I am … unhindered by talent

Through random wandering via paths of links now forgotten, I stumbled across a wondrous fact I had somehow missed last fall: Art Spiegelman has written about his experiences living in Manhattan during the horrors of September 11, 2001, in a book entitled In the shadow of no towers. Spiegelman’s Maus is still one of the most powerful stories I’ve ever read, and this new one is rushing off to my wish list as we speak. No idea if it’s good, but my money says that it’s damned interesting.

BTW, I started linking to BookSense, which I discovered via Cradle to cradle, which is another winner.

This is my 100th post - Woot!

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“Sorry I missed class yesterday. I overslept”.

“I’m just not going to comment on that.” (Class is at 2:15pm.)

“I didn’t get up until 10pm.”

“I’m not going to comment on that either.”

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Pharyngula has a really wonderful piece on the true scope of human history and all that we don’t (and in many cases will never) know. (Which is not to say that there isn’t enormous value in the struggle to learn more.)

A sample:

Here’s another icon, a few bits of bone from another australopithecine, Lucy. Like the relics in those cardboard boxes from the bone room, we know little about Lucy the thinking, acting, living being. She was a small female, less than four feet tall, living in old Africa. We can imagine that she had family, she lived in a group or tribe, she foraged, she had hungry days and full days, she courted or was courted, she had moments of happiness and moments of grief. All of the things she thought most important are gone and lost to knowledge, and all we have now are these few bones. When I hold the femur of a man dead 50 years, I can feel the sorrow of a life lost to me; how much more reverence should we feel for these bones of a person from a world gone 3.2 million years?

And to think that my office is just down the hall from his…

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My letter on the school levy situation appeared in the Morris Sun-Tribune yesterday. It was in good company, sitting next to a nice letter from a group that had been involved in a Blandin foundation grant noting that a strong educational system was important for almost all aspects of our community’s help and long-term well-being.

There was also an editorial related to these issues, but which focussed primarily on comments made at the last School Board meeting (and here), pointing out that the paper had done quite a bit to publicize the issues. He also mentioned the value of the information available on the MARQS web site. Since our wonderful WeatherGirl is the web-mistress for the site, she was rightfully pleased.

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Yesterday WeatherGirl and I stood outside and talked about how nice and spring-like the weather had become. Plans were made for composting, and it was noted that I needed to set up the rain barrel again (it’s cold enough here that we have to put it away for the winter).

Did I then do this?

No.

Did it then rain last night?

Yes.

Could have easily filled it, too. And I could use the water for inside plants. Hmph.

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I have successfully converted my blog from WordPress 1.2 to the nifty new 1.5. Huzzah!

I have a feeling that I broke my faveicon in the process, and I’d like to explore some alternative themes, but that’s going to have to wait until I’ve had some sleep.

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I’m about to (finally!) upgrade my blog to WordPress 1.5. Things are likely to be unsettled for the next 30 minutes or so while I make the transition.

Thanks for your patience.

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We just got back from tonight’s UMM Jazz Fest, and it was another evening of high energy (and high volume) jazz. Jazz 1 was hot and tight, and the alumni played with their characteristic enthusiasm. We didn’t get many combos, but the ones we did were nice and included one of only a handful of really good student vocals in all our years of going to Jazz Fests. Kate Rogers sang with some real soul, and I’d definitely like to hear more of her.

The guest artists were all good, but the real stand-out for me was Jane Bunnett on sax and flute. The guest musicians over the years have all been technically skilled, but many (most?) have been more technical than emotional. Bunnett really felt the songs, and brought some neat history and depth to her performances. I’ve never much liked flute in any context, but I totally dug her flute playing. It had great rhythmic snap, and she even made it growl like a Barry White sax solo. She’s definitely got the boogie in her bones and it was a blast watching (and hearing) her play. I bought two of her CDs (Red dragonfly and Spirituals & dedications), but obviously haven’t had a chance to listen to them yet.

You gotta love an evening where a student manages to work the “Hokey pokey” into a trombone solo and make it fit!

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Tonight is the third and final night of UMM’s annual Jazz Festival, and is the night when we have tickets. Hurrah!

Currently listening to: North Texas State University (now University of North Texas) Lab ‘76. They have an excellent jazz program there, and we used to catch them whenever we could when we lived in Wichita Falls. I bought a lot of their annual recordings in the late 70’s and early 80’s, and can now play them for the first time in years because of my nifty new turntable! Lab ‘76 was one of the first we bought, and is still one my faves. I think it was one of the first albums to really open up some experimental doors for me, indicating that it was possible for jazz to explore some pretty interesting territories. In retrospect it wasn’t all that experimental, but it was pretty eye-opening for a teenager in the cultural wastelands of north Texas. I listened to “Myth of Sisyphus” just about to death and still dig it nearly 30 years later. Cool.

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Looking at the last few posts (e.g., here, there, and elsewhere), I guess I can’t deny it any longer: I’m a liberal. Or a radical wacko. Or something.

Hey, I believe that schools and education (and free speech) are crucial for the social, political, and economic life of the nation, which is pretty out there. I’m also generally in favor of being nice to people. And the idea of getting enough sleep (although I don’t always practice what I preach). Not to mention the bizarre idea that science is more useful than mysticism in helping us understand the world and find solutions to the many challenges that face us.

The one saving grace in all this craziness is that I love my wonderful wife and son! But don’t tell anyone - I wouldn’t want to ruin my reputation…

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