear this porta-potty trailer.
It's probably the nicest public restroom I've ever seen.
Every 45 minutes is a tour. So, then we finally went on a tour of the facility. Our tour guide was a student at Northeastern named Corey. She was hilarious.
We learned about the four main ingredients of beer: barley, hops, water and yeast (I got yeast when no one else did...I was sorta a beer suck up on the Sam Adams tour. More on that to follow.)
Then we tried barley, which, as I expected, tasted just like Grape Nuts, because Grape Nuts and beer have a lot in common*.
Next we saw the steaming copper kettle boiling the mash. And the giant vats of yeast and mash and water interacting.
Finally came the very special time: when we got to go to the tap room and learn how to properly drink beer. There are five steps. Heck if I can remember them. But it's something like smelling, looking through the glass to see your fingers, tasting then talking about them. But I think I lost a step in there. Regardless, when it came to trivia time in the tap room as we drank Boston Lager and Summer Ale, I was the first to get a Perfect Pint pint glass, with a laser cut glass for the perfect pint. I also knew that Summer Ale was brewed with lemon zest and what West African considered an aphrodisiac, Grains of Paradise.
I got to have the first prize of the perfect pint pint glass because I was smart. When we went to Real Deal Deli and Sugar Bakery for lunch before going the brewery, I bought whoever our tour guide may be a freshly baked, delicious, giant, chocolate chip cookie. While were moving from one station to the other, Corey ended up next to me in the shuffle so I said, "Hi. I brought you something. This is a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie from Sugar Bakery in West Roxbury. I got it because I figured you'd like it and also to suck up." And I handed her the white paper bag filled with wholesome deliciousness.
She laughed, and in the end, I got my perfect pint.
BUT THEN, I also got some other special stuff. Octoberfest doesn't come out to next week, so we'll be picking a case of that up then. However, my very supercool friend from grad school, T igh, works for Sam's and he gave me his 2 employee cases for the month. Plus I got to get a gift from the gift shop on his expense account. So I got this awesome hat.
No, I'm not trying out for a spot in the Newsies musical.
And I got a case of Cherry Wheat. It's in the cooler. I got to go into the Giant Cooler Room of Cases. It was a little overwhelming. But the Cherries were singing to me like sirens in the Odyssey.
And now I shall go enjoy a glass.
*Grape Nuts ingredients: Whole Grain Wheat Flour, Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Salt, Dried Yeast. (No grapes. No nuts.)
It's like...
It's like little cheerleaders watching Miss America pageants.
It's like football fanatics watching the draft.
It's like parents who check stores daily for webkinz for their kids.
That is what the conventions are like for me.
For I am a political junkie.
Okay, back to Caroline Kennedy...
It Happens in August
For the third August in a row, I'm "lamenting". I know I'm in the right spot for now. I'm pretty happy to be living in Boston with and near my friends from growing up and family. But in August, my brain has been trained to anticipate new things: meeting new people, having new experiences--and having the same good experience-- that is, autumn in Maine. (Thanks to Mom for putting words to my slight blues.)So, here I am sleepless and reading. And here I come to this poem from one of my new acquisitions (library word, lame), Freely Espousing by James Schuyler
Penobscot
Open water facing Bradbury snags fog in its spruce.
Eagle has a meadow down its spine;
Compass, a cave; Scrag, five trees.
On Dirigo apples hang down into raspberries;
nearby, a lilac. Many remember
its old name, Butter, though Little Spruce Head
only one man still calls Frenchman's.
Birch-pale Beach has a chapel,
Bear has sheep. On others:
seals, butter-and-eggs, cellar holes.
From here we see them all, and more,
and the Camden Hills, Mount desert, Blue Hill, Deer Isle
and ocean facing Isle au Haut
where the breakers roll stones to cannon balls.
=sigh= I love you. Good thing you are a stationary land space, so I can take my time coming back...
Things I Did in Baltimore
Your friend Bridge here is lazy about uploading photos, so this post won't have any until later.
Anyway, here's highlights from Maryland:
1) Annapolis -
Anyway, here's highlights from Maryland:
1) Annapolis -
- The chapel at the Academy-beautiful stained glass
- The fact that all the bar bathrooms have Pregnancy Clinic adverts (Navy town and all)
- A good book store called Hard Bean Coffee and Book Store
- Camden Yards-do the tour, if you're into baseball, architecture and tidbits of facts and legends.
- Fells Point-hippie little place. Highlights: the Ugly Pig Oven Mit I got for Rene, and especially the orange and the grapefruit crushes at Alexander's Tavern - freshly squeezed juice, crushed ice, flavored vodka. Goes down way too easy, I tell yah. But I was on vaca
- Fricken amazing mojitoes and delicious Cuban food at Little Havanna
- Crabs, dug. Captain James Landing for the low-down, fun old crab malleting experience.
- The aquarium
This Week in WTF
I had this link pop up in my random feed on my Google homepage:
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Unicorn-Pop-up-Card
I just don't know.
another thingy
FACT: about the person you fell hardest for?
Is busy. I don't know who I fell hardest for, but everyone I've fallen hard for is busy with their passions and interests.
WHAT: happened at 9:00 am today?
I turned off my alarm.
ARE YOU: wearing something you borrowed from someone?
No
WHAT: is the last thing someone bought you?
Stoneleigh.
WHATS: your current problem?
Has anyone seen my motivation?
LAST: person to lay in your bed?
Person = me.
THE LAST: food you ate?
Salad.
WHERE: did you last go?
Baltimore.
SOMETHING: you say when you are mad?
Whatever.
DO YOU: delete people off of myspace?
No, not really.
FAVORITE: drink?
Starbucks with lotsa soy.
DO YOU : crack your knuckles?
No.
DID YOU: cry at all today?
Not yet.
ARE YOU: ticklish?
Yes.
WHO WAS: the last person you talked to last night before bed?
Rene, about Joe Biden being picked as the VP nominee.
HAVE YOU MADE: a mistake this past week?
of course.
DO YOU: have a well stocked fridge?
Sorta
DO YOU KNOW: anyone with the same name as you?
A few.
WHEN WAS: the last time you really laughed?
All sorts of times this past week.
HAVE ANY: regrets?
No.
DO YOU USE: an alarm clock?
I have three.
ARE YOU: social or antisocial person?
Social social social.
DO YOU: have a tan?
yes
WHO WAS THE LAST: person to disappoint you?
People: the 4x100 mens and womens relay teams for USA. Tee hee.
DO YOU TRUST: people ?
Eh...
WHAT ARE YOU DOING:
Listening to Obama
WHAT WERE YOU DOING at 5 in the morning?
Watching Olympic diving.
Had a loss recently?
Job.
Last movie you saw?
Chocolat, which reminds me, I must update my favorite, since it is one of them
Something you want to accomplish in the next 5 years?
Whoa. I have a crapload to do in the next five years! MLIS degree, MFA, find a husband, get married, have children, buy a house. No pressure though. Yikes.
What was the last thing you said out loud?
This question.
Last person you hugged?
Someone in my family.
How is the weather right now?
Beautiful. I'm going to Starbucks to get coffee, then take a walk then go to Roche Bros.
Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?
Erin.
What is the first thing you notice in the opposite sex?
Face.
What do you have handy next to your bed?
Eye glasses, ipod doc, pens, fans, lights, moisturizer, stress ball, journal, books, books, books.
Are you afraid of the dark?
No.
First thing you'll save in a fire?
the people inside.
What do you always take with you?
Everything, have you seen my purse?
Has a boy put their arm around you in the past 5 days?
Yeah, all these dude from South Philly that came into the bar in Baltimore where I was updating my travel journal-- a few of them were drunk drunk drunk and put there arm around me to hiccup and tell me stories.
How about called you beautiful?
Yeah, obv.
Ever turned a boy down you shouldn't have?
No one I shouldn't have.
Do you straighten your hair often?
No.
Are you a jealous person?
Not that much.
Do you like to make the first move?
I don't really think about that.
Do you hate the last girl you had a conversation with?
Of course not
What's most stressing right now?
jobs hunting
Do you swallow gum when your done with it?
Ew.
Do you like messages or comments better?
messages
Last non-relative you hugged?
A Fournier or Meliss a.
The next person you'll hold hands with, will it mean anything?
Probably not.
Are you someone's best friend?
uh huh
Do you cuss?
oh yeah
Are you a bitch?
No. Not always. But b*tches get sh*t done. Just ask hillary!
Is busy. I don't know who I fell hardest for, but everyone I've fallen hard for is busy with their passions and interests.
WHAT: happened at 9:00 am today?
I turned off my alarm.
ARE YOU: wearing something you borrowed from someone?
No
WHAT: is the last thing someone bought you?
Stoneleigh.
WHATS: your current problem?
Has anyone seen my motivation?
LAST: person to lay in your bed?
Person = me.
THE LAST: food you ate?
Salad.
WHERE: did you last go?
Baltimore.
SOMETHING: you say when you are mad?
Whatever.
DO YOU: delete people off of myspace?
No, not really.
FAVORITE: drink?
Starbucks with lotsa soy.
DO YOU : crack your knuckles?
No.
DID YOU: cry at all today?
Not yet.
ARE YOU: ticklish?
Yes.
WHO WAS: the last person you talked to last night before bed?
Rene, about Joe Biden being picked as the VP nominee.
HAVE YOU MADE: a mistake this past week?
of course.
DO YOU: have a well stocked fridge?
Sorta
DO YOU KNOW: anyone with the same name as you?
A few.
WHEN WAS: the last time you really laughed?
All sorts of times this past week.
HAVE ANY: regrets?
No.
DO YOU USE: an alarm clock?
I have three.
ARE YOU: social or antisocial person?
Social social social.
DO YOU: have a tan?
yes
WHO WAS THE LAST: person to disappoint you?
People: the 4x100 mens and womens relay teams for USA. Tee hee.
DO YOU TRUST: people ?
Eh...
WHAT ARE YOU DOING:
Listening to Obama
WHAT WERE YOU DOING at 5 in the morning?
Watching Olympic diving.
Had a loss recently?
Job.
Last movie you saw?
Chocolat, which reminds me, I must update my favorite, since it is one of them
Something you want to accomplish in the next 5 years?
Whoa. I have a crapload to do in the next five years! MLIS degree, MFA, find a husband, get married, have children, buy a house. No pressure though. Yikes.
What was the last thing you said out loud?
This question.
Last person you hugged?
Someone in my family.
How is the weather right now?
Beautiful. I'm going to Starbucks to get coffee, then take a walk then go to Roche Bros.
Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?
Erin.
What is the first thing you notice in the opposite sex?
Face.
What do you have handy next to your bed?
Eye glasses, ipod doc, pens, fans, lights, moisturizer, stress ball, journal, books, books, books.
Are you afraid of the dark?
No.
First thing you'll save in a fire?
the people inside.
What do you always take with you?
Everything, have you seen my purse?
Has a boy put their arm around you in the past 5 days?
Yeah, all these dude from South Philly that came into the bar in Baltimore where I was updating my travel journal-- a few of them were drunk drunk drunk and put there arm around me to hiccup and tell me stories.
How about called you beautiful?
Yeah, obv.
Ever turned a boy down you shouldn't have?
No one I shouldn't have.
Do you straighten your hair often?
No.
Are you a jealous person?
Not that much.
Do you like to make the first move?
I don't really think about that.
Do you hate the last girl you had a conversation with?
Of course not
What's most stressing right now?
jobs hunting
Do you swallow gum when your done with it?
Ew.
Do you like messages or comments better?
messages
Last non-relative you hugged?
A Fournier or Meliss a.
The next person you'll hold hands with, will it mean anything?
Probably not.
Are you someone's best friend?
uh huh
Do you cuss?
oh yeah
Are you a bitch?
No. Not always. But b*tches get sh*t done. Just ask hillary!
Gaffes Galore with Obama and the Newly Announced VP Joe Biden
The press is rolling like a pig in poop right now! Fiesty tell it like it is, but highly highly knowledgeable -- foreign-policy-wise -- Senator Joe Biden is Barack Obama's vice presidential running mate.
I got the text at 3:07 AM. I was staying up late to watch the General Hospital rerun. (I've been off GH since March but then saw at the grocery store magrags that Laura was coming back, so I'm back into it.)
Anyway, there I was flipping between Olympics coverage and GH reruns and = buzz -- buzz = goes my phone. A text from 622-62, the members' number for VP announcement release coverage. I was so excited I woke up Re ne, who could care less!, but I had to tell someone! Now, about Joe Biden. I said in my opening that the press was like a pig in poop because this guy is like an everlasting fountain of "You shouldn't have said that"s. Maybe that's why so many of us love him. The senator from Delaware is 1) probably the most knowledgeable American politician when it comes to foriegn policy. I mean, if he and "Sakashvili is my BFF" McCain were to go toe to toe on experience, the old "I'm not sure how many houses I own" McCain would get creamed. This man knows what he's talking about. Case in point:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuOkXgZqofA
2) He's hilarious.
3) His wife is a teacher.
4) He makes gaffes. He's bombastic. He's a little crazy. In this way, he's perfect for Obama, who is never gaffing, never bombastic, never out of the lines.
They're the perfect yin and yang.
In the end:
I was hoping for the long shot of Hilary, but I knew Bill was too much of a pain in the bum bum. I am so excited for this ticket. I thought Biden would be the Secretary of State under Obama, but I'm happy with the Veep.
Birthdays Birthdays Birthdays!!!
Two very important people are celebrating birthdays: one I've never met but love, the other I've known since kindergarten and also love. Ha! Her birthday's tomorrow and she'll get her own blog then...
So, for today: Happy Birthday to The Most Important Person In My Life Who I've Never Met (as opposed to the people I've met who are the most important...)
Happy 45th Birthday to Tori Amos!!! Thanks for the music and all the good concerts and all that.
Love yah,
Bridge
What If Landsdowne Did This?
Before every games at Camden Yard, there's a section across the street from the Yards that is cordoned off for vendors of stadium food, ice cold cheap beers and loud party music.
We briefly began wishing that this happened on Landsdowne and then quickly realized that it would result in a riot every single night.
Ah well...
We briefly began wishing that this happened on Landsdowne and then quickly realized that it would result in a riot every single night.
Ah well...
I'm Back!
It was lots of fun. I'll be posting pics and stories as soon as I settle in tomorrow.
It's good to be back home, I must say!
Until then--
It's good to be back home, I must say!
Until then--
FYI-Minimal Posting Until Thursday
Since I'm in Baltimore, I won't be posting anything significant until I'm back in Boston (Thursday night.)
So far, we've just hung out in Me lissa's town house and watched native Baltimorean Michael Phelps win the 8th gold medal. (11,000 people down the road and MT Bank (really? Empty Bank? what's up with that?) also watched...)
Today was Annapolis and now I have crabs. Ha ha get it? Navy joke. Anyway, for real I'm going to get crabs to eat and for real I saw some cute men in Navy uniforms at the Academy. Annapolis is pretty.
More later--with pictures even!
So far, we've just hung out in Me lissa's town house and watched native Baltimorean Michael Phelps win the 8th gold medal. (11,000 people down the road and MT Bank (really? Empty Bank? what's up with that?) also watched...)
Today was Annapolis and now I have crabs. Ha ha get it? Navy joke. Anyway, for real I'm going to get crabs to eat and for real I saw some cute men in Navy uniforms at the Academy. Annapolis is pretty.
More later--with pictures even!
Jimmy Fund Time!!!!
Time for the annual Jimmy Fund Post:
It's that time of year again. Time to pledge to the WEEI/ NESN Radio-Telethon for the the Jimmy Fund.
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
So far, they've raised over 3 million, but the more the merrier. For those not in the know, the Jimmy Fund raises money for cancer research. Who can say no to cancer research?
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
The Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon goes on during the Red Sox games and beyond. "Jimmy" was actually a man named Einar Gustafson from - where else ?- Maine. He was on a radio show called "Truth or Consequences" and, as a young cancer patient, Einar AKA Jimmy's story helped raised $200,000 for Dr. Dana Farber's cancer institute. (Full story here.)
Last year, someone from every state pledged. So, come on, man. Everybody's doing it.
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
I'm doing it for my dad. You can pledge for him. Or you can pledge for Mike Lowell, or Jon Lester, both cancer survivors.
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
It's that time of year again. Time to pledge to the WEEI/ NESN Radio-Telethon for the the Jimmy Fund.
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
So far, they've raised over 3 million, but the more the merrier. For those not in the know, the Jimmy Fund raises money for cancer research. Who can say no to cancer research?
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
The Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon goes on during the Red Sox games and beyond. "Jimmy" was actually a man named Einar Gustafson from - where else ?- Maine. He was on a radio show called "Truth or Consequences" and, as a young cancer patient, Einar AKA Jimmy's story helped raised $200,000 for Dr. Dana Farber's cancer institute. (Full story here.)
Last year, someone from every state pledged. So, come on, man. Everybody's doing it.
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
I'm doing it for my dad. You can pledge for him. Or you can pledge for Mike Lowell, or Jon Lester, both cancer survivors.
http://www.jimmyfund.org/eve/event/redsox-radio-telethon/default.html OR (877) 738-1234
Repost: The Beginning of the Year?
August 21, 2006 @ 1:14 pm
Well, we’re coming upon September, the beginning if the year. 
Wha????
For my entire life until this year, the beginning of the year always begins in September, since I have worked or studied at some school or another and school begins in September. It’s weird that I have no beginning of the year event: no first day of school, orientation, lesson plans or shelves to read for continuity.
It’s just weird to me that entire chunks of the population don’t consider September the beginning fo the year, and I hadn’t really thought about it until now, when September isn’t the beginning of the year to me.
If I get a job at a school soon or at a college, maybe September will mean beginning of the year, still.
PS I did. It was. But in 2007, it wasn't because I was at the online store. Now it is again. There's a 2 week break for the end of summer session. I'm going to Baltimore. See next post.
Bernie Mac
I started to write this blog on Saturday and on Sunday but both times, I just couldn't. It's still hard! But I'm going to do it this time:
One of my favorite family moments was when my mom, dad, sister and I all sat around the TV to watch the "Kings of Comedy" video. It wasn't long after my cousins had moved out after living with my family for years (because of unfortunate circumstances with their parents).
Bernie Mac came on. First, he started making us laugh when he made jokes about his wife. Then he started making jokes about getting head from a woman -- "Long time ago, long looong time ago." I was 21, with my 14 year old sister and my parents and we were all laughing at bj jokes. Tee hee. That made things a little uncomfortable but then funnier as a result.
Then Bernie Mac started talking about taking in his sisters little kids after his daughter was grown. And we all just looked at each other and nodded like, "Oh, we know what that's like." And all the stuff he said about those kids.
I saw the 3 year old coming down the stairs one night when I came home and asked her, "Where you going?"
"Tah git summ meelk and cooooo-keys."
We laughed our asses off together, incessantly. It was one of the funnest hours we all spent together. That's why losing Bernie Mac is so upsetting.
Here's to Bernie Mac, one mad funny man.
One of my favorite family moments was when my mom, dad, sister and I all sat around the TV to watch the "Kings of Comedy" video. It wasn't long after my cousins had moved out after living with my family for years (because of unfortunate circumstances with their parents).
Bernie Mac came on. First, he started making us laugh when he made jokes about his wife. Then he started making jokes about getting head from a woman -- "Long time ago, long looong time ago." I was 21, with my 14 year old sister and my parents and we were all laughing at bj jokes. Tee hee. That made things a little uncomfortable but then funnier as a result.
Then Bernie Mac started talking about taking in his sisters little kids after his daughter was grown. And we all just looked at each other and nodded like, "Oh, we know what that's like." And all the stuff he said about those kids.
I saw the 3 year old coming down the stairs one night when I came home and asked her, "Where you going?"
"Tah git summ meelk and cooooo-keys."
We laughed our asses off together, incessantly. It was one of the funnest hours we all spent together. That's why losing Bernie Mac is so upsetting.
Here's to Bernie Mac, one mad funny man.
Baseball Poem
Lots of poets like to write about baseball. I posted a Marianne Moore one at the beginning of the season. It's okay, gets alittle corny, but that's fine, sometimes, especially when talking baout loving baseball, that's appropriate.
Anyway, I'm reading a book right now and have stopped to share the poem in it that I just (re) read (for the 100th time in my life.) I wanted to type it up and share. I think it's one of the most sensuous, funny and unexpected baseball poems out there. (Sensuous, funny and unexpected is also how I would describe the poet who penned the poem, one of my favorites--Bernadete Mayer.)
That was fun to type up. I like to rewrite poems I love in sketchbook pages, just to see them differently, or to hear them more deliberately, but I don't usually type them up. I like hand-re-writing more, but for the purpose of blogging, that wouldn't quite work, would it?
Hope you enjoyed your baseball poem of the day.
Anyway, I'm reading a book right now and have stopped to share the poem in it that I just (re) read (for the 100th time in my life.) I wanted to type it up and share. I think it's one of the most sensuous, funny and unexpected baseball poems out there. (Sensuous, funny and unexpected is also how I would describe the poet who penned the poem, one of my favorites--Bernadete Mayer.)
Carlton Fisk Is My Ideal
He wears a beautiful necklace
next to the beautiful skin of his neck
unlike the Worhtington butcher
Bradford T. Fisk (butchers always
have a crush on me), who cannot even oreder veal
except in whole legs of it.
Oh the legs of a catcher!
Catchers squat in a posture
that is of course inward denying orgasm
but Carlton Fisk, I could
model a whole attitude to spring
on him. And he is a leaper!
Like Walt Frazier or, better,
like the only white leaper,
I forget his name, in the ABA's
All-Star game half-time slam-dunk contest
this year. I think about Carlton Fisk in his
modest home in New Hampshire
all the time, I love the sound of his name
denying orgasm. Carlton & I
look out the window at spring's first
northeaster. He carries a big hero
across the porch of his home to me.
(He has no year-round Xmas tree
like Clifford Ray who handles the ball
like a banana). We eat & watch the storm
batter the buds balking on the trees
& cover the green of the grass
that my sister thinks is new grass.
It's last year's grass still!
And still there is no spring training
as I write this, March 16, 1976,
the year of the blizzard that sealed our love
up in a great mound of orgasmic earth.
The pitcher's mound is the lightning mound.
Pudge will see fastballs in the wind,
his mescaline arm extends to the field.
He wears his necklace.
He catches the ball in his teeth!
Balls fall with a near thunk
in the upholstery of the leather glove he put on
to caress me, as told to, in the off-season.
All of a sudden he leaps from the couch,
a real ball has come thru the window
& is heading for the penguins on his sweater,
one of whom has lost his balloon
which is floating up into the sky!
That was fun to type up. I like to rewrite poems I love in sketchbook pages, just to see them differently, or to hear them more deliberately, but I don't usually type them up. I like hand-re-writing more, but for the purpose of blogging, that wouldn't quite work, would it?
Hope you enjoyed your baseball poem of the day.
Olympics! Olympics! Olympics!
What can I say? I know that China's human rights record is atrocious and that thousands of people lost their homes in eminent domain cases and were not well, if at all compensated. I know the pollution is ridiculous. I know doping is rampant. I know 8 year old children are enslaved to become gymnasts, yet despite all this--I still and always will love the Olympics.
Here's my Olympic story from yesterday:
Most of you know, one of the French swimmers said, "We will crush the Americans," in reference to the men's swimming relay competition. And then?
"Go! go! go!" we were all shouting in the living room last night as the last leg American and Frenchman relay team swimmers went stroke for stroke.
You know the outcome: the USA men's relay got the gold by a fingertip.
I jumped up from the couch and yelled, "Eat it Frenchies!" then went back to eating my brie.
"At least they make good cheese," I said, as I spread the creamy fromage on the whole wheat cracker and watched the US flag get raised higher than the French flag.
I also get a little teary at the Star Spangled Banner during these things too. I know, I know. What kind of ACLU member liberal am I? What can I say? I love this country, even if I'm not too fond of the non swimmer dudes in the photo above.
"O-o-o-h say can you see..."
Update: The Oldsmobile & The Hayfield
The Hayfield & The OldsDuring the residency, I blogged about the random day when driving back from the Stonehouse (see pine tree photo to left for view from Stonehouse) to Bowdoin and seeing an old Oldsmobile that looked like it was plopped down from Above into the middle of a hayfield.
I finally uploaded my photos.
And here's this, from the old post, to go along with the photos
"That spawned this clever "poem" by Tig h Rick man.
So much
depends
upon
a White Oldsmobile
abandoned
in the middle
of a hay field"
um...yeah
http://www.zazzle.com/librariangear/
The only one I didn't get was the "less shush more lush" one. But that might be the Bordeaux I've been drinking clouding my thought process...
The only one I didn't get was the "less shush more lush" one. But that might be the Bordeaux I've been drinking clouding my thought process...
Repost: Bob's Your Uncle
August 22, 2006 @ 11:38 pm
I heard someone say this unexpectedly today. I think it was Sarah Chaise, formally of NPR, now selling soap in a cave in Afghanistan. I think she was talking about the US support of Pakistan turning Afghani civilians against America. Something like, “If the US supports Pakistan and Pakistan does this and that to the Afghanis, then Bob’s your uncle, they don’t like us.”
Maybe it wasn’t her. I heard it somewhere though and thought, “Does everyone really have an Uncle Bob?” Because I have one alive and one deceased. Most of my friends have an Uncle Bob, too. And Bob’s your uncle, so do my cousins!
PS. So do my siblings, pictured above with--Bob's your uncle!--Uncle Bob)
Librarians Who Rule
I was just chatting here at the MB lib with the ref librarian about the Caldecott Winner and so I popped over to the American Library Association website to see who this year's recipient was: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. Not any book I had heard of, but I've never been one to pay close attention to the picture books. (The librarian here does because of the early childhood ed program.)
However, I did pop over to the Newbery List and saw that this year's was "Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village" by Laura Amy Schlitz. I had heard all about this book back in January on WBUR's Here and Now and meant to write about it when I did. I love all things Birtish historical (see previous posts on Tudors, Elizabeth, Jane Austen and the Windsors), so this book appealed to me because it's about medieval England.
I love to read YA novels because they usually take only a day's time and they're fun and if they're Newbery winners they're not so much brain candy as they are brain cookie made with whole wheat flour and all natural ingredients so there's some nourishment in there.
The coolest thing, though, is that the author is actually a librarian. How neat-o. That's why I titled this post "Librarians Who Rule".
Off to go order the book, from my library, of course!
However, I did pop over to the Newbery List and saw that this year's was "Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village" by Laura Amy Schlitz. I had heard all about this book back in January on WBUR's Here and Now and meant to write about it when I did. I love all things Birtish historical (see previous posts on Tudors, Elizabeth, Jane Austen and the Windsors), so this book appealed to me because it's about medieval England.
I love to read YA novels because they usually take only a day's time and they're fun and if they're Newbery winners they're not so much brain candy as they are brain cookie made with whole wheat flour and all natural ingredients so there's some nourishment in there.
The coolest thing, though, is that the author is actually a librarian. How neat-o. That's why I titled this post "Librarians Who Rule".
Off to go order the book, from my library, of course!
This Week in WTF: Early Edition
Repost: (Whoopsy, been slackin' on these)
It's been too long since I reposted from the old blog. I remember just now because I was looking for something I knew I blogged about but it wasn't showing up when I searched--because it was on the old site. So, here's where I left off...(I'm not even sure myself what it is. Let's go look, shall we?)
From August 27, 2005
This was in my ACLU newsletter. Wanted to spread the word:
From August 27, 2005
This was in my ACLU newsletter. Wanted to spread the word:
As the nation marks the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the ACLU’s National Prison Project released “Abandoned & Abused: Orleans Parish Prisoners in the Wake of Hurricane Katrina,” a report that documents the experiences of thousands of men, women and children who were abandoned at Orleans Parish Prison (OPP) in the days after the storm.
The culture of neglect was evident days before Katrina hit, when the sheriff declared that the prisoners would remain “where they belong,” despite the mayor’s decision to declare the city’s first-ever mandatory evacuation. OPP even accepted prisoners, including juveniles as young as 10, from other facilities to ride out the storm.
As the storm waters rose, deputies left their posts wholesale, leaving behind prisoners in locked cells, some standing in sewage-tainted water up to their chests. Prisoners went days without food, water and ventilation.
After days of fear and chaos, the prisoners were finally evacuated by order of the state. The report follows the prisoners as they were transferred to jails and prisons around Louisiana, recounting how they were placed outdoors in a yard with inadequate food, medical care, and protection from other prisoners, many of whom were armed with makeshift weapons.
“The prisoners inside the Orleans Parish Prison suffered some of the worst horrors of Hurricane Katrina,” said Eric Balaban, a staff attorney for the National Prison Project. “Because society views prisoners as second-class citizens, their stories have largely gone unnoticed and therefore untold.”
In conjunction with the report’s release, the National Prison Project urged the president to direct the Department of Justice to evaluate OPP’s evacuation plans to determine whether any meaningful improvements have been made in the past year. The ACLU is calling for a full and immediate investigation into abuses at Louisiana correctional facilities during and after the storm.
Full report:
"http://www.aclu.org/prison/conditions/26414pub20060809.html"
Still going through the journals...
and I found this Stephan Mallarme quote that I wrote down:
knowhattmean?
To name an object is to suppress three fourths of the pleasure of the poem which is made to be divined bit by bit: to suggest, there's the dream. It's perfect usage of the mystery which constitutes the symbols: To evoke, bit by bit, an object in order and to abstract from it a condition of soul by a series of abstractions...
knowhattmean?
Obsession
I've mentioned previously that I'm obsessed with all things Tudor.Well, all this season, I've been lamenting that I always miss the Tudors when they're on Showtime.
Oh my doofusness!
I have forgotten that they're free with On Demand!!
So, guess what I'm doing right now?
Catching up! The neatest thing about having it On Demand is I can stop whenever I want. I can also pause and go to my Alison Weir books, The Wives of Henry the VIII and The Children of Henry the VIII and also go to my current favored book, "Literature of England" and get the low down on the back story with this Sir Thomas Wyatt and Ann Boleyn (pictured).
He's a Sir Thomas Wyatt poem for you:
Description of the Contrarious Passions in a Lover
I find no peace, and all my war is done;
I fear and hope, I burn, and I freeze like ice;
I fly above the wind, yet can I not arise;
And nought I have, and all the world I seize on,
That loseth nor locketh, holdeth me in prison,
And holdeth me not, yet can i scape no wise;
Nor letteth me live, nor die, at my devise,
And yet of death it giveth me occasion.
Without eye I see; and without tongue I plain:
I desire to perish, and yet I ask health;
I love another, and thus I hate myself;
I feed me in sorrow, and laugh in all my pain.
Likewise displeaseth me both death and life,
And my delight is cause of this strife.
- Sir Thomas Wyatt, 1557
I'm not the only one obsessed with all things Tudor:
PS This video's kinda silly but I still love the song.
Recipe: Pasta Primavera wit Goat Cheese
Recipe: Pasta Primavera wit Goat Cheese
(I'm not a measurer; I'm an eyeballer, so take these measurements in the recipe as approximations. You can add more or less of whatever you like.)
Dissolve the bullion in the 1/2 c. hot pasta water and set aside.
In a large saute pan heat the evoo over med high heat and saute the garlic 'til limp, then the veggies, heat until slightly limp, stirring as needed to avoid burning, add the broth, cover cook until broth is almost cooked up, add another half cup water, stir, pile veggies in the middle, add the cheese on top, cover again. After about 1 or 2 minutes, stir. The cheese should easily melt into the broth, making a sauce. Stir until everything's well coated. Toss with the pasta until that is well coated. Serve. Also makes a nice pasta salad chilled.
(I'm not a measurer; I'm an eyeballer, so take these measurements in the recipe as approximations. You can add more or less of whatever you like.)
- 2 c. cooked pasta (half a box)
- 1/2 c. hot water (take from the pasta water)
- 1 veg bullion cube
- 1/2 c. water
- 1/2 c. goat cheese crumbles
- 1/3 c. bleu cheese crumbles
- lots and lots of vegetables, chopped--this is what I used
- carrots (2 sticks, coined and halved, steamed over the pasta before sauteing all the other veg)
- red bell pepper
- mushrooms
- broccoli
- onion
- garlic cloves, finely chopped (your preference)
- 8 fresh basil leaves, chopped
- 2 tbs evoo
Dissolve the bullion in the 1/2 c. hot pasta water and set aside.
In a large saute pan heat the evoo over med high heat and saute the garlic 'til limp, then the veggies, heat until slightly limp, stirring as needed to avoid burning, add the broth, cover cook until broth is almost cooked up, add another half cup water, stir, pile veggies in the middle, add the cheese on top, cover again. After about 1 or 2 minutes, stir. The cheese should easily melt into the broth, making a sauce. Stir until everything's well coated. Toss with the pasta until that is well coated. Serve. Also makes a nice pasta salad chilled.
This Week in WTF
So much to chose from, really. But I'll go lite this time and just post this link to an article from the New York Times about
Trolls.
I honestly don't know. I just don't.
A snippet (mild compared to the others, actually):
Trolls.
I honestly don't know. I just don't.
A snippet (mild compared to the others, actually):
One promising answer comes from the computer scientist Jon Postel, now known as “god of the Internet” for the influence he exercised over the emerging network. In 1981, he formulated what’s known as Postel’s Law: “Be conservative in what you do; be liberal in what you accept from others.” Originally intended to foster “interoperability,” the ability of multiple computer systems to understand one another, Postel’s Law is now recognized as having wider applications. To build a robust global network with no central authority, engineers were encouraged to write code that could “speak” as clearly as possible yet “listen” to the widest possible range of other speakers, including those who do not conform perfectly to the rules of the road. The human equivalent of this robustness is a combination of eloquence and tolerance — the spirit of good conversation. Trolls embody the opposite principle. They are liberal in what they do and conservative in what they construe as acceptable behavior from others. You, the troll says, are not worthy of my understanding; I, therefore, will do everything I can to confound you.
McCain and Off Shore Drilling
From Paul Krugman's OpEd piece in the New York Times:
...Mr. McCain’s claim that opponents of offshore drilling are responsible for high gas prices is ridiculous — and to their credit, major news organizations have pointed this out. Yet Mr. McCain’s gambit seems nonetheless to be working: public support for ending restrictions on drilling has risen sharply, with roughly half of voters saying that increased offshore drilling would reduce gas prices within a year.
[All boiling down to this] The only way we’re going to get action, I’d suggest, is if those who stand in the way of action come to be perceived as not just wrong but immoral."
See full story here.
What’s even more important than Mr. McCain’s bad economics, however, is what his reversal on this issue — he was against offshore drilling before he was for it — says about his priorities.
...Mr. McCain’s claim that opponents of offshore drilling are responsible for high gas prices is ridiculous — and to their credit, major news organizations have pointed this out. Yet Mr. McCain’s gambit seems nonetheless to be working: public support for ending restrictions on drilling has risen sharply, with roughly half of voters saying that increased offshore drilling would reduce gas prices within a year.
[All boiling down to this] The only way we’re going to get action, I’d suggest, is if those who stand in the way of action come to be perceived as not just wrong but immoral."
See full story here.
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