Saturday 30 November 2002

Aaron Haspel criticizes two old Christmas chestnuts in a recent post. Which brings me to The Miracle on 34th Street, a movie in which all the little acts of self-interest accumulate into a redemptive act of faith. It is the most cynical and idealistic movie on Christmas I can think of. It reminds me of the concept of “the city of perfect justice,” a recurring theme in Winter’s Tale by Mark Helprin, a book Aaron probably wouldn’t like because of all the fantastical elements therein, but whose Helprinesque philosophy would draw him in. The idea is that all the little acts of enlightened self-interest add up, piece by piece, to a perfectly just system. Not perfectly good, nor evil beyond compare, but just. 10:57:59 PM    comment []

Okay, in the last few hours the site has been hammered with Billy Collins “Lanyard” searches. I suppose he appeared at some reading somewhere today, someplace big and Google-savvy. There is no transcription of or link to “The Lanyard” here! If you want him, I believe he is bookable through his management (?) at BigSnap. They have not put “The Lanyard” up, either, as far as I can tell, but you can get a load of his stuff there. [updates: Bill, a wandering passer-by, has clued me in on the Billy Collins storm. It seems I have Garrison Keillor to thank for the referer storm. Welcome, Prairie Home Companion listeners! I am sorry I cannot help if you are looking for the text of the poem. Some quick links to an Ed Hirsch anecdote concerning the composition of “The Lanyard” and to the description of the Sunday night he read “The Lanyard” at the 2002 Dodge Poetry Festival.] 10:05:24 PM    comment []

Quick! Does this tickle anyone’s memory? A younker is a.... To wuzzle is to.... A baloo is a.... Those are the ones I remember. Anyone else? Google Sets doesn’t know them. 9:50:31 PM    comment []

Sasha and Ian, sitting in Kloe, K-I-S-S-I-N-G [adapted from NewsRadio] Jimmy James: I’m getting married. Dave: Congratulations. Who’s the lucky woman? JJ: I don’t know yet. Check this. I have a list of 36 marriageable women who meet my criteria of womanly virtues. Catherine: You have a list? That’s the most degrading thing I’ve ever heard. [stomps off] JJ: Check this. I have a list of 35 women. Lisa Miller: By the way, Sasha Castel, la Blogatrice and danger girl extraordinaire, is getting married to Andrew Ian Dodge, a prominent London blogger. Dave: Let’s lead off with that on the afternoon segment JJ: [beat] A list of 34 women who meet my criteria. 8:51:23 PM    comment []

categories: Hostage to Crap

I bought Concrete Blonde’s Group Therapy today. Which reminds me, Ron Echeverri on the sidebar there taught me Unix the old fashioned way. I would sit and watch and bug him with inane questions. Then when I started trying stuff, he would look over my shoulder and tell me how to do it better. Actually there were a whole bunch of people who did that, but I don’t have their blogs. David Rivera (?). Eugene Hsu. These were the people who eventually got me so comfortable with Unix that I fell into the depraved practice called MUDding. From there, things went downhill. But, um, Johnette Napolitano. Right! Concrete Blonde was the first CD I picked up when I first started picking up CDs. I mentioned this fact to Ron Echeverri, who threatened to kick my ass if they did not rock. He grudgingly averred that they didn’t completely suck. 2:35:52 AM    comment []