I need advice!!!

Please, please let me know what you think I should do.

I have an idea for a blog entry that compares and contrasts my brother to a major political figure. My thoughts are on race, class, and educational and economic achievement.

Is this exploitative to use my brother as a pawn for my political point of view?

Seize the Day - the Bell May Toll for You

Yesterday while I was on my way to work the bus passed an apartment building with yellow police tape around it. I glanced out of the window and saw a heavy body bag being put onto a gurney. My heart thudded. Someone right here died, not long ago, in some bad or mysterious way. What was I doing at the time, living life normally, casually, taking life for granted at the time when someone was in fear?

Later in the day, I checked the website of the Chicago Tribune and found out that a 46 year old man who had lived in a studio apartment for 10 years fell, or was pushed from his 10th story window, and was found dead at about 6 a.m.

My point in writing this is not to be morbid. Perhaps my point is trite: Carpe Diem. I found that yesterday was one of the most productive days I've had at work in ages. I was busy, happy, engaged. And in the back of my mind was this awareness of death, of the finite time we have on this plane. Even at that, our time may be much shorter than we think. So, live! Find the work that you are meant to do, whether that is teaching or cooking or parenting or being the best account manager you can possibly be.

You know you're in Hyde Park when....

So, I was walking down the street and noticed a small, bright yellow Mazda parked nearby. It had a University of Chicago license plate holder and a bumper sticker that said, (I kid you not):

My other vehicle is the Mahayana.

(Am I just as nerdy, because I get it?)

Just when you thought news of our war effort couldn't get any worse....

Check out this article - soldiers who have returned from Iraq are suddenly getting bills for equipment that they supposedly damaged while they were on active duty.
What???
We're making them pay for the truck they were in while they were being bombed or shot at???

Ratatouille & Compact Florescent Bulbs

I came across this very nice little cartoon that I would like all of you to watch. I am an energy/environment conscious person, but those of you who know me, know that this is as preachy as I will get. Let your children watch this as well.
Also, has anyone seen the movie, Ratatouille? I know it's been out a while, already. I want to see it.

South Park Movie - Blame Canada

My friend Jay sent this to me this afternoon. It's one of my favorites, reminding us all that the easiest thing to do is find a scapegoat. No need for rationality, just pick the closest person/cause/group that's different from your own.

The Taste of Summer

I can't wait until the farmers' markets open every summer so that I can make Gazpacho. It tastes like summer to me, and for a few months in the spring, I start yearning for it. The key, of course, it home-grown, yummy, tasty, ripe tomatoes. (I woke up this morning with a hankering for it and was so happy to find half a pitcher of it left over from yesterday.) You are sure to get your entire day's quota of vegetables, fiber, vitamins, etc.

5-6 luscious tomatoes (red is the standard, but try orange or yellow for beautiful variety)
1 small onion
2-3 cloves garlic (even garlic lovers should not go over-board; raw garlic is awfully powerful)
1/2 cucumber
1 sweet red bell pepper
4-5 good pinches of salt
1 handful of bread crumbs (plain is best, and this is optional)
1/4 cup of vinegar (not balsamic, but plain old wine vinegar or cider vinegar, whatever is around)

Chop everything coarsely, throw it in a blender, blend. I like it pretty smooth, but you can leave it a bit chunkier if you like. Don't be afraid to add a little water if it needs it. Chill, or if you don't have time for that, throw a few ice cubes in before you blend. Pour it into glasses, bowls, or drink straight from the blender, like I do. Garnish with a few reserved minced veggies, if you like. It's even better after a few hours, or the next day, when the flavors have had a chance to marry.

Race to Mackinac 2007

The race starts off tomorrow around noon. Anyone who's local to Chicago should come down to the lakefront to watch the race start - it's beautiful. It's supposed to be windy, but clear this weekend, so the race will be a fast one but not stormy.
Here's the website for the race. I'm not racing, but the boat I crew on, Dos Aguilas, will be out there. Click here, then Boat Selector - J105 - Dos Aguilas to track their progress through the weekend.

iPhone in a Blender

This is post-modern, self-referential and funny all at the same time (a rare combination). It's an iPhone in a blender:

http://www.willitblend.com/videos.aspx?type=unsafe&video=iphone

(It took a little while for this to load on my machine for some reason, so please be patient. It's worth it.)

Where are your resources going? Children? or Cars?

Here's another great, thought-provoking article I found in the Globalist, about designing cities for people, not for cars. It suggests rating the livability of cities on the ratio of parks to parking lots. It notes that funding for roads, which is public space for cars, are often given priority over parks, which is public space for children.

Declaration of Energy Independence

I found this interesting article, re-wording the Declaration of Independence to discuss Energy Independence. As long as they were monkeying with it, you'd think they could have replaced "Men" with "People", but sexism aside, it's an interesting read:

http://www.theglobalist.com/DBWeb/StoryId.aspx?StoryId=2346

Failed States

What do Haiti, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Burma all have in common?

They're all rated as more stable than Iraq by Foreign Policy's Failed States Index. The only country that was worse was Sudan.

Failed states are the foremost global security risk. They are breeding grounds for civil strife, terrorism and extremist ideologies. Iraq was certainly not a great place before we invaded, but it wasn't as bad as it is now.

I'm so glad W decided to start this war to make me safer.

Chad - On the Electric Violin

My multi-talented friend Chad Gifford, who plays the meanest electric violin I've ever heard, has joined forces with Dick Prall to play some mighty fine music. I heard them play a small show at Uncommon Ground on Sunday night. It was fantastic. Check out his website, check out the music. Chad's not actually playing on Dick's current CD, but will be on the next one.

Iranian Underground Music

I saw a very interesting movie with my friend Nora last night. It was called Sounds of Silence and was presented by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, one of my favorite organizations. The film-maker is of Iranian background, but grew up in Europe and was covering the censorship and repression felt by non-traditional musicians in Iran. He interviewed hip-hop, rock and pop artists as well as a journalist who had organized an underground, on-line only music festival.

Because of the limitations placed on the lyrics, music, and appearance of the artists by Ershad, the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, the musicians told stories of shows cancelled and of not being able to record and publish their music. Many of them spoke of distributing their music via the web. Generally, they couldn't sell their music and make money from it, but at least it was being heard by audiences larger than what could fit in the living room.

Amir Hamz, the filmmaker, mentioned he'd been talking to CNN and also had a distributor signed on, so keep your eyes open for it.

Slaughterhouse Five or Do We Have Free Will?

I've just finished reading Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. Has anyone else out there read it? Can you explain it to me?

It was interesting on a number of fronts:

• Definitely not a front-to-back narrative. When the narrator dies, he simply continues narrating the book. You hardly even notice.
• Calling WWII the Children's Crusade resonates with our current conflict. When I see lists of the dead, 95% of them are far younger than I am.
• It questions the existance of Free Will. Aliens teach the narrator that all of time is already laid out and visible, if you know how to see it. In fact, in the entire novel, the protagonist seems to make only 1 decision, to marry a woman no one else wants to marry. Everything else in his life seems to be a matter of being in the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time and being accepting of what happens.

I am a free-will/personal-responsibility sort of person myself. Maybe it's a matter of wanting to feel in control, or of not being cut of from opportunity. Thoughts? I'd love to hear....

Everyone can be Jackson Pollack

I found this website, and it's lots of fun for wasting time. The paint will change color when you click your mouse:

http://www.jacksonpollock.org/

"Doubt is a Virtue"

There's a great piece on Salon.com today about JFK's belief that Doubt is a virtue, and how our current administration and political culture could use a bit more mature doubt and less swagger and blind self-assurance.

http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2007/06/11/doubt/index.html

Northern Michigan (or what I did on my vacation)

For the Memorial Day weekend, my mother and I went to northern Michigan, which is where she spent summers as a child. Here are some pictures.

Trillium

A view through the trees to Lake Michigan

A Beach at Wilderness State Park

Same Beach

Flowers at Wilderness State Park

Simple Pleasures

Here are a list of the things I'm thinking about today that make me smile:

• Dinner with old friends
• A kiss from my 2 year-old god-son
• My fountain pen
• The smell of a BBQ, even if it's someone else's
• The rhubarb pie I made on Sunday
• Eating it out on the fire-escape looking at the clouds
• Taking a nap with the cat
  

Summer

Ah, summer is here. Tonight is the first sailing race of the season. The temperature is warm: 84 F right now. It's windy, so the race should be fast. I've dug around for my sailing shoes, dormant in the back of the closet since October. I've found my contact lenses and I'm trying to remember sailing lingo.

I am sure that with the crack crew, including me, Dos Aguilas will triumph!

Know thyself

Oscar Wilde has a way with words:

Only the shallow know themselves.

Lies, Damned Lies & Statistics?

Here's a quote by Winston Churchill that I'd never seen before:

The only statistcs you can trust are those you falsified yourself.

Roman Tunisia - Bardo Museum

The Tunis suburb of Bardo is home to the extraordinary Bardo Museum, which houses an enormous collection of mosaics from about the 2nd to the 4th century, spanning the Roman period into the Christian period.


Check out the expression, the individuality, the movement of this face. How do they do that in stone? Incredible.


This is a river god, again with great liveliness and movement.


I took a picture of this because it looks like an alien, and we thought George's son would like it. Apparently, it is a symbol of fertility and prosperity and was common near the entrance of a home to bring good luck.

2 men, 2 grocery carts, 1 television

So, I was having a coffee and croissant with my mother this morning at a cafe in Greektown. My mother looked out the window and said, there are 2 guys with grocery carts and a TV walking down the sidewalk. They were just slowly strolling down the street, occasionally stopping to discuss which direction they should go.

We thought it would make a good opening to a surrealist vignette, or would it make the central plot line of a short story. The question is, what would the back-story be? What were these guys doing?

Carthage

Over the next few days, I'm going to tell you a bit about Tunisia. I just returned from about four days there, and I'll start from the beginning - Carthage. It was founded by the Phoenicians in the 3rd century BC and became a rival of Rome, resulting in the Punic Wars (remember Hannibal taking elephants over the Alps?)

After the 3rd of the Punic Wars, Carthage was completely destroyed. The Romans even sowed the soil with salt to make sure no one could live and farm there - pretty spiteful. Here are a few pictures of what is left of Carthage.

Architectural remnants

A very lovely capital

The Punic Ports - this was the port used by Carthage, the mighty seafaring, trading culture used this itty-bitty bit of water as their port. I guess things were on a different scale back then.