read and recommended


stuff white people like is the kind of stuff that gentry likes. holy crap this site is funny. if only i had thought of it first.

much like my white* friends, I have a particular penchant for coffee, public radio, wes anderson movies and arrested development. what kind of stuff do you love whitey?

* assuming i am white. on account of my adoption, i like to think of myself as an ethnic free-agent. however, most of my friends and family think of me otherwise.

happy haiku friday

contrail curving sky
streams of snow melt rushing by
affordable fun

overheard mccain's apologia*

After comparing Mr. Limbaugh to a "circus clown," the Arizona Republican apologized. "I regret that statement," he told an interviewer on Fox News the other night, "because my office has been flooded with angry phone calls from circus clowns all over America. They resent that comparison, and so I would like to extend my apologies to Bozo, Chuckles and Krusty."


* i was introduced to the quote here an you can find the original citation there. i wish mccain would have had the balls to offer a similar criticism when he was here.

musing...

this afternoon, after observing one of my clients struggle through his/her first day of sacking groceries, i walked over to the manager and asked him "what do you think, sink or swim?"

"we'll see," he deadpanned. "we might have to break out the floaties."

as i walked out to the parking lot i realized that mr. sampson is one funny guy and water wings aren't a half-bad metaphor for the grace of God.

capsule reviews

i just finished watching the darjeeling limited for the second time this weekend and i must say that i am enchanted. on the first view, i was touched by the multiple perspectives it offered on mourning and challenged to let go of my own baggage, which is of similar origin but different design. on the second view, i was caught up in the brothers' quest and found myself wishing that they could have found resources and guides for their journey within the judeo-christian tradition. i suspect that the context for the single scene of christian devotion in the film is meant to suggest that our spiritual journeys always require a break from our past. if that is what anderson is suggesting i cannot help but agree with him and yet hope that our journeys eventually lead us back where we belong.

the pix and i also watched affleck's adaptation of gone baby gone last night. i thought the film was beautifully shot,* well acted and one of the most haunting reflections on christian ethics that i have experienced in some time. instead of making students suffer through evangelical ethics** at s.h.i.t., i would like to propose that they simply show this film, the lives of others, the mission and talledega nights and have a no holds barred discussion afterwards.

i don't know why i haven't mentioned it, but i think that the brief life of oscar wao by junot diaz was one of the finest works of fiction published in 2007. although i enjoyed the book on the first read, i wasn't enamored with it. it was not until i had the time to reflect on the displaced, tragic life of oscar while immersed in the latino culture of chelsea that i realized that diaz's book has encouraged a love for latino culture and the spanish language that i somehow failed to learn from both beisbol or an old, good friend.****

* for the record, boston isn't quite that beautiful, but we wish it was.
** where every essay on every test is measured by only one metric: the number of bible verses cited.
*** mitt romney's statement that he did not know that the lawn service that he hired from chelsea was staffed by undocumented immigrants was one of the most egregious lies of the primary season. anyone who has ever been to chelsea, which brushes right up against downtown boston, knows that every business in the area is staffed by a united nations crew.
**** i hope that she accepts my apologies. i understand that my obtuseness is no less offensive for being unintentional. thank you for trying to introduce me to these mysteries long ago.