Army Sgt. Joseph W. Perry, 23, of Alpine, Calif.; assigned to the 21st Military Police Company, 16th Military Police Brigade, XVIIIth Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C.; killed Oct. 2 when his mounted patrol came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations in Muhallah, Iraq.
“Inspired To Serve By 9/11, Local Man Pays Ultimate Price”
ALPINE, CA - As a senior at Granite Hills High School in El Cajon, Joseph W. Perry faced an uncertain future. He had no plans to attend college, and he knew his part-time job of spinning rap tunes as a disc jockey at dances and parties would only go so far.
“He was completely directionless,” said his mother, Kirsten Yuhl.
Sept. 11, 2001, changed everything.
Determined to serve his country no matter the cost, he joined the Army after graduating from high school and underwent basic training at Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
Sgt. Perry was several months into his second tour of duty in Iraq when he was killed Monday on a mission in the Dora Market area of southern Baghdad. He was 23.
“Between his deployments, he had said to me that he never felt more alive than when he was in Iraq,” Yuhl said. “He was well aware of the sacrifices and willing to take on the responsibility. He never regretted his enlistment.”
After his five-year enlistment, which was to end in July 2007, Sgt. Perry intended to marry Christina Wert, 28, of Fayetteville, N.C. They had been engaged since November.
Trained in the Army as a military police officer, Sgt. Perry was planning a civilian career in law enforcement, his mother said.
While deployed in Iraq in May, Sgt. Perry received a Bronze Star for stepping in the line of fire and diverting it from his squad, his mother said. He also received a Purple Heart for a minor wound.
On his fatal mission, he was serving as a gunner in a Humvee when he was shot by a sniper. “They were checking out a report of some men in the area with weapons,” his mother said. “The people in the vehicle with him reported talking, probably laughing, to ease the tension. Suddenly it was silent – he died instantly.”
Sgt. Perry was assigned to the 21st Military Police Company, 16th Military Police Brigade, XVIII Airborne Corps, at Fort Bragg, N.C. In Iraq, where he first was deployed for nine months in June 2003, one of his assignments was training Iraqi police.
“He felt he was making progress in handing more responsibility over to the Iraqis,” his mother said.
Growing up in East County, Sgt. Perry had shown a talent for photography at a young age. At 10, he won a National Geographic children's calendar award for a photo he took of one of his pet cats.
He played in ice hockey leagues in La Mesa and despite a lanky frame – about 6-foot-2, 160-170 pounds – he played end in football as a freshman and sophomore at Granite Hills High.
“Friends of his from his elementary and middle school years told us he loved to play Army as a kid,” said his maternal grandmother, Helen Yuhl of Descanso. “He would go out in the brush with a toy gun.”
The Army was in Sgt. Perry's blood. Yet, he did not consider it an option during his high school years until 9/11, his family said.
His father, Everett Perry, and mother are both Army veterans. Sgt. Perry was born Sept. 4, 1983, in Germany, where his parents were stationed at the time.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
"Let's Dance"
is the theme of the November-December "The Gay & Lesbian Review" out of Harvard University. The subtitle is "Bodies In Motion." And the cover features this photograph taken in 1938 of Ted Shawn and His Men Dancers as they rehearsed at the Dancer/Choreographer's studio in the Berkshires called Jacob's Pillow. The article traces the history of the institution as well as some of the history of Mr. Shawn. From his first marriage and dance company, to he and his wife's ménage a trios with another man, to their separation, his founding of Jacob's Pillow, and his settling in with a male lover for the remainder of his life. It's an interesting article that traces the ways in which Mr. Shawn's work opened doors of respectability and acceptance for men as classical and modern instruments of dance.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Quilts I've Made
Love this picture sent by friends who received this quilt from me.
So somewhere in Kansas (oh, yes, Kansas, Dorothy!) is a iron post bed adorned with this quilt. It was a wedding gift, and the colors (orange & purple) reflect the choices of the couple. The very center section was completed by my ex-, as the gift was from both of us.
This is the couple who happened to visit us on the very day that my ex- announced his departure from and the end of our relationship back in June of 2003. So clearly they deserved something special to both celebrate their wedding and commemorate this visit!
And in the same way a quilt comforts...time soothes and heals all wounds, if we let it. Blessings!
So somewhere in Kansas (oh, yes, Kansas, Dorothy!) is a iron post bed adorned with this quilt. It was a wedding gift, and the colors (orange & purple) reflect the choices of the couple. The very center section was completed by my ex-, as the gift was from both of us.
This is the couple who happened to visit us on the very day that my ex- announced his departure from and the end of our relationship back in June of 2003. So clearly they deserved something special to both celebrate their wedding and commemorate this visit!
And in the same way a quilt comforts...time soothes and heals all wounds, if we let it. Blessings!
What I'm Watching #38
This is an indi-film that chronicles the adventures of a blue haired gen-X-er on a skateboard who works in a used CD store and loves lots of people. It's fun, it's amateuristic, it's sexy (lots of sensual man flesh), and it's melodramitic. As camp, it almost succeeds. As a serious movie? -- when do you get your diploma?
And the ultimate question: Is it worth the time? Sure, how better to spend your next 92 minutes? After all, even when the spirit is willing, the flesh is the tweek!
And the ultimate question: Is it worth the time? Sure, how better to spend your next 92 minutes? After all, even when the spirit is willing, the flesh is the tweek!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Rivo Drei
A few weeks ago I shared with you a link to this video, but now I have the real thing for your convenience and enjoyment! Wie Flugzeuge.
What I'm Watching #37
It's been a while since the first time I saw this controversial and fascinating film. Even today, twenty plus years hence its original release, it is easy to imagine how the marketers state on the cover "The Most Controversial Film of the 20th Century." But more than that, it's also a good movie, with a stellar cast starting with Malcolm McDowell, Peter O'Toole, John Geilgud, Helen Mirren, and Teresa Ann Savoy, to scratch the surface. Produced by Penthouse Inc. the movies greatest flaw is it's occasional gratuitous sex scenes. They are flat, and in at least one instant, pointless. Having said that, I'm not talking about all of the sex in the movie. The pervasive presence of all things sexual generally supports the plot and script with stunning effect.
The first thing you see in the film is this quote: "What should it profit a man, if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul." Mark 8:36. A simple summation of the life of Caligula, or at least the 4 years depicted in this movie (37AD - 41AD). Everyone should find a way to see this one at least once.
The first thing you see in the film is this quote: "What should it profit a man, if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul." Mark 8:36. A simple summation of the life of Caligula, or at least the 4 years depicted in this movie (37AD - 41AD). Everyone should find a way to see this one at least once.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Hold Your Nose!
Another fag hating, self-serving, closeted Republican Faggot in the US Congress, this time the Senate! What gives?
It's Larry Craig from Idaho who's been breaking back mountains for years! When will we grow up and drop this aspect of humanity from our roster of tools from which to exert power and control? It would certainly make life for Senator Craig easier....
But as he's spent a lifetime in politics gay bashing, I am perfectly happy to lend his soul over whatever ring in Dante's inferno seems most appropriate! Burn, Baby, burn.
It's Larry Craig from Idaho who's been breaking back mountains for years! When will we grow up and drop this aspect of humanity from our roster of tools from which to exert power and control? It would certainly make life for Senator Craig easier....
But as he's spent a lifetime in politics gay bashing, I am perfectly happy to lend his soul over whatever ring in Dante's inferno seems most appropriate! Burn, Baby, burn.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Olly Olly Ox-in-free, Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are!
So there are 32 other people in the United States with my first and last name? Well, I know that there are 5 listings for someone with my first, last, AND middle name in West Virginia! One hopes that the same guy is just moving around a lot.
As to my last name, Howmanyofme.com indicates that there are 26,997 Americans with my sirname, making it the 1298th most common last name in a tie with 156 others. I only wish it would tell me some of the others. Anyway, check this site, it's fun.
Like Being 19!
FROM: Morning Edition, October 6, 2006 · Sandi Cote-Whitacre and Bobbi Cote-Whitacre have been together for nearly 40 years.
The two met when they were very young. As Bobbi asked her partner recently, "Do you remember what it was like when we were 19 and totally in love -- and couldn't tell anyone?"
While the couple knew immediately that they would spend the rest of their lives together, the people around them weren't so accepting.
After moving to a small town in Ohio, their relationship was revealed. Bobbi's mother gave them three days to leave town, Sandi recalls, "so that we wouldn't disgrace your father, his practice, your extended family."
Despite that reaction, Sandi and Bobbi stayed together, and after 33 years they were joined in a Vermont Civil Union ceremony, finally announcing their commitment to each other out loud.
But there was one condition set for the occasion: Bobbi's mother insisted that she walk her daughter down the aisle. Her demand came despite a recent diagnosis of a brain hemorrhage.
"And this was the same woman," they said in unison, "that gave us three days to get out of town."
Four years after their Vermont ceremony, Bobbi, 58, and Sandi, 59, were officially married in Massachusetts. And having their friends and family there, Sandi says, "was sort of like being 19 again."
The two met when they were very young. As Bobbi asked her partner recently, "Do you remember what it was like when we were 19 and totally in love -- and couldn't tell anyone?"
While the couple knew immediately that they would spend the rest of their lives together, the people around them weren't so accepting.
After moving to a small town in Ohio, their relationship was revealed. Bobbi's mother gave them three days to leave town, Sandi recalls, "so that we wouldn't disgrace your father, his practice, your extended family."
Despite that reaction, Sandi and Bobbi stayed together, and after 33 years they were joined in a Vermont Civil Union ceremony, finally announcing their commitment to each other out loud.
But there was one condition set for the occasion: Bobbi's mother insisted that she walk her daughter down the aisle. Her demand came despite a recent diagnosis of a brain hemorrhage.
"And this was the same woman," they said in unison, "that gave us three days to get out of town."
Four years after their Vermont ceremony, Bobbi, 58, and Sandi, 59, were officially married in Massachusetts. And having their friends and family there, Sandi says, "was sort of like being 19 again."
Saturday, October 14, 2006
What I'm Watching #36
Another Saturday of cinema.....
Innocent is Simon Chung's first full-length film...every director has one....and it shows. The story is of a family who emigrates from Hong Kong to Toronto and then disintigrates. The story swirls around the teenage son and his coming to terms with his gay sexuality. The story plods along in Cantonese and English through a series of disappointments and betrayals until it finally stops. That's pretty much it.
But now for the good stuff. The video contains two bonus shorts from Simon Chung's previous work. Both are set in his native Hong Kong. The first, I'd actually seen many years ago as part of one of those gay video short compilations. "Simon's Beloved" tells the story of two adolescent friends as one faces the reality that he's about to be sent to boarding school in England. The time frame covers less than a 24-hour period, and climaxes on a night spent sleeping on a beach and a fateful kiss.
The second is called, "Life Is Elsewhere" and is a trinity of enigmatic vignettes strung together on the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud. Amazing.
Buy the DVD, but buy it for the bonus films.
Innocent is Simon Chung's first full-length film...every director has one....and it shows. The story is of a family who emigrates from Hong Kong to Toronto and then disintigrates. The story swirls around the teenage son and his coming to terms with his gay sexuality. The story plods along in Cantonese and English through a series of disappointments and betrayals until it finally stops. That's pretty much it.
But now for the good stuff. The video contains two bonus shorts from Simon Chung's previous work. Both are set in his native Hong Kong. The first, I'd actually seen many years ago as part of one of those gay video short compilations. "Simon's Beloved" tells the story of two adolescent friends as one faces the reality that he's about to be sent to boarding school in England. The time frame covers less than a 24-hour period, and climaxes on a night spent sleeping on a beach and a fateful kiss.
The second is called, "Life Is Elsewhere" and is a trinity of enigmatic vignettes strung together on the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud. Amazing.
Buy the DVD, but buy it for the bonus films.
What I'm Watching #35
This is not an easy film to describe.
It's a tour de force of ideas, emotions, moments; each like the bits of fire released by a sparkler on the 4th of July. They shine and then they're gone.
The theme is opera meets techno dance culture. There are amazing moments with great detail to set design and location. The performances by Dan Spielman and Leeanne Walsman are wonderful. Lots of great music, especially Lisa Gerrard's (Dead Can Dance) haunting vocals. The dealer-pimp drives a YELLOW sports car. If not for the cinematography (At times reminding me of "Amelie"), it would be a collection of enthralling moments plopped down in a murky movie. How is it that other countries (Australia, in this case) can produce such interesting films for a fraction of the cost that mainstream US films demand? Well, worth the dime/time, if you can get access to it.
A couple of quotes from the film:
“.... Governor, tell me something. Who do them crickets luv?.....
Maybe they just love life. For them it sounds like this..... See, crickets have very small minds that move really fast. So, what we hear as legs vibrating, they hear as a holy hymn."
AND
"If you throw your voice into an empty space, it echoes to the ones you love."
It's a tour de force of ideas, emotions, moments; each like the bits of fire released by a sparkler on the 4th of July. They shine and then they're gone.
The theme is opera meets techno dance culture. There are amazing moments with great detail to set design and location. The performances by Dan Spielman and Leeanne Walsman are wonderful. Lots of great music, especially Lisa Gerrard's (Dead Can Dance) haunting vocals. The dealer-pimp drives a YELLOW sports car. If not for the cinematography (At times reminding me of "Amelie"), it would be a collection of enthralling moments plopped down in a murky movie. How is it that other countries (Australia, in this case) can produce such interesting films for a fraction of the cost that mainstream US films demand? Well, worth the dime/time, if you can get access to it.
A couple of quotes from the film:
“.... Governor, tell me something. Who do them crickets luv?.....
Maybe they just love life. For them it sounds like this..... See, crickets have very small minds that move really fast. So, what we hear as legs vibrating, they hear as a holy hymn."
AND
"If you throw your voice into an empty space, it echoes to the ones you love."
It's Good For The Soul
What was it like when former New Jersey governor Jim McGreevey experienced his first homosexual kiss? Let him tell you in his own words: "We undressed and he kissed me. It was the first time in my life that a kiss meant what it was supposed to mean - it sent me through the roof. I was like a man emerging from 44 years in a cave to taste pure air for the first time, feel direct sunlight on pallid skin, warmth where there had only been a bone-chilling numbness. I pulled him to the bed and we made love like I'd always dreamed: a boastful, passionate, whispering, masculine kind of love."
With prose like this, why'd he fool around in politics? Gay Harlequin Romances in his future.......
With prose like this, why'd he fool around in politics? Gay Harlequin Romances in his future.......
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Hindsight Is....
sometimes more than 20/20; it's just weird!
I loved the cover on this week's New Yorker the first time i saw it. Pure genius: single engine planes dusting the trees of New England with the colors of fall. Brilliant, right? That is until New York Yankee pitcher Cory Lidle and his flight instructor careened into a Manhattan high-rise.
An ironic coincidence......
I loved the cover on this week's New Yorker the first time i saw it. Pure genius: single engine planes dusting the trees of New England with the colors of fall. Brilliant, right? That is until New York Yankee pitcher Cory Lidle and his flight instructor careened into a Manhattan high-rise.
An ironic coincidence......
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
What I'm Listening To #18
Perfect number for a post that promos a CD with sexually explicit lyrics. Very Gay Affirming Techno/Pop music. Bravo, Branski Beat. Keep beating it!
Red Delicious?
I love apples! And not just Red Delicious presented upon delicious backsides!
Apples are cool. Apples are interesting. Apples are complex.
Some Facts:
#1 (Malus Domestica) is a unique plant. It doesn't produce offspring like itself. Each apple seed holds the possibility of creating an utterly unique and amazing fruit, and more than likely, NOT! But every specific type of apple in the market is the result of a unique tree that grew from the seeds of another in a particular place and time. And all the trees that make the same fruit are CLONES. Period. (No cloning BUSH, no more apples!--no doubt that is just too complex an idea for our psuedo-President to get....but I digress, yet again.)
The first Golden Delicious sprouted on a hilltop in West Virginia. The first Red Delicious was actually whacked down by a farmer in Iowa for a couple of years, but proved so tenacious, that he finally let it grow! And Granny Smith lived in Australia, where her namesake apple tree grew from some random seed.
#2 Apples as a plant come from Central Asia: Kazakhstan, to be specific.
#3 In the early years of our country, apple trees were very common and varieties unique to each colony and region. There is a farm in New York state that houses over 3,000 varieties and is committed to preserving examples of all of these antique cultivars.
#4 The early fame of apples was not the meat of the fruit, but the juice. Apple juice was the most common and easily created alcoholic drink. Cider was alcohol. There was no refrigeration, and there was no such thing as apple juice vs. "hard cider" -- it was all "hard." People grew apple trees to make liquor.
#5 Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman was a pervert....not that there's anything wrong with that. His legacy has a gilded relationship to his reality.
#6 Carrie Nation's Axe was more about chopping down apple trees than busting up kegs of liquor! It was an act of civil disobedience that led a nascent industry into the modern world of the ad campaign and spawned the slogan, “An apple a day, keeps the doctor away.” In a world of media spin, this should come as no surprise, but a hundred years ago, it was a radical concept. And it saved the apple as a good fruit and staple of our fruit regime.
Now, BACK to this little Red Delicious......!
Apples are cool. Apples are interesting. Apples are complex.
Some Facts:
#1 (Malus Domestica) is a unique plant. It doesn't produce offspring like itself. Each apple seed holds the possibility of creating an utterly unique and amazing fruit, and more than likely, NOT! But every specific type of apple in the market is the result of a unique tree that grew from the seeds of another in a particular place and time. And all the trees that make the same fruit are CLONES. Period. (No cloning BUSH, no more apples!--no doubt that is just too complex an idea for our psuedo-President to get....but I digress, yet again.)
The first Golden Delicious sprouted on a hilltop in West Virginia. The first Red Delicious was actually whacked down by a farmer in Iowa for a couple of years, but proved so tenacious, that he finally let it grow! And Granny Smith lived in Australia, where her namesake apple tree grew from some random seed.
#2 Apples as a plant come from Central Asia: Kazakhstan, to be specific.
#3 In the early years of our country, apple trees were very common and varieties unique to each colony and region. There is a farm in New York state that houses over 3,000 varieties and is committed to preserving examples of all of these antique cultivars.
#4 The early fame of apples was not the meat of the fruit, but the juice. Apple juice was the most common and easily created alcoholic drink. Cider was alcohol. There was no refrigeration, and there was no such thing as apple juice vs. "hard cider" -- it was all "hard." People grew apple trees to make liquor.
#5 Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman was a pervert....not that there's anything wrong with that. His legacy has a gilded relationship to his reality.
#6 Carrie Nation's Axe was more about chopping down apple trees than busting up kegs of liquor! It was an act of civil disobedience that led a nascent industry into the modern world of the ad campaign and spawned the slogan, “An apple a day, keeps the doctor away.” In a world of media spin, this should come as no surprise, but a hundred years ago, it was a radical concept. And it saved the apple as a good fruit and staple of our fruit regime.
Now, BACK to this little Red Delicious......!
Children of the Universe
I love stop-motion animation. And this is a sweet little song, too! Inspite of bizaar endings~!
Sunlight through Begonias
You already know about my fetish with light and the way it effects objects and moments.
A couple of years back, I secured window boxes against the upstairs windows in the back of my home. It's the western side of the house, and in the afternoon the waning sunlight addresses the flowers in a more horizontal manner. This year I have begonias in these mini-second-story gardens, and the effect can, by my reckoning, be absolutely magical. The light illuminates the translucent layers of leaves and petals casting shadows and creating a stained-glass glow.
A veritable "poem" of sunlight and matter, that reminded me of this poem.
The Sun
Look: the sun has spread its wings
over the earth to dispel the darkness.
Like a great tree, with its roots in heaven,
and its branches reaching down to the earth.
~ Judah Al-Harizi, 1170-1235
A couple of years back, I secured window boxes against the upstairs windows in the back of my home. It's the western side of the house, and in the afternoon the waning sunlight addresses the flowers in a more horizontal manner. This year I have begonias in these mini-second-story gardens, and the effect can, by my reckoning, be absolutely magical. The light illuminates the translucent layers of leaves and petals casting shadows and creating a stained-glass glow.
A veritable "poem" of sunlight and matter, that reminded me of this poem.
The Sun
Look: the sun has spread its wings
over the earth to dispel the darkness.
Like a great tree, with its roots in heaven,
and its branches reaching down to the earth.
~ Judah Al-Harizi, 1170-1235
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
A Little Special Tuesday
Dear Hearts, it's a special Tuesday! I found a cache of videos of Stephen Lynch on YouTube and I'm sharing some of his rare and amazing comedy with you! Enjoy.
PB ~ If the download stops. Press the pause button and give it a few seconds to load before resuming the cast. You can gage the time you'll need by the growth of the red bar at the bottom of the view screen. Trust me, it's worth the wait!
PB ~ If the download stops. Press the pause button and give it a few seconds to load before resuming the cast. You can gage the time you'll need by the growth of the red bar at the bottom of the view screen. Trust me, it's worth the wait!
Monday, October 09, 2006
Jonny McGovern "The Gay Pimp"
The genius behind the previously YouTube posted video "Soccer Practice .... Something Dirty~" on this blog is Mr. Jonny McGovern. His "My Space" space claims he was born in 1906, but I find sparse evidence to support the claim. What it does support is his total anarchistic, homocentric, in your face, F#&k reality state of being! Touché, mon cher erotique!
I down loaded his album from iTunes and the first track is a live concern intro that goes as follows amid the uproar and cheers of the multitude: "He's a teen pop sensation. He's the dirtiest gay boi in the world. He's the dirty Drill Sargeant. He turned your boyfriend gay. He made your Daddy leave your Mommy. And he's the Homo to holler for when you're in trouble. He's the Gay Pimp!"
Well, how can anything I try to cleverly concoct beat off that come on -- a truly master-baited promo of climactic hyperbole! What more can be said?
Okay. I can think of one other thing. If my friend, Ms. B. reads this; please, turn your son, S., onto it. He'll be as delighted by it as I am, I'm sure!
I down loaded his album from iTunes and the first track is a live concern intro that goes as follows amid the uproar and cheers of the multitude: "He's a teen pop sensation. He's the dirtiest gay boi in the world. He's the dirty Drill Sargeant. He turned your boyfriend gay. He made your Daddy leave your Mommy. And he's the Homo to holler for when you're in trouble. He's the Gay Pimp!"
Well, how can anything I try to cleverly concoct beat off that come on -- a truly master-baited promo of climactic hyperbole! What more can be said?
Okay. I can think of one other thing. If my friend, Ms. B. reads this; please, turn your son, S., onto it. He'll be as delighted by it as I am, I'm sure!
Our Latest American Hero #38
Army Staff Sgt. Edward C. Reynolds, Jr., 27, of Groves, Texas; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Sept. 26 of injuries sustained when his M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle rolled over while maneuvering in Baghdad. Also killed was Pfc. Henry Paul.
"A soldier from Port Arthur has died in Iraq, not during combat, but in an accident. Relatives tell KFDM News 28 year old Edward Charles Reynolds was killed Monday night. A bridge collapsed while Reynolds was traveling with his Army convoy on Monday night. The 28 year old soldier was rescued, but he died on the way to a hospital.
Reynolds had served in Iraq for nearly two years.
Reynolds, who was known as "Jay" to his friends, was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School.
He leaves behind three children. Family members say he was a beautiful man with a good heart. "
"A soldier from Port Arthur has died in Iraq, not during combat, but in an accident. Relatives tell KFDM News 28 year old Edward Charles Reynolds was killed Monday night. A bridge collapsed while Reynolds was traveling with his Army convoy on Monday night. The 28 year old soldier was rescued, but he died on the way to a hospital.
Reynolds had served in Iraq for nearly two years.
Reynolds, who was known as "Jay" to his friends, was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School.
He leaves behind three children. Family members say he was a beautiful man with a good heart. "
Sunday, October 08, 2006
What I'm Watching #33
Beware, the quote on the box says it all: "...an infectiously silly dark comedy." Or does it? It certainly has its silly moments; and a fair share of darkness. However, infectious....hmmm, well, that bug didn't bite me. And this brings us to the word "Comedy."
Merriam-Webster defines the word this way:
Main Entry: com·e·dy
Etymology: Middle English, from Medieval Latin comoedia, from Latin, drama with a happy ending, from Greek kOmOidia, from kOmos revel + aeidein to sing; related to ODE
1 a : a medieval narrative that ends happily "Dante's Divine Comedy" b : a literary work written in a comic style or treating a comic theme
2 a : a drama of light and amusing character and typically with a happy ending b : the genre of dramatic literature dealing with the comic or with the serious in a light or satirical manner
3 : a ludicrous or farcical event or series of events "a comedy of errors"
4 a : the comic element b : humorous entertainment
Strike definition one, obviously. And number two doesn't quite fit, either. But wait, ah, definition three. That's it (with apologies to Shakespeare)!
So, it is a comedy! It's just not that funny. Which isn't the same thing as not worth watching. I did enjoy it, but not for any easily definable reasons. It's not an easy to define movie -- but then again, it is French. Evelyn Dandry was delightful as the mother. And the reason that I bought the film in the first place, Stephen Rideau, did a fine job in a lesser role, and demonstrated that he can sport a leather harness quite well!
So, if you want to spend an hour and twenty minutes completely distracted from the events of your life in a way that will defy the conventions that you understand as comedic? In a word: SITCOM.
Merriam-Webster defines the word this way:
Main Entry: com·e·dy
Etymology: Middle English, from Medieval Latin comoedia, from Latin, drama with a happy ending, from Greek kOmOidia, from kOmos revel + aeidein to sing; related to ODE
1 a : a medieval narrative that ends happily "Dante's Divine Comedy" b : a literary work written in a comic style or treating a comic theme
2 a : a drama of light and amusing character and typically with a happy ending b : the genre of dramatic literature dealing with the comic or with the serious in a light or satirical manner
3 : a ludicrous or farcical event or series of events "a comedy of errors"
4 a : the comic element
Strike definition one, obviously. And number two doesn't quite fit, either. But wait, ah, definition three. That's it (with apologies to Shakespeare)!
So, it is a comedy! It's just not that funny. Which isn't the same thing as not worth watching. I did enjoy it, but not for any easily definable reasons. It's not an easy to define movie -- but then again, it is French. Evelyn Dandry was delightful as the mother. And the reason that I bought the film in the first place, Stephen Rideau, did a fine job in a lesser role, and demonstrated that he can sport a leather harness quite well!
So, if you want to spend an hour and twenty minutes completely distracted from the events of your life in a way that will defy the conventions that you understand as comedic? In a word: SITCOM.
Saturday, October 07, 2006
What I'm Watching #32
It's a movie weekend....
"Mango Souffle" is touted as "The first gay male film from India." And as such it deserves a certain reverence. It was created from a play and the stage/theatrical aspects of it's production are as apparent as the level breeches after Katrina. Even some of the actors don't seem to get the difference between the two mediums. So the drama becomes a melodrama, because the actors over play their roles as if they were on a stage with poor acoustics.
Those are the "Delta's". A "plus" is the performance of Ankur Vikal. Totally sexy, completely in the moment -- he holds the pieces together, even though I'm left wondering 'why bother?'.
"Mango Souffle" is touted as "The first gay male film from India." And as such it deserves a certain reverence. It was created from a play and the stage/theatrical aspects of it's production are as apparent as the level breeches after Katrina. Even some of the actors don't seem to get the difference between the two mediums. So the drama becomes a melodrama, because the actors over play their roles as if they were on a stage with poor acoustics.
Those are the "Delta's". A "plus" is the performance of Ankur Vikal. Totally sexy, completely in the moment -- he holds the pieces together, even though I'm left wondering 'why bother?'.
What I'm Watching #31
Simon is a Dutch film that tells the story of an unlikely pair of friends who meet and then in a moment of enlightenment are reunited. Between them is a gulf of understanding that they navigate to the benefit and consternation of those around them.
Simon is study of friendship and love. How forgiveness and humor and the unspoken tendrils of passion and compassion bind each of us to one another.
Simon is a story about choices and consequences. It's a story about euthanasia that takes place in both Amsterdam and Asia. And if you are the least bit susceptible to the power of cinema, have a box of Kleenex handy.
Simon is study of friendship and love. How forgiveness and humor and the unspoken tendrils of passion and compassion bind each of us to one another.
Simon is a story about choices and consequences. It's a story about euthanasia that takes place in both Amsterdam and Asia. And if you are the least bit susceptible to the power of cinema, have a box of Kleenex handy.
Bisou Cochon: Kids Do The Darnedest Things
Remember the next time a toddler plants a sloppy kiss on your cheek, to wash your face thoroughly. After all, you have no idea where that little tongue has been!
Bonny Prince...or is that Randy Prince Henry?
Oucha Magoucha! It's gotta be a joke that the fare little Harry is playing on the paparazzi! I mean, first off, he's British -- trust me it's not the same as being Brazilian! Next, he's the genetic product of millennia of royal inbreeding, i.e. strike two. Now, if for some reason, Charles is NOT his daddy...I'd be open to rethinking the penis--um, premise...
Friday, October 06, 2006
St. Keith
In a world in which the opposition has too long been silent, has too often been polite, and too readily accepted defeat....and all as the result of a presidential "blow-job", it is beyond refreshing to discover a voice of reason in this avaricious, hubristic, ego-maniacal, and fascist world of America under Bush. And that voice is MSNBC's Keith Olbermann.
Please don't tarry, but go to: www.crooksandliars.com and listen to his most recent commentary. You'll have to scroll down to find it, but do so. Edward R. Murrow has an heir, and he's got the whole world in his hand, and heart, and mind, and voice. And I thank God he does.
Please don't tarry, but go to: www.crooksandliars.com and listen to his most recent commentary. You'll have to scroll down to find it, but do so. Edward R. Murrow has an heir, and he's got the whole world in his hand, and heart, and mind, and voice. And I thank God he does.
Fishy Story!
You know the guy on the right, it's Republican (psuedo-President) George Bush, and the guy on the left is Republican (psuedo-Heterosexual) Representative Mark Foley of Florida. Now do you know what they are saying to one another? Neither to do I! But just imagine with me, if you will.....
"You're fucking me!"
"Naw, I swear! That kid's cock was 14 inches long--soft!"
'Wow! Where's he from?"
"Texas! Hell, everything's bigger in Texas!"
"You're fucking me!"
"Naw, I swear! That kid's cock was 14 inches long--soft!"
'Wow! Where's he from?"
"Texas! Hell, everything's bigger in Texas!"
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Mind the Gap
Leave it to my blessed New Yorker magazine to lift my spirits after a long day at work and training session after.
This is one of a dozen or more adverts for the Gap that appears in the latest issue (Oct 9-16). They all feature famous people with a word in which the last three letters are r e d which appear in parenthesis. The first, for example, is inspi(red) and features a picture of Steven Speilberg. And unfortunately, he's the only celeb that I recognized! Man I'm so un-hip!
Yet anonymity didn't spoil my appreciation for this one! Now some young hipster needs to let me know who this conjito is, por favor.
This is one of a dozen or more adverts for the Gap that appears in the latest issue (Oct 9-16). They all feature famous people with a word in which the last three letters are r e d which appear in parenthesis. The first, for example, is inspi(red) and features a picture of Steven Speilberg. And unfortunately, he's the only celeb that I recognized! Man I'm so un-hip!
Yet anonymity didn't spoil my appreciation for this one! Now some young hipster needs to let me know who this conjito is, por favor.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
"Holy 'Reno 911,' Batman!"
This is an add that appeared on the sidebar of the my Hotmail mail page this evening. It's for an e-mail order costume site. Nothing odd about that....
But check the "basket" out on the model! I mean, OMG!
Is that a banana in your pocket? Or are you just glad to see me?
But check the "basket" out on the model! I mean, OMG!
Is that a banana in your pocket? Or are you just glad to see me?
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Sunday Evening Musings
I love this photo of President Clinton with Nelson Mandela. It's from a recent New Yorker magazine article. The two statesmen are visiting a pediatric care unit in a Johannesburg Hospital. Notice their hands. The former president clasps the Nobel Prize winning elder statesman with a firm and compassionate grip. You know that they are both in that moment. Real to each other on a level that transcends a mere photo op.
It makes me long for a day again when we as Americans will be led by a man or woman who's character aspires to the greater good, and who's character flaws don't translate into policies that breed fear and contempt among the nations of the world.
I understand that one of the leading conservative, Christian, right-wing activist, Representatives (from Florida), a Mr. Mark Foley, is in actuality a closeted Homosexual who has a thing for men who are 38 years his junior, below the age of legal consent, and apparently heterosexual! My, my, my.... What a surprise ---> NOT!
As a gay man living in the shadow of the capital, I can tell you he is probably NOT alone in his sexual duplicity as a Republican in the Congress. I've heard the rumors for years of at least one Republican Senator, and two Representatives of the Grand Ol' Party who like it doggy-style...And they are not the Top Dog! But "Daddy" Foley is the first hypocrite who would be better off living in the Netherlands, where the age of consent wouldn't impose upon his indiscretions the additional mantle of criminality.
Foley is a great poster child for the "sick" state of Republican leadership and his fall is particularly ironic in the shadow of the GOP's witch hunt against Clinton, which turned a consensual and LEGAL (however, immoral) act of fellatio -- which was by no means unique in the history of the presidency -- into a reason to malign the office of the Presidency and the national and collective sense of pride in our country.
Make no mistake about it. The GOP used the Lewinsky Affair to shame supporters of Clinton, and by extension, all Democrats into a place of silence and submission. We were fools for accepting this "scarlet letter", and our nation has been damaged profoundly by our lack of moral fortitude in light of this scandal.
So how much sweeter when the pendulum swings home? I, for one, hope that the Democrat Leadership will stop playing nice, stop placing their “Poly Anna” sense of the "national good" before petty party politics, and use this little situation to play "Pay Back Time" for all it's worth!
The Republican's have depended upon the Democrat Party to place principle above partisan advantage for too long now. And the Dems have done this believing that the high ground would translate into support for a political party that is above the fray. Makes sense, no? But it just doesn't work. The nation appears to be by and large trapped in a "Jerry Springer" mentality. They want a fight. And when it doesn't happen, they have no stomach for what they perceive as a "weakness" dressed up as moral turpitude.
Will the DNC figure this out? I'm not holding my breath....
It makes me long for a day again when we as Americans will be led by a man or woman who's character aspires to the greater good, and who's character flaws don't translate into policies that breed fear and contempt among the nations of the world.
I understand that one of the leading conservative, Christian, right-wing activist, Representatives (from Florida), a Mr. Mark Foley, is in actuality a closeted Homosexual who has a thing for men who are 38 years his junior, below the age of legal consent, and apparently heterosexual! My, my, my.... What a surprise ---> NOT!
As a gay man living in the shadow of the capital, I can tell you he is probably NOT alone in his sexual duplicity as a Republican in the Congress. I've heard the rumors for years of at least one Republican Senator, and two Representatives of the Grand Ol' Party who like it doggy-style...And they are not the Top Dog! But "Daddy" Foley is the first hypocrite who would be better off living in the Netherlands, where the age of consent wouldn't impose upon his indiscretions the additional mantle of criminality.
Foley is a great poster child for the "sick" state of Republican leadership and his fall is particularly ironic in the shadow of the GOP's witch hunt against Clinton, which turned a consensual and LEGAL (however, immoral) act of fellatio -- which was by no means unique in the history of the presidency -- into a reason to malign the office of the Presidency and the national and collective sense of pride in our country.
Make no mistake about it. The GOP used the Lewinsky Affair to shame supporters of Clinton, and by extension, all Democrats into a place of silence and submission. We were fools for accepting this "scarlet letter", and our nation has been damaged profoundly by our lack of moral fortitude in light of this scandal.
So how much sweeter when the pendulum swings home? I, for one, hope that the Democrat Leadership will stop playing nice, stop placing their “Poly Anna” sense of the "national good" before petty party politics, and use this little situation to play "Pay Back Time" for all it's worth!
The Republican's have depended upon the Democrat Party to place principle above partisan advantage for too long now. And the Dems have done this believing that the high ground would translate into support for a political party that is above the fray. Makes sense, no? But it just doesn't work. The nation appears to be by and large trapped in a "Jerry Springer" mentality. They want a fight. And when it doesn't happen, they have no stomach for what they perceive as a "weakness" dressed up as moral turpitude.
Will the DNC figure this out? I'm not holding my breath....
Someone's Been acting....
the Sedicious Provacateur! Hmmm....could it be me?
To date, 'someone,' has been visiting telephone poles in the area to the tune of nearly 100 of them and leaving posters like this one stapled to them in their wake. Each depicts two different soldiers killed in our war on Terrorism with the heading "The True Cost of War: El Coste Real de la Guerra." Under the pictures are each soldier's rank, name, age and home town/state/territory. Between the two images is this quote: "In peace the sons bury their fathers, but in war the fathers bury their sons." ~ Croeseus, 595 BCE-547 BCE.
Viva la Freedom of Speech!
To date, 'someone,' has been visiting telephone poles in the area to the tune of nearly 100 of them and leaving posters like this one stapled to them in their wake. Each depicts two different soldiers killed in our war on Terrorism with the heading "The True Cost of War: El Coste Real de la Guerra." Under the pictures are each soldier's rank, name, age and home town/state/territory. Between the two images is this quote: "In peace the sons bury their fathers, but in war the fathers bury their sons." ~ Croeseus, 595 BCE-547 BCE.
Viva la Freedom of Speech!
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Random Quote #56
"Nobody realises that some people extend tremendous energy merely to be normal."
~ Albert Camus, 1913-1960
~ Albert Camus, 1913-1960
A Found Image & Poem
I do not know where this image comes from. I found it online and made a copy of it without including any source references... Bad me.
But I really like it. It's a study in perspective and color with potent results. I've often struggled with apprehending the idea of the sublime in art, but this photo crystalizes the concept for me.
Back in the early years of this millenium, when I was still living with my ex-, I began a series of poems built around snatches of conversations we were having. At the time it was just an impulse, and now I think it clearly represented something much larger in the evolution of our relationship. Like most of the ideas which grab us from somewhere within, it was another iceberg of the soul.
This image reminded me of one of those poems, and I am ready to share it with you now.
CONVERSATION #2
Did I ever tell you that I love you?
Yes. It scares me.
Why?
It’s too big. It’s like falling into the sky.
We sit at the red light, waiting to proceed.
Debussy fills our stillness from the radio
in my pick-up, and I
can see a stranger speaking
to the driver of the car next to us.
My hand draws circles on the inside of your
left thigh, slowly.
Where is all of this light coming from?
Life is such a mystery. Little wonder that we struggle to discover meaning, and our place in it, with something as amazing as poetry!
But I really like it. It's a study in perspective and color with potent results. I've often struggled with apprehending the idea of the sublime in art, but this photo crystalizes the concept for me.
Back in the early years of this millenium, when I was still living with my ex-, I began a series of poems built around snatches of conversations we were having. At the time it was just an impulse, and now I think it clearly represented something much larger in the evolution of our relationship. Like most of the ideas which grab us from somewhere within, it was another iceberg of the soul.
This image reminded me of one of those poems, and I am ready to share it with you now.
CONVERSATION #2
Did I ever tell you that I love you?
Yes. It scares me.
Why?
It’s too big. It’s like falling into the sky.
We sit at the red light, waiting to proceed.
Debussy fills our stillness from the radio
in my pick-up, and I
can see a stranger speaking
to the driver of the car next to us.
My hand draws circles on the inside of your
left thigh, slowly.
Where is all of this light coming from?
Life is such a mystery. Little wonder that we struggle to discover meaning, and our place in it, with something as amazing as poetry!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Congrats to Señor R.!
This is my dear friend, Sr. R. with his new co-workers.
I have known Mr. R. for nearly 3 years; and our meeting was one of happenstance in a chat room. As it turned out, he became a TV personality in Mexico. For the past two years, he's co-hosted the nationally syndicated morning talk show "Revista 4" out of Veracruz. The show was good, but the producers wanted more. SO they've recast the show, up-dated the format, and dumped the former crew. Well, most of the former crew....they kept R. as the center player in the new show.
SO, FELICITONES muchos a Sr. R!
I have known Mr. R. for nearly 3 years; and our meeting was one of happenstance in a chat room. As it turned out, he became a TV personality in Mexico. For the past two years, he's co-hosted the nationally syndicated morning talk show "Revista 4" out of Veracruz. The show was good, but the producers wanted more. SO they've recast the show, up-dated the format, and dumped the former crew. Well, most of the former crew....they kept R. as the center player in the new show.
SO, FELICITONES muchos a Sr. R!
Random Quote #55
"Naturally, the common people don't want war, but after all it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and its always a simple matter to drag the people along... All you have to do is tell them they're being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism. It works the same in every country."
~ Hermann Göering, 1893-1946
~ Hermann Göering, 1893-1946
Sunday, September 24, 2006
What I'm Listening To #17
Rosanne Cash's album, "Rules of Travel" is just another amazing work of love and art.
If you haven't figured it out yet; I like #1 Diva's (Jazz, Country, Blues, Zydeco, Pop, Alternative, Iternational, uncatagorizable!), #2 Boychick Bands! (the more self-involved, sullen and angst ridden, and ecclectic..... the better), and #3 sultery, jazz oriented men with full voices that have the power to be either distiguished or nuanced--or both (from today and yester-year!).
Rosanne is clearly in column #1 with lots of the qualities from #3!
If you haven't figured it out yet; I like #1 Diva's (Jazz, Country, Blues, Zydeco, Pop, Alternative, Iternational, uncatagorizable!), #2 Boychick Bands! (the more self-involved, sullen and angst ridden, and ecclectic..... the better), and #3 sultery, jazz oriented men with full voices that have the power to be either distiguished or nuanced--or both (from today and yester-year!).
Rosanne is clearly in column #1 with lots of the qualities from #3!
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Must See, TV!...er, YouTube! I mean
I love the democracy that a site like YouTube.com promotes. Anyone with half a wit of reason can create video footage of themselves and post it. Most of it is, of course, pure crap! But there are gems among the manure. Por exemplo, check out this video by "Ok Go."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NINJQ5LRh-0
Makes me want to go out and buy a treadmill....or two, or four...or eight!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NINJQ5LRh-0
Makes me want to go out and buy a treadmill....or two, or four...or eight!
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Our Latest American Hero #37
Army Sgt. 1st Class Merideth L. Howard, 52, of Alameda, Calif.; assigned to the 405th Civil Affairs Battalion, Army Reserve, Fort Bragg, N.C.; killed Sept. 8 when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near her Humvee in Kabul, Afghanistan. Also killed was Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul.
"Former Bryan Recruit Becomes a Casualty of the Afghan War"
The first woman to become a firefighter in Bryan died last week in Afghanistan, where she was serving in the Army.
Sgt. 1st Class Merideth Howard, 52, who lived in Waukesha, Wis., was killed in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Friday, when a suicide car bomb exploded next to the Humvee carrying her and 15 others during a patrol, Army officials said. Another Army officer, Robert J. Paul, also died in the explosion.
In 1978, Merideth Howard became Bryan's first female firefighter after graduating with a master's degree in marine resource management from Texas A&M University. Howard, 52, died Friday in Kabul, Afghanistan, becoming the oldest female soldier killed in action.
At 52, Howard became the oldest female soldier from the United States killed in action since military operations began in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The grim designation joined more heralded accomplishments Howard achieved during her remarkable lifetime, friends said.
Howard, a Corpus Christi native, graduated from Texas A&M University in 1978 with a master's degree in marine resource management. That same year, she became the first female firefighter in Bryan. In college, Howard was a member of A&M's first women's tennis team. She also was the second woman to complete an eight-week recruit academy at the Brayton Fire School.
David White, who now is the publisher of Industrial Fire World magazine, was Howard's instructor at the fire school and kept in touch with her throughout the years.
"She was one tremendous firefighter," White said. "She was a good, dedicated, hard worker. She wasn't just a get-by person. She always did more than what she had to do."
White said Howard was a respected firefighter and easily fit in to the male-dominated job.
"As a firefighter, it's always like, can you physically do the job?" he said. "You've got to carry the hoses and raise the ladder. You are not going to find a frail, 100-pound person doing it - man or woman. [Howard] could do it. She might not have had all the strength, but determination made up for it."
During her time as a firefighter in Bryan, Howard served at Fire Station 1 as an engine driver for about 3 1/2 years. Bryan Fire Department Chief Mike Donoho said he remembers working with Howard, and he, too, respected her for her dedication and hard work.
"Some people had apprehensions about it within the organization," he said about Howard being the department's first female firefighter. "But she fit in very well within a short amount of time."
Donoho also remembered Howard as an intelligent person who was eager to help implement improvements within the department. He said she helped establish an on-site air system that allowed the department to fill its own respiration tanks. He also said Howard helped organize the department's first Muscular Dystrophy Association benefit car wash - an effort that has evolved into the "Fill the Boot" campaign.
Donoho said there are no female firefighters in the Bryan Fire Department now, but several have filled the ranks since Howard.
"Being the first female firefighter, [Howard] did open doors," he said. "By doing a good job and gaining respect, it gave everyone else a better chance. They had an easier road ahead of them because of what she established."
After working as a firefighter in Bryan, Howard and her husband moved to California, where she worked as a fire protection specialist, designing construction specifications and inspecting fire alarm systems, sprinkler systems and fire pumps. In 1988, she joined the Army Reserve as a medical equipment repairer.
Last fall, she was recalled to active duty and was assigned as a civil affairs sergeant with the 364th Civil Affairs Brigade out of Portland, Ore. In April, she was deployed to Afghanistan, where she helped rebuild roads, schools and infrastructure.
"She joined the Army because she thought it was something she should do," White said. "She was just one of those people who inspires you."
Howard's husband, Hugh Hvolboll, released a statement about his wife earlier this week chronicling her love of the ocean and travel and her passion for firefighting and fire safety.
"Merideth was a loving, affectionate and outgoing wife," he said. "She gave the shirt off her back to help each and every friend she had. She is greatly missed by her family and friends across the country."
"Former Bryan Recruit Becomes a Casualty of the Afghan War"
The first woman to become a firefighter in Bryan died last week in Afghanistan, where she was serving in the Army.
Sgt. 1st Class Merideth Howard, 52, who lived in Waukesha, Wis., was killed in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Friday, when a suicide car bomb exploded next to the Humvee carrying her and 15 others during a patrol, Army officials said. Another Army officer, Robert J. Paul, also died in the explosion.
In 1978, Merideth Howard became Bryan's first female firefighter after graduating with a master's degree in marine resource management from Texas A&M University. Howard, 52, died Friday in Kabul, Afghanistan, becoming the oldest female soldier killed in action.
At 52, Howard became the oldest female soldier from the United States killed in action since military operations began in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The grim designation joined more heralded accomplishments Howard achieved during her remarkable lifetime, friends said.
Howard, a Corpus Christi native, graduated from Texas A&M University in 1978 with a master's degree in marine resource management. That same year, she became the first female firefighter in Bryan. In college, Howard was a member of A&M's first women's tennis team. She also was the second woman to complete an eight-week recruit academy at the Brayton Fire School.
David White, who now is the publisher of Industrial Fire World magazine, was Howard's instructor at the fire school and kept in touch with her throughout the years.
"She was one tremendous firefighter," White said. "She was a good, dedicated, hard worker. She wasn't just a get-by person. She always did more than what she had to do."
White said Howard was a respected firefighter and easily fit in to the male-dominated job.
"As a firefighter, it's always like, can you physically do the job?" he said. "You've got to carry the hoses and raise the ladder. You are not going to find a frail, 100-pound person doing it - man or woman. [Howard] could do it. She might not have had all the strength, but determination made up for it."
During her time as a firefighter in Bryan, Howard served at Fire Station 1 as an engine driver for about 3 1/2 years. Bryan Fire Department Chief Mike Donoho said he remembers working with Howard, and he, too, respected her for her dedication and hard work.
"Some people had apprehensions about it within the organization," he said about Howard being the department's first female firefighter. "But she fit in very well within a short amount of time."
Donoho also remembered Howard as an intelligent person who was eager to help implement improvements within the department. He said she helped establish an on-site air system that allowed the department to fill its own respiration tanks. He also said Howard helped organize the department's first Muscular Dystrophy Association benefit car wash - an effort that has evolved into the "Fill the Boot" campaign.
Donoho said there are no female firefighters in the Bryan Fire Department now, but several have filled the ranks since Howard.
"Being the first female firefighter, [Howard] did open doors," he said. "By doing a good job and gaining respect, it gave everyone else a better chance. They had an easier road ahead of them because of what she established."
After working as a firefighter in Bryan, Howard and her husband moved to California, where she worked as a fire protection specialist, designing construction specifications and inspecting fire alarm systems, sprinkler systems and fire pumps. In 1988, she joined the Army Reserve as a medical equipment repairer.
Last fall, she was recalled to active duty and was assigned as a civil affairs sergeant with the 364th Civil Affairs Brigade out of Portland, Ore. In April, she was deployed to Afghanistan, where she helped rebuild roads, schools and infrastructure.
"She joined the Army because she thought it was something she should do," White said. "She was just one of those people who inspires you."
Howard's husband, Hugh Hvolboll, released a statement about his wife earlier this week chronicling her love of the ocean and travel and her passion for firefighting and fire safety.
"Merideth was a loving, affectionate and outgoing wife," he said. "She gave the shirt off her back to help each and every friend she had. She is greatly missed by her family and friends across the country."
Monday, September 18, 2006
Viva el Espaigne!
I posted when the first RCMP same-sex couple wed, and so here's another first from across the pond:
Two airmen became the first gay Spanish military couple to marry on Friday, accompanied by a fire-cracker chorus of flamenco clapping, guitars and a crowd of hearty-voiced well-wishers.
Alberto Linero, 27, and Alberto Sanchez, 24, both privates in the air force, wore dark blue dress uniforms with red and gold epaulets as they exchanged vows in a reception room at Seville's town hall - the first known wedding among same-sex members of the military since Spain legalized gay marriage last year. They were watched by friends, family and well-known gay personalities.
"I just hope everything goes well," said a nervous-sounding Sanchez as he was pursued along the streets of the Andalusian capital by a media throng.
They shed a tear as they hugged and kissed effusively as another flamenco chorus was played at the door of the town hall.
The Socialist government has shaken up some long-standing codes in Catholic Spain with measures such as legalising gay marriage, making divorce easier and diminishing the role of the church in education.
The Catholic Church had close links to the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, backed by the army, which lasted almost 40 years.
Some 4,500 same-sex couples have wed under the gay marriage legislation, which took effect in July 2005, according to the Justice Ministry.
The wedding is believed to be the first marriage between two same-sex members of the Spanish armed forces, said Beatriz Gimeno, president of Spain's Federation of Gays and Lesbians.
She welcomed the wedding as something the military and Spaniards in general have to get used to.
"I don't think the army in a democratic society has to be conservative," Gimeno said.
Besides Spain, the Netherlands, Canada and Belgium have legalized same-sex marriage, while Britain and other European countries have laws that give same-sex couples the right to form legally binding partnerships.
In the United States, only the state of Massachusetts allows gay marriage, while Vermont and Connecticut permit civil unions.
Two airmen became the first gay Spanish military couple to marry on Friday, accompanied by a fire-cracker chorus of flamenco clapping, guitars and a crowd of hearty-voiced well-wishers.
Alberto Linero, 27, and Alberto Sanchez, 24, both privates in the air force, wore dark blue dress uniforms with red and gold epaulets as they exchanged vows in a reception room at Seville's town hall - the first known wedding among same-sex members of the military since Spain legalized gay marriage last year. They were watched by friends, family and well-known gay personalities.
"I just hope everything goes well," said a nervous-sounding Sanchez as he was pursued along the streets of the Andalusian capital by a media throng.
They shed a tear as they hugged and kissed effusively as another flamenco chorus was played at the door of the town hall.
The Socialist government has shaken up some long-standing codes in Catholic Spain with measures such as legalising gay marriage, making divorce easier and diminishing the role of the church in education.
The Catholic Church had close links to the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, backed by the army, which lasted almost 40 years.
Some 4,500 same-sex couples have wed under the gay marriage legislation, which took effect in July 2005, according to the Justice Ministry.
The wedding is believed to be the first marriage between two same-sex members of the Spanish armed forces, said Beatriz Gimeno, president of Spain's Federation of Gays and Lesbians.
She welcomed the wedding as something the military and Spaniards in general have to get used to.
"I don't think the army in a democratic society has to be conservative," Gimeno said.
Besides Spain, the Netherlands, Canada and Belgium have legalized same-sex marriage, while Britain and other European countries have laws that give same-sex couples the right to form legally binding partnerships.
In the United States, only the state of Massachusetts allows gay marriage, while Vermont and Connecticut permit civil unions.
What I'm Listening To #16
This is "Rivo Drei." ~ one Hot German trio. You can see their videos at: http://64.233.179.104/translate_c?hl=pt-PT&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&langpair=pt%7Cen&u=http://video.google.com/videoplay%3Fdocid%3D2425117521986041753&prev=/language_tools
It's a subject line full, so I recommend cut and paste if you don't get a link. They are plaintive and passionate music makers. Young and foolish enough to be free and unpretentious. I especially enjoy "Wei Flugzeuge".
The fact that they sing in German, a language that I do not know but a couple dozen mostly disjointed and useless words in, did give me a momentary reason to pause; but then you know, I really do like that. I listen to El Zol 99.1 in Spanish all the time, I stream Radio Batanga on the internet at my office, I exercise to O-Zone's Disco Pop in Moldavian and Romanian, Have a growing collection of Brazilian jazz and pop in Portuguese (one of the most melodious languages on the planet). And so why the hell not German alternative/pop?
I never want to be someone who stops growing and discovering and embracing something new. I do not want to live in a world where anything is foreign. Perhaps it is the height of arrogance on some level, but I reject a world made up of "us" and "them". We are all US.
So check out Rivo Drei and discover another part of ourselves!
It's a subject line full, so I recommend cut and paste if you don't get a link. They are plaintive and passionate music makers. Young and foolish enough to be free and unpretentious. I especially enjoy "Wei Flugzeuge".
The fact that they sing in German, a language that I do not know but a couple dozen mostly disjointed and useless words in, did give me a momentary reason to pause; but then you know, I really do like that. I listen to El Zol 99.1 in Spanish all the time, I stream Radio Batanga on the internet at my office, I exercise to O-Zone's Disco Pop in Moldavian and Romanian, Have a growing collection of Brazilian jazz and pop in Portuguese (one of the most melodious languages on the planet). And so why the hell not German alternative/pop?
I never want to be someone who stops growing and discovering and embracing something new. I do not want to live in a world where anything is foreign. Perhaps it is the height of arrogance on some level, but I reject a world made up of "us" and "them". We are all US.
So check out Rivo Drei and discover another part of ourselves!
Sunday, September 17, 2006
A Blog Worth The Time
Discovered in my waste of time afternoon.....
http://www.kennethinthe212.blogspot.com/
http://www.kennethinthe212.blogspot.com/
How Did You Waste, Er Spend Your Sunday Afternoon?
With many things pressing me for my time, I just chose to Veg!
And I did this by just surfing the Web. Allowing one site to lead me to another. Eventually happening upon a site that contained dozens and dozens of links to sites with male or gay interests. NOT porno. Sites of artists, bloggers, advocacy groups from around the world.
It's a blog site of its own: salsaepimenta.blogspot.com
It's based in Portugal, and I have spent the better part of three hours just scratching the surface of its linked riches. The image here is titled, "Little Red Riding Hood" and it's the creation of a graphics design studio out of Italy, Studio Dronio. I think they also did the graphics work for the Moldavian Techno Band, "Ozone", and their mega hit, "Dragostea Din Tei".)
The original site must be in Portuguese, and I immediately chose to have it translated into English via Google's translation software. Well, it's not a perfect venue to understanding! I've been really working at reading stuff that can for a time be completely reasonable and then suddenly swerve into non-sense land!
Here's an example from an article that was original written in English for the Scottish edition of the English newspaper The Observer about actor Eric McCormack's woes in finding work post-"Will & Grace".
"I Can't Shake Off My Gay Image, Says Will"
Lorna Martin, Scotland publisher
Sunday August 27, 2006
The Observer
He is blessed with dazzling good looks and starred in one of the most successful sitcoms on television. But when you've spent almost decade playing the most famous gay man in America, it's not easy you branch out you pastures new, the Erics McCormack is finding out.
McCormack, who played Manhattan to lawyer Will Truman in the hugely popular Will and Grace, would like you moves in you films and an actor Emmy-award winning, with perfect comic timing, undoubtedly has the ability you of so. But in one will hire him.
“I have this big pink cross you bear,” he said yesterday in Edinburgh where he was attending the International Television Festival. 'I absolutely loved playing Will. There was nothing hard about it. It was wonderful. But the only downside is the aftermath.
“I meet all these film executives who tell me how much they loved Will and Grace and say they to never missed an episode. Then they say, “so what can we of will be you it” What they could of it will be me is hire me you play someone else.”
I've been reading up on Autism today, as well, as I am dealing with many students who are Autistic at school--and want to be as prepared as possible to help my staff deal with and understand these unique and demanding children. I've learned that every 166th child born in the United States has some form of Autism. From 1990 to 2000, the US population increased by 13%, the number of Americans with Diabetes increased by 16%, and the number of Americans with Autism increased by 172%!!!
So now I'm reading these websites that time and again present me with strange and confusing syntax; moments when all meaning goes awry. And I think about the autistic children that I, and my colleagues, are interacting with more and profoundly more.
Not that the two are in anyway authentically linked, but it's been interesting pondering how slightly shifted to incomprehensible the daily world of these kids is in light of my adventure with Google's translator!
Maybe it wasn't a waste of time after all.....
And I did this by just surfing the Web. Allowing one site to lead me to another. Eventually happening upon a site that contained dozens and dozens of links to sites with male or gay interests. NOT porno. Sites of artists, bloggers, advocacy groups from around the world.
It's a blog site of its own: salsaepimenta.blogspot.com
It's based in Portugal, and I have spent the better part of three hours just scratching the surface of its linked riches. The image here is titled, "Little Red Riding Hood" and it's the creation of a graphics design studio out of Italy, Studio Dronio. I think they also did the graphics work for the Moldavian Techno Band, "Ozone", and their mega hit, "Dragostea Din Tei".)
The original site must be in Portuguese, and I immediately chose to have it translated into English via Google's translation software. Well, it's not a perfect venue to understanding! I've been really working at reading stuff that can for a time be completely reasonable and then suddenly swerve into non-sense land!
Here's an example from an article that was original written in English for the Scottish edition of the English newspaper The Observer about actor Eric McCormack's woes in finding work post-"Will & Grace".
"I Can't Shake Off My Gay Image, Says Will"
Lorna Martin, Scotland publisher
Sunday August 27, 2006
The Observer
He is blessed with dazzling good looks and starred in one of the most successful sitcoms on television. But when you've spent almost decade playing the most famous gay man in America, it's not easy you branch out you pastures new, the Erics McCormack is finding out.
McCormack, who played Manhattan to lawyer Will Truman in the hugely popular Will and Grace, would like you moves in you films and an actor Emmy-award winning, with perfect comic timing, undoubtedly has the ability you of so. But in one will hire him.
“I have this big pink cross you bear,” he said yesterday in Edinburgh where he was attending the International Television Festival. 'I absolutely loved playing Will. There was nothing hard about it. It was wonderful. But the only downside is the aftermath.
“I meet all these film executives who tell me how much they loved Will and Grace and say they to never missed an episode. Then they say, “so what can we of will be you it” What they could of it will be me is hire me you play someone else.”
I've been reading up on Autism today, as well, as I am dealing with many students who are Autistic at school--and want to be as prepared as possible to help my staff deal with and understand these unique and demanding children. I've learned that every 166th child born in the United States has some form of Autism. From 1990 to 2000, the US population increased by 13%, the number of Americans with Diabetes increased by 16%, and the number of Americans with Autism increased by 172%!!!
So now I'm reading these websites that time and again present me with strange and confusing syntax; moments when all meaning goes awry. And I think about the autistic children that I, and my colleagues, are interacting with more and profoundly more.
Not that the two are in anyway authentically linked, but it's been interesting pondering how slightly shifted to incomprehensible the daily world of these kids is in light of my adventure with Google's translator!
Maybe it wasn't a waste of time after all.....
Saturday, September 16, 2006
What I'm Watching #30
Just got the DVD last week. Queer as Folk is a seminal TV event from the BBC who's quirky and daring productions now legendary in the US include: "Monty Python's Flying Circus," "Up Stairs, Down Stairs," "The Vicar of Dibley," and "The Office" to but barely scratch the surface. And like so many other BBC originals, "Queer as Folk" spawned a copy-cat series here. But there's nothing like the original.
And there's nothing like "Queer as Folk" before in the history of TV productions! To watch a man rim another man without the tricks of artiface or inuendo--nothing up my sleeve! was utterly mind-boggling the first time around.
This is the third time I've seen the first series, and it's just as amazing a set of characters, circumstances, events....the joys of discovery the sorrows of fate's tragic side...this is just damn good story telling. Kudus to the BBC and all involved.
And there's nothing like "Queer as Folk" before in the history of TV productions! To watch a man rim another man without the tricks of artiface or inuendo--nothing up my sleeve! was utterly mind-boggling the first time around.
This is the third time I've seen the first series, and it's just as amazing a set of characters, circumstances, events....the joys of discovery the sorrows of fate's tragic side...this is just damn good story telling. Kudus to the BBC and all involved.
Little Nathan, All Grown-Up!
You ever enjoy a movie or TV show that has a child or teenage cast member and not see them again for years and wonder what's become of them? Will Wheaton of Star Trek the Next Generation or his co-star in "Stand By Me," Jerry O'Connell, for instance. And Google Jerry, you won't believe how that caterpillar blossomed!
So I thought, what's happened to the precocious, Nathan (Charlie Hunnam, né 10 April 1980), from "Queer As Folk?" Well, he's become a man. He's the kid on the left in the top image and the bottom two photos speak for themselves. He's enjoyed magazine features in GQ, Elle, Interview, Details, L'uomo to name a few; and been an Abercrombie and Fitch model. He's acted in a major film or TV series every year since QaF, the ones most familiar to US audiences are "Cold Mountain" in which he played Bosie, and "Nicholas Nickleby" were he was none other than Nicholas Nickleby, himself! He's in pre-production work on the film "Memroires of Hadrian" with Antonio Banderas and Paz Vega. He portrays Antonius.
I didn't join the fan club, but I'm glad he is healthy and doing the things that bring him fulfillment.
So I thought, what's happened to the precocious, Nathan (Charlie Hunnam, né 10 April 1980), from "Queer As Folk?" Well, he's become a man. He's the kid on the left in the top image and the bottom two photos speak for themselves. He's enjoyed magazine features in GQ, Elle, Interview, Details, L'uomo to name a few; and been an Abercrombie and Fitch model. He's acted in a major film or TV series every year since QaF, the ones most familiar to US audiences are "Cold Mountain" in which he played Bosie, and "Nicholas Nickleby" were he was none other than Nicholas Nickleby, himself! He's in pre-production work on the film "Memroires of Hadrian" with Antonio Banderas and Paz Vega. He portrays Antonius.
I didn't join the fan club, but I'm glad he is healthy and doing the things that bring him fulfillment.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Introducing......
My "nephew". James Sebastian S. Born on November 8, 2005.
When the news of the world makes me sad, his smile restores my joy. As a gay man, I will never father a child of my own. As a teacher of 22 years, I have been a serrogate dad to hundreds of children from Kentucky to Maryland, from China to Costa Rica! And many's the parent who's thanked me over the years for my influence, guidance, and caring for their children. Many of my students have expressed similar feelings. But no one else has said to me, if we die, we trust you to raise our son.
You know, he's getting extra raisins in his fruit cake!
When the news of the world makes me sad, his smile restores my joy. As a gay man, I will never father a child of my own. As a teacher of 22 years, I have been a serrogate dad to hundreds of children from Kentucky to Maryland, from China to Costa Rica! And many's the parent who's thanked me over the years for my influence, guidance, and caring for their children. Many of my students have expressed similar feelings. But no one else has said to me, if we die, we trust you to raise our son.
You know, he's getting extra raisins in his fruit cake!
Do You Know?
Who this man is?
Why he's giving a speech?
What holiday today is?
Don't feel bad if you don't, I don't image very many Americans do!
He's Marine General Peter Pace (still doesn't ring a bell? ~ then shame on you!). He's OUR chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He's giving a speech on the occasion of the National POW/MIA Recognition Day, September 15th. Not a very high profile or personally significant holiday. The mail arrived on time. Banks and schools and stock markets were open for business. Why, even flags flew at full staff.
It's the perfect holiday in the age of a war on terrorism where no matter what happens Americans must not be personally inconvenienced, and only psychologically intimidated long enough to further the neo-facist agenda of the present incumbent powers that be....
Hail, Bush!!! (Or more true to the Homeland, "Bushgruß") Ouch! I gotta get back into Tae Bo, so I'm in shape and ready to Goose Step for my allegiance.
Why he's giving a speech?
What holiday today is?
Don't feel bad if you don't, I don't image very many Americans do!
He's Marine General Peter Pace (still doesn't ring a bell? ~ then shame on you!). He's OUR chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He's giving a speech on the occasion of the National POW/MIA Recognition Day, September 15th. Not a very high profile or personally significant holiday. The mail arrived on time. Banks and schools and stock markets were open for business. Why, even flags flew at full staff.
It's the perfect holiday in the age of a war on terrorism where no matter what happens Americans must not be personally inconvenienced, and only psychologically intimidated long enough to further the neo-facist agenda of the present incumbent powers that be....
Hail, Bush!!! (Or more true to the Homeland, "Bushgruß") Ouch! I gotta get back into Tae Bo, so I'm in shape and ready to Goose Step for my allegiance.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Our Latest American Hero #36
Army Staff Sgt. Angel D. Mercado-Velazquez, 24, of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico assigned to the 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C.; died in Yusifiyah, Iraq, on Sept. 1 of injuries suffered from mortar fire during dismounted combat operations.
“They Will Bury Soldier In Sabana Grande”
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – A serviceman from the U.S. Caribbean territory died of injuries suffered in a mortar attack in Iraq, a military spokesman said Sunday.
Sgt. Angel D. Mercado Velazquez, 25, died Friday in Yusifiyah, Iraq, Army spokesman Jose Pagan said in a statement.
Mercado, from the southwestern town of Sabana Grande, is survived by his wife and parents, Pagan said.
It was not clear when his remains would be returned to the U.S. territory of roughly 4 million people.
Sonia Santiago, who heads Mothers Against the War – a Puerto Rican group made up of mothers of soldiers serving in Iraq – expressed her condolences to his family.
To date, 52 Puerto Rican–born soldiers have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Mothers Against the War.
An estimated 200,000 Puerto Ricans have enlisted in the U.S. Army since 1917, when the United States required them to serve in the military. More than 3,000 Puerto Ricans, who are American citizens, have died in battle.
“Sepultarán soldado en Sabana Grande”
SABANA GRANDE – Sin conocer a su primogénito, nacido hace apenas un mes, el sargento puertorriqueño Angel D. Mercado Velázquez, de 24 años y natural del barrio Cerro Gordo de Sabana Grande, murió el viernes en Irak, informó ayer el Ejército de Estados Unidos.
Sus familiares trataban ayer de asimilar la trágica noticia de la inesperada muerte de “Ñoñoco”, como le conocÃan.
El joven soldado murió el pasado viernes en Yusifiyah, Irak, a consecuencia de las heridas recibidas cuando estalló un mortero, informó José Pagán, portavoz del Ejército en Puerto Rico.
Con su muerte se elevaron a 51 los soldados puertorriqueños caÃdos en los conflictos bélicos en Irak y Afganistán.
“Nunca esperamos esto. Su madre está muy afectada”, expresó Miguel Mercado Lugo, padre del joven soldado, quien pertenecÃa a la CompañÃa del Cuartel Batallón 325 de InfanterÃa, con sede en el Fuerte Bragg, en Carolina del Norte.
Mercado Lugo sostuvo que su hijo guardaba la ilusión de conocer a su primer hijo en diciembre cuando saldrÃa de Irak, donde estaba desde julio.
El bebé nació hace un mes en Carolina del Norte.
Destacó que habló con Mercado Velázquez por última vez el pasado martes, cuando lo llamó para despedirse antes de emprender una misión.
Mercado Lugo, quien es maestro en la escuela intermedia Julio VÃctor Guzmán de San Germán, dijo que recibió la llamada de su hijo a las 9:00 de la mañana.
“Dejé de dar clases y le dije a los muchachos que iba a hablar con mi hijo. Se despidió de mà porque iba a una misión que tenÃa pendiente. El llamó a todos sus hermanos y a su madre. Le dije que se cuidara. Estaba un poquito triste, porque no pudo ver a su hijo que tiene un mes”, relató Mercado Lugo.
Agregó que trató de consolarlo al decirle que habÃa tomado unos dÃas para ir a conocer al nieto en noviembre durante la semana de Acción de Gracias.
El maestro describió a su hijo, quien cumplirÃa 25 años el 25 de octubre, como un muchacho bueno y respetuoso. Antes de ingresar al Ejército en el 2002 estudiaba para maestro de educación fÃsica en la Universidad Interamericana, al tiempo que trabajaba en mantenimiento en una dependencia del Centro Médico de Mayagüez.
Destacó que luego del ataque terrorista a las torres gemelas en Nueva York en 2001, el joven se empeñó en ingresar al Ejército.
“El decidió irse pero yo le dije que si fuera por mÃ, él no se iba. Como ya era mayor, le dije ‘tu decisión es la que cuenta, pero si tú me dejaras tomar la decisión, yo dirÃa que no’. Estuvo cuatro años y firmó por cuatro más”, relató.
Agregó que su hijo se entusiasmó tanto que pensaba hacer una carrera militar.
Además de sus padres, su hermano y dos hermanas, a Mercado Velázquez le sobreviven su esposa, Sheila Colón, y su hijo, Angel A. Mercado Colón.
Aún se desconoce cuándo llegarán los restos a Puerto Rico, pero el sepelio se llevará a cabo en el cementerio municipal de Sabana Grande, se informó.
“They Will Bury Soldier In Sabana Grande”
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – A serviceman from the U.S. Caribbean territory died of injuries suffered in a mortar attack in Iraq, a military spokesman said Sunday.
Sgt. Angel D. Mercado Velazquez, 25, died Friday in Yusifiyah, Iraq, Army spokesman Jose Pagan said in a statement.
Mercado, from the southwestern town of Sabana Grande, is survived by his wife and parents, Pagan said.
It was not clear when his remains would be returned to the U.S. territory of roughly 4 million people.
Sonia Santiago, who heads Mothers Against the War – a Puerto Rican group made up of mothers of soldiers serving in Iraq – expressed her condolences to his family.
To date, 52 Puerto Rican–born soldiers have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Mothers Against the War.
An estimated 200,000 Puerto Ricans have enlisted in the U.S. Army since 1917, when the United States required them to serve in the military. More than 3,000 Puerto Ricans, who are American citizens, have died in battle.
“Sepultarán soldado en Sabana Grande”
SABANA GRANDE – Sin conocer a su primogénito, nacido hace apenas un mes, el sargento puertorriqueño Angel D. Mercado Velázquez, de 24 años y natural del barrio Cerro Gordo de Sabana Grande, murió el viernes en Irak, informó ayer el Ejército de Estados Unidos.
Sus familiares trataban ayer de asimilar la trágica noticia de la inesperada muerte de “Ñoñoco”, como le conocÃan.
El joven soldado murió el pasado viernes en Yusifiyah, Irak, a consecuencia de las heridas recibidas cuando estalló un mortero, informó José Pagán, portavoz del Ejército en Puerto Rico.
Con su muerte se elevaron a 51 los soldados puertorriqueños caÃdos en los conflictos bélicos en Irak y Afganistán.
“Nunca esperamos esto. Su madre está muy afectada”, expresó Miguel Mercado Lugo, padre del joven soldado, quien pertenecÃa a la CompañÃa del Cuartel Batallón 325 de InfanterÃa, con sede en el Fuerte Bragg, en Carolina del Norte.
Mercado Lugo sostuvo que su hijo guardaba la ilusión de conocer a su primer hijo en diciembre cuando saldrÃa de Irak, donde estaba desde julio.
El bebé nació hace un mes en Carolina del Norte.
Destacó que habló con Mercado Velázquez por última vez el pasado martes, cuando lo llamó para despedirse antes de emprender una misión.
Mercado Lugo, quien es maestro en la escuela intermedia Julio VÃctor Guzmán de San Germán, dijo que recibió la llamada de su hijo a las 9:00 de la mañana.
“Dejé de dar clases y le dije a los muchachos que iba a hablar con mi hijo. Se despidió de mà porque iba a una misión que tenÃa pendiente. El llamó a todos sus hermanos y a su madre. Le dije que se cuidara. Estaba un poquito triste, porque no pudo ver a su hijo que tiene un mes”, relató Mercado Lugo.
Agregó que trató de consolarlo al decirle que habÃa tomado unos dÃas para ir a conocer al nieto en noviembre durante la semana de Acción de Gracias.
El maestro describió a su hijo, quien cumplirÃa 25 años el 25 de octubre, como un muchacho bueno y respetuoso. Antes de ingresar al Ejército en el 2002 estudiaba para maestro de educación fÃsica en la Universidad Interamericana, al tiempo que trabajaba en mantenimiento en una dependencia del Centro Médico de Mayagüez.
Destacó que luego del ataque terrorista a las torres gemelas en Nueva York en 2001, el joven se empeñó en ingresar al Ejército.
“El decidió irse pero yo le dije que si fuera por mÃ, él no se iba. Como ya era mayor, le dije ‘tu decisión es la que cuenta, pero si tú me dejaras tomar la decisión, yo dirÃa que no’. Estuvo cuatro años y firmó por cuatro más”, relató.
Agregó que su hijo se entusiasmó tanto que pensaba hacer una carrera militar.
Además de sus padres, su hermano y dos hermanas, a Mercado Velázquez le sobreviven su esposa, Sheila Colón, y su hijo, Angel A. Mercado Colón.
Aún se desconoce cuándo llegarán los restos a Puerto Rico, pero el sepelio se llevará a cabo en el cementerio municipal de Sabana Grande, se informó.
Light and Shade
I. Specimen Days
140. Sundown Lights
"May 6, 5 P. M.—THIS is the hour for strange effects in light and shade—enough to make a colorist go delirious—long spokes of molten silver sent horizontally through the trees (now in their brightest tenderest green,) each leaf and branch of endless foliage a lit-up miracle, then lying all prone on the youthful-ripe, interminable grass, and giving the blades not only aggregate but individual splendor, in ways unknown to any other hour. I have particular spots where I get these effects in their perfection. One broad splash lies on the water, with many a rippling twinkle, offset by the rapidly deepening black-green murky-transparent shadows behind, and at intervals all along the banks. These, with great shafts of horizontal fire thrown among the trees and along the grass as the sun lowers, give effects more and more peculiar, more and more superb, unearthly, rich and dazzling."
~ Walt Whitman, 1819-1892
My bathroom sink would be another one of those places....
140. Sundown Lights
"May 6, 5 P. M.—THIS is the hour for strange effects in light and shade—enough to make a colorist go delirious—long spokes of molten silver sent horizontally through the trees (now in their brightest tenderest green,) each leaf and branch of endless foliage a lit-up miracle, then lying all prone on the youthful-ripe, interminable grass, and giving the blades not only aggregate but individual splendor, in ways unknown to any other hour. I have particular spots where I get these effects in their perfection. One broad splash lies on the water, with many a rippling twinkle, offset by the rapidly deepening black-green murky-transparent shadows behind, and at intervals all along the banks. These, with great shafts of horizontal fire thrown among the trees and along the grass as the sun lowers, give effects more and more peculiar, more and more superb, unearthly, rich and dazzling."
~ Walt Whitman, 1819-1892
My bathroom sink would be another one of those places....
Monday, September 11, 2006
September 11, 2006
The U.S. Department of Defense announced the deaths of 7 more soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan on this gloomy and damp September day in the Washington, D.C.:
Army Sgt. Luis A. Montes, 22, of El Centro, California
Marine Cpl. Johnathan L. Benson, 21, of North Branch, Minnesota
Army Sgt. Nathaniel B. Lindsey, 38, of Troutdale, Oregon
Army Sgt. 1st Class Merideth L. Howard, 52, of Alameda, California
Army Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul, 43, of The Dalles, Oregon
Army Sgt. John A. Carroll, 26, of Ponca City, Oklahoma
Army Pfc. Anthony P. Seig, 19, of Sunman, Indiana
None of these men died today, it takes the DoD a few days to report the names of those killed, owing to the need to contact the family first. The DoD has reported a total of 26 soldiers who have lost their lives in the first 9 days of September. This on the heels of an August that saw 73 men and women in our brave military die in our war on terrorism.
I don't know about you, but I have yet to be asked to sacrifice an ounce for this war. I have yet to feel even a centimeter safer. I have more questions everyday than answers. And hope is not high on my list of sentiments these days.
Army Sgt. Luis A. Montes, 22, of El Centro, California
Marine Cpl. Johnathan L. Benson, 21, of North Branch, Minnesota
Army Sgt. Nathaniel B. Lindsey, 38, of Troutdale, Oregon
Army Sgt. 1st Class Merideth L. Howard, 52, of Alameda, California
Army Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul, 43, of The Dalles, Oregon
Army Sgt. John A. Carroll, 26, of Ponca City, Oklahoma
Army Pfc. Anthony P. Seig, 19, of Sunman, Indiana
None of these men died today, it takes the DoD a few days to report the names of those killed, owing to the need to contact the family first. The DoD has reported a total of 26 soldiers who have lost their lives in the first 9 days of September. This on the heels of an August that saw 73 men and women in our brave military die in our war on terrorism.
I don't know about you, but I have yet to be asked to sacrifice an ounce for this war. I have yet to feel even a centimeter safer. I have more questions everyday than answers. And hope is not high on my list of sentiments these days.
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