October 2008 Archives
Studs Terkel has left the building.
If I had to name the person who most defines my work as a wannabe author, academic and activist, it'd be Studs Terkel.
His gift was that of making the everyday epic, which is as it should be. And though I can never hope to be the kind of interviewer and listener that he was, I hope to someday do him justice as a populist.
One of the most amazing experiences of my life was sitting in the IMSA gym and watching him interview Rosa Parks. The sound was terrible and I was too obsessed with teenaged bullshit at the time to fully explore what was there in front of me, but thank God I had the foresight to have the mental recorder on that day.
Thank you sir. Red checks will never be the same again.
If I had to name the person who most defines my work as a wannabe author, academic and activist, it'd be Studs Terkel.
His gift was that of making the everyday epic, which is as it should be. And though I can never hope to be the kind of interviewer and listener that he was, I hope to someday do him justice as a populist.
One of the most amazing experiences of my life was sitting in the IMSA gym and watching him interview Rosa Parks. The sound was terrible and I was too obsessed with teenaged bullshit at the time to fully explore what was there in front of me, but thank God I had the foresight to have the mental recorder on that day.
Thank you sir. Red checks will never be the same again.
OK, not really moral, but...
New Mexico has early voting. Yknow, go into one of a few different early poling places, vote, be done before Election Day.
Only, I have Election Day off (I'm union again, don'cha know.) And I really LIKE standing in line on Election Day. It's kinda fun for me, it quells the the fourth grader inside of me's need to feel like I'm doing an ultra-important civic duty. Voting early, voting by mail...they just don't do it for me.
Am I a freak because I don't vote early? Should I suck it up and go?
Also, if you want to keep on top of the latest Toaster news...told creepily in the first person, you may want to go here.
New Mexico has early voting. Yknow, go into one of a few different early poling places, vote, be done before Election Day.
Only, I have Election Day off (I'm union again, don'cha know.) And I really LIKE standing in line on Election Day. It's kinda fun for me, it quells the the fourth grader inside of me's need to feel like I'm doing an ultra-important civic duty. Voting early, voting by mail...they just don't do it for me.
Am I a freak because I don't vote early? Should I suck it up and go?
Also, if you want to keep on top of the latest Toaster news...told creepily in the first person, you may want to go here.
I was almost run off the road today by an older woman in an older Subaru nearly ran me off the road at the intersection of Don Diego and Cordova today.
She had two dogs riding in the car with her and a giant WIND POWER! bumper sticker on her car.
At least she didn't hit me. That particular indignity was saved for the guy who rear ended me last week while I was waiting at a red light on Cerrillos waiting to turn right onto St. Francis. Guy was in a small SUV and had the guts to say "well, I didn't hit you that hard" when we got out to look at the damage. Yeah, SUV hits Beto at any speed, there's gonna be damage. In my case it was a bruised ring finger (couldn't wear my wedding ring for a few days) and a totally cracked bumper. Took it to a body shop today, gonna be $800 to get it fixed. So begins my dance with the other guy's insurance.
Fun.
But that's not what I came here to talk about. No, I read a great headline on CNN today and I had to tell someone. "Wind Powered Yacht Aims For Speed Record." Am I the only one here who thought a wind powered yacht was called a sailboat?
Oh, it's a schooner
You dumb bastard. It's not schooner, it's a sailboat.
A schooner IS a sailboat, stupid.
Sorry, gratuitous Kevin Smith break there...
Anyway, I read the article, turns out it is a sailboat, only no one's calling that...because "Wind Powered Yacht" sounds cooler. Yknow, a schooner is a sailboat, right?
Last link for the day...anyone see this weekend's Family Guy? Apparently they implied that the Nazis would be pro-McCain/Palin. And who was the only news channel ballsy enough to take on those liberal elitists at Fox? FoxNews...it's called synergy people...
She had two dogs riding in the car with her and a giant WIND POWER! bumper sticker on her car.
At least she didn't hit me. That particular indignity was saved for the guy who rear ended me last week while I was waiting at a red light on Cerrillos waiting to turn right onto St. Francis. Guy was in a small SUV and had the guts to say "well, I didn't hit you that hard" when we got out to look at the damage. Yeah, SUV hits Beto at any speed, there's gonna be damage. In my case it was a bruised ring finger (couldn't wear my wedding ring for a few days) and a totally cracked bumper. Took it to a body shop today, gonna be $800 to get it fixed. So begins my dance with the other guy's insurance.
Fun.
But that's not what I came here to talk about. No, I read a great headline on CNN today and I had to tell someone. "Wind Powered Yacht Aims For Speed Record." Am I the only one here who thought a wind powered yacht was called a sailboat?
Oh, it's a schooner
You dumb bastard. It's not schooner, it's a sailboat.
A schooner IS a sailboat, stupid.
Sorry, gratuitous Kevin Smith break there...
Anyway, I read the article, turns out it is a sailboat, only no one's calling that...because "Wind Powered Yacht" sounds cooler. Yknow, a schooner is a sailboat, right?
Last link for the day...anyone see this weekend's Family Guy? Apparently they implied that the Nazis would be pro-McCain/Palin. And who was the only news channel ballsy enough to take on those liberal elitists at Fox? FoxNews...it's called synergy people...
Great article from the paper of record about how Obama is playing with fire by picking the Phillies to win the World Series. Seriously?
What might he do? Anger the six Rays fans? Sure, a lot of folks down there could be the kind of fairweather Massholes that have turned out to support the Sawx over the last few years (not to mention the asshole fratboys who've come out of the woodwork and into my beloved Wrigley as of late). But seriously? Where's the political liability here?
Still though, funny article. And a great display of an interesting subtext to this election, athletes breaking with Michael Jordan's famous pronouncement "Republicans buy shoes too." And are speaking out about this election.
What might he do? Anger the six Rays fans? Sure, a lot of folks down there could be the kind of fairweather Massholes that have turned out to support the Sawx over the last few years (not to mention the asshole fratboys who've come out of the woodwork and into my beloved Wrigley as of late). But seriously? Where's the political liability here?
Still though, funny article. And a great display of an interesting subtext to this election, athletes breaking with Michael Jordan's famous pronouncement "Republicans buy shoes too." And are speaking out about this election.
The other day Nena brought home some cinnamon rolls from IKEA.
Only, she brought them home from the IKEA in Phoenix, in her carry-on bag...
She took the hard plastic container, dropped them in her backpack and off she went.
As you can imagine, this leaked a bit of frosting into her bag.
This morning, she's getting the frosting out of her bag mumbling something about this being the worst idea ever.
Nenie: Honey, that's totally not the worst idea ever.
Nena: You're just trying to make me feel better.
Nenie: No, I'll admit, it's not the best idea anyone's ever had. But it's not the worst idea.
Nena: What was a worse idea than this.
Nenie: Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios.
Nena: No one's ever thought of that.
Nenie: Hrmm. Someone clearly didn't go to college with boys.
Nena: I did.
Nenie: Apparently not, because if you had you would have known someone who'd thought of Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios. Or something worse.
Nena: Please say no one at Carleton ever made Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios.
Nenie: I used to eat Oreos and salsa...
Nena: Please say no one ever ate Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios.
Nenie: Yup, no boys around you in college...
Nena: I went to college with boys, stinky horny boys...
Nenie: Who were always too stoned to do anything remotely creative...
Nena: Please say no one...
Nenie: It's pretty easy. You make the bacon and then use the bacon grease to fry the Cheerios in, then...
Nena: Please...
Nenie:...you cut up the bacon into bits and add that into the sour cream along with some chives...
Nena: Yeah, I don't believe you.
Nenie: OK, you're right. No one ever did that. But I figure from here you could probably break up the Cheerios into Cheerio Flour and then make some chips with them.
Nena: Wow, that does sound kinda good.
Seriously, maybe if you made Cheerio Flour first and then fried those "raw" chips in the bacon grease...
Only, she brought them home from the IKEA in Phoenix, in her carry-on bag...
She took the hard plastic container, dropped them in her backpack and off she went.
As you can imagine, this leaked a bit of frosting into her bag.
This morning, she's getting the frosting out of her bag mumbling something about this being the worst idea ever.
Nenie: Honey, that's totally not the worst idea ever.
Nena: You're just trying to make me feel better.
Nenie: No, I'll admit, it's not the best idea anyone's ever had. But it's not the worst idea.
Nena: What was a worse idea than this.
Nenie: Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios.
Nena: No one's ever thought of that.
Nenie: Hrmm. Someone clearly didn't go to college with boys.
Nena: I did.
Nenie: Apparently not, because if you had you would have known someone who'd thought of Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios. Or something worse.
Nena: Please say no one at Carleton ever made Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios.
Nenie: I used to eat Oreos and salsa...
Nena: Please say no one ever ate Sour Cream and Bacon Cheerios.
Nenie: Yup, no boys around you in college...
Nena: I went to college with boys, stinky horny boys...
Nenie: Who were always too stoned to do anything remotely creative...
Nena: Please say no one...
Nenie: It's pretty easy. You make the bacon and then use the bacon grease to fry the Cheerios in, then...
Nena: Please...
Nenie:...you cut up the bacon into bits and add that into the sour cream along with some chives...
Nena: Yeah, I don't believe you.
Nenie: OK, you're right. No one ever did that. But I figure from here you could probably break up the Cheerios into Cheerio Flour and then make some chips with them.
Nena: Wow, that does sound kinda good.
Seriously, maybe if you made Cheerio Flour first and then fried those "raw" chips in the bacon grease...
Let me sit here and die of not surprise.
You expected: Barack Obama
Your recommendation: Barack Obama
| Barack Obama |  | 135 | ||
| John McCain | -51 |  |
Your recommendation: Barack Obama
Party: Democratic
Born: 1961, Honolulu, Hawaii
Family: wife and two daughters
Career: Business International Corporation; NYPIRG; attorney and constitutional law lecturer
Political career: Member of the Illinois State Senate from the 13th district, 1997-2004. Incumbent Junior Senator from Illinois since 2005
Hot topic: Universal healthcare
Did you know? He is the only African American currently serving in the US Senate
Supported by: Oprah Winfrey, Eddie Murphy, Will Smith, George Clooney, Halle Berry, Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Michael Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Ed Norton, Jennifer Aniston, Zach Braff, John Cleese, Leonard Nimoy and Brooke Shields
I've been waiting to write this post for years.
Yes, years.
A long time ago, in a lifetime that feels amazingly far away I had an idea for a baby pool.
OK, so it's not totally my idea, but, well, yeah.
So here it is, the Toaster Due Date Pool!
Rules:
1) Entry is $10.
2) Pick a date.
3) Pick a gender.
4) Post your date and gender via comment.
5) Send me the money via Paypal. (no Paypal? email me)
6) Going more than 24 hours without payment invalidates your entry.
7) Winner gets half the pot with the other half becoming the seed money in Toaster's college fund.
8) In the unlikely event that someone picks the correct date but not the gender, they win 25% of the pot, Toaster's college fund gets 75%.
Hints:
Due Date is Feb 10
Adjusted Due Date is Feb 8
Nena's Due Date: March 8
Nena's Birthday: March 22
Nenie's Due Date: March 22 (yes, really)
Nenie's Birthday: Feb 23
Nena thinks Toaster is a boy.
I fluctuate.
MamaNenie thinks Toaster is a girl.
Drieg thinks Toaster is a girl.
MamaNena thinks Toaster is a boy.
There is no medical confirmation of either gender.
So there you have it boys and girls. Pick a date, send my kid to college...for about fifteen minutes, or maybe even all of New Student Week.
That's the back of my car.
It's been like that since February.
I've gotten a few compliments on the juxtaposition of the elements over the last 8 months and thankfully, no one's egged me yet.
And yes, I do finally live far enough away from Chicago that I can get that plate...
Anyway, I'm driving home from work today, cruising down I-25 at a brisk 80MPH, listening to Click and Clack (Have I mentioned that I hate it when people call them that? Cuz I do. Yet here I am...) when I notice that the VW next to me is pacing me.
Paranoid, I look over and make eye contact with the driver, who tips his hat to me.
His Dodgers cap.
I had to laugh, cuz, well...yeah.
Well, it was inevitable.
The Cubs choked.
As I was telling a passerby on the street last night. The seasonal Cubs collapse is a tradition, the only difference is that for the past two years you could look at a few specific games (or a few specific plays) and pinpoint the exact moment when the wheels came off the bus. Normally, it happens slowly and subtlety in the third week of April.
This is what faith is about. As I've mentioned a few times before ...blah, blah, blah, faith.
Truth be told, as soon as my NL Central Champs shirt came in the mail (Mom thought I HAD to have one) I started realizing that this didn't feel right. The high wasn't there like it was in '03, so I started waiting for the shoe to drop. And then it dropped pretty quickly.
So now we wait for next year. Should be a good time...see you then.
The Cubs choked.
As I was telling a passerby on the street last night. The seasonal Cubs collapse is a tradition, the only difference is that for the past two years you could look at a few specific games (or a few specific plays) and pinpoint the exact moment when the wheels came off the bus. Normally, it happens slowly and subtlety in the third week of April.
This is what faith is about. As I've mentioned a few times before ...blah, blah, blah, faith.
Truth be told, as soon as my NL Central Champs shirt came in the mail (Mom thought I HAD to have one) I started realizing that this didn't feel right. The high wasn't there like it was in '03, so I started waiting for the shoe to drop. And then it dropped pretty quickly.
So now we wait for next year. Should be a good time...see you then.
Fantasy Hockey Season.
Yes, I've crossed the Rubicon ladies and gentlemen. But, with Toaster on the way, and a new job and a continued dearth of actual friends out here, I've decided to add one more imaginary pursuit to my life.
So Fantasy Hockey it is.
I was going to call the league the "Professional Ice Therapists Association" or PITA a compliment to my football league (Federation of Associated Liberal Artists Football Enterprises League or FALAFEL) but then I remembered a buddy's love for hockey and went with the Society of Ice Lovers Sliding B Y...
It's a roto style league and runs all hockey season (so past Toaster's second birthday) and I have a small number of franchises still available, if you're interested....email me or post a comment.
Yes, I've crossed the Rubicon ladies and gentlemen. But, with Toaster on the way, and a new job and a continued dearth of actual friends out here, I've decided to add one more imaginary pursuit to my life.
So Fantasy Hockey it is.
I was going to call the league the "Professional Ice Therapists Association" or PITA a compliment to my football league (Federation of Associated Liberal Artists Football Enterprises League or FALAFEL) but then I remembered a buddy's love for hockey and went with the Society of Ice Lovers Sliding B Y...
It's a roto style league and runs all hockey season (so past Toaster's second birthday) and I have a small number of franchises still available, if you're interested....email me or post a comment.
