I just spent $80 to watch frickin' Project: Runway

My neighbors up the hall are moving into a new house. They gave me their old TV stand because they didn't want to move it and my TV was sitting on the floor. Since I was only moving my TV about a foot up (and a couple of inches to the right), I didn't think I needed to unplug it or anything. But when I situated it upon the shelf, the coaxial cable went taut and the jack to connect the cable to the TV snapped right off.

Not a big problem, I thought. I'll just plug the cable up to my old disused VCR and then run it through the RCA inputs and use it as a tuner. I get everything connected and discover that less than half of the channels are showing. It turns out, the VCR thinks I'm receiving the signal from an antennae and isn't set to autoprogram. I pick up the VCR remote and it's broken.

Only momentarily deterred, I get the TV's universal remote and the remote's instruction booklet and program it for my VCR. Once set up, all the buttons don't match the features. For instance, I can't get the tape timer to not display on the screen.

Now, I'm driving to Best Buy for a new universal remote. $13 later, I'm driving back home with a more richly featured remote. Now the buttons all appear to match. However, like the previous remote, the select up and down arrow buttons work fine. But the select left and right buttons, no matter how I rigorously I program the remote or how closely I follow the instructions, will only turn up or down the volume on the television. I still can't get the get the VCR to switch to cable or autosearch the channels. At this point, I see two choices: buy a new TV or buy a new VCR.

Cut to 24 hours later, I'm at Target, perusing their "selection" of new VCRs which totals exactly one. There are several VCR/DVD combo models, but only one solely VCR model. Fortunately, it's a decent four-head, hi-fi, auto-searching, easy to set up model. Unfortunately, it's $60. The cheapest DVD player is $27. There are two additional models priced between that and the VCR. Since when does a VCR cost twice as much as a DVD player?

Oh well. Faced with the choice of either spending $60 (plus tax) or not watching television, I pull out the Visa and mortgage a small part of my future for the pleasure. Once at home, five minutes out of the box everything is up and running again perfectly just in time to see the finale of Project: Runway (congratulations, Jeffrey).

The credit card has been seeing a lot of action lately, what with getting prints and framing for the show at Mediums and the occasional monetary shortfall. Fortunately, I'll have a bit of extra cash come mid-November when I get my first paycheck from Heifer on top of the cash value of my unused vacation time at Philander, so I'll be able to make a substantially more than minimym payment to the credit card company. Cash will be tight for a few weeks, but things are looking up already.

Republican or Democrat for Arkansas Governor in 2006? Does it make much of a difference?

Is it just me or does every attack ad A$a! runs on Mike Beebe make Beebe sound like a better and better candidate? By A$a!'s reasoning, a vote for Beebe is a vote for a Democratic wonderland.

In spite of the promised liberal utopia that will surely bloom within Arkansas' borders should Beebe ascend to the State Capitol come November, I'm still supporting the independent underdog candidacy of Rod Bryan, if for no other reason than to influence the issues for the major party candidates. Of course, the major party candidates are doing everything they can to hold the issues under their own influence, notably by refusing to allow independent candidates to participate in the official debates and public forums.

The latest polls have Rod showing at 3 to 4 percent, twice the support of the more established Green Party Candidate, Jim Lendall. While his entire level support is arguably within the margin for error in these polls, 3 to 4 percent is still a substantial showing for a guy who runs a record store and works in a bakery. His supporters represent voters that the candidate for neither of the major parties are speaking to or speaking for.

In 2004, the presidential election was decided by less than 1 percent of the electorate. In a hotly contested race, why are A$a! and Beebe willing to concede nearly 5 percent of the vote? Why do they give the third party candidate a platform by excluding him from the debate? Wouldn't the more sensible idea be for one candidate to parrot his talking points, or the other to debunk his platform, thereby defusing his candidacy? Hell, even letting him sit down at the grown up's table for the debates gives the other guys a chance to expose him as an amateur Mr. Smith Frank Kapra wannabe. Strangely, by snubbing him, A$a! and Beebe are actually giving Rod credibility. His ideas have to be pushed aside, ignored, unacknowledged (with allegations that they have intimidated media outlets from covering the Bryan campaign by threatening to withhold access to outlets who do cover third parties), lest they gain some credence with the electorate and threaten to force the local candidates off the national talking points.

I don't know if Rod Bryan is the right man to be our next governor. But I do know in our representative democracy he has a right to challenge the establishment. And I believe the other candidates have a responsibility to conduct a fair and open campaign that wins voters by their stand on the issues rather than using political bullying to exclude the underdog. I hope Rod continues his political career. I hope he lectures colleges and high schools about his run for governor and the citizen's duty to hold our representatives responsible for the actions they undertake in our name. I hope he runs for the state Legislature in 2008. I hope he continues to be a stalking horse for the Governor's office. And I hope one day, by his example, our elected officials are more responsive to the people responsible for placing them into office.

The Big News

I am finally free of the insane asylum. I was offered a job Wednesday at Heifer Foundation, so on Thursday I put in my two weeks notice at Philander. The new job gives me a ten percent raise in salary to start. Plus excellent benefits. Plus a work environment that isn't passively-aggressively hostile. Plus, I'll be working for an institution who's sole purpose is eliminating hunger and poverty. I don't know if you're religious, but I, for one, am thanking God for this amazing opportunity.

Mute Math, etc.

Charlie James first told me about the band Mute Math back in the spring. Since then, I've read bits and pieces, heard some snippets here and there, and finally got the chance to see them Tuesday night. They played a hella tight show, great dynamics, lots of energy, great interpretation of their music from the studio to the stage. Definitely a band to check out if you want to see how the younger generation is interpreting U2, The Police, Radiohead, etc.

Jonzetta and Shiny Toy Guns opened the show. Jonezetta knows how to rock. STG kind of sucked. But the photos came out good.

Jonzetta


Shiny Tony Guns

Achtung, Baby!

See you there.

Be alert. The world needs more lerts.

Brittney says I'm not blogging enough. She's right. Chalk it up to no time and nothing interesting to say.

Anyway, I've been moderately encouraged this week by the release of the National Intelligence Estimate that emperically demonstrates how W. has increased rather than decreased the threat from terrorists during his time in office and Democrats finally growing a set of balls in the wake of Pres. Bill Clinton's on-air schooling of Fox News' Chris Wallace.

Since republicans clearly need educating on how to prosecute a global initiative to promote justice, I thought we'd send them all the way back to pre-school. So, courtesy or geekandproud.net, here's the R's asinine "terror alert level" indicator as filtered through our friends on Sesame Street.



UPDATE: After a little consideration: I'm a little disappointed that Kermit The Frog isn't the Green indicator (It's not easy being green, after all) or that Big Bird isn't the Yellow indicator (Bert and Ernie should rightly share a color as they share an apartment). But, given that I'm not creative/motivated enough to come up with the chart myself, I don't have a lot of room to quibble.

Go Green

Buddy Rawls, entrepreneurial environmentalist and my upstairs neighbor, told me on the elevator ride to the first floor of our apartment building this morning that he is beginning a new venture to offer environmentally friendlier biofuels to the general public, perhaps as soon as Labor Day Weekend.

He is taking over the closed Brownlow's Service Station at 8th and Chester streets downtown (with ultra convenient Interstate 630 access) and will offer E10 ethanol for use in all vehicles as well as "Willie Nelson's" bio-diesel blend made primarily from soybean oil for diesel powered vehicles.

Buddy says the price-per-gallon will be at least competitive with regular gasoline, and perhaps cheaper since gasoline is expected to surge to over four dollars a gallon with continuing conflict in the Middle East and the shut down of the Prudhoe Bay oil field in Alaksa due to corrosion and leaking along its pipeline.

There is a slight trade-off in miles per gallon when using bio fules, since ethanol doesn't burn with quite the same energy intensity as gasoline. But, in my opinion, that is a small price to pay when considering the benefits of eliminating one's emissions of carbon dioxide and other pollutants to the atmosphere.

The opening of this station is extremely good news for the Little Rock community. I am optimistic that demand at this station will be extremely high once it is open and people become aware of its existence. Rest assured you will hear more about it from me in the future.

30 Days

Season 2 of Morgan Spurlock's documentary television series 30 Days kicked off last week with an episode entitled "Immigration." The episode, if you missed its initial broadcast, is available as a free download for a limited time at the iTunes Music Store. The premise of the show, in case you've never seen it, or Spurlock's feature film, Super-Size Me, is that a person experiences a way of life that is different from his or her own for 30 days to see how it changes their viewpoint about his or her own way of life.

In "Immigration," a xenophobic, right-wing man (ironically, a Cuban immigrant himself) who is a member of the Minute Men Militia that patrols the U.S. border for undocumented immigrants is sent to live for 30 days with a family of undocumented immigrants from Mexico. For a good part of the episode, he clings to his viewpoint that, despite their roots in this country, the family he is living with should return to Mexico. Then, he is given the opportunity to visit his hosts' family (whom they haven't seen in about 15 years) back in Mexico to witness the extreme poverty they fled, that makes the cramped conditions in which they live in the U.S. seem like extravagant riches. The trip is an eye-opening experience for our Minuteman, but I'll leave it to you to view the program to see how deeply he is affected.

I myself was moved to tears, not just a little misty, but sobby boo-hooing, for the final segment of the program. The first season of 30 Days I thought was one of the best programs on television. The second season not only continues that tradition, but, if the first episode is any indication, improves upon it by exploring some of the deeper emotional resonances of his subjects. The disparate people Spurlock puts together in these programs, it would be easy for the program to devolve into Jerry Springer style sensationalism. But Spurlock adamantly maintains the dignity of all of his subjects. He engages the audience in a way that is genuinely educational, emotional, and entertaining. It looks like season 2 of 30 Days will also one of the best hours on television this year. Remember, you can check out "Immigration" for free for a limited time at the iTunes Music Store.

This sucks

In the last week, I've found out that two of my favorite Little Rock establishments are closing their doors.

First I got a notice in the mail that the landmark Design Center on Kavanaugh was closing its doors after 35 years of bringing style and substance to Little Rock. I've bought lots of gifts for friends and family at that shop, as well as a few trinkets for myself, but not nearly what I looked forward to spending at that shop.


Next, I stop into From The Garden for lunch today only to find a sign posted on their wall that says after this Friday they'll be shutting down the take out business and putting all their energy into the catering enterprise. It makes sense, in a way. Less overhead, more profit. But what am I going to do for lunch. No more pot pie. No more fajita's with cucumber sauce and onion rings. No more black eyed pea patties with gravy, greens, and a corn pone. I think I'm going to die. Boulevard is all organic, but it doesn't give a rat's ass about vegetarians (Seriously, Scott teased us today with a delicious vegetable soup... cooked in a chicken stock--DAMN YOU!!!). You know what would be the ideal: a small neighborhood cafe that's vegetarian, organic, fair trade, open late, wi-fi access, etc. Kind of like Kate's Joint in NYC. If I had the money, I think I'd open it. As it is, I'm spending all my money at these two locations before they're shut up for good.

I'm a geek

The cast of Spider-Man 3 paid a visit to Comi-Con in San Diego this week. Along with the cast members returning from the previous adventures, Bryce Dallas Howard was introduced as portraying Gwen Stacey in the third part of the trilogy. It will be interesting to see what they have her to do, as Mr. Raimi cribbed substantially from her character's arc in the first film, only apply those elements to the character of Mary Jane. Will he repeat himself? Will he risk the ire of comic nerds everywhere and come up with a new story arc?

Anyway... I thought it was momentarily funny that noted blonde Ms. Kirsten Dunst plays red-headed MJ and very firey red-head Ms. Dallas-Howard portrays yellow-headed blonde Gwen Stacey. A stupid and meaningless observation, but it occupied my attention for the length of time it took me to write out this post and find a photo online.

My favorite thing

Two years ago last Sunday I placed my order for a shiny, brand new fourth generation iPod. And I bought the $60 extended warranty (figuring it would be cheaper than the $100 fee to replace the battery, when or if I needed to have that done). Finally, two days before the warranty expired, I decided to take advantage of the warranty and sent in my iPod to have the battery replaced. According the the Apple tech support guy, I can plan on not having my iPod for at least 10 days... which is probably actually two weeks. This is like telling a crack addict that it's going to be two weeks until he's going to get his next fix. I wish they gave you a loaner unit, maybe a nano, or even a shuffle, to get you bye while the other unit was being serviced. Even better... would be a possible upgrade... I'd love to get one of those new video iPods... maybe a year from now... when they roll out the seventh generation.

Before I go to work tomorrow, I'll actually have to pick out a bunch of cds to take with me. I'm not going to know how to choose anymore. I'm so used to having EVERYTHING with me in that little shiny white box. Count them down with me... Ten more days...

Rain, finally

After two weeks of increasingly unbearable heat, we finally got some clouds and rain tonight during an impressive thunderstorm. I got out on the balcony and took about 200 shots. This picture was my one in a million (or 200). It was also about the fourth photo I snapped. A lucky shot.

UPDATE: Andrew Sullivan ran this photo as part of the ongoing "View From Your Window" series on his blog. Would it be appropriate now to say I've been published by Time?

I believe the children are our future, part 2

Watch the little girl behind President Bush near the end of the clip.

After bombing with the baby in Germany (see the post below), you'd think Bush would not allow children at his photo-ops. You can't "stage" a child, after all. Nor should you, in my opinion. Especially when it is a short logical leap to demonstrate the fallacy of the President's reasoning by vetoing the bill to expand embryonic stem cell research but parading around the "snowflake" children for a photo-op.

Ethical support of embryonic stem cell research is a "pro-life" position. When a couple receives treatment for invitro fertilization, and other fertility treatments, dozens, if not hundreds, of zygotes (i.e., embryos) are created, screened for the best possible candidates for implantation, and the rest are frozen, in case the first does not take. Invariably, by the time a couple conceives or gives up, there are still many, many of these frozen embryos left over. President Bush's attempt to demonstrate that these frozen zygotes are "alive" by marching through the White House a group of precocious children who were "adopted" as embryos from the supply left over from families who had completed their fertility treatments is an unconvincing argument that embryonic stem cell research is unethical. No where in his speech or in his rhetoric is the admission that, if these frozen zygotes are not "adopted" or appropriated for research, they will simply be discarded as "biological waste." If the President truly believes that these zygotes are alive, then he should logically be opposed to invitro fertilization and other fertility procedures that create these dozens or hundreds or (aggregately) thousands of frozen blastocysts that will never develop beyond a few cells.

Bush offers next-to-no reasoning for his support of the science that creates these cells in the first place, and his crafting of policy that throws the vast majority of them in the trash. Half to two-thirds of all fertilized eggs are flushed out of the uterus without implanting in the uterine wall. Perhaps Bush thinks discarding these cells is in line with this natural sort of "dying with dignity." But he has not said so explicitly, and to assume so is certainly reading too much into the President's logic, especially considering his constant references to the so-called "culture of life" and his desire to "save" these embryos through fetal adoption.

Many even in the pro-life movement believe that allowing researchers to use embryonic stem cells to find new cures and treatments to improve the quality and quantity of life assigns a purpose and dignity to these cells that otherwise would be discarded like last week's chinese take-out. The President doesn't see it that way. And in that regard, as in virtually every other regard of his administration, the President is wrong.

The Passion of the Clerks

It's no secret, I'm a big fan of Kevin Smith's films, the original "Clerks" in particular. I'm very excited about "Clerks II" which hits theaters this Friday, though I'm fairly certain that it will not have the personal or cultural impact of the first. But, if the film provides 90 minutes of solid entertainment, I don't think many people will be disappointed.

Personally, however, I thought a sequel to "Clerks" was made years ago, and is a cult classic in its own right: Mike Judge's "Office Space." That film hits on many of the same themes and is a logical progression from the original premise of "Clerks." But "Office Space" never made Joel Siegel run screaming, quite literally, from the theater.

Any day you find $10 in the parking lot...

... is a good day. And it was made all the better when I discovered at the grocery store I had forgotten my wallet, but I had the $10 in my pocket. It got me a box of cereal for breakfast tomorrow and a trio of deli salads for dinner tonight.

Rest assured, I washed my hands thoroughly when I got home after handling the mystery money.

I believe the children are our future

Surely, this baby speaks for us all. Well, 64% of us anyway.

Pirates of the Multiplex

Being a dutiful Johnny Depp fan, last night I went to see Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dean Man's Chest. I was going to write about how utterly dissapointing the film was, but Josh and Josh summed it up for me perfectly:

Here's what you need to know about Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: It's 150 minutes long, and during approximately 148 of those minutes you will be bored, uninterested, uninvested, and praying that it'll eventually "get good" and be more like its predecessor. Eventually you just pray for the credits to roll.

You'll be waiting a long time.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is officially going on my list of Ten Most Disappointing Movies of 2006. (It shall reside in the slot next to King Kong.)

Johnny Depp was funny, but not funny enough to save the film. They didn't make me care about the characters, the story and plot were wimpier and thinner than Mary-Kate Olsen, and the creators apparently didn't realize that having constant action isn't a solution for not being at all interesting.

But, hey, maybe the third one (coming out next summer, I kid you not) will be better.

Maybe.

Then again, maybe not.

The first installment I thought was Jerry Bruckheimer's first step at artistic reformation. Now I see it was a fluke.

I rate it a generous 5-to-5 1/2. It didn't help that theater showed the entire film slightly out-of-focus, despite complaints to the management.

Huckabee makes inflammatory remarks in Iowa

Governor Mike Huckabee was in Iowa this past weekend, stumping for Republican legislative candidates, and trying to convince Iowa voters (who traditionally begin the presidential campaign season) that he would not be the worst candidate for President in 2008. As is typical whenever the Governor speaks out of state, he can’t come back until he has said something to embarrass or outrage a large percentage of his constituents at home. On this visit to Iowa, however, he went beyond the pale of even his typically insensitive and embarrassing off-the-cuff remarks. Much as the segregationists before him came to regret their hateful beliefs, I hope Governor Huckabee lives long enough to realize the shame of the hurtful comments he made in Iowa regarding homosexuals, foster parents and marriage rights.

In its ruling overturning the ban on gays and lesbians serving as foster parents, the State Supreme Court said not only had the state agency overstepped its jurisdiction by imposing the ban, but also, contrary to what Governor Huckabee says, that restricting gays and lesbians from serving as foster parents is not in the best interest of the children because the need for foster homes is so great, and, more compellingly, the state failed to show that children in foster care fare any better with heterosexual guardians or any worse with homosexual guardians.

Furthermore, the governor insulted the duty and compassion of the plaintiffs in the suit to overturn the ban on homosexual foster parents, saying they were more interested in “homosexual activism” than in the interests of the foster children. He said it was “troubling” that children would be used as “political tools.” Does the Governor believe that caring for orphaned and abused children is political activism whereas bad-mouthing homosexuals to curry votes is responsible civic and/or religious service?

More inflammatory still was the Governor’s comment that marriage has never historically meant “two men, two women, a man and his pet, or a man and a whole herd of pets.” First, the statement is not accurate. For “thousands of years,” as the Governor says, the rules of marriage were more often about the transfer of property and inheritance where women were given in marriage, along with livestock, land, and other material assets, as just another possession like chattel. Polygamy was and is an accepted practice only in cultures where women are valued less than men. And to compare the committed, monogamous, loving relationship between two men or two women to bestial rape is to be like one of the mob shouting “the n word” at the Little Rock Nine as they entered Central High in 1957. Words like that undo all Christian principles. They are “fighting words” yelled in a public space. And they place our Governor on the wrong side of decency, of liberty and of history.

Everyone knows at least one gay or lesbian person. It could be someone they work with, go to school with, go to church with, or is in their near or extended family. I would hope our Governor, before making such hateful, divisive, and inflammatory statements, would please think of a gay or lesbian person he knows and consider if he would make such a statement about him or her personally.

Finally, if the legislature is to pass a law stating that only married persons may care for foster children, might I suggest that such a law not go into effect until all married couples are, indeed, caring every child in need. Until then, any qualified, compassionate person who is willing to take care of foster children is requited to meet this urgent need.

Vacation #2

To commemorate the July 4th Holiday, I've been on vacation all this week. As is usual, I didn't go anywhere. I preferred instead to stay at home and take it easy.

I saw the parents on Monday. Had dinner with Tim and Beth on Tuesday. I finished reading Kevin Brockmeier's The Brief History Of The Dead. On Kevin's recommendation, I started reading Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. I also got around town to take some photos. My photos of graffiti are damn near a photo essay. And I made a new friend online.

Tonight I'm going back to Tim and Beth's for Beth's birthday extravaganza. By the time the weekend rolls through, I might, might, be ready to go back to work. But probably not. I kind of like being off work.

Vacation #3 is coming up the first week of August.

Happy 4th of July!

Hope you got a bang out of it.

Remember to exercise your freedom for the rest of the year. Use your freedom of speech. Write to your congressman. Write to your newspaper. Start a blog. Campaign door to door for your favored candidate this fall. And be sure to vote this November.