Nov

30

Half marathon.

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My lovely wife completed her first half marathon today in Seattle. So proud!

Nov

29

Curse of competence.

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Based upon what D tells me about her job, the following Dilbert strip stuck in my head a couple of months ago. Anyone know whether Scott Adams allows particular strips to be put on coffee mugs or the like?

Dilbert.com

Nov

29

Redwall vs. Watership Down.

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Rereading Redwall. Back cover suggests Brian Jacques book is “[i]n the glorious tradition of Watership Down,” which I finished rereading a few days ago. And while I find Redwall quite exciting, and in many respects similar to Watership in plot structure, the books are vastly different in one important respect: Redwall makes no efforts to have even a modicum of naturalist authenticity. That fact doesn’t bug me by itself. I also am a fan of Alice in Wonderland and the Lord of the Rings, all of which have “animals” acting very much like humans without any sort of explanation. But there’s something about the way people speak of Redwall that irritates me. Those people just don’t seem to be bothered by the “how did this castle or road get built?” “why is there a hay-filled cart hitched to that horse?” and “who milked the goat?” sort of questions. But I am. Because Jacques clearly seems to be trying for something that’s not at all in the “different universe” milieu of Narnia, nor the “animals in waistcoats” tradition of The Wind and the Willows, and straddles the A Bug’s Life-sort of environment (where every nod to human-centric technology has at least some sort of origin explanation) and the 101 Dalmatians conceit that animals faithfully act like animals, with a quasi-human emotion overlay. But it doesn’t straddle it successfully.

What would I prefer? Either that Jacques embrace the realism or embrace the fantasy. But as it is, I’m left frustrated by certain details.

Nov

27

Marshall vs. Maureen (Tucker).

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I never made this connection before, but The Velvet Underground’s “Oh! Sweet Nuthin’” was remade to great effect by The Marshall Tucker Band as “Can’t You See.” Also, Velvets drummer Maureen Tucker supposedly quit the business to focus on her family in 1971, while The Marshall Tucker Band–notable for not having any members named Marshall Tucker–formed in 1972. Coincidence?

Nov

27

Sage.

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I’m reasonably certain I’ve discovered why I never cared for traditional Thanksgiving stuffing, even in its unstuffed vegetarian side dish form. That reason is sage. I simply don’t care for it, and it appears to be the defining spice of most stuffings, even with all their variety. At least according to most recipes I’ve come across in my search to make the Thanksgiving meal now in preparation a little more palatable. Even recipes that don’t appear to be saged at first glance end up having “poultry seasoning,” which usually contains sage.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Nov

25

Meg and Maureen.

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Resolved: if it weren’t for the inspiring results when Maureen Tucker came from behind the drum kit to sing on “After Hours,” there never would have been Meg White’s glorious vocals on “In the Cold, Cold Night.”

How about you take “con”?

Nov

24

Tamil Tigers.

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I’m pretty sure the Tamil Tigers, a group of millitant separatists in the island nation of Sri Lanka, have less support in the English-speaking world because their name sounds hokey and harmless. You’d think combining a dangerous predator with the name of the language and culture that defines the separatists would work out to evoke seriousness and fear. But instead, it sort of reminds me of a minor league baseball mascot. Rather than capture something like “Palestinian Scorpions” or “Basque Hawks,” “Tamil Tigers” seems reminiscent of Rhubarb the Reindeer. Perhaps it’s the alliteration. Perhaps it’s that for all their strength and carnivorous power, tigers are a little too cuddly, pretty, and endangered to take seriously. Not really sure why. But the Tamil Tigers may want to think of a different mascot. A mongoose perhaps?

Nov

23

Dan Emery.

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Apparently aperock.com is owned by some schlub in Sunnyvale, California. Otherwise I would totally set up a totally rad Dan Emery Mystery Band fansite.

Nov

23

Civics test.

Filed Under Politics | 2 Comments

Apparently, when elected officials take this civics test provided by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, they score slightly worse than ordinary citizens. Should I be more appalled that ordinary citizens get 49% right, or that elected officials get 44%, or that I wasn’t able to get a perfect score? [I got three out of thirty-three wrong, for a 90.91% score--I forgot what subject the Lincoln-Douglass debates concerned, what a "public good" is, and, stupidly, the final question tripped me up with its phrasing.] I’m going with the elected officials number. How about you? What’s your score, and what number do you find of most concern?

Nov

23

Entwistle.

Filed Under Music | 1 Comment

Just listening to “Whiskey Man,” from The Who’s Quick One (Happy Jack). Incredible how much John Entwistle’s sonic style from this song reappears in later works, like Tommy. Go ahead: listen to “Whiskey Man” and Tommy’s Overture back-to-back. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

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