Uppity-Negro.com

. . . Greg Palast is only too happy to remind:

In the 2000 presidential election, 1.9 million Americans cast ballots that no one counted. "Spoiled votes" is the technical term. The pile of ballots left to rot has a distinctly dark hue: About 1 million of them -- half of the rejected ballots -- were cast by African Americans although black voters make up only 12 percent of the electorate.

This year, it could get worse.

Finally picked up the current (not that I'd read the prior one) edition of The Best Democracy Money Can Buy. Between that, the linked article and the all-too-familiar-from-personal-experience dismissal of African American House members at the beginning of Fahrenheit 9/11. . . oh yeah, I'm feeling good.

And really liking Republicans. And the Democratic Party. I am full of love. And optimism. Knowing, with clear, absolute certainty, that the Republicans are evil, racist fucking assholes, rather than merely suspecting it, is actually reassuring in a way. Knowing the Democratic Party has better things to do with their time and political capital than uphold the rule of law or democratic principles? Good to know.

And to think.

I was actually feeling guilty about the veiny, evil, fuck all y'all attitude.

The LAPD showing themselves still ready, willing and able to go Giuliani Time on a brotha on camera really just makes the very slightest difference. Barely noticeable, to be honest.

I won't bore you with my reaction to the slow pan over a group of white, male senators smiling and applauding as President Pro Tempore Al Gore gaveled us -- yes, children, us -- into silence/submission.

It might reflect badly on me.

And if there's one thing I've learned from numerous condescending lectures from insufferable, arrogant white pricks, it's that in the face of all the shit we're expected to endure with quiet dignity in this society, the absolute worst thing any Negro could possibly do or say is something that reflects badly to our genetic, intellectual superiors.

Posted by Aaron at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm just certain I'll forget to use this by the time it's truly Too Damned Hot to sit outside updating:

Job 30

29. I am a brother to dragons, and a companion to owls.
30. My skin is black upon me, and my bones are burned with heat.

But I always say that.

As it happens, I won't be seeing the IMAX version of the film of J.K. Rowling's third Harry Potter novel this evening with the hot babe after all. And if you followed that sentence, you're a better person than I. I just write this stuff; as you can tell from the typos and editing errors, I clearly don't actually read it.

The quote is something Linus (not Torvalds, Van Pelt) said right before. . . oh, I won't ruin the Peanuts parody strip for you, seeing as it's (apparently) no longer available on line. I'm sure it'll reappear. These things always do.

Off to experience the joy that is the Blue Line. I always question when the nice Milwaukee announcer claims that This is Grand, because, generally speaking, no, it really isn't.

Posted by Aaron at 5:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (0)

. . . I wouldn't be terribly impressed by someone taking an informal survey of blogs run by Negroes and declaring that President Bush was popular among us, because they had the (possibly deliberate) misfortune of running across. . . no, linking them will just bring them here. And that child -- the subject of the piece, not the writer -- will say she's going to pray for me again. Which always sounds like a threat when she says it.

Suggested reading, not on this point, but rather on the Ryan thing I'm not talking about either: It's Not The Hypocrisy, Damn It, over at respectful of otters. Particular attention should be given to the comments. Well, some of the comments, anyway.

Posted by Aaron at 6:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (1)

. . . cuz it's hot. Well, not that bad, but it's early summer yet. . .

Never did manage to get the entry about Fahrenheit 9/11, which I saw Sunday night, into shape. For a start, couldn't work in this bit from an interview with Francis Wheen, author of Idiot Proof: Deluded Celebrities, Irrational Power Brokers, Media Morons, and the Erosion of Common Sense:

A few months later, Margaret Thatcher's Tories were elected in Britain, and Ronald Reagan was elected in November. Thatcher and Reagan also wanted to retreat from the 20th century -- to the 19th century, in their case, a time innocent of welfare states, regulated economies, or interventionist governments. In the quarter-century since, the Enlightenment insistence on rejecting tradition and authority as the infallible sources of truth has taken a bashing in both America and Britain.

[. . .] It's tragic, because America is the biggest, boldest, and most successful Enlightenment project. Those who strive to discredit rationalism consign us all to a life in darkness.

Which link/interview I saw at Blog of a Bookslut, and if you buy the book through that link, I think the money goes to Jessica, so that's all right. And I assure you, it would work in context. If I could get the context worked out.

I did like the movie, though, although I have to agree with the complaint from some reviewer (can't remember who) who mentioned that Moore has an unfortunate tendency to use found footage no matter how crappy. And the difference in image quality between video and film has never been clearer.

What, you wanted a discussion of the content?

That's nice.

May be going to see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban tomorrow at Navy Pier, in IMAX, with a hot babe.

But I doubt anyone would be interested in this -- movie's been out for ages -- so there probably won't be an entry about that either.

And I love my tenous grasp on sanity you all too much to write anything about my temp assignment. Unless anyone is in need of a sleep aid. . .

Posted by Aaron at 10:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Which would be a coffee shop on Damen & North & Milwaukee. Um, yeah, I'm here too, but only as an anthropologist observing their curious, ritualized behavior. Mating, for example,seems to involve. . . never mind.

The good news is, facefive WiFi cares not if one uses GNU/Linux, as long as you gots the cash.

The bad news is, trying to write entries offline the last few days has involved entirely too much thinking, reconsidering what I'd written, trying to edit to better reflect the changes in thought brought about by actually putting 'em down on paper/screen/whatever, and then. . .

. . . abandoning the things as not worth the effort.

Don't worry, you're not missing much.

Oh, you weren't worried.

Well, all right then.

Posted by Aaron at 8:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Clicking that graphic will take you to kitty30.com | Hello Kitty 30 years. You'll want to turn your speakers up. Or down. Or off, depending on how much cute you can stand.

This is, of course, old news. From Lisa Loeb's site:

Lisa to be Master of Ceremonies for Sanrio / HELLO KITTY 30th Anniversary Party!

ON Tuesday, June 8, Lisa will be hosting a 30th Anniversary Party commemorating Hello Kitty and announcing Hello Kitty's new partnership with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. The event is going to be held at Rockefeller Center in New York City. For more information, click here.

And check in with Sanrio.com or hellokitty.com throughout the year to see other ways that you can support UNICEF. For more information on UNICEF's Girls Education initiatives click here.

Er, sorry for not mentioning this before. . .

On second thought, no, I'm not.

Posted by Aaron at 3:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Early next month, people in the Sin Twin Cities and here in Chi can see Vienna Teng, up there on July 8th at The 400, and here on the 9th, at Schuba's. But tonight, tonight she opened for Over the Rhine at The Dame in Lexington, Kentucky. Which, if you hit that link, has the coolest graphic ever.

I think I would have driven down there for that, if I'd known about it. And hadn't returned the (leased) Focus a few months back.

Vienna'll be playing The Dame again on the 13th, and Birdy's in Indianapolis on the 11th. She had a cold last time she played Chicago, and I still loved the (abbreviated, apology-filled) show, for what it's worth.

Seeing as I'm also considering seeing Melissa Etheridge on the 1st, at Perillo of all places, this may not be worth much.

np: This American Life, #266, I'm From the Private Sector and I'm Here to Help

Posted by Aaron at 11:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Jon Stewart, that is, on Larry King, from the highlights reel at Sisyphus Shrugged, discussing that one guy we're supposedly trying to capture or kill or something:

KING: Why do you think it's been so hard, Clinton said it last night, to get Osama bin Laden?

STEWART: Oh, he's a shape shifter.

KING: He's a what?

STEWART: Like on Star Trek.

KING: Oh.

STEWART: Some days he's Osama bin Laden, other days he's a lamp. And here's the other thing, too, when you have a beard, you have so many more disguise options than most people. He can trim it, he can go with a van dyke. Nobody expects that from bin Laden.

Suppose the Trek gag gives me a perfect opportunity to say something about that Jack Ryan thing:

Beleaguered Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Jack Ryan ended his campaign Friday, leaving his party scrambling to find a replacement with enough money and magnetism to mount a serious challenge against Democratic candidate Barack Obama.

Ryan had been under attack by a wide range of party leaders for a lack of candor following the release this week of previously sealed records from his divorce from TV actress Jeri Ryan, giving rise to what one prominent Republican called "buyer's remorse."

The Trib used to be solidly Republican, too. Weird. Oh, and registration-required. Also, they do mention their role in all this, quoting Ryan bitching about 'em:

"The media has gotten out of control," Ryan complained. "The fact that the Chicago Tribune sues for access to sealed custody documents and then takes unto itself the right to publish details of a custody dispute over the objections of two parents who agree that the re-airing of their arguments will hurt their ability to co-parent their child and will hurt their child is truly outrageous."

You know, I'd almost feel sorry for the guy if he'd quit fucking using that slightly remixed "What about the children" line. And making this about "the media" rather than his own (alleged) behavior. And getting into a Senate race with that sort of dirty laundry. And. . .

Ok, no, I wouldn't feel sorry for him despite all that, because I remember the Clinton scandals, real and fabricated. I've seen the level of discourse in politics get dragged down to the level that I doubt anyone who isn't a total policy wonk could accurately describe either Bush or Kerry's stances on five given issues.

And yes, I blame the Republicans for this. Including the ones who ain't have nothing to do with it, because they obviously weren't so opposed that they either a) fought to prevent it from happening or b) left the party in disgust.

I'm strongly in favor of leaving in disgust these days.

This may be one of the reasons I temp.

Posted by Aaron at 11:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (1)

Under normal circumstances, I'd adjust the all-caps title to MEET THE WHIMPSTER: THE MANIPULATIVE ASSHOLE IN SENSITIVE CLOTHING., a different version of which appears in this month's Bust, but it's a lazy Saturday afternoon, and I'm feeling lazy. And copy-and-paste-y. Deal.

The whimpster relationship is always the passive/aggressive stalker type.

Everyone's been in one of these... also known as: "hanging out", "coming over", "friends", "not my girlfriend", "whatever," "trading mix cds" or even worse: the pretend marriage.

This is the tricky part, because you realize that whimpsters really reveal more about your character than theirs. They prey on your insecurities by revealing their own. This is how you get stuck in a codependent, passive, jealous relationship with a whimpster you hopelessly try to fix, even though he won't let you. You'll spend a lot of time wondering why he's around, because his emotional unavailability is staggering. "If he's so sensitive, why isn't he even talking to me?"

Discuss.

Or don't.

There's also (in the magazine, not on the site) a brief history of vibrators and clitoral stimulation as a means of achieving orgasm, but it's pretty -- in fact, totally -- Western-centric. 'course, I'm not sure it's even possible to examine that in non-Western cultures, particularly from a historical perspective, since any first-person accounts from contemporary sources would, inevitably, reflect the biases of the (generally male) Western observ--

It's a lazy Saturday afternoon. Perhaps there's a better time for this discussion.

Or not.

Posted by Aaron at 3:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

See, at the appearance at Virgin MechaGodzilla Megastore on Thursday, Rachel Sage pointed out the shelf of Hello, Kitty merchandise the trumpet player was sitting next to, and mentioned the sweet deal that Lisa Loeb has with the Sanrio Corporation. So last night at Uncommon Ground, I gave her the Fetish Dress Hello, Kitty doll before the show.

It seemed like the right thing to do.

What?

Anyway, if you missed her (and Meredith, Tour Manager/roadie/all around cool person), there's a list o'shows posted, um, at that previous link. Anyone in/around Harrisburg in the house?

No, didn't think so.

And I'd written part of an entry last night at the show (and still have some time on the face five card, come t'think of it. . .), but the battery in the laptop died, and I had not saved it local or to the site before posting, so my brilliance has been lost to the ages. Which may be for the best, as I was slightly drunk. For example, I don't think the comparisons to Shakira are nearly as accurate as they may have seemed at the time, attire and dance notwithstanding.

I was going to say I was still too out-of-it to attend Pride March, but seeing as that's tomorrow, not today, I'll have to come up with another excuse. Don't worry, I'm good at that.

Posted by Aaron at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've used that one before, haven't I?

Anyway, so. Finally broke down and bought the current issue of BUST at major chain type bookstore place, instead of waiting for Quimby's, which had sold out, to get more copies in. I know, this makes me a bad person, and I'll do penance later. Unless the current veiny evil is the penance, in which case, um, yeah.

But it has a piece by Wendy that's really good and you should buy the magazine and read it and laugh and stuff. Seeing as it doesn't appear to be online, and I don't feel like typing bits of it.

Also, she has guest bloggers while she's off in beautiful(?) Lake Forest, so oddly enough her place is updated more frequently than this one.

What else? Rachel Sage in-store appearance at the Virgin Megastore on Michigan later today. I have one of her cds, that I ordered from the former mp3.com, but can't say as I've listened to it lately. But there should be lots of Chicago Ectophile people there, and Meredith who is an Ectophile but isn't a Chicagoan, so you should go and listen to the music and buy cds and stuff.

Or wait for the appearance tomorrow at Uncommon Ground, since there's at least the semblance of advance notice on that one. And if you just can't pull yourself away from the computer for a few hours, they're a facefive WiFi provider location thingee.

No, I'm not sure why I'm writing like that either.

Oh, right, to hide the veiny evil. Somehow, I think writing like Jhonen Vasquez and Joss Whedon collaboting on a Delerium (from Sandman) comic helps. I'm deluding myself again, ain't I?

Posted by Aaron at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

It started with Cosby's comments.

Or, not so much the comments, as the reaction of the (when I say "mainstream" read "white") mainstream media to said comments.

This was followed by the over-the-top praise of Reagan, with the odd notice that Negro folk didn't seem to be joining in in sufficient numbers, with sufficient enthusiasim, and discussion of what's wrong with those people that they didn't appreciate the greatness of the man, or at least couldn't put their petty differences (our differences are always petty) aside and go through the motions.

Mixed in with a beheading or two and calls to sterilize the entire Middle East, Except the White Folks Israel, and acts of stupidity in comments sections elsewhere. . . kind'a not feeling like writing much here lately.

Not anything that anyone, including me, would want to read, anyway.

Or is bitter, profanity-laced, ill-thought-out commentary what people come here for? I forget.

Update: Permalinks are a wonderful thing. If I was a real web log type person, I'd use them. . .

Posted by Aaron at 7:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

Very sketchy entry, seeing as I'm writing it over lunch at a cybercafe (Cyberia Chicago! Drop by and give them lots of money and stuff!). From the cover story of this week's Cincinnati Citybeat, The Banana Republic:

I hadn't realized how American, how numbingly national and stupidly patriotic I'd been toward Cubans until I deconstructed my ignorance of Cuba. Like most Americans, I assumed Cuba was forbidden, dark, dingy, diseased and filled with pitifully begging and dirty people blindly and loyally waiting for Castro to tell them when to take a shit.

Then on Fridays they stood on line at company stores waiting to return to the government the wages they'd slaved all week to earn. Stepford Cubans.

How stupid. Why won't they come here? And why won't they fly? Why the inner tubes?

Our presidents don't like Castro so he must be evil, a brainwashing egomaniacal dictator. That's because neither America public education, media conglomerates scripting news reports this side of propaganda nor do popularly elected officials tell the truth of our relationship to Cuba and our accountability for why Cuba is the way it is or why Castro behaves the way he does toward us.

That's Kathy Wilson, Your Negro Tour Guide, taking a tour of Cuba. It's a longer piece than the column usually is, since, y'know, cover story. And that's a good thing.

Finally started the review copy of the book (also called Your Negro Tour Guide, do try to keep up) that I received from the publisher longer ago than I'd care to think about. Am I not clear enough about the suckage? I think I mention the suckage fairly frequently. Do people think I'm joking about the suckage?

I'm enjoying it so far. Possibly because no group I consider myself to be part of has been in the crosshairs yet. And the bit about dreads. . . yes, "I'm not your negro petting zoo" will be the response next time someone asks if they can touch them.

Unless I like you.

Then it's ok.

Posted by Aaron at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

From the Atlantic:

Is it possible that the stout woman, poor dear, has at last become stylish? May she at last be frankly fat, emancipated from the frantic remodelings at the hands of corsetière and couturière? The burden of obesity is not in the carrying of its pounds, but in being forced to treat the obvious as if it were surreptitious. What dizzy elation for the fat woman to realize that henceforth she is suffered to be not only frank but fashionable!

Specifically, from The Atlantic, February 1919, as you may have guessed from the word choice and syntax. Well, maybe not the precise date, but the style is pretty damned archaic, to my eyes, at least.

That reprint -- oddly, they weren't posting stories to their site back then -- was linked in The War on Fat, part of their Flashbacks series, worth examining if just to realize how many of the serious issues of the day are, in fact, the serious issues of yesteryear.

Which isn't to say rehashing 'em is pointless -- there usually wasn't consensus back in the day, and even if there was, some things do change. . . but what often seems to be missing is a realization that this is rehashing something, and the same old arguments are trotted out, even the ones that were effectively shot down in the previous. . .

Ok, this is getting perilously close to that discussion of politics/current events I'm trying to avoid.

Posted by Aaron at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Courtesy of the New York Times, you can read the first chapter of David Sedaris' new collection, 'Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim':

WHEN MY FAMILY FIRST MOVED to North Carolina, we lived in a rented house three blocks from the school where I would begin the third grade. My mother made friends with one of the neighbors, but one seemed enough for her. Within a year we would move again and, as she explained, there wasn't much point in getting too close to people we would have to say goodbye to. Our next house was less than a mile away, and the short journey would hardly merit tears or even good-byes, for that matter. It was more of a "see you later" situation, but still I adopted my mother's attitude, as it allowed me to pretend that not making friends was a conscious choice. I could if I wanted to. It just wasn't the right time.

Or, if you've already read the entire book, you can join the discussion at one of the sites listed at AllConsuming.net. Still haven't bought it myself, and after seeing Jessa Crispin's mention ("I read the first half of the book and realized I had yet to laugh."), it's not at the very top of the list.

Not that I have a list. I just sort-of make it up as I go along.

Posted by Aaron at 7:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Possessive apostrophe for the plural form, I think. Didn't ask when I was there. "There" being Martyrs' Restaurant & Pub, where I saw Happy Rhodes, and will be missing Wilco next Tuesday, the 22nd, and then Michelle Shocked the following evening, Wednesday the 23rd.

Sort of like how I missed Over the Rhine last December 14th, but they do offer a record -- or rather, MP3 Rarity of the Month -- of the event. Cover of Let It Be, which I liked, but again, I'm possibly biased. There's more music available at their MP3 Attic; I recommend All I Need Is Everything and Last Night. For whatever that's worth.

And I think Wilco is one of those bands where the name has deeply insinuated itself into my brain, but I haven't the slightest idea what they sound like.

That's a free album release party type deal, by the way. And they're on Nonesuch, which is in their favor. I think I'm going to regret missing that show. . .

. . . oh look, I missed Angelique Kidjo on Tavis on Thursday. And the show at House of Blues on Tuesday. Darn shame I can't mention Summerfest without getting yelled at. . .

I'm deliberately avoiding politics again, yes. Deal.

Posted by Aaron at 6:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So speaks Rich Koz, better known (among the cool kids, anyway) as Svengoolie, in 25 years of Svengoolie's humor in the registration-required Trib. But you were just going to drop by BugMeNot.com to get around that pesky little detail, yes?

It was at WFLD that Koz perfected the "Svengoolie" brand of postmodern vaudeville, a combination of local jokes (few comedians have gotten more mileage out of a city than Koz has gotten out of Berwyn), song parodies (when showing the slasher film "I Saw What You Did," Koz transformed the Coasters' "Yakety Yak" into the more appropriate "Hackety Hack") and deliberately groan-inducing wordplay. The writing was as smart as the humor was silly, and the show transcended its low budget with a homemade feel (in an era before computers, Koz did nearly all of the artwork himself) and Koz's gentle humor.

"I've never been one for the ... humor at the expense of somebody else, by making them feel they're not cool or smart or as hip as I am," Koz says. "I'm just trying to give somebody a laugh."

Noticed at Gapers' Block, which name I keep leaving the apostrophe out of.

Finished the (remaindered) copy of Weaving the Web: The Original Design and Ultimate Destiny of the World Wide Web on the train yesterday. Bit dated, naturally, and (probably entirely accurately) more than a bit negative towards NCSA's behavior in the early days, but it does explain why Gopher died. Licensing issues, basically. Here I'd thought it was because Minnesotans, by and large. . . did I mention that living there convinced me that the Nation of Islam actually has some very good points?

Well, it bears repeating.

From WiKipedia:

Then, in February of 1993, the University of Minnesota announced that they would begin to charge licensing fees for Gopher's use, which scared off many people and organizations that ran Gopher servers. Some people believe this is what relegated Gopher to a footnote in the history of the Internet.

Well, it certainly didn't help. . .

Want to know more? Sir Tim Berners-Lee has a page about the book at w3.org. And there'd be some bit of business here about weblogs (those that allow comments, anyway) representing at least a part of his original vision for the Web, but there's more than enough self-congratulatory rhetoric on these damned things as it is.

Posted by Aaron at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

And walked by Quimby's yesterday to buy the current issue of BUST, but didn't see it. I would have asked the woman behind the counter, honest, but saw an in-store announcement for this:

Speaking of love (read: lust), I'd like to call your attention to the new Suicidegirls coffee table book. And if you happen to be in or around Chicago in the next few weeks, Missy Suicide and ten of her girls will be doing an in-store book signing and possible burlesque show here next month.

And decided to try getting it at Women & Children First instead.

The appearance, according to the calendar,will be Friday, July 2nd at 7.

This event is a release celebration for the new SuicideGirls coffee table book that displays the women of SuicideGirls over the past few years. SUICIDEGIRLS (published by Feral House) is 124 pages and displays over 200 fun, sexy and artful color photos that has come to define the women of SuicideGirls, the book also contains journal entries selected from the site and an introduction by Missy Suicide.

In addition to Missy, 8 SuicideGirls will be present to sign copies of the book and possibly perform a short set of their punk rock inspired Burlesque Act.

Links to Feral House and AllConsuming.net added, if anyone cares. And there's a brief overview of the SG site, for fans of alternate history fiction, that I didn't bother to quote.

What?

Apropos of very little, there's a letter criticizing attacking W&CF in this week's Chicago Reader. It's also pro-Starbucks, leading me to suspect astroturf, or at least extreme stupidity on the part of the writer.

I may, however, be biased.

I remain diplomatically neutral in regards to the Gapers Block vs. Chicagoist conflict, and call upon all sides to ferchrissakes go for quality over quantity/low price on beer. I mean, damn.

Posted by Aaron at 9:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, since I've never really liked running external scripts, switched back to the local Stephen Downes Referrer System. You can still download the two files necessary to do so yourself from his site. And I really should modify the style code from Mandarin Design so the background isn't lime green. . .

. . . meaning I should stop playing with Portrait Illustration Maker. . .

. . . yes, I'm several days (at least) behind on my memes. . .

Anyway, if you were wondering why that list is now much, much shorter, there ya go.

Posted by Aaron at 7:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

JUNETEENTH WORLD WIDE CELEBRATION

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration of the ending of slavery.

From its Galveston, Texas origin in 1865, the observance of June 19^th as the African American Emancipation Day has spread across the United States and beyond.

Today Juneteenth commemorates African American freedom and emphasizes education and achievement. It is a day, a week, and in some areas a month marked with celebrations, guest speakers, picnics and family gatherings. It is a time for reflection and rejoicing. It is a time for assessment, self-improvement and for planning the future. Its growing popularity signifies a level of maturity and dignity in America long over due.

If I can shake myself of the suckage for just one day, might head to the Old Town School of Folk Music Juneteenth Celebration tomorrow. For a start, there's:

5:00 - 6:00PM
Capoeira Workshop
with Eric Johnson in Room 101
Capoeira is a martial art that incorporates rhythmic movements and acrobatics and is accompanied by music and songs. Capoeira was used by enslaved Africans to win freedom from the Portuguese in Brazil and to establish and protect free and independent colonies, or Quilombos, deep in the jungles of the Amazon.

One hour workshop ain't gonna be enough to pick up move one, I know, but I've never actually seen it performed live.

Do wish they'd either chosen a different room, or just skipped that particular number when assigning them. . .

'You asked me once,' said O'Brien, 'what was in Room 101. I told you that you knew the answer already. Everyone knows it. The thing that is in Room 101 is the worst thing in the world.'

Yes, I suppose me trying to participate in the workshop could be described that way.

Posted by Aaron at 8:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

. . . I'm afraid you have to actually hit the link to http://www.manarchypace.com/road/roadF.html to see the image, and then come back here to suggest a caption.

Or not.

Perhaps "not" is the better option.

In other news, Indigo Girls are playing at Milwaukee Summerfest on July 4th (but no Britney Spears, a tragic loss, as Rachel laments), and Rasputina will be performing recitals on the following dates, in the corresponding places:

7/26 Lawrence KS The Bottleneck all ages
7/27 Omaha NE Ranch Bowl all ages
7/29 Colorado Springs CO 32 Bleu all ages
7/30 Boulder CO Fox Theatre all ages
8/01 North Plains OR Faerieworlds Festival all ages
8/03 Anaheim CA House of Blues all ages
8/04 San Diego CA Cane's 21+ (sorry!)
8/06 Albuquerque NM Sunshine Theater all ages
8/07 Oklahoma City OK Bricktown Live all ages
8/09 TBA Tennessee? St. Louis?
8/11 TBA Ohio?

They also want information (they won't get it) [by hook or by crook. . . ok, I'll stop]:

We can't find an all-ages place to play in San Diego. Do you know of one?
Also, in St.Louis- where could we play?

Send your suggestions to. . . hell, I dunno, there's probably a contact email somewhere on their site.

What?

Oh, right, had dinner at Earwax and it was this Seitan sandwich I've forgotten the name of and it had pesto and sundried tomato and it was really good and also the vegan carrot cake that was actually moist which tends to be a problem with the vegan versions elsewhere, and the waitress kept refilling my coffee and I kept drinking it and she kept refilling it and now I'm going to be up all night, possibly writing this very sentence, the sentence that never ends, yes it goes on and on my friends. . .

Saw the URI for manrachy.pace in the absurdly glossy Dossier Magazine, a copy of which I picked up on the way out of Earwax. And noticed a card announcing a Chicago Kings performance, which I'm no doubt going to miss, so why even bother giving details? Look 'em up yourself.

Posted by Aaron at 11:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

And then I politely inform them that. . . never mind.

The links list tour continues abated. Part of the problem is going off on tangents, like the one I'm very kindly sparing you on how one (well, me) rarely sees abate, in comparison to the fairly common unabated, and isn't it interesting that the inflected/negated form is more common than the bare stem-y thingee, and. . . ok, I didn't spare you all of it, but trust me, it could have been worse. Oh so very much worse.

I'm also skipping the clean sweep assessment, linked at AllAboutGeorge.com: Mr. Blogmouth, pt. 3.

The Clean Sweep Program is a checklist of 100 items which, when completed, give one complete personal freedom. These 100 items are grouped in 4 areas of life with 25 in each group: Physical Environment, Well-being, Money and Relationships. These 4 areas are the cornerstone for a strong and healthy life and the program helps a person to clean up, restore and polish virtually every aspect of his/her life. The program takes between 6 - 24 months to complete.

I don't want to know.

Similarly, I also declined an offer of a reading from a very cute young fortune-teller yesterday. I did take a flyer.

Al-fin-la solucion a todos sus problemas están a su alcance por medio de sus Oraciones. Garantiza ayudarte en Amor, Negocios, Enfermedades y Problemas Familiares.

I may take her up on this if she does the reading in Spanish. That way I won't understand most of it.

Oh, there are enough cognates in that quoted bit for. . . again, never mind.

Right, three days, two sites, if you count this entry as covering one, and you probably shouldn't.

Well, Karin didn't manage to finish her impossible self-assigned task either. And, seeing as I just finished John Henry Days, I'm questioning the wisdom of. . . see? Tangents.

Posted by Aaron at 9:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

I've mentioned my somewhat disturbing love for Rasputina's cover of that, yes?

Any road up, I'm going to make a vague, doomed-to-failure attempt to cover all the sites in the massive list o'links over the next few days. Weeks. Over time. And speaking of Time, guess which article there is linked fairly high at Blogdex right about now.

Blogs can be a great way of communicating, but they can keep people apart too. If I read only those of my choice, precisely tuned to my political biases and you read only yours, we could end up a nation of political solipsists, vacuum sealed in our private feedback loops, never exposed to new arguments, never having to listen to a single word we disagree with.

If?

I mean, go on, guess.

Does it count as being "exposed to new arguments" when, say, Michele quotes some particularly over-the-top comment on the Democratic Underground forums or from some Indymedia site or other?

Didn't think so.

In the interests of fairness, I won't mention that Wonkette gets a mention in the Time piece. As do Jessa Crispin and Rebecca Blood, so if you're still wondering where the women bloggers are, um, there are three of them. The fairness thing extends to not making a big show of how the piece takes, um, Time to mention "when she met the first guy who linked to [her site], she started dating him" for one of them. I'm certain I just missed the bit about the dating lives of the male bloggers.

I'll focus on the race thing instead.

Posted by Aaron at 6:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Given the current site name, I really should mention you can buy Kris Dresen not-smut from the comfort of your own computer. Works like, um, Manya Potter and the. . . no, I shouldn't.

Speaking of the printed page, which we weren't really but I'm hoping no one will notice, think happy thoughts in Wendy's general direction. Which will a bit north of here for a while, but just aim for Chicago and they should make it.

Oh, and according to the new and improved boing boing, there's a Suicide Girls book on the way.

But why pre-order that when you can pre-order Jen's book instead?

That was a rhetorical question. Don't feel you have to answer. In fact, I'd prefer if you didn't, really.

And, per the boing boing link, the previously announced and much-debated SG magazine is, ah, being placed on temporary hiatus and improved to serve you better. Yes, that will do. . .

What else? The Socialism 2004 conference, being held at the Holiday Inn Chicago O'Hare June 17th through the 20th, will feature a reception with cash bar on Thursday. I realize I shouldn't be amused by this, but I am anyway. So there.

Ok, I'm done.

Update: Ok, I lied. Pixies release brand new song - NME.COM:

PIXIES have written and recorded their first new song for thirteen years, and will release it tonight through the Internet.

'Bam Thwok' will go on-sale for 99 cents at midnight (June 15) exclusively on Apple's iTunes Music Store.

Overuse of <strong> in the original, so don't go blaming me. I mention this for the benefit of the DiaryLand children, Jen and Kelly, and anyone out there who has the option of buying things at iTunes. Which, unless I missed a memo, does not include us Linux types. Bastards.

Posted by Aaron at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Or something.

First off, thanks to Rachel for notifying me this:

June 16 CROSS THIS!: dykemarch/rally benefit.

across genres... Dyke March: when a parade becomes an art fest Chicago Dyke March / Rally 2004 presents---

"CROSS THIS: how LGBTQ people create/cross boundaries", an evening about jumping cultural and gender boundaries. The featured performer is Dr. Laila Farah, a Lebanese-American feminist performer-scholar, who navigates ideas of nation, gender, and sexuality with innovative performance. The political thrust of her performance comes from a critical and dynamic questioning of US imperialism, Americana, and apathy.

Also on this evening is a screening of "Little Boy Panties." The film explores gender labels in our current society, and poses the question, "Is your gender as easy to change as your underwear?" Hmm...! Be one of the first to see this innovative documentary that promises not to leave any tan-lines.

This event benefits the Chicago Dykemarch/Rally 2004. It convenes Wednesday, 16 June, at Chase Café, 7301 N Sheridan Road (Rogers Park) Chicago. The event begins at 6:30 PM. Donations are on a sliding scale, from $5 to $10.

Think I can manage the lower end of that sliding scale. And yes, this is crossposted to Chicago Lesbians Invading Taverns, because like all my threats, the one about how I wasn't going to be running the thing was completely ineffectual.

Posted by Aaron at 9:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Because the hiatus is now a permanent one, something I only noticed yesterday at Bookslut, because I'm so not paying attention. Artbomb.net's Artblog keeps on keepin' on, though.

Speaking of comics, remember Scott McCloud's lonely crusade for micropayments?

No, didn't think so. . .

Words to live by: Don't feed your racist toothpaste to the cat.

I can't judge distances/locations for shit: The temp assignment is a stone's throw from Cyberia Internet Cafe, it turns out. So I possibly could update during the day, or even edit this into coherence at some point.

Finally got the copies of my DD 214 in a letter from the government the other day (I opened and read it, it started off "Dear Sir/Madam," so they have problems with that, too, the suckers). No idea what I did with the ribbons and medals I apparently earned. Know I need to nail that story down if I ever decide to run for public office. But this does mean I can start the other paperwork for that Illinois Veteran's Grant thang. McHenry County College, the Honorable Richard J. Daley College, UIS, UIC, UIUC, so many options. And it's amazing how a shitty temp assignment will light a fire under your ass to start looking for an actual career. A motivational tool better than the motivational posters decorating the lunch area.

Where "decorating" means "stuck on walls as what one hopes is an absurdist joke, but one knows better, as The Damned rarely do absurdist humor."

And Colson Whitehead's John Henry Days makes for fine reading during lenghty commutes to and from The Damned, I must say.

Posted by Aaron at 6:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Which is an ambiguous sentence, but years of experience with the Black English/Ebonics debate have left me feeling precisely zero enthusiasm for discussing linguistics with non-linguists. Similar to the zero enthusiasm for discussing racial issues with conservative white folk; doesn't seem worth the effort to bring 'em to the point where they have something intelligent to say in the first place, so I just smile and nod. There may be eye-rolling involved. Or some facial twitching, as I bite my tongue. Good times, good times. . .

But also better days than, say, 40 years ago. From alaina is: sweet and sour: Loving Day:

It's hard to believe, but less than 40 years ago interracial relationships were illegal in many states in our country. Marriage, sex, and living together were all criminal acts. On June 12th, 1967 interracial couples became legal thanks to the Supreme Court decision, Loving v. Virginia.

[. . .] On this Saturday, June 12th, observe Loving Day by taking a moment to reflect on and celebrate your legal right to love a person of any race, and take action to see that these same rights are extended to ALL loving couples, regardless of sexual orientation.

'course, not everyone is thrilled with comparing race to orientation. I, personally, do, and think the unthrilled are morons, but enough editorializing. From Ethnic Communities Speak out Against Gay Marriage:

A recent "Rally to Protect Marriage" in Sacramento was co-sponsored by BOND (Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny), a Christian organization dedicated to "rebuilding the family by rebuilding the man."

"If California legalizes same-sex marriages," says BOND founder and president Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, "it will destroy the family, especially the black family."

I mentioned the moron thing, yes? I'd explain why, but the article doesn't explain why the Wrong Rev. Peterson is claiming his crazy shit, so why should I have to explain mine? Onward.

Rev. Raymond Kwong, who organized the rally [to protect marriage] in San Francisco, leads the newly formed Bay Area Christians for Traditional Marriage (BACFTM). "We are sympathetic to true minorities. Gays and lesbians are not a genuine minority," he says in the AsianWeek report. "I have talked to many African American ministers and they are incensed that the civil rights bus has been hijacked by a radical group. When were there separate entrances for gays and straights? When have gays gotten worse jobs and lower pay than straight people? I've never seen any gays who had to go to the back of the bus."

Detria Thompson, in the March 19 edition of the black newspaper San Francisco Bay View, writes that many African Americans believe that race "easily trumps sexual orientation in the now crowded different-discrimination sweepstakes." But this "assumes that lesbians and gays have the option, if not a duty, to mute their behavior so as not to alarm straight people." Yet, "all gays and lesbians can't 'pass' for straight, and even if it was possible to do so, being able to 'pass' misses the point."

The Wrong Rev. Kwong (sorry, sorry) could just as easily find African Americans, ministers and otherwise, equally "incensed" by the rhetoric about hijacking and radicals, and as for the bit about gays (etc.) not facing discrimination. . . that gets back to not wanting to waste time calmly explaining things to bigots. I'd like to think they're just as capable as I am of using Google to look up statistics on hate crimes, or states where it's acceptable to fire someone for (perceived) orientation.

Whether they use that capability, or bother reading the information when someone else does the not-that-heavy lifting and presents it to them, predigested, with links to sources, is the problem.

"Class" is a dirty word, so we shall not bring this complicated factor to the discussion.

Let's leave out homophobia in communities of color, too. And racism among white GLBT types, because "white privilege" is an even nastier concept.

As long as we're Not Talking about issues, I suppose I can avoid discussing the hostility towards (hate this term) interracial couples from some sectors of the African American community, too. Convenient, that.

So. Happier thoughts. Those of you with HBO can enjoy the premiere of Six Feet Under this evening. I'd politicize this by mentioning the whole (hate this term equally well) mixed-race gay couple thing, but that would be wrong.

Oh, wait, I exist to editorialize, politicize and be wrong.

My bad.

Posted by Aaron at 8:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (0)

So Redpac, he tells me that one of my favoritest bands in the world, Over the Rhine, is performing today, right here in Chicago:

OtR | Tour Dates

Sat Jun 12: Chicago IL, Northcenter Ribfest, Irving Park Rd. & Lincoln Ave.

Unfortunately for me, they're performing at Ribfest.

Also unfortunately, Blues Fest is this weekend, which is why it was storming like hell last night, and despite the sunny, mild weather of the moment, is no doubt gonna storm like hell tonight.

I believe strongly in the power of positive thinking. I'm positive the rains will come.

In other news, Identity Crisis? I avoided most of the hype, so I thought it was worth the (gak) $3.95, and will be picking up the rest of the series as it comes out, rather than waiting for the trade. Also, I gots Osamu Tezuka's Buddha volume 2 and Orbiter, by Warren Ellis and Colleen Doran, from the library (interlibrary loan is your friend. . . unless you fail to return the books on time or renew then using the convenient web interface, like a tool), so at least I'll have something to keep me occupied during the hour and a half commute to me temp assignment next week.

This will also, most likely, mean fewer updates. Or less updating. Or whichever construction strikes you as least grammatical.

Unless someone knows of a free WiFi hotspot vaguely close to Earwax and Quimby's. Suggestions?

Posted by Aaron at 4:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Now that's comedy.

Speaking of whom, or which, or something from MargaretCho.com: Revolution Film Festival Screenings:

Saturday, June 12th. 8:00 pm
Gene Siskel Film Center
164 N. State St.
Chicago, IL

If you missed the photos of Margaret on the front pages of Windy City Times and the Chicago Free Press this week. 'tis a benefit screening.

In collaboration with the Sundance Channel and the Gene Siskel Film Center, we co-present a one-time-only sneak preview of comedian Margaret Cho's wickedly funny new film as a benefit for Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian and Gay International Film Festival and the educational programs of the Gene Siskel Film Center.

Filmed live at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles, REVOLUTION captures Cho at her feisty, inimitable best, holding forth on topics including the axis of evil, her tour of the red light districts of Thailand, bartering sex for household chores, and much more. REVOLUTION will have its world premiere exclusively on the Sundance Channel on June 19 at 8:00 pm CDT.

Admission: $9 general public or $7 for members of Chicago Filmmakers or the Gene Siskel Film Center.

No, I'm not sure what "world premiere" means these days, either.

I'm also not sure about attending something called "Dyke Delicious June Jaunt."

The first person to ask why will receive a very special gift.

Update: minor edits for clarity and the adding of links (to the quoted material from Reeling) and such.

Posted by Aaron at 7:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (2)

Superiority, however, is not a necessarily inherent trait. Therefore, please listen closely -- You can have a funeral any old time. You dig a hole, you plant a coffin. I, however, cannot perform these tests next year, next month, next week or even tomorrow -- I must perform them now. [drill noise -- VEEP VEEP!] I've got a lot of cutting and pasting to do, gentlemen, so please return to your porch rockers and resume whittling!
(Puts drill to Laura's forehead and starts drilling...)

That's everyone's favorite FBI forensic scientist, Albert Rosenfield, trying to do some work with everyone's favorite dead chick, Laura Palmer, on Twin Peaks.

Oddly, the bit that's stuck in my head is, "You dig a hole, you plant a coffin."

This does not seem like a particularly difficult thing to do.

Nor, I think, does it require live television coverage.

I see I was mistaken.

Better not be my tax dollars at work paying to ship the bastard cross-country. Again. You know how much gas costs? You know how much fuel Air Force One must burn through? Couldn't they ship Mister Small Government UPS or something?

Having said that, I find Bush/Zombie Reagan 2004 to be in extremely poor taste. After all that man did to this planet for this country, I think the least we can do is bury him as deep as possible, at a crossroads, after beheading the body, and set up a defensive perimeter to prevent him ever, ever crawling out.

Or maybe we should shoot him into the sun. . .

Posted by Aaron at 1:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (2)

Only cleaner.

So Nichelle was all like:

I have visited Chicago only once, but it really didn't overwhelm me. But I am noticing a lot of buzz about the Windy City, Chicago. First, it was the Chicagoist from the makers of the Gothamist. Then I hear about Daily Candy Chicago. Now, there’s Time Out Chicago as well. Furthermore, two of my friends are going to be in Chi-Town this weekend.

It's worth noting that this was, in fact, the first I'd heard of any of those sites. Because, as has been mentioned several times previously but always bears repeating, I suck.

Any old way, Nichelle and friends have been added to the massive list of links. The one from Bloglines, saving me the trouble of trying to think up cruel charming nicknames for them.

For the time being.

Rachel is definitely going to get one, though.

Just on GP.

Posted by Aaron at 8:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (0)

In this case, getting distracted from Morning Edition's ongoing coverage of the flag-draped coffin (they're burying it at a crossroads, right? Just in case?) and instead hitting the link for NPR : Creators at Carnegie : Emmylou Harris:

Emmylou Harris is backed by her touring band Spyboy -- guitarist Buddy Miller, drummer Brady Blade and Tony Hall on bass, with producer Malcolm Burns sitting in with extra percussion. She's also joined during the concert by singers Julie Miller, Patty Griffin, and Kate and Anna McGarrigle.

And there's links to earlier NPR interviews with Emmylou, if you like that sort of thing.

If not, well, there's always the hagiography. I'd swear one of the pilgrims they interviewed said something about the nation being united in grief.

I'd. . . argue that contention,but get the feeling that, as was the case when Reagan was in office, the opinions of the lesser races don't count for much.

np: Bang the Drum Slowly, Emmylou Harris

Posted by Aaron at 8:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)