The Grammys and Crippled Chicken Farming While Reading Sunday's NY Times...Livin' in the Future and None of This Has Happened Yet....

I know, I know...where's she been? I don't know, I say, as I look through the unfinished drafts of the past couple of lousy weeks of school meetings and a sick, paralyzed chicken.... and just feeling overwhelmed by the political climate and the climate of my life which seem to meld like the mud and relentless rain that makes us run to the window at the sight of flurries, wondering what happened to our snowy winters? Is the end nigh?

All craziness aside, if i don't get something down about whats going on, I find that thoughts upon thoughts run round in my head, so maybe its better to just spit out a little something, rather than waiting for the time to get it all down here....and maybe its just a little shorter...maybe...just a little...

So, sitting here watching the Grammy's and with my fingers crossed for a positive outcome from the meeting(s) this week between the Writer's Guild and the Producers; the hope for 24 with Janeane Garafolo as an investigator looking into the actions of Jack Bauer, and, no doubt, swept up into the action of the world of 24; or I hope so anyway. Janeane is my favorite action hero!

The Grammy's show sucks, and maybe thats because a large percentage of the new talent out there sucks...and the snippets of a nod they give to what might be a real part of the canon of American Music are just not enough...for whatever thats worth anymore; like, if you were still proud to be an American and wanting to promote our culture. Funny how the Band, Canadians and one American, and the Beatles, represented by Ringo Star of the new smash non-hit, Liverpool 8, an oddly horrible song, and by Yoko Ono in a white top hat....where is Paul? Ah, I don't know/don't care about the most eligible batch in the world....and the Cirque du Soliel doing a pretty fantastic dance number out of the over pimped legacy (THERE! I used it!!) Are John and George looking down on this and smiling or just out there in the nothingness realizing how meaningless that anything of beauty that we've created is in the face of the real power in this world? Still, the bright point is really this Cirque strangeness set to Beatles music.

Oh, and the writers are pretty damned right in their demands, and absolutely correct to hang in there and disrupt the prime times of the lazy American couch people until the greedy producers give in.

Being a big MSNBC watcher, I've got to say that I'm pretty disgusted by whats been going down over there regarding the bad boyz club and their mysogynistic bullshit that is actively thrust upon us daily by the usual suspects, and the parade of the same old horrible pundits. Thats why I find it sort of disingenuous that the suits over there decided to suspend one of the better and more intellectual members of the reporting staff, for saying the word "Pimp" in regard to what Hillary Clinton has done with her daughter. Its a crappy, knee-jerk and overly PC reaction to a few letters written about someone who never ever says that kind of stuff. As opposed to the long history of abuse by Joe Scarborough and Tweet Matthews, I'm aghast that the management felt that Schuster was the right vehicle for whatever repositioning they are attempting. I wrote to them, and I would suggest that anyone else who has a position on this do the same.

I couldn't concentrate much on the morning shows today, except to re-register that the republicans hate McCain; and more power to them and him. I'm feeling confused by what we've been left with on our side. It isn't working very well for me, though I did vote for Obama. I just don't feel represented and I still cant figure out why Edwards backed out so soon. I hope that it becomes clear as time goes on because I just cant imagine that we can possibly go into what comes next without his values and vision. For Christ's sake, people are suffering, and we have to get some money back into the education system.
Oh, so many other things too, I know...but from the get go, the system in this country seems stacked, like a wall over which the poor can't see, to even know what it is they could have or what they might want to strive for...This is a blindness that is meant to keep the underclass permanent, regardless of the wasted talent and dreams that are left there...That, to me, is un-American. Aren't we all supposed to have some value?

Today, I went through the Sunday papers and, as usual, pulled out a few things to read in paper form rather than online. There is something about the Sunday New York Times and how it feels in your hand...the smudge of it, the smell of it.

The book review this week is a political issue, and between the candidates, partisans, and the wars, is a piece on African American Identity Politics, which reviews the book Sellout, by Randall Kelly, and the book A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited About Obama and Why he Cant Win, by Shelby Steele. They both seem to cover the difficulties faced by black people who either break out from the popular African American culture, or are not considered to be "black enough." Both raise some legitimate questions that are really timely but, according to the reviewer fall short in heavy handed, overwrought prose, and the authors also being somewhat self centered in their assessment of their subjects. I expect the market to be flooded with this sort of material before long. Honestly, I'm not surprised to see this so soon...and I hope that we see some deeper insight than the "who's to blame?" argument about the African American culture not taking responsibility for itself. I am going through some of this with some kids Im helping, and in the world of no-snitching and being trapped in the community center and/or in a dangerous neighborhood vs. getting out, even a little, there is the reality of accusation of not being "black enough." I wouldn't have thought it for afar, but on the ground, its very real.

Thanks so much to travel writer, James Vlahos, for exploring "The Other Iran," in the Travel Section. If you didn't get a chance to see this, pop over and see the slide show. This is the other Iran in the sense that it is the old Persian part of Iran, but the title of the article, the content, and the slide show, beg us to look at what John McCain and possibly Hillary Clinton have their sights set on as a threat worthy of preemptive strikes. Look, Im not saying that I endorse or understand their culture...nor do I know much about the weapon issue...but I sure as hell don't trust any sort of warning coming out of this administration. I would hope that a new administration wouldn't just continue the path of the war, but restart the investigations and involve the UN in them. This is a beautiful and intricate culture that the people of Iran have obviously preserved carefully. Other parts of the country range from sophisticated cities with universities and business, to countryside. Why don't the American people get to see more of this before Iran is totally demonized as part of the Bushco oil plan?

And finally, In the Connecticut Section, is a horribly sad story about 3 brain-injured soldiers who are struggling to pull out of what seems to amount to vegetative states, and after family struggles, horrible care, testimony before a senate committee, one was able to get the VA to pay for private care. The mother then called another mother from the VA hospital to help her get her son treatment...and so it goes. Why we cant provide our soldiers with better care is a question that is probably best posed to the existing administration that ignores these guys as much as is possible without getting caught. But the story is really about the mother's sacrifices, and about the support that they give each other. The soldiers are never going to be OK and there is just so much help a rehab hospital can be in these cases. This story is about the effect of this war on entire families, and on the very foundation of our country, if we are all not included in the war effort. We have to end this thing right away, but in the meantime, maybe we can actually sacrifice beyond shopping with our tax rebate. Maybe we can reach out to those in need and send to soldiers at the hospital and abroad...and help those in need right in our own towns...people are suffering and we are all a part of this thing, even if we opposed it and even if we despise it.

I also strongly suggest the magazine section ...the whole thing, this week. Its got the Defense secretary Gates on Iraq and Iran, and the beginning of pain...as in, does pain start in the womb? Do babies feel pain? This is not only interesting to those who suffer from chronic pain, but also to anyone who has a stake in the abortion battle. If it can feel pain, is it a human life?
And then a guy who eats bugs, as part of the usual food report, and a piece on the ethics of organ donation....on to a portfolio of Oscar contenders.

OK, enough is enough. I haven't even gotten to frank Rich yet. Why is it that weeks can go by without much or much to say about the Times, and then there is a day with some really, really bright points?

Finally, for Springsteen fans, here is a song from his new record, Magic, which is really kind of fantastic, for the amount of the time Ive had to listen to it. I really like the words to this....there isn't much of a video here; just stills...Ill try to find a better cut of it. Magic really deserved the Grammy, and as of this publishing time, he hasn't won anything for it.



For Springsteen's commentary on this song see the live show cut below..."this is a song about the future, but its really about whats happening now."...I wish I had the energy to see Bruce live again...But look at that crowd; the size of that place...that used to really give me a thrill, but anymore, its just anxiety provoking. I've seen him plenty anyway...

Having a Great Time, Wish You Were Here.....Big Brother, Janeane Garafolo, Fundamentalist Christians, and 24 Hours of Sheer Torture; But, I Digress...

Here I am...vacationland, USA, and any notable news that Ive been able to pick up here is pretty blunted in that I haven't had the time to look at the TV news with the sort of depth that usually allows me to digest it and spit it out as an integral part of my own life story...is that narcissistic?
So, heaven forbidding that I ever skip the daily grind of life with me, below what I could glean of the newz from the supermarket rack and the Boston paper, is my vacationland posting of current musings on the other side of summer...for anyone who reads that far...and here, for the rest of you, are the newsy things that have struck me in the past few days. Forget hurricanes and politics, lets talk TV!

Apparently, after a terrible last season, the suits at 24 have wised up and made a cast addition that makes sense on so many levels. Yes, the rumors are true, Janeane Garafolo has been tapped to be an agent investigating Jack Bauer's latest escapade. More interesting than the casting is that there is some talk about the ever reworking storyline and how the interaction between Janeane and, executive producer, Joel Surnow, will likely add a breash of fresh air to what has become the stagnant old Bushco torture-the-terrorists plotlines of late. Hopefully, Janeane's intelligence and liberal sensibility will be apparent, even subtly, in the writing, but I'd hope also to see some onscreen debate about the very real issues that are gripping the country right now.

The country has started to turn towards the realization that the big lie that this war is built on is not just hard luck on strangers far away or fodder for a People Magazine cover story, but is hitting home, if it hadn't already, in direct full fledged hardships on all of us.
The one reliable thing about most Americans these days is that they definitely will look out for number one, so you can be sure that as this thing starts to touch more and more people directly, the numbers abandoning ship from the promise of lotto winnings and big shiny prizes of tax cuts, will grow. Maybe its petty to not look up from your National Enquirer until gas goes above $3 a gallon, but hey, whatever works. Money talks, and in America, its a very fine line between selling your rights for the empty promises of the possibility that one day YOU TOO could own this timeshare-win the lotto-be a millionaire through the power of 10, and not being able to afford that gallon of milk or a doctor's appointment.
Its time for the producers of shows like 24 to follow suit in focusing more attention on the part of Jack Bauer that wrestles with what he has done in the name of his country...what people like him are doing in real life every day in OUR names. It's a worthwhile discussion to have with an audience , considering the resounding reconsideration of who we'd like to have a beer with, as opposed to who we want to plan our wars. The big issue for me also is the huge number of vets who are returning from a war based on a lie, and who will likely, in a reversal of the bold propaganda out there about the liberals, (really the majority of the country at this point,) being anti war and anti soldier, find a welcoming public and a less than welcoming government and a system that is not prepared for the numbers of them, nor the types of problems that they will have, from brain injury to PTSD. This government is not set up for the people, and unless there is a subsidiary of Halliburton that is outsourcing veteran's administration duties, we can be sure that there will be little governmental interest in what society will do with the people who have served our country so bravely. Planning is not a big strength with this crew. At the same time, we will hopefully be seeing a resurgence of patriotic feeling for that fabled New Deal of yesterday, and a renewed interest in how we take care of our own, and who we want to be as Americans. Hell, at that point its only a hop, skip, and a jump to ethics, philosophy, decision-making, and all that other trivia that we used to try to teach our youngsters.

So, any cultural icon like Bauer who might want to last in the coming climate, will want to take a look at whats happening out there in America. And who better to usher in this new era than our pal Janeane? Controversial? yes! Intelligent and neurotic? Yes! Missed horribly by her former listeners? Yes!
In bullshit news, via E! Online, is the silly tidbit thrown in that Janeane left AAR because of a "rift" with Sam Seder, which may or may not have played a part in things, in that they squabble like brother and sister...but it seems to me that she is doing plenty in her career, and from what I could tell at the time, AAR wasn't the happiest place to work, and she herself said that what was going on in the country was pretty devastating for her. In any case she had stopped taking a salary long before she left, and was already coming and going on the West Wing There are so many reasons that I oculd cite, with Danny Goldman's management being my favorite guess...but the one I would focus the least on is some huge rift with a guy who she regularly guests with. Sheesh! It is just downright belittling to thrown that crap at the end of an article as if to say that sure people hire her and shes great, but look at how petty we heard she was back then....who and what does that serve?

Another fantastic thing...and I don't say this lightly in public...is that this season of Big Brother is the best that Ive seen maybe ever! The wild card estranged father and daughter have turned into quite a story, and the fact that the guy is a wild, tattooed, bar manager, Dick, who is not only really smart, but also a good guy underneath it all, is compelling for me, and not only because I always cheer for the tattooed lunatic in any game!
I guess that what got me is that there is a black girl in the house who is a fundamentalist Christian, (yes I am going to parlay this into something political,) and seeing how she prays and talks to her Jesus, is as eye opening as Jesus Camp (which I watched the other night and highly recommend,) in that the weeping, eye rolling, craziness, and the need to "testify" and then feign rightous indignation when Dick questions her, and finally starts to snipe at her about her Jesus failing her. Just listening to her conversations with god, are enough to illustrate how any cult could get past the predicted dates of armegeddon again and again, and then happily drink the kool-aid when all else fails. "Oh my Jesus, I guess I am not meant to understand your ways...so I will have to just trust you my Jesus, that you have another plan for me, rather than to allow me to win this million dollars and become one of those people who are benefitted by President Bush's tax cuts...oh Jesus, I trust you so, I do, I do..." (cue the tears, clench the fists, shake violently, roll around...cut!...Print!...thats a wrap!)

The ongoing gameplay by Dick, which has allowed him during some of these weeks to really take the religious element down, has been worth the price of admission in itself. Its apparent to me that Dick is a liberal guy and also that he really doesn't care to tear anyone's god down...but why does this crazy girl need to vomit her belief all over everyone? That overly agressive proselytizing is taught at the Jesus Camp....where, before Haggart was shamed out of his pulpit and the camp itself was shut down, children were groomed to be soldiers who are willing to die for Jesus; broken down and built up, along with the obligatory pounding music and terrifying dance numbers.
You see, out there somewhere, everywhere, are christian conservatives who are looking to the radical Muslims and saying, (out loud,) that if they can groom an entire generation of western hating child soldiers in Madrasas, that we'd better get on the case. This is an arms race and the nuclear weapons are humans who are willing to die for a cause. It takes alot of brainwashing to accomplish that, and obviously, its being done. There is a reason that the Left Behind series of books is the biggest seller in America...and also why the Left Behind mission went to so much trouble to make a video game aimed at children, where you choose your weapon, ride next to Jesus, and smite all the sinners left behind after the rapture. This is sick!
Thanks to the producers of Big Brother for the interesting casting choices which have given us a chance to look into some very different worlds and maybe gain a little knowledge along the way.

And on to the good stuff...not!

Greetings from the the Cape of Cod, where I've been catching a few cool overcast days and trying to not spin too far back to my childhood of hot days in the back seat of the VW bug, lost on back roads, looking for Scargo Lake Potters (where I hope to never again go...and which Mom can't seem to shut up about today,)...and how differently every one of us perceives all thats happened and the lives we've led. And then there is also what we agree on, which usually involves politics and anti organized religion sentiment; social issues, which stand in for the ingrained pain of who was or is an active alcoholic, and how exactly things went back then, driving around in the second hand VW bug in the heat, my sister and I, and Mom in her world of endless beauty and possibility, which definitely has its moments in escapism, but is not where I'm able to go these days.
So, here I am in this incredible place, where the bay tide recedes out for what seems like a mile, leaving pools of hermit crabs and little quick darty fish, before it turns on a dime and roars back in by nightfall, making a deep water beach where you could be up to your neck in dark waters unexpectedly quickly, doubting the rip tide and hearing the Jaws music in the core of your primal brain ...such is the slope of the sad; unnoticeable during the day when the flats stretch out forever, then somehow, the curve of the earth becomes apparent in the power of the tide and you could slide right under for how steep it seems.
Anyway, of course, this is a week where my William is having a terrible time, and its exhausting for me...couldn't reach the Dr. because my cell phone lost power in the night and then I somehow slept late after a pretty sleepless night; apparently too late.
Ben does not love this place the way we do, but maybe you have to do this from the time you're a little kid to ingrain it properly, and also Will has not been easy to be with (to say the least)...and I know that Ben's experience with beaches involved some long ago seeing of his father in Haiti and hating the heat, humidity, and bugs. I realized a long time ago that Ben may just be a city guy, which will be really good for him if he can end up at a college like NYU, Colombia, or Yale. I tend to automatically write those off for Will because the setting is just wrong for the kind of person he is...too much hustle and bustle and noise. But anyway, everyone is sort of born into who the are, and then slowly confirms it by how well they weather their surroundings and what they are able to get used to.

I dont know what draws me to the cool overcast days, except for the summers of my childhood which were spent on the shoulders of the season up here, when the prices drop and the tourists beat a path back to their regular lives; I see them now, tired moms with double jogger strollers and a straggling bunch of kids pushing heavy loads of beach necessities after a long day at the public beach with all the little kids...doing the summer thing with other moms and their kids, pushing that load back to the little houses up the street that are better for younger kids because one has to go much further to get in trouble on the shore. We get a place that is on the actual beach. I cant remember a time when we didnt, even when I was a little kid... I guess you takes your chances....but I feel for those tired moms of multiple toddlers who all might go and drown themselves out of curiosity, and the crushing responsibility that they share in small groups of sunburned women and their sandy kids....walking tired up the road.
Its been a long summer that has flown by so fast...and besides the issues of they day, impeachment possibilities, Big Brother, and the great fun of the Yearly Kos, I feel like I've been running ragged, and like I have to simplify if Im going to make it through this year in one piece.
So I am resting finally on day 3 of my "vacation"....as I wait for the Dr's call and contemplate the real possibility of having to bring William home tonight or tomorrow if things don't get better.
And meantime a chicken hatched...yes, don't ask...I am travelling with chicken eggs in a traveling incubator...what else would anyone expect of me? How else would I, could I plan things?

The great thing is that this location is perfect and the people who own it allowed me to bring my bird, Kitty the Jardine...which I extrapolated to be permission to being Vince, the new Indian Ringneck Parakeet...and then of course, I have the chicken eggs in the incubator which are either all gonna hatch in the next 2 days or...they smell for a reason. Its not a rotten smell, but a barnyard smell...so Im hoping to get at least a few live hatches. If not, I have 5 more chicks coming next week, so Pearl doesnt have to live alone.
















I finally downloaded my pictures from Kos onto this laptop, and there at the beginning were pics of some of the chicks that were tragically lost while I was galavanting 'round Chicagoland...and they were really beauties...I must say that even though they were only chickens and all that, I'm so very sorry for the timing that made me have to leave them when I did...
But hell, they could have been scrambled eggs or fryers...when you do this egg and chick shopping thing you realize that people are buying 20+ fryer/BBQ packs of chicks to raise for meat. So, my little paradise is worth a shot for any old egg even if it sometimes turns out badly.

Back at the homestead, look what Rosie laid....
What to do, what to do?...