Still Around
I am busy at work and busy at home since I am going on vacation soon and in the usual pre-vacation mad rush. I have a few other things to write about due to the three unexpected things meme, but that will be a separate entry (or maybe more than one).
Celebrity Death Watch: Roger Hirson was a writer, primarily for television, but also of the book for the musical Pippin. Claus von Bulow was accused of murdering his wealthy wife. Anthony Price wrote spy novels. Frank Lucas was a drug trafficker. Thad Cochran was a Republican Senator from Mississippi. He was relatively moderate, e.g. voting to allow stem cell research, but still pro-gun and anti-health care. Paddy Fahey was an Irish composer and fiddler, whose works have been performed by a number of other traditional musicians. Leah Chase was the chef behind the well-known New Orleans restaurant Dooky Chase’s.. Le Anne Schreiber was the first woman to run the sports section of a major U.S. daily newspaper. Robert Earle was the second host of College Bowl. Maida Heatter wrote cookbooks, focused on desserts. Sylvia Miles was a film actress.
Leon Redbone was a singer and guitarist, who earned attention for his unique voice and his revivals of Tin Pan Alley classics. Until reading his obituary, I hadn’t known that he was born in Cyprus. I particularly recommend his album Champagne Charlie. Since that includes the song "Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone," I won’t say more.
Dr. John was a New Orleans singer-songwriter. His shows incorporated Mardi Gras beads and elaborate costumes and voodoo elements. He was pretty much the last of his kind left since Professor Longhair died in 1980 and Allen Toussaint in 2015.
Velvel Pasternak was a musicologist, specializing in Jewish music. He is credited with preserving Hasidic music, as well as Holocaust songs. But his work, especially as a publisher of 150 some odd books, was much broader and included Israeli folk dances and Ladino songs, too.
Embassy of Belize: I went to a reception at the Embassy of Belize last Thursday night. The weather held up, so the event was out on the back deck. They started with drinks - a mixture of pineapple juice and coconut rum that is apparently called a “panty ripper.” Then the ambassador gave a speech, emphasizing the diversity of Belizeans and their ties to both the rest of Central America and to the Caribbean region. Dinner included guacamole tacos, plantains, potato salad, rice and beans, and chicken. There was some sort of pudding with fruit for dessert. They also had music playing, which created a lively atmosphere. All in all, it was a nice event.
Addictive game: The New York Times puzzle page has a new game called Tiles. I recommend ignoring it if you plan to be productive any time in the next few days. Or weeks. Or months. Okay, it just showed up Sunday. So maybe I will get tired of it someday. But, in the meantime, it is definitely not helping me review a list of compliance documents.
Sticker shock: I need to go to the Bay Area for a few days. Unfortunately, the timing is not flexible. The price is not quite high enough to justify using miles, but it is getting close. Oy. I’m almost afraid to check Amtrak prices for a trip to NY this summer.
Since it is pride month: I am hopelessly heterosexual and past child-bearing age, so this has no direct impact on me. But I am increasingly angry about the struggles LGBT adoptive parents face with respect to having their parental rights recognized. This is particularly dramatic when it comes to citizenship issues. I believe that recognition of same sex marriage should imply that the adoption of a child by the non-biological parent should be treated the same way for same-sex partners as for mixed-sex partners. And this should be the case when assisted reproductive technology is involved. The State Department needs to update the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 to fix this.
This entry was originally posted at https://fauxklore.dreamwidth.org/452918.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
Celebrity Death Watch: Roger Hirson was a writer, primarily for television, but also of the book for the musical Pippin. Claus von Bulow was accused of murdering his wealthy wife. Anthony Price wrote spy novels. Frank Lucas was a drug trafficker. Thad Cochran was a Republican Senator from Mississippi. He was relatively moderate, e.g. voting to allow stem cell research, but still pro-gun and anti-health care. Paddy Fahey was an Irish composer and fiddler, whose works have been performed by a number of other traditional musicians. Leah Chase was the chef behind the well-known New Orleans restaurant Dooky Chase’s.. Le Anne Schreiber was the first woman to run the sports section of a major U.S. daily newspaper. Robert Earle was the second host of College Bowl. Maida Heatter wrote cookbooks, focused on desserts. Sylvia Miles was a film actress.
Leon Redbone was a singer and guitarist, who earned attention for his unique voice and his revivals of Tin Pan Alley classics. Until reading his obituary, I hadn’t known that he was born in Cyprus. I particularly recommend his album Champagne Charlie. Since that includes the song "Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone," I won’t say more.
Dr. John was a New Orleans singer-songwriter. His shows incorporated Mardi Gras beads and elaborate costumes and voodoo elements. He was pretty much the last of his kind left since Professor Longhair died in 1980 and Allen Toussaint in 2015.
Velvel Pasternak was a musicologist, specializing in Jewish music. He is credited with preserving Hasidic music, as well as Holocaust songs. But his work, especially as a publisher of 150 some odd books, was much broader and included Israeli folk dances and Ladino songs, too.
Embassy of Belize: I went to a reception at the Embassy of Belize last Thursday night. The weather held up, so the event was out on the back deck. They started with drinks - a mixture of pineapple juice and coconut rum that is apparently called a “panty ripper.” Then the ambassador gave a speech, emphasizing the diversity of Belizeans and their ties to both the rest of Central America and to the Caribbean region. Dinner included guacamole tacos, plantains, potato salad, rice and beans, and chicken. There was some sort of pudding with fruit for dessert. They also had music playing, which created a lively atmosphere. All in all, it was a nice event.
Addictive game: The New York Times puzzle page has a new game called Tiles. I recommend ignoring it if you plan to be productive any time in the next few days. Or weeks. Or months. Okay, it just showed up Sunday. So maybe I will get tired of it someday. But, in the meantime, it is definitely not helping me review a list of compliance documents.
Sticker shock: I need to go to the Bay Area for a few days. Unfortunately, the timing is not flexible. The price is not quite high enough to justify using miles, but it is getting close. Oy. I’m almost afraid to check Amtrak prices for a trip to NY this summer.
Since it is pride month: I am hopelessly heterosexual and past child-bearing age, so this has no direct impact on me. But I am increasingly angry about the struggles LGBT adoptive parents face with respect to having their parental rights recognized. This is particularly dramatic when it comes to citizenship issues. I believe that recognition of same sex marriage should imply that the adoption of a child by the non-biological parent should be treated the same way for same-sex partners as for mixed-sex partners. And this should be the case when assisted reproductive technology is involved. The State Department needs to update the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 to fix this.
This entry was originally posted at https://fauxklore.dreamwidth.org/452918.html. Please comment there using OpenID.