(no subject)
1. Since being home, it's been cold. It's been REAL cold, colder than "normal." Today, the weather report predicted a high of 16 degrees for tomorrow (in the Twin Cities), and onscreen, a graphic showed that a "normal" temperature for today would be 25 degrees. Well, what's normal? Are we talking the average/mean temperature? Or the median temperature? How are outliers factored in (maybe high and low outliers cancel each other out, anyway - but maybe they don't?)? Don't tell me what's normal; tell me what the mean temperature for December 19th over the past 100 years is, or what the median temperature is, but don't say "normal." My dad pointed the folly of this out while walking our dogs around the neighborhood, and I do strongly agree. The temperature while By the way, the average high for Milwaukee in the month of December is 33 degrees.
2. So Barack Obama has spit in the eye of the gay rights movement by picking Rick Warren to do preachery things at his inauguration, eh? I'm waiting to see what happens. I find Rick Warren pretty distasteful, as I find all evangelicals. Just because he wants to address global climate change, issues of poverty, HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, and does so loudly and popularly across the globe, doesn't mean he's no different from Falwell and Dobson and... oh, wait, actually, it means he's a WHOLE LOT different. He represents the kind of evangelicals that the left must reach out to; the ones who might be too Jesus-ed up to comprehend homosexuality as brain chemistry rather than a "lifestyle choice" (ahem), but the ones who will vote for the candidates who want to do the most good for the most people, as opposed to cut the most taxes and bomb the most countries. (And yes, I wish he'd picked the Rev. Al Sharpton, too - but we can't always get Brother Al at the drop of a hat, Brother Al's a busy man). Look for Barack Obama to do more for gay rights than any president since James Buchanan, folks. Regarding Rick Warren: this, too, shall pass.
2.a. Gay rights proponents will continue to be playing tug-of-war uphill until the majority, hell, a substantial majority of this country realizes that being gay is usually hardwired in the brain and DNA of a man or woman. Convince people of this, and gay rights will follow. The science is (mostly) there, now it's time to get the word out.
3. Out in New York, I seem to have forgotten my Townes Van Zandt records. Thankfully, my parents have For The Sake Of The Song on cd. So now, I get to listen to one of my all-time late night favorite albums while writing this. If you want to hear the greatest acoustic guitar album ever recorded in the rock'n'roll era, then you oughta check this one out. No joke!
4. I suppose it had to happen... I'm probably shaving my beard tomorrow, and going back to sideburns. Probably.
5. Tomorrow night, I'll head into the Twin Cities for hanging and rocking. I've been looking forward to this for a long, long time. Do a little dance (the Arrivals, Lawrence Arms at the Triple Rock). Make a little love (really?). Get down tonite! And then, on Saturday, I'll drive to Milwaukee, probably arriving in the mid-evening. See ya then!
2. So Barack Obama has spit in the eye of the gay rights movement by picking Rick Warren to do preachery things at his inauguration, eh? I'm waiting to see what happens. I find Rick Warren pretty distasteful, as I find all evangelicals. Just because he wants to address global climate change, issues of poverty, HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, and does so loudly and popularly across the globe, doesn't mean he's no different from Falwell and Dobson and... oh, wait, actually, it means he's a WHOLE LOT different. He represents the kind of evangelicals that the left must reach out to; the ones who might be too Jesus-ed up to comprehend homosexuality as brain chemistry rather than a "lifestyle choice" (ahem), but the ones who will vote for the candidates who want to do the most good for the most people, as opposed to cut the most taxes and bomb the most countries. (And yes, I wish he'd picked the Rev. Al Sharpton, too - but we can't always get Brother Al at the drop of a hat, Brother Al's a busy man). Look for Barack Obama to do more for gay rights than any president since James Buchanan, folks. Regarding Rick Warren: this, too, shall pass.
2.a. Gay rights proponents will continue to be playing tug-of-war uphill until the majority, hell, a substantial majority of this country realizes that being gay is usually hardwired in the brain and DNA of a man or woman. Convince people of this, and gay rights will follow. The science is (mostly) there, now it's time to get the word out.
3. Out in New York, I seem to have forgotten my Townes Van Zandt records. Thankfully, my parents have For The Sake Of The Song on cd. So now, I get to listen to one of my all-time late night favorite albums while writing this. If you want to hear the greatest acoustic guitar album ever recorded in the rock'n'roll era, then you oughta check this one out. No joke!
4. I suppose it had to happen... I'm probably shaving my beard tomorrow, and going back to sideburns. Probably.
5. Tomorrow night, I'll head into the Twin Cities for hanging and rocking. I've been looking forward to this for a long, long time. Do a little dance (the Arrivals, Lawrence Arms at the Triple Rock). Make a little love (really?). Get down tonite! And then, on Saturday, I'll drive to Milwaukee, probably arriving in the mid-evening. See ya then!