Mortie, Mortie: He's no shorty, Mortie.
Mortie, class of 2003, with a BA in Humanities, emphasis in Public Interest Communications, from the New College of California. They still can’t make a cap big enough for my cranium.
This movie writes itself: Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis star as Elvis and JFK, respectively, in BUBBAHO-TEP.
Yesterday I took a tour of San Francisco with the Tartu Academic Men’s Choir from Tartu, Estonia. The tour was not conducted in English — it’s positively the best way to see San Francisco.
In one week, I’ll be wearing a cap and gown, for my official graduation from New College with a BA in Humanities.
Slow news month? Not exactly. I’ve been under a slightly voluntary media blackout as I finish resettling in California. During that time I got hooked on the first season of HBO’s “Six Feet Under.” That, and trying to find a good cup of coffee.
“Shouldn’t there be a statute of limitations about that? I mean, when I was a Republican, Dennis Miller was still a liberal, and still funny.”
Arianna Huffington on party-switching, from a recent appearance on Real Time With Bill Maher
Only two weeks to a beginning in graduate school. Time is moving very quickly.
Wow. I’m here — is it like living in Wallingford? Not exactly. There’s a slightly chemically-induced relaxedness to Berkeley. I’m normally a somewhat relaxed person, but here I’m a positively-stressed-out type A. What’s really mind-boggling to me is that the new apartment I live in is the same geographic distance from San Francisco as Seattle is to Seatac.
Immediate observations:
All in all, it’s just the waiting to get set up here that’s the most stressful thing. I do miss Seattle and my friends and family, and the gang at Molly’s and the Twilight Exit. That, and Mom would have been 62 today. By this time next week, I should be laughing maniacally about the whole thing, if they haven’t come to take me away by then.
In other news, it seems that KB Toys is selling a George Dubya action figure with flight jacket, and people in India are boycotting and smashing containers of Coca-Cola and Pepsi because the drinks are contaminated with pesticides.
Based on the Pentagon’s now-axed Policy Analysis Market (from 29 July) a group has created the American Action Market. From their site:
Some of the contracts traded on AAM will be based on objective data and observable events, as on a horse track, e.g.
The American Prospect has a thought-provoking article on Bravo’s Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and Boy Meets Boy shows. Does this reduce the GLBT community to a superficial stereotype?
95% of what I own is packed in two crates on their way to Berkeley, California. I’ll be there Friday, but wow — it’s amazing to think about stuff, the space it takes up, the memories contained within each item, and the nonsense with stuff’s acquisition.
So you’re not a straight guy who guzzles Coors and burps, farts and scratches in front of your girlfriend? Perhaps you’re a metrosexual.
The Pentagon’s commodity market trading system to predict future terrorist attacks came to a halt today. Brought about by the convicted John Poindexter, the system, called the Policy Analysis Market (site removed), would allow investors to bet on the likelihood of future terrorist events. The anonymity of the system could allow terrorists to profit from their own planned attacks. This dreadful idea was killed today in the Senate. Thankfully, the Democrats are rolling with this today, and Senator Joe Biden got to tear Paul Wolfowitz a new one in committee today. I wonder aloud how many more flagrant violations of the law are allowed before the Bush administration can be brought to task.
We don’t want to seem guilty of not being “on the same page” as other people for too long. Then – sliding through the months – we may wonder why we have lived.
from the article “The American Dissident” in the August 2003 issue of Harper’s Magazine
The US Senate wants to break up Amtrak.
My friend Todd sent me the story of The Worst Waiter in Seattle — of course, that could only happen at the infamous Cafe Minnie’s, now closed on Broadway, but still for some reason open on lower Queen Anne. While you’re there, be sure to ask yourself, “Is it okay to hate Dale Chihuly?”
From the “It’s Always Nice to Hear Good News Once In A While” Department: the Senate votes to deny funding for the Terrorism Information Awareness Program.
Hey, and I got to design the look-and-feel for this! Happy happy joy joy!
At TomPaine.com, Ralph Nader writes about the last 40 years export of millions of jobs overseas in the name of free trade. It really is no secret that IT jobs being outsourced overseas is reminiscent of Detroit’s export of automotive jobs from its Michigan plants to cheaper states, and then eventually to Mexico and other countries with a cheaper labor force and lax environmental laws. This race-to-the-bottom is covered in detail at Washtech.
Yay! The Ballard Seafood Festival! Lutefisk, anyone? July 26th and 27th in Seattle’s favorite neighborhood. It looks like polka!
This was probably one of the best spoofs I’ve seen in a while: Metallica Sue Canadian Band over E, F Chords. Still, I wonder if the Digital Millenium Copyright Act will get so silly as to have key provisions overturned so as to enable a fairer version of fair use.
I’m quite happy to see what I’ve thought all along: what an empty experience consumerism can be, and that experience is portrayed quite well through ‘Are You Watching The Shopping Channel?‘
A great anti-war statement through a familiar metaphor? Operation Hidden Agenda playing cards. Similar to the Iraqi cards passed around to the military, these cards talk feature key members of the Bush administration and their role in war and behind-the-scenes dealing with regard to oil profits.
The White House email system endured a Denial-of-Service attack. One can no longer email president@whitehouse.gov, but now must fill out a form, indicating if the sender agrees with current administration policies. Yow.