I know my friends at school would see nothing unusual about God performing a miracle vis a vis chocolate. There are still some among even my dearest and longest-suffering colleagues who find the fact that I don't particular like chocolate sacreligious.
This "miracle" is from the chocolate drippings that formed under a vat at "Bodega Chocolates". And who's to say? It's appearance will no doubt be a blessing to the bottom line at Bodega Chocolates! But my friend, Mr. V., sums it up this way, "It looks like poop to me."
Saturday, August 19, 2006
What I'm Watching #26
Among my new DVD's are a couple of "brother" films. This one shot in both Spanish and English "Los Jornaleros" tells the story of three cousins from Mexico who come to America illegially in search of the better life. They start out as day laborers, and end up moving in directions that strain and break the bonds of love and family that they share. One comes to terms with his gay sexuality, another finds and then looses the love of his life, and the third joins in the drug trade. In the end, all is made right again, but only after a crisis that nearly ends the trio for good. With luck and forgiveness, grace and acceptance, they do discover that dreams still do come true.
It's a very sweet film.
It's a very sweet film.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
What I'm Listening To #15
Ecclectic is my nature.
Michael Bublé certainly fits the bill. Such a beautiful Jazz voice. Not so completely honed as Harry Connick, Jr.; but on another level ~ purer, simpler, truer to the innocence of early Sinatra, Tomé, Bennett.
Easier on the ears than the eyes.--and he's some very sweet eye candy! An artist whose career is more than worth encouraging by the simple act of patronage. Buy "It's Time" and then relax with it.
Ciao!
Michael Bublé certainly fits the bill. Such a beautiful Jazz voice. Not so completely honed as Harry Connick, Jr.; but on another level ~ purer, simpler, truer to the innocence of early Sinatra, Tomé, Bennett.
Easier on the ears than the eyes.--and he's some very sweet eye candy! An artist whose career is more than worth encouraging by the simple act of patronage. Buy "It's Time" and then relax with it.
Ciao!
What I'm Watching #25
Yes, I got another order in of DVD's!
"Adam & Steve" is produced by the same people who brought us "Latter Days" which I found to be an amazing movie that everyone should see. I'm not as universally enthusiastic about A&S, but given the fact that it is meant to be a farce, I am by no means saying don't find a way to see it.
The weakest part of the movie is the beginning, which is really unfortunate given how important first impressions can be! And it's a matter of actors who are in their mid to late thirties, who could easily play mid to late fifties with a little community theatre latex and make-up, trying to play 21.... I know that's not a nice thing to say, but hey, if I am to have any integrity in these commentaries, it HAD to be said. In fact, Craig Chester (Adam) looked younger in his park ranger outfit as a 38 year old washed up coke addict, than he did in white-face Goth devotee mode, as his 21 year old drug free former self. Not exactly consistant with an egg in a hot skillet.....
The supporting duo of Chris Kattan and Parker Posy provide some of the funniest moments in the movie, and it is not without it's poignant pricks (no pun intended!). Scenes featuring quirky minor characters are also humorous, most notably, Adam's "unlucky cursed" family.
At times playing like an SNL skit and at others reaching for something far more polished, given half a suspension of belief, you actually come to like the characters enough to allow the ending to affect you....i. e. when is a good happy cry not a good thing? Kleenex alert!
Worth the rental, glad I bought it, works best with a glass of wine.
"Adam & Steve" is produced by the same people who brought us "Latter Days" which I found to be an amazing movie that everyone should see. I'm not as universally enthusiastic about A&S, but given the fact that it is meant to be a farce, I am by no means saying don't find a way to see it.
The weakest part of the movie is the beginning, which is really unfortunate given how important first impressions can be! And it's a matter of actors who are in their mid to late thirties, who could easily play mid to late fifties with a little community theatre latex and make-up, trying to play 21.... I know that's not a nice thing to say, but hey, if I am to have any integrity in these commentaries, it HAD to be said. In fact, Craig Chester (Adam) looked younger in his park ranger outfit as a 38 year old washed up coke addict, than he did in white-face Goth devotee mode, as his 21 year old drug free former self. Not exactly consistant with an egg in a hot skillet.....
The supporting duo of Chris Kattan and Parker Posy provide some of the funniest moments in the movie, and it is not without it's poignant pricks (no pun intended!). Scenes featuring quirky minor characters are also humorous, most notably, Adam's "unlucky cursed" family.
At times playing like an SNL skit and at others reaching for something far more polished, given half a suspension of belief, you actually come to like the characters enough to allow the ending to affect you....i. e. when is a good happy cry not a good thing? Kleenex alert!
Worth the rental, glad I bought it, works best with a glass of wine.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Our Latest American Hero #32
Navy Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class (Petty Officer 2nd Class) Marc A. Lee, 28, of Hood River, Ore.; a member of a West Coast-based SEAL Team; killed Aug. 2 during combat operations while on patrol in Ramadi, Iraq.
“Navy SEAL From Hood River Died Saving His Team Members”
Marc Alan Lee, 28, was killed while on active duty in Ramadi. His mother, Debbie Lee, said her son staged an offensive diversion in a moment of crisis. He reportedly made the decision to sacrifice his life after another SEAL was hit by sniper fire and several men were trapped inside a building.
“It was so like Marc to give up his life to save his friends. I am so proud of him — he is my hero,” said Lee.
She said Marc lived with a strong Christian belief that he was here to make a difference for the good. It was that commitment to God that led her son into the military. And then gave him strength during the grueling training to become a member of the elite Special Forces team.
“He’s up in heaven now and I can get through this because I know that I will see him again. It’s the here and now that’s hard,” said Lee.
Marc was home schooled for much of his education. But also attended Horizon Christian School and played soccer with the Hood River Valley High School team. Four years ago he married Maya Elbaum and they made their home in New York.
Debbie, who moved to Arizona in December, said a local memorial service could be planned once all of the details of her son’s burial are decided upon.
“Marc touched lives everywhere he went because of the person that he was. He will be missed,” she said.
Lee said in spite of coping with the grief of losing a beloved son, she still believes that America needs to be engaged in the war on terrorism. She said it was his patriotic desire to defend his countrymen that led Marc into the fatal battle. Out of respect for him, and other military members making the ultimate sacrifice, Lee said the job needs to be finished and not abandoned.
“I still believe it is right for us to be there. I wish the media would do a better job of reporting on the good things that are happening for the Iraq people because of us,” Lee said.
Until recently, Lee’s oldest son, Kris, 32, was also on active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps. Her son-in-law, Chris Wells, is an Army veteran.
“Gov. Kulongoski Writes About The Service For Marc Lee”
Gov. Kulongoski, who went to San Diego on Saturday to attend the service for Navy SEAL Marc Lee of Hood River, sent the following note about the experience:
"I wanted to let you know about the memorial service for Petty Officer Second Class (SEAL) Marc A. Lee this past Saturday at the Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego. I flew down to San Diego early Saturday morning on military transportation. I was assigned a Navy Commander named Roger Meek. He is the nephew of John Meek who served in the Oregon Legislature in, I think, the late 80's and early 90's from Hillsboro. They are descendants of the Meeks who came to the Oregon Territory in the 1840's.
"The Commander grew up in Tacoma but knows a great deal about his family and Oregon. He has been in the Navy about 26 years and is the Commanding Officer, Naval Special Warfare Operational Support Team One out of San Diego. He was an enlisted man for the first ten years of his Navy career and then got his B.A. and became an officer. A very interesting person and I njoyed him very much.
"I was told that there are about 2,000 Navy SEAL's in the U.S. Navy and Petty Officer Lee was the first to die in Iraq. They have lost 16 SEAL's in Afghanistan including another Oregonian, Petty Officer First Class Jeffery Lucas. He died in June of 2005.
"Half of them must have been in the Base Chapel for the service. They are a very professional and proud group of sailors. The camaraderie and esprit de corps was overwhelming. The service lasted for about an hour and 45 minutes and was very moving. A number of SEALs spoke, including three of his teammates who were flown home from Iraq for the service. A lot of shaved heads and they all sat ramrod straight throughout the service. I have never een so many Admirals in one room in my life. I sat in a pew next to two Lieutenant Admirals who flew in from Washington D.C. Petty Officer Lee's mother spoke and is a very religious person. I understand Marc was very religious. He had been married for about 4 years to a woman from upstate New York who is a fashion designer. I spent some time with her and found her a wonderful person. They did not have any children.
"Petty Officer Lee was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon and numerous other decorations. He was a real hero. He was the SAW gunner for his team and was very well respected by his teammates. He was an outstanding SEAL and human being. They said he was first in his class at Navy SEAL School. They read some letters he had written to his family and they were very moving.
"I am glad I went....”
“Navy SEAL From Hood River Died Saving His Team Members”
Marc Alan Lee, 28, was killed while on active duty in Ramadi. His mother, Debbie Lee, said her son staged an offensive diversion in a moment of crisis. He reportedly made the decision to sacrifice his life after another SEAL was hit by sniper fire and several men were trapped inside a building.
“It was so like Marc to give up his life to save his friends. I am so proud of him — he is my hero,” said Lee.
She said Marc lived with a strong Christian belief that he was here to make a difference for the good. It was that commitment to God that led her son into the military. And then gave him strength during the grueling training to become a member of the elite Special Forces team.
“He’s up in heaven now and I can get through this because I know that I will see him again. It’s the here and now that’s hard,” said Lee.
Marc was home schooled for much of his education. But also attended Horizon Christian School and played soccer with the Hood River Valley High School team. Four years ago he married Maya Elbaum and they made their home in New York.
Debbie, who moved to Arizona in December, said a local memorial service could be planned once all of the details of her son’s burial are decided upon.
“Marc touched lives everywhere he went because of the person that he was. He will be missed,” she said.
Lee said in spite of coping with the grief of losing a beloved son, she still believes that America needs to be engaged in the war on terrorism. She said it was his patriotic desire to defend his countrymen that led Marc into the fatal battle. Out of respect for him, and other military members making the ultimate sacrifice, Lee said the job needs to be finished and not abandoned.
“I still believe it is right for us to be there. I wish the media would do a better job of reporting on the good things that are happening for the Iraq people because of us,” Lee said.
Until recently, Lee’s oldest son, Kris, 32, was also on active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps. Her son-in-law, Chris Wells, is an Army veteran.
“Gov. Kulongoski Writes About The Service For Marc Lee”
Gov. Kulongoski, who went to San Diego on Saturday to attend the service for Navy SEAL Marc Lee of Hood River, sent the following note about the experience:
"I wanted to let you know about the memorial service for Petty Officer Second Class (SEAL) Marc A. Lee this past Saturday at the Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego. I flew down to San Diego early Saturday morning on military transportation. I was assigned a Navy Commander named Roger Meek. He is the nephew of John Meek who served in the Oregon Legislature in, I think, the late 80's and early 90's from Hillsboro. They are descendants of the Meeks who came to the Oregon Territory in the 1840's.
"The Commander grew up in Tacoma but knows a great deal about his family and Oregon. He has been in the Navy about 26 years and is the Commanding Officer, Naval Special Warfare Operational Support Team One out of San Diego. He was an enlisted man for the first ten years of his Navy career and then got his B.A. and became an officer. A very interesting person and I njoyed him very much.
"I was told that there are about 2,000 Navy SEAL's in the U.S. Navy and Petty Officer Lee was the first to die in Iraq. They have lost 16 SEAL's in Afghanistan including another Oregonian, Petty Officer First Class Jeffery Lucas. He died in June of 2005.
"Half of them must have been in the Base Chapel for the service. They are a very professional and proud group of sailors. The camaraderie and esprit de corps was overwhelming. The service lasted for about an hour and 45 minutes and was very moving. A number of SEALs spoke, including three of his teammates who were flown home from Iraq for the service. A lot of shaved heads and they all sat ramrod straight throughout the service. I have never een so many Admirals in one room in my life. I sat in a pew next to two Lieutenant Admirals who flew in from Washington D.C. Petty Officer Lee's mother spoke and is a very religious person. I understand Marc was very religious. He had been married for about 4 years to a woman from upstate New York who is a fashion designer. I spent some time with her and found her a wonderful person. They did not have any children.
"Petty Officer Lee was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon and numerous other decorations. He was a real hero. He was the SAW gunner for his team and was very well respected by his teammates. He was an outstanding SEAL and human being. They said he was first in his class at Navy SEAL School. They read some letters he had written to his family and they were very moving.
"I am glad I went....”
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
What I'm Watching #24
I remember when I first found this play and read it many years ago now. It really touched me as a read, and so when I found that it had been made into a theatrical/movie, I bought it. As an off-broadway play, it holds the distinction as being the longest running one-person production. It tells the stories of the author and actor, David Drake and his journey as a gay man. Childhood awareness, the first kiss, the Kramer kiss!, the theater bug, the AIDs epidemic, the unapologetic sex, the fantasy future. All well done. I laughed, and yes, I did cry. Same reaction that I had to the book. Like finding an old friend.
Sunday, August 13, 2006
"I (duh) Like The Cookie"
And I like the movie!
The premise is actually very simple. The animation, standard fare for the most part. So where does "Over The Hedge" make points?
First the Cast: Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Wanda Sikes, William Shatner, Alison Janney, Steve Carrell, Nick Nolte, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Thomas Haden Church, Avril Lavigne, and Omid Djalili. Each voice is unique and very well adapted to the characters. Some choices are interesting: Nolte, for example, as the voracious inept exterminator...er, that's "verminator"; and some very safe, Sikes, she's got one of the most distinctive tambours in Hollywood; and still others are gifts: Shatner, who's overly dramatic portrayal is both spot on and self-referential. I only wish that Janney wasn't the villain.... just love her work on West Wing and other shows.
And second, are a few moments of genius. The most glaring of which is the recalibration of time experienced by the universe as the result of giving Hammy, the hyperactive squirrel, a caffeine laced soft drink. HI-larious!
Not as well crafted in plot and character development as "Cars," but not nearly as long either! And well worth every minute!
The premise is actually very simple. The animation, standard fare for the most part. So where does "Over The Hedge" make points?
First the Cast: Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Wanda Sikes, William Shatner, Alison Janney, Steve Carrell, Nick Nolte, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Thomas Haden Church, Avril Lavigne, and Omid Djalili. Each voice is unique and very well adapted to the characters. Some choices are interesting: Nolte, for example, as the voracious inept exterminator...er, that's "verminator"; and some very safe, Sikes, she's got one of the most distinctive tambours in Hollywood; and still others are gifts: Shatner, who's overly dramatic portrayal is both spot on and self-referential. I only wish that Janney wasn't the villain.... just love her work on West Wing and other shows.
And second, are a few moments of genius. The most glaring of which is the recalibration of time experienced by the universe as the result of giving Hammy, the hyperactive squirrel, a caffeine laced soft drink. HI-larious!
Not as well crafted in plot and character development as "Cars," but not nearly as long either! And well worth every minute!
Saturday, August 12, 2006
My Heaven, too
I just got off of the phone with a friend who’s working through the imminent death of someone who is very dear to them. Listening to her recall the depth of their friendship and knowing that it has been a long and mutual relationship between kindred spirits, I felt the hollowed ground upon which I was being asked to stand. Theirs is the kind of friendship that even though they don’t live in physical proximity to one another, the sense of caring and comfort is still most intimate.
It’s times like this when one’s religion meets the road. And as we are both people of Christian sensibilities, but not of that seemingly dominant faction who live their faith blindly and without apparent personhood. We neither of us made mention of God or Heaven. It would have been redundant.
Now I’m sewing and listening to CD’s as she travels some distance to be at her friend’s bed side for what will likely be the last time in this life. Ironically, I had Mary Chapin Carpenter’s “Between Here and Gone” playing when she called. The last time I had been to Wolf Trap for a concert it was with this same friend and it was this CD and singer that was featured.
One of my favorite tracks from the CD is “My Heaven”. In it, Mary muses upon what her heaven will be like, and I like it. It’s not the heaven of the evangelical or the fundamentalist....it’s just the heaven where the rest of us will hopefully land.
MY HEAVEN
by Mary Chapin Carpenter
Nothing shatters nothing breaks
Nothing hurts and nothing aches
We've got ourselves one helluva place in my heaven
Looking down at the world below
A bunch of whining, fighting schmo's
Up here we've got none of those, in my heaven
There's pools and lakes and hills and mountains
Music, art, and lighted fountains
Who needs bucks here, no one's counting
In my heaven
No one works, we all just play
We pick the weather everyday
If you change your mind, that's ok, in my heaven
Grandma's up here, Grandpa too
In a condo with to-die-for views
There's presidents and movie stars
You just come as you are
No one's lost and no one's missing
No more parting just hugs and kissing
And all these stars are just for wishing
In my heaven
There's little white lights everywhere
Your childhood dog in Dad's old chair
And more memories than my heart can hold
When Eva's singing "Fields of Gold"
There's neighbors, theives and long lost lovers
Villains, poets, kings and mothers
Up here we forgive each other, in my heaven
For every soul that's down there waiting,
Holding on, still hesitating
We say a prayer of levitating, in my heaven
You can look back at your life and lot
But it can't matter what you're not
By the time you're here, we're all we've got
In my heaven
In my heaven
In my heaven
It’s times like this when one’s religion meets the road. And as we are both people of Christian sensibilities, but not of that seemingly dominant faction who live their faith blindly and without apparent personhood. We neither of us made mention of God or Heaven. It would have been redundant.
Now I’m sewing and listening to CD’s as she travels some distance to be at her friend’s bed side for what will likely be the last time in this life. Ironically, I had Mary Chapin Carpenter’s “Between Here and Gone” playing when she called. The last time I had been to Wolf Trap for a concert it was with this same friend and it was this CD and singer that was featured.
One of my favorite tracks from the CD is “My Heaven”. In it, Mary muses upon what her heaven will be like, and I like it. It’s not the heaven of the evangelical or the fundamentalist....it’s just the heaven where the rest of us will hopefully land.
MY HEAVEN
by Mary Chapin Carpenter
Nothing shatters nothing breaks
Nothing hurts and nothing aches
We've got ourselves one helluva place in my heaven
Looking down at the world below
A bunch of whining, fighting schmo's
Up here we've got none of those, in my heaven
There's pools and lakes and hills and mountains
Music, art, and lighted fountains
Who needs bucks here, no one's counting
In my heaven
No one works, we all just play
We pick the weather everyday
If you change your mind, that's ok, in my heaven
Grandma's up here, Grandpa too
In a condo with to-die-for views
There's presidents and movie stars
You just come as you are
No one's lost and no one's missing
No more parting just hugs and kissing
And all these stars are just for wishing
In my heaven
There's little white lights everywhere
Your childhood dog in Dad's old chair
And more memories than my heart can hold
When Eva's singing "Fields of Gold"
There's neighbors, theives and long lost lovers
Villains, poets, kings and mothers
Up here we forgive each other, in my heaven
For every soul that's down there waiting,
Holding on, still hesitating
We say a prayer of levitating, in my heaven
You can look back at your life and lot
But it can't matter what you're not
By the time you're here, we're all we've got
In my heaven
In my heaven
In my heaven
The Little Things
Sometimes it's just the little things.....
I planted this trumpet vine 5 years ago and inspite of its growth to the top of the house, it's never bloomed. That is until now. Now it has for the record one, exactly one, cluster of buttery yellow blooms right outside of my second floor bedroom window. Wow.
I planted this trumpet vine 5 years ago and inspite of its growth to the top of the house, it's never bloomed. That is until now. Now it has for the record one, exactly one, cluster of buttery yellow blooms right outside of my second floor bedroom window. Wow.
Friday, August 11, 2006
More Quilt
It's coming together. These 6 blocks will be joined by 6 more so that the final array will be 3 x 4, instead of this 2 x 3 portion. The borders joining the blocks are meant to evoke a finely crafted door or trunk inlaid with precious jewels. So far, I'm liking the effect.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Bad Hair Morning
Even going bald, as I am, I can relate to this cartoon. Every single folicle has a mind of its own! This is pure tickle-box repair! Enjoy.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Gerrymandering? Give me a break!
I got a phone call from the "Democratic Congressional Legislative Committee" tonight. The woman wanted to incite me by declaring that the Republicans have used their largesse to pay for the gerrymandered re-districting of states like Texas and Pennsylvania. And I already know that this is true. But I also know that in the last cycle the Democrat lead legislature of Maryland played the same game for our side!
The map shows how gerrymandered the US House districts in Maryland are. I told her that I HATE gerrymandering, and that I was gerrymandered out of Albert Wynn's (D) 4th district and into Connie Morella's (R) 8th district where I gladly helped elect Chris Van Hollen (D) as her usurper.
I let her know that I will NOT give money to an appeal that deceives and plays upon the insecurities of the constituency. I expect to be treated like a piece of crap by the opposition, and when my party chooses the same format, they have no part of me!~ i.e. my money!
And I am not cheap. The older I get, the more I understand that money not only makes the world go 'round'; it also helps to shape the nature of that world. So my nickels and dimes have already gone to candidates like: Peter Ashdown (UT - Senate), Barry Sanders (VT - Senate), Kweisi Mfume (MD - Senate), Ned Lamont (CT - Senate), Andrew Duck (MD - HRep Dist 8), all to the tune of $500.00 total bucks, so far. Chump change in the totality of the political university. But we all gotta start somewhere. We must put our money where our mouth is--where ours hearts are, even if such acts of generosity appear to be singularly insignificant. Cause if we ALL do, it will cease to be insignificant.
Yet, this caller received nary a dime from me. I DO NOT GIVE TO POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS. I do not see any need for anyone else to speak with my limited dollars in my behalf! I don't even support the United Way. It's a greedy little scam which may provide supporters with moral cover on a personal level, but robs them of any moral authority. What ring do the LAZY inhabit in Dante's Inferno?
The map shows how gerrymandered the US House districts in Maryland are. I told her that I HATE gerrymandering, and that I was gerrymandered out of Albert Wynn's (D) 4th district and into Connie Morella's (R) 8th district where I gladly helped elect Chris Van Hollen (D) as her usurper.
I let her know that I will NOT give money to an appeal that deceives and plays upon the insecurities of the constituency. I expect to be treated like a piece of crap by the opposition, and when my party chooses the same format, they have no part of me!~ i.e. my money!
And I am not cheap. The older I get, the more I understand that money not only makes the world go 'round'; it also helps to shape the nature of that world. So my nickels and dimes have already gone to candidates like: Peter Ashdown (UT - Senate), Barry Sanders (VT - Senate), Kweisi Mfume (MD - Senate), Ned Lamont (CT - Senate), Andrew Duck (MD - HRep Dist 8), all to the tune of $500.00 total bucks, so far. Chump change in the totality of the political university. But we all gotta start somewhere. We must put our money where our mouth is--where ours hearts are, even if such acts of generosity appear to be singularly insignificant. Cause if we ALL do, it will cease to be insignificant.
Yet, this caller received nary a dime from me. I DO NOT GIVE TO POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS. I do not see any need for anyone else to speak with my limited dollars in my behalf! I don't even support the United Way. It's a greedy little scam which may provide supporters with moral cover on a personal level, but robs them of any moral authority. What ring do the LAZY inhabit in Dante's Inferno?
We Are Not Alone
Apparently....
Global warming is a global thing, after all. And now it seems that China will experience the effects of it's own contribution of hydro-carbons into the atmosphere's "greenhouse".
With winds of 160 mph, and regular gusts approaching 200 mph, heaven help the people living along the coast.
How many "natural disasters" will we as a global community have to bare before we wake up and understand our global interconnectedness and work toward counteracting this trend?
Global warming is a global thing, after all. And now it seems that China will experience the effects of it's own contribution of hydro-carbons into the atmosphere's "greenhouse".
With winds of 160 mph, and regular gusts approaching 200 mph, heaven help the people living along the coast.
How many "natural disasters" will we as a global community have to bare before we wake up and understand our global interconnectedness and work toward counteracting this trend?
Random Quote #52
“If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping in a room with a few mosquitoes.”
~ African Proverb
~ African Proverb
"Am I Not Human?
Prick me. Do I not bleed?" Shylock ~ William Shakespeare
I read recently where the US Congress was planning to discontinue funding that paid for the display of symbols other than Christian on grave stones at Arlington National Cementary. After some debate, the measure was amended in such a way that it dis-allowed a practicing Wiccan from having a symbol of Nature Worship/Witch Craft from being displayed instead.
So first they take away the Pagans, but I did not complain, because I was not a Pagan.....blah, blah, blah. Next will it be Cpt. Khan's stone? Then yours? Mine?
This growing Facism isn't even subtle anymore.
I read recently where the US Congress was planning to discontinue funding that paid for the display of symbols other than Christian on grave stones at Arlington National Cementary. After some debate, the measure was amended in such a way that it dis-allowed a practicing Wiccan from having a symbol of Nature Worship/Witch Craft from being displayed instead.
So first they take away the Pagans, but I did not complain, because I was not a Pagan.....blah, blah, blah. Next will it be Cpt. Khan's stone? Then yours? Mine?
This growing Facism isn't even subtle anymore.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Art I'm Seeing #7
Also at the National Gallery of Art (see "Art I'm Seeing #6 ~ 07 JUL 06) is an exhibition of the works of Henri Rousseau. The show is titled "Henri Rousseau: Jungles in Paris," but it's really far more comprehensive than simply a collection of his tropical-themed paintings. Paintings that anyone who's taken any art survey course would readily associate with the artist.
As such, I really had never given him much thought. This exhibition, which I entered innocently enough, grabbed me and made me re-examine my prejudices.
Rousseau was an ambitious late bloomer in the art world of late 19th century Paris. He never took a lesson in painting and only began to explore his ideas in the medium in his forties after spending most of his life in a monotonous civil servant post. Yet, he set his sights on the world of the Parisian Salon exhibitions, and spent the rest of his life seeking their respect and recognition.
But his desire and fascinatingly profound technique never really penetrated the hearts of the establishment. Instead, he quickly became a favorite of the avant-garde. Chief among his admirers was Pablo Picasso, who both praised Rousseau and purchased his paintings for his private collection.
While the show explores many genre of Rousseau's paintings, in all fairness to it's title, it does both begin and end with examples of his jungle paintings. Having never actually visited a jungle, Rousseau relied on other sources to form his images, and here's where the exhibit really shines. In an effort to make real this aspect of Rousseau's world there is a spectacular display of covers from the turn of the century Parisian tabloid "Le Petit Journal" depicting both African scenes and African fauna. There are two utterly magnificent bronze sculptures by contemporary artist Emmanuel Frémiet (one of a gorilla abducting a nearly naked woman, and the other of a she-bear attacking a nearly naked man who holds the lifeless body of a cub noosed and dangling from his belt. Both are so amazingly dramatic and visceral that I hope someone does an exhibition of Frémiet's work some time soon!). Also this amazing taxidermy sculpture of the lion attacking the antelope presented here (above).
Given the distinct similarity between the model, which was first displayed in 1889 at the opening of the Zoological Galleries of the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris and the detail from the painting "The Hungry Lion Throws Itself on the Antelope," 1905, it seems clear that this image was his inspiration. In addition, the catalogue records Rousseau's description of the painting: "The hungry lion throws itself upon the antelope, devours him; anxiously the panther awaits the moment that he too can claim his share. Birds of prey have torn a strip of flesh from the poor animal that is shedding a tear! The sun sets."
Far from the end of his prolific career, but still clearly shunned by the academy that he so longed to be a part of, I see a theme here. Monsieur Rousseau...the antelope?
As such, I really had never given him much thought. This exhibition, which I entered innocently enough, grabbed me and made me re-examine my prejudices.
Rousseau was an ambitious late bloomer in the art world of late 19th century Paris. He never took a lesson in painting and only began to explore his ideas in the medium in his forties after spending most of his life in a monotonous civil servant post. Yet, he set his sights on the world of the Parisian Salon exhibitions, and spent the rest of his life seeking their respect and recognition.
But his desire and fascinatingly profound technique never really penetrated the hearts of the establishment. Instead, he quickly became a favorite of the avant-garde. Chief among his admirers was Pablo Picasso, who both praised Rousseau and purchased his paintings for his private collection.
While the show explores many genre of Rousseau's paintings, in all fairness to it's title, it does both begin and end with examples of his jungle paintings. Having never actually visited a jungle, Rousseau relied on other sources to form his images, and here's where the exhibit really shines. In an effort to make real this aspect of Rousseau's world there is a spectacular display of covers from the turn of the century Parisian tabloid "Le Petit Journal" depicting both African scenes and African fauna. There are two utterly magnificent bronze sculptures by contemporary artist Emmanuel Frémiet (one of a gorilla abducting a nearly naked woman, and the other of a she-bear attacking a nearly naked man who holds the lifeless body of a cub noosed and dangling from his belt. Both are so amazingly dramatic and visceral that I hope someone does an exhibition of Frémiet's work some time soon!). Also this amazing taxidermy sculpture of the lion attacking the antelope presented here (above).
Given the distinct similarity between the model, which was first displayed in 1889 at the opening of the Zoological Galleries of the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris and the detail from the painting "The Hungry Lion Throws Itself on the Antelope," 1905, it seems clear that this image was his inspiration. In addition, the catalogue records Rousseau's description of the painting: "The hungry lion throws itself upon the antelope, devours him; anxiously the panther awaits the moment that he too can claim his share. Birds of prey have torn a strip of flesh from the poor animal that is shedding a tear! The sun sets."
Far from the end of his prolific career, but still clearly shunned by the academy that he so longed to be a part of, I see a theme here. Monsieur Rousseau...the antelope?
Monday, August 07, 2006
Law & Order Coloring Book~!
What's this, you say? Can it be?
Don't take my word for it. Check it out @
http://www.brandonbird.com/lno_color.html
Don't take my word for it. Check it out @
http://www.brandonbird.com/lno_color.html
Art I'm Seeing #6
Went into the National Gallery of Art today, and saw a couple of shows. This one, "Charles Sheeler: Across Media," explores how Sheeler used the mediums of photography, film, painting, and drawing to explore his ideas. The way in which the work done in one medium influenced and supported work in the other mediums is the essence of the exhibition.
In the images presented here, you see a photo self-portrait of Sheeler before a drawing in his studio and the same pose in the painting entitled "The Artist Looks at Nature." Curiously the drawing, that of a pot-belly stove in a farmhouse interior, is the same in both works. Sheeler enjoyed working with geometric forms and often chose buildings, industrial sites, and man made objects as subjects. And even here you can see how important the retaining wall is to the composition.
One thought that came to me as I studied this work was the similarity in palettes and technique between Sheeler and my beloved Rockwell Kent. In particular, the way in which the shadow of the retaining wall is painted so that it almost appears to be giving off a light of it's own. Kent also does this, most notably in his arctic paintings of Greenland.
It's a small show, easily done in an hour with plenty of time for contemplation. A great way to cool off on a hot and humid August afternoon.
In the images presented here, you see a photo self-portrait of Sheeler before a drawing in his studio and the same pose in the painting entitled "The Artist Looks at Nature." Curiously the drawing, that of a pot-belly stove in a farmhouse interior, is the same in both works. Sheeler enjoyed working with geometric forms and often chose buildings, industrial sites, and man made objects as subjects. And even here you can see how important the retaining wall is to the composition.
One thought that came to me as I studied this work was the similarity in palettes and technique between Sheeler and my beloved Rockwell Kent. In particular, the way in which the shadow of the retaining wall is painted so that it almost appears to be giving off a light of it's own. Kent also does this, most notably in his arctic paintings of Greenland.
It's a small show, easily done in an hour with plenty of time for contemplation. A great way to cool off on a hot and humid August afternoon.
What I'm Listening To #14
A new discovery for me, know I'm late to the party. Been a while since I found a new band that I really like. Acoustic in general, and intimate, like being at a small club with a front row seat, I wouldn't call it a "happy" CD. My favorite track is Roka (danza de la muerta)
"sleeping in the valley, valley of ill fortune
waking cross the river, river of delusion
full moon lures the waves, waves of desperation
empty hearts and mouths wither away
so close your eyes
slow your breath
dream of northern lights
around this dance of death
no abandones, no llores, busca tu rio
no te sientas perdido
gira, vuelta y vuelta gira
danza de la muerte
que viene a verte
bailala"
words are just words without the music. The music to this song is decidedly hypnotic.
"sleeping in the valley, valley of ill fortune
waking cross the river, river of delusion
full moon lures the waves, waves of desperation
empty hearts and mouths wither away
so close your eyes
slow your breath
dream of northern lights
around this dance of death
no abandones, no llores, busca tu rio
no te sientas perdido
gira, vuelta y vuelta gira
danza de la muerte
que viene a verte
bailala"
words are just words without the music. The music to this song is decidedly hypnotic.
Sunday, August 06, 2006
My Latest Quilt, Block #2
After creating a couple of blocks around the fabrics used in my previous post, I chose some new fabrics. Originally, I planned to choose 3 different fabrics, but came to the realization that the outer most frame would be a unifying aspect in the whole -- as is the gold finish and the batik technique used in the innermost section.
(see: My Latest Quilt Block #1 for more of this reflection by scrolling down a little: It was posted with image on 05 AUG 06.)
(see: My Latest Quilt Block #1 for more of this reflection by scrolling down a little: It was posted with image on 05 AUG 06.)
Anecdote in a Time of War
The other day I was heading home from working at school, and typically I take the Georgia Avenue exit off of the Beltway heading south. This route brings me into downtown Silver Spring, MD before I head east on Sligo Avenue. As I approached my turn I was stopped at a red light and glanced at the macho Dodge Durango to my left. The occupant of the passenger seat glanced back and the window lowered. A sense of urgency addressed his face, and I rolled down my window in kind. He was a muscular white man with a military style buzzed hair-cut. The driver was an attractive blond who clearly shared his concern for help.
That's when I noticed his prosthetic arms, and he asked me if I knew how to get to Walter Reed Army Hospital..... I assured him that he was on the right street and gave him a sense of how much farther it was to Walter Reed. As the light changed and traffic moved forward I held back in order to switch lanes and make my left turn onto Sligo. The Durango's liscence plate was from Texas.
Without jumping to any conclusions, because I'll never know about these two beyond what that moment provided, FACT; Walter Reed Army Hospital is the place where many profoundly injured soldiers from Irag/Afghanistan end up. And Fact, as of August 4, 2006 the DOD website reports that just over 20,000 soldiers (20,199) have been injured as a result of our incursions in the middle east.
And what do we honestly have to show for it?
~ World Peace? Ask an Isreali, a Lebanese, an Iraqi, an American.....
~ Prosperity? Why can't we raise the minimum wage for the working POOR? Why are local and state taxes going up? Why has the price of gas nearly doubled? Why are these companies allowed to make record profits and not return something back to the nation as a response to their greed?
~ Democracy? Why can't most states hold recounts anymore because of faulty and fraudulent electronic voting machines?
You see how one little encounter can lead to thoughts of a world gone mad? No wonder I turned onto Sligo with a tear in my eye...
That's when I noticed his prosthetic arms, and he asked me if I knew how to get to Walter Reed Army Hospital..... I assured him that he was on the right street and gave him a sense of how much farther it was to Walter Reed. As the light changed and traffic moved forward I held back in order to switch lanes and make my left turn onto Sligo. The Durango's liscence plate was from Texas.
Without jumping to any conclusions, because I'll never know about these two beyond what that moment provided, FACT; Walter Reed Army Hospital is the place where many profoundly injured soldiers from Irag/Afghanistan end up. And Fact, as of August 4, 2006 the DOD website reports that just over 20,000 soldiers (20,199) have been injured as a result of our incursions in the middle east.
And what do we honestly have to show for it?
~ World Peace? Ask an Isreali, a Lebanese, an Iraqi, an American.....
~ Prosperity? Why can't we raise the minimum wage for the working POOR? Why are local and state taxes going up? Why has the price of gas nearly doubled? Why are these companies allowed to make record profits and not return something back to the nation as a response to their greed?
~ Democracy? Why can't most states hold recounts anymore because of faulty and fraudulent electronic voting machines?
You see how one little encounter can lead to thoughts of a world gone mad? No wonder I turned onto Sligo with a tear in my eye...
Saturday, August 05, 2006
Our Latest American Hero #31
Hero is taking on a whole new meaning under this incompitent and self-serving regime.......
It’s been a particularly A-typical week in military deaths for the war on terrorism.
#1 is Andrew Velez. Only 22. Do you remember what you where doing when you where 22? That’s 23 years ago for me. I was in my senior year at college. I was really confused about the future. So much so, that I started a whole new major, after realizing that my first attempt at direction in my life was horribly mis-directed.
Now place me in a foreign country. Surround me with a culture that does not speak my language, does not understand my “god,” does not even eat the same things that I eat and bring me comfort. Add to the mix outrageously hot temperatures, the real threat that at any moment someone will kill me, the loss of friends and my brother under the same situation, and finally the loss of support of my significant other.... Give me a break! Was Andrew a super man?
HOW MANY OTHER MEN AND WOMAN ARE WE (AS A NATION) PLACING IN THIS PERDICAMENT? HOW MANY OTHER “SELF”-INFLICTED DEATHS ARE WE WILLING TO IGNORE?
Army Spc. Andrew Velez, 22, of Lubbock, Texas; assigned to the Corps Support Battalion, Theater Support Command, Fort Irwin, Calif.; died July 25 from a non-combat related injury in Sharona, Afghanistan.
“One Of Two Brothers Killed In Conflicts Overseas Committed Suicide”
Lubbock, TX (AHN) - Family and military officials say one of two brothers who died in Iraq and Afghanistan committed suicide.
A military document says Army Spc. Andrew Velez, 22, shot himself with a mini-machine gun on July 25. The soldier's father, Roy Velez, confirmed his son was having marital problems.
More than a year earlier, his older brother, Cpl. Jose "Freddy" Velez, 23, was killed in Iraq.
Roy Velez says grief over the deaths of his sons, who were the first brothers to die in the two conflicts, keeps him up at night.
He says, "It's not easy to sleep." But "I'm proud of my sons. I miss them, but it was to defend their country, their God. They volunteered to go."
Roy and his current wife Veronica Velez have three children together, ages 2, 3 and 5.
Velez enlisted in the Army following his graduation from high school in 2002. He escorted his brother's body back from Iraq in 2004.
Freddy Velez also joined the Army after high school, in 2000. He was killed when his unit was attacked in Fallujah.
It’s been a particularly A-typical week in military deaths for the war on terrorism.
#1 is Andrew Velez. Only 22. Do you remember what you where doing when you where 22? That’s 23 years ago for me. I was in my senior year at college. I was really confused about the future. So much so, that I started a whole new major, after realizing that my first attempt at direction in my life was horribly mis-directed.
Now place me in a foreign country. Surround me with a culture that does not speak my language, does not understand my “god,” does not even eat the same things that I eat and bring me comfort. Add to the mix outrageously hot temperatures, the real threat that at any moment someone will kill me, the loss of friends and my brother under the same situation, and finally the loss of support of my significant other.... Give me a break! Was Andrew a super man?
HOW MANY OTHER MEN AND WOMAN ARE WE (AS A NATION) PLACING IN THIS PERDICAMENT? HOW MANY OTHER “SELF”-INFLICTED DEATHS ARE WE WILLING TO IGNORE?
Army Spc. Andrew Velez, 22, of Lubbock, Texas; assigned to the Corps Support Battalion, Theater Support Command, Fort Irwin, Calif.; died July 25 from a non-combat related injury in Sharona, Afghanistan.
“One Of Two Brothers Killed In Conflicts Overseas Committed Suicide”
Lubbock, TX (AHN) - Family and military officials say one of two brothers who died in Iraq and Afghanistan committed suicide.
A military document says Army Spc. Andrew Velez, 22, shot himself with a mini-machine gun on July 25. The soldier's father, Roy Velez, confirmed his son was having marital problems.
More than a year earlier, his older brother, Cpl. Jose "Freddy" Velez, 23, was killed in Iraq.
Roy Velez says grief over the deaths of his sons, who were the first brothers to die in the two conflicts, keeps him up at night.
He says, "It's not easy to sleep." But "I'm proud of my sons. I miss them, but it was to defend their country, their God. They volunteered to go."
Roy and his current wife Veronica Velez have three children together, ages 2, 3 and 5.
Velez enlisted in the Army following his graduation from high school in 2002. He escorted his brother's body back from Iraq in 2004.
Freddy Velez also joined the Army after high school, in 2000. He was killed when his unit was attacked in Fallujah.
My Latest Quilt Block #1
I usually make at least one quilt in August. It's probably due to the "Summer's almost over and WHAT have got to show for it!" syndrome. No known cure, but I do make some of my best quilts because of it!
Background: I live in a very ethnically diverse neighborhood. A quick sweep of the houses within eye-shot will reveal people with ancestry of emigration from Germany, Guyana, Japan, China, Senegal, Honduras & Italy. We also have an African American architect, and a bona fide southern white with a red neck and a red car a la "The Dukes of Hazard". Add my own thoroughly Anglo-Saxon/Celtic/Gaelic pedigree. We are the mixed salad. And it is, in a way, the perfect metaphor for my taste in design and thematic choices in quilting.
In a quilt, many diverse pieces come together to form a cohesive whole. Sometimes it's very harmonious, sometimes it's more eclectic and challenging to the common aesthetic, but in either instance, it "works." The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Or as the Borg of Star Trek say: "You will be assimilated." And somehow the parts are.
With this quilt I am swimming in my love of the grand and bodacious African prints that express themselves most consistently in my town on Sunday at and after Christian church -- A piece of "home" worn with such comfort and abandon by the women and men from Liberia, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Cote d'Ivoire, and Cameroon who tend to form the majority of African immigrants in these parts.
One aspect of these fabrics is bright and declarative colors. Another is the use of motif: the human silhouette in traditional dress (often in posses derivative of Ancient Egyptian art), the traditional artifacts (mainly shields, carvings, and masks), and animals commonly associated with the African continent. And the final common characteristic of the fabrics is the use of metallic, most often gold, coloring.
Some day, I'm going to write a thesis which details the ideas and choices behind each of the quilts that I have made, because none of them happened accidentally, and each embody such depth of mental process, life-experience, and ultimately self-discovery that being able to articulate it all might form some basis from which to better understand the "examined" life in general.
Background: I live in a very ethnically diverse neighborhood. A quick sweep of the houses within eye-shot will reveal people with ancestry of emigration from Germany, Guyana, Japan, China, Senegal, Honduras & Italy. We also have an African American architect, and a bona fide southern white with a red neck and a red car a la "The Dukes of Hazard". Add my own thoroughly Anglo-Saxon/Celtic/Gaelic pedigree. We are the mixed salad. And it is, in a way, the perfect metaphor for my taste in design and thematic choices in quilting.
In a quilt, many diverse pieces come together to form a cohesive whole. Sometimes it's very harmonious, sometimes it's more eclectic and challenging to the common aesthetic, but in either instance, it "works." The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Or as the Borg of Star Trek say: "You will be assimilated." And somehow the parts are.
With this quilt I am swimming in my love of the grand and bodacious African prints that express themselves most consistently in my town on Sunday at and after Christian church -- A piece of "home" worn with such comfort and abandon by the women and men from Liberia, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Cote d'Ivoire, and Cameroon who tend to form the majority of African immigrants in these parts.
One aspect of these fabrics is bright and declarative colors. Another is the use of motif: the human silhouette in traditional dress (often in posses derivative of Ancient Egyptian art), the traditional artifacts (mainly shields, carvings, and masks), and animals commonly associated with the African continent. And the final common characteristic of the fabrics is the use of metallic, most often gold, coloring.
Some day, I'm going to write a thesis which details the ideas and choices behind each of the quilts that I have made, because none of them happened accidentally, and each embody such depth of mental process, life-experience, and ultimately self-discovery that being able to articulate it all might form some basis from which to better understand the "examined" life in general.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Here We Go Again?
I know Katrina was an amazing event. But it leaves me wondering if we are now subject to a post-Katrina panic, the effects of which will be with us regardless of the magnitude of future storms from now on.
I remember Camille, and certainly Andrew. And yet I don't remember oil prices jumping after their devistation. I don't remember massive government fraud or the failure of government at various levels to mobilize and address the crisis with compitence and all due haste.
I've always held progressive points of view; but this administration makes me feel nostolgic instead of hopeful....
I remember Camille, and certainly Andrew. And yet I don't remember oil prices jumping after their devistation. I don't remember massive government fraud or the failure of government at various levels to mobilize and address the crisis with compitence and all due haste.
I've always held progressive points of view; but this administration makes me feel nostolgic instead of hopeful....
Our Latest American Hero #30
Army Cpl. Matthew P. Wallace, 22, of Lexington Park, Md.; assigned to the 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died July 21 in the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Landstuhl, Germany, of injuries sustained July 16 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Bradley Fighting Vehicle during combat operations in Baghdad.
“St. Mary's Family Mourns Soldier”
As a boy, Matthew P. Wallace built forts - in his front yard, down the street from his home in Lexington Park, at the beach, dreaming always of becoming a soldier, his family said.
He enlisted in the Army in February 2004 and was sent to Iraq in December.
On Friday, the 22-year-old corporal died of wounds he sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Baghdad on July 16, the Defense Department announced.
His family flew to Germany to see him at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, after being notified his survival was unlikely. They found him unconscious, with bandages covering extensive burns, but told him they were proud of the man he'd become, and of his sacrifice, his mother, Mary Wallace said yesterday from the family home in the St. Mary's County town.
"Matthew chose to do what he did because he loved others more than he loved himself. It would have been much easier to do something else, but he chose not to," Mrs. Wallace said. "He loved the army, he loved what he learned and what he did, even though it was hard."
Corporal Wallace, who attended Great Mills High School and earned his General Educational Development diploma in 2001, worked for a time at a Sheetz convenience store before enlisting. He was assigned to the Army's 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
In his letters and phone calls home from Iraq, Wallace expressed hope that what he and his fellow soldiers were doing in Iraq was helping the Iraqi people, his mother said.
He also wrote of the loneliness of war, the long hours, and his fears about being accepted back home.
"He was very deep, very reflective," his mother said. "He said that he felt like an old soul and had lived a long, big life."
Corporal Wallace's father, Keith Wallace, recalled yesterday his son's growing pains at home and how they eventually bonded over music and martial arts.
"We had some terrible struggles and there were times when I feared we would never connect again," he said. "It turned out the opposite, we became closer than a father and son could become."
He also became closer to his three sisters - Jessica, 24, Abigail, 19, and Micah, 16, all of St. Mary's County - and the younger one got a set of dog tags when her older brother went to Iraq, pledging to wear them until he returned.
“St. Mary's Family Mourns Soldier”
As a boy, Matthew P. Wallace built forts - in his front yard, down the street from his home in Lexington Park, at the beach, dreaming always of becoming a soldier, his family said.
He enlisted in the Army in February 2004 and was sent to Iraq in December.
On Friday, the 22-year-old corporal died of wounds he sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Baghdad on July 16, the Defense Department announced.
His family flew to Germany to see him at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, after being notified his survival was unlikely. They found him unconscious, with bandages covering extensive burns, but told him they were proud of the man he'd become, and of his sacrifice, his mother, Mary Wallace said yesterday from the family home in the St. Mary's County town.
"Matthew chose to do what he did because he loved others more than he loved himself. It would have been much easier to do something else, but he chose not to," Mrs. Wallace said. "He loved the army, he loved what he learned and what he did, even though it was hard."
Corporal Wallace, who attended Great Mills High School and earned his General Educational Development diploma in 2001, worked for a time at a Sheetz convenience store before enlisting. He was assigned to the Army's 10th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
In his letters and phone calls home from Iraq, Wallace expressed hope that what he and his fellow soldiers were doing in Iraq was helping the Iraqi people, his mother said.
He also wrote of the loneliness of war, the long hours, and his fears about being accepted back home.
"He was very deep, very reflective," his mother said. "He said that he felt like an old soul and had lived a long, big life."
Corporal Wallace's father, Keith Wallace, recalled yesterday his son's growing pains at home and how they eventually bonded over music and martial arts.
"We had some terrible struggles and there were times when I feared we would never connect again," he said. "It turned out the opposite, we became closer than a father and son could become."
He also became closer to his three sisters - Jessica, 24, Abigail, 19, and Micah, 16, all of St. Mary's County - and the younger one got a set of dog tags when her older brother went to Iraq, pledging to wear them until he returned.
Think With
Speaking of the Des Moines Arts Center, here's a piece currently on exhibit in a show titled "Iowa Artists 2006".
THINK WITH, 2004
Hannah Campbell, 1981 ~
THINK WITH, 2004
Hannah Campbell, 1981 ~
Art I'm Seeing #5
Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859-1937) might actually be the first great African American artist. He was the first to attend the Pennsylvania Academy of Art in Philadelphia (at a time when it was not only the oldest but the most prestegious art school in America). He studied under Thomas Eakins, for one. And while eagerly claimed as an American artist, he did spend much of his life as an ex-patriot in France (as have many of our greatest artists!). Nevertheless, I fell in love with his art the first time I happened upon it.
Tanner presents ideas with such an expressive brush. To stand before one of his canvases is to stand beside him and feel his passion. And held in the cusp of this power is his use of paint to convey emotion by creating images in which light itself is the subject's subject. In my own limited art, I love the play of light upon images, no wonder Tanner was so easily able to grab my heart.
So it was Sunday past that I drove up to Baltimore to tour the Baltimore Museum of Art's exhibit: "Henry Ossawa Tanner and His Influence in America". I had no idea what to expect. And as those of you who either know me, or have read my thoughts on art, it's not my nature to be disappointed. Yet, I really did feel let down by the exhibit.
Hardly fitting two rooms, the majority of the works presented were not those of Tanner. Out of the approximately 35 images, only 6 were done by Tanner -- 1 from the BMA's holdings: a portrait (and promised donation) of the artist's father: Subject fascinating, execution so-so; 1 from a private collection (small and content significant, but stylistically a bit player); and 4 from the collection of the Des Moines, Iowa Arts Center.
Tanner is such an amazing artist. His influence is leagion. And this attempt to convey that influence....well, disappointing. NOT disappointing were the works themselves, even 6 Tanners is better than none. And now I have no reason to travel to Des Moines!
Tanner presents ideas with such an expressive brush. To stand before one of his canvases is to stand beside him and feel his passion. And held in the cusp of this power is his use of paint to convey emotion by creating images in which light itself is the subject's subject. In my own limited art, I love the play of light upon images, no wonder Tanner was so easily able to grab my heart.
So it was Sunday past that I drove up to Baltimore to tour the Baltimore Museum of Art's exhibit: "Henry Ossawa Tanner and His Influence in America". I had no idea what to expect. And as those of you who either know me, or have read my thoughts on art, it's not my nature to be disappointed. Yet, I really did feel let down by the exhibit.
Hardly fitting two rooms, the majority of the works presented were not those of Tanner. Out of the approximately 35 images, only 6 were done by Tanner -- 1 from the BMA's holdings: a portrait (and promised donation) of the artist's father: Subject fascinating, execution so-so; 1 from a private collection (small and content significant, but stylistically a bit player); and 4 from the collection of the Des Moines, Iowa Arts Center.
Tanner is such an amazing artist. His influence is leagion. And this attempt to convey that influence....well, disappointing. NOT disappointing were the works themselves, even 6 Tanners is better than none. And now I have no reason to travel to Des Moines!
Friday, July 28, 2006
More Lazy Summer Fun
Here's a portion of my Summer Lego fun. The middle building was designed as an apartment building, and hosts a candy store in the front (straight form the Harry Potter sets), to the right is the Episcopal church of the Blessed Aelred, to the left; a cyber cafe with apartments above.
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Sudoku Lovers Take Note
Alerted by a friend of Prof. Mendelsohn's passing and significance in the under-pinnings of this particular puzzle fad, I humbly pass this on to you, who like me, may find Sudoku's logical reasoning relaxing. May Nathan Mendelsohn find himself a place where the perpetual Light of peace and grace shines upon him.
NATHAN MENDELSOHN, SCHOLAR 1917-2006 Absent-minded polymath who taught mathematics at the University of Manitoba for 57 years made his name in combinatorics, a dazzling bit of science that no Sudoku puzzle can be without
TORONTO -- Nathan Mendelsohn may well have been the absent-minded professor from central casting. He would go to work by car and return home by bus. His wife would send him shopping and he would come back with the wrong items ("I'll cook what he brings," she once said with a shrug). And there was the time he took his family to the movies and agreed to stand in the rain to buy the tickets while his wife and two sons took shelter indoors. Prof. Mendelsohn decided he didn't want to see the movie after all, so he drove home.
Then there was the brilliant mathematician who saw beauty in the abstract. The Order of Canada member who made his own furniture, jewellery and wine, and delighted in performing hypnosis and magic tricks. The one who never wrote anything down because he didn't have to. With his sly sense of humour, he would appreciate the designation of polymath.
Prof. Mendelsohn taught mathematics at the University of Manitoba for 57 years, ending his career in 2005 as distinguished professor emeritus. He headed the math department for about 20 years, authored 140 research papers -- about double the average professor's career output -- and was a leading light in a branch of pure mathematics called combinatorics, which deals with the abstract relationships of objects to each other. One application is the math that underlies the popular Sudoku puzzles.
His and others' theories bore practical applications in such areas as scheduling, cryptography and software testing, often decades after they were promulgated. Helen, his wife of 62 years, had another name for her husband's work: "dreamy mathematics"
NATHAN MENDELSOHN, SCHOLAR 1917-2006 Absent-minded polymath who taught mathematics at the University of Manitoba for 57 years made his name in combinatorics, a dazzling bit of science that no Sudoku puzzle can be without
TORONTO -- Nathan Mendelsohn may well have been the absent-minded professor from central casting. He would go to work by car and return home by bus. His wife would send him shopping and he would come back with the wrong items ("I'll cook what he brings," she once said with a shrug). And there was the time he took his family to the movies and agreed to stand in the rain to buy the tickets while his wife and two sons took shelter indoors. Prof. Mendelsohn decided he didn't want to see the movie after all, so he drove home.
Then there was the brilliant mathematician who saw beauty in the abstract. The Order of Canada member who made his own furniture, jewellery and wine, and delighted in performing hypnosis and magic tricks. The one who never wrote anything down because he didn't have to. With his sly sense of humour, he would appreciate the designation of polymath.
Prof. Mendelsohn taught mathematics at the University of Manitoba for 57 years, ending his career in 2005 as distinguished professor emeritus. He headed the math department for about 20 years, authored 140 research papers -- about double the average professor's career output -- and was a leading light in a branch of pure mathematics called combinatorics, which deals with the abstract relationships of objects to each other. One application is the math that underlies the popular Sudoku puzzles.
His and others' theories bore practical applications in such areas as scheduling, cryptography and software testing, often decades after they were promulgated. Helen, his wife of 62 years, had another name for her husband's work: "dreamy mathematics"
Our Latest American Hero #29
[That's only 29 remembered here out of the estimated 2892 soldiers killed so far in uniform while performing their duty under the auspices of our President and Congress in the "War" on Terrorism. And by the time you read this, there's a very good chance that it will be 2893 or 2894 or more. So far in July 37 soldiers have died. It's been a relatively quiet month for most of us. Have you given the soldiers who have died in the past couple of weeks much thought this month? If not, there's something wrong here.]
Army Staff Sgt. Michael A. Dickinson II, 26, of Battle Creek, Mich.; assigned to the 9th Psychological Operations Battalion, 4th Psychological Operations Group, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C.; died on July 17 when his dismounted patrol encountered enemy forces small arms fire in Ramadi, Iraq.
“He's Not Supposed To Come Home Like this”
After three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, Army Staff Sgt. Michael A. Dickinson II of Battle Creek was preparing to leave the war.
"He told me he was on his last mission and he would be home," Dickinson's mother, Vicki Dickinson said Tuesday, a day after her son was killed by a sniper in Ramadi, Iraq. "But he's not supposed to come home like this."
Dickinson was with a Marine Corps patrol when the sniper killed him and wounded another soldier, his family was told. He was one of three American soldiers killed in separate attacks on Monday.
A member of the 4th Psychological Operations Group from Fort Bragg, N.C., Dickinson was scheduled to leave Iraq by the end of the month. He was packing and training his replacement. He wanted to continue his studies to be a physician's assistant and work in a clinic in his wife's native home of Puerto Rico.
Now his mother and other members of his family in Battle Creek are preparing to travel to Fort Bragg to join Dickinson's wife, Glorygrace, their daughter, Abigail, 2, and his wife's four children for a memorial service Thursday. Local services are not yet scheduled.
A 1998 graduate of Harper Creek High School, Dickinson and his adopted brother, Darrell Morris, decided in the 11th grade they wanted to join the Army, following his late father and both grandfathers, who were in the military.
"He came from a long line of fighters," his mother said, "and he believed in his country. He left for the service one month after graduation."
Dickinson had been working in the relatively safe area of Fallujah, his family said, but was concerned about some members of his unit in Ramadi and volunteered two or three months ago to transfer there.
Ramadi, which has more than 400,000 residents and is described as one of Iraq's most violent cities, has roadside bombings and gunbattles every day. U.S. patrols have been confined to small sections of the city, and tribal leaders who have cooperated with U.S. forces have been assassinated or forced to flee the country, according to the Associated Press.
"He was safe but he felt they needed him and he was going to be with them," his sister, Carmen, 27, said.
"He volunteered because he was confident he could bring those boys home," his mother said.
Michael Dickinson felt it was his job to make sure everyone returned from the mission and that was true even on the mission where he died, family members said.
"The Marines really respected Michael," his mother said. "The men cared about him and they said they will find the sniper who shot him. He died a hero."
Active in football and basketball and in the band, Dickinson is pictured in his high school yearbook wearing a football jersey, a gold chain and his signature smile.
Al Miller, principal of Harper Creek High School during the 1997-98 and 1998-99 school years, remembers Dickinson's grin.
"He was always friendly and outgoing," said Miller, who currently serves on Harper Creek's school board. "He had a positive attitude and always dealt with people in a mature and positive way. He was admired and respected by both staff and students."
It was in high school that Dickinson began spending time with his best friend, Jason Feasel.
"I considered him my brother," Feasel said Tuesday at his Springfield business. "I have known him since seventh grade but we started hanging out our freshman year. We did everything together. When you click with someone you just click with them. He was easy to get along with and he was a great guy.
"He would do anything for anyone just like he did for his country."
Feasel was paralyzed in a motorcycle accident in July 2003 and, when Dickinson returned from Iraq that month, the first stop was Feasel's hospital room.
"It meant a lot to see him coming through he door," Feasel said.
"He had just bought a DVD player and he said, 'Hey man, you got a better use for this.' And I watched a ton of DVDs. He would give you the shirt off his back."
Feasel talked to Dickinson on Thursday. "He was telling me the place he was at was crazy and he was so happy to come back home. He was talking about his daughter and he had pictures to send me but he I didn't get those pictures."
"I lost my best friend. It's a killer. But I am glad I got to be part of his life and I am glad he got to be part of mine."
Dickinson didn't tell his family much about the war or his job.
"We didn't understand how much danger he was in," Carmen Dickinson said. "He didn't talk about things over there."
"But he supported the military," Vicki Dickinson said. "What they asked of him was what he was going to do. It was his job and he was going to do his job."
She said people should remember her son as someone who was caring and "who took his responsibility in life seriously and wanted to do nothing but good."
"And what is more patriotic than giving your life for your country — willingly. He thought he was needed so he answered the call. I am very proud of my son."
Army Staff Sgt. Michael A. Dickinson II, 26, of Battle Creek, Mich.; assigned to the 9th Psychological Operations Battalion, 4th Psychological Operations Group, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C.; died on July 17 when his dismounted patrol encountered enemy forces small arms fire in Ramadi, Iraq.
“He's Not Supposed To Come Home Like this”
After three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, Army Staff Sgt. Michael A. Dickinson II of Battle Creek was preparing to leave the war.
"He told me he was on his last mission and he would be home," Dickinson's mother, Vicki Dickinson said Tuesday, a day after her son was killed by a sniper in Ramadi, Iraq. "But he's not supposed to come home like this."
Dickinson was with a Marine Corps patrol when the sniper killed him and wounded another soldier, his family was told. He was one of three American soldiers killed in separate attacks on Monday.
A member of the 4th Psychological Operations Group from Fort Bragg, N.C., Dickinson was scheduled to leave Iraq by the end of the month. He was packing and training his replacement. He wanted to continue his studies to be a physician's assistant and work in a clinic in his wife's native home of Puerto Rico.
Now his mother and other members of his family in Battle Creek are preparing to travel to Fort Bragg to join Dickinson's wife, Glorygrace, their daughter, Abigail, 2, and his wife's four children for a memorial service Thursday. Local services are not yet scheduled.
A 1998 graduate of Harper Creek High School, Dickinson and his adopted brother, Darrell Morris, decided in the 11th grade they wanted to join the Army, following his late father and both grandfathers, who were in the military.
"He came from a long line of fighters," his mother said, "and he believed in his country. He left for the service one month after graduation."
Dickinson had been working in the relatively safe area of Fallujah, his family said, but was concerned about some members of his unit in Ramadi and volunteered two or three months ago to transfer there.
Ramadi, which has more than 400,000 residents and is described as one of Iraq's most violent cities, has roadside bombings and gunbattles every day. U.S. patrols have been confined to small sections of the city, and tribal leaders who have cooperated with U.S. forces have been assassinated or forced to flee the country, according to the Associated Press.
"He was safe but he felt they needed him and he was going to be with them," his sister, Carmen, 27, said.
"He volunteered because he was confident he could bring those boys home," his mother said.
Michael Dickinson felt it was his job to make sure everyone returned from the mission and that was true even on the mission where he died, family members said.
"The Marines really respected Michael," his mother said. "The men cared about him and they said they will find the sniper who shot him. He died a hero."
Active in football and basketball and in the band, Dickinson is pictured in his high school yearbook wearing a football jersey, a gold chain and his signature smile.
Al Miller, principal of Harper Creek High School during the 1997-98 and 1998-99 school years, remembers Dickinson's grin.
"He was always friendly and outgoing," said Miller, who currently serves on Harper Creek's school board. "He had a positive attitude and always dealt with people in a mature and positive way. He was admired and respected by both staff and students."
It was in high school that Dickinson began spending time with his best friend, Jason Feasel.
"I considered him my brother," Feasel said Tuesday at his Springfield business. "I have known him since seventh grade but we started hanging out our freshman year. We did everything together. When you click with someone you just click with them. He was easy to get along with and he was a great guy.
"He would do anything for anyone just like he did for his country."
Feasel was paralyzed in a motorcycle accident in July 2003 and, when Dickinson returned from Iraq that month, the first stop was Feasel's hospital room.
"It meant a lot to see him coming through he door," Feasel said.
"He had just bought a DVD player and he said, 'Hey man, you got a better use for this.' And I watched a ton of DVDs. He would give you the shirt off his back."
Feasel talked to Dickinson on Thursday. "He was telling me the place he was at was crazy and he was so happy to come back home. He was talking about his daughter and he had pictures to send me but he I didn't get those pictures."
"I lost my best friend. It's a killer. But I am glad I got to be part of his life and I am glad he got to be part of mine."
Dickinson didn't tell his family much about the war or his job.
"We didn't understand how much danger he was in," Carmen Dickinson said. "He didn't talk about things over there."
"But he supported the military," Vicki Dickinson said. "What they asked of him was what he was going to do. It was his job and he was going to do his job."
She said people should remember her son as someone who was caring and "who took his responsibility in life seriously and wanted to do nothing but good."
"And what is more patriotic than giving your life for your country — willingly. He thought he was needed so he answered the call. I am very proud of my son."
A Chink 'N Sync?
Apparently, not everything about the five young men was synchronized. Lance Bass has just announce his sexual orientation as gay. Bravo, Lance.
When asked in a pole on AOL "Should Lance have come out sooner?" the 53,235 respondants chose the following responses.
No, it was his decision to make 87%
Yes, to avoid the rumors 13%
And I agree with the no respondants, how one choses to reveal the truths of their life is their business. I would want everyone to be open, but for some people, it's just too scary, still.
A second question was posed and responded to by 55,050 with the following results: "Bass says coming out sooner may have affected *NSYNC's popularity. Do you think it would have?"
Yes 75%
No 25%
Here I disagree. It would have legitimized a section of the fan base, and the girls would still have 4 others to swoon over! But seriously, that response defies my sense of justice, but certainly justifies Lance Bass' choice of timing.
When asked in a pole on AOL "Should Lance have come out sooner?" the 53,235 respondants chose the following responses.
No, it was his decision to make 87%
Yes, to avoid the rumors 13%
And I agree with the no respondants, how one choses to reveal the truths of their life is their business. I would want everyone to be open, but for some people, it's just too scary, still.
A second question was posed and responded to by 55,050 with the following results: "Bass says coming out sooner may have affected *NSYNC's popularity. Do you think it would have?"
Yes 75%
No 25%
Here I disagree. It would have legitimized a section of the fan base, and the girls would still have 4 others to swoon over! But seriously, that response defies my sense of justice, but certainly justifies Lance Bass' choice of timing.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
A Moment Worth Remembering
I grew up not far from Detroit. Just 29 miles south of the center of the city. My father worked for the auto mobile industry until his retirement in 1986. Only one other event in the wider world had a greater impact on my adolescence (the Viet Nam War). And it seems that these two things are intimately related.
(From the Writers Almanac)
It was on this night in 1967 that a riot broke out in Detroit, marking the beginning of the decline of one of the greatest manufacturing cities in the country. An all-white squadron of police officers decided to raid a bar in a black neighborhood where there was a party to welcome home two recent veterans of the Vietnam War. The police stormed the bar, rounded up and arrested eighty-five black men and began loading them into vans.
The riot that broke out raged for five days. Thousands of soldiers from the Michigan National Guard were called in, along with tanks. The National Guardsmen fired off more than 150,000 bullets over the course of the riot.
Forty-three people were killed and whole blocks of the city went up in flames. After the riots, many of the white residents of the city moved to the suburbs. Thousands of homes were abandoned, and the city's population plunged from 1.6 million to 992,000 in just a few years. By 1990, Detroit was one of the poorest cities in America, with one in every three residents living in poverty.
(From the Writers Almanac)
It was on this night in 1967 that a riot broke out in Detroit, marking the beginning of the decline of one of the greatest manufacturing cities in the country. An all-white squadron of police officers decided to raid a bar in a black neighborhood where there was a party to welcome home two recent veterans of the Vietnam War. The police stormed the bar, rounded up and arrested eighty-five black men and began loading them into vans.
The riot that broke out raged for five days. Thousands of soldiers from the Michigan National Guard were called in, along with tanks. The National Guardsmen fired off more than 150,000 bullets over the course of the riot.
Forty-three people were killed and whole blocks of the city went up in flames. After the riots, many of the white residents of the city moved to the suburbs. Thousands of homes were abandoned, and the city's population plunged from 1.6 million to 992,000 in just a few years. By 1990, Detroit was one of the poorest cities in America, with one in every three residents living in poverty.
Score One For Reason
When it was time for me to get my masters degree in education, I did what practically everyone in central Kentucky did. I enrolled in Georgetown College's Graduate School of Education. GC is located in Georgetown, who's only other claim to fame is the home of Toyota's first stateside factory and producer of their Camry series.
But I digress. As a Baptist affiliated institution, I arrived from an undergraduate institution where I was named the senior male most typifying what that college stood for in its graduates. Asbury College is a formerly Methodist school with strong Wesleyian-Armenian theological roots. We all knew who our enemies were, and chief among them are the Calvin-Augustinians of whom the Baptists are the pre-eminent expression.
Of course, I making it sound like the conflict in the Middle East, when it was really a battle imagined by tired old men and idealistic ignorant young zealots (all fought on the plains of abstract ideas; i.e. theology).
Nevertheless, when I first set foot on the Georgetown campus I wondered what I might find, how I might be treated, sensitive to learning the nuances of navigating in these "foreign" waters. To my utter pleasure, I found the experience personally affirming and professional enriching. While there I was appointed to the grad student-faculty advisory board. I was ask to serve as an honor guard for the graduation ceremony at my mid-point in the program. I met exceptional factulty, the Dean of the Program, the Law Professor who taught education law, the Art Prof who let me do some independent studies involving technology and iconography.
So imagine my delight after reading this article forwarded to me by my ex-. From the New York Times, an exerpt only.
"Feeling Strains, Baptist Colleges Cut Church Ties"
GEORGETOWN, Ky. (July 22) -- The request seemed simple enough to the Rev. Hershael W. York, then the president of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. He asked Georgetown College, a small Baptist liberal arts institution here, to consider hiring for its religion department someone who would teach a literal interpretation of the Bible.
But to William H. Crouch Jr., the president of Georgetown, it was among the last straws in a struggle that had involved issues like who could be on the board of trustees and whether the college encouraged enough freedom of inquiry to qualify for a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
Dr. Crouch and his trustees decided it was time to end the college’s 63-year affiliation with the religious denomination. “From my point of view, it was about academic freedom,’’ Dr. Crouch said. “I sat for 25 years and watched my denomination become much more narrow and, in terms of education, much more interested in indoctrination.’’
Georgetown is among a half-dozen colleges and universities whose ties with state Baptist conventions have been severed in the last four years, part of a broad realignment in which more than a dozen Southern Baptist universities, including Wake Forest and Furman, have ended affiliations over the last two decades. Georgetown’s parting was ultimately amicable. But many have been tense, even bitter.
Officials at Georgetown had long been concerned that differences with state Baptists might become irreconcilable.
Then, a year ago, the Kentucky convention turned down a nominee for Georgetown’s board for the first time. Around the same time, Dr. York asked the college to look for a religion professor who would teach theologically conservative positions.
“You ought to have some professor on your faculty who believes Adam and Eve were the first humans, that they actually existed,’’ Dr. York said.
Dr. Crouch and Georgetown’s trustees decided it was time to exercise their escape clause.
Bravo for Georgetown, my check's in the mail! Remember children, in the land of "Free Speech," money still speaks in a way that is easiest to hear and remember.
But I digress. As a Baptist affiliated institution, I arrived from an undergraduate institution where I was named the senior male most typifying what that college stood for in its graduates. Asbury College is a formerly Methodist school with strong Wesleyian-Armenian theological roots. We all knew who our enemies were, and chief among them are the Calvin-Augustinians of whom the Baptists are the pre-eminent expression.
Of course, I making it sound like the conflict in the Middle East, when it was really a battle imagined by tired old men and idealistic ignorant young zealots (all fought on the plains of abstract ideas; i.e. theology).
Nevertheless, when I first set foot on the Georgetown campus I wondered what I might find, how I might be treated, sensitive to learning the nuances of navigating in these "foreign" waters. To my utter pleasure, I found the experience personally affirming and professional enriching. While there I was appointed to the grad student-faculty advisory board. I was ask to serve as an honor guard for the graduation ceremony at my mid-point in the program. I met exceptional factulty, the Dean of the Program, the Law Professor who taught education law, the Art Prof who let me do some independent studies involving technology and iconography.
So imagine my delight after reading this article forwarded to me by my ex-. From the New York Times, an exerpt only.
"Feeling Strains, Baptist Colleges Cut Church Ties"
GEORGETOWN, Ky. (July 22) -- The request seemed simple enough to the Rev. Hershael W. York, then the president of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. He asked Georgetown College, a small Baptist liberal arts institution here, to consider hiring for its religion department someone who would teach a literal interpretation of the Bible.
But to William H. Crouch Jr., the president of Georgetown, it was among the last straws in a struggle that had involved issues like who could be on the board of trustees and whether the college encouraged enough freedom of inquiry to qualify for a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
Dr. Crouch and his trustees decided it was time to end the college’s 63-year affiliation with the religious denomination. “From my point of view, it was about academic freedom,’’ Dr. Crouch said. “I sat for 25 years and watched my denomination become much more narrow and, in terms of education, much more interested in indoctrination.’’
Georgetown is among a half-dozen colleges and universities whose ties with state Baptist conventions have been severed in the last four years, part of a broad realignment in which more than a dozen Southern Baptist universities, including Wake Forest and Furman, have ended affiliations over the last two decades. Georgetown’s parting was ultimately amicable. But many have been tense, even bitter.
Officials at Georgetown had long been concerned that differences with state Baptists might become irreconcilable.
Then, a year ago, the Kentucky convention turned down a nominee for Georgetown’s board for the first time. Around the same time, Dr. York asked the college to look for a religion professor who would teach theologically conservative positions.
“You ought to have some professor on your faculty who believes Adam and Eve were the first humans, that they actually existed,’’ Dr. York said.
Dr. Crouch and Georgetown’s trustees decided it was time to exercise their escape clause.
Bravo for Georgetown, my check's in the mail! Remember children, in the land of "Free Speech," money still speaks in a way that is easiest to hear and remember.
Our Latest American Hero #28
Army Staff Sgt. Paul S. Pabla, 23, of Fort Wayne, Ind.; assigned to the Army National Guard's 139th Field Artillery, Kempton, Ind.; died on July 3 in Mosul, Iraq, of injuries sustained from enemy small arms fire during combat operations.
“Shining Star Recalled”
Hundreds attend funeral for funny, generous soldier
HUNTINGTON – Pausing several times, once to reach for a tissue, Aaron Lamport said he’s felt a lot of emotions, including anger, over the recent death of his friend Staff Sgt. Paul S. Pabla.
He’s questioned why it was his childhood friend had to die. And he’s questioned why it had to happen eight days before Pabla, 23, was to come home on leave.
But he’s learning to cope, he said Saturday during the funeral service for the Fort Wayne resident.
“I can’t blame God, though, because if I were him I’d want Paul all to myself, too,” he said, choking back tears. “That’s how I felt every time I knew I was going to see Paul. He was the guy you always wanted to be with.”
Lamport was one of several who spoke to about 900 people at the Huntington North High School auditorium, recalling the soldier who could make anyone laugh.
Outside the school, seven members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., protesting at the funeral had competition Saturday morning from about 100 other residents who were protesting the group’s presence.
Two people were arrested during the demonstration that lasted about 45 minutes.
A member of the Indiana National Guard and a 2000 Huntington North graduate, Pabla was killed by sniper fire July 3 while on patrol in the northern Iraq city of Mosul. He was a member of the Kempton-based 139th Field Artillery but was deployed in Iraq with the 150th Field Artillery from Bloomington.
First deployed to Iraq in August, Pabla had volunteered for the deployment and helped train police officers, military officials said. Before deployment, Pabla had worked in security at the Indiana Air National Guard’s 122nd Fighter Wing in Fort Wayne.
Gov. Mitch Daniels and Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, Army adjutant general of Indiana, presented Pabla’s family with the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Though not fond of his duty to attend military funerals in the state, Daniels said it’s his most important task.
“These are the days a parent hopes will never come,” he said. “Friends pray for that. Families pray for that. Generals pray for that and governors learn to pray for that as well.”
Describing Pabla as a dedicated soldier who put the safety of others before his own, Army commanders who knew him said he had been marked as a shining star among guardsmen. Pabla was 22 when he was promoted to staff sergeant, a rank some soldiers 10 years his senior still hope to attain, said Lt. Col. Kevin Extine, a commander in the 150th Field Artillery Battalion.
“I remember him, I shook his hand,” Umbarger said. “He had that look that said ‘I’m trained, I’m ready.’?”
But his time serving in the National Guard is only one part of what Pabla’s family members and friends say they’ll remember about him.
Reading a statement from family members, Rev. Roger Vezeau said the man they called “Paul boy,” was an expert at Ace Ventura impressions, had a knack for doing the moonwalk and the robot.
He was as generous as he was funny, the statement said, and gave some of his earnings from the Army to Iraqi police for their training and bought toys for Iraqi children.
These are things that Lamport remembers, too. “If he knew you needed $1, he’d give you $20,” Lamport said. “If the only way to see you was to drive for hours, he’d do it.
“Shining Star Recalled”
Hundreds attend funeral for funny, generous soldier
HUNTINGTON – Pausing several times, once to reach for a tissue, Aaron Lamport said he’s felt a lot of emotions, including anger, over the recent death of his friend Staff Sgt. Paul S. Pabla.
He’s questioned why it was his childhood friend had to die. And he’s questioned why it had to happen eight days before Pabla, 23, was to come home on leave.
But he’s learning to cope, he said Saturday during the funeral service for the Fort Wayne resident.
“I can’t blame God, though, because if I were him I’d want Paul all to myself, too,” he said, choking back tears. “That’s how I felt every time I knew I was going to see Paul. He was the guy you always wanted to be with.”
Lamport was one of several who spoke to about 900 people at the Huntington North High School auditorium, recalling the soldier who could make anyone laugh.
Outside the school, seven members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., protesting at the funeral had competition Saturday morning from about 100 other residents who were protesting the group’s presence.
Two people were arrested during the demonstration that lasted about 45 minutes.
A member of the Indiana National Guard and a 2000 Huntington North graduate, Pabla was killed by sniper fire July 3 while on patrol in the northern Iraq city of Mosul. He was a member of the Kempton-based 139th Field Artillery but was deployed in Iraq with the 150th Field Artillery from Bloomington.
First deployed to Iraq in August, Pabla had volunteered for the deployment and helped train police officers, military officials said. Before deployment, Pabla had worked in security at the Indiana Air National Guard’s 122nd Fighter Wing in Fort Wayne.
Gov. Mitch Daniels and Maj. Gen. R. Martin Umbarger, Army adjutant general of Indiana, presented Pabla’s family with the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Though not fond of his duty to attend military funerals in the state, Daniels said it’s his most important task.
“These are the days a parent hopes will never come,” he said. “Friends pray for that. Families pray for that. Generals pray for that and governors learn to pray for that as well.”
Describing Pabla as a dedicated soldier who put the safety of others before his own, Army commanders who knew him said he had been marked as a shining star among guardsmen. Pabla was 22 when he was promoted to staff sergeant, a rank some soldiers 10 years his senior still hope to attain, said Lt. Col. Kevin Extine, a commander in the 150th Field Artillery Battalion.
“I remember him, I shook his hand,” Umbarger said. “He had that look that said ‘I’m trained, I’m ready.’?”
But his time serving in the National Guard is only one part of what Pabla’s family members and friends say they’ll remember about him.
Reading a statement from family members, Rev. Roger Vezeau said the man they called “Paul boy,” was an expert at Ace Ventura impressions, had a knack for doing the moonwalk and the robot.
He was as generous as he was funny, the statement said, and gave some of his earnings from the Army to Iraqi police for their training and bought toys for Iraqi children.
These are things that Lamport remembers, too. “If he knew you needed $1, he’d give you $20,” Lamport said. “If the only way to see you was to drive for hours, he’d do it.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
What I'm Watching #23
Good, God! N-n-n-n-no, no, no, no, no--YES! More Vicar of Dibley! This latest DVD contains three episodes and an outtakes compilation. The first episode deals with gay bishops and features a cameo with the Arch Bishop of Canterbury, The Rt. Rev. Rowan Williams. A must see for all Dibley fans!
What do you get when you cross a turkey with an octopus? To discover the answer get the DVD!
What do you get when you cross a turkey with an octopus? To discover the answer get the DVD!
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
War On Terrorism Facts #1
I have been acutely involved in this little "war" for years now. I do not think that it is legitimate in that I do not think that the dots connect between cause...effect....benefit.....profit. Therefore I present this fact to you without any other bias. Blue states, red states, purple states: blood in the presence of oxygen is red and thus depleted becomes purple to blue. Colors are images, not facts. Facts allow you to draw your own conclusions.
TOP 20 HOMETOWNS OF SOLDIER KILLED IN THE WAR ON TERRORISM
Houston, TX ~ 27
Los Angeles, CA - 26
San Antonio, TX ~ 23
Brooklyn, NY ~ 14
Phoenix, AZ - 13
Baltimore, MD ~ 12
Las Vagas, NV ~ 12
Fort Worth, TX ~ 12
San Diego, CA ~ 11
Tampa, FL ~ 11
Philadelphia, PA ~ 10
Tucson, AZ ~ 9
Miami, FL ~ 9
Columbus, OH ~ 9
Jacksonville, FL ~ 8
New York City, NY ~ 8
Fayetteville, NC ~ 8
Portland, OR ~ 8
Austin, TX ~ 8
El Paso, TX ~ 8
TOP 20 HOMETOWNS OF SOLDIER KILLED IN THE WAR ON TERRORISM
Houston, TX ~ 27
Los Angeles, CA - 26
San Antonio, TX ~ 23
Brooklyn, NY ~ 14
Phoenix, AZ - 13
Baltimore, MD ~ 12
Las Vagas, NV ~ 12
Fort Worth, TX ~ 12
San Diego, CA ~ 11
Tampa, FL ~ 11
Philadelphia, PA ~ 10
Tucson, AZ ~ 9
Miami, FL ~ 9
Columbus, OH ~ 9
Jacksonville, FL ~ 8
New York City, NY ~ 8
Fayetteville, NC ~ 8
Portland, OR ~ 8
Austin, TX ~ 8
El Paso, TX ~ 8
Friday, July 14, 2006
Election Alert!
I know, usually when you see a photo of a young man or woman in uniform, I'm sharing their heroism as martyrs to our freedom. But happily, NOT this time.
This is Patrick Murphy. He is, among so many other things, a veteran of the Iraq conflict. And he is running as a democrate to unseat the Republican Representative to the US House from the 8th district of Pennsylvania. A relative once described that state's political views to me as "Pittsburgh and Philadelpia with Alabama in between." Well, Patrick pushes north and west away from Philly into "Bamavania" and he's in the lead.
Go to his website. Watch his video. Send him a buck or two.
http://www.murphy06.com/
More Red to Blue predictions to come.
This is Patrick Murphy. He is, among so many other things, a veteran of the Iraq conflict. And he is running as a democrate to unseat the Republican Representative to the US House from the 8th district of Pennsylvania. A relative once described that state's political views to me as "Pittsburgh and Philadelpia with Alabama in between." Well, Patrick pushes north and west away from Philly into "Bamavania" and he's in the lead.
Go to his website. Watch his video. Send him a buck or two.
http://www.murphy06.com/
More Red to Blue predictions to come.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
I Am Disturbed By This
Tonight, after returning from a quick trip to Philadelphia, I happened to entertain a volunteer from the Human Rights Campaign Fund. She knocked on my door. She was a slight and perky young woman. She had been directed to my door by her coordinator after an incident at a home a couple of blocks over. No doubt the rainbow flag and HRCF stickers on my car and truck, suggested that I would be a sympathetic stranger -- a safe haven.
Seems that after she knocked on the door of a home nearby; presented her introduction, she was dismissed by some elderly woman with SPIT lobbed upon her face! She then proceeded to sit upon the curb and cry....
I know people hate. I know people fear. I know people justify their actions based upon their theology. It might be a leap, but such a leap is aligned with the lionshare of my experience when it comes to such acts of discrimination.
My theology is centered around sacrifice, grace, forgiveness, and love. Like any theology, it's pie in sky thinking. That's the nature of faith -- it's not about what is, but what could be. For most believers in this world (Muslim, Jew, Christian) that means how to force others into their molds or out of their spheres; but for me, it means, how to open doors so that others are free to belong: i. e. diversity and community.
And so my heart is thinking about these questions tonight: How do we create a society without losers or winners? How do we live in a world where everyone has an EQUAL shot at self-actualization?
Seems that after she knocked on the door of a home nearby; presented her introduction, she was dismissed by some elderly woman with SPIT lobbed upon her face! She then proceeded to sit upon the curb and cry....
I know people hate. I know people fear. I know people justify their actions based upon their theology. It might be a leap, but such a leap is aligned with the lionshare of my experience when it comes to such acts of discrimination.
My theology is centered around sacrifice, grace, forgiveness, and love. Like any theology, it's pie in sky thinking. That's the nature of faith -- it's not about what is, but what could be. For most believers in this world (Muslim, Jew, Christian) that means how to force others into their molds or out of their spheres; but for me, it means, how to open doors so that others are free to belong: i. e. diversity and community.
And so my heart is thinking about these questions tonight: How do we create a society without losers or winners? How do we live in a world where everyone has an EQUAL shot at self-actualization?
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
A Walk In The Park, #3
I regret that these were posted in reverse order.... blogging is not like webbing.
This is one of the many moments that make Sligo Creek so magical -- the reflection of the sky in the water through the foliage with bolders.
This is one of the many moments that make Sligo Creek so magical -- the reflection of the sky in the water through the foliage with bolders.
A Walk In The Park, #2
Here an ancient, double-trunked, white oak took the spill in the storm and it's root ripped up the guard rail and a portion of the edge of the road.
A Walk In The Park, #1
Over a week after the storm, many stretches of the Sligo Creek Parkway remain closed. I wondered why, when the ones that I walk seem relatively okay. And then I met this scene on Sunday morning. With no readily availble cause, seven days after the storm, the top of an old beech tree came down upon the roadway. Ouch.
What I'm Watching #22
"Cachorro" is really a delightful film. It's takes its share of predictable and unusual turns. Three points stand out.
1) The Bearish sex is blatant -- there are no sublties about it.
2) The lead character is a man. He struggles with what life has dealt him, but he does not play dead easily, and he never gives up.
3) The kid is wonderfully understated by an large, but he has a spirit that will affirm your hope in the future!
One caveat, the dialogue is so fast, that reading sub-titles was distracting.....
1) The Bearish sex is blatant -- there are no sublties about it.
2) The lead character is a man. He struggles with what life has dealt him, but he does not play dead easily, and he never gives up.
3) The kid is wonderfully understated by an large, but he has a spirit that will affirm your hope in the future!
One caveat, the dialogue is so fast, that reading sub-titles was distracting.....
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Felicitações Portugal!
Okay, I know, Germany won... But hey Portugal has way cuter players! Case in point, Nuno Gomes, the young man on the left in the photo and in the inset who scored the only goal for team Portugal in the match. On his right is perenniel team portugal favorite Luis Figo, who I think I heard is retiring after this match. Shame, wish he could have moved into the next phase of life on a win.
Humble Little Bumble
Came home from work on Thursday and found this little bumble bee just resting on the downward facing petal of one of my asiatic lilies. I watched him for awhile and could not tell if he was drowsy on a warm and muggy summer's afternoon, or just stupor drunk on pollin. What would a bee imagine in a moment like this, if a bee could imagine?
THE BEE is not afraid of me,
I know the butterfly;
The pretty people in the woods
Receive me cordially.
The brooks laugh louder when I come,
The breezes madder play.
Wherefore, mine eyes, thy silver mists?
Wherefore, O summer’s day?
~ Emily Dickinson, 1830-1886
THE BEE is not afraid of me,
I know the butterfly;
The pretty people in the woods
Receive me cordially.
The brooks laugh louder when I come,
The breezes madder play.
Wherefore, mine eyes, thy silver mists?
Wherefore, O summer’s day?
~ Emily Dickinson, 1830-1886
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Our Latest American Hero #27
Army Sgt. Jason J. Buzzard, 31, of Ukiah, Calif.; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died June 21 of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his HEMTT cargo truck during combat operations in Baghdad.
“Army Sgt. Jason J. Buzzard, 31, Ukiah; Killed in Truck Explosion in Baghdad”
As always, Michele Buzzard ended her last conversation with her husband, Army Sgt. Jason J. Buzzard, by telling him to remain safe, to come home alive and, of course, that she loved him.
"He would never say, 'Good-bye'; he would say, 'Later,' " she said, recalling the talk, conducted via instant Internet messaging on Father's Day.
Buzzard, a 31-year-old father of two young children, was killed three days later, on June 21, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his cargo truck in Baghdad.
He was born in the Northern California town of Willits and grew up in Ukiah. The Ukiah Daily Journal reported that he was the first soldier from Mendocino County to die in the Iraq war. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Ft. Hood, Texas.
"He was commanding a convoy of four vehicles," his wife said in a telephone interview. "He took most of the force."
Michele and Jason Buzzard were high school sweethearts, she from the coastal town of Fort Bragg and he from the county seat of Ukiah. He graduated from Ukiah High School in 1993, where he played tuba in the band. He enlisted in the Army in 1998. "He wanted to defend his country," his wife said. "He liked getting away from Mendocino County. We were in Colorado for five years. He went to Korea for a year. We were stationed at Ft. Hood."
Buzzard left for Iraq two days after Thanksgiving last year, and came home on leave in May. "He explained he had a lot of close calls," his wife said. "He promised he would do everything [he could] to come home alive."
During his visit home in May, Buzzard watched his son, Tristin, 9, play catcher in three baseball games, and his daughter, Michala, 12, play outfield in a softball game. "He really enjoyed watching the kids," his wife said. "He was a proud dad."
Buzzard had a competitive streak of his own, enjoying bowling and other games with his family and friends. He loved to fish with his father, Jerry, go pheasant hunting and dive for abalone off the Northern California coast. He also was proud of his prowess at the barbecue.
"He was a fun-loving, great husband and dad," his wife said. "He was everything to me."
He also helped train Iraqis. He was convinced that the U.S. mission was proper, his wife said, saying the country needed "to finish what they started. He thought they were doing a lot more good over there than what people see."
“Army Sgt. Jason J. Buzzard, 31, Ukiah; Killed in Truck Explosion in Baghdad”
As always, Michele Buzzard ended her last conversation with her husband, Army Sgt. Jason J. Buzzard, by telling him to remain safe, to come home alive and, of course, that she loved him.
"He would never say, 'Good-bye'; he would say, 'Later,' " she said, recalling the talk, conducted via instant Internet messaging on Father's Day.
Buzzard, a 31-year-old father of two young children, was killed three days later, on June 21, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his cargo truck in Baghdad.
He was born in the Northern California town of Willits and grew up in Ukiah. The Ukiah Daily Journal reported that he was the first soldier from Mendocino County to die in the Iraq war. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Ft. Hood, Texas.
"He was commanding a convoy of four vehicles," his wife said in a telephone interview. "He took most of the force."
Michele and Jason Buzzard were high school sweethearts, she from the coastal town of Fort Bragg and he from the county seat of Ukiah. He graduated from Ukiah High School in 1993, where he played tuba in the band. He enlisted in the Army in 1998. "He wanted to defend his country," his wife said. "He liked getting away from Mendocino County. We were in Colorado for five years. He went to Korea for a year. We were stationed at Ft. Hood."
Buzzard left for Iraq two days after Thanksgiving last year, and came home on leave in May. "He explained he had a lot of close calls," his wife said. "He promised he would do everything [he could] to come home alive."
During his visit home in May, Buzzard watched his son, Tristin, 9, play catcher in three baseball games, and his daughter, Michala, 12, play outfield in a softball game. "He really enjoyed watching the kids," his wife said. "He was a proud dad."
Buzzard had a competitive streak of his own, enjoying bowling and other games with his family and friends. He loved to fish with his father, Jerry, go pheasant hunting and dive for abalone off the Northern California coast. He also was proud of his prowess at the barbecue.
"He was a fun-loving, great husband and dad," his wife said. "He was everything to me."
He also helped train Iraqis. He was convinced that the U.S. mission was proper, his wife said, saying the country needed "to finish what they started. He thought they were doing a lot more good over there than what people see."
The Kiss Of Death
Clearly that's me! 'Cause every team I get excited about, looses it's next match! Sorry, Mexico, Ghana, Portugal..... either your bad or I'm a bad luck charm....
So it comes down to France v Italy? Well, here goes nothing, I'm backing Italy. Given my record, this will make my ex- happy, as he is a Francophile from crown to toe. Sorry, or should I say: "Chiedo scusa ai miei amici italiani."
So it comes down to France v Italy? Well, here goes nothing, I'm backing Italy. Given my record, this will make my ex- happy, as he is a Francophile from crown to toe. Sorry, or should I say: "Chiedo scusa ai miei amici italiani."
Something Wicked This Way Came!
Well, I didn't get out to any fireworks on the 4th. Instead the action came to me!
Around 5 PM a horrendous storm BLEW through. I had torrential rains, hail, and straight-line wind clocked at 50 mph sustained for over a minute at a burst. The results were flooded basement, lots of plant debris, and several large trees toppled into things like automobiles and power lines.
The electricity came back on about 2 AM, and at about 11:45 PM, unable to sleep without the ambient noise of my electrified abode, I took a drive around the area. It was amazing how widespread the power outages were. It actually made me feel a little better about my own dark state.
I have experienced 5 of the most powerful electrical storms in recent memory this year since mid-May. After living here for 12 years, the creek below my home has now flooded twice in that time frame, and the only other time that it has done this was last August. In order to accomplish this, it must increase its normal capacity by a magnitude of x 70! as it sits in a gully well below the streets that cross it or the trails that meander beside it.
Strange and amazing at the same time....we do live in interesting times.
Around 5 PM a horrendous storm BLEW through. I had torrential rains, hail, and straight-line wind clocked at 50 mph sustained for over a minute at a burst. The results were flooded basement, lots of plant debris, and several large trees toppled into things like automobiles and power lines.
The electricity came back on about 2 AM, and at about 11:45 PM, unable to sleep without the ambient noise of my electrified abode, I took a drive around the area. It was amazing how widespread the power outages were. It actually made me feel a little better about my own dark state.
I have experienced 5 of the most powerful electrical storms in recent memory this year since mid-May. After living here for 12 years, the creek below my home has now flooded twice in that time frame, and the only other time that it has done this was last August. In order to accomplish this, it must increase its normal capacity by a magnitude of x 70! as it sits in a gully well below the streets that cross it or the trails that meander beside it.
Strange and amazing at the same time....we do live in interesting times.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Nueur Galleirie Scores
Big time. And the price was only 137.5 million.....
Congrats and looking forward to my next visit.
Congrats and looking forward to my next visit.
Monday, July 03, 2006
Our Latest American Hero #26
Army Pfc. Kristian Menchaca 23, of San Marcos, Texas; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died on or about June 16 from injuries sustained in the vicinity of Baghdad. He was previously listed as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown. His unit came under enemy small-arms fire while manning a checkpoint during combat operations and was taken by enemy forces. This incident is under investigation. Also killed were Spc. David J. Babineau and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker.
“Hundreds Turn Out for Arrival of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca”
BROWNSVILLE -- The body of Army Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, arrived at the Brownsville airport Monday, June 27th in a solemn ceremony broken only by the sobs of his young widow.
Eighteen-year-old Christina Menchaca of Big Spring, Texas, received her husband’s body shortly after noon, surrounded by family, her little boy, and the Rev. Carlos Villarreal.
They watched as 11 members of the 101st Screaming Eagles Military Funeral Detachment team provided full honors as they carried the varnished brown coffin from a chartered Falcon jet to a waiting hearse.
The coffin was draped with an American flag.
"He was a young man who had dreams and hopes and they just vanished," U.S. Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz said after watching the arrival of Menchaca’s body with local officials who showed their respect at the Brownsville-South Padre Island International Airport.
"He deserves a hero’s burial," Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi, said.
While in Brownsville in the mid- to late 1990s, Menchaca attended Porter High School and Vela Middle School, which is no more than a mile north of the Brownsville Event Center – where his visitation will be held today.
For the last week, the flags — of the United States, Texas, and Mexico — that line Ruben M. Torres Boulevard have all flown at half-staff. They’ve been accompanied by banners and tickers reading "in honor of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca."
On Monday, when Menchaca’s body was returned to Brownsville, hundreds more flags appeared on the boulevard.
In addition to the police procession that accompanied Menchaca’s hearse, hundreds of Brownsville residents, some noticeably weeping, drove slowly to the city’s events center. From city officials to "Los Escondidos," a biker group, every member of the procession carried his own American flag.
"By coming here I am showing my respect," said Frank Garza, a former soldier. Even though he doesn’t know Menchaca’s family, Garza’s nephew, who is currently assigned to Border Patrol duty, will be driving in from Arizona for the funeral.
Like Garza, Adelaida Rey showed her support by waving a small flag from the side of the road. She brought her grandchildren along to share the experience.
"El estaba peleando por nuestro freedom, y por eso estamos aqui," she said. "He was fighting for our freedom and because of that we are here."
Although Rey speaks only Spanish, she carefully pronounces the word "freedom" in English. For the woman waving both Texas and American flags, it’s a word too important to be translated.
While the procession drove by, Rey’s grandchildren were as solemn as she was. "Es importante que lo vean," she said. "It’s important that they see this."
Under a blue sky with foreboding rain clouds on the horizon, stood Henry Valdez, sweating from the 90-plus degree humidity.
He stood far from the small crowds of people that dotted Paredes Line Road up to the event center, the motorcade’s final destination.
"I came to pay my respects," the former U.S. Marine said.
"So young, man. So young," he said with a sigh.
"So young."
Menchaca will be buried in uniform and with several medals: America’s Meritorious Service Medal, a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and a Prisoner of War medal.
"He earned them, he goes down with them," Ortiz said.
“Hundreds Turn Out for Arrival of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca”
BROWNSVILLE -- The body of Army Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, arrived at the Brownsville airport Monday, June 27th in a solemn ceremony broken only by the sobs of his young widow.
Eighteen-year-old Christina Menchaca of Big Spring, Texas, received her husband’s body shortly after noon, surrounded by family, her little boy, and the Rev. Carlos Villarreal.
They watched as 11 members of the 101st Screaming Eagles Military Funeral Detachment team provided full honors as they carried the varnished brown coffin from a chartered Falcon jet to a waiting hearse.
The coffin was draped with an American flag.
"He was a young man who had dreams and hopes and they just vanished," U.S. Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz said after watching the arrival of Menchaca’s body with local officials who showed their respect at the Brownsville-South Padre Island International Airport.
"He deserves a hero’s burial," Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi, said.
While in Brownsville in the mid- to late 1990s, Menchaca attended Porter High School and Vela Middle School, which is no more than a mile north of the Brownsville Event Center – where his visitation will be held today.
For the last week, the flags — of the United States, Texas, and Mexico — that line Ruben M. Torres Boulevard have all flown at half-staff. They’ve been accompanied by banners and tickers reading "in honor of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca."
On Monday, when Menchaca’s body was returned to Brownsville, hundreds more flags appeared on the boulevard.
In addition to the police procession that accompanied Menchaca’s hearse, hundreds of Brownsville residents, some noticeably weeping, drove slowly to the city’s events center. From city officials to "Los Escondidos," a biker group, every member of the procession carried his own American flag.
"By coming here I am showing my respect," said Frank Garza, a former soldier. Even though he doesn’t know Menchaca’s family, Garza’s nephew, who is currently assigned to Border Patrol duty, will be driving in from Arizona for the funeral.
Like Garza, Adelaida Rey showed her support by waving a small flag from the side of the road. She brought her grandchildren along to share the experience.
"El estaba peleando por nuestro freedom, y por eso estamos aqui," she said. "He was fighting for our freedom and because of that we are here."
Although Rey speaks only Spanish, she carefully pronounces the word "freedom" in English. For the woman waving both Texas and American flags, it’s a word too important to be translated.
While the procession drove by, Rey’s grandchildren were as solemn as she was. "Es importante que lo vean," she said. "It’s important that they see this."
Under a blue sky with foreboding rain clouds on the horizon, stood Henry Valdez, sweating from the 90-plus degree humidity.
He stood far from the small crowds of people that dotted Paredes Line Road up to the event center, the motorcade’s final destination.
"I came to pay my respects," the former U.S. Marine said.
"So young, man. So young," he said with a sigh.
"So young."
Menchaca will be buried in uniform and with several medals: America’s Meritorious Service Medal, a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and a Prisoner of War medal.
"He earned them, he goes down with them," Ortiz said.
Vrroooom!
I saw this latest creation of Pixar's amazing animators on Sunday with my ex- and "our" grandmother, Miss M. Is it my imagination, or have we been watching trailers for it since early 2003!.... And with all that anticipation, I was even late to the show when it finally showed up.
But never mind that, in a world now saturated with Pixaresque digimation, it's no longer easy to create masterworks. Yet Pixar continues to find a way. It's just mind boggling. Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, Toy Story....and others, they create masterworks of animation, characterization and story-telling.
Some advice though: Please! NO MORE false teeth gags (every trailer at the theater for some future digimation film included at least one....) And if you count Fred's bumper detaching whenever he got excited, so did Cars!
Also, are insects really THAT much fun to animate?
But overall, BRAVISSIMO!
But never mind that, in a world now saturated with Pixaresque digimation, it's no longer easy to create masterworks. Yet Pixar continues to find a way. It's just mind boggling. Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, Toy Story....and others, they create masterworks of animation, characterization and story-telling.
Some advice though: Please! NO MORE false teeth gags (every trailer at the theater for some future digimation film included at least one....) And if you count Fred's bumper detaching whenever he got excited, so did Cars!
Also, are insects really THAT much fun to animate?
But overall, BRAVISSIMO!
Sunday, July 02, 2006
The World Cup Semi-Finals
Are set! It will be Germany facing off against Italy; and Portugal vs France. Powerhouses Brazil and Argentina were both packing the last round.
It's not the final four that I would have liked to have seen rise from the 16 finalists from the opening rounds, but it's not a surprise slate either. I have a habit in these sorts of things to root for the under-dog. It's why I was thrilled with Mexico and Ghana's early successes. So I'll through logic to the wind and my support behind Portugal.
Sorte boa a todos!
It's not the final four that I would have liked to have seen rise from the 16 finalists from the opening rounds, but it's not a surprise slate either. I have a habit in these sorts of things to root for the under-dog. It's why I was thrilled with Mexico and Ghana's early successes. So I'll through logic to the wind and my support behind Portugal.
Sorte boa a todos!
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Midnight Snack?
While researching an answer for a crossword puzzle, I happened upon this interesting little lost recipe.
"In 1968, Ladies Home Journal offered fearless eaters a recipe for a Siamese Sandwich, which combined peanut butter with mayonnaise, shrimp, raisins, apple, celery, onion, powdered ginger and lime or lemon rind."
Yum Yum! And I'm not even pregnant!
"In 1968, Ladies Home Journal offered fearless eaters a recipe for a Siamese Sandwich, which combined peanut butter with mayonnaise, shrimp, raisins, apple, celery, onion, powdered ginger and lime or lemon rind."
Yum Yum! And I'm not even pregnant!
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