the anxiety of influence

Moving Day!

2008-12-07T18:01:00.003-05:00

The time has finally come. Yesterday I successfully moved all the posts and comments from this faithful blog to www.theanxietyofinfluence.wordpress.com - my new place in the blogosphere. I do very much appreciate what blogger has done for me but the enticement of easy lay-outs and better themes has done me in. If you do regularly read here, please update all your whatevs and I'll see you over at wordpress.

the anxiety of influence--now powered by wordpress.

My life on paper

2008-12-04T10:47:00.004-05:00

I have never been able to effectively use any sort of day planner thing. Throughout middle and high school I was given some sort of school sanctioned assignment planner every fall and every year I would dutifully plan to use it to its fullest capabilities. Three weeks later it would be buried at the bottom of my locker, not to be seen again until I cleaned out the wonderful metal box. Every semester at Harding, I was enticed by the large box of planners found next to the check-out aisle of the HUB and would shell out four bucks for a HU sanctioned day planner that would inevitably go to waste.

Not 2008! This academic year--the second and third semester of my M.A.--has uncovered an Ian that is fully capable of keeping a day planner. Not only do I keep my work and class schedule, I also faithfully record upcoming projects, reading schedules, planned meetings with fellow students, and even long-term project steps. I attribute this newfound organization not to self-will, but to my wonderful wife and the gift of a Moleskine weekly planner--horizontal layout. It looks like the typical Moleskine pocket notebook, but it's so much more! Beyond the quotidian (ha! puns) day planner features, there is adequate space for note jotting and an address book. Also included in the pages are several pages of possibly necessary information (conversion tables, geography, measurements, and area codes).

I have been very pleased with my weekly planner. For her part, Jenna tries to keep her mind sharp by keeping most of her appointments and dates mentally. I would never make it to anything if that were the case. How do you keep track of your life?

Free Dr. Pepper!

2008-11-21T14:08:00.003-05:00

According to the AP, the manufacturer of Dr. Pepper is making good on their promise to give free soda (or, as I prefer, pop) to every American, provided that Guns N' Roses releases their new album in 2008.

In their defense, it seemed like a safe bet. GNR fans (and yes, the do still exist) have been waiting for this album since they began recording it in 1994. Whether or not you're jazzed for "Chinese Democracy," you can now enjoy the cool, crisp, refreshing taste of a Dr. Pepper on the house. All you must do is visit the Dr. Pepper Web site starting on Sunday the 23rd of November, print a coupon, and use it on or before February 28th.

Enjoy!

Revelation

2008-11-19T15:54:00.005-05:00

Last night I was able to attend what was dubbed a Transnational Panel hosted by a professor at West Chester University. Presenting in the panel were three professors--a British man who focuses on postcolonial literature, an American woman who focuses on 19th century American women authors, and a woman of Korean descent who focuses on critical pedagogy and gender studies--who have formed a group of transnational scholars on our campus in an effort to move our academic discourse beyond nationalistic literary boundaries that have long dominated our discipline. The three papers presented were, all in different ways, enlightening and informative. Had I gotten nothing out of the panel beyond the information found in the papers then it would have been well worth my attendance. However, I had a bit of a scholarly revelation during the presentation.

My scholarly interests are pretty varied. Right now, I imagine that my focus is late-20th century American literature. It's where I feel most at home but that's not to say that I don't want to branch out. I have a great deal of interest in postcolonial studies, African American literature, and gender studies but I worry that I will be unable to contribute in these other fields because I am so terribly regular.

Here's where my revelation comes in. Last night, the aforementioned professor of Korean descent presented a project she has been working on that explores representation of Chinese women in American society. My initial reaction was to question why she wasn't working through Korean culture instead of Chinese culture but I quickly realized that I was being incredibly racist. There is no reason why her ethnicity should determine whom she studies and I was just being ridiculous. After my initial shock at my surreptitious racism, I realized that my scholarship, too, had been liberated! Just because I'm straight doesn't mean I have no place adopting Queer Theory, or that because I'm a white male I can't add to the conversation about black women writing in America. I can perform the scholarship that I want. I'm excited.

So for now, I'm off to class.

Graduate Study Lounge

2008-11-18T10:48:00.004-05:00

Found on the sixth floor of the main library of West Chester University is a graduate study lounge. The graduate study lounge comes complete with a standard library table suitable for six people, a love seat, and a fairly large padded chair to match the love seat. To gain access to the room, one must have the appropriate five-digit keypad code. Luckily I possess the correct code. I'm not exactly sure how one goes about legitimately gaining access to the room, but I was told the code early last Fall by a recently graduated graduate student and I have happily used it since.

What brought me to write this post is the way students refuse to share the room. There are over one thousand graduate students at West Chester University and, based on a terribly unscientific poll, only a small portion of those students are aware that the graduate study lounge exists. I trust this is the case because those that know about it guard the secret of it like a middle school crush.

It is wonderful to sit in said study lounge and see the faces of people who walk up to the door, only to see someone else occupying the room. There is plenty of room for at least five people to study privately and quietly with adequate room for their computes, books, notepads, etc but people refuse to share the space.

I may never understand people but at least they're fun to watch.

Arts & Letters Daily

2008-11-14T11:28:00.002-05:00

Just last week I discovered my new favorite Web site. It's a fantastic aggregate site called Arts & Letters Daily. This may be an over-generalization, but it is my humanities-oriented answer to Drudge Report (or Drudge Retort, however you are politically inclined). Found on the site are book reviews, literary criticism, history debates, music news, philosophical discussion, and articles exploring politics in our lives.

The motto of the site, "Veritas odit moras," means "Truth hates delay." With that in mind, delay the truth no more!

Kings of Leon

2008-11-12T16:16:00.003-05:00

So I realize that the episode of SNL that aired last Saturday was a few months old, but it was new to me. That being said, I was fairly excited when I heard that Kings of Leon were performing as the live musical guest on the show. I've heard a few of their songs on the radio and generally like their sound.

While watching them perform I wasn't blown away by their sound but it was good. What was terribly disappointing was their look. The picture to the right doesn't do justice to their look on SNL, but it was as if each member of the band was a terrible parody of what they considered to be rock. The lead singer had some ridiculous wide suspenders, the bassist had an awful Elvis-type hair, the drummer had long hair a la Dave Grohl circa 1992, and the lead guitarist had a leather jacket under which he was flashing some stunning white chest. I cannot imagine being able to watch a live show of KoL and not feel a sense of lacking.

That being said, there are plenty of bands that I enjoy that I would rather have not seen them in person. My primary example is Jimmy Eat World. There's little that is visually appealing about that band, but they make such catchy music that I can't let them go.

On the opposite end of the spectrum there are artists whose looks perfectly fit their sound. Both Sufjan Stevens and Sam Beam (aka Iron and Wine) look exactly like I had imagined they would.

I realized immediately after writing the above paragraph that it's quite possible that I saw pictures of the artists before I had imagined their appearance so my judgment would be faulty. In order to be more honest, I conjured mental images of the looks of three bands: The Airborne Toxic Event, Ra Ra Riot, and Vampire Weekend to see if their images match their sounds. The verdict: they do, especially The Airborne Toxic Event.

On a different note, I would highly recommend all three of these bands.

Simulation

2008-11-08T18:42:00.003-05:00

"I reject the notion of football as warfare. Warfare is warfare. We don't need substitutes because we've got the real thing."

-Don DeLillo in End Zone

More humor!

2008-11-05T16:47:00.003-05:00

Wow, some people can be so reactive and unoriginal.

I may be wrong, but they should probably use 17 instead of 13.

I can't stop smiling when I think about the results of last night's election return.

Good job America.

The American Bard

2008-11-04T21:15:00.002-05:00

"Election Day, November, 1884"

by Walt Whitman

If I should need to name, O Western World, your powerfulest
scene and show,
'Twould not be you, Niagara--nor you, ye limitless prairies--nor
your huge rifts of canyons, Colorado,
Nor you, Yosemite--nor Yellowstone, with all its spasmic geyser-
loops ascending to the skies, appearing and disappearing,
Nor Oregon's white cones--nor Huron's belt of mighty lakes--
nor Mississippi's stream:
--This seething hemisphere's humanity, as now, I'd name--the
still small voice vibrating--America's choosing day,
(The heart of it not in the chosen--the act itself the main, the
quadriennial choosing,)
The stretch of North and South arous'd--sea-board and inland--
Texas to Maine--the Prairie States--Vermont, Virginia,
California,
The final ballot-shower from East to West--the paradox and
conflict,
The countless snow-flakes falling--(a swordless conflict,
Yet more than all Rome's wars of old, or modern Napoleon's:) the
peaceful choice of all,
Or good or ill humanity--welcoming the darker odds, the dross:
--Foams and ferments the wine? it serves to purify--while the
heart pants, life glows:
These stormy gusts and winds waft precious ships,
Swell'd Washington's, Jefferson's, Lincoln's sails.

A little election humor

2008-11-04T16:25:00.003-05:00

This has to be the worst political website ever.

No, seriously. There cannot be a worse, legitimate site created in an effort to get someone elected. If there is a more terrible site out there, please let me know.

O, and apparently we should vote for Mike Muhammad.

Vote!

2008-11-04T11:04:00.006-05:00

Here's my friendly reminder to let you know that if you're able, you should vote today. Plus, if you vote (or even if you don't) you can get a free tall coffee from Starbucks. The coffee giant in West Chester is brewing a nice Thanksgiving Coffee (which is a tasty blend of Sumatra and Guatamalan coffees) that nicely hits the spot after waiting forty-five minutes out in the 45° dampness outside my polling place.

That's right, I awoke at 5:45 this morning in order to get to my polling place in time to get to work on time. I still contend that Election Day should be a national holiday, but that's for another post. Last night I looked up directions to the Ridge Road Fire House in Pottstown, PA but it turns out that googlemaps is a dirty liar. What should have been a ten minute drive ended up taking thirty which put me further back in line than I would have liked. I arrived at said polling place at 6:45, fifteen minutes before it officially opened, and was about fifty people back from the front. The energy of the people in line was incredible.

At the front of the line was an almost-giddy black man who I would guess is around fifty in age. He came prepared with a folding chair, thermos of coffee, a portable heater, and lots of enthusiasm--and the wonder didn't end with him. All through the line people (most, but not all, were people of color) were asking strangers to take pictures of them on this historic day (as is noted on What's Left Now, no matter who wins, today's election is certainly historic). Though it was far too early in the morning for me to muster enthusiasm, I couldn't help but get caught up in the moment of voting.

Just after casting my ballot, I walked out of the building and took great joy at the sight of the long and growing line outside. People of all backgrounds, ethnicities, and political leanings were together to make their voices heard. Never mind the bickering, mud slinging, and negative campaigning--this is the beauty of the democracy in which we live.

No matter what you say, I will not be disenfranchised. Not today--I voted!

James Dobson’s ‘Letter From 2012 in Obama’s America

2008-10-31T10:10:00.003-04:00

The following can be found on Jim Wallis' blog called Sojourners. It's in response to a letter, published by Focus on the Family, from a citizen of America in 2012. As Wallis points out, the letter attempts to stir up the worst in people, not the best. I echo his sentiments of shame that people who identify as Christians would stoop to such slander and fear-mongering. Our faith is one of hope and love. There is no place in Christianity for hate and negativity toward other people.

Here is Wallis' response:

"James Dobson, you owe America an apology. The fictional letter released through your Focus on the Family Action organization, titled “Letter From 2012 in Obama’s America”, crosses all lines of decent public discourse. In a time of utter political incivility, it shows the kind of negative Christian leadership that has become so embarrassing to so many of your fellow Christians in America. We are weary of this kind of Christian leadership, and that is why so many are forsaking the Religious Right in this election.

This letter offers nothing but fear. It apocalyptically depicts terrorist attacks in American cities, churches losing their tax exempt status for not allowing gay marriages, pornography pushed in front of our children, doctors and nurses forced to perform abortions, euthanasia as commonplace, inner-city crime gone wild because of lack of gun ownership, home schooling banned, restricted religious speech, liberal censorship shutting down conservative talk shows, Christian publishers forced out of business, Israel nuked, power blackouts because of environmental restrictions, brave Christian resisters jailed by a liberal Supreme court, and finally, good Christian families emigrating to Australia and New Zealand.

It is shocking how thoroughly biblical teachings against slander—misrepresentations that damage another’s reputation—are ignored (Ephesians 4:29-31, Colossians 3:8, Titus 3:2). Such outrageous predictions not only damage your credibility, they slander Barack Obama who, you should remember, is a brother in Christ, and they insult any Christian who might choose to vote for him.

Let me make this clear: Christians will be voting both ways in this election, informed by their good faith, and based on their views of what are the best public policies and direction for America. But in utter disrespect for the prayerful discernment of your fellow Christians, this letter stirs their ugliest fears, appealing to their worst impulses instead of their best.

Fear is the clear motivator in the letter; especially fear that evangelical Christians might vote for Barack Obama. The letter was very revealing when it suggested that “younger Evangelicals” became the “swing vote” that elected Obama and the results were catastrophic.

You make a mistake when you assume that younger Christians don’t care as much as you about the sanctity of life. They do care—very much—but they have a more consistent ethic of life. Both broader and deeper, it is inclusive of abortion, but also of the many other assaults on human life and dignity. For the new generation, poverty, hunger, and disease are also life issues; creation care is a life issue; genocide, torture, the death penalty, and human rights are life issues; war is a life issue. What happens to poor children after they are born is also a life issue.

The America you helped vote into power has lost its moral standing in the world, and even here at home. The America you told Christians to vote for in past elections is now an embarrassment to Christians around the globe, and to the children of your generation of evangelicals. And the vision of America that you still tell Christians to vote for is not the one that many in a new generation of Christians believes expresses their best values and convictions.

Christians should be committed to the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of America, and the church is to live an alternative existence of love and justice, offering a prophetic witness to politics. Elections are full of imperfect choices where we all seek to what is best for the “common good” by applying the values of our faith as best we can.

Dr. Dobson, you of course have the same right as every Christian and every American to vote your own convictions on the issues you most care about, but you have chosen to insult the convictions of millions of other Christians, whose own deeply held faith convictions might motivate them to vote differently than you. This epistle of fear is perhaps the dying gasp of a discredited heterodoxy of conservative religion and conservative politics. But out of that death, a resurrection of biblical politics more faithful to the whole gospel—one that is truly good news—might indeed be coming to life." --END--

I am anxiously waiting for this election to be over. While it is certainly entertaining, I am looking forward where we can be unified as a people--as Americans, but more importantly as Christians.

Peace.

Yes we Carve!

2008-10-27T11:37:00.004-04:00

I have never put election day and Halloween together in my mind, but they're mighty close this year! This, of course, is very exciting news for me. My wife happens to absolutely love Halloween and we are both very anxious to vote and have this whole election cycle behind us. While scrounging around on the internets today, I discovered YES WE CARVE. This is a site dedicated to pumpkins carved to promote Barack Obama's bid for the presidency. They're having a contest for the most creative pumpkin and on the site you can find dozens of pumpkin stencils to make your supportive gestures easier.

If you're interested, you should come on up to Pottstown and we can carve some Barack O'Lanterns.

O, don't forget to vote next Tuesday. It's pretty important.

full disclosure--I googled 'McCain Pumpkins' and Zombie Pumpkins was the first result. They have a McCain stencil, if you're so inclined

Grammar Bonanza!

2008-10-21T11:07:00.002-04:00

I am so excited about this. I realize that I am several weeks late in talking about this, but Slate posted a fantastic article about the sentence structure of some of the things Sarah Palin has said. I will admit that if someone decided to diagram much of what I say aloud, it would look fairly ridiculous so I can give here the benefit of the doubt on most of this. However, a couple of these diagrams are out of control.

I love this article because it's a combination of two of my favorite things: poking fun at politicians and language. Thanks Slate for making my day a little bit brighter.

Breaking News!

2008-10-18T11:28:00.002-04:00

John McCain is a ninja*!

*Please do note the throwing star.

A foray into economics

2008-10-17T09:48:00.003-04:00

More often than not, I shy away from discussions of anything beyond basic economics. I am a competent bank teller so I'm a whiz at counting and doling out cash, but beyond those and similarly simple financial transactions I am typically woefully ignorant. I have decided to try my hand at economics this morning because it's an important part of our cultural landscape and it's something I want to better understand.

To make matters easier, Paul Krugman, the most recent winner of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, has written a fantastically lucid op-ed outlining his best plan to pull up on the levers of our steadily sinking airplane of an economy. Krugman is a self-professed liberal (his NYT-hosted blog is called "The Conscience of a Liberal") so his political bent aligns with mine and he has disagreed with most of the Bush fiscal policy and hasn't shied away from letting that be known. But more importantly, he's a brilliant economist.

The basic gist of his plan follows:

1.) The Fed should continue to cut the rates, but that won't be enough. Increased government spending is necessary to turn this economic ship around.

2.) The government should work to buy up existing mortgages and restructure the terms. Krugman disagrees with McCain on the notion that they should be purchased at face value.

3.) It is now more important than ever to boost the economy by investing in rebuilding our infrastructure.

These solutions seems almost too easy to be true because most of what it seems to be only throwing money (probably imaginary money, at that) at problems hoping that they go away. I don't believe, though, that that is the solution Krugman is calling for. He believes that this downturn is worse than the technological bubble burst because there is no foreseeable bubble on the horizon.

I don't believe that we should take any one person's opinion, but I tend to take the opinions of people with awesome beards more seriously.

Helpful e-mails

2008-10-16T17:52:00.002-04:00

So I got this e-mail today from Karl Rove:

Karl Rove to me

show details 10:11 AM (7 hours ago)

Dear Ian,

Time to relax!

Obama is way ahead in the polls. It's time for you to take victory for granted, and to stop paying attention.

And there's definitely no need to spend one more minute volunteering.

You're probably thinking, "But Karl Rove, why would you—the mastermind behind the stealth get-out-the-vote program that powered George Bush's victories—be advising us not to get out and talk to voters?"

That is a good question. (And by the way, I prefer "Evil Genius" to "Mastermind.") It is true that voter outreach can tip an election. But Obama's ahead in the polls, and they never lie.

So relax! Do some yoga. Check out the new season of Project Runway. Sip white wine lattes, or whatever it is that you people like to drink.

Barack does not need you out talking to voters in Pennsylvania this weekend—so there's finally time to tie-dye the seat covers for your Volvo. In fact, you probably shouldn't even bother to vote.

Please forward this to all of your Democrat friends. Don't send it to Republicans, though. Thanks!

–"Karl Rove"

P.S. Again—no volunteering! Don't click this link to sign up to help Obama in Pottstown:

http://pol.moveon.org/obama/teams/training.html?office_id=351&id=14415-9376144-92LD4Mx&t=3

P.P.S. Our lawyers made us promise to tell you that Karl Rove didn't actually write this message—but we're pretty sure this is what he'd write if he had.

Well done, moveon.org. Now I feel like I have to volunteer this weekend just to spite Mastermind Rove.

Stephen A. Douglas was a great debator

2008-10-15T09:23:00.003-04:00

... but Abraham Lincoln was the great emancipator.

Yesterday at a fund raiser, speaking about the debate set for tonight, John McCain said, "I hope to do about half as well as [Sarah Palin] did against poor Joe Biden," (I heard this on the radio this morning, and can't find an appropriate link for it) and I sincerely hope that he means it. If McCain hopes to do half as well as Palin did, then he should immediately drop out of the race for the POTUS. To her credit, Palin didn't do too terribly and she met or exceeded the expectations set for her--though they were incredibly low.

As all polls and most pundits have said, Biden handily beat Palin in their debate so I'm not exactly sure what McCain meant by that statement. Perhaps he is conceding that Obama is that much better than McCain, perhaps McCain is sweet-talking his running mate so soften the blow of her resounding defeat at the debate, or maybe McCain will say whatever it takes to make his audience happy. I would bet on the third assessment, but I'm not sure that any of them aren't true.

Unfortunately, I have class until ten tonight and I will not get home until around eleven. Here's hoping that my professor will want us to be politically aware and will let us go very early so I can watch it and be informed, conscious American voters. I'm not holding my breath, though--he's British.

Vote for That One

2008-10-08T16:01:00.002-04:00

On Monday I walked from work to campus on my lunch break to visit the library and try to catch a few professors (no such luck) but I was wonderfully surprised to see at least a dozen different people registering voters on campus. I gleefully told different volunteers that I had already registered after being asked and I've never felt better about blowing off a street hawker. Monday was the last day to register to vote in the state of Pennsylvania and it's an important state in the election. Polls show that Obama has a comfortable lead, but I certainly hope that Obama supporters won't see us as a foregone conclusion.

On a different note, no matter whom you support, please vote. Let's revel in our democratic freedom!

ps--Last night's debate was terribly boring.

Nobel Outrage

2008-10-03T14:15:00.003-04:00

On Tuesday, I read an article about the continentalism evident from the actions and words of the Nobel Prize in Literature selection committee. Really, the word 'continentalism' may not exist, but it's exactly what Horace Engdahl is displaying by saying, "Of course there is powerful literature in all big cultures, but you can't get away from the fact that Europe still is the center of the literary world ... not the United States." I have been struggling all week to think of way to express my disgust with this comment; lucky for me, Adam Kirsch of Slate.com did it better than I ever could have.

Not only are Engdahl's comments culturally ignorantly, they're also patently false. Kirsch's piece does a nice job of pointing out exactly why the European elites no longer much care for American culture. Having been the global hegemon of commerce and trade for many decades, America has come of age as a culture of art in the last few decades as well. For the most part, American authors who have been awarded the Nobel prize in Literature have been lauded in Europe for portraying the folksy nature of the former colony, but that's no longer the case. American authors such as Thomas Pynchon, Philip Roth, Joyce Carol Oates, and (of course) Don DeLillo have produced much better work than many of the Nobel Laureates of the recent past, but those at the Swedish Academy cannot seem to accept that.

All this having been said, I don't believe that any one nation's literary power is greater than any other. The best attribute of literature is that it can deftly cross cultural borders and bring impossibly diverse groups of people to a better understanding of one another. I happen to be very fond of American literature and I plan to devote my scholarly and professional life to the study of that which I am fond; but I never want to isolate myself from the word of the world.

So Swedish Academy, you can award whomever you want--it doesn't really matter anyway.

Anticipation

2008-10-02T12:58:00.004-04:00

I don't know if I can express how excited I am for the VP debate tonight. I'm fairly certain that I like Biden and I'm anticipating a good performance. At the same time, I think I'm more anxious to see how Palin reacts to the spotlight. After watching her in several interviews (albeit filled with softball questions), I am quite prepared to see good things from her. According to some who have debated her before, she is quite a good debater--not because she's a brilliant thinker, or because she knows all the facts, but because she is uniquely able to get away with not giving any answer at all.

I would love to live-blog the event here, but realistically, too few people read this to make commenting worthwhile. I'll be quite content to quietly watch it at home with my lovely wife. Enjoy the political sparring!

Treasury Secretary of Fight Club?

2008-09-24T13:52:00.005-04:00

Whenever stories mention the name of Henry Paulson, the current U.S. Treasury Secretary who is begging Congress to bail out our free market, I can't help but thing of Meat Loaf in the film Fight Club. I am fully aware that they are not at all related and that Robert Paulson is, indeed, a character of fiction from the mind if Chuck Palahniuk, but I can't shake the link in my mind.

It really makes me wonder. No matter what happens as a result of our current financial crisis, will we remember the Treasury Secretary at the reigns of our economy with the mantra, "His name was Henry Paulson?"

His name was Henry Paulson. His name was Henry Paulson. His name was Henry Paulson.

Equinox!

2008-09-22T11:01:00.002-04:00

Fall is, hands down, my favorite season. There are so many good things during the season that it is difficult to even name them all. I'll give it a shot:

1. Football--this wonderful autumnal game completely diverts me from anything truly productive and I'm sure that my grades suffer as a result but I don't even come close to caring.

2. Weather--along with the leaves changing (which is beautiful in Pennsyltucky), the fall brings cooler, crisper weather and an outdoorsy scent that is simply indescribable, but wonderful.

3. Halloween--is Jenna's favorite holiday and it's a good time for all. I particularly like it when it falls on a weekend and this year it's on a Friday so hooray! What could be better than dressing up and acting like something/someone else and eating way too much candy?

4. Thanksgiving--it may very well be my favorite holiday. It combines all the good things of Fall plus wonderful food. Last year we hosted a Thanksgiving feast and we're doing it again this year. I do love a good turkey.

5. Autumn--this is one of my favorite words. Words that end in -mn are wonderful to me. It is even better in the phrase 'autumnal equinox."

That list is in honor of the autumnal equinox that occurs at 11:44 EST today, September 22.

Enjoy this most wonderful of seasons and take a few extra steps to crunch a particularly crispy-looking fallen leaf this year.

Wordpress

2008-09-19T17:23:00.002-04:00

The more I read other blogs, the more I wish I had chosen Wordpress as the host for this blog. It is fully possible that I am under utilizing blogspot, but it seems that all of the sites on Wordpress are much more full and easier to navigate.

I don't particularly want to switch (unless Wordpress made it ridiculously easy to transfer the posts from place to place), but I desire more from the format!

If you happen to know how to make a snappier blog, do let me know.

International Talk Like a Pirate Day

2008-09-19T11:13:00.006-04:00

Today, in addition to being my beautiful, wonderful mother's birthday, is International Talk Like a Pirate Day all across the globe.

My first experience was ITLAPD was during my freshman year of college. Some fantastic Arizonians (one of whom I married) worked tirelessly to plaster campus with signs encouraging their classmates, peers, and professors to let go of their prejudice regarding the less-then-auspicious history of piracy and embrace the beauty that is the native parole of the sea-faring ilk.

I implore you to, if nothing else, give it a shot. At the least, trying to talk like a pirate will afford you a sense of ease in your own native tongue. I never appreciate ASE more than just after trying to converse in another language, or even in an unfamiliar dialect.

In other news, I have finally started to use Twitter. I had resisted for a time but I eventually caved and I have a feeling that it may be difficult to stop. If you have used Twitter, how do you feel about it?

'Ave a good tide shipmates! Arrgh.

Thanksgiving Turkey

2008-09-17T14:38:00.005-04:00

I realize that it is fairly far off, but I am thoroughly excited for Thanksgiving Day. Last year, we hosted a small gathering of friends that were unable to get to their respective homes for the holiday. In my mind, though, Thanksgiving is more of a friend holiday than a family get together. Take, for example, the seemingly endless number of Friends episodes set on or around Thanksgiving Day. The show isn't called Friends for nothing. While I do enjoy the football, camaraderie, and convivial conversation my favorite part of the whole day is the food.

Now, more than ever, I really enjoy cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Last year I got to cook a turkey (thanks How To Cook A Thanksgiving Turkey Dot Com), mashed potatoes, a cheesecake (thanks Mom), and other succulent things. This year, I hope to do the same and maybe more. I doubt our feast will look like the pictured spread--for one, it is apparently dangerous to stuff the turkey because germs totally lurk in the breading--but I won't mind too much. I really enjoy sitting around a table with friends with well filled bellies enjoying the friendships we are blessed with.

If you've nothing better to do on November 27th, give us a call and join the festivities.

ps- It's incredible to me that www.howtocookathanksgivingturkey.com actually exists. What's more incredible is that cooking a turkey is fantastically easy. Ever since Thanksgiving Day last year we've wanted to, on a whim, purchase a turkey, cook it, and feast for weeks on the left overs. The aforementioned Web site (is that the correct way to write that?) gives a very easy turkey cooking process that is very work-free. Anything that is delicious and incredibly easy is okay by me.

Dream realized

2008-09-16T23:46:00.004-04:00

I got this in the mail today:

It would appear the lovely people at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York have dubbed me a professor. Who needs to complete advanced degrees and actually hired? Not this guy.

Really, all I can figure is that since I recently joined the MLA (as a student, mind you) it is assumed that I am on the other end of the education spectrum.

Needless to say, this new title delighted me and quickly founds its way to my facebook profile picture.

I suppose I should get back to this paper about Granny Weatherall so that I may be able to be a professor in the real world, not just in the imaginary land of Bard College.

ps--I realize I should probably be less cavalier about posting my address on the internet but I'm not.

McCain's Convention Speech

2008-09-05T18:30:00.002-04:00

Last night I, like 38.9 million others, sat down and watched McCain accept the RNC's nomination for president. While I was watching, I had the good fortune of live-blogging with mostly like-minded people so that added to the entertainment. I didn't expect a very great speech from McCain and he didn't deliver one. I think it's fair to say that he's not a terribly gifted speaker but that shouldn't disqualify someone from being a president. For me, it's all about policy and issues. Luckily for me, this election cycle has been fairly because, almost across the board, I disagree with what McCain is pushing. Along with his positions on the issues, I have a lot of difficulty imagining that he is genuine in some--if not most--of what he says.

According to Neilsen, McCain's speech was watched by a half-million more people than Obama's. While this was a little disappointing for me initially, I can't help but thinking that this is a good thing. It is my hope that to more people are able to compare McCain and Obama, the Senator from Arizona will look worse.

SP as (potential) VP

2008-09-03T16:21:00.004-04:00

Try as I may, I cannot help but gobble up the news about Sarah Palin. I never would have thought 'political' news could be so much like watching The View while snacking on unbaked-but-oh-so-delicious cookie dough.

I can't get enough of LOLcats

2008-08-22T13:09:00.002-04:00

Or LOLpoliticians.

Dance in America

2008-08-20T10:21:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I discovered the New Yorker fiction podcast and my hour-long commute home has become much more pleasant. Each month Deborah Treisman, fiction editor at the New Yorker, invites an author to choose a short-story published by the New Yorker, read it, and discuss the work and the author. There are close to two-years of back issues available for download from iTunes and, as far as I can tell, they are all worth hearing. It is wonderful to hear how authors interpret the voice of other author's characters. Each installment I've heard has impressed me with the ability the authors have to read a story and make it sound interesting.

There is one episode, called "This Is It," that I have listened to at least four times because it is so captivating. It is a reading by Louise Erdrich of Lorrie Moore's "Dance in America." The story is about a dancer who catches up with a friend from her past, Cal. Eugene is Cal's seven-year-old son who has Cystic Fibrosis. The story is equal parts heartbreak and humor. Moore's characters, overall, are occasionally criticized as too bleak and yuppieish but this story is fantastic. As Erdrich points out, Moore is uniquely able to show flashes of brilliant humor within her meaningful storyline. Moore's concise control of time and emotion shines through her accessible prose.

Proust on reading

2008-08-18T14:10:00.001-04:00

En réalité, chaque lecteur est, quand il lit, le propre lecteur de soi-même.
(In reality, each reader is, when he reads, the own reader of himself.)
-Marcel Proust

How could 'he' be president?

2008-08-15T11:32:00.005-04:00

I got this e-mail today and I don't see how America could vote this 'guy' in as president!

SUBJECT: IS MCCAIN SECRETLY A WOMAN...OR EVEN WORSE?

For the love of -od and the love of this country, you will forward this email onto all your friends and family. The fate of the free world may rest solely on this information becoming mainstream. If we can not stop this, I pray for all of our souls. -od speed!

I have confirmed these facts through my reliable sources. I suggest you take it to heart – feel free to confirm these disturbing truths. Please print out copies and hand them out or mail them to friends and neighbors without access to the Interwebs.

Who is John McCain?

US Presidential candidate, John SIDNEY McCain, was born in Panama (thus the reason he doesn't mind his people flooding across our borders). He tries to hide his middle name by constantly referring to himself as John S. McCain. Do not let this fool you. John SIDNEY McCain, the probable presidential runner-up, has a woman's middle name. At the very least, the concealment of his middle name, SIDNEY, raises serious questions about his true gender and whether he is a SECRET woman. He has admitted that economics is not an issue he understands well. A certain gender is well known to be less inclined towards math and numbers. Then there are his $500 shoes. If elected, it's very likely McCain will institute mandatory lingerie pillow AND tickle fights.

John SIDNEY McCain was raised by parents of Scots-Irish and English ancestry. At their most harmless, the Irish are notorious drunks who enjoy fighting while stashing large piles of gold underneath rainbows. In the extreme, the Irish are violent TERRORISTS attempting to overthrow the government. While no evidence exists explicitly linking McCain to a TERROR organization, he has never denied membership in the IRA. It is also unclear whether he or any of his drunken relatives ever knew anyone who might know someone who once interacted with or passed in the street a member of the IRA. Given the challenges facing our country, we need confirmation that McCain is not affiliated nor knows people affiliated with TERROR organizations.

Born in 1936, John SIDNEY McCain moved around a lot throughout his early years, which coincided with World War II. The exact details of McCain's behavior during this time are sketchy at best. It is interesting to note there is no record of McCain denouncing the actions of the Nazis while they were committing genocides. He was noticeably silent. He may not have been a NAZI SYNTHESIZER, but this raises doubts about which side he was rooting for during World War II. This also raises questions about his potential loyalties as president, given our current wars and the wars he promises to start.

John SIDNEY McCain served as a naval pilot during the Vietnam War. While executing a mission in 1967, McCain was captured in Hanoi, where he stayed in the Hanoi Hilton for 5 long years. McCain's fellow soldiers battled valiantly against the evils of Communism while McCain was lounging in a hotel (most likely alternating between the pool and the hot tub to enhance the experience of both) run by Paris Hilton! If McCain had fought alongside his comrades, we may have never needed Rocky to defeat Communism.

After Vietnam, McCain returned to the US to discover his first wife with horrific injuries from an auto accident. He promptly began an affair with a woman 17 years his junior, eventually divorcing his disfigured first wife in 1980. As President, McCain will be faced with a similar situation, given the current wreck that is our country. He will be tempted to fool around with other countries. It will just be a matter of time until he divorces the US for a newer, younger, and more attractive country that offers him more than we can.

During this presidential election, we must be vigilant to prevent a John SIDNEY McCain presidency.

Can we really risk having a drunk, fighting Irishman who may or may not have ties to TERRORIST organizations? When troubled times arrive, will McCain fight for us or will he fall into the arms of another more-youthful country that looks strikingly like his current country? Do we really want to trust this country to someone who may secretly be a woman or a NAZI SYNTHESIZER?

Please forward to everyone you know. We can not have this (wo)man leading our country.

Your Friend,
Bo Gus Smear

h/t: ME

*Of course the above e-mail isn't true. Unfortunately, it's just as false as the ridiculous chain e-mails about Obama that are floating around but this one, I guarantee, won't get passed around like a hot potato.

Tattoos

2008-08-14T16:45:00.005-04:00

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted a tattoo; for the same length of time I haven't had a clue of what I wanted tattooed on my body. I have never realistically considered getting one because I figure that it's silly to get something permanently inked onto my skin if I don't truly know that I want it there.

All this was before I discovered Contrariwise.

This is a site dedicated to the display and explanation of literary tattoos and it seems that most people love Vonnegut (so says the picture above) or Plath. I'm a self-professed Lit. nerd and I think doing something like this would solidify my ridiculous affinity for literature for all time. My only problem is that I don't quite know what I would want. One of the pictures on the site is an excerpt from "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas. It would be appropriate for me because a.) I love the poem, 2.) my last name is Thomas, and d.) I'm pretty into the band Rage Against the Machine. (The d section is true but unnecessary for the list. I just wanted to have a third to complete my Home Alone reference.)

But having seen it on the internet, I could never--in good conscience--get that tattooed on me.

I've thought of getting DeLillo's theme of "All plots lead to death," but that's a bit too dreary. So I'm coming to you for suggestions. This isn't to say that I'll rush out and get a tattoo on a sudden whim of fancy, but it will help my thought process.

For location, I'm thinking of someplace that not readily visible but can be seen by me if I want to. I think I'll get it somewhere random on my torso, like just below my ribs a few inches to either side of center.

Black Kids

2008-08-14T12:51:00.005-04:00

I've been sitting on this musical review for a few weeks now. The song "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You" has been playing on XPN since just after SXSW and it's nearly impossible to get out of your head. I was hoping that the rest of the album lived up to the promise of the first single and was not too disappointed.

Their first album, called Partie Traumatic was released in late July and is chock-full of clever song titles. It opens with the track "Hit the Heartbrakes" and ends with "Look At Me (When I Rock Wichoo)." The songs are altogether catchy and synth-heavy almost to a fault. The lead singer, Reggie Youngblood, has a fairly pleasant voice that fits well within the cacophony (I use this term as positively as possible) of sound created by the rest of the band. I doubt that this band will change the face of music but I'll happily put it at the top of my summer music list for 2008.

If I had to recommend only one track, it would have to be "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You (The Twelves Remix)" which, I think, is only available through electronic download. It's funkier than the radio version with a pulsing bass that physically shakes your body.

Strange indeed

2008-08-13T15:20:00.004-04:00

It's curious that after purchasing all but two of DeLillo's fifteen novels, one meeting with my thesis supervisor convinces me to focus my work on one of the books that I do not own.

"The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men, gang aft agley."

Don DeLillo on the role of a writer

2008-08-13T15:15:00.003-04:00

Responding to being called a 'bad citizen' by George Will in response to his novel Libra:

"I don't take it seriously, but being called a 'bad citizen' is a compliment to a novelist, at least to my mind. That's exactly what we ought to do. We ought to be bad citizens. We ought to, in a sense that we're writing against what power represents, and often what government represents, and what the corporation dictates, and what consumer consciousness has come to mean. In that sense, if we're bad citizens, we're doing our job.
-Don DeLillo

Underworld

2008-08-11T15:31:00.004-04:00

After spending the bulk of my summer (the time I could afford to read more for pleasure than for class) working through the book, I've finally finished Underworld by Don DeLillo. I only say 'finally' because the book weighs in at 827 pages and lasted longer than I may have wanted it to. Turns out it was worth the time I put into it. Published in 1997, this novel is considered by many to be his magnum opus and it reads like a US cultural history from the 1950s through the mid-90s.

The novel opens with a boy named Cotter Martin hopping the fence to sneak into the 1951 NLCS game between the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers (interestingly, both teams have moved to California. New York is, apparently, an awful place to be). The center of the book is the ball that was struck during the Shot Heard 'Round the World to end the game. The primary character is Nick Shay--a waste management executive living in Phoenix--and the authorial voice constantly vacillates from first to third person never allowing the reader a comfortable sense of the narrator. Along with Nick, a character of fiction, DeLillo employs actual historical figures such as J. Edgar Hoover, Truman Capote, and Lenny Bruce.

DeLillo says that he got the idea to call his novel Underworld when thinking about buried plutonium which got him thinking about Pluto, the god of the underworld. Though the fascination of Hoover, DeLillo uses the painting The Triumph of Death by Bruegel to introduce his constant theme that all plots lead to death. DeLillo first posits this notion in his novel Libra (his take on the JKF assassination) and it plays a major role in the bulk of his later fiction. Much of his work from the mid-80s on explores what effect death (not only dealing with the death of others, but the effect the fear of death has on the living) has on his characters.

I won't much go into plot points in fear of giving away spoilers so I'll just say that it is most definitely worth reading.

I do want to tough on DeLillo's style. Whether he is considered postmodern, Romantic, or anything else, he's a great writer. His style is slightly varied from novel to novel but it always remains true to what you expect from DeLillo. His characters, despite a consistent lack of description, remain vibrant and rarely flat. He's occasionally difficult to follow but one can always find a way back in to his world.

I really need to end this unabashed author-crush I have on DeLillo before I begin writing my thesis.

I'm a member!

2008-08-08T12:42:00.004-04:00

So in my continuing effort to be a ridiculous nerd, I joined the MLA the other day. I had never really thought about it before, but when I discovered that, as a graduate student, I could join for an annual fee of only $20 I couldn't resist. With my membership, I get several theoretical publications sent to me as well as quarterly MLA newsletters and discounted book deals. Above all, I get the chance to submit an abstract to get it accepted for presentation at the annual MLA conference. I really don't know how many non-PhDs get to present there, but it's worth the shot. It would boost my CV along with my nerd status.

I've really nothing to say beyond that. I'm still pretty excited to be a member.

I'm just saying

2008-08-07T10:49:00.002-04:00

Wordle Mash-Up

2008-08-05T13:36:00.003-04:00

So there's a mighty interesting site that scans any text and makes a conglomeration of the most frequently used words. I had it make a cloud of my blog's words and here's what happened:



Click on the image for a better view and the link to make your own!

Defeat Terrorism: Inflate Your Tires

2008-08-05T12:15:00.005-04:00

As noted by a more astute bloggers, is appears the John McCain's campaign is run by 18 year old interns. From his Paris/Britney celebrity ad to his new campaign promise to give a tire gauge to anyone who donates $25 or more, everything the McCain camp does seems fairly puerile and ineffectual.

The latest stunt plays off Obama's call to regularly check tire pressure and get frequent tune-ups. This, of course, seems like common sense but the GOP acts as if Obama is suggesting one use a garden hose to douse a forest fire. Luckily, some in the media have stepped up to suggest that Obama's 'energy plan' can actually do more to offset gas prices than offshore drilling will. This isn't earth-shattering news, but it's important to point out how the little things can often do much more than grand, Big Oil projects.

I truly hope the GOP keeps up these antics. The more they act, the wiser the 'youth' movement behind Obama appears.

Edit: Daily Kos has a nice write up about this.

Life Update

2008-08-04T11:05:00.004-04:00

On Friday I finally finished my summer class. I was lucky enough to get to take Literary Theory during a summer session so I could focus all my academic attention to what will probably end up being my favorite grad class. With the completion of this course, I'm merely twelve hours short of the required class load for a master's degree (which is the inspiration for the picture. I'll have one of these someday). Three of those twelve, however, are my master's thesis which is looming in the distance and causing me a considerable amount of anxiety.

I am not necessarily anxious because it's a massive paper or that I don't think I'll be able to do it, but there's this nagging sense of dread. For the first time in my graduate career, I'm allowed to do exactly what I want to do and that is frightening. It's okay to do only pretty good in courses like "19th C. Gender, Sex, and Empire" because that is not where my eventual focus will lie. It's not okay to have a mediocre thesis when the topic is completely up to me.

I think I'll be okay. I have a full book shelf of DeLillo's work and corresponding criticism to pour through and I'm excited that I have a few weeks before the Fall semester begins to get some more work done.

We had our first anniversary two weeks ago. After getting back from a lovely week in Searcy, we hopped on a Bolt Bus bound for the Big Apple (ooo, alliteration!). Since we moved to the northeast we've been to New York a few times and have yet to see a show. This time we were fortunate enough to see Spring Awakening and it was much better than I had anticipated. I've been loving the music since the recording was available and I couldn't imagine the book being better than the music, but the show was simply fantastic.

While in the city, we got to see Jordan--which is always lovely--and we tried to not look too touristy while we walked about. It was a wonderful trip with my wonderful wife.

Also, we've moved from Media, PA to Pottstown, PA and you should visit us. We're definitely on the fringes of Pennsyltucky but the apartment is fairly amazing and it's very close to Coventry, my wife's new employer. We're completely finished unpacking and have to hang a few more pictures in the bedroom then we're completely finished.

It's been a long last couple of weeks, but life is wonderful.

What have you been doing lately?

Blowing the dog whistle

2008-08-02T09:51:00.005-04:00

In a recently published article in The Guardian, Melissa McEwan talks about McCain's strategy of dog whistling. The rhetorical technique involves dropping phrases that may seem strange to most people, but have significant meaning to a portion of the population. Bush used the phrase "wonder-working power" to invoke visions of God's miracles and Huckabee couldn't seem to stop with the veiled religious messages. Perhaps I've been oblivious to these tactics before, but McEwan's article calls to light the covert racism in the juxtaposition of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears with Obama in a recent McCain ad that the senior Senator from Arizona claims to be proud of.

Instead of picking vapid, relatively talentless male celebrities, the McCain team chose two females of fame who are associated with airheadedness and promiscuity. To most, that doesn't mean too much. To a select few, however, it calls to mind the black-man-as-hyper-sexual-deviant trope of so many Imperial art.

For a good portion of history (and many would argue that it currently happens) black men were 'othered' and views as sex crazed animals. Novels by Sam Selvon (namely The Lonely Londoners) have worked to bring this false stereotype to light and debunk the myth. Also, photographs by Robert Mapplethorpe (I would advise you to not research his work while you are at work) does a fantastic job of pointing to the overt hyper-sexualization and fetishization of the black man. Despite all the work to rid our society of this insidious racism, McCain sees fit to try to scare white voters away from Obama because he's just a scary, over-sexualized black man.

Shame on you, John McCain.

Arbitrary List to Determine Your Literacy!

2008-07-31T10:21:00.006-04:00

According to someone, the average American has read only 6 of the books listed below. If you are so inclined, copy the list, bold the ones you've read and italicize that ones you're currently reading or plan to in the future.

Personally, I feel the list is too Austen-heavy and lacks much modern/contemporary literature. I could go into a discussion of the canon, but that's for another day.

I've read only 16. There's a lot of work to be done.

h/t: And another thing...

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien

3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling

5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

6 The Bible

7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien

17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger

20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen

36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown (NEVER!)
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving

45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery

47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy

48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood

49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding

50 Atonement - Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel

52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens

58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon

60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck

62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov

63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce

76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker

84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro

85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White

88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom

89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton

91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery

93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams

95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole

96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute

97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas

98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl

100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

Terry Eagleton on Education

2008-07-31T07:03:00.001-04:00

"There is always a risk that education may put you at odds with the tasteless, clueless philistines who run the world and whose lexicon stretches only to words like oil, golf, power and cheeseburger."
-Terry Eagleton

Seriously?

2008-07-23T00:04:00.003-04:00

McCain Team -

It's pretty obvious that the media has a bizarre fascination with Barack Obama. Some may even say it's a love affair. We want you to be the judge. We've compiled two videos of the more outrageous moments of this not so secret love affair. Follow this link to watch the two videos and vote on which one you think is better. Your vote will determine which video we put on the air.

The media is in love with Barack Obama. If it wasn't so serious, it would be funny.

Regards,

The McCain Campaign

Seriously, John McCain? Seriously.

Frantz Fanon on Selfhood

2008-07-10T13:30:00.003-04:00

In the world through which I travel, I am endlessly creating myself.

-Frantz Fanon in Black Skin, White Masks

Ára bátur

2008-07-10T10:13:00.005-04:00

I know that yesterday I said I wouldn't elaborate about how amazing Sigur Rós' new album is, but I just can't resist. I should be sitting here preparing a presentation on Stuart Hall, but I cannot stop listening to the song "Ára bátur" (which, apparently, means 'row boat) from the newest album by the Icelandic troubadours. The only way to describe the song that is even remotely fitting is triumphant. Not in the "Magic Power" kind of way but in a way that makes me feel as if I've won something just by having purchased the album. I am always a little bit fearful when a favorite band releases an album but there is absolutely no disappointment from this latest release.

If you will only indulge me, please listen to this song. Like Sam says, "It'll change your life, I swear."

Mates of State

2008-07-09T09:21:00.003-04:00

So who needs to keep a blog schedule, right? Today I'm supposed to talk about something political; but I'd rather talk about something music related. Music is a lot more fun than politics most of the time anyway. What have I been listening to recently? The last week or so has been devoted to the new album called Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust by Sigur Rós (there's a lovely pronunciation of the album name on Wikipedia and the translation is 'with a buzz in our ears we play endlessly). I would go further in explaining the awesomeness of this album if I thought it was necessary, but everyone knows how fantastic these Icelandic post-rockers are so I'll just leave it at that.

What I really want to talk about is the band Mates of State. Their newest album, Re-Arrange Us, is my first experience with the band even though it is their fifth release. The band is made of of a husband-wife (Jason Hammel and Kori Gardner) team who make great music. Their sound is fairly simple yet sonically powerful at the same time. I know that is probably not a very convincing statement but it's the best I can do with it. From what I can understand, Jason provides most of the rhythm and Kori is most frequently on the keyboards, she also handles most of the vocals on this particular album. There are significantly intricate drum rhythms that hold up the drive of the songs and this spine keeps the keyboard from feeling naked without a guitar alongside--something that bands like Keane fail to do. Mates of State, however, does use the guitar occasionally but it is certainly not a feature of their sound.

The best feature of the band has to be their fantastic vocals combined with the insightful lyrics. Neither of their voices are what I could consider great, but they work so well with the sounds that accompany them. I am convinced that marriage brings a certain closeness that can be felt when two people sing together and that is certainly the case for Jason and Kori. There exists a tightness in their harmonies that is nearly unexplainable. Jason often pushes toward the top of his range but it is complemented by the subtle energy of Kori's jangly voice. At the top of their voices they occasionally push beyond what seems comfortable and it sounds almost ethereal rather than forced.

Overall, it's a wonderful album and I'm rather excited to get deeper into their catalogue.

Also, they look so cool.

American Colonialism

2008-07-03T09:09:00.003-04:00

Listening to NPR this morning (really, it was new from NPR on WXPN--the best radio station ever, I digress) and they aired a brief spot on negotiations regarding American troops remaining in Iraq. The basis of the piece was that a UN mandate is allowing American forces to remain in Iraq until 2009; but after that date Iraq has to agree to be occupied. I realize the use of the word 'occupied' is perhaps too severe, but it's what I'm going with. Negotiations are underway and may not be swinging the way our administration wants it to. The news person quoted an Iraqi official as saying, "We do not want to become colonized."

His use of the word 'colonized' is, by no means, too severe. I do not think that we, as Americans, can think of ourselves as colonizers in the same way that we view the British and French sprawls of the 19th and 20th centuries--but I, and others like Niall Ferguson, believe that we are quickly headed that way. Unlike me, Ferguson believes it is America's duty to take up the flag of imperialism and usher forth a new golden age. Though I am sure he is brilliant, I think Ferguson thinks a bit too highly of the British empire and cannot see past the good parts to the negative underbelly of Victoria's land grab.

While I'm not an isolationist, I do not want to live in the nexus of an empire.

Patrocinio Schweickart on literature.

2008-07-01T21:59:00.002-04:00

Literature acts on the world by acting on its readers.
-Patrocinio Schweickart

Culturally Sanctioned Shaman

2008-07-01T10:58:00.010-04:00

"Literature professors are salaried, middle-class shamans."
-Stephen Greenblatt

In the introduction to his book, Shakespearean Negotiations: The Circulation of Social Energy in Renaissance England, Greenblatt discusses the notion that the primary purpose of a literature professor is to communicate with the dead. (He, being one of the foremost Shakespeare scholars of our time, discounts those that focus on still living authors; but I won't quibble with his assumptions at this time.)

Not only, Greenblatt argues, must the professor commune with the dead authors but he or she must also find meaning from the author's societal culture. It is not surprising that Greenblatt would place great emphasis on the impact of culture--he is, after all, the man who coined the phrase 'New Historicism.' Though explorations of cultural influence and social energy is fascinating, I was struck by the thought of being a culturally sanctioned shaman.

I, for the time being, want to devote my scholarship to contemporary American literature. The bulk of the authors I will encounter are still alive or have been living during my life but I will still be working to converse with people whose audible voice I may never have the chance to hear. At the same time, even if I could sit and interview the great authors of our age, they are not the same people they were when they penned their works. As Foucault argues, the author is not even the same person as the person who owns the physical body that produced the text, he or she is, in fact, a social construction.

That being said, there is always a great distance between the author and his or text--indeed, between the author and his/her self. Here's the fun part: the professor/scholar/reader gets to play in that gap between author and text. Along with the aforementioned gap, there, too, is a gap between the culture that influenced the author and therefore the creation of the text and the culture in which that text is consumed--that is more room for play.

In the last few months, I have been working to develop exactly why I want to be the scholar that I am striving to be. I've always enjoyed doing literary scholarship and have considered the concept of getting paid to do what I thoroughly enjoy enough to justify my choice of profession; but that has recently not been satisfying.

In an answer to my quest, I've rediscovered the importance of literature. Literature--yes--can be aesthetically pleasing all on its own. Without the aid of a professor or literary scholar, one can enjoy a work of literature purely through its aesthetic merit. I am quite content that texts are enjoyed for this reason, but they can be so much more: that is where my passion comes in.

Through effort with guidance, the reader can not only get better at interpreting a written text but better at interpreting the world around him or her as a text. This ability to produce thinkers is the vital element of literature and it is, ultimately, the final goal of education--not just English classes. When thinking about being a professor/teacher/crazy guy on the street corner yelling about the great American novel, I've long considered it enough to share with students my passion and joy that is found in literature but I am slowly realizing that if I do only that, I will have failed as an educator. Literature can do more than just be fun or relaxing and my goal is help others see this.

As Paulo Freire says, we must teach our students to read the word and the world.

Pork Invaders!

2008-06-21T16:05:00.004-04:00

John McCain has unrolled a new feature on his website: Pork Invaders!

Hearkening back to the early days of video games (and John McCain's middle-age years), this game allows the players to assume to role of 'maverick' and shoot down dastardly pork barrel spending projects designed to fund roads and schools and other intergalactic war worthy tragedies.

John McCain, unrelenting in his efforts to stay on top of his technological game.

"Out, Out-"

2008-06-18T14:01:00.003-04:00

To start, let's read the poem. But don't let's read it silently--it should be read aloud for the full experience (I wrote that, primarily, so I could use the phrase 'don't let's').

Out, Out-
Robert Frost

The buzz-saw snarled and rattled in the yard
And made dust and dropped stove-length sticks of wood,
Sweet-scented stuff when the breeze drew across it.
And from there those that lifted eyes could count
Five mountain ranges one behind the other
Under the sunset far into Vermont.
And the saw snarled and rattled, snarled and rattled,
As it ran light, or had to bear a load.
And nothing happened: day was all but done.
Call it a day, I wish they might have said
To please the boy by giving him the half hour
That a boy counts so much when saved from work.
His sister stood beside them in her apron
To tell them "Supper." At the word, the saw,
As if to prove saws knew what supper meant,
Leaped out at the boy's hand, or seemed to leap--
He must have given the hand. However it was,
Neither refused the meeting. But the hand!
The boy's first outcry was a rueful laugh,
As he swung toward them holding up the hand
Half in appeal, but half as if to keep
The life from spilling. Then the boy saw all--
Since he was old enough to know, big boy
Doing a man's work, though a child at heart--
He saw all spoiled. "Don't let him cut my hand off--
The doctor, when he comes. Don't let him, sister!"
So. But the hand was gone already.
The doctor put him in the dark of ether.
He lay and puffed his lips out with his breath.
And then--the watcher at his pulse took fright.
No one believed. They listened at his heart.
Little--less--nothing!--and that ended it.
No more to build on there. And they, since they
Were not the one dead, turned to their affairs.

Admittedly, I don't much care for poetry. I probably don't much care for it because I find it difficult--both to read and to write. Despite my general apathy toward poetry, I have always loved most poems by Robert Frost. I feel tragically cliché for so liking Frost, but I can't lie.

I hadn't encountered this poem until it was read to me by my lit. theory professor this summer semester. He, being fairly open with his emotions, nearly wept while reading this short, sparkling example of blank verse and I was certainly affected as well. We used this poem in a deconstructive exercise and the poem is very open to various theoretical interpretations but I have trouble getting into theory because the story of the poem is so tragic. Life lost, youth wasted, familial exploitation, death. I don't know what more to say so I'll just mention another Frost poem I love: "Home Burial."

A Few of My Favorite Things

2008-06-04T22:54:00.003-04:00

So a few weeks ago I signed up for the John McCain e-mail list. I figured it would be a nice way to inform myself on his policies and such. It has proven a wise decision. Today, I got an e-mail linking to this newly launched section of McCain's website: The Decision Center

I'm not a fan of campaigning against a candidate, but I must admit that the various McBush sites are rather amusing.

Libra

2008-06-02T10:28:00.003-04:00

I fear that many of my literature-based posts in the future may deal with Don DeLillo. I've all but committed myself to focusing on him for my master's thesis so I'm working to read as many of his works as possible over the summer. I recently finished the novel Libra and then briefly started Players. Deciding that I need a brief break from DeLillo, I began Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon. Yes, yes--I'm very PoMo-ey this summer and I'm loving it.

In great news, too, my first choice professor to direct my thesis tentatively said yes. He has published a few books on postmodernism and has unique views of postmodernism--specifically his notion of the romantic metaphysics of DeLillo's fiction. I'm very much looking forward to working on this project for about a year--wish me luck.

On to the novel:

Libra (published in 1988) is DeLillo's quasi-historical account of the JFK assassination. He focuses on the mindset of Lee Harvey Oswald and the years leading up to the national tragedy. Both the forward and afterward, by the author, go through great pains to state that the novel is purely fictional with a tinge of historical fact. My favorite portion of the work is DeLillo's exploitation of the ambiguity of nomenclature.

There's not much more to say about the novel other than it is aesthetically wonderful. It's not as if there is a secret ending to the story; I suppose that's the problem one runs into when writing semi-historical fiction. If Philippa Gregory can be considered successful (I suggest that you never pay money to see The Other Boleyn Girl, it's awful) then DeLillo should certainly be considered masterful.

We Are Scientists

2008-05-22T16:16:00.003-04:00

Since this is Thursday and I'm trying to slowly get back into a groove of regular writing, I'm supposed to write about something music related. I don't have much to say about them, but I'm really enjoying the band We Are Scientists as of late. I heard their song, "Let's See It," on WXPN and it was immediate wonder. Give them a listen, let's hope you'll like it.

On to bigger and better news.

Many months ago I decided that on my three week break from classes that I would catalogue and organize our library. I did a minimal amount of research and discovered Library Thing. Along the right side of the blog is a random list of the books in my library. I also picked up a bar code scanner that made putting books into my online library easy-as-pie. There are many different ways it allows you to organize your books. As a true nerd, I've put mine in Dewey decimal order. Last night I took all my books off their shelves and organized them--it's glorious. I encourage you to organize your library. For me, it's been nice to discover some books I had forgotten and to see what books the wife brought to our library. It's good to share.

The Buddha of Suburbia

2008-05-19T11:34:00.004-04:00

It is curious to me that I will often begin reading a novel mostly for pleasure and discover that it perfectly fits into something I need for a paper. That is exactly what happened with the novel The Buddha of Suburbia (henceforth TBS) by Hanif Kureishi. The professor for my Post-Colonial Lit. class assigned the short story "My Son the Fanatic" and the movie My Beautiful Laundrette (both written by Kureishi) for class discussion and I ended up writing the primary paper for the class on works by Kureishi (namely TBS, The Black Album, and Intimacy) so it isn't fair to imply that the reading of TBS was my own idea; but I hadn't intended to write my paper on him at that point.

I suppose I should start with some biographical information about Kureishi. He was born in England to a Pakistani father and an English mother. His parentage is, in my opinion, the driving force of his characterization. Many of his primary characters have similar parentage and suffer through some form of identity conflict. The main focus of my paper was a juxtaposition of Kureishi's work with Salman Rushdie's notion of an imaginary homeland for first generation British emigrants. Kureishi, as a second generation British man, does not experience the same conflicts as Rushdie, as a first generation emigrant author. The three works by Kureishi I covered can be seen as a series of a bildungsroman story of his own life through his chosen characters. It's difficult to analyze Kureshi because one cannot determine what, in the lives of his characters, belongs to the author's life and what is imaginary.

Anyway, I've been a lit. nerd for long enough, so let's move on to TBS.

The novel was Kureishi's literary break-out and was first published in 1990 (My Beautiful Laundrette was released in 1985) and it brought Kureishi into the international spot-light. The novel's main character is Karim, a young man (16, I believe) living in the London suburbs who has the same parentage as Kureishi. He struggles to find his own place in the suburbs so he decides to move to urban London to try his hand in the theatre. He finds success, but must compromise some of his better judgment along the way. It is an interesting story and an even more fascinating insight into the struggles of a young British-born South Asian man finding his place in a post-colonial world.

ps- The accompanying picture is a shot of Kureishi's home office and library. I'm quite jealous.

Outlook

2008-05-09T13:54:00.003-04:00

It was recently brought to my attention that I only consume political news from left-leaning sources. While that is pretty much fine with me since I'm fairly left leaning as far as most political issues are concerned, but it doesn't make me a properly informed individual.

Most of my news consumption happens at work, online. If there are any quality, right-leaning political websites out there, I would appreciate you letting me know where to look. This isn't an effort to learn more about the other side to better be able to attack them, but I think it's only fair that I look at issues objectively and base my views on a broad spectrum of information.

Thanks, in advance, for the ideas.

The End May Be In Sight

2008-05-07T09:21:00.006-04:00

So last night, I got to stay up really late to finish my final paper of my first year of grad school. I ended up going to bed at 4.30 and waking up at 5.45. I don't normally rise that early, but my car is in the shop so Jenna had to take me to work this morning and while I don't start until 9, she started at 7 this morning. That meant that I got to meander about West Chester University and borough for a few hours. I was able to edit my freshly written paper and watch some political coverage on CNN from the dining area of Burger King. They had a brief back-and-forth between the campaign managers of Clinton and Obama.

In case you were wondering, there's really no chance Clinton can win the nomination, but don't tell her or Howard Wolfson. He went on for several minutes about how she can successfully win the nomination. If they have a strong showing in the rest of the remaining primaries, and they can convince most of the remaining superdelegates that she is more electable based on a carefully chosen set of polls and criteria, and if you seat M*ch*gan and Florida, then she's got a chance. To me, an Obama supporter, it sound just a bit beyond ridiculous. David Axelrod was then given a chance to explain why Obama will win and he, more or less, said, "Because of everything Howard just said. That can't all happen at once." Of course, he was a bit more measured than that but I think I've captured the sentiment.

Anyway, the Clinton campaign reminds me of a basketball team that's down by 20 with 15 seconds remaining, yet they continue to foul. But in this case, they also are working to convince the referees that their shots made during the warm-up should count, too.

Do we now get to focus on McCain?

Speaking of McCain, Arianna Huffington wrote a fairly scathing article the other day. If you haven't read it I would suggest that you do so.

My Morning Jaunt

2008-04-24T12:41:00.004-04:00

Because I drive the road daily I know that the speed limit is a strict 25 mph and that police officers haunt the bottom of the hill. It's one of those tricky places: downhill, blind curve, tall bushes. Approaching the apex of the curve I ease onto the brake pedal and am startled by a sharp horn blast from the truck nestled snugly mere feet from my bumper. I do not, however, speed up as the driver wishes. Instead I maintain a constant 29 miles per hour. Reaching a boiling point, the driver of the truck hastily transfers his truck into the left-side turn-only lane and attempts to pass me. This, unfortunately, does not sit well with me. Rather than maintaining my complete calm and rate of speed, I hurriedly lay down the hammer. Also unfortunately, I drive a 4-cylinder Kia. The angry truck easily passed me and sped away into the distance.

When what to my wondering eyes should appear but the lights of vengeance flashing in my rear-view mirror. The officer of the law sped past my paltry Kia in pursuit of the traffic offender.

Passing the truck now stopped on the shoulder in front of the flashing lights, only one word comes to my lips:

Schadenfreude.

Final Fitness Revolution Update

2008-04-15T11:00:00.002-04:00

So I have definitely slacked in the last several weeks. I haven't been writing here, I haven't been working out, and I haven't been eating too well. It's a lot easier to eat well if you're a vegan. It may not taste as good, but it's better for the insides. School has been a beast and it won't stop for at least three weeks. But after that? sweet bliss. I'll have a few weeks off (from school, not work) before my summer class starts.

I've talked to my wonderful wife about my disappointing fitness results and she's not nearly as disappointed as I am in me. She's been very encouraging and mentioned that planning the end of the revolution--the home stretch--to coincide with the home stretch of my semester might not have been the wisest decision. Anyway, I'm blaming my slacker ways on school and I'm happy with that. But fear not! This is not the end of the fitness revolution. I plan to continue the exercise and before too long I will reach my goal of 215 lbs. This morning I weighed in at 227 lbs. It's a few pound gain from my lowest, but it's a total loss of 12 pounds during the revolution. I feel better and a bit fitter and that motivates me to keep it up.

Thanks for caring and thanks for being my friend!

Barack Obama

2008-04-02T13:56:00.003-04:00

I figured since the PA primary is less that three weeks away, I'll only write about Obama until then. While that's probably not true, I want to share with you big news about him. Why this hasn't been made a bigger deal, I don't know. Barack Obama is--brace yourself--left-handed. To you I submit this picture of him bowling.

It is curious that there have been seven left-handed presidents and five of the last six presidents have been left-handed. Fortunately, George W. isn't left handed. His father is and so was Reagan--that should excite even more Obamacans.

I'd rather not discuss the score of his game of bowling; but I will offer, in his defense, the fact that most bowling alley balls (I cannot imagine that, on the campaign trail, he carries his own around. Nor can I entertain the notion that he owns one because anyone that owns his own ball yet can't break 40 should probably put the ball on eBay) are calibrated for right-handed bowlers, thus the spin is difficult to regulate. Also, I imagine he could do a bit better if he would just kick that left leg just a smidge further back. At least it couldn't hurt.

Barack Obama at WCUPA

2008-04-02T09:56:00.002-04:00

Today, Barack Obama and Chris Matthews will appear in the Sikes Student Union Theater of the West Chester University of Pennsylvania. Apparently, there's some sort of primary coming up in PA? Anyway, some of my peers lined up at 830 on Monday in preparation for the 1200 box-office opening. I, unfortunately, had to work so I didn't get a ticket (they were free with a WCUPA ID-card). I wish it weren't a taping of Hardball, but Obama hanging out at my university is a pretty cool deal. I figure that I'll try to hang around downtown a bit this afternoon in hopes of seeing the Senator and future President. GOBAMA!

Joyeux Poisson d'Avril!

2008-04-01T02:46:00.001-04:00

Being Stupid Isn't a Crime

2008-03-28T11:58:00.003-04:00

"We have no intention of prosecuting Rush Limbaugh because lying through your teeth and being stupid isn't a crime," said Leo Jennings, a spokesman for Democratic Attorney General Marc Dann.

People say funny things sometimes.

Dum Da Dum Dum

2008-03-27T15:39:00.003-04:00

So I haven't listened to anything except Iron & Wine in the last week, so there's no music news to report. I did lock myself out of my car yesterday with it running. At 1730 it's hard to find an available locksmith. So the car ran for over an hour before anyone could come and rescue me. No matter, I got back in and made it safely to school; then I got to go home.

In other news, Hanners is awesome.

DAILY KOS--John McCain: The Maverick Thief

2008-03-27T08:08:00.003-04:00

John McCain is breaking the law.

When McCain’s presidential campaign was in trouble, he opted-in to public financing through the primary, limiting him to a $54 million spending cap. But laws aren’t for “mavericks”… McCain’s latest spending report, filed by his own campaign, shows he has spent in excess of $58 million so far — a public admission by his own hand that he has broken the law. We filed a formal complaint to Federal Election Commission yesterday, and we want you to sign-on for a second delivery of signatures later this week.

View the signers and add your name to the list.

Wednesday Political Musings

2008-03-26T12:13:00.003-04:00

There's really nothing much to say. No one much likes China because it's polluted and they're mean. No one like Hillary because she tells lies and no one likes Barack because his preacher says some things that make people mad. Everyone seems to like Alan Greenspan even though he is being blamed for leading us into this mortgage fiasco and I saw a bumper sticker yesterday that said, "When Bush took office gas was $1.46." I really want people in Pennsylvania to vote for Obama on April 22nd but I don't know how many people will listen to me. Jenna and I are officially registered to vote in PA though we feared that Jenna's was somehow lost. Some of the people I work with think he's a secret terrorist. I sometimes think people are ignorant; but that's no excuse for racism, or sexism, or most other -isms. Love. Love. Love.

If you have anything to say please do so.

Fitness Revolution Update #11

2008-03-25T09:44:00.002-04:00

The scale read 224 this morning. It is still declining, so that's good; but not quickly enough. Now I know it's not going as quickly as I would like because I haven't been working out, so I won't complain too much. I was sick all last week and when one is sick, he doesn't feel like working out, right? Unfortunately, Lent is over so I'm back to being able to eat anything, so a healthier diet will now be a bit more difficult. Let me tell you, a cheesesteak for lunch yesterday did not sit too well with the stomach. I need to ease into this food business.

The Shepherd's Dog by Iron & Wine

2008-03-20T11:43:00.005-04:00

So I've never been just a giant fan of Iron & Wine. I, like everyone else, loved his cover of "Such Great Heights" on the Garden State soundtrack (and apparently released as a b-side to The Postal Service's single of "Such Great Heights") but that's been the extent of my devotion; listening to the album The Shepherd's Dog, however, has changed my mind. It is just so close to perfect that I have had trouble wrapping my mind around it.

I'll only focus on one track: #9 "Boy With a Coin." I know the album was released in 2007, but I didn't listen to it until 2008 so I'm putting this song up as a nominee for the best use of subtle handclaps as a rhythm section of 2008. Sam Beam (the man behind the nom de voix) uses his voice to perfection on this song and it sounds as if the vocals are mixed at the same level as the accompaniment affording an otherwise unexplainable honesty to the song.

I doubt it's happenstance that during most of my time spent listening to the album, I've been reading Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman. There's a certain ephemeral quality to Beam's lyrics that are likely influenced by the poems of the American Bard. Also, Beam has a pretty righteous beard.

Barack Obama

2008-03-19T13:18:00.002-04:00

Since Wednesday is supposed to be something about politics, I've decided to be like every other blog writer in the blogosphere and open up the floor to Obama's speech yesterday in Philadelphia about race and his pastor. Here's a link if you haven't already heard it. It's a very good speech, like most of Obama's and I admire his honesty and willingness to come at a particularly dicey issue, rather than skirt around it. Let me know what you think about it.

O, and Obama went to work out in a Philadelphia gym yesterday. If only I lived in Center City and worked out in the mornings.

Day-Late Fitness Revolution Update #10

2008-03-19T13:11:00.002-04:00

Sorry this is a day late. I had a terrible stomach disease yesterday so it was taxing enough to move from bed to the couch. I did, however, weigh myself yesterday. At my lightest, I was 222 lbs, but that shouldn't count because I couldn't eat all day and other gross things. So after a meal of rice and apples (I'm on the BRAT [bananas, rice, apples, toast] diet until I'm fully better) last night, I weighed in at 225 this morning. I'm making progress, but without a significant change in habits I don't know that I'll make it to 215 by April 15th. I haven't gotten to exercise this week because of classes and sickness. We're driving to Ohio on Thursday night, so I doubt I'll get to exercise at all, we'll see how this goes. Have a lovely day!

The Story of an African Farm

2008-03-17T12:09:00.003-04:00

It's probably a cop-out, but today I am writing about a novel that I was made to read for class. I would rather write about books that I have read for pleasure, or have at least chosen myself, but graduate school gets in the way of pleasure reading so this is what I am reduced to.

The novel The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner is not a book that I much looked forward to. It was assigned for my 19th Century Victorian Empire, Sex, and Gender course and I have never been a huge fan of Victorian literature. I have been pleasantly surprised by how much I have enjoyed many of the texts we have read and was not disappointed by Schreiner. The novel takes place on a 'kopje' is South Africa on the farm of a Boer-woman and follows the lives of those living on the farm. The primary characters are Waldo, Em, and Lyndall. Curiously, Schreiner was heavily influenced by Emerson so she published the novel under the nom de plume Ralph Irons and has characters in the book named Waldo and Em--I would argue that she is, perhaps, a bit obsessed.

Though many scholars view this novel as a bastion of feminist ideals, I read the primary character to be Waldo, the son of a German farm-hand, not the niece of Tant' Sannie, the farm owner. Rather than focusing on feminism and the female struggle for power, Schreiner dwells on the universal human struggle for intellectual place. Her primary characters struggle with a belief in God that does not seem plausible and eventually find an element of the divine in nature, not in the God of their ancestors. The novel is not wholly atheistic as much as it is agnostic. Schreiner, after the death of her sister at a young age, put her faith in nature and the tangible and that faith shows itself in her novel.

No Country for Old Men

2008-03-15T09:59:00.003-04:00

I know I know, this post is both a day late (movies are scheduled for Friday) and several months late (the movie is already available for rental); but here it is nonetheless. Jenna and I have only seen two movies in the theater since we've lived in Pennsylvania--one great (Le Scaphandre et le papillon), one awful (The Other Boleyn Girl)--so we didn't see No Country for Old Men in the theater. I really had intended to read the novel before seeing the movie; but academic reading overwhelmed me even before I could finish Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy. No Country, along with The Border Trilogy are on my summer/free time reading list. Anyway, on the film.

I approached the film very much wanting to enjoy it, and I was not disappointed. I would expect to be impressed with the combination of McCarthy and the Coen brothers and they certainly didn't let me down. Javier Bardem (who looks ridiculously like Jeffrey Dean Morgan aka Denny Duquette) certainly deserved his award for Best Supporting Actor, Tommy Lee Jones was better than I ever expected him to be, and the actors, all together, were excellent.

The cinematography and directing (as expected) were excellent. Having not read the novel, I cannot attest to the validity of the adaptation award, but the flow of the plot-line ran very well and seems in line with the style that McCarthy imposes upon his novels (in my opinion, gleaned from reading half of one novel).

Over all, I had very high expectations for the novel and I wasn't disappointed.

Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

2008-03-13T12:39:00.005-04:00

The last few days, I've not been able to stop listening to Spoon. Just yesterday I was able to stop playing Gimmie Fiction, only to move right on to Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Spoon are (I'm working on sounding British in my music reviews, British=Pretentious in American) coming to Philadelphia on April 25th; but I haven't yet gotten tickets.

Anyway, my favorite tracks from Gimmie Fiction are "The Beast and Dragon, Adored," "I Turn My Camera On," and "My Mathematical Mind." And from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga I adore "Don't You Evah" and "Rhythm and Soul." Given the chance, I would make an entire, hour-long cycling class mix made entirely of songs by Spoon. There is a consistent bass thump, various rhythms, and surprisingly catchy lyrics.

All this having been said, in the words of my good friend Jordan, Spoon is "the lick of my spoon."

Thoughts Recollected in Moments of Tranquility from NPR

2008-03-12T11:21:00.004-04:00

State Rep. Russell Pearce of Mesa, AZ, quoted on NPR this morning, said, "America was founded as a nation of laws." Pearce is a champion of strict laws, primarily immigration laws. The last few days, NPR's Morning Edition has featured different influential people regarding the immigration issue in Arizona. I am, personally, an advocate of of fairly open borders; but because I have had little experience in areas that are immediately affected by immigration (like Arizona, Texas, and Southern California) I don't know that I have much room to speak on the issue.

Until that quote by State Rep. Pearce, I hadn't heard anything that was too against what I think, even from those that are staunchly anti-immigrants. The notion that the U.S. was founded as a nation of laws and rules runs directly against what I believe my country stands for. I believe that the U.S.A. is a nation of freedom--not laws. I do not have a great knowledge of American Constitutional history, so if I am misrepresenting our history, then please correct me.

In better news, Barack Obama won Mississippi handily and won more delegates from Texas. If only Ohio had come through for me.

Drugs in the Water, Fire in the Sky

2008-03-11T15:06:00.003-04:00

According to analysis, there exist traces of 56 different drugs in Philadelphia tap water. Apparently there's penicillin in there too. Since I'm allergic, I guess I can't be guzzling too much anymore.

I'd like to look at this not as a problem but, like Westley in The Princess Bride, I will view this as an opportunity to make myself unfazed by a various number of pharmaceuticals. Good plan, no?

All in all, the amounts are measured in parts per billion and even trillion, so I'm not too worried. As long as the water doesn't come from the sink in the basement of my workplace (it stinks of sulphur), I'll drink to my heart's content!

Fitness Revolution Update #9

2008-03-11T10:23:00.002-04:00

This morning, the scale read 227.5 lbs. It's a full pound loss from last week, but only a net loss of .5 lbs over two weeks. I probably sabotaged myself with a heaping plate of Buddha's Delight from New South Chinese last night, but it was so delightful--that or Mike & Ike's. Either way, I'm making progress, it's just not as fast as I would like. I have a little over a month to get down to 215. I still think I can do it; but it will take better discipline.

I went to a spinning class at the Y last night with a teacher I've not had before--Jen B. tried to kill us! Luckily, most of us survived. Tonight they're having an open volleyball court, so I think I'll stop down and see how bad I've gotten after having not played for a year. Wish me luck.

White Noise

2008-03-10T11:13:00.002-04:00

On most issues of literature, if Harold Bloom speaks I listen. You may or may not have noticed, but I took the title of this blog from Bloom's theory of poetry. While I don't agree with some of his theories (especially regarding the origin of the Old Testament), I had to pay attention when I discovered that Bloom listed (in his opinion) the four major American novelist of our time: Don DeLillo, Thomas Pynchon, Philip Roth, and Cormac McCarthy. Since my professional goal in life is to live and work as a scholar of modern/post-modern American literature, I have set on a mission to read the vast body of work these four novelists have produced. While I am not a strict worshipper of Bloom's notions, I believe that his favorites are good places to start--if only I could love Shakespeare like he does.

Anyway, on to the novel.

I recently finished White Noise by Don DeLillo and thoroughly enjoyed it. A few friends have told me that the novel is a great starting point into DeLillo's work, and I agree. It is a nice representation of his voice and late enough into his career that he has discovered his unique voice. Some complain that his earlier novels lack a certain element of finish; but such accusations cannot be waged against White Noise--if anything, the novel is polished.

The central character is J.A.K. Gladney, the dean of a Hitler Studies department and the originator of the field of study. Gladney has had many wives and his many wives have also had many husbands--a typical post modern family. While the concept of the characters can seem a bit campy, DeLillo toes the line of believable quite nicely and the novel never quite jumps the shark, much to my delight. The novel, essentially, tells the story of a typical family and their typical struggles with everyday life. I'll say no more, mostly because I want you to read it.

DeLillo has been accused of boiling down modern (as in present day, not the Modernist period)American life to daily boredom comprised of television, consumption, metro, boulout, dodo. White Noise certainly falls into this category, but I find no fault in the portrayal. He approaches common problems with honesty, humor, and wit that I haven't encountered before.

I will admit that I haven't read any academic criticism of DeLillo's work, but I'll be getting there as soon as school/life slows down. I'm still working out my own feelings about the novel and I want to give my mind a chance before Bloom and others take over.

The Last Kiss/l'ultimo bacio

2008-03-07T12:08:00.003-05:00

disclaimer: While I try not to spoil too much, it is difficult for me to ascertain what the essential plot elements are for others, so I may be giving them away. Also, in this discussion I am, in my mind, assuming that the primary version of the film is the American version, though it was made second as an adaptation of the Italian film.

After wanting to see it for several months, I finally was able to see "l'Ultimo Bacio" on Wednesday night. I saw the American version, "The Last Kiss" featuring Zach Braff, in theaters and have watched the DVD several times since its release. I didn't really anticipate liking the Italian original more, and I was right. I've not watched too many Italian films, save for "La Vita è bella" and a few different operas, but I was expecting this movie to be highly sexually charged. The American version was uncomfortable sexual tension at times, and with my impression of Italians as overtly sexual (they recently passed a law banning crotch grabbing in public), I expected even more tension. It's not that I was disappointed by the lack of graphic material (on the contrary, it was a pleasant surprise because it's always awkward) but I believe it lacked some of the essential elements (at least for me) that the American version so deftly added.

While not equally so, "The Last Kiss" is similar in tension to "Closer." I've never felt more awkward/amazed as I did after watching "Closer," and "The Last Kiss" maintains many of the same elements of tension, struggle, and pain. "l'Ultimo Bacio" lacks that tension, but it still tells a good story very well and the acting is good, though it's hard for me to judge non-English speaking actors because I'm just not familiar with the natural inflection.

The Italian film developed many of the side stories better, and while that provides a deeper picture of the periphery actors, I believe it takes away from the primary quintet of characters: man, woman, mom, dad, and girl. There is a significant difference in the endings and it sharply paints one of the characters in a different light. That's all I'm going to say about it, perhaps I've said too much already.

Happy Birthday Magic Realism

2008-03-06T15:23:00.006-05:00

Today is Gabriel García Márquez's birthday. According to most places I've checked, he was born in 1928 and is, therefore, eighty today; but according to wikipedia he was born in 1927 and is eighty-one today. I attempted to edit the wiki page, but when I went to the editing page there was a hidden note telling one not to change his birth date because he was actually born in 1927 and everyone else is wrong. Since I'm no Márquez expert and I haven't read a definitive biography, I have no idea which is right.

Either way, it's his birthday. So pick up a copy of One Hundred Years of Solitude, curl up in a soft place, and sing Happy Birthday, to our favorite Colombian novelist.

ps--I realize that Márquez is probably not the originator of magic realism, his work was my first foray into the genre so, to me, he is the touchstone of magic realism and all the beauty found therein.

edit- With minimal further reading, I discovered that Márquez's brand of magic realism was directly influenced by Kafka. It turns out that I read Kafka before Márquez and am a liar.

Linton Kwesi Johnson

2008-03-06T11:07:00.003-05:00

As an assigned listening (that's not common for non-music majors) for my 20th Century Post-Colonial Lit. course, I was exposed to the music/poetry of Linton Kwesi Johnson. LKJ is one of the best known British dub poets and released his first album, Dread Beat An' Blood, in 1978 and hasn't stopped writing and recording since. Born in Jamaica, LKJ immigrated to London early in his life and identifies as a British citizen.

Dub poetry is essentially poetic verses set to reggae music. Though I haven't heard more than a handful of dub poets, the music is completely wrapped up in the lyrics and the lyrics are semi-sung (think Rex Harrison, only deeper and with force).

My favorite LKJ poem is called "Sonny's Lettah (Anti-Sus Poem)". Every dub poem I have heard is politically charged, and for good reason. Sus, denounced in "Sonny's Lettah," is the practice of British police officers arresting people on the street for looking suspicious. It, not surprisingly, happened primarily to black, accented men. His political leanings are sharply anti-Thatcher and occasionally violent. He was an early member of British Black Panther Movement. He's recorded many anti-fascist songs and has compared the modern anti-terrorism movement to the strife of blacks for centuries.

Beyond the political message of dub poetry, the music is wonderful. The lyrics fold directly into the music and the thumping bass drives the song. I know these descriptions aren't too technical or descriptive, but it's what I like.

Wednesday Open Forum/Politicking

2008-03-05T11:06:00.002-05:00

Super Duper Tuesday Deux has come and gone--without much fan-fair, really. Sure, Clinton took 3 of 4 states available, but only took a few more delegates total and hasn't yet come close to closing the gap between she and Obama. I'm feeling a bit too lethargic to look up some hard and fast numbers, but Mark Elrod has a better analysis of the whole situation with the appropriate slant favoring Obama. Feel free to tell me what you think and discuss whatever your heart desires. Again, I'm pretending that people read this blog and are interested. Have a fantastic day.

Fitness Revolution Update #8

2008-03-04T11:20:00.003-05:00

So it wasn't a great week for my fitness revolution. Sure, I'm still not eating anything not-vegan or carbonated but I have discovered that most chips are vegan-friendly and since I've had a weird school/work schedule and little desire to make lunch/dinner for myself, between work and school I've been heading to Wawa for some apples and chips on most days. On top of that, I didn't go to the Y at all. I'm not doing a good job of revolutionizing my fitness. The scale this morning said 228.5 lbs. A half-pound gain. I need to do better, that's all there is to it.

Check me out, two posts in one day, mostly in the same hour! I figured I would start my schedule a day late (not a great start, I know). I figured that I'm either preponing my schedule for next Monday, or I'm just a day late. I'll go with the former. Have a fantastic day.

Daffodils by Ted Hughes

2008-03-04T10:25:00.003-05:00

Daffodils

Remember how we picked the daffodils?
Nobody else remembers, but I remember.
Your daughter came with her armfuls, eager and happy,
Helping the harvest. She has forgotten.
She cannot even remember you. And we sold them
It sounds like sacrilege, but we sold them.
Were we so poor? Old Stoneman, the grocer,
Boss-eyed, his blood-pressure purpling to beetroot
(It was his last chance,
He would die in the same great freeze as you),
He persuaded us. Every Spring
He always bought them, sevenpence a dozen,
'A custom of the house'.

Besides, we still weren't sure we wanted to own
Anything. Mainly we were hungry
To convert everything to profit.
Still nomads--still strangers
To our whole possession. The daffodils
Were incidental gilding of the deeds,
Treasure trove. They simply came,
And they kept on coming.
As if not from the sod but falling from heaven.
Our lives were still a raid on our own good luck.
We knew we'd live for ever. We had not learned
What a fleeting glance of the everlasting
Daffodils are. Never identified
The nuptial flight of the rarest ephemera -
Our own days!

We thought they were a windfall.
Never guessed they were a last blessing.
So we sold them. We worked at selling them
As if employed on somebody else's
Flower-farm. You bent at it
In the rain of that April - your last April,
We bent there together, among the soft shrieks
Of their jostled stems, the wet shocks shaken
Of their girlish dance-frocks -
Fresh-opened dragonflies, wet and flimsy,
Opened too early.

We piled their frailty lights on a carpenter's bench,
Distributed leaves among the dozens -
Buckling blade-leaves, limber, groping for air, zinc-silvered -
Propped their raw butts in bucket water,
Their oval, meaty butts,
And sold them, sevenpence a bunch -

Wind-wounds, spasms from the dark earth,
With their odourless metals,
A flamy purification of the deep grave's stony cold
As if ice had a breath -

We sold them, to wither.
The crop thickened faster than we could thin it.
Finally, we were overwhelmed
And we lost our wedding-present scissors.

Every March since they have lifted again
Out of the same bulbs, the same
Baby-cries from the thaw,
Ballerinas too early for music, shiverers
In the draughty wings of the year.
On that same groundswell of memory, fluttering
They return to forget you stooping there
Behind the rainy curtains of a dark April,
Snipping their stems.

But somewhere your scissors remember. Wherever they are.
Here somewhere, blades wide open,
April by April
Sinking deeper
Through the sod - an anchor, a cross of rust.

-Ted Hughes

(I typed this poem because the internet versions I discovered didn't have the spacing the book itself has, and the Hughes approved spacing is more visually pleasing to me.)

This poem has been my favorite for nearly a year now. Dr. Organ required it as part of our British Literature II class; but we never covered it in class. Instead, we discussed the less beautiful, more typical poetry by Hughes such as "The Owl" and "Pike". Hughes, throughout his career, was known for his jarring word and subject choices, along with a rather pessimistic view. Many feminists hate him, blaming him for the demise of his late wife Sylvia Plath; but many neglect his lovely collection called Birthday Letters published first in 1998, the year of his death. Many considered Hughes callused toward his wife's suicide because he rarely spoke of it, and seemingly never wrote of it--Birthday Letters showed a different side of the poet--a side affected by loss, a side showing vulnerable humanity. While in London last spring, my lovely then-fiancee-now-wife purchased this collection for me--what a wonderful Piper-Pal present.

I encountered "Daffodils" while reading along in the back house during the spring semester of my senior year of college. It was, and still is, the only poem that has brought tears to my eyes. The few lines, "Our lives were still a raid on our own good luck. /We knew we'd live for ever. We had not learned / What a fleeting glance of the everlasting / Daffodils are. Never identified / The nuptial flight of the rarest ephemera - / Our own days!" still gives me chills. I cannot fathom losing my wife, and even further from my understanding is the ability to present such powerful emotion in a succinct poem. As Wordsworth said (and Dr. Elliott quoted incessantly), poetry is "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feeling: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility," and Hughes has mastered such recollection and reflection--life supplied the overflow of powerful feeling.

It's a bit puerile of me to begin my literary blog exploration with a poem I love based on sheer emotional/aesthetic value; but that's what's happening. Most of my literary posts won't deal with poetry because it's a form with which I am not comfortable in my skills as an explicator; but I so love this poem that I had to include it--especially since we didn't get to discuss it in class so long ago. Thanks for indulging me in my literary exploration, I hope you're not too bored.

Blog Schedule?

2008-03-03T13:19:00.004-05:00

I would like to write here more often. If nothing else, it will help to work out a personal style of writing I've been struggling for years to find. Steven (linked on the right), at one time, kept a nice schedule of blog topics and I would weekly look forward to his topics relating to culture, music, and theatre. So what I'm going to do is lay out a schedule for myself and see how this goes.

Weekly Schedule:

Monday-talk about something I have recently read.

Tuesday-Fitness Revolution Update

Wednesday-Something political/open forum (Like I have more than three people who read this)

Thursday-Some music related thing that I like

Friday-Links or Movies

I know, I know . . . there is nothing specific about the posting schedule and, seeing that I'm scheduled to write five days a week, there's no way I'm going to faithfully keep to it, but I'll try.

Wish me luck as you wave my goodbye. Cheerio! Here I go, on my way!

Fitness Revolution Update #7

2008-02-26T09:47:00.004-05:00

It's hard to believe I've been going at this fitness program for eight weeks. As I sit here at work munching on mango chips (delicious!) from Carlino's Market of West Chester, PA, I am thinking upon what the scale read this morning: 228. That's a two pound loss from last week, I have lost a total of 11.5 pounds, and have thirteen to go. I certainly need to better dedicate myself to working out more frequently and eating a bit better (breakfast this morning was a piece of vegan cake I made on Saturday), but I am fairly pleased with my progress. Thank for your nice thoughts and comments.

Democratic Debate

2008-02-21T22:04:00.002-05:00

Did anyone else notice that Hillary kept using the subjunctive mood, while Barack most often employed the future tense? Methinks (mehopes) a concession lies before us.

Verb Agreement and Politics

2008-02-20T11:24:00.003-05:00

Cindy McCain asserted, "I have, and always will be, proud of my country," and repeated the sentiment later in Columbus, Ohio.

I am quick to admit that the grammatical gaff[e] isn't too terribly bad. Remembering that people stumping for candidates speak, for the most part, extemporaneously for hours each day, I can forgive the missing verb "been;" but it still bothers me a little.

Cindy, don't mess with Michelle unless you can do so with correct SAE.

ps-I hope this link is permanent.

This Settles It

2008-02-19T14:38:00.002-05:00

Ben & Jerry Endorse Obama.

That pretty much wraps it up for him, no?

Fitness Revolution Update #6

2008-02-19T12:08:00.003-05:00

So this morning, I weighed in at 230: a one pound loss from last week. That's really all. I guess I'll need to exercise more often and eat a little more consistently better. I'm not too discouraged by the slow loss--at least I'm not gaining.

Fitness Revolution Update #5

2008-02-12T09:07:00.001-05:00

This morning the scale read 231: a loss of two pounds leaving 16 pounds yet to lose. Honestly, I was expecting a greater loss because I have been on a significantly stricter diet (not in the sense of a eating program diet as much as watching what I eat type diet. Eating as a vegan and not having soft drinks tends to do that to you). I attribute the not-as-significant-as-I'd-hoped loss to minimal exercise. Instead of walking around West Chester daily at lunch I've been staying in, in an attempt to get some reading for class done. I'd like to say that will change, but there's much more to read this semester than last, and the classes are a little more scrunched together, time wise.

I will, however, not get disappointed because two pounds is still pretty awesome and I don't want to come across as whining or pouting, I just feel like I need to express my achievements and set backs equally. I will, instead of pouting, work to exercise more. I already went to the spinning class this morning, so that's a nice start. It's a great start to a day to sweat for an hour with twenty other semi-groggy people listening to a combination of synth-rock and Kid Rock. If all goes according to plan, I may go to the early morning yoga class at the Y tomorrow. Sometimes I just can't get enough keytar.

Sunday Afternoon Comedy Minute

2008-02-10T16:19:00.000-05:00

I must give the credit of this joke to Newman's Own Organic Raisins.

Q: What did the grape farmer whisper to his organic grapes each night?

A: Good night little ones. You're my raisin d'être.

Thanks and good night.

Batting a Thousand

2008-02-09T22:25:00.000-05:00

So Obama goes 3 for 3 on Semi-Super Saturday. Hooray!

Phew

2008-02-08T15:11:00.001-05:00

It looks like we got out of Arkansas just in time. I've always feared I would end up a leper.

edit- Apparently the story has been pulled because the physicians were mistaken about the cases of leprosy. At least that was the title of another article that was linked, but had been moved. I apologize for the misrepresentation of the wonderful Natural State.

edit take 2- according to the Arkansas Department of Health, only about 5% of the population in general can even contract leprosy. The contraction has to do with genetics. Even if you're genetically disposed to contraction, you have to be in contract with mucus and other body fluids.

Ignorance

2008-02-07T16:59:00.001-05:00

Today, for the first time during this campaign, I have serious fears that the general American populous is intelligent enough to elect Barack Obama. I am not, however, saying that a vote for Clinton or any of the Republicans; but I fear that Obama may not get enough votes because of ignorance and ridiculous, unfounded fears.

Talking to a few people today, I realized that some people cannot let go of their racial/religious fears. The two I was speaking with both convinced that Obama is a closeted radical Muslim who will destroy the American way of life from the inside. One went as far as to say, "I don't like to seem prejudice, but I just don't like Muslims." I am still a little angry and befuddled by that comment. There's just no getting through to some people.

Now, I don't mind if you don't want to vote for or support Obama based on his policies, voting history, level of experience, or the simple fact that you like someone else better; but if you're not giving him a chance because his name is funny and he may be "one of them terrorists," then I'm bound to be a little upset and, frankly, think a little less of you.

While most claim a fear of his religious background, I can't help but believe it's based on his race. If Yusuf Islam had the political background, rhetorical skills, and charisma of Obama, I doubt there would be as much ado about his religion. Of course, this probably isn't true because, at one time, the-artist-formerly-known-as-Cat Stevens wasn't allowed back into the U.S., despite his fame.

All this having been said, I wish people would broaden their minds and allow themselves to think, learn, and love. That last sentence is certainly trite and rife with over-sentimentality; but I don't care. Love Love Love.

Super-Duper/Tsunami/Shrove/Gras Tuesday Fitness Revolution Update #4

2008-02-05T09:05:00.000-05:00

Stepping on the scale this morning, before my hour-long spinning class at the Y, the number that came back at me between the toes was 233. That's a 3.5-pound loss from last week. I'm slowly making progress and with the new workout regimen I'm working myself into, I think things should go smoothly--at least I hope.

On to other things.

The last three years, I've given up escalating things for Lent: first pop, then pop and beef, then pop and all meat. I figured the logical step in the progression this year would be pop, all meat, and all animal by-products. That essentially means I'll be a vegan for 40 days, starting tomorrow. I'm not, nor have I ever been, Catholic; but I believe they have something very right in the whole Lent business. For me, it's similar to fasting (at which I'm horrible) but in a more manageable manner. It allows me a time to reflect on what I have been given while intentionally avoiding that which I would most like to have.

I say this, and I hope this is evident, not to sound righteous or pompous but in order to solicit some accountability and perhaps encouragement. And if you have a dynamite vegan cookie/any time of dessert recipe, I'd love to have it. Thanks and I love you.

ps-The last 15 minutes of the spinning class were devoted to "Free Bird." That was intense.

btw-- Yes, we can.