Monday, December 31, 2012
Radio gift
Classical station countdown of top selections voted by audience ... all day to midnight ... full long pieces ... great day of music.
Another amazing concoction
Last minute desire to mske blackeyed peas for New Year ... need ingredients but lazy ... will wing it ... soak peas for a few hours and drain ... cover in chicken broth and splash of v8 ... add chopped onions ... chopped bacon ... now what hmm ... make standard Korean marinade! ... marinade hamburger and brown ... everything incl leftover marinade into peas pot ... simmer forever ... and man this is GOOD!
Why Is Obama Caving on Taxes? -- Daily Intelligencer
Why Is Obama Caving on Taxes? -- Daily Intelligencer:
"The discouraging thing about the “fiscal cliff” negotiations is not that they have gone into the eleventh hour, or that they may go into the new year, or even that they won’t resolve the long-term budget deficit. It’s that President Obama has retreated on his hard line on taxes."
Let's face it, he's a wimp. The Republicans own him. They know a political flaw when they see one. Obama wants to be LIKED. Ha ha ha!
"The discouraging thing about the “fiscal cliff” negotiations is not that they have gone into the eleventh hour, or that they may go into the new year, or even that they won’t resolve the long-term budget deficit. It’s that President Obama has retreated on his hard line on taxes."
Let's face it, he's a wimp. The Republicans own him. They know a political flaw when they see one. Obama wants to be LIKED. Ha ha ha!
Talent
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| Nicole Kidman as Virginia Woolf |
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| Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher |
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| Kate Blanchett as Bob Dylan |
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Changes
New changes in story strategy ... brooding at ocean will do that ... plus heaven help us ... resolutions for new year ... the last hurrah maybe.
Charging the battery
A couple days in Astoria ...
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| A room with a view |
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| A beach of one's own |
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| The moon also sets |
Friday, December 28, 2012
Ramanujan's Mock Modular Forms: Indian Mathematician's Dream Conjecture Finally Proven
Ramanujan's Mock Modular Forms: Indian Mathematician's Dream Conjecture Finally Proven:
"While on his death bed, the brilliant Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan cryptically wrote down functions he said came to him in dreams, with a hunch about how they behaved. Now 100 years later, researchers say they've proved he was right."
"While on his death bed, the brilliant Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan cryptically wrote down functions he said came to him in dreams, with a hunch about how they behaved. Now 100 years later, researchers say they've proved he was right."
Jeffrey Eugenides's Advice to Young Writers : The New Yorker
Jeffrey Eugenides's Advice to Young Writers : The New Yorker:
"To follow literary fashion, to write for money, to censor your true feelings and thoughts or adopt ideas because they’re popular requires a writer to suppress the very promptings that got him or her writing in the first place. When you started writing, in high school or college, it wasn’t out of a wish to be published, or to be successful, or even to win a lovely award like the one you’re receiving tonight. It was in response to the wondrousness and humiliation of being alive. "
Well, here's some advice seldom taken!
"To follow literary fashion, to write for money, to censor your true feelings and thoughts or adopt ideas because they’re popular requires a writer to suppress the very promptings that got him or her writing in the first place. When you started writing, in high school or college, it wasn’t out of a wish to be published, or to be successful, or even to win a lovely award like the one you’re receiving tonight. It was in response to the wondrousness and humiliation of being alive. "
Well, here's some advice seldom taken!
Bears blitz Bruins 49-26 behind Martin, Florence - Yahoo! News
Bears blitz Bruins 49-26 behind Martin, Florence - Yahoo! News:
"SAN DIEGO (AP) — Routing the UCLA Bruins almost seemed like a sidelight for Baylor Bears quarterback Nick Florence."
Painful to watch. Puts a sour ending on UCLA's surprisingly good season. Worst to watch, penalties. 2 scores set up by stopped drives reversed by a stupid penalty (like unnecessary roughness). Not a very smart team.
"SAN DIEGO (AP) — Routing the UCLA Bruins almost seemed like a sidelight for Baylor Bears quarterback Nick Florence."
Painful to watch. Puts a sour ending on UCLA's surprisingly good season. Worst to watch, penalties. 2 scores set up by stopped drives reversed by a stupid penalty (like unnecessary roughness). Not a very smart team.
Book World: Louise Gluck’s ‘Poems 1962-2012’ - The Washington Post
Book World: Louise Gluck’s ‘Poems 1962-2012’ - The Washington Post:
"Six hundred and thirty-four pages, just shy of three pounds: a life in letters. No, more essential than that: Louise Gluck’s “Poems 1962-2012” is weighted with the dark matter of the human universe, invisible in our everyday interactions but at the core of our conscious experience. Though Gluck lays bare the most intimate moments of longing and loss, these poems are not what we think of as confessional. They are more like the record of a shipwreck survivor trying to come to terms with the strain of isolation and the stark horizon of her island. Language is the castaway’s only refuge."
Measure would make soft-shell crab Maryland’s official sandwich - The Washington Post
Measure would make soft-shell crab Maryland’s official sandwich - The Washington Post
Yes! Great idea!
He ordered a sandwich, I said the sameAnd I was about to ask him his nameBut before I did, the food come byAnd I couldn’t hardly believe my eyesI mean, this sandwich, it was nothing but two pieces of bread wrapped about this crab … I mean, it had the shells on and everything … all these claws was sticking out every which-a-way … and one of my claws was moving
--from "West Meets East Talkin' Misery Blues"
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| Yum! I miss them. |
Thursday, December 27, 2012
The holidays
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| A smattering of snow |
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| Baby, it's warm inside |
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| A lucky breakfast |
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| Back to bed |
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| Security blanket |
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| Waiting for Harriet to get home |
Rooting for broken hearts
Poor San Jose State. The football team finally reached the big time. Two years ago 12 losses ... this year 10 wins ... national ranking ... a bowl game.
And having your coach stolen. Off to Colorado. Players shocked ... even in tears. Welcome to the big time. No loyalty here. Colorado QUADRUPLED his salary;! Tough decision.
I am home fighting a virus and so can watch the bowl game soon and root for SJS with no coach and a broken heart and a lesson about big time football.
And having your coach stolen. Off to Colorado. Players shocked ... even in tears. Welcome to the big time. No loyalty here. Colorado QUADRUPLED his salary;! Tough decision.
I am home fighting a virus and so can watch the bowl game soon and root for SJS with no coach and a broken heart and a lesson about big time football.
Bowl games
It may be hard to imagine today but when I was a kid there were only four bowl games. On the west coast you could listen to ... and later watch! ... the Sugar and Cotton bowls in the morning, the Rose Bowl in the afternoon and the Orange Bowl at night. All these games were a must. No overkill. No corporate sponsors. No hype.
Progress ahem is not always progress.
Progress ahem is not always progress.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Cook at work
Sometimes no breakfast beats milk toast, eggs and scrapple.
For dinner ... Korean soup with salmon spring rolls.
Tomorrow will see Les Miserables alone ... Not H's cup of tea ... too dark.
What a great morning of writing.
I wonder how my friend Mark's project is coming.
For dinner ... Korean soup with salmon spring rolls.
Tomorrow will see Les Miserables alone ... Not H's cup of tea ... too dark.
What a great morning of writing.
I wonder how my friend Mark's project is coming.
Morris Berman on America's culture of "Me, Myself, and I" | Washington Times Communities
Morris Berman on America's culture of "Me, Myself, and I" | Washington Times Communities:
"Thus we have someone like Deepak Chopra telling his admirers, “You must get beyond the prison of the intellect!” The problem is that he is addressing New Age audiences who never managed to get into the prison of the intellect in the first place; they should be so lucky! Let them spend twenty years inside of that “prison,” and then we’ll talk about the importance of lateral thinking. "
Right on!
"Thus we have someone like Deepak Chopra telling his admirers, “You must get beyond the prison of the intellect!” The problem is that he is addressing New Age audiences who never managed to get into the prison of the intellect in the first place; they should be so lucky! Let them spend twenty years inside of that “prison,” and then we’ll talk about the importance of lateral thinking. "
Right on!
On Killing Children (and Others) » Counterpunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names
On Killing Children (and Others) » Counterpunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names:
"Gun culture was an integral part of the frontier culture and is still, for many Americans, symbolic of their personal liberty. But in the end the gun is only a device through which to wield power and it is power that Americans aspire to above all. It is their “manifest destiny.” Too many Americans see themselves as exceptional: blessed by God, expert practitioners of free enterprise, and the people who really know what freedom and rights are all about. And, in the process of using power to demonstrate this exceptional status, both as individuals and as a nation, they consistently make a bloody mess."
"Gun culture was an integral part of the frontier culture and is still, for many Americans, symbolic of their personal liberty. But in the end the gun is only a device through which to wield power and it is power that Americans aspire to above all. It is their “manifest destiny.” Too many Americans see themselves as exceptional: blessed by God, expert practitioners of free enterprise, and the people who really know what freedom and rights are all about. And, in the process of using power to demonstrate this exceptional status, both as individuals and as a nation, they consistently make a bloody mess."
New strategy
Good writing session this morning, tweaking things to fit the new structure of the piece. Looking good. What I'm doing now is formally dividing the work into three parts: one, delivering the ashes; two, CJ's secret journal; three, spreading the ashes. I think I may call the sections Ashes, Mental Masturbation, Wind.
At any rate, the narrator remains Brinkley in parts one and three, and his attitude toward the journal and its contents after he finds it after CJ's death will change him as it evolves. I still need more exterior action than I have but at this stage I'm not worried, that's like adding whipped cream on a pie, I can do it later. The interior action drives the story. Exterior action is sugar, part of the trick.
But, man, I already can see how difficult it's going to be juggling all these narrative balls in the air and getting the focus and flow right. Well, that's the name of the game. Otherwise I might as well write grocery lists.
At any rate, the narrator remains Brinkley in parts one and three, and his attitude toward the journal and its contents after he finds it after CJ's death will change him as it evolves. I still need more exterior action than I have but at this stage I'm not worried, that's like adding whipped cream on a pie, I can do it later. The interior action drives the story. Exterior action is sugar, part of the trick.
But, man, I already can see how difficult it's going to be juggling all these narrative balls in the air and getting the focus and flow right. Well, that's the name of the game. Otherwise I might as well write grocery lists.
Challenge
Think the new story structure is the way to go ... even tho it makes the writing much harder to pull off ... will fiddle with it today and see how it takes ... seems I always find a way to make the writing harder and more complex ... inside out instead of outside in ... so shoot me ha ha.
The fall of fiction
I heard a sad but very telling remark on the radio this morning. A politician ... Dem, House ... was describing his work day. I do a lot of reading on airplanes, he said. Some relating to work. Some historical non-fiction. And if I want to escape the serious issues I face, I read fiction.
Q.E.D.
Half a century ago such a remark would have been laughable in its ignorance. Fiction was the primary forum for facing the serious issues of the day! Sure, that other stuff, pop fiction, paid the light bill but a publisher made a reputation on the quality of the literary fiction brought out. Publishers were the guardians of literary culture.
Today a publisher makes a reputation by publishing soft porn. Publishers are mere department heads in multinational corporations. Literary is now a pejorative term.
Q.E.D.
Half a century ago such a remark would have been laughable in its ignorance. Fiction was the primary forum for facing the serious issues of the day! Sure, that other stuff, pop fiction, paid the light bill but a publisher made a reputation on the quality of the literary fiction brought out. Publishers were the guardians of literary culture.
Today a publisher makes a reputation by publishing soft porn. Publishers are mere department heads in multinational corporations. Literary is now a pejorative term.
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Be careful what you wish for
Having no experience as a parent, now and again I feel a consequent loss with no kids or grandkids in my life, no soccer games to go see, no kid to mentor or spoil ... and then I observe the lives of parents around me, astounded by how many families are dysfunctional today, astounded by the stress rather than joy that children can bring to the lives of adults who participate in their own grief by wearing blinders to certain facts clearly plain to a neutral observer like myself; I see how much more simple my life is, and I think, well, maybe not being a parent isn't so bad after all. Maybe next incarnation.
8 a.m., Christmas morning
This image returned to me as I drove through my own neighborhood at 8 this morning, out on an errand (unsuccessful because nothing was open). Houses were dark. The few kids in the neighborhood were nowhere to be found.
Of course, this is one of those new fangled suburban neighborhoods with large lots and without sidewalks, where no one knows anyone. So I drove into more traditional areas, looking for kids out with their presents. I couldn't find a kid anywhere. Man, we woke up our parents at 6 to start opening presents! 8 was plenty of time to get outside. It was wet, of course, this being Oregon, but only a drizzle, and what Oregon kid lets rain stop him? You'd never get outside. Where were the kids with their new bikes? Where were the girls twirling batons?
Made me feel a little old. Made me feel like a visitor on my own planet. Stranger In A Strange Land.
Merry Christmas.
Ho ho ho ... or something
Last night in bed ... thoughts of a new structure for my story ... maybe Santa delivered it ... need to brood about it ... back at the ranch and Christmas day ... email with rumor an old drinking buddy quit ... trying to find out ... not looking forward to guests today but will recall my acting experience and get thru it ... ho ho ho.
Monday, December 24, 2012
A+
H is right ... my Korean meatloaf is one of my better concoctions ... and it improves with age. A keeper!
Zero-sum universe
Great morning with two writing sessions, progress. Also made a significant (I think good) change in my syllabus.
Glad morning was good because the rest of the day doesn't promise the same.
Glad morning was good because the rest of the day doesn't promise the same.
Progress report: Getting better globally - CSMonitor.com
Progress report: Getting better globally - CSMonitor.com:
An argument that things are getting better, not worse. The Monitor is steadfastly optimistic: "irrefutable evidence of progress," "reasons for hope," "we're winning more than we're losing" are some of the theses presented in its weekly magazine today.
However, not much mention is made of climate change. Nature has a way of changing everything very quickly. Just ask recent victims of Sandy, many of whose lives were also optimistic before they were turned upside down.
An argument that things are getting better, not worse. The Monitor is steadfastly optimistic: "irrefutable evidence of progress," "reasons for hope," "we're winning more than we're losing" are some of the theses presented in its weekly magazine today.
However, not much mention is made of climate change. Nature has a way of changing everything very quickly. Just ask recent victims of Sandy, many of whose lives were also optimistic before they were turned upside down.
Christmas eve
We're having a very lowkey Xmas, which is fine by me. Just a few people over for brunch tomorrow. We will get out of town for a few days before school starts up again.
I got some writing done this morning and am about to do some more.
I got some writing done this morning and am about to do some more.
4 Firefighters Shot, 2 Killed At Webster, New York Fire Scene; Shooter Dead (UPDATE)
4 Firefighters Shot, 2 Killed At Webster, New York Fire Scene; Shooter Dead (UPDATE):
What is this, a new kind of ambush for our sick times? Start a fire, then pick off the firemen who come to put it out?
What is this, a new kind of ambush for our sick times? Start a fire, then pick off the firemen who come to put it out?
The Dark Presence of Guns : The New Yorker
The Dark Presence of Guns : The New Yorker:
"Somewhere Chesterton writes—I think it is Chesterton—that you cannot reason a man from a position that reason didn’t deliver him to. "
"Somewhere Chesterton writes—I think it is Chesterton—that you cannot reason a man from a position that reason didn’t deliver him to. "
West Antarctica Warming Twice As Fast As Previously Believed: Study
West Antarctica Warming Twice As Fast As Previously Believed: Study:
"OSLO, Dec 23 (Reuters) - West Antarctica is warming almost twice as fast as previously believed, adding to worries of a thaw that would add to sea level rise from San Francisco to Shanghai, a study showed on Sunday."
"OSLO, Dec 23 (Reuters) - West Antarctica is warming almost twice as fast as previously believed, adding to worries of a thaw that would add to sea level rise from San Francisco to Shanghai, a study showed on Sunday."
Other voices
From Sodom, Gomorrah & Jones:
CJ's
Heavy Reading
Most
Americans seem to be under an erroneous impression, given by
teachers, preachers, textbooks, and pundits, that the Founding
Fathers were pious bores. So it is time to talk clearly about them
as they really were: not the good Christians our teachers droned on
about, but skeptical men of the Enlightenment who questioned each
and every received idea they had been taught. They were deeply read
in political philosophy, interested in science, and well versed in
theological matters. They consistently challenged the religious
dogma they heard from the pulpit, both openly and in private, among
friends.
- Moral Minority: Our Skeptical Founding Fathers by Brooke Allen
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Insanity
Brownell ... world's largest supplier of gun supplies ... can't keep up with American orders. In last three days sold more magazine clips for assault rifles than it sold in previous THREE YEARS. Make you feel exceptional, my fellow inmates?
Insight, I think
I think the reason I write so slowly lately, each new project crawling forward more slowly than its predecessor, is that I'm pooped. I don't have my old energy for a marathon but I'm still on the course ... but not running ... walking! I assume I'll eventually cross the finish line.
All We Want for Christmas Is...Guns | Mother Jones
All We Want for Christmas Is...Guns | Mother Jones:
"If Black Friday shopping trends are any indication, the gift of cold, hard steel will be more popular than ever this holiday season. According to USA Today, on that day dealers called the FBI with a total of 154,873 background check requests for shoppers seeking to buy firearms. That's 20 percent more than last year's record of 129,166 calls in one day. Sixty-two percent of the Black Friday requests were for long guns like shotguns or rifles, such as the Bushmaster .223 reportedly used by the suspect in today's shooting in Newtown, Connecticut (a state where you don't need a permit to carry a rifle)."
U.S. Shooting Deaths Since Sandy Hook Top 100
U.S. Shooting Deaths Since Sandy Hook Top 100:
American exceptionalism sure is getting old and disgraceful.
American exceptionalism sure is getting old and disgraceful.
Other voices
From Sodom, Gomorrah & Jones:
CJ's Heavy Reading
- "We have one question for the political leaders of the world," Kumi Naidoo, the international executive director of Greenpeace International, said at the huge climate rally held in Copenhagen halfway through the summit. "If you can find not millions, not billions, but trillions of dollars to bail out the banks, the bankers, and their bonuses, how is it that you cannot find the money to bail out the planet, the poor, and our children?"
- Hot: Living Through the Next Fifty Years on Earth by Mark Hertsgaard
My writing life
Lately I've been asking myself a question that ends up being more complicated than it sounds: if I knew at the beginning of my writing career certain realities that I understand now near the end of it, would I have become a writer? Let me make clear that this question is not wrapped in regrets. I'm proud of my literary archive. The question comes from another direction.
Certain things are clear to me in retrospect. One is that I seldom made decisions in the best interests of "my literary career." That's because I never thought of what I was doing in these terms. Writing wasn't a career. It was a calling. It never occurred to me to do things in the "best interests" of a career, and so I didn't. In particular, two decisions slammed shut doors that had just been opened to me.
Certain things are clear to me in retrospect. One is that I seldom made decisions in the best interests of "my literary career." That's because I never thought of what I was doing in these terms. Writing wasn't a career. It was a calling. It never occurred to me to do things in the "best interests" of a career, and so I didn't. In particular, two decisions slammed shut doors that had just been opened to me.
- Going from fiction to playwriting, for example. When I dropped out of grad school "to become a writer," I had relatively early success and validation. I was selling journalism and publishing regularly in literary magazines, both in less than a year. If this hadn't happened, if I'd gone a considerable time without validation, would I have stuck with it? Hard to say. But I was encouraged early, and at the national level. When I returned to grad school, I actually was publishing literary short fiction more often in more prestigious places than my teachers were. But I also was having a hell of a time with my thesis, a novel. I even had agents, who had written me and not the other way around, waiting for it. But it was a nut I didn't seem able to crack. This is why the transition to playwriting happened and was relatively easy. Playwriting played to my strengths -- character, dialogue, storytelling -- and ignored my weakness -- descriptive prose. So just when I was getting a break in literary fiction, most significantly getting a Roll of Honor citation in Best American Short Stories in 3 of 4 consecutive years in the early 1970s, I abandoned fiction.
- Going from traditional theater to hyperdrama. The same thing happened a decade later. My plays were getting noticed. I had an agent in NY who was excited about my work. The producing tycoon Harold Prince had become a fan of my work. Things were looking great -- until I received a commission to write a new kind of play and became totally obsessed with hyperdrama. I abandoned traditional theater.
I don't regret these choices. But clearly they were made at a time that reduced "traditional" opportunities that were becoming available to me. I was following my calling, not my career.
No, these decisions are not the basis of my question today. The basis is this: I had no idea how much it tales out of one's body and soul to write seriously. It's like running one existential marathon after another. Looking back, I'm amazed I survived -- or at least survived as long as I have. The fat lady hasn't sung yet.
If I knew the price, maybe I'd have done something easier. Because one also has to ask, okay, this is the price, was it worth it? I used to think the literary culture mattered more and was healthier than I believe it is today. I used to think the calling was more than it's own reward, that it paid dividends to others. I'm not so sure. Maybe the literary life is a sophisticated form of existential masturbation.
Well, even self-abuse can be fun, and I've had a hell of good time, no doubt about it, meeting a number of great people along the way. But maybe if I hadn't had early validation and encouragement, maybe if I'd become a math teacher, maybe I wouldn't feel like I just finished running a marathon.
I'll never know.
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Love this film!
Climate Forecaster Predicts a Cold, Snowy Winter | Wired Science | Wired.com
Climate Forecaster Predicts a Cold, Snowy Winter | Wired Science | Wired.com:
"Stock up on hot chocolate and spare shovels, because it looks like much of the world, including the eastern United States, is headed for a frigid, snowy winter."
No mention of the west.
"Stock up on hot chocolate and spare shovels, because it looks like much of the world, including the eastern United States, is headed for a frigid, snowy winter."
No mention of the west.
Korean meatloaf recipe
I don't measure anything, so the amounts are guesses.
I begin with a lb of ground turkey and half a pound of ground pork. Mix them.
I make what has become my standard Korean marinade: equal parts soy sauce and cola (about a quarter cup each) ... equal parts garlic paste, soybean paste, chili paste (about a tablespoon) ... equal parts rice vinegar, fish sauce, sesame oil (about a couple teaspoons) ... chili powder, ginger, pepper (about a teaspoon) ... mix it all together. Mix in toasted sesame seeds (couple table spoons) and diced scallions (half a dozen or more). Mix in an egg. Mix in bread crumbs for drier texture. Moist but not too sticky.
Put in loaf pan. Put in 400 degree over for about half an hour.
Man, it is delicious!
I'll continue experimenting. I think it would be good lined with seaweed.
I begin with a lb of ground turkey and half a pound of ground pork. Mix them.
I make what has become my standard Korean marinade: equal parts soy sauce and cola (about a quarter cup each) ... equal parts garlic paste, soybean paste, chili paste (about a tablespoon) ... equal parts rice vinegar, fish sauce, sesame oil (about a couple teaspoons) ... chili powder, ginger, pepper (about a teaspoon) ... mix it all together. Mix in toasted sesame seeds (couple table spoons) and diced scallions (half a dozen or more). Mix in an egg. Mix in bread crumbs for drier texture. Moist but not too sticky.
Put in loaf pan. Put in 400 degree over for about half an hour.
Man, it is delicious!
I'll continue experimenting. I think it would be good lined with seaweed.
Jocks
Got to thinking about my brief experience as a college jock, sort of. I lettered in three sports at Cal Tech ... first string in football (QB) and basketball (F even at six foot) and track where I struggled. But track workouts became my favorite ... esp these long run till you drop workouts of 220 yds jogging and same running half speed ... over and over until you quit ... an endurance contest ... wd often dry heave on ground at end but I loved it ... real sense of a WORKout. Seems strange to my present couch potato self ha ha.
Change of subject. H says my Korean meatloaf is one of my best dishes ever. Recipe forthcoming.
Change of subject. H says my Korean meatloaf is one of my best dishes ever. Recipe forthcoming.
Other voices
From Sodom, Gomorrah & Jones ...
CJ's Kindle ReadingWhat the mass culture really reflects (as is the case with a “serious” play like J.B.) is the American bewilderment in the face of the world we live in. We do not seem to want to know that we are in the world, that we are subject to the same catastrophes, vices, joys, and follies which have baffled and afflicted mankind for ages. And this has everything to do, of course, with what was expected of America: which expectation, so generally disappointed, reveals something we do not want to know about sad human nature, reveals something we do not want to know about the intricacies and inequities of any social structure, reveals, in sum, something we do not want to know about ourselves. The American way of life has failed—to make people happier or to make them better. We do not want to admit this, and we do not admit it.The Cross of Redemption by James Baldwin
Marin Alsop: A Utopian Musical Dream From South America : Deceptive Cadence : NPR
Marin Alsop: A Utopian Musical Dream From South America : Deceptive Cadence : NPR:
Great musical education program. We should emulate it. We should emulate Australia with regard to gun control. We should open our eyes to the world, where others have better ideas than we do.
Great musical education program. We should emulate it. We should emulate Australia with regard to gun control. We should open our eyes to the world, where others have better ideas than we do.
Korean meatloaf
Woke up with energy to try a Korean meatloaf. Had a recipe in mind but checked out some online. Some close. Do my idea. But now I have to wait for the market to open. Read the Post and Times and Guardian.
Friday, December 21, 2012
Tristan und Isolde – Wagner's love supreme | Music | guardian.co.uk
Tristan und Isolde – Wagner's love supreme | Music | guardian.co.uk:
"At five hours, Tristan und Isolde is undoubtedly long. But Wagner's transcendent opera, full of daring harmony, will have you spellbound – as you can discover in a free Guardian online stream from Glyndebourne over the Christmas period"
My 2nd favorite opera, which I had the good fortune to see several years ago on the Live at the Met in HD series. It was wonderful.
Streaming details, starting Dec 26. I'll watch it!
Tristan and Isolde's Radical Spirit
A work like this keeps me humble.
"At five hours, Tristan und Isolde is undoubtedly long. But Wagner's transcendent opera, full of daring harmony, will have you spellbound – as you can discover in a free Guardian online stream from Glyndebourne over the Christmas period"
My 2nd favorite opera, which I had the good fortune to see several years ago on the Live at the Met in HD series. It was wonderful.
Tristan and Isolde's Radical Spirit
A work like this keeps me humble.
CIA children
Recently read and saw works by children of lifetime CIA officers. Each is fascinating, challenging, offering considerable food for thought.
The Man Nobody Knew is a documentary about former CIA head William Colby, written and directed by his son. It's a fascinating story about a secretive, moralistic Catholic who saw the CIA as a force for good. Fascinating family dynamics presented here.
Mary's Mosaic, written by the son of a CIA officer whose family were friends of the subject, is about a woman who came to believe the CIA is a force for evil. Mary Meyer, wife and ex wife of a bigshot CIA officer, later lover and possible soul mate of JFK, who came to believe the CIA conspired to kill the president, and was soon murdered herself, is a fascinating woman with a more fascinating life. The author's journey here leads to the incredible conclusion that his own CIA father was involved in murdering her to shut her up. The argument is fully documented and not easily dismissed, though many have already done so.
Each of these is as much mystery as memoir, each a gripping narrative.
I don't believe any rational person can believe Oswald acted alone, given all the contrary evidence now available. But after this, there are many competing theories with varying degrees of reasons for belief. This book adds more spice to the pot.
Mary's Mosaic, written by the son of a CIA officer whose family were friends of the subject, is about a woman who came to believe the CIA is a force for evil. Mary Meyer, wife and ex wife of a bigshot CIA officer, later lover and possible soul mate of JFK, who came to believe the CIA conspired to kill the president, and was soon murdered herself, is a fascinating woman with a more fascinating life. The author's journey here leads to the incredible conclusion that his own CIA father was involved in murdering her to shut her up. The argument is fully documented and not easily dismissed, though many have already done so.
Each of these is as much mystery as memoir, each a gripping narrative.
I don't believe any rational person can believe Oswald acted alone, given all the contrary evidence now available. But after this, there are many competing theories with varying degrees of reasons for belief. This book adds more spice to the pot.
The Ultimate Logic of a Society Built on Mass Murder | Common Dreams
The Ultimate Logic of a Society Built on Mass Murder | Common Dreams:
"America’s contribution to European culture was to invite “all the nations of Europe” to come to these shores and become fellow “white” citizens, "
"America’s contribution to European culture was to invite “all the nations of Europe” to come to these shores and become fellow “white” citizens, "
Thursday, December 20, 2012
This is America
Well, holiday shopping has picked up ... there's a run on assault rifles and gun stores across the country are breaking sales records. And here's a new item to put under the tree ... bullet proof backpacks for kids!
What, me worry?
A lovely morning
Soft jazz on radio ... brought netbook upstairs to write ... Sketch beside me ... a fine session ... I love my two old men ... trying to keep it together in a world gone crazy ... my new narrator is an optimist ... think Thornton Wilder ... perfect companion for the depressed lost CJ ... story may need stronger plot pts buy not worrying about it now ... getting tone right first.
There is indeed a spiritual crisis in America but it has nothing to do with Christianity. Evangelicals are really anti spiritual because dogma rules and restricts their sense of wonder and mystery. There is more genuine awe in a physics classroom today than in conservative churches.
There is indeed a spiritual crisis in America but it has nothing to do with Christianity. Evangelicals are really anti spiritual because dogma rules and restricts their sense of wonder and mystery. There is more genuine awe in a physics classroom today than in conservative churches.
The new novel/novella
Back at it. The switch to first person was a breakthrough. Definitely on the right track now. So slow progress continues, and I am enjoying the work much.
What If All the World’s Debt Just Went Away | Common Dreams
What If All the World’s Debt Just Went Away | Common Dreams:
"What you may not know is that debt arose recently on the human stage. Throughout more than 99% of our history we have not even had a concept for debt. (The interested reader can pick up David Graeber’s excellent book Debt: The First 5000 Years for full story.)"
Often wondered about this. Economics, to me, seems to be a belief system, a branch of religion. Money, surely, is a human invention, a creation. So let's change the rules and create something else.
You change a few premises of Euclidian geometry, get non-Euclidian geometry and all manner of new insights and revelations. Why can't Economics be radically reinvented in a similar mental construct?
"What you may not know is that debt arose recently on the human stage. Throughout more than 99% of our history we have not even had a concept for debt. (The interested reader can pick up David Graeber’s excellent book Debt: The First 5000 Years for full story.)"
Often wondered about this. Economics, to me, seems to be a belief system, a branch of religion. Money, surely, is a human invention, a creation. So let's change the rules and create something else.
Report: Ecosystems in Upheaval, Biodiversity in Collapse | Common Dreams
Report: Ecosystems in Upheaval, Biodiversity in Collapse | Common Dreams:
"New study documenting climate change shows sweeping changes happening faster than previously recorded and bringing 'cascading effects'"
"New study documenting climate change shows sweeping changes happening faster than previously recorded and bringing 'cascading effects'"
The Simple Truth About Gun Control : The New Yorker
The Simple Truth About Gun Control : The New Yorker:
"On gun violence and how to end it, the facts are all in, the evidence is clear, the truth there for all who care to know it—indeed, a global consensus is in place, which, in disbelief and now in disgust, the planet waits for us to join."
Yeah, but Americans are EXCEPTIONAL.
"On gun violence and how to end it, the facts are all in, the evidence is clear, the truth there for all who care to know it—indeed, a global consensus is in place, which, in disbelief and now in disgust, the planet waits for us to join."
Yeah, but Americans are EXCEPTIONAL.
My norovirus
The norovirus is a problem in the UK, reports The Guardian this morning. This is a winter virus that causes much vomiting.
I've had it year round ever since Palin ran for VP. Just hearing her voice made me want to puke. I still have it, certain members of the House and Senate reminding me to keep the toilet close.
It's a bitch of a virus to shake.
I've had it year round ever since Palin ran for VP. Just hearing her voice made me want to puke. I still have it, certain members of the House and Senate reminding me to keep the toilet close.
It's a bitch of a virus to shake.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Texting a game
This is the end of the 2nd overtime of Oregon-UTEP. On to 3rd. But look at all the missed free throws! Look at the missed 3 pointers! Doesn't say much for either team.
:56.9 UTEP
:56.9 :56.5 :56.5 ORE
:56.5 75 - 73 :36.1 75 - 75 :05.3 :02.6 :00.0
This play by play text from Yahoo Sports is a hoot. Great job for a college student sports fan, being there to type the play by play.
A national teach-in
Let me dance in fantasyland. We have telethons. We have reality shows that interact with the audience. So let's clone the teach-in from the sixties and engage the country in important and educational dialogue. What does the Second Amendment mean? Let's have national lectures and debates with actual important content.
Ha ha ha ha ... but more sad than funny.
Ha ha ha ha ... but more sad than funny.
Whole cloth
None of the horrors in our society...past present future...happens in a vacuum. These horrors happen in a cultural context that defines them. We aren't going to change American mythology, which drives the culture. We can apply a bandaid here and there ... and should. The asylum will remain an asylum but we can make life a little safer in it.
But the real problem ... city on a hill manifest destiny with God on our side American exceptionalism ... ain't going anywhere ... until a new mytholgy defeats it, probably by force and violence.
Why do you think Joyce called histoy a nightmare?
The good news? It's a zero sum universe. All these horrors are balanced by incredible beauty and joy and wonder. So choose your focus carefully.
But the real problem ... city on a hill manifest destiny with God on our side American exceptionalism ... ain't going anywhere ... until a new mytholgy defeats it, probably by force and violence.
Why do you think Joyce called histoy a nightmare?
The good news? It's a zero sum universe. All these horrors are balanced by incredible beauty and joy and wonder. So choose your focus carefully.
Quote For The Day - The Dish | By Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Beast
Quote For The Day - The Dish | By Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Beast:
"I am certainly not an advocate for for frequent and untried changes in laws and constitutions. I think moderate imperfections had better be borne with; because, when once known, we accommodate ourselves to them, and find practical means of correcting their ill effects. But I know also, that laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths disclosed, and manners and opinions change with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also, and keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy, as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors," - Thomas Jefferson."
"I am certainly not an advocate for for frequent and untried changes in laws and constitutions. I think moderate imperfections had better be borne with; because, when once known, we accommodate ourselves to them, and find practical means of correcting their ill effects. But I know also, that laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths disclosed, and manners and opinions change with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also, and keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy, as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors," - Thomas Jefferson."
Gun Lobby Speaks: We Need More Guns, Especially in Schools | Common Dreams
Gun Lobby Speaks: We Need More Guns, Especially in Schools | Common Dreams:
Boy, was this predictable.
I saw one gun-ho character on TV who at least was direct and honest: he needed assault rifles in his home to protect himself from the U.N. troops when they come for him after taking over America. He has them to fight the government. He is preparing for civil war.
Boy, was this predictable.
I saw one gun-ho character on TV who at least was direct and honest: he needed assault rifles in his home to protect himself from the U.N. troops when they come for him after taking over America. He has them to fight the government. He is preparing for civil war.
Social Security and the Obama Cave-In | Common Dreams
Social Security and the Obama Cave-In | Common Dreams:
"The deal between the White House and congressional Republicans includes changes to the cost-of-living formula that amount to needless cuts for seniors.
by Robert Kuttner
Once again, President Obama seems to be on the verge of folding a winning hand."
What's with our president that he can't get tough? He must be a wimp.
"The deal between the White House and congressional Republicans includes changes to the cost-of-living formula that amount to needless cuts for seniors.
by Robert Kuttner
Once again, President Obama seems to be on the verge of folding a winning hand."
What's with our president that he can't get tough? He must be a wimp.
Advantages and disadvantages of reading history
I probably read more American history books than in any other field. I try to figure out what makes my country tick. There are advantages and disadvantages in doing this.
Advantages: not much is new. There is a certain comfort in this actually. We haven't gone crazy. We've always been crazy. At the same time, humanistic and progressive energies have always been around to improve the lot of the downtrodden. This can be inspirational. Some things do get better, if very slowly.
Disadvantages: We haven't gone crazy. We've always been crazy. There's a certain big picture that doesn't seem to change at all. Soldiers could be butchers in The Iliad, too. Worse, though, is to learn the facts of history don't support the myth of our history. We are brainwashed and lied to as a matter of course. Another advantage: in this country, at least, there is the opportunity to find these things out. It's not always easy, and it may be getting harder, but the facts of history are available.
What would a society be like that actually owned up to its past behavior, its history? I can't imagine it.
I think it's what CJ struggles with in my recent fiction.
Advantages: not much is new. There is a certain comfort in this actually. We haven't gone crazy. We've always been crazy. At the same time, humanistic and progressive energies have always been around to improve the lot of the downtrodden. This can be inspirational. Some things do get better, if very slowly.
Disadvantages: We haven't gone crazy. We've always been crazy. There's a certain big picture that doesn't seem to change at all. Soldiers could be butchers in The Iliad, too. Worse, though, is to learn the facts of history don't support the myth of our history. We are brainwashed and lied to as a matter of course. Another advantage: in this country, at least, there is the opportunity to find these things out. It's not always easy, and it may be getting harder, but the facts of history are available.
What would a society be like that actually owned up to its past behavior, its history? I can't imagine it.
A nightmare: intrusive, unwanted, unpleasant, fantasy.“History, Stephen said, is a nightmare from which I am trying to awake.”
― James Joyce, Ulysses
nightmares pluralWhat would a society be like that awoke from its history? What is an individual like? I think the latter is what Norman Brown was getting at in Love's Body.
- A frightening or unpleasant dream
- I had nightmares after watching the horror movie
- A terrifying or very unpleasant experience or prospect
- the nightmare of racial hatred
- an astronaut's worst nightmare is getting detached during an extravehicle activity
- A person, thing, or situation that is very difficult to deal with.
I think it's what CJ struggles with in my recent fiction.
Is government functional?
If our government can't figure out how to increase the safety of school children from slaughter by assault weapons, well, folks, that's all she wrote. This is a real test case of the American future.
Second Amendment
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.Why the right to bear arms? BECAUSE the security of a free state requires a well regulated militia. Things are not as simple as they seem, as court cases and interpretations over the years have shown. The Wikipedia page on this has details and a good discussion. Of particular interest to me is this:
Although a minority view in the case at hand, this makes sense to me. Why mention the militia at all unless it is mentioned to clarify the Founders' meaning?The Amendment’s text does justify a different limitation: the “right to keep and bear arms” protects only a right to possess and use firearms in connection with service in a state-organized militia. Had the Framers wished to expand the meaning of the phrase “bear arms” to encompass civilian possession and use, they could have done so by the addition of phrases such as “for the defense of themselves”.[117]
So the gun regulation debate can get pretty hairy pretty quickly. And many of the participants will not be the smartest folks on the planet, believe me. Ah, there I go, revealing my elitism again. As if knowledge matters.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Stone/Kuznick on history
I'm loving the Untold History book that spins off the new Showtime series. Hope the library gets DVDs soon.
Although I know this material, I appreciate the documentation with quotes I hadn't seen before. Also the focus on making history relevant to today. They actually do this better than Zinn's book.
Highly recommended and eager to see the ten part TV series.
Although I know this material, I appreciate the documentation with quotes I hadn't seen before. Also the focus on making history relevant to today. They actually do this better than Zinn's book.
Highly recommended and eager to see the ten part TV series.
GCD
As I've mentioned here before, what has changed least in my life in the past half century is the music I listen to, especially the jazz that came out of the west coast in the 50s and 60s, the cool school. What is amazing to me is how easy this music is to find on the radio today. The local jazz station and the DTV jazz station both play a ton of west coast cool jazz. A week doesn't go by without hearing some identical cut of a Mulligan or Miles tune that was a favorite when I was an undergrad or in the Army. So much has changed in my life! But not my favorite jazz. Most fascinating.
Our Moloch by Garry Wills | NYRblog | The New York Review of Books
Our Moloch by Garry Wills | NYRblog | The New York Review of Books:
"That horror cannot be blamed just on one unhinged person. It was the sacrifice we as a culture made, and continually make, to our demonic god. We guarantee that crazed man after crazed man will have a flood of killing power readily supplied him. We have to make that offering, out of devotion to our Moloch, our god. The gun is our Moloch. "
"That horror cannot be blamed just on one unhinged person. It was the sacrifice we as a culture made, and continually make, to our demonic god. We guarantee that crazed man after crazed man will have a flood of killing power readily supplied him. We have to make that offering, out of devotion to our Moloch, our god. The gun is our Moloch. "
Coal Consumption Booms Amid Rising Climate Concerns: IEA Coal Report 2012
Coal Consumption Booms Amid Rising Climate Concerns: IEA Coal Report 2012:
""This analysis underscores the need for a global movement to stop the madness of business as usual," said Daniel Kessler, a spokesman for the climate-action group 350.org. "Coal use can't be like a bump in a rug, moving from one spot to another. The reality is that we need to keep 80 percent of all fossil fuels underground if we are going to avoid the worst impacts from climate change. And that can only happen if we work across borders in a unified front against the fossil fuel industry, whose business model is dependent on cooking the planet.""
""This analysis underscores the need for a global movement to stop the madness of business as usual," said Daniel Kessler, a spokesman for the climate-action group 350.org. "Coal use can't be like a bump in a rug, moving from one spot to another. The reality is that we need to keep 80 percent of all fossil fuels underground if we are going to avoid the worst impacts from climate change. And that can only happen if we work across borders in a unified front against the fossil fuel industry, whose business model is dependent on cooking the planet.""
Snow and stock
Woke to a dusting of snow. Since picked up and sticking but not much expected.
Scrapple day. Stock brewing ... carrots turnip parsnip leek. Sausage added later. Then bring out the grinder etc. A long process.
Let it snow let it snow let it snow ...
Scrapple day. Stock brewing ... carrots turnip parsnip leek. Sausage added later. Then bring out the grinder etc. A long process.
Let it snow let it snow let it snow ...
Monday, December 17, 2012
Worth repeating
ClimateListen to poem.
I feel like I'm in a room
wired with bombs about
to go off and most know
this, yet everyone carries
on as if there were no
danger, as if there's nothing
to be done about it.
No one, however, has announced
that we're having a wake.
I feel like I'm on an alien
planet where one plus one is
three and gravity is random
and all roads circle back on
themselves and the best among
us strive in school to earn
a Doctor of Stupidity and
everyone is waiting for Jesus
but not like in the play
because no one has a sense
of humor.I feel like I'm under water
at the moment just before
I give up, unable to hold
my breath a second longer,
my lungs ready to explode.
The thing is, the fish,
the reefs, the light in
the water, everything is
so goddamn beautiful.
Everything is so
goddamn beautiful.
--Charles Deemer
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