Today is my last full day in Washington, as far as this time around in concerned. I really do think I've accomplished what I've wanted to here, that being a recharge of the batteries after the time I had in Chicago. While I didn't end up finding permanent work here, I have a lot of fun experiences and good contacts to take with me. Obviously, people like the Bayne's, and Ingrid and Michele, who let me stay with them and offered their advice, I am extraordinarily grateful to. Same thing with Andy Carroll, and everyone at the Association of Small Foundations, for giving me work, as it gave me focus as well as allowed me to get my head above water financially. Obviously, Courtney, who's let me stay with her in the rent deal of the century, and given me a lot to think about as well, I thank you.
I also want to thank Barb Palmer, who helped to steer me on the right path here. Same thing with Richard Just, my friend at TNR. It was also great to reconnect with Cameo, who I hadn't really talked to since we left DC as juniors, which I regretted a lot. Now perhaps we'll stay in touch this time.
Plus it was great to be in this city, because of the energy it produces, and for its many amazing sights. I heard it said once that if Pittsburgh produces steel and Detroit produces cars, then Washington produces power. Its incredible to be in a place like this, where so much power is centered, and where there are so many brilliant people, all of whom, on both sides of the aisle, are all people who want to see the country improve and who love everything about it. While we disagree how best to get there, everyone here shares a common desire to do what they see as good.
Memories to take with me:
That first Monday, getting up at 6:45 to catch the VRE, then spending about 8 hours walking around DC, most of which was just me circling the Capitol building. Then how tired I felt afterwards.
Seeing Barb again, and catching up with how things have been with her at AU.
The incredible rush you get when you stand on the steps of the Court and look at the Capitol, the incredible feeling of knowing you are literally standing where history is being and has been made.
Running into Kim Shannon on the street.
Hearing Tony Kornheiser on the radio again.
Losing my cell phone battery in the snow at the Bayne's house, then buying a new one, then finding the old one when I got back.
Taking the Metro around to all those different spots looking for apartments.
My week housesitting at Michele and Ingrid's.
Being in the NPR studios while they conducted an interview for Morning edition.
2 Hot Dogs, a can of Coke, and a bag of chips- $3.00
The House and Senate office buildings
In the Congressman's office "Dale Kildee", he says as he extends hand, "Jim Shilander" as I grasp it.
Being interviewed by Vietnamese State Television.
Happy Hour with ASF.
The NC State ladies (sigh)
IMing Cameo
Sending out resumes all over, from my little computer on the kitchen table and then on the living room floor.
Walking through the city, especially the one day when I walked from the Capitol to 20th and P.
Being here, and how much its helped me through everything, through the people I've met and gotten to know and all the experiences I've had
Wednesday, March 30, 2005
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Tabula Rasa
Johnnie Cochran died today. Now people like to point at the O.J. Trial as a sort of low for the law, because for most people, it was kind of of this fake show, this Billy Flynn type of side show to distract from the truth. The point is though, Cochran did the job he was hired to do by his client, and he did so brilliantly. Did Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden try a bad case? Yes, but still, the way that he, and his Dream Team colleague, Barry Scheck, poked just enough holes in what was truly a mountain of evidence against Simpson to create reasonable doubt, which was of course his job. Was he a publicity hound? Of course. But that's fine, especially when you have the skill in the courtroom to back it up. I remember one of my first classes with the Ford Institute, we were sitting in our classroom, which I think was Norris 105, and Joe Stroud asked everyone, as part of an icebreaker exercise, what we eventually wanted to do, it seemed, I swear, that half the people said they wanted to be prosecutors. While I understand the allure of putting people behind bars, somebody still has to protect the rights of those who are being prosecuted. Really, I know that very often defense is considered to be kind of slimy work, but true due process, the true beauty of the justice system, is that ideally, everyone is supposed to have an equal opportunity for justice to be served.
Congratulations to my friend Cameo, who just got offered two jobs in DC, with the Center for Responsive Politics and 21st Century Democrats.
I took the job in New Hampshire by the way, I'm going to be calling back later this week to get some benefits and apartment information, meaning some more information on realtors and where the apartments are. One fear I have, and its not all that important, but it is a fear, is that the only places available will be one bedrooms, which are great, but that I frankly, don't have enough furniture. My apartment, if it is a one bedroom, is going to look awfully bare.
I was looking around online at work yesterday, and because I'm also looking to find potential topics for a play to write, once I get back into the flow, I probably want to write a one act, or a full length, almost for practice and then perhaps try something a little more serious, which is something I really have never tried. I was thinking that something about, or resembling the career of Vaughn Meader would be good, if, of course, something like it hadn't already been done. For those of you who are under 35, and therefore don't know who Vaughn Meader is, he was a comedian from Maine who had great, and by great I mean nearly unprecedented, success in the early days of Camelot with his impression of JFK. His "First Family" album, which was recorded in a single day, and released just after the Cuban Missile Crisis, became the fastest selling album in history. It sold 4 million records, which is still an impressive number today, in a manner of months, shattering the previous record of fastest selling album. He was huge, and the album was basically considered one of the great political satires ever. Then came November 22, 1963. Meader described how he literally heard the news in a cab, and how he knew his career would never be the same. In his performance after the assassination, Lenny Bruce's first words were: "Poor Vaughn Meader". Meader vowed to never do the impression again, and he never really recovered, at least to the point where he had been before. He basically became, as he said himself "a living reminder of tragedy", and his life ended up spiraling out of control. To me, its great fodder for drama, because you have someone who's whole life is ahead of him and then is basically destroyed because of something someone else did.
Johnnie Cochran died today. Now people like to point at the O.J. Trial as a sort of low for the law, because for most people, it was kind of of this fake show, this Billy Flynn type of side show to distract from the truth. The point is though, Cochran did the job he was hired to do by his client, and he did so brilliantly. Did Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden try a bad case? Yes, but still, the way that he, and his Dream Team colleague, Barry Scheck, poked just enough holes in what was truly a mountain of evidence against Simpson to create reasonable doubt, which was of course his job. Was he a publicity hound? Of course. But that's fine, especially when you have the skill in the courtroom to back it up. I remember one of my first classes with the Ford Institute, we were sitting in our classroom, which I think was Norris 105, and Joe Stroud asked everyone, as part of an icebreaker exercise, what we eventually wanted to do, it seemed, I swear, that half the people said they wanted to be prosecutors. While I understand the allure of putting people behind bars, somebody still has to protect the rights of those who are being prosecuted. Really, I know that very often defense is considered to be kind of slimy work, but true due process, the true beauty of the justice system, is that ideally, everyone is supposed to have an equal opportunity for justice to be served.
Congratulations to my friend Cameo, who just got offered two jobs in DC, with the Center for Responsive Politics and 21st Century Democrats.
I took the job in New Hampshire by the way, I'm going to be calling back later this week to get some benefits and apartment information, meaning some more information on realtors and where the apartments are. One fear I have, and its not all that important, but it is a fear, is that the only places available will be one bedrooms, which are great, but that I frankly, don't have enough furniture. My apartment, if it is a one bedroom, is going to look awfully bare.
I was looking around online at work yesterday, and because I'm also looking to find potential topics for a play to write, once I get back into the flow, I probably want to write a one act, or a full length, almost for practice and then perhaps try something a little more serious, which is something I really have never tried. I was thinking that something about, or resembling the career of Vaughn Meader would be good, if, of course, something like it hadn't already been done. For those of you who are under 35, and therefore don't know who Vaughn Meader is, he was a comedian from Maine who had great, and by great I mean nearly unprecedented, success in the early days of Camelot with his impression of JFK. His "First Family" album, which was recorded in a single day, and released just after the Cuban Missile Crisis, became the fastest selling album in history. It sold 4 million records, which is still an impressive number today, in a manner of months, shattering the previous record of fastest selling album. He was huge, and the album was basically considered one of the great political satires ever. Then came November 22, 1963. Meader described how he literally heard the news in a cab, and how he knew his career would never be the same. In his performance after the assassination, Lenny Bruce's first words were: "Poor Vaughn Meader". Meader vowed to never do the impression again, and he never really recovered, at least to the point where he had been before. He basically became, as he said himself "a living reminder of tragedy", and his life ended up spiraling out of control. To me, its great fodder for drama, because you have someone who's whole life is ahead of him and then is basically destroyed because of something someone else did.
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Live Free or Die
This, if you're not up on your state mottoes, is the motto of New Hampshire, and well, I'm soon to be living there. The interview went very well on Friday, or I should say, the first interview, because I had a second with another newspaper within the same company, Salmon Press, which owns community newspapers throughout New Hampshire. Well, what ended up happening is Mary at the Granite State News, which is in Wolfeboro, called me as I was headed to New York and told me the job is mine if I want it. I'll be calling her tomorrow to accept officially, barring a miracle here tonight or early morning, and in the next couple of weeks I'll be heading up to start at the Baysider, which is the new paper focusing on the town of Alton. I will be working in the Wolfeboro office, but I'll be looking for an apartment in both cities (taking only one obviously). I'll probably be up there for a year or eighteen months, maybe more, before I look to move up to another paper, like a daily or something, but this is a very good start for me.
The last few days certainly have been fun. The drive up to Wolfeboro on Thursday was fine, though a little bit tiring. Interesting things I saw or found out on the way up: I saw M & T Bank Stadium, where the Ravens play, on the way up. Not surprising, I guess, that the seats are purple. Second, Delaware is not very big, or at the very least, the area you drive through is not. Third, the food on the Jersey turnpike is amazingly expensive, especially when you consider how much things cost everywhere else on earth.
More things that were interesting: the toll for the George Washington Bridge is $6.00, and the state of New York really seems to enjoy the toll booth as a means of getting money. The headquarters of the WWE is all Black mirrored glass and has a huge, black WWE flag on top, creating a really weird image. Not much interesting happened until I got to New Hampshire, mainly because the roads in Connecticut and Massachusetts were clear, with the exception of Lawrence, Mass. (the hometown of both Robert Frost and Leonard Bernstein). I also drove past Walden, which was just fun to be near. New Hampshire is exceptionally pretty, the area where you come in the state is near the Atlantic, and the area I'll be in, the area around Lake Winnipesauke, is gorgeous. While I drove around in the morning, I saw several ice-fishing shanties’ still up, and some hearty soul had brought his pickup out onto the ice. On March 25. Plus there were some pretty views where the Lake, which is still iced over, was in the foreground, while the White Mountains stood pretty majestically in the background, with snow near the caps.
I left the second interview at about 12:30 and headed out. I called to wish my dad a happy birthday, then got going on the highway after about a half hour on two lane roads. Mary, from the Granite State News, called at around 2:30, while I was on the Mass. Pike. After about 4 hours of driving, which included celebratory phone calls to my family, Laura, Bohne, and many others, I came up to New York, where I was going to stay the night, and eventually two nights, at John Sellers' apartment. My dad navigated me through to John's place in Brooklyn, and I was able to find a parking place quickly. I spent a few minutes talking with John, while I also checked my email and everything else that I had neglected for a couple of days.
I also called Beth Snyder, who also lives in Brooklyn, and her, John, and myself spent sometime over dinner catching up. Beth has been doing a lot of auditioning, as well as waitressing at a bar across from Madison Square Garden, and doing some cabaret singing at various locations throughout the city, with Audra White, who accompanied Company, as her piano player. She really seems to be doing pretty well, she has a Summerstock audition on Friday, and she says she's likely to be moving into the city soon. She also told us about a rather harrowing experience she had while she was teaching, where she was staying in the House on Haunted Hill outside of Jackson, something involving ghosts, a wood stove, and million of cockroaches coming out of everywhere. We went back to John's apartment and continued to talk and watch TV, and as John's roommates, Rick and Courtney, arrived they joined us, until Beth went home around 1 a.m., and then the rest of us pretty much went to sleep.
Wanting to spend a celebratory day in the city, I spent Saturday pretty much being a part of the energy of Manhattan. More than any other place, you can be alone in New York and be perfectly content, because the city is just so thriving. I spent much of my time just walking around the city, and of course standing in the line at TKTS. I walked around Central Park, and saw the many children playing, or parents walking their kids around, or dog walkers, and anything else you can imagine, all of which of course is part of what makes it the greatest city in the world. After a couple failed attempts at buying tickets at TKTS, and seeing that none of the musicals I really wanted to see had tickets available, I ended up buying tickets for Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, which starred Kathleen Turner as Martha and Bill Irwin, who actually appeared in Albee's last new play, The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? when it hit Broadway a couple years ago. I had started to read the play once, but seeing it on stage, being performed by the people Albee thought would be best for it, really made the play hit home with me. Seeing this marriage, seeing these two people who obviously both love and hate each other, as well as seeing the way that Nick and Honey get caught up in, and are likely destroyed by viewing the marriage of George and Martha was an incredible experience. It also made me think about myself a bit, because there seemed to be a lot of similarities between myself and George, in the way he plays games with people and uses what they say, and their own insecurities, against them, especially when he has something to drink, and the force of nature that is his wife is getting going and sharpening her own knives to dig into George's back, and his heart. But to watch how he literally destroys the marriage of Nick and Honey in a manner of minutes, while doing incredible combat with his wife was something to behold. I can see myself as a kind of cruel and mean drunk, because drinking lowers inhibitions, and the inhibitions against doing cruel things might be the first to go.
Today I went to Mass and the came back to DC. It was really great of John and his roommates to host me, and I want to thank them again for that, as well as being good to see Beth. I was also able to talk to Susan and Amy Lewis yesterday, and it was great to hear from them. When I come for workshops next week, I'm hoping I'll be able to catch up with Ms. Lewis.
I wanted to say something regarding Alex. I don't ever recall thinking that Alex was being anything but humble about his movie experience, and I certainly don't recall saying that he was being a jerk about it to anyone. That really would have been awful thing for me to do, particularly because it isn't true. I've only spoken to Alex a couple of times on IM, and then only for a couple of minutes, as he usually was busy. That's it. I haven't spoken to him on the phone or in person since the movie came out, so I wouldn't be able to make any kind of judgment. In the article about Alex on the Albion website, as well as several of the interviews I've read in other newspapers, he's been very humble and self-effacing, nothing else. I wouldn't expect him to be any different. Maybe there's been some kind of misunderstanding, but I just want to put out my side of this, and make sure that I put it out there that I haven't done anything to disparage Alexander Theodore Carroll
This, if you're not up on your state mottoes, is the motto of New Hampshire, and well, I'm soon to be living there. The interview went very well on Friday, or I should say, the first interview, because I had a second with another newspaper within the same company, Salmon Press, which owns community newspapers throughout New Hampshire. Well, what ended up happening is Mary at the Granite State News, which is in Wolfeboro, called me as I was headed to New York and told me the job is mine if I want it. I'll be calling her tomorrow to accept officially, barring a miracle here tonight or early morning, and in the next couple of weeks I'll be heading up to start at the Baysider, which is the new paper focusing on the town of Alton. I will be working in the Wolfeboro office, but I'll be looking for an apartment in both cities (taking only one obviously). I'll probably be up there for a year or eighteen months, maybe more, before I look to move up to another paper, like a daily or something, but this is a very good start for me.
The last few days certainly have been fun. The drive up to Wolfeboro on Thursday was fine, though a little bit tiring. Interesting things I saw or found out on the way up: I saw M & T Bank Stadium, where the Ravens play, on the way up. Not surprising, I guess, that the seats are purple. Second, Delaware is not very big, or at the very least, the area you drive through is not. Third, the food on the Jersey turnpike is amazingly expensive, especially when you consider how much things cost everywhere else on earth.
More things that were interesting: the toll for the George Washington Bridge is $6.00, and the state of New York really seems to enjoy the toll booth as a means of getting money. The headquarters of the WWE is all Black mirrored glass and has a huge, black WWE flag on top, creating a really weird image. Not much interesting happened until I got to New Hampshire, mainly because the roads in Connecticut and Massachusetts were clear, with the exception of Lawrence, Mass. (the hometown of both Robert Frost and Leonard Bernstein). I also drove past Walden, which was just fun to be near. New Hampshire is exceptionally pretty, the area where you come in the state is near the Atlantic, and the area I'll be in, the area around Lake Winnipesauke, is gorgeous. While I drove around in the morning, I saw several ice-fishing shanties’ still up, and some hearty soul had brought his pickup out onto the ice. On March 25. Plus there were some pretty views where the Lake, which is still iced over, was in the foreground, while the White Mountains stood pretty majestically in the background, with snow near the caps.
I left the second interview at about 12:30 and headed out. I called to wish my dad a happy birthday, then got going on the highway after about a half hour on two lane roads. Mary, from the Granite State News, called at around 2:30, while I was on the Mass. Pike. After about 4 hours of driving, which included celebratory phone calls to my family, Laura, Bohne, and many others, I came up to New York, where I was going to stay the night, and eventually two nights, at John Sellers' apartment. My dad navigated me through to John's place in Brooklyn, and I was able to find a parking place quickly. I spent a few minutes talking with John, while I also checked my email and everything else that I had neglected for a couple of days.
I also called Beth Snyder, who also lives in Brooklyn, and her, John, and myself spent sometime over dinner catching up. Beth has been doing a lot of auditioning, as well as waitressing at a bar across from Madison Square Garden, and doing some cabaret singing at various locations throughout the city, with Audra White, who accompanied Company, as her piano player. She really seems to be doing pretty well, she has a Summerstock audition on Friday, and she says she's likely to be moving into the city soon. She also told us about a rather harrowing experience she had while she was teaching, where she was staying in the House on Haunted Hill outside of Jackson, something involving ghosts, a wood stove, and million of cockroaches coming out of everywhere. We went back to John's apartment and continued to talk and watch TV, and as John's roommates, Rick and Courtney, arrived they joined us, until Beth went home around 1 a.m., and then the rest of us pretty much went to sleep.
Wanting to spend a celebratory day in the city, I spent Saturday pretty much being a part of the energy of Manhattan. More than any other place, you can be alone in New York and be perfectly content, because the city is just so thriving. I spent much of my time just walking around the city, and of course standing in the line at TKTS. I walked around Central Park, and saw the many children playing, or parents walking their kids around, or dog walkers, and anything else you can imagine, all of which of course is part of what makes it the greatest city in the world. After a couple failed attempts at buying tickets at TKTS, and seeing that none of the musicals I really wanted to see had tickets available, I ended up buying tickets for Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, which starred Kathleen Turner as Martha and Bill Irwin, who actually appeared in Albee's last new play, The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? when it hit Broadway a couple years ago. I had started to read the play once, but seeing it on stage, being performed by the people Albee thought would be best for it, really made the play hit home with me. Seeing this marriage, seeing these two people who obviously both love and hate each other, as well as seeing the way that Nick and Honey get caught up in, and are likely destroyed by viewing the marriage of George and Martha was an incredible experience. It also made me think about myself a bit, because there seemed to be a lot of similarities between myself and George, in the way he plays games with people and uses what they say, and their own insecurities, against them, especially when he has something to drink, and the force of nature that is his wife is getting going and sharpening her own knives to dig into George's back, and his heart. But to watch how he literally destroys the marriage of Nick and Honey in a manner of minutes, while doing incredible combat with his wife was something to behold. I can see myself as a kind of cruel and mean drunk, because drinking lowers inhibitions, and the inhibitions against doing cruel things might be the first to go.
Today I went to Mass and the came back to DC. It was really great of John and his roommates to host me, and I want to thank them again for that, as well as being good to see Beth. I was also able to talk to Susan and Amy Lewis yesterday, and it was great to hear from them. When I come for workshops next week, I'm hoping I'll be able to catch up with Ms. Lewis.
I wanted to say something regarding Alex. I don't ever recall thinking that Alex was being anything but humble about his movie experience, and I certainly don't recall saying that he was being a jerk about it to anyone. That really would have been awful thing for me to do, particularly because it isn't true. I've only spoken to Alex a couple of times on IM, and then only for a couple of minutes, as he usually was busy. That's it. I haven't spoken to him on the phone or in person since the movie came out, so I wouldn't be able to make any kind of judgment. In the article about Alex on the Albion website, as well as several of the interviews I've read in other newspapers, he's been very humble and self-effacing, nothing else. I wouldn't expect him to be any different. Maybe there's been some kind of misunderstanding, but I just want to put out my side of this, and make sure that I put it out there that I haven't done anything to disparage Alexander Theodore Carroll
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Everybody's Got the Right To Their Dreams
There's something I've wanted to blog about for a week now, but I keep forgetting and now seems a good time. The Archdiocese of Detroit has decided to shut several schools down, including my mother's alma mater (Bishop Borgess), the school that gave her her first teaching job (Our Lady Queen of Angels). The reason I mention this is that the list includes several of the teams we played against in high school, including the some schools that were involved in some of the few Shilander athletic triumphs (meaning I was on a team, not that I was actually on the field playing). These include Holy Redeemer, who we beat in one of Richard's few playoff wins my sophomore year, as well as the loser of my last game in high school. Also closed was Trinity High, which was formed only a few years ago from the ashes of St. Florian in Hamtramck (seriously, is there a worse name in terms of not perpetuating a stereotype? There's no I there, come on.) and Harper Woods Bishop Gallagher, who we played my senior year and lost to badly. I could say after that game that I was an opponent of both Braylon Edwards and Markus Curry which is kind of cool, and will be cooler at the end of April. Also closing is Centerline St. Clement, which was one of Richard's big rivals for a while, and beating them senior year, for the first time in about six years was a really cool way to go out.
(I realize of course, that yesterday I talked about how much high school sucked. I stand by that, because frankly, talking about a few moments of my very limited athletic glory really doesn't change the grand scheme of things, or how I feel now about day to day life at the school.)
The demographics of the city have largely changed, which account for why these schools are closing. Let's face it, large segments of the natural populations for these schools are now in the suburbs, sending their kids to Notre Dame Prep (alumni- Mike Bohne, Dan Staniszewski), CC (my cousin Brian is there now), Bishop Foley (Ventures, the dumbest nickname ever) (alumna-Karen Green) or places like that. Combine this with the fact that the school's cost a lot for people with not a lot of money, and you get dwindling enrollment. My mom told that after she graduated (she was in the first class ever at Borgess) they had the largest enrollment in the state for a Catholic school. Having looked at old yearbooks, there couldn't have been ore than two or three African-Americans in the school. When they announced the closing last week, there were only about 120 kids at the school, and almost all of them were African-American. Its amazing, really, how quickly people seem to be leaving the suburbs and going even further out, perpetuating a self-fulfilling prophecy as they do.
It should be said that last election, Adam Cardinal Maida spent $500,000 of Archdiocese funds on the campaign, money that didn't go to these schools.
It'll be weird, I must say, not seeing DePorres at the top of State rankings anymore. I'll never forget the sight of East Catholic's coach, who's won multiple basketball state-titles since he arrived there in the 60's, and his huge necklace of keys, and the game where they held the ball for five minutes at the start of the fourth quarter against Richard at our place. But time marches on I guess.
I have a bit of a quiz for people if you want to get in on, if you can tell me what the title of this post has to do with Three American cities: Dallas, Buffalo and Washington, and what those three cities have in common, you'll get something, probably some prominent mention in this blog as a superior mind or something.
What a fabulous prize, you'll be able to Google yourself and the phrase "superior mind" and it'll come right up.
Yes
There's something I've wanted to blog about for a week now, but I keep forgetting and now seems a good time. The Archdiocese of Detroit has decided to shut several schools down, including my mother's alma mater (Bishop Borgess), the school that gave her her first teaching job (Our Lady Queen of Angels). The reason I mention this is that the list includes several of the teams we played against in high school, including the some schools that were involved in some of the few Shilander athletic triumphs (meaning I was on a team, not that I was actually on the field playing). These include Holy Redeemer, who we beat in one of Richard's few playoff wins my sophomore year, as well as the loser of my last game in high school. Also closed was Trinity High, which was formed only a few years ago from the ashes of St. Florian in Hamtramck (seriously, is there a worse name in terms of not perpetuating a stereotype? There's no I there, come on.) and Harper Woods Bishop Gallagher, who we played my senior year and lost to badly. I could say after that game that I was an opponent of both Braylon Edwards and Markus Curry which is kind of cool, and will be cooler at the end of April. Also closing is Centerline St. Clement, which was one of Richard's big rivals for a while, and beating them senior year, for the first time in about six years was a really cool way to go out.
(I realize of course, that yesterday I talked about how much high school sucked. I stand by that, because frankly, talking about a few moments of my very limited athletic glory really doesn't change the grand scheme of things, or how I feel now about day to day life at the school.)
The demographics of the city have largely changed, which account for why these schools are closing. Let's face it, large segments of the natural populations for these schools are now in the suburbs, sending their kids to Notre Dame Prep (alumni- Mike Bohne, Dan Staniszewski), CC (my cousin Brian is there now), Bishop Foley (Ventures, the dumbest nickname ever) (alumna-Karen Green) or places like that. Combine this with the fact that the school's cost a lot for people with not a lot of money, and you get dwindling enrollment. My mom told that after she graduated (she was in the first class ever at Borgess) they had the largest enrollment in the state for a Catholic school. Having looked at old yearbooks, there couldn't have been ore than two or three African-Americans in the school. When they announced the closing last week, there were only about 120 kids at the school, and almost all of them were African-American. Its amazing, really, how quickly people seem to be leaving the suburbs and going even further out, perpetuating a self-fulfilling prophecy as they do.
It should be said that last election, Adam Cardinal Maida spent $500,000 of Archdiocese funds on the campaign, money that didn't go to these schools.
It'll be weird, I must say, not seeing DePorres at the top of State rankings anymore. I'll never forget the sight of East Catholic's coach, who's won multiple basketball state-titles since he arrived there in the 60's, and his huge necklace of keys, and the game where they held the ball for five minutes at the start of the fourth quarter against Richard at our place. But time marches on I guess.
I have a bit of a quiz for people if you want to get in on, if you can tell me what the title of this post has to do with Three American cities: Dallas, Buffalo and Washington, and what those three cities have in common, you'll get something, probably some prominent mention in this blog as a superior mind or something.
What a fabulous prize, you'll be able to Google yourself and the phrase "superior mind" and it'll come right up.
Yes
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Musings on Well...Things in Life
The Schiavo case continues to drive the headlines. Enough that it has completely overshadowed the deaths of ten people at the hands of a crazed teenager on the Red Lake reservation. Do I think that the reason this story isn’t getting the play that Schiavo and Columbine cases is racial, as well as the practical reason that Red Lake is 250 miles from the nearest large city, and is on sovereign Chippewa land, and thus difficult to work in. Still the question of how a Native American teen could latch onto these kind of radically awful beliefs is a story that needs to be covered. While I appreciate the moral positions of both Michael Schiavo as well as Terri’s parents, the question of how to protect ourselves and the most vulnerable youth from the most vile forms of hate mongering need to be discussed too.
By the way, I just saw Billy Graham’s daughter Anne on TV. Wow, it looks as if her face had been basted in its own juices for several hours at about 20 minutes a pound. Seriously, I’ve never seen any kind of color like that on a human being, only on a Thanksgiving dinner table. Not that she’s a bad person, I’m not saying she is, I’m just saying that she has an inhuman pigmentation to her skin. If that was makeup, then somebody really needs to be fired at MSNBC, because I learned that I could look orange under lights in high school.
I was thinking about the conversation that John, Bohne, Kopec, Chelsea Sadler and myself had after Cabaret. We were talking a bit about high school, and how it was difficult to have patience with some people just coming out of high school, because they can sometimes still carry the personality front they had to put up in high school. In thinking about it further, I really have to disagree with some of the stuff that was said last night. I appreciate the fact that for seniors, it can sometimes be frustrating to deal with people who are still putting up the front. But its also true that for some of us, many more than would like to admit it, early in our Freshman year of college, found high school to be the most horrific of experiences because, frankly, as Eddie Izzard puts it so well, this is the ugliest time we’ll ever be in our lives. And yet at no point in our lives are we more concerned with our appearance and in being accepted by the kind of people we might not otherwise want to be with at any point of our lives. For those, like me, who spent high school kind of floating between groups, and not really fitting in with anyone, trying to fit in with that top tier of the beautiful and popular people is what you want. I was tolerated by those people, and frankly, part of me wishes I hadn’t gotten to know some of them as well as I did. And obviously, I know I shouldn’t have spent that much time trying to be like them.
On the other side though, for those people who did everything to not fit in, and to try and shut out all of the pain by being disgusted by it, whether that’s how they really feel or not, its hard to shut that off.
I had it easy when I got to Albion, or at least I thought I did. I was so close to home. I would occasionally talk to my old classmates at their new schools, and I could go home and watch the football games, and then return to Albion. When Homecoming came around and I saw a lot of them again, I kind of began to realize how small they made me feel, not out of trying (though a new book says that one in twenty people is really a sociopath, so maybe some of them really did mean to make me feel like crap). Then I got back to school and realized I was the only one making an effort. And then it hit that I really didn't like high school, in fact, the only thing that kept me from being an emotional wreck was trying to just get through the week, week after week, and so I wasn’t looking at what I was actually feeling more than on a day to day basis. It was then I realized that I really was in a place where I had to change and reveal my true self. Luckily for me, I first had supportive hallmates who were able to transition me into college life, rather than the proto-High School life I had been living at Albion. Then I found theater again and made the greatest friends I will ever make in my life.
Not everyone is as lucky as I was, some people need to keep up their fronts longer, the pain might be too deep, or the cynicism too set in to make the transition a smooth one, and so people sometimes keep up the front. But the greatest part of college is that it almost always forces you to be yourself at some point, and so the shell does get cracked. Maybe we needed to think of that a little more sometimes.
The Schiavo case continues to drive the headlines. Enough that it has completely overshadowed the deaths of ten people at the hands of a crazed teenager on the Red Lake reservation. Do I think that the reason this story isn’t getting the play that Schiavo and Columbine cases is racial, as well as the practical reason that Red Lake is 250 miles from the nearest large city, and is on sovereign Chippewa land, and thus difficult to work in. Still the question of how a Native American teen could latch onto these kind of radically awful beliefs is a story that needs to be covered. While I appreciate the moral positions of both Michael Schiavo as well as Terri’s parents, the question of how to protect ourselves and the most vulnerable youth from the most vile forms of hate mongering need to be discussed too.
By the way, I just saw Billy Graham’s daughter Anne on TV. Wow, it looks as if her face had been basted in its own juices for several hours at about 20 minutes a pound. Seriously, I’ve never seen any kind of color like that on a human being, only on a Thanksgiving dinner table. Not that she’s a bad person, I’m not saying she is, I’m just saying that she has an inhuman pigmentation to her skin. If that was makeup, then somebody really needs to be fired at MSNBC, because I learned that I could look orange under lights in high school.
I was thinking about the conversation that John, Bohne, Kopec, Chelsea Sadler and myself had after Cabaret. We were talking a bit about high school, and how it was difficult to have patience with some people just coming out of high school, because they can sometimes still carry the personality front they had to put up in high school. In thinking about it further, I really have to disagree with some of the stuff that was said last night. I appreciate the fact that for seniors, it can sometimes be frustrating to deal with people who are still putting up the front. But its also true that for some of us, many more than would like to admit it, early in our Freshman year of college, found high school to be the most horrific of experiences because, frankly, as Eddie Izzard puts it so well, this is the ugliest time we’ll ever be in our lives. And yet at no point in our lives are we more concerned with our appearance and in being accepted by the kind of people we might not otherwise want to be with at any point of our lives. For those, like me, who spent high school kind of floating between groups, and not really fitting in with anyone, trying to fit in with that top tier of the beautiful and popular people is what you want. I was tolerated by those people, and frankly, part of me wishes I hadn’t gotten to know some of them as well as I did. And obviously, I know I shouldn’t have spent that much time trying to be like them.
On the other side though, for those people who did everything to not fit in, and to try and shut out all of the pain by being disgusted by it, whether that’s how they really feel or not, its hard to shut that off.
I had it easy when I got to Albion, or at least I thought I did. I was so close to home. I would occasionally talk to my old classmates at their new schools, and I could go home and watch the football games, and then return to Albion. When Homecoming came around and I saw a lot of them again, I kind of began to realize how small they made me feel, not out of trying (though a new book says that one in twenty people is really a sociopath, so maybe some of them really did mean to make me feel like crap). Then I got back to school and realized I was the only one making an effort. And then it hit that I really didn't like high school, in fact, the only thing that kept me from being an emotional wreck was trying to just get through the week, week after week, and so I wasn’t looking at what I was actually feeling more than on a day to day basis. It was then I realized that I really was in a place where I had to change and reveal my true self. Luckily for me, I first had supportive hallmates who were able to transition me into college life, rather than the proto-High School life I had been living at Albion. Then I found theater again and made the greatest friends I will ever make in my life.
Not everyone is as lucky as I was, some people need to keep up their fronts longer, the pain might be too deep, or the cynicism too set in to make the transition a smooth one, and so people sometimes keep up the front. But the greatest part of college is that it almost always forces you to be yourself at some point, and so the shell does get cracked. Maybe we needed to think of that a little more sometimes.
Monday, March 21, 2005
Out into the Cool of the Evening- Strolls the Pretender
So, a lot of pretty interesting things going on this weekend. Certainly its been fun to watch the party of state's rights manage to federalize a single dispute between the husband and family of a woman who has been in a vegetative state for several years. To watch the leadership use this woman as a political tool, whether or not they believe in the sanctity of life in this case or not.
I went downtown on Friday looking for work, and I also went to get lunch at the ESPN Zone to watch the tournament. I got there in the second half of the first set of games, and there were lots of people at the bar supporting they're schools, and a lot of people with their brackets out, brackets that were probably fine for a while, until they hit the end of the first set of games Friday night. I must say that there were a few women my age, or slightly older, from NC State who were, as Mr. Tony likes to say, "getting it done". Speaking of that, I saw the SportsCentury on Peggy Fleming last week- Peggy Fleming is definitely still getting it done. I'm sorry, that was my id raising its ugly head for a minute. It’s not more than an occasional visitor, so I have to express it when he comes out.
The games this weekend were pretty fabulous. Courtney, the woman whose house I'm staying in, went to Kansas, and so was a bit disappointed by the result of the Bucknell game. I really enjoyed the Vermont game, because I love those kind of great stories. Luckily, I wasn't able to see much of the game on Sunday, because they were showing other games here, because I probably would have been conflicted. I want to see the conference to do well, but I have no particular interest in seeing State win beyond that, and sense I am a rank sentimentalist, I wanted to see the Catamounts advance. The NC State Wolfpack, and their very attractive alumna, were fabulous in both games, coming back from a big deficit against Charlotte and then upsetting UConn. I really was impressed by them, and of course North Carolina, because they were incredibly dominant in both games.
Right now my plans for the interview are this: drive up to New Hampshire Thursday and spend the night in a hotel, either in town or just outside it, and then to stay with John Sellers on Friday night, at which point I'll probably come home Saturday.
By the way, my XM Channel, On Broadway, carried Wall to Wall Sondheim at Symphony Center on Saturday. It was amazing to listen to, even the roundtable which featured Sondheim, Frank Rich, Joss Whedon and others on Sondheim's effect on popular culture, which of course led to a discussion of "Once More With Feeling..." the greatest Buffy episode I've never seen. By the way, I heard a lot of the songs from Company I wanted to hear, and I got to hear Angela Lansbury doing "A Little Priest", but I didn't hear "Pretty Women", the one song from Sweeney Todd I wanted to hear, but that's okay.
If I may make a suggestion to the play selection committee for next year, and by next year, I mean 2006-2007, the year after some of my favorite men and women graduate, the one that decides the next musical. Keeping in mind that the last two musicals have been a bit heavy, I might suggest something a bit light like, for example, A Year With Frog and Toad, which is about as far from heavy as you can get.
Good luck to everyone on their thesis, as well as the continuing work on Workshops and Trojan Women.
So, a lot of pretty interesting things going on this weekend. Certainly its been fun to watch the party of state's rights manage to federalize a single dispute between the husband and family of a woman who has been in a vegetative state for several years. To watch the leadership use this woman as a political tool, whether or not they believe in the sanctity of life in this case or not.
I went downtown on Friday looking for work, and I also went to get lunch at the ESPN Zone to watch the tournament. I got there in the second half of the first set of games, and there were lots of people at the bar supporting they're schools, and a lot of people with their brackets out, brackets that were probably fine for a while, until they hit the end of the first set of games Friday night. I must say that there were a few women my age, or slightly older, from NC State who were, as Mr. Tony likes to say, "getting it done". Speaking of that, I saw the SportsCentury on Peggy Fleming last week- Peggy Fleming is definitely still getting it done. I'm sorry, that was my id raising its ugly head for a minute. It’s not more than an occasional visitor, so I have to express it when he comes out.
The games this weekend were pretty fabulous. Courtney, the woman whose house I'm staying in, went to Kansas, and so was a bit disappointed by the result of the Bucknell game. I really enjoyed the Vermont game, because I love those kind of great stories. Luckily, I wasn't able to see much of the game on Sunday, because they were showing other games here, because I probably would have been conflicted. I want to see the conference to do well, but I have no particular interest in seeing State win beyond that, and sense I am a rank sentimentalist, I wanted to see the Catamounts advance. The NC State Wolfpack, and their very attractive alumna, were fabulous in both games, coming back from a big deficit against Charlotte and then upsetting UConn. I really was impressed by them, and of course North Carolina, because they were incredibly dominant in both games.
Right now my plans for the interview are this: drive up to New Hampshire Thursday and spend the night in a hotel, either in town or just outside it, and then to stay with John Sellers on Friday night, at which point I'll probably come home Saturday.
By the way, my XM Channel, On Broadway, carried Wall to Wall Sondheim at Symphony Center on Saturday. It was amazing to listen to, even the roundtable which featured Sondheim, Frank Rich, Joss Whedon and others on Sondheim's effect on popular culture, which of course led to a discussion of "Once More With Feeling..." the greatest Buffy episode I've never seen. By the way, I heard a lot of the songs from Company I wanted to hear, and I got to hear Angela Lansbury doing "A Little Priest", but I didn't hear "Pretty Women", the one song from Sweeney Todd I wanted to hear, but that's okay.
If I may make a suggestion to the play selection committee for next year, and by next year, I mean 2006-2007, the year after some of my favorite men and women graduate, the one that decides the next musical. Keeping in mind that the last two musicals have been a bit heavy, I might suggest something a bit light like, for example, A Year With Frog and Toad, which is about as far from heavy as you can get.
Good luck to everyone on their thesis, as well as the continuing work on Workshops and Trojan Women.
Thursday, March 17, 2005
The Best Day Ever
Today is one of the two best days of the year, by many people's reckoning. It's the first day of the tournament. Unfortunately, I haven't really been able to follow it, because I've been downtown and at work, but it’s still so much fun to know I can go home tonight and have four games on at around 7:30, even though I'll only have the normal feed.
By the way, Happy Birthday to Ms. Susan Southard, I hope the last year has treated you well and that the new one will bring all sorts of new opportunities as you move closer to finishing at Northridge. Also speaking of Ms. Southard, I want to wish Miss Kraly a good and safe flight, and obviously a fabulously fun spring break in LA. Let Dre and Em run free.
Of course the steroid hearings are going on in Washington today. I really don't see how they accomplish anything, though there is a legitimate public interest in keeping steroids away from young people. Still, to trot out ballplayers, essentially only to bring the attention they'll receive, and then to schedule it on a day most people won't be paying attention anyway is just confusing. None of the players said anything different than you'd expect them to, though apparently Schilling went after Canseco pretty hard, which is great.
I have to say, today is really the weirdest days to be a non-drinker. It is kind of expected on a day like this, especially given the unfortunate stereotype of the people whose patron saint we honor today. But still, tonight usually isn’t the best night to go out to a bar and not expect weird looks when you order coke or water.
I bumped into Kim Shannon yesterday on the way home from work. She's doing well, and I'll see if I can stop by this weekend to catch up with her and a certain Brandon Bartlett Blackburn Dwyer.
There should be more interesting things going on tomorrow, especially as the tournament moves forward, stay safe tonight everyone.
Today is one of the two best days of the year, by many people's reckoning. It's the first day of the tournament. Unfortunately, I haven't really been able to follow it, because I've been downtown and at work, but it’s still so much fun to know I can go home tonight and have four games on at around 7:30, even though I'll only have the normal feed.
By the way, Happy Birthday to Ms. Susan Southard, I hope the last year has treated you well and that the new one will bring all sorts of new opportunities as you move closer to finishing at Northridge. Also speaking of Ms. Southard, I want to wish Miss Kraly a good and safe flight, and obviously a fabulously fun spring break in LA. Let Dre and Em run free.
Of course the steroid hearings are going on in Washington today. I really don't see how they accomplish anything, though there is a legitimate public interest in keeping steroids away from young people. Still, to trot out ballplayers, essentially only to bring the attention they'll receive, and then to schedule it on a day most people won't be paying attention anyway is just confusing. None of the players said anything different than you'd expect them to, though apparently Schilling went after Canseco pretty hard, which is great.
I have to say, today is really the weirdest days to be a non-drinker. It is kind of expected on a day like this, especially given the unfortunate stereotype of the people whose patron saint we honor today. But still, tonight usually isn’t the best night to go out to a bar and not expect weird looks when you order coke or water.
I bumped into Kim Shannon yesterday on the way home from work. She's doing well, and I'll see if I can stop by this weekend to catch up with her and a certain Brandon Bartlett Blackburn Dwyer.
There should be more interesting things going on tomorrow, especially as the tournament moves forward, stay safe tonight everyone.
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
The Ides of March are come
I want to talk about Julius Caesar for a minute, because I don't feel there's enough amateur dramaturgy on the web.
Caesar is Ms. K-M's favorite Shakespeare play. I saw it for the first time at Stratford with the FGRHS Drama Club, and really enjoyed it. I find that it's remarkably simple to understand, and because politics is so fluid, its easy to make the transition out of Roman or period dress and into modern adaptations. Put Antony in a black shirt, and you've got a ready made fascist.
First off, when discussing the play, you have to recognize that it literally ruins Shakespeare for life for many kids, because they are often given the play to read at an age where they don't understand what's going on. I once read a book about Shakespeare that said that this happens because Caesar is the last hold-out of Latin being taught in schools, that kids would read Commentaries on the Gallic Wars, and then read Shakespeare. But they don't teach Latin anymore, yet Caesar remains. Kids aren't able to understand what motivates Brutus, why Cassius is so devious, and how insidious Antony's most famous speech really is. They just watch Marlon Brando on a set and think they understand. (The best plays for young people are either Macbeth, because its rather simple to follow and features witches and curses, and Henry IV, part I, because there's lots of dirty jokes and rebelling against authority.)
When you read Dante, you see that Brutus, for many in medieval Europe held a special place of contempt. He betrayed his friend and ruler. But Shakespeare chose to explore the nobility in Brutus, and gives us two great counterbalances to him. Cassius is motivated not by some great belief in the virtue of the republic, but jealousy and contempt for Caesar himself. Antony, whose speech to the mourning crowds is obviously he best known part of the play, is a conniving political opportunist. (The most interesting part of the scene is this, Brutus has just made a passionate, but reasoned speech to the people defending the Senate's actions, and the crowd reacts in a most irrational way, they want to make Brutus king. Yet Antony does the opposite, and appeals to the very worst in the crowd, and is rewarded with a reasoned response that becomes a vengeful and murderous mob (just ask Cinna the poet). I feel that this is Shakespeare's critique, which Aristotle made as well, of Democracy, because it is always teetering on the edge of mob rule.)
Caesar himself doesn't dominate the play, but the persona does. We know that Caesar is a man because we hear Cassius talk about his near drowning, and we see him worry and do what Calphurnia wants him to do. Only when he's called upon to be "Caesar, destroyer of Pompey, the man who crossed the Rubicon" is he larger than life, or even confident.
Ok, that's it for that.
I have some good news. I have my interview scheduled for Good Friday at 2 pm, in Wolfeboro, NH, for the Granite State News. I will be leaving on Thursday, and I have tentative plans to stay the night at John Sellers' apartment and then proceed the rest of the way, through Connecticut and Massachusetts, the next day. We'll see about getting back.
Interesting fact, of the 1200 people or so who have attempted suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate bridge, 2% have survived. Why this is interesting to me, I don't know, maybe it comes from being afraid of heights.
Yup
I want to talk about Julius Caesar for a minute, because I don't feel there's enough amateur dramaturgy on the web.
Caesar is Ms. K-M's favorite Shakespeare play. I saw it for the first time at Stratford with the FGRHS Drama Club, and really enjoyed it. I find that it's remarkably simple to understand, and because politics is so fluid, its easy to make the transition out of Roman or period dress and into modern adaptations. Put Antony in a black shirt, and you've got a ready made fascist.
First off, when discussing the play, you have to recognize that it literally ruins Shakespeare for life for many kids, because they are often given the play to read at an age where they don't understand what's going on. I once read a book about Shakespeare that said that this happens because Caesar is the last hold-out of Latin being taught in schools, that kids would read Commentaries on the Gallic Wars, and then read Shakespeare. But they don't teach Latin anymore, yet Caesar remains. Kids aren't able to understand what motivates Brutus, why Cassius is so devious, and how insidious Antony's most famous speech really is. They just watch Marlon Brando on a set and think they understand. (The best plays for young people are either Macbeth, because its rather simple to follow and features witches and curses, and Henry IV, part I, because there's lots of dirty jokes and rebelling against authority.)
When you read Dante, you see that Brutus, for many in medieval Europe held a special place of contempt. He betrayed his friend and ruler. But Shakespeare chose to explore the nobility in Brutus, and gives us two great counterbalances to him. Cassius is motivated not by some great belief in the virtue of the republic, but jealousy and contempt for Caesar himself. Antony, whose speech to the mourning crowds is obviously he best known part of the play, is a conniving political opportunist. (The most interesting part of the scene is this, Brutus has just made a passionate, but reasoned speech to the people defending the Senate's actions, and the crowd reacts in a most irrational way, they want to make Brutus king. Yet Antony does the opposite, and appeals to the very worst in the crowd, and is rewarded with a reasoned response that becomes a vengeful and murderous mob (just ask Cinna the poet). I feel that this is Shakespeare's critique, which Aristotle made as well, of Democracy, because it is always teetering on the edge of mob rule.)
Caesar himself doesn't dominate the play, but the persona does. We know that Caesar is a man because we hear Cassius talk about his near drowning, and we see him worry and do what Calphurnia wants him to do. Only when he's called upon to be "Caesar, destroyer of Pompey, the man who crossed the Rubicon" is he larger than life, or even confident.
Ok, that's it for that.
I have some good news. I have my interview scheduled for Good Friday at 2 pm, in Wolfeboro, NH, for the Granite State News. I will be leaving on Thursday, and I have tentative plans to stay the night at John Sellers' apartment and then proceed the rest of the way, through Connecticut and Massachusetts, the next day. We'll see about getting back.
Interesting fact, of the 1200 people or so who have attempted suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate bridge, 2% have survived. Why this is interesting to me, I don't know, maybe it comes from being afraid of heights.
Yup
Jean and John's Thingie
A - AGE: 23
B - BAND LISTENED TO MOST RECENTLY: Foreigner played the last song I heard on XM this morning, so Foreigner
C- CRUSH: Whoever will give me a job. Ruth Riley
D - DOG's NAME: I would name my dog Diogenes if it was a male and Medea if it was female
E - EASIEST PERSON TO TALK TO: Probaly Laura Jeanine
F - FAVORITE BAND: The Beatles or The Temptations, also Euphonics
G - GUMMY: Worms
H - HOMETOWN: Ann Arbor, A2.
I - INSTRUMENT: I guess my voice, I don't play instruments well.
J - JUICE: Apple, Orange or Pomegranate
K - KIDS: I would hope for two of the same gender. That way, I could name one for my family (for a girl Ruth Janet, for a boy James Willard) and the second could be the fun name (Clytemenestra for the girl and Prometheus for the boy, maybe)
L - LONGEST CAR RIDE: Devil's Tower, Cape Breton.
M - MOM'S NAME: Paula Susan Graham
N - NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: One
O - ONE WISH: A job would be fabulous
P - PHOBIA(S): Being buried alive, heights
Q - QUOTE: by me: "This is a fine shower curtain" by another: "If you're out on your bike tonight,as always, do wear white" Tony Kornheiser
R - REASON TO SMILE: I have an interview next week, and 3 days.
S - SEXIEST FEATURE: Chest Hair (hopefully)
T - TIME YOU WAKE UP: Usually just before 8
U - UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME: I once got into an argument with my great-grandmother about a Jehovah's Witnesses pamphlet that had been left at our house on my 6th birthday
V - VEGETABLE YOU HATE: Onions, the greatest plague to ever hit mankind
W - WORST HABIT(S): Taking criticism much too personally
X - X-RAYS YOU'VE HAD: Teeth, head and neck, shoulder, arm
Y - YUCKY FOOD: French Onion soup, see "V"
Z - ZODIAC SIGN: Cancer
A - AGE: 23
B - BAND LISTENED TO MOST RECENTLY: Foreigner played the last song I heard on XM this morning, so Foreigner
C- CRUSH: Whoever will give me a job. Ruth Riley
D - DOG's NAME: I would name my dog Diogenes if it was a male and Medea if it was female
E - EASIEST PERSON TO TALK TO: Probaly Laura Jeanine
F - FAVORITE BAND: The Beatles or The Temptations, also Euphonics
G - GUMMY: Worms
H - HOMETOWN: Ann Arbor, A2.
I - INSTRUMENT: I guess my voice, I don't play instruments well.
J - JUICE: Apple, Orange or Pomegranate
K - KIDS: I would hope for two of the same gender. That way, I could name one for my family (for a girl Ruth Janet, for a boy James Willard) and the second could be the fun name (Clytemenestra for the girl and Prometheus for the boy, maybe)
L - LONGEST CAR RIDE: Devil's Tower, Cape Breton.
M - MOM'S NAME: Paula Susan Graham
N - NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: One
O - ONE WISH: A job would be fabulous
P - PHOBIA(S): Being buried alive, heights
Q - QUOTE: by me: "This is a fine shower curtain" by another: "If you're out on your bike tonight,as always, do wear white" Tony Kornheiser
R - REASON TO SMILE: I have an interview next week, and 3 days.
S - SEXIEST FEATURE: Chest Hair (hopefully)
T - TIME YOU WAKE UP: Usually just before 8
U - UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME: I once got into an argument with my great-grandmother about a Jehovah's Witnesses pamphlet that had been left at our house on my 6th birthday
V - VEGETABLE YOU HATE: Onions, the greatest plague to ever hit mankind
W - WORST HABIT(S): Taking criticism much too personally
X - X-RAYS YOU'VE HAD: Teeth, head and neck, shoulder, arm
Y - YUCKY FOOD: French Onion soup, see "V"
Z - ZODIAC SIGN: Cancer
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Tu n'es rien d'autre que ta vie
Fun stuff has been going on. I found a place to stay, at least for the month, last weekend. I am staying with an older woman and another boarder in her home, which is near Chevy Chase and Rock Creek Park. The best part is, I am only paying utilities at the end of the month, that's it. This is something I like a lot, believe me.
I wanted to talk about something political as well. The privatization of social security appears to be a dead issue now, one of the few times the Bush has made a significant push for something and not had either the republicans crush all opposition to it, like the war in Iraq, or where the Democratic leadership didn't just go along for the ride, like the tax cuts and No Child Left Behind. For the first time in a while, the Democrats in the Senate and House refused to be bullied, and I have to say I'm very impressed with Harry Reid because of that fact. I watched the State of the Union at the Bayne's, while I was still in Fairfax. Bush spent nearly 20% of his speech on his plan, and yet Americans really seem to hate it, if you believe the polls. I, along, I'd wager, with most of the readership of this blog, are among those for whom this bill is supposed to be popular, the young. But I really hate this idea. I really do. I recognize the logic behind it, but still, the numbers do not add up. Bush has promised no benefit cuts, no tax increases for Social Security, and the creation of accounts. But by decreasing the amount of money going into the system, while increasing (and since people are living longer and Boomers are coming to retirement age we pay more benefits) payouts, only means massive borrowing, which will have to be saddled by my generation anyway. In the country's that have tried it, Chile and Britain, it has failed miserably to protect people's retirement, basically, it seems like a back door way to destroy the most stable leg of the retirement stool (the others being personal savings and investments/pension).
A couple of quick sports notes: With the signings of Pollard and Kennedy, the Lions greatly improved their secondary and tight end position, but now, the draft possibilities seem a lot more interesting. A lot of drafts had the team taking either a safety (Thomas Davis of Georgia or Brodney Pool of Oklahoma) or a tight end (Heath Miller of UVa) with the ten. Now, the Lions will probably take the best player who drops to them. Of those possibilities, I really like the idea of them taking Derrick Johnson of Texas, the linebacker (which would move Teddy Lehman inside) or Alex Barron, the tackle out of Florida State (to replace Stockar McDougal and maybe Jeff Backus' LT spot in a few years). None of the defensive ends (Marcus Spears, David Pollack, or Erasmus James) seem to be sure fire talents, Johnson and Barron do. One other football note, the Cardinals (now probably my second favorite team in the NFC) seem to be destined to take Cedric Benson with the seventh pick, thus taking the running back most likely to be a bust. Often, players who get a lot of carries in college don't have much tire tread left on their knees, and seem to flame out.
Rick Ankiel announced today that he will switch permanently to the outfield. This is interesting to me because I was in the KC, watching Game 1 between the Cardinals and Braves in the 2000 NLDS when Ankiel melted down before our very eyes. He threw five wild pitches in an inning, it was seriously one of the damnedest things I had ever seen. I was getting lunch, because that semester I didn't have ant Tuesday or Thursday classes other than choir, which may have been only 3 days a week then, so I may have had nothing. I watched this can't miss prospect hit the backstop again and again, another victim of what ballplayers call "The Thing", which gripped Chuck Knoblauch and Steve Sax, leaves catchers unable to throw the ball back to the pitcher, and pitchers tossing heaters around incredibly wildly. Still, this was the first time Ankiel had experienced it, and seemingly, despite annual stories the last few years about Ankiel working his way back, Ankiel has decided the "Thing" just might be too powerful a force to combat.
I have decided, firmly, that I will start a new play soon. I had been wanting to get a job and be settled first, and hopefully that will coincide with me starting it. I know I need to get a bit further into the realm of a plot and away from autobiography, though I certainly want to use elements of my life in it. I've had to experience a lot since I last wrote a play, and the life experience has given me plenty of ideas, the key is now to try and put them together.
Still working on finding a job, I was able to send out a lot of resumes yesterday, and plan on going into downtown tomorrow. Wish me luck.
Fun stuff has been going on. I found a place to stay, at least for the month, last weekend. I am staying with an older woman and another boarder in her home, which is near Chevy Chase and Rock Creek Park. The best part is, I am only paying utilities at the end of the month, that's it. This is something I like a lot, believe me.
I wanted to talk about something political as well. The privatization of social security appears to be a dead issue now, one of the few times the Bush has made a significant push for something and not had either the republicans crush all opposition to it, like the war in Iraq, or where the Democratic leadership didn't just go along for the ride, like the tax cuts and No Child Left Behind. For the first time in a while, the Democrats in the Senate and House refused to be bullied, and I have to say I'm very impressed with Harry Reid because of that fact. I watched the State of the Union at the Bayne's, while I was still in Fairfax. Bush spent nearly 20% of his speech on his plan, and yet Americans really seem to hate it, if you believe the polls. I, along, I'd wager, with most of the readership of this blog, are among those for whom this bill is supposed to be popular, the young. But I really hate this idea. I really do. I recognize the logic behind it, but still, the numbers do not add up. Bush has promised no benefit cuts, no tax increases for Social Security, and the creation of accounts. But by decreasing the amount of money going into the system, while increasing (and since people are living longer and Boomers are coming to retirement age we pay more benefits) payouts, only means massive borrowing, which will have to be saddled by my generation anyway. In the country's that have tried it, Chile and Britain, it has failed miserably to protect people's retirement, basically, it seems like a back door way to destroy the most stable leg of the retirement stool (the others being personal savings and investments/pension).
A couple of quick sports notes: With the signings of Pollard and Kennedy, the Lions greatly improved their secondary and tight end position, but now, the draft possibilities seem a lot more interesting. A lot of drafts had the team taking either a safety (Thomas Davis of Georgia or Brodney Pool of Oklahoma) or a tight end (Heath Miller of UVa) with the ten. Now, the Lions will probably take the best player who drops to them. Of those possibilities, I really like the idea of them taking Derrick Johnson of Texas, the linebacker (which would move Teddy Lehman inside) or Alex Barron, the tackle out of Florida State (to replace Stockar McDougal and maybe Jeff Backus' LT spot in a few years). None of the defensive ends (Marcus Spears, David Pollack, or Erasmus James) seem to be sure fire talents, Johnson and Barron do. One other football note, the Cardinals (now probably my second favorite team in the NFC) seem to be destined to take Cedric Benson with the seventh pick, thus taking the running back most likely to be a bust. Often, players who get a lot of carries in college don't have much tire tread left on their knees, and seem to flame out.
Rick Ankiel announced today that he will switch permanently to the outfield. This is interesting to me because I was in the KC, watching Game 1 between the Cardinals and Braves in the 2000 NLDS when Ankiel melted down before our very eyes. He threw five wild pitches in an inning, it was seriously one of the damnedest things I had ever seen. I was getting lunch, because that semester I didn't have ant Tuesday or Thursday classes other than choir, which may have been only 3 days a week then, so I may have had nothing. I watched this can't miss prospect hit the backstop again and again, another victim of what ballplayers call "The Thing", which gripped Chuck Knoblauch and Steve Sax, leaves catchers unable to throw the ball back to the pitcher, and pitchers tossing heaters around incredibly wildly. Still, this was the first time Ankiel had experienced it, and seemingly, despite annual stories the last few years about Ankiel working his way back, Ankiel has decided the "Thing" just might be too powerful a force to combat.
I have decided, firmly, that I will start a new play soon. I had been wanting to get a job and be settled first, and hopefully that will coincide with me starting it. I know I need to get a bit further into the realm of a plot and away from autobiography, though I certainly want to use elements of my life in it. I've had to experience a lot since I last wrote a play, and the life experience has given me plenty of ideas, the key is now to try and put them together.
Still working on finding a job, I was able to send out a lot of resumes yesterday, and plan on going into downtown tomorrow. Wish me luck.
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Four Days
The kids in DC have had four straight snow days. It's really sad, because there's basically no snow on the ground, or hasn't been for two or three days. So sad that no one can drive in the snow here.
I just wanted to say one more thing about the Cabaret cast. I really admire the way all of you stayed true to doing the musical the way you wanted to do it, and not conforming to the movie or to the way its done before. That's what real art is, doing it the way you want to do it.
Those of you me know that I don't have a great deal of live for the world of high fashion. I tend to view fashion as something that's silly, as I would rather have clothes be comfortable, I prefer function to form. But I thought Project Runway was incredibly fun to watch. If you didn't see any of it, it was a reality show featuring 12 fashion designers that were competing for 3 spots at a show at Olympus Fashion Week. Each week featured a different challenge, from designing a dress from items at the grocery store to designing new postal service uniforms. All the designers were of course outsized characters, as most fashion designers are, and it made for a lot of good viewing in. I had my favorites, especially Austin Scarlett, who had to be one of the most flamboyant characters ever on TV (His picture on the Project Runway website features him in pearls and women's gloves). But he had a really great story. He was never the biggest man in the world, and knowing he was gay early on, he got teased a lot in high school. After he was eliminated, he talked about how hopeful he was that he might have served as a role model for kids who didn't fit in, the way he didn't. Supposedly, the kids at his high school, as a joke, made him prom king. When he showed up, his date, a woman, was wearing a dress that he had made. That's a fabulous story. Austin also served as a model in a pinch, so you can imagine how small he is because the models were all women with tiny tiny waists.
The clothes were almost universally beautiful, but the fun part was watching them being put together, seeing the work that all the designers had to do themselves. It really showed how much of an art clothing design is and I guess you might say that it changed my mind a bit.
The kids in DC have had four straight snow days. It's really sad, because there's basically no snow on the ground, or hasn't been for two or three days. So sad that no one can drive in the snow here.
I just wanted to say one more thing about the Cabaret cast. I really admire the way all of you stayed true to doing the musical the way you wanted to do it, and not conforming to the movie or to the way its done before. That's what real art is, doing it the way you want to do it.
Those of you me know that I don't have a great deal of live for the world of high fashion. I tend to view fashion as something that's silly, as I would rather have clothes be comfortable, I prefer function to form. But I thought Project Runway was incredibly fun to watch. If you didn't see any of it, it was a reality show featuring 12 fashion designers that were competing for 3 spots at a show at Olympus Fashion Week. Each week featured a different challenge, from designing a dress from items at the grocery store to designing new postal service uniforms. All the designers were of course outsized characters, as most fashion designers are, and it made for a lot of good viewing in. I had my favorites, especially Austin Scarlett, who had to be one of the most flamboyant characters ever on TV (His picture on the Project Runway website features him in pearls and women's gloves). But he had a really great story. He was never the biggest man in the world, and knowing he was gay early on, he got teased a lot in high school. After he was eliminated, he talked about how hopeful he was that he might have served as a role model for kids who didn't fit in, the way he didn't. Supposedly, the kids at his high school, as a joke, made him prom king. When he showed up, his date, a woman, was wearing a dress that he had made. That's a fabulous story. Austin also served as a model in a pinch, so you can imagine how small he is because the models were all women with tiny tiny waists.
The clothes were almost universally beautiful, but the fun part was watching them being put together, seeing the work that all the designers had to do themselves. It really showed how much of an art clothing design is and I guess you might say that it changed my mind a bit.
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