tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87698600047824449142024-03-12T18:45:36.216-07:00Secret Hug ProPop-culture obsession, progressive politics, and DIY dilettantism, from the Left Coast.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-67626489927253129832009-11-08T21:42:00.000-08:002009-11-08T22:36:39.730-08:00I Was A Volunteer Werewolf<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaA38dSuTT3LEdMFn2sCduEoRUAbFMG01LXeWnR_Z4j-1O1zS6kzju-tCLqyZB1SoP-xfUrgyt64tSU86a_L4y8UcAb8X-NLWgbSculX7pdY9RO-j2XVhC-TQ6PHqu4UoKWp-3OUcFEMM/s1600-h/werewolf.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaA38dSuTT3LEdMFn2sCduEoRUAbFMG01LXeWnR_Z4j-1O1zS6kzju-tCLqyZB1SoP-xfUrgyt64tSU86a_L4y8UcAb8X-NLWgbSculX7pdY9RO-j2XVhC-TQ6PHqu4UoKWp-3OUcFEMM/s200/werewolf.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401989075981817314" /></a><br />I recently spent a Saturday night crouching in the woods under a half-moon, wearing a werewolf mask and claws and a dark cloak. I was part of a three-person werewolf crew, enlisted to put the final scare on groups who braved the annual Bastyr University Haunted Trails fundraiser. Our station consisted of a muddy clearing at the end of the trail, where a tent with body parts and camping equipment strewn about were a testament to the recent slaughter of some unsuspecting fans of the great outdoors.<br /><br />One of life's great opportunities is to find yourself in a brand new situation, seemingly unsuited for a task based upon preconceived notions ("I'm not a people person", "I'm shy", "I'm non-confrontational"). In this instance, I had doubts whether I had it in me to leap out at strangers menacingly. I tend to use my Pacific Northwest, Scandinavian-American, laid-back self-image as an excuse to avoid confrontation. I've never been an aggressive or argumentative person, and playing the role of a bloodthirsty werewolf where people are paying $12 to be confronted and frightened gave me pause.<br /><br />The first few times I emerged from my hiding spot, sneaking up on groups' left as they were distracted by the tent to their right, I felt like a werewolf that behaved like me: respectful of personal space, hesitant to approach strangers, avoiding prolonged eye contact and thus hypothetical conflicts that I conjure up in my mind. My werewolf started out mute and tentative, apologetic for disturbing others. I elicited no reactions of surprise or terror, but surprise and terror are what people who go to Haunted Trails want to experience. After several lackluster attempts at ambushes, I decided to, pardon the self-help cliché, “feel the fear and do it anyway”. <br /><br />There's an amazing moment during the behind-the-scenes featurette on the DVD of Stanley Kubrick's <em>The Shining</em>. Jack Nicholson mugs and charms his way through the much of the documentary, but there's a moment of preparation before shooting a scene in which he slowly, forcefully transforms his Jack persona into the deranged author-turned-homicidal maniac Jack Torrance. He clenches his teeth and heaves his body, steadily gaining force, growling "I am an ax-murderer, I am an ax murderer" over and over. He's like a boxer psyching himself up before the Round 1 bell of a prizefight, and it's an astonishing transformation.<br /><br />This scene served as my inspiration to transform my hesitant, polite werewolf into an imposing, snarling monster preying upon trail walkers. Crouching in the shadows with my mask and claws, under a moonlit clearing, I thought about that Jack Nicholson moment. Following his lead, I gnashed my teeth and tensed my muscles, ready to lunge at each new group that emerged from the trail into the clearing. It was an exhilarating feeling to leave the non-threatening <em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbIerQkXm_k&feature=player_embedded">Teen Wolf</a></em> behind and strive to be more like <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbeEvTtB7ts&feature=player_embedded#"><em>An American Werewolf in London</em>.</a><br /> <br />As the night went on, I learned to profile each group based upon the screams and chatter overheard during their approach. Teenage girls would prove to be the best sports; they were the most easily spooked, the loudest screamers, and the most enthusiastic participants (teenage boys, full of insecurity and bravado, substituted attitude and sarcasm for enthusiasm). There was something deeply satisfying about eliciting genuinely frightened screams from strangers. They'd paid good money to be scared, and I was surprised to find that I thoroughly enjoyed obliging them. <br /><br />Why do we love haunted houses and slasher films so much? Do we want the adrenaline rush, or the thrilling sensation of fear, knowing that these mediums don't pose an actual danger to our person? Perhaps modern middle-class life in industrial societies has had so many of its rough edges smoothed over that we crave the occasional opportunity to experience a fight-or-flight response in a controlled environment. Whatever the reasons for our love of being scared, I enjoyed doing the scaring as much as most of the trail walkers enjoyed being accosted by our werewolf trio. <br /><br />At the end of the night, after almost five hours of lunging at over a thousand people, I thought of a scene from another film, <em>American Beauty</em>. As Kevin Spacey's character Lester Burnham starts to wake up from a 20-year state of suburban torpor, he marvels at his ability to challenge himself and, in the process, start to change his life: <br /><br />"It's a great thing when you realize you still have the ability to surprise yourself."<br /><br />I look forward to more surprises, now that the mask is off.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-28554161456979448532009-03-12T18:02:00.000-07:002009-03-12T21:39:11.406-07:00Voicemail Greetings From The Edge<strong>Monday:</strong> You've reached xxx-xxxx. It's Monday, which means that Sunday and its attendant melancholy is temporarily behind me. Please leave offers of employment, notification of winning raffle tickets, or the lyrics to The Boomtown Rats song "I Don't Like Mondays" after the tone.<br /><br /><strong>Tuesday:</strong> Hi, this is (SHP). I'm either at a café reading old literary journals, at a matinee screening of a film that scored at least a 75% "fresh" rating on rottentomatoes.com, walking around Green Lake listening to my iPod, or buying groceries at the QFC/Bartell/Trader Joe's Axis. Please leave a message at the beep, and I'll try to get back to you within the next two hours.<br /><br /><strong>Wednesday:</strong> Greetings, and thanks for leaving a voicemail instead of a text message or a pop-in at my apartment (I find the former too impersonal and the latter a bit too spontaneous). Today is what's known as "Hump Day" by the American workforce, and "just another day" by the rest of us. You know the drill: wait for the tone, and let me know what's up.<br /><br /><strong>Thursday:</strong> Hello, how are you? Only a couple more workdays for many of you before your customary two-day break, so take heart if you're having a rough go of it at the office this week due to layoffs, declining wages, and increased worker productivity. Be thankful you have a job, and hold onto it as long as you can. Speak after the beep and I'll get back to you shortly.<br /><br /><strong>Friday:</strong> This is xxx-xxxx. Please leave detailed instructions as to when and where this week's happy hour will take place. Otherwise...I'm not sure why else you'd be calling on a Friday, but state your business nonetheless and I may call you back tomorrow.<br /><br /><strong>Saturday:</strong> It's (SHP), and if I'm not answering my phone, it may be because it's between 9 and Noon and I have headphones on, grooving to the finest dub, reggae, and dancehall courtesy of Kid Hops and his "Positive Vibrations" radio show on KEXP. My landlord is an acupuncturist and her office is directly below my apartment. She gets annoyed when I play loud music on Saturday mornings while she has patients, hence the headphones. Talk to you soon.<br /><br /><strong>Sunday:</strong> Hi there, I can't take your call at the moment, because it’s Sunday and I’m doing my best to fill the day with a steady stream of activities, distractions, and soul-nurturing endeavors to keep the Sunday Blues at bay. If I'm having relative success in this project, there's a good chance I'll return your call sometime today. If not, then we may have to wait until Monday to talk. At any rate, please leave a message after the tone, and rest assured that your call is very important to me.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-75988630091834807242009-03-08T18:01:00.000-07:002009-03-12T18:37:42.868-07:00Postcards From Wallingford, Seattle, 98103<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCIIk_2SWYwI7L25G-mfhb382emyKcY47Rha1aNP8scgrRW-89hMqs8LOqDfAq_hL9oGSBkji6hhtmA0tQ2CIEFzjih08ByHtAYZR4ZFzDASyBv_6UX0D-U8nyxmlUNTBpvzQEV5ZWZ_M/s1600-h/Seattle_Map_-_Wallingford.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 181px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCIIk_2SWYwI7L25G-mfhb382emyKcY47Rha1aNP8scgrRW-89hMqs8LOqDfAq_hL9oGSBkji6hhtmA0tQ2CIEFzjih08ByHtAYZR4ZFzDASyBv_6UX0D-U8nyxmlUNTBpvzQEV5ZWZ_M/s320/Seattle_Map_-_Wallingford.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310987225586727458" /></a><br />Dear Andy, <br /><br />Greetings from the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle. It's a mostly middle/upper-middle class neighborhood north of downtown, across the freeway from the university district (Univ. of Washington). There are a lot of restaurants, an indie movie theater (I saw a great French film, "The Class", last week), both a specialty beer AND a specialty wine shop, a state liquor store (you can only buy hard stuff at state monopoly stores, like in Scandinavia), a few bars...pretty low-key. There are a lot of 30-something married couples with babies, teenagers running amok each afternoon (apparently there is a high school in the neighborhood), and a few homeless people, but not as many as downtown. Hope you are doing well...<br /><br />(SHP)<br /><br />----------------------------------------------------------------------------<br /><br />Hello Andy, <br /><br />It's another dispatch from 98103. I've been hanging out at coffee shops this week (there are two good local places across the street from each other), reading up on the history of this neighborhood to pass the time. In case you wanted to know, this area was named after one John Noble Wallingford, a real estate speculator and major land-owner back in the day (he died in 1913). If you're ever playing a Seattle version of Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy!, this could come in handy. I also recently discovered that there's a beautiful lake nearby, Green Lake, which has pedestrian and bike paths. I've been taking walks there mornings. The weather is stereotypically Seattle right now (cold, rainy and windy), but it's still beautiful. Give my best to everyone back in the neighborhood.<br /><br />(SHP)<br /><br />-----------------------------------------------------------------------------<br /><br />Hey Andy,<br /><br />I'm still using Wallingford as my home base during my Seattle stay. This week I found a great tea house, a cupcake café, a Chicago-style pizza place, and a dive bar/lounge at a Chinese restaurant that serves stiff, cheap gin & tonics. People here are friendly enough, though many are quite guarded. I'd heard that Seattleites are difficult to get to know, and it's true that there isn't a lot of eye contact or small talk in public (again reminding me of being in Scandinavia). Most people are friendly enough if you approach them or ask them a question, but you need to approach them, because they generally won't approach you. Everyone seems to be making a concerted effort to not invade anyone's personal space. Very different from back home. Also, I've noticed that a lot of people in Wallingford, and Seattle in general, dress extremely casually, almost shockingly so. I've never seen so many people wearing flip-flops, sweat pants, tank tops, basketball shorts, and other athletic wear while not at the beach or working out. After hanging out in Manhattan and Chicago during my trip, it's quite a change. I often feel overdressed when stepping out for the evening. Oh well. I'll be home soon...<br /><br />(SHP)Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-57765398234326312662009-02-25T17:40:00.000-08:002009-02-25T23:53:01.773-08:00America To Plastic Bags: "I Wish I Knew How To Quit You"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhkwPIiE_RZJz6z2f9BrPJwKglqEnFItkvKM786AqrJWHLGcXuTwXC65U6by-EQKz8w7ptMW7GY8fmp8jZKart_VbuscDJ-rx7kGDhyJK73h_K2S_16yyRTgopfD-FZuD7Nqyvhyphenhyphenc34HM/s1600-h/plastic+bags.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 235px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhkwPIiE_RZJz6z2f9BrPJwKglqEnFItkvKM786AqrJWHLGcXuTwXC65U6by-EQKz8w7ptMW7GY8fmp8jZKart_VbuscDJ-rx7kGDhyJK73h_K2S_16yyRTgopfD-FZuD7Nqyvhyphenhyphenc34HM/s320/plastic+bags.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306920119073407634" /></a><br /><strong>"[O]ur time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America."<br /><br />- President Barack Obama, Inauguration Day speech, 1/20/09</strong><br /><br />One of the starkest philosophical differences between President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama is surely the latter's consistent calls for shared sacrifice on the part of the American public. Compare this to George Bush's response to the 9/11 attacks. He had the entire country behind him, in addition to the goodwill of virtually the whole world. We stood ready to do whatever it would take to "pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America." Instead, Bush urged us to go shopping at the mall, and his Homeland Security Department advised us to buy duct tape to protect ourselves from possible chemical and biological attack. Unlike Americans during World War II, we were not asked to sacrifice or change our way of life one bit, other than to pay attention to a mind-boggling array of color-coded Terror Alerts. (Whatever happened to those alerts, anyway? Is the Global War on Terror over, the threat neutralized?).<br /><br />Candidate and now President Obama, on the other hand, has consistently urged each of us to participate in our democracy and to get involved in our community, as we all have a stake in both. Obama seemed to channel a bit of his inner community organizer with the pull quote above, one of the parts of his speech that particularly resonated with us after eight years of Bush's "you're on your own" governance.<br /><br />I'd like to address sacrifice, the perils of standing pat, and putting off unpleasant decisions vis-à-vis an issue that, while not as dire as climate change or the recession, is one that we can all address and, in so doing, sacrifice for the greater good. That issue is the rampant and casual use of plastic shopping bags.<br /><br />Here in sometimes-progressive Seattle, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/24/us/24bags.html?_r=1&emc=eta1">we were on track to tackle this problem head-on </a>by imposing a 20-cent-per-bag fee. As expected, the plastic-bag makers ramped up a PR campaign against the fee, and they convinced enough Seattleites to sign a petition against it, causing the Seattle City Council to delay the plan. We will vote on the plastic bag fee in August of this year.<br /><br />One of the main arguments against the fee is that it is unduly burdensome on consumers, especially in such tough economic times. There is a simple solution to avoiding a 20-cent fee, however, eliminating any potential financial burden. The solution is...to bring your own reusable cloth or nylon shopping bags whenever you go shopping! You can keep them in your car, in your purse, in your messenger bag, even in your coat pocket if you get one of those nylon models that can be folded inside out, creating a little egg-sized ball of recycled bag goodness (think of those Adidas and Nike windbreakers with the marsupial pocket that were so popular in the '80s). Rest assured in the knowledge that bringing your own reusable bags to QFC or Bartell Drugstore is not only environmentally friendly, it’s downright cool (sexy, even). <br /><br />Somewhere along America's evolutionary path, the idea that we're entitled to unlimited convenience and resources has taken root in our national psyche. The hubbub over a modest measure to start charging people for these disposable, fossil-fuel-based bags is a sign of how spoiled we've become. <br /><br />Again, if you'd rather not pay the fee, bring your own bags. I do it, my friends and family do it. It's not even that much of a sacrifice. There will be plenty of other ways in which we're all going to have to sacrifice, in the coming months and years. Bringing reusable bags to the store is a simple way to start weaning ourselves off the endless cycle of disposable consumer products. <br /><br />As un-American as it may be to point out, the American way of life to which we've all grown accustomed is unsustainable. The sooner we can start adjusting and scaling back, the better we'll be when the inevitable critical mass occurs and various resources start to run out. The truth of our situation isn’t pretty or easy to face, but now is the time to muster the courage to forge a different, more sustainable path.<br /><br />You say you don't have any cloth or nylon reusable shopping bags? Here's a handy list of links to help you purchase your very own bags, thus immunizing yourself from those those pesky, burdensome 20-cent fees!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.reusablebags.com/store/shopping-bags-c-2.html">Reusablebags.com </a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.ecobags.com">Ecobags.com</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_k?url=search-alias%3Dgarden&field-keywords=reusable+bags">Amazon.com</a><br /><br />In addition, most, if not all, grocery and drug stores now sell inexpensive (i.e. a dollar or less) reusable bags, if you don't mind that the bags are generally emblazoned with store names and logos. Any of these bags will eventually pay for itself, once the voters pass the bag fee measure later in the year.<br /><br />Be creative, get some reusable bags, vote for the bag fee in August if you’re in Seattle, and start building a plastic-bag-free America!<br /><br />Here are some statistics related to plastic bags, courtesy of <a href="http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php">reusablebags.com</a>:<br /><br /><blockquote>* Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide. That comes out to over one million per minute. Billions end up as litter each year.<br /><br />* According to the EPA, over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are consumed in the U.S. each year. <br /><br />* According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. (Estimated cost to retailers is $4 billion) <br /><br />* Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine mammals die every year from eating discarded plastic bags mistaken for food.<br /><br />* Plastic bags don't biodegrade, they photodegrade - breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering the food web when animals accidentally ingest.<br /><br />* Plastic bags are among the 12 items of debris most often found in coastal cleanups, according to the nonprofit Center for Marine Conservation.<br /><br />* In 2001, Ireland consumed 1.2 billion plastic bags, or 316 per person. An extremely successful plastic bag consumption tax, or PlasTax, introduced in 2002 reduced consumption by 90%. Approximately 18,000,000 liters of oil have been saved due to this reduced production. Governments around the world are considering implementing similar measures.</blockquote>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-39541329366220000992009-02-22T17:56:00.002-08:002009-02-24T11:10:32.026-08:00A Message To All Remaining Congressional Republicans: STOP LYING<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHFFpRFD6j2oy7qOOGJ-Wvf6klbe1HMdRJtOTwClC8ET73EKjR68U4SEBnLq1to8wvV4YainuCA0nS8MEIywWP_ahUszvE5XRyqLJoEvDRwMyJaDHOoPtvrpjPG3rjl-Z8O9CZvLRPmEU/s1600-h/Shelby+Fail.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 314px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHFFpRFD6j2oy7qOOGJ-Wvf6klbe1HMdRJtOTwClC8ET73EKjR68U4SEBnLq1to8wvV4YainuCA0nS8MEIywWP_ahUszvE5XRyqLJoEvDRwMyJaDHOoPtvrpjPG3rjl-Z8O9CZvLRPmEU/s320/Shelby+Fail.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305814265082151986" /></a><br />Today at Daily Kos, I read this <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/2/22/11498/8165/286/700445">post </a>regarding a statement made by Senator Richard Shelby, R - AL, <a href="http://politicalwire.com/archives/2009/02/22/shelby_doubts_obama_citizenship.html">expressing doubt </a>as to whether President Obama is a U.S. citizen.<br /><br />Of course, this ridiculous talking point and xenophobic and racist smear has been <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/06/obama-birth.html">thoroughly debunked</a>, but being Senator For Life from the State of Alabama apparently means never having to bother reading articles in The So-Called Liberal Media (SCLM).<br /><br />Now, this is the <em>senior </em>United States Senator from Alabama, mind you. What does this astonishing level of either mendacity or ignorance say about Shelby and the Alabama voters who have been electing such a cretin to federal office since 1979, first as a Democrat and then as a Republican (he opportunistically switched parties right after the Gingrich Republican takeover of Congress in 1994)? Perhaps this is just standard operating procedure for a member of an increasingly irrelevant minority political party, working in concert with Limbaugh, Drudge, Coulter, and other right-wing dead-enders. <br /><br />Here is the letter I sent to the shameless Senator: <br /><br /><strong>Dear Senator Shelby:<br /><br />You were quoted by the Cullman Times as having doubts as to whether President Obama is a U.S. citizen:<br /><br />http://www.cullmantimes.com/local/local_story_052203445.html<br /><br />For your information, this malicious rumor about the President has been thoroughly debunked. Please refer to this Los Angeles Times article for a copy of President Obama's birth certificate, which proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is indeed a U.S. citizen and thus eligible to serve as President of the United States:<br /><br />http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/06/obama-birth.html<br /><br />Please issue a retraction to your statement immediately, and please stop spreading this false rumor.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />(Secret Hug Pro)</strong><br /><br />Can we start putting all politicians under oath before they talk to reporters? Now that's some change we could believe in! In the meantime, <a href="http://shelby.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactSenatorShelby.EmailSenatorShelby">please write Richard Shelby</a> and tell him what you think of his dishonesty and smear-mongering.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-40997237728158058172009-02-03T18:14:00.000-08:002009-02-19T22:06:53.949-08:00Things To Do While Waiting For The # 16 Bus<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik8AqmQXe8dLfvM7aCwdnB2ueT7HpNZghqG3LxoViOqRSuxkgDc_cgFGCB0lyWUEmDaMMCtBAaSmBHUSXNkTKhAN72AGGGBfogyZyaTmejzTxXPaURwR6rktSWxU-BVsuDA-6pwVQwtAw/s1600-h/19_23_76---Bus-Stop-in-the-Snow_web.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik8AqmQXe8dLfvM7aCwdnB2ueT7HpNZghqG3LxoViOqRSuxkgDc_cgFGCB0lyWUEmDaMMCtBAaSmBHUSXNkTKhAN72AGGGBfogyZyaTmejzTxXPaURwR6rktSWxU-BVsuDA-6pwVQwtAw/s320/19_23_76---Bus-Stop-in-the-Snow_web.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298761281245527234" /></a><br />- Come up with a to-do list (daily, weekly)<br /><br />- Check voicemail, text messages<br /><br />- Check the skies for precipitation<br /><br />- Shuffle through iPod<br /><br />- Think about set lists for next round of mix CDs<br /><br />- Think about the film I just watched<br /><br />- Daydream about past events, future goals (<em>Is eight months of unemployment a deal-breaker during a job interview? Will I ever be contacted for an interview? Is 37 too old to turn one’s life around? Why did she lose interest and move on? Could I have done anything to prevent it? Will the future be Star Trek utopia or Blade Runner dystopia? Is it possible to be truly happy while acknowledging history and paying attention to current events, or is the cliché about being blissfully ignorant true? Will I ever be “a writer“, whatever that title means? Is Obama a progressive Trojan horse or just another centrist corporate Democrat, Clinton part II? Do I really care about politics, or was my obsession during the campaign rooted in some deeper psychological need? Does anyone read my blog, or is it like the tree falling in the forest that no one hears? Do I dare start making my blog more personal and confessional, or should I stick to political rants and Top 10 lists?)</em><br /><br />- Be in the moment, watch traffic flow, birds, squirrels; notice for-sale signs, businesses going under, commerce taking place<br /><br />- Wonder how Jane Jacobs would rate Seattle's urban planning<br /><br />- Go over job-hunt strategies<br /><br />- Map out social events for the week<br /><br />-Ask myself: <br />1. Have I talked to my mother, father and brother lately?<br />2. What's playing at the Guild 45th, Neptune, Seven Gables, and Varsity?<br />3. Why are there so few 16's running?<br />4. Have I had 8 glasses of water today?<br /><br />- Keep shuffling through iPod<br /><br />- Watch people at bus stop, size them up, try to figure out their stories <em>(Are any of these people happy? Do most of them hate their jobs, those that have a job? Most everyone I know is dissatisfied with their work, but is my social circle indicative of the population as a whole? Riding the bus provides a first-hand look at the casualties of George Bush’s America, some of most beleaguered and discarded Americans this side of the Harborview E.R. I can‘t imagine how some of these people survive at the bottom rung of the ladder during this Neo-Gilded Age, but somehow they seem to find ways to eke out an existence in the absence of a social safety net, all the more amazing in that America is the stingiest industrial democracy in the world in terms of public assistance, even in the best of times. “There but for the grace of God go I“ echoes through my head each time I board these busses. I can’t tell if they used to be middle class, or are they the working poor, or are they newly homeless? How many are mentally ill, how many were abused as children, and why don’t we care about our fellow citizens? Maybe it’s too much for us to bear when we realize deep down that each of us is probably only several paychecks and a medical emergency away from begging for spare change outside of QFC and the liquor store.)</em><br /><br />- Wonder if monorail expansion will ever be revived during my lifetime<br /><br />- Feel grateful to live in in a big, progressive, coastal citySecret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-36566102394781898162009-01-25T22:37:00.000-08:002009-01-25T22:39:41.064-08:00A Quotation To Live By<strong>"Writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose or paint can manage to escape the madness, the melancholia, the panic fear which is inherent in a human situation." <br /><br />Graham Greene</strong>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-27227084058815560762009-01-20T15:23:00.000-08:002009-01-20T15:32:30.198-08:00A Pariah State No LongerToday, after at least five years as a rogue state, reviled around the globe, we the United States have taken a major step towards making amends with the rest of the world by swearing in Barack Obama as our 44th President.<br /><br />These <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/20/worldwide-well-wishers-mo_n_159309.html">images</a> of people around the world, <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/International/President44/popup?id=6689357&contentIndex=1&page=2&start=false">celebrating</a> with America on this historic day, are overwhelming after years of darkness via the Bush-Cheney criminal regime. I shed tears of joy, relief, and hope as I contemplate how the American electorate has staved off a police state (for now) and has started down the road to restoring intellectual rigor, compassion, maturity, science, and The Constitution, among other endangered virtues and institutions, to The White House.<br /><br />As <strong>President </strong>Obama (how sweet it is to write that phrase) pointed out in his <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGOLJJdYduA">powerful inauguration speech</a>, we have a lot of hard work and sacrifice ahead of us as a nation. For today, however, we can all raise a glass to this historic shift, as patriots, and see a glimmer of hope for democracy, rule of law, and the future we leave to the next generation of Americans.<br /><br />Thank you, America, for <a href="http://secrethugpro.blogspot.com/2008/08/go-dennis.html">waking up</a>.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-51450223026000231282008-08-27T16:32:00.000-07:002008-08-27T16:33:52.570-07:00Go Dennis!"WAKE UP AMERICA"<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bVp9cWOcZ7g&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bVp9cWOcZ7g&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-27655876753037241662008-08-13T10:20:00.000-07:002008-08-13T10:34:45.532-07:00SHP Heavy Rotation, Week of 8/10/081. Girl Talk - <em>Feed the Animals</em><br />2. Girl Talk - <em>Night Ripper</em><br />3. Spank Rock - <em>Yoyoyoyoyo</em><br />4. Sly & The Family Stone - "Dance to the Medley:"<br />5. Isaac Hayes - "Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalmistic"<br />6. The Broken West - <em>I Can't Go On, I'll Go On</em><br />7. XTC - "No Language in Our Lungs"<br />8. The Rolling Stones - <em>Some Girls</em><br />9. The Gossip - "Standing in the Way of Control"<br />10. Stevie Wonder - "All Day Sucker"Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-84308546912665401512008-08-08T10:13:00.000-07:002008-08-08T17:09:04.319-07:00And Now For Something Completely Different...Since my last two posts were on the negative tip, here's Sly tearing it up and rousing the stoned masses at Woodstock:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/3Ig-6f0g55c&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/3Ig-6f0g55c&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-89460520284638168262008-08-04T16:32:00.000-07:002008-08-04T23:15:59.412-07:00We Get the Leadership That We Deserve<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2MwcyfHO3p3IKtvss7pPfmODpfKN9Q-04GUd3cVoSfz_vnb5l3fQxNMJ5ML_zAg-1Xyvofi_dBzb1uha6P5whfDQFEdwgOmHweGo-9V6l0Lr5QVkKXnKv1zgQ2D79v2jP0fk29ql5zY/s1600-h/mccain_bush-hug-713122-1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2MwcyfHO3p3IKtvss7pPfmODpfKN9Q-04GUd3cVoSfz_vnb5l3fQxNMJ5ML_zAg-1Xyvofi_dBzb1uha6P5whfDQFEdwgOmHweGo-9V6l0Lr5QVkKXnKv1zgQ2D79v2jP0fk29ql5zY/s320/mccain_bush-hug-713122-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5230904398579603826" /></a><br />John McCain's campaign, seemingly in shambles and headed over a cliff just a short while ago, seems to have found its mudslinging groove through racist and apocalyptic ads (<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/30/mccain-ad-links-paris-hil_n_115841.html">Britney and Paris</a>, <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/8/1/192258/9999/429/560973">"The One"</a>) and rolling out the usual bald-faced lies (<a href="http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/snubbing_wounded_troops.html">claiming Barack Obama didn't visit wounded troops in Germany because he couldn't bring cameras</a>). Team McCain is now ridiculing Obama for correctly pointing out that keeping one's car tires properly inflated and getting regular tune-ups can increase fuel efficiency and thus save oil and money (how outrageous of Obama!), something that Republican governors and NASCAR have also urged. Republican shills have received the memo and are relentlessly repeating the message that Obama's entire energy policy consists of urging us to keep our tires inflated. McCain's campaign is so proud of their new line of attack that <a href="http://thepage.time.com/2008/08/04/republicans-to-mock-obama-with-tire-gauges/">they are handing out tire pressure gauges to reporters and donors </a>so that they can all share a self-satisfied chuckle. The Republicans seem to think they've found the equivalent of <a href="http://millercenter.org/scripps/archive/speeches/detail/3396">Jimmy Carter's cardigan and his suggestion to turn our thermostats down</a> to use as a cudgel against Obama down the stretch.<br /><br />This is <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-04-01-mccain-va_N.htm">the substantive and respectful campaign McCain promised</a>? It's not surprising that Republicans would resort to red herrings and juvenile taunts; it's what they do. The amazing thing, to me, is that these tactics are so successful with a majority of the American electorate. McCain has already closed Obama's lead considerably since he ramped up the hateful and petulant rhetoric after Obama‘s tour of the Middle East and Europe.<br /><br />Republicans and Independents: please explain why you support John McCain. I want to understand the mentality of those who are swayed by McCain's dishonest ads and smears against Obama. How do you think a McCain presidency would help you and your family, or add to the public good in any way? Though Obama is not the answer to all of our problems and is certainly a flawed candidate, how is McCain a better choice? Why do you feel that, in the midst of a serious Constitutional crisis, you have the luxury of being willfully ignorant and lazy when it comes to thinking critically about the issues we face as a nation? <br /><br />Follow-up question: if any of you found it funny when delegates at the 2004 Republican Convention wore <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/08/30/gop.purple.hearts/">purple band-aids </a>on their faces to mock John Kerry's Purple Heart medals earned in Vietnam, do you feel any remorse for slandering a decorated war hero, since you and your party constantly claim that you “support the troops“? Or maybe you look back fondly at the band-aid gag, and this year you look forward to snickering knowingly when your party’s delegates proudly brandish anti-Obama tire pressure gauges at your convention this summer?<br /><br />It's commonplace for Democratic politicians to assert "We Deserve Better" after the 8 years of hell wrought by Bush, Cheney, Addington, Rove and the rest. But do we really deserve better? We elected George W. Bush as President of the United States, not once, but twice. After comparing George W. Bush to Al Gore and John Kerry, with full access to all the facts and information concerning their respective platforms and thus able to compare and contrast their differing visions for the country, we chose George W. Bush both times; we "felt more comfortable" with Bush and would have preferred to have a beer with him over Gore and Kerry because we were told that they exaggerated, flip-flopped, and were too educated, French, and effete for our tastes. McCain, who has <a href="http://www.alternet.org/election08/90956">changed positions repeatedly on every major position</a>, who wants to wage perpetual war and continue Bush economic policies, and who has serious <a href="http://rawstory.com/news/2008/McCain_temper_boiled_over_in_92_0407.html">anger issues</a>, is almost tied with Obama in the polls with only three months left until Election Day. <br /><br />I would say that we Americans get exactly the leadership that we deserve. If John McCain wins in November, we have no one to blame but ourselves.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-18889907702528444442008-05-06T21:05:00.000-07:002008-05-07T12:01:14.073-07:00I'm Mad as Hell (Bring on The Smile-Manner Squadron)As a regular Seattle Metro bus commuter, mainly on the dodgy 358 Express route, I read with great interest <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7312672.stm">this bit of news from Japan.</a><br /><br />While it is possible that, as I get older, I am becoming the stereotypical grumpy older dude, incredulous at the younger whippersnappers' lack of respect and values, there is no doubt that etiquette and decency are steadily being eroded in our society, even in supposedly polite <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002562278_rude15.html">Seattle </a>. Riding the bus each day and working downtown provides a first-hand view of what social conservatives call the "coarsening of the culture", one of the few points on which this left-wing blogger and the right-wing culture warriors are in agreement.<br /> <br />Waiting for the bus at the notorious 3rd and Pine corner, one is confronted by all the symptoms of the MySpace generation's F.U. attitude: spitting, littering, cursing, young thug-wannabees blocking the entire sidewalk, aggressive panhandling, and worse after dark (Seattle is pathetically lacking beat cops, but that's a whole other post). <br /> <br />Some of this antisocial behavior, of course, makes its way onto the buses, especially the 358. In addition to the activities outlined above, on any given day one can encounter people taking up two seats (even if the bus is standing-room only!), eating and drinking disgusting fast food and other crap (I have had a Slurpee-like drink spilled on me by a homeless man who was allowed on the bus with a lid-less container, in flagrant violation of the posted rules), loud cursing and altercations, and the aforementioned thuggery and posturing, usually in the back of the bus. <br /> <br />If all that weren't enough, there is the amazing lack of self-consciousness of so many bus riders. People loudly yak on their cell phones, shamelessly discussing all manner of personal topics. Women feel that the bus is an appropriate place to apply make-up during the morning commute, in full view of the other passengers. Teenagers chomp on greasy burgers or munch bags of neon-orange cheese doodles, oblivious or disdainful of others.<br /><br />When did so many Americans come to feel that a public place is no different than their living rooms, an appropriate environment to let it all hang out? What happened to the social compact of living in a major urban area, putting on a public face out of respect for one's fellow citizens (and bus commuters)? Have the concepts of privacy, decency, and a modicum of modesty become quaint relics of a pre-Facebook generation when each private moment wasn't captured on YouTube or a reality television show?<br /> <br />It's heartening to know that in Yokohama, Japan, at least, someone is saying enough is enough and has mustered the wherewithal to start fighting back. Seattle (and undoubtedly many other American cities) desperately needs a program like this. Public shaming is a vastly underrated, and underused, public policy-tool. If ever a society needed to have a mirror held up to itself and be forced to acknowledge its excesses, exhibitionism, and rudeness, it is the United States in 2008; bring on the elderly manner police (with younger bodyguards to back them up). <br /><br />Or at the very least, bring on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMBZDwf9dok&feature=related">Howard Beale </a>to help rouse us from our collective stupor.<br /> <br />I'm not suggesting that we impose a quasi-fascist nanny state, à la Singapore, here in the U.S. I'm just urging that we decide what type of city, and country, we want to live in and take the steps necessary to realize that vision. Do we want to continue along a solipsistic and vulgar path towards instant gratification? Or perhaps we could strive to achieve the goals outlined in the following, an exercise recited by students at Adams School in Ballard, Seattle, in 1927:<br /><br /><blockquote>I am a citizen of Seattle, of Washington, and of the United States. It is my right and my duty to make an honest living and to be comfortable and happy. It is my privilege and my duty to help others to secure these benefits. I will work hard and play fair. I will be kind to all, especially to little children, to old people, to the unfortunate, and to animals. I will help make Seattle a clean, beautiful and law abiding city. These are the best services I can render to my city, my state and my country.</blockquote><br /><br />Maybe after we elect <a href="https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute/splash?source=www_splash_direct_donate">Barack Obama</a> as the next president, we will be in a good collective mindset for change in this country. We need it now more than ever, from the 358 Express to The White House.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-23388728458887758952008-04-11T22:10:00.000-07:002008-04-13T11:03:50.269-07:00Mix-Tape Review Series: Compilation<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLnXyixVGzDr3INwmj89TwkCCeQuRNIOiCdw5NggTXQz5qnWllKHYRc6BmdAzpETHIZOl1qZ3hFK1USS6J-_dxxYonuBrd1m5IHFiiPcWN2Jft36dPxYmGECsJdcxtKITMITBAWo8QXOQ/s1600-h/IMG_0327.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLnXyixVGzDr3INwmj89TwkCCeQuRNIOiCdw5NggTXQz5qnWllKHYRc6BmdAzpETHIZOl1qZ3hFK1USS6J-_dxxYonuBrd1m5IHFiiPcWN2Jft36dPxYmGECsJdcxtKITMITBAWo8QXOQ/s320/IMG_0327.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188224026538727170" /></a><center><strong>Photo courtesy of <a href="http://cycleswithincircles.blogspot.com/">CyclesWithinLayers</strong></a></center><br /><em>COMPILATION </em>(1990)<br />Memorex dBS 90 minute tape<br /><br />Side A:<br />Pink Floyd - "Wish You Were Here"<br />The Jimi Hendrix Experience - "1983...(A Merman I Should Turn To Be)"<br />Led Zeppelin - "In My Time of Dying"<br />The Beatles - "Getting Better"<br />The Beatles - "Something"<br />Donovan - "Hurdy Gurdy Man"<br />Grateful Dead - Rosemary"<br />Simon and Garfunkel - "Sound of Silence"<br /><br />Side B:<br />The Beatles - "I'm Looking Through You"<br />XTC - "Making Plans For Nigel"<br />Blondie - "Accidents Will Happen"<br />Echo and The Bunnymen - "Rescue"<br />Modern English - "I Melt With You"<br />The Cure - "Close To Me"<br />Game Theory - "Erica's Word"<br />Jane's Addiction - "Summertime"<br />The Replacements - "Answering Machine"<br />Husker Du - "Whatever"<br />R.E.M. - "We Walk"<br />Bad Brains - "I Against I"<br /><br /><strong><em>This post kicks off a series of mix-tape reviews. I will subject a series of long-lost cultural artifacts to some long-overdue critical scrutiny and reassessment, rightfully restoring their place in the pantheon of cutting-edge artistry and, in the process, providing a template for aspiring selectors and DJs worldwide. </em></strong> <br /><br />In 1990, the Pacific Northwest, specifically Bellingham, WA, was at the crossroads of several musical trends, though these forces were not mutually exclusive. A Sixties revival was underway, propelled by nostalgic baby boomers at <em>Rolling Stone </em>and other still-influential rags who were itching to revive vintage Dylan and Stones. The fertile Eighties American underground had assumed its position as a cultural vanguard via college radio, DIY touring circuits and indie labels such as Touch and Go, SST, and Sub Pop. In addition, the compiler of the first mix-tape in this series, appropriately entitled <em>Compilation</em>, was in the midst of his own wave of nostalgia. In addition to dreaming of Woodstock and Haight-Ashbury, he longed for the British synth-pop, mopey post-punk and other New Wave period pieces of his childhood. <br /><br />These three cultural threads converge in the kitchen-sink, eclectic flow on <em>Compilation</em>. Side A opens with Pink Floyd's slowly building, lengthy tribute to former band mate Syd Barrett, "Wish You Were Here", not exactly a standard opener to grab the listener's attention. If there was any doubt that this would be no ordinary mix, the next track ups the ante with Jimi Hendrix's sprawling acid-trip re-creation, "1983...". The compiler clearly decided that his tape would be a deeply personal one, refusing to pander to listeners' preconceived notions of reasonable song length or structure. Instead, he would cater to that segment of the population who feel groovy and deep while sitting their dorm-rooms at institutions such as The Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA at 11pm, digging on Jimi by candlelight and feeling vaguely radical. Continuing the increasing-song-length motif, track # 3 is Led Zeppelin's 11-minute electric blues slide-guitar workout "In My Time of Dying" from that most epic of epic '70s rock double-albums, <em>Physical Graffiti</em>. Clearly the compiler was a trailblazer in jettisoning bourgeoisie notions of the pop song, much like Dylan when he shattered the 3-minute-ceiling for songs on the radio when "Like a Rolling Stone" clocked in at over 5 minutes. <br /><br />Next up are two songs from late-period Beatles, "Getting Better" and "Somewhere". The two tracks were obviously chosen to follow an 11-minute blast of Led Zeppelin because The Beatles, like Zeppelin, were a) from England and b) got their start the 1960s. After the heavy subject matter and intensity of the opening three opuses, what a relief it is to hear a ditty about always looking on the bright side of life from Paul and a gorgeous, languid love song from George - just what the doctor ordered.<br /><br />In keeping with the Sixties British artist theme, "Something" is followed by Donovan's "Hurdy Gurdy Man". Perhaps the compiler chose this hippy-dippy anthem in an attempt to point out the classic rock/American underground link, since the Butthole Surfers (sadly not represented on this particular collection) did a mocking cover version of the song the same year <em>Compilation </em>was released. After peaking with Hendrix earlier, Donovan's psychedelic-lite is a soothing balm. Speaking of psychedelia, the Grateful Dead captured the compiler's heart during the summer of '90, via his Deadhead girlfriend. "Rosemary" is a trippy little ditty with appropriately groovy distorted vocals from Jerry, presaging Gibby Haynes' "Gibbytronix" vocal treatments with Butthole Surfers 15 years later. To close out Side 1, we have a cut that is something of a '60's anthem, by an iconic '60's duo: Simon and Garfunkel's "Sound of Silence". Even without yet having seen <em>The Graduate </em>, the creator instinctively knew the song spoke to that generation of which he, at the time, dearly wished he were a part.<br /><br />Side 2 opens with yet another Beatles tune, "I'm Looking Through You." Though this <em>Rubber Soul</em> track is undoubtedly a gem, it feels like an afterthought with regards to the rest of the second side. The remainder of the compilation is comprised of the other two aforementioned threads: '80s New Wave and the American undergound. XTC's "Making Plans For Nigel" sounds as fresh today as it did to <em>Compilation</em>'s creator in 1990 and undoubtedly did upon the song's initial release in 1979. To someone who associated Blondie with their crossover smash hits during his childhood ("Heart of Glass", "Rapture"), the compiler was thrilled to discover the band's more straight-ahead New Wave pop on the <em>Parallel Lines </em>and <em>Eat To The Beat </em>LPs, as exemplified by "Accidents Never Happen". Next up is the anthemic "Rescue" by Echo and The Bunnymen, who the compiler considered one of the coolest British bands of the '80s (their <em>Songs To Learn and Sing </em>collection, a tape of which was purchased at the Bellevue Square Cellophane Square branch, was seminal in the development of his music taste). Next up is THE '80s anthem for all time, Modern English's "I Melt With You", which made the creator swoon before he'd even seen <em>Valley Girl </em>and before the evil Burger King ad campaign desecrated the song for a period of time. The Cure's breakthrough hit, the bouncy, hand-clapping "Close to Me", closes out a potent triple-shot of classic post-punk singalongs <br /><br />At this point the mix shifts to American college radio staples. Game Theory were an obscure and literate power-pop band from Northern California that were critical darlings and commercial zeroes. "Erica's Word" is a timeless and insanely catchy, slightly melancholy track that somehow fits after The Cure. Jane's Addiction's "Summertime Rolls", on the other hand, is a dubious follow-up track. The compiler must have fallen under the widespread notion during the late '80/early '90s that Jane's Addiction were deeper, more important, and more classic than, in retrospect, we now know (the undeniable staying power of "Jane Says" notwithstanding). It's possible that he wanted to get back to the heavy atmospherics and druggy vibe from Side 1 provided by Hendrix, the Dead, et al. Next up is another triple-shot, this time from three of the most important American guitar bands of the 1980s. The Replacement's gut-wrenching "Answering Machine" and Husker Du's even more harrowing "Whatever" were blasts of Minneapolis angst that translated well to awkward, lonely, thinking teenage music fans everywhere. R.E.M.'s "We Walk" is a welcome relief, with its soothing Byrdsian 12-string jangle, though not without that hint of sadness that pervades the majority of this compilation. Closing the album in jarring fashion is Washington D.C. hardcore punks Bad Brains' "I Against I", which, while no doubt an exciting and impossibly hip proposition to the compiler at age 18, is now a somewhat generic punk song that doesn't hold up too well at age 36 (If it's too loud, you're too old?).<br /><br />Overall, <em>Compilation</em>, while betraying a touching measure of naivety and earnestness on the part of the compiler, is nevertheless an eclectic collection of songs from the dawn of the grunge era.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-18235462822806471712007-12-09T12:54:00.000-08:002007-12-09T16:34:44.685-08:00"What's going to happen with all the garbage?"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVP9RU2FIeFlFDRryGoMHzI0YK-SKqU3u-O76ZyVFEEkE-C4oiMIUyMGWgo0Uk5hUfKs55Sy6NZ3N-TPe4_enJ1YNJ4K5pw1VVZ0lY_2ytMN77WhQnW5SAVVCIA5exbF2XRElqU2XvqJI/s1600-h/6331301_16005605.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVP9RU2FIeFlFDRryGoMHzI0YK-SKqU3u-O76ZyVFEEkE-C4oiMIUyMGWgo0Uk5hUfKs55Sy6NZ3N-TPe4_enJ1YNJ4K5pw1VVZ0lY_2ytMN77WhQnW5SAVVCIA5exbF2XRElqU2XvqJI/s320/6331301_16005605.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142094360160072130" /></a><br />Due to a combination of my infrequent changes of residence and historically being a pack-rat, I found myself saddled with a sizeable portion of broken and unwanted electronics and computer-related flotsam and jetsam before moving into my new place several months ago. I was loathe to simply toss this e-waste in the trash, tempting as this prospect was after several days of packing and hauling stuff from my old house to new apartment (how on Earth did I, a self-proclaimed environmentalist and non-materialistic, small-carbon-footprint-having urbanite, acquire so much junk?). <br /><br />Like Andie MacDowell's character in Steven Soderbergh's <em><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098724/" target="_blank">Sex, Lies and Videotape</a></em>, I'm prone to feelings of anxiety when thinking about all the garbage we produce in this country. The trash barges floating off the north-east U.S. coast in the late 1980s, denied entry at every port, are a stark reminder of the enormous costs (both environmental and, for people like me, psychological) of our consumption-based economy. <br /><br />When improperly disposed of, e-waste leaches toxic substances into our food and water supply: cadmium (kidney problems), lead (poisoning of children), mercury (brain damage), chromium VI (asthmatic bronchitis), brominated flame retardants (cancer of the digestive and lymph systems), and more. A recent EPA report estimates that 304 million electronic devices were removed from U.S. households in 2005, with 2/3 of those products still in working order, according to Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) estimates. That amount represents approximately 1.9 to 2.2 million tons of used and unwanted electronics, of which 1.5 to 1.9 million tons were primarily discarded in landfills. Only 345,000 to 370,000 tons were recycled.<br /><br />The electronics industry generates $2 billion a year, and Americans own nearly three billion electronic products. When planned obsolescence is the norm for computers, TVs, cell phones, and MP3 players, what is a conscientious, neurotic environmentalist to do with all this electronic debris?<br /><br />Luckily, a little on-line research produced some results. Here in Seattle, there is a company called <a href="http://www.3rtechnology.com/index.html" target="_blank">3R Technology </a>that, for a reasonable fee, accepts a wide range of electronic items that shouldn’t be tossed into the garbage. For $24, I was able to get rid of the following: microwave oven; portable radio, CD and cassette players; computer printers, mouse and CPU; phone; rechargeable batteries and recharger, calculator, digital alarm clock, camera, pen-light, and more. 3R Technology guarantees that nothing they accept will enter a landfill; they will either repair/resell or recycle them, break down the parts for reuse, or even take them home (the man who did my in-take of items needed a microwave oven and thus didn't charge me for it). And, to top it all off, if you don't have a way to schlep your junk downtown to their Pioneer Square location, they will arrange to pick it up, at no extra charge. This was the best $24 I've spent in awhile.<br /><br />The other great service I recently discovered is <a href="http://www.ipodmechanic.com/" target="_blank">IPod Mechanic</a>, located in Michigan. For a mere penny, they will email you a pre-paid UPS shipping label so you can send your broken IPod (see "planned obsolescence") to them for a no-obligation repair estimate. After they email you the diagnosis and cost to repair it, you can either accept the repair charges, decline the repair and have the IPod shipped back, or decline the repair and donate the IPod to them. Since my estimate was $100, and I could buy a brand-new model for only $150 more, I chose Option C and donated mine, even though they offered to throw in a new battery free of charge. Another highly recommended service, one that recycles and reuses parts from the ever-growing pool of IPods throughout the globe. For one cent, you can't go wrong.<br /><br />With the rampant green-washing and dubious “environmental” business ventures proliferating in this late-capitalist/climate-change era, it's nice to discover truly green businesses, like 3R Technology and IPod Mechanic, that are part of the solution instead of part of the movement to simply cash-in on our real concerns about the planet. Kudos to both.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-73465160023754880552007-11-02T20:48:00.000-07:002007-11-03T08:47:09.442-07:00It's better to burn out than to fade away...Let me start this post by apologizing for going AWOL for almost five months. I could tell you about all the changes in my life since that time (graduating from school, going through a long and arduous job hunt, finally landing a job with a steep learning curve, and finding and moving into a new apartment), but that would involve making excuses, which is probably what led me to neglect my blog since late Spring in the first place.<br /><br />Now that I have high-speed wireless Internet service at my place (another excuse not to blog bites the dust), I will do my utmost to set aside time to write here on a semi-regular (i.e not once every 5-6 months) basis. While I don’t have anything particularly meaty at the moment, here are some issues and questions I’ve been thinking about lately, which means that I may address some of them here in the near-future:<br /><br />- The American Apparel dilemma, for those looking for sweatshop-free clothing yet aren’t supportive of Dov Charney’s sleazy work environment and anti-unionism.<br /><br />- Has Michael Moore’s <em>Sicko </em>advanced the health care debate? When will the American public's outrage reach a tipping point?<br /><br />- Why does the Democratic Party continue to kowtow to Bush and the Republican minority?<br /><br />- The flap over Barack Obama failing to wear an American flag on his lapel.<br /><br />- The apology that so many pundits and talking heads owe Al Gore, who has turned out to be right about everything for which he has been ridiculed over the years.<br /><br />- The African nation of Gabon, a primary source of manganese and one of the most prosperous, and least known, nations in Africa.<br /><br />Talk to you soon,<br /><br />SHP<br /><br />P.S. Don’t forget to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 6th in your local elections.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-47472731633410007832007-05-12T11:29:00.000-07:002007-06-02T16:31:51.469-07:00Ten Great Musical Moments in Film and TelevisionUnlike most of those who came of age in the Eighties, I was never a big fan of music videos. While I can appreciate a well-crafted or interesting video concept, be it Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” or The Beastie Boys’ Spike Jonze-directed “Sabotage”, I don’t like to have a song’s accompanying imagery dictated to me by its video; for example, every time I hear “Once in a Lifetime”, David Byrne slapping his forehead and arching backwards (“Same as it ever was…”) pops into my head, rather than imagery (or lack thereof) that would have occurred of its own accord. That being said, I am fond of well-placed songs in film and television series (I fully realize that this contradicts my aversion to MTV, but as Tony Soprano would say, what are you gonna do?). <br /><br />Here are ten striking uses of song in film and TV, with video if available. Please feel free to add your favorites to the comments section.<br /><br /><strong>SPOILER ALERT</strong>: If you haven’t watched <em>The West Wing </em>series and plan to do so, please don’t read the commentary for entry # 8. Likewise, you may want to skip # 3 if you haven’t yet experienced HBO’s <em>Six Feet Under</em>.<br /><br /><strong>1. “Late at Night” – Buffalo Tom, in <em>My So-Called Life</em>, Episode 12 (“Self-Esteem”)</strong><br /><br />Jordan Catalano has been keeping his relationship with Angela Chace a secret, limiting their meetings to make-out sessions in the school boiler room. When Angela hears that Buffalo Tom will be playing at a local club, and that Jordan will be there, she can’t resist going. Jordan, shooting pool with his mates, blows her off. As Angela runs off, devastated, Buffalo Tom plays the aching “Late at Night”, a perfect accompaniment to teenage emotions running high. Later on in English class, when Mr. Katimsky reads Shakespeare’s Sonnet # 130 (“My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun…”), Jordan realizes the error of his ways, in failing to appreciate Angela. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wSUBeyp4I-Q"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wSUBeyp4I-Q" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br />Determined to make things right, he strolls up to Angela at her locker and takes her hand as they walk down the hallway, while all the characters look on. Cue “Late at Night” redux, bringing closure to a powerful episode, and roll credits. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/s_Etd_CYI_k"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/s_Etd_CYI_k" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>2. “S.O.S." – ABBA, in <em>Tillsammans </em>(Together)</strong><br /><br />The setting is an angst-ridden Swedish hippy commune in the mid-1970s. One snowy afternoon, all of the film's various isolated and lonely characters join in a pick-up soccer game, one by one. The first piano notes of “S.O.S.” kick in, and the game builds into a crescendo of joyous collisions, tackles, hugging, and frolicking in the snow. It is one of the most genuine and human scenes ever filmed. Each time I see it, I temporarily have hope for the human race. Who would’ve thought that an ABBA song could be so poignant and unironic?<br /><br /><strong>3. “Come and Find Me” – Josh Ritter, in <em>Six Feet Under</em>, Season 3, Episode 6 (“Making Love Work”)</strong><br /><br />Nate and Lisa’s shotgun marriage is becoming strained and precarious. As they and their daughter Maya are returning to Los Angeles from a camping weekend, and Nate returns Lisa’s “I love you” with an uncertain “I love you, too”, the moody Nick Drake-esque guitar pluckings of Josh Ritter’s “Come and Find Me” reflect the brooding couple’s uncertain future.<br /><br /><strong>4. “Sleeping Angel” – Stevie Nicks, in <em>Fast Times at Ridgemont High</em></strong><br /><br />Mike Damone is scrounging to call in debts from his ticket-scalping customers in a desperate effort to pay for one half of Stacey’s abortion, to no avail. Most of <em>Fast Times</em>' soundtrack consists of studio-mandated soft rock, unfortunately, and while Stevie Nicks certainly fits into this category, the forlorn “Sleeping Angel” somehow works with this scene. As Damone wrestles with his conscience, he glances at two iconic rock images: Annie Liebowitz’ portrait of Pete Townshend, head in bloody hand, and the cover of Elvis Costello’s <em>Trust </em>. Though Nicks is no Townshend or Costello, somehow they all mesh for this moment of onscreen pathos.<br /><br /><strong>5. “La Marseillaise” - Patrons at Rick's Café Americain, in <em>Casablanca</em></strong><br /><br />As Nazi officers start singing a Third Reich song in Rick’s Café Americain, fugitive Resistance leader Victor Laszlo instructs the band to play the French national anthem. Rick (Bogie, elegant in a white dinner jacket) nods OK, and Laszlo leads the band in a stirring rendition, the whole club joining in to drown out the fascists. This scene is a testament to peoples’ longing for freedom and democracy, in stark contrast to Bush’s hollow pronouncements, and it brings a tear to my eye every time. They don’t make movies like this anymore.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_iYbEPZVVIA"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_iYbEPZVVIA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>6. “Purple Rain” – Prince and the Revolution, in <em>Purple Rain</em></strong><br /><br />The hilarious conceit in this film is that "The Kid"'s live show was ever considered sub-par by the club owner at all, considering that Prince Rogers Nelson was, and remains, the top live act in the world. "Purple Rain" is simply the greatest ballad in rock history, and here we get it performed live, at the height of Prince’s powers; “Stairway to Heaven”, “Bridge Over Troubled Waters”, “Hey Jude”, and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” pale in comparison. Prince wins over his nemesis Morris Day and the club owner, and wins back Apollonia, while getting the rest of the motley '80s Minneapolis audience to raise their hands. He also finally gives Wendy and Lisa their props for coming up with the opening guitar chords, and he pays tribute to his troubled and talented father, a composer who’d recently committed suicide. <br /><br />Prince never wanted to be our weekend lover; after he topped the film, album and singles charts, we loved him every day of the week.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kasbx9bAY_4"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/kasbx9bAY_4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>7. “God Only Knows” – The Beach Boys, in <em>Boogie Nights</em></strong><br /><br />One of pop music’s great love songs comes at a time in the film when Don Cheadle’s Buck and his fellow porn-industry workers are moving on with their lives, starting businesses and families, and pursuing their non-porn-industry dreams. The Beach Boys lend an air of sweetness and light to the otherwise seedy world of San Fernando Valley adult entertainment.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/j4GXVu7YV9Y"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/j4GXVu7YV9Y" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>8. “Hallelujah” – Jeff Buckley, in <em>The West Wing</em>, Season 3, Episode 21 (“Posse Comitatus”)</strong><br /><br />C.J. Craig and Mark Harmon’s Secret Service agent have started a love affair, but he’s gunned down during an off-duty attempt to thwart a convenience-store armed robbery. Jeff Buckley’s sublime Leonard Cohen cover provides the proper air of sadness and solemnity to C.J.’s shock and grief at hearing the news of his death.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4wGxG3gT2Gg"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4wGxG3gT2Gg" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>9. “It Was a Very Good Year” – Frank Sinatra, in <em>The Sopranos</em>, Season 2, Episode 1 (“Guy Walks Into a Psychiatrist’s Office”)</strong><br /><br />This elegiac, classy Sinatra tune (my favorite in Frank’s catalog) is perfect for a great recap of Season 1. We see what the New Jersey and New York families have been up to, in their business and personal affairs, and The Voice lends Old World elegance to the proceedings.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GmsP_cSpNK4"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GmsP_cSpNK4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>10. “Duettino: [‘Sull’aria…’] – ‘Che soave zeffiretto’” – Deutschen Oper Berlin, in <em>The Shawshank Redemption</em></strong><br /><br /><em>Shawshank </em>falls into a category I call “Quality Feel-Good Movies” (see also <em>Good Will Hunting</em> and <em>High Fidelity</em>). Tim Robbins’ character, having ingratiated himself to the prison warden and gained access to his office, decides to commandeer the prison stereo and crank this angelic aria from Mozart’s <em>Le Nozze Di Figaro</em> (The Marriage of Figaro) so that all the savage beasts can be soothed, even if only for a few moments. It’s a simple scene, with close-ups of inmates being taken to some better place as they fall under the duet’s spell; but once again, as with all of the scenes in this list, the sum of the music and the visuals is greater than the individual parts. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GAJ2skOJvdY"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GAJ2skOJvdY" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><strong>HONORABLE MENTIONS:</strong> <br />"When I Fall In Love With You (It Will Be Forever)" - Stevie Wonder (<em>High Fidelity</em>)<br />"I Melt With You" - Modern English and "A Million Miles Away" - The Plimsouls (<em>Valley Girl</em>)<br />"Fight the Power" - Public Enemy (<em>Do the Right Thing</em>)<br />"Head Over Heels" - Tears For Fears (<em>Donnie Darko</em>)<br />"Just Like Honey" - The Jesus and Mary Chain (<em>Lost in Translation</em>)<br />"Try a Little Tenderness" - Otis Redding (<em>Pretty in Pink</em>)<br />"A Perfect Day" - Lou Reed and "Born Slippy" - Underworld (<em>Trainspotting</em>)<br />"I'm Going Home" - Tim Curry (<em>The Rocky Horror Picture Show</em>)<br />"In Spite of Me" - Morphine (<em>Spanking the Monkey</em>)<br />"Living For the City" - Stevie Wonder (<em>Jungle Fever</em>)Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-30208774604632870332007-04-24T23:19:00.000-07:002007-04-25T15:09:48.137-07:00Wisdom From a College NotebookBecause of my obsession with recycling and conserving resources, I have a stockpile of scratch paper, much of it consisting of half-used notebooks from my college years.<br /><br />While using one specimen, which carbon dating revealed to be about 12 years old, I came across an unexpected gem. Amongst the random names and phone numbers of long-forgotten classmates with whom I must have collaborated on English and Opera Appreciation (!) projects (Graham, Ann, Angie, Jared, Bobbie, and Angela, I hardly knew ye!), opera references ("La Boeheme", Benjamin Britten's "Peter Grimes" and Alfredo Catalani's "La Wally"), dates and places, and a reminder that a paper was due on Nov. 18th (before Thanksgiving Break, for English 370, which was held in HU349), I found this amazing quote, which I had carefully written out:<br /><br /><strong>"My dancing, my drinking, and singing weave me the mat on which my soul will sleep in the world of spirits"<br /><br />- Old Man of Halmahera, Indonesia</strong><br /><br />I have no idea where I heard this, but I can understand why I took the time to write it in my notebook. What a fantastic sentiment. "Life is short" has been bandied about to the point of cliche', but it's all too true. I shall put this quote up in my computer room, giving the wise Old Man of Halmahera, Indonesia full credit, of course.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-11502530198925815412007-04-08T20:20:00.001-07:002007-04-08T20:20:56.084-07:00Why Does Adam Ant Look Like Darth Maul?<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5q13KiOH6HM"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5q13KiOH6HM" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-66177996857497398272007-04-03T09:46:00.000-07:002007-04-08T12:20:36.039-07:00"Like a normal outdoor market in Indiana in the summertime"Does going to a normal outdoor market in Indiana in the summertime require a security detail consisting of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/03/world/middleeast/03mccain.html?_r=1&hp=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1175621174-SFTL/+ZrzfIaSHxm+SuPKg"target="_blank">a company of soldiers in armored Humvees, and attack helicopters circling overhead</a>?<br /><br />Does John McCain, the so-called "maverick", "straight-talking", "independent" Republican presidential candidate, honestly believe that things are improving in Iraq? Or is this happy talk a necessary part of his all-or-nothing presidential strategy to support the Iraq War no matter what, facts on the ground be damned? Did Saint McCain actually talk to the beleaguered Iraqi merchants quoted in this piece? If so, did he hear what they were saying? <br /><br />Whether he suffers from a bad case of Beltway myopia or just plain senility, John McCain will never be president, barring another Supreme Court-facilitated coup d'état. They say we should never say never, but I'm saying never. <br /><br />What about Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney? <br /><br />This should kill Rudy's chances with puritanical America:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4IrE6FMpai8"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4IrE6FMpai8" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br />As far as Romney is concerned, many of the same folks who frown upon cross-dressing also think Mormonism is a cult rather than a Protestant denomination. Ergo, no Republican can win the presidency in 2008.<br /><br />You read it here at Secret Hug Pro.Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-83281602784472041262007-03-27T22:35:00.000-07:002007-03-27T23:16:39.210-07:00My Top 10 Sad Songs (in alphabetical order)<strong>1. "Why Won't You Stay" - American Music Club</strong><br />Mark Eitzel, doing what he does best: laying his soul bare and making you feel his pain.<br /><br /><strong>2. "St. Swithin's Day" - Billy Bragg</strong><br /><em>Thanks all the same</em><br /><em>But I just can't bring myself to answer your letters</em><br /><em>It's not your fault</em><br /><em>But your honesty touches me like a fire</em><br /><em>The Polaroids that hold us together</em><br /><em>Will surely fade away</em><br /><em>Like the love that we spoke of forever</em><br /><em>On St. Swithin's Day</em><br /><br /><strong>3. "If You See Her, Say Hello" - Bob Dylan</strong><br /><em>And though our separation</em><br /><em>It pierced me to the heart</em><br /><em>She still lives inside of me</em><br /><em>We've never been apart</em><br /><br /><strong>4. "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You" - Colin Hay</strong><br />The former Men at Work frontman proves he's no '80s has-been with this lovely ballad (props to Zach Braff for including it in <em>Garden State</em>)<br /><br /><strong>5. "Crawling" - Cheri Knight</strong><br />Knight is a criminally-overlooked country/folk singer from Massachusetts. Her second and final album, 1998's <em>The Northeast Kingdom</em>, is a masterpiece. This track is a duet with the Goddess of Duets, Emmylou Harris, and if you're not crying in your beer by the end, you probably have some emotional blockage.<br /><br /><strong>6. "How to Say Goodbye" - The Magnetic Fields</strong><br /><em>I'm overjoyed to hear about your wedding</em><br /><em>I'm writing you to wish you every blessing</em><br /><em>I'm overjoyed to hear about your wedding</em><br /><em>I'm writing you to wish you every blessing</em><br /><em>And I'm so happy I could cry</em><br /><em>Oh baby, you know how to say goodbye</em><br /><br /><strong>7. "River" - Joni Mitchell</strong><br /><em>I'm so hard to handle</em><br /><em>I'm selfish and I'm sad</em><br /><em>Now I've gone and lost the best baby</em><br /><em>That I ever had</em><br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>8. "Walking On a Wire" - Richard and Linda Thompson</strong><br /><em>I wish I could please you tonight</em><br /><em>By my medicine just won't come out right</em><br /><br /><strong>9. "16 Days" - Whiskeytown</strong><br /><em>I got 16 days</em><br /><em>15 and those are nights</em><br /><em>Can't sleep when the bedsheet fights</em><br /><em>Its way back to your side</em><br /><em></em><br /><strong>10. "One By One" - Wilco </strong><br /><em>One by one my hair is turning grey</em><br /><em>One by one my dreams are fading fast away</em><br /><em>One by one I read your letters over</em><br /><em>One by one I lay them all away</em>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-56280335813730916032007-03-21T23:22:00.000-07:002007-03-22T09:14:40.246-07:00"Never be frightened at your own faint-heartedness in attaining love."<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHUhCJvr4JQWNEYKcyCiuCJS7994TQQtqTou74vTiqGMP5AoPAxxkKHvLLTWbNFFfk-S6e2BHYXLgJHftDj-dY4a3wQwKBJavFUbWdl7h7nhqUPaDvnUEJ-33GhflXcXGbmgvjCeXPqac/s1600-h/t18450muvx0.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5044631883895873682" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHUhCJvr4JQWNEYKcyCiuCJS7994TQQtqTou74vTiqGMP5AoPAxxkKHvLLTWbNFFfk-S6e2BHYXLgJHftDj-dY4a3wQwKBJavFUbWdl7h7nhqUPaDvnUEJ-33GhflXcXGbmgvjCeXPqac/s320/t18450muvx0.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>“…I believe that you are sincere and good at heart. If you do not attain happiness, always remember that you are on the right road, and try not to leave it. Above all, avoid falsehood, every kind of falsehood, especially falseness to yourself. Watch over your own deceitfulness and look into it every hour, every minute. Avoid being scornful, both to others and to yourself. What seems to you bad within you will grow purer from the very fact of your observing it in yourself. Avoid fear, too, though fear is only the consequence of every sort of falsehood. Never be frightened at your own faint-heartedness in attaining love. Don’t be frightened overmuch even at your evil actions. I am sorry I can say nothing more consoling to you, for love in action is a harsh and dreadful thing compared with love in dreams. Love in dreams is greedy for immediate action, rapidly performed and in the sight of all. Men will even give their lives if only the ordeal does not last long but is soon over, with all looking on and applauding as though on the stage. But active love is labour and fortitude…”<br /><br />Fyodor Dostoevsky, “The Brothers Karamazov” (which I still need to finish after a long hiatus)<br /><br />Thus begins Hal Hartley’s short yet powerful 1991 film <em>Surviving Desire</em>, which I just re-watched. One of Hartley’s great strengths is unconventional screenwriting. Dialogue which initially seems like nothing more than pretentious literary references and psychobabble from the mouths of bored, disaffected slackers, bohemians and grad students slowly but surely gets under one’s skin and wields significant emotional power.<br /><br />In addition to utilizing characters as vessels for interesting passages from classical literature, as with the Dostoevsky quote above, Hartley’s characters engage in circular, repetitive exchanges, or simply repeat fragments of dialogue a number of times, giving the viewer license to interpret its meaning on multiple levels. For instance, a couple of times in the film, Sophie, a bookstore clerk, stands in the middle of the store, surrounded by customers walking by and ignoring her repeated, timid attempts at service: “Can I help someone? Does anyone need any assistance? Does anyone need any help?” Like the conversations on continuous loop, her attempts to reach out, consistently rebuffed, speak to a larger truth, namely how difficult it is to connect with, and truly know, other people.<br /><br />Hartley returns to the themes of loneliness and isolation again and again in his films (see also <em>Trust</em> and <em>Simple Men</em>); yet one is left with an odd sense of hope at the end of each. His characters, despite their preternatural awareness of their own short-comings and the absurdity of life, continue striving to connect with others, unfrightened at their own faint-heartedness in attaining love. Ultimately, Hartley is a humanist, and he clearly cares for his neurotic characters, who survive desire and thus give us hope as we bumble through our own lives and relationships in search of human connections and understanding. </div>Secret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8769860004782444914.post-29024377889503668032007-03-20T16:36:00.000-07:002007-05-13T18:54:41.441-07:00Please allow me to introduce myself...Hi there,<br /><br />I've finally started my own blog, in an effort to distinguish myself from the masses. My newly-acquired uniqueness brings to mind this bit from Steve Martin's brilliant 1978 album, <a href="http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:osrx281t058a">A Wild and Crazy Guy</a>:<br /><br />"Now let's repeat the non-conformists' oath: I promise to be different! (audience repeats) I promise to be unique! (audience repeats) I promise not to repeat things other people say! (audience laughs, repeats) Good!"<br /><br />I look forward to weighing in on a variety of subjects, news reports, polls, films, trends, and all manner of pop-cultural flotsam and jetsam. I hope you will weigh in as well, via the comments field.<br /><br />Finally, I want to give a shout-out to my friends and intrepid blog pioneers: <a href="http://pbrchicken.blogspot.com/">PBR Chicken</a>, <a href="http://anacoluthic.blogspot.com/">Non_Seq</a>, <a href="http://binulatti.blogspot.com/">Binulatti</a>, and <a href="http://westeringhills.weblogged.net/">The Westering Hills</a>. Check out their blogs.<br /><br />SHPSecret Hug Prohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01029710453213138279noreply@blogger.com4