I'm Wailin, I'm Palin

Sorry, can't resist: a Sara quote generator.

Chicago Cubs & Steve Goodman

Thanks to Frank Haulgren.

Triangular Sail

Triangular Sail

            for Yen Yu

 

Triangular sail the only light

in a dark sea of water and sky

 

Fifty-seven years on this earth

and still lost

 

Certainty also is transient.  The

sail has vanished.  At the edge

 

of the world, a traveler.

New Poem

I just had a new poem published in Raven Chronicle, a noted Seattle online publication.  You can check it out here: http://www.ravenchronicles.org/FoodCulture/foodcultureindex.html

Dogs

Let's hope Sarah Palin wasn't thinking when she made her pitbull remark -- the only difference between a hockey mom and a pitbull is lipstick -- since pitbulls are the breed responsible for maiming and killing more children than any other breed of Canidae (even wolves).

Excellent letter in the B'ham Herald this morning wondering how she would be able to handle being a responsible mom with a special needs child and a pregnant teen as well as fulfill her governmental duties, especially if she should become president.

Slacker Uprising

The new Michael Moore film will be released on September 23rd, and is free for school and university libraries.  http://slackeruprising.com/school.php

And today the world will formally begin to end, due to the tiny black holes formed by the Large Hadron Collider at Cern, which was turned on today.  These tiny black holes will eat whatever is in their way, starting with Switzerland and working their way west (or east or through -- hard to say).  Anyway, it's been nice while it lasted.

Service to One's Country

Forgive me for waxing (in a minimalist way) political.  Must be something in the air.

Lately the Republicans have done an excellent job defining service to one's country, and its off-shoot heroism, in a narrow and militarist way.  Soldiers, they claim, even those fighting in wars that are questionable, are the only true recipients of these badges of honor.  This is simply a lie.  While many soldiers are unquestionably serving their country to the best of their knowledge, and may commit acts that are easily pegged as heroism, there are many other citizens who are solidly committed to their country's service, and are involved in largely unchampioned heroic acts.  A very abbreviated list contains: doctors, police & fire(wo)men, teachers, writers and journalists, clergy, factory workers, miners, environmentalists, librarians, community organizers, social workers, and so forth.  The Democrats have again allowed the Repulbicans to define national service and heroism, and cast it in an exclusively military light, just as they had previously done to patriotism.

It's time to take back these words and redraw their definitions.

Palin and Libraries

From the 9/7 Detroit Free Press:

"Early in her tenure she asked the library director about censoring books in the library's collection. The town's Frontiersman newspaper said Palin didn't ask about specific books. "I told her clearly, I will fight anyone who tries to dictate what books can go on the library shelves," library director Mary Ellen Emmons told the paper in 1996.

Palin later described her inquiry as rhetorical and a way to get to know the city employees.

Emmons soon was among a group of employees Palin sought to fire but was allowed to keep her job. A letter circulated to newspapers, including the Free Press, by Wasilla resident Anne Kilkenny said Emmons kept her job because residents rallied to her support."

What an interesting way to get to know your employees.

Guns and God

It's hard to ignore the fact anymore that God likes guns. It doesn't really matter which God either. Allah seems just as taken as the big white guy in the sky. But since most of the God people in rural America (those in the soul of Sarah Palin, or Thomas Frank) call themselves Christians, I started thinking about what kind of guns Christ would use. I don't take him for a big caliber guy (thin wrists) which rules out a .357 or 44 magnum. And certainly not a Sharps .50 caliber buffalo rifle...too much like a cross. But he's not a whimpy .22 guy either. No, I peg Christ as a 9 mm Walther man. A stylish gun that packs the punch needed, but isn't over the top. A gun with grace, so to speak. I can see him in his robes, popping bad guys, a couple of clips tucked in his belt. I'm sure the action figure is not far behind.

Art Everyday

Grout

In the 2nd floor men's lavatory of the library there is an "project" to write in the grout between the wall tiles. This has become known as the "Grout Board."

I'll toss some of these out when I have nothing more relevant to say.

The Great Groutsby

When in Grout, don't doubt it

In and Grout

It's a Grout Day

Borneman's Blog

If you want to see a small city in Montana filtered through the eyes of a truly wonderful artist and human being, check out Borneman's blog (http://billborneman.blogspot.com/)

It's a silver day in the old Ham, and the chlorophyll is beginning to fade away.
Onward into Autumn...