[LEMONS] 7.31.2002
Best of the Bay 2002
The SF Bay Guardian's Best of the Bay 2002 comes out today. I wote up several of the editor's picks (about 12 or so), and the neighborhood guide for Hayes Valley. Check your local stand.- l i n k -
Breast- feeding en masse is rapidly gaining status as a new international competition
Huh? What do you win?
- l i n k -
Thank you, Matt Gonzalez (he's my super supe, yo!)
- l i n k -
Hypocracy
Atlanta has always had a wink-wink, nudge-nudge policy towards sex shops. The convention capitol of the South has more places to jerk it than a Jamaican kitchen. The downtown/midtown/Cheshite Bridge Road area is lousy with lingerie modeling joints, massage parlours, and just straight up girlie clubs. The city has always turned a blind eye to it as it (intown) is fairly progressive for a Southern city, and hell, the tourists seem to enjoy it. Which was why the bust where 115 people got nailed was so surprising. But Curt pointed out an article to me (on my sooper-dooper-seekret email list) which indicates the times they are a changin' in the City Too Busy toI guess the city fathers, and mothers, feel it's fine for women to be exploited all over the city. I guess it's fine for Cheshire Bridge Road to be America's Hand Job Capitol. But God forbid the populace get in on it. Apparantly it's quite alright for two people to get together and exchange a little money and a sexual disease. But when you put 100 of them together, then we have a problem. Let's keep those ya-yas secret, thank you.
- l i n k -
7.30.2002
His eyes and lips were sewn shut for the protest. Hardcore.
- l i n k -
want some candy?
- l i n k -
One Hundred Albums You Should Remove from Your Collection Immediately Um. But then I won't have any records left.
- l i n k -
7.29.2002
Widespread Panic pix are up.
- l i n k -
7.26.2002
Kevin Fox was one of the people who inspired me to start keeping a personal weblog. I've always admired his site. And he's done a few pretty cool things, besides. But this Bait and Switch movie is just brilliant.
- l i n k -
MetaFilter is accepting new members again. Sign up here at noon pacific each day. I'm sure this is a limited time offer.
- l i n k -
True Porn Clerk Stories is killing me. "Customers I Have Driven out of the Store", in particular, really got to me. Reminds me of a Dan Clowes story. (via kottke)
- l i n k -
WEBLOG : The Movie
- l i n k -
7 songs and a confession #11
Remember, not forever, just for now.- Mission of Brma: Peking Spring
- Widespread Panic: One Armed Steve
- Pavement: Stereo
- The Pixies: Where is my Mind
- Freelance Hairdresser: Marshall's Been Snookered (eminem ragtime remix)
- The Hives: Die, All Right
- MC Frontalot: Indier Than Thou
Sometimes, I'm just faking it.
- l i n k -
This year, I've sen five snakes in the wild. A king snake, garter snake, two copperheads and one unknown, fast moving sucker. A snake is supposed to be an auspicious symbol. Signifying what?
- l i n k -
Appalachia
- l i n k -
Briefly
- Today, I'm 90 days away from my 30th birthday, and 80 from Thailand.
- I've updated my reading blog.
- San Francisco's judges have become the first in the state to cut ties with the Boy Scouts because of the organization's refusal to admit gays and lesbians.
- Awesome
- "It is the way it has always been. It is nothing new except for the size of the numbers and the hypocrisy of the government's reaction and the flagrancy of the smirks on the faces of the CEOs as they act all contrite and apologetic, phoning in their repentance from the 14th hole at the Mauna Kea."
- l i n k -
7.25.2002
" Fires have run through here for thousands of years, and the trees are still there." Let's hope that remains true.
- l i n k -
Excellent rock band promotional photography (via mefi)
- l i n k -
7.24.2002
Andre's new thing, The Moleskine Project, looks incredibly cool
- l i n k -
Corndogs.org just keeps getting cooler and cooler. Check out this new Big Bottom Pow Wow page.
- l i n k -
Who says teens are apathetic?
- l i n k -
The Need to Regulate
There is a crisis of confidence today about corporate earnings reports and the credibility of chief executives. And it's justified. -- That's not Russ Feingold or even Tom Daschle talking. That's Warren Buffett.And here's a further question. One that needs to be discussed, I think. If we can not trust large corporations to honestly perform the most fundamental proceedure of business operations, acounting, how can we trust them on other issues that involve greater shades of gray? How can we trust them not to destroy the environment, to consign workers to sweatshops, or to trample human rights in smallish third world contries? We cannot.
- l i n k -
I left my list in San Francisco
Dave sent me a link to a craigslist Missed Connections post, "Questions Answered About Bart." It reminded me of how much, and why, I love Craigslist. It was an elaborate post; thought out, edited, and thoroughly preposterous. More importantly, it was pro bono, without hope of credit or promotion.But I think it really hit me because I don't have that much more time left before I leave for Thailand, and Craigslist has always been the Bay Area to me.
Craigslist is where the Bay Area (which, like the B.A. is dominated by San Francisco) communicates. The economy is found on the job boards, where both Fortune 500 and local mom-and-mom shops place their help wanted shingles. I myself have found three different jobs there (*). During the housing crunch, it was the place to find a crib. Right now I'm sitting in a chair at a desk in a room in an apartment I first saw in an ad on Craigslist, a little over three years ago. Before I even arrived here, to go to work at another San Francisco institution, I asked my editor what to do about finding an apartment. "Look on Craigslist." I mentioned Craigslist in an article I wrote for the late great Green Magazine (*). My editor there inserted the phrase "a Bay area hipster job board" to describe it. Fair enough.
And then there are the Missed Connections--graffiti board for all of San Francisco. I first heard about MC from Tim, and began reading them voraciously at work. MC became the best cure for boredom that ever I'd seen. And it seemed that all the hepcats read them. MC is oft discussed on the SF Indie mailing list. It was during a discussion about MC at 4:30 in the morning at a party in the Lower Haight that I first I bonded with a guy named Ezra (he who would later go on to become The Minister) It was on MC that I discovered the brilliance of Britt and Tiff. And of course, there was the gorgeous guy...
And it takes me back, the Crasigslist. And how I love the "Best Of" section (though I would argue that many of the true bests came before Craigslist tracked them). Some of the titles of the posts, alone, make me howl. "Why I Like Garage Sales and Sleazy Men," or, "hot sexy hobbit at bridge of Khazad-dur." Then you've got moving sales," "hipster busses," and "clumsy, uncomforable sex.
Oh CL. How I shall miss you.
*Wayback Machine link, yo
- l i n k -
7.23.2002
"Our economic problems are real, but by no means catastrophic. What scares me is the utter inflexibility of the people who should be solving those problems."
- l i n k -
"What Earle is doing is what good songwriters -- and in fact, good poets -- have been doing for a hundred years, which is trying to get inside and understand the motivations of people who may not be particularly popular right now."
- l i n k -
Marijuana's bad, mmmkay?
San Francisco voters: bunch of stoners.Sacramento teens: stoners
Pittsburgh Steelers: stoners
- l i n k -
7.22.2002
Dow(n) Jones
Mr. Bush's comments came during a visit to the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois, where he reviewed new technologies for detecting and combating terrorist attacks.Of course they did.
- l i n k -
7.17.2002
I read peter's site pretty regularly, but I missed this entry during my Santa Cruz sojurn. To Wit:
Last year, an international group of musicians working under the name, Tabla Beat Science performed at Stern Grove, (my employer). We taped the concert and the Bassist, Bill Laswell (legend - he co-wrote "Rock-it" with Herbie Hancock) took the tapes back to NYC and mixed them down. His label, Axiom, is now set to release the CD this week. Go buy it! The Festival gets a royalty and you get some some awesome music.Buy it (note: I'm not even using my amazon referral thingamabob here. good music + good cause = um, gmgc. or something.)
- l i n k -
Being Jeff Mangum
I've linked to this Jeff Mangum interview before, but I'm linking it again because it is worth reading.Also, I think that the difficult thing after Aeroplane was that, when we started doing the Elephant 6 thing, we had a very utopian vision that we could overcome anything through music. The music wasn't just there for entertainment: we were trying to create some sort of change. We had a desire to transform our lives, and the listener's lives. I guess I had this idea that if we all created our dream we could live happily ever after.
- l i n k -
When Naked People Attack
Police say the naked man jumped on top of their SUV on Southside Boulevard, then hung on for miles. He finally fell off on Phillips Highway."It was very traumatic for the family. They didn't really didn't know what to do," Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Sgt. Paul Restivo said. (Thanks Geoff!)
- l i n k -
Google Bomb With Me
In Greenspan's speech yesterday, while the Dow dropped for it's 7th day in a row, he coined a dandy new phrase: infectious greed. Now, when I think of infectious greed, I know what comes to my mind immediately. Infectious greed is responsible for the crashing economy and corporate malfeasance. Infectious greed is the best term I've ever heard to describe the zealotry of the Party that Be: fuck you, I'm gonna get mine. Won't you join me? Blog it with me, now. Infectious greed, yo. It's as wrong as it is evil.- l i n k -
Simon doesn't pay his fair share of taxes. Hey, you want to set up a tax shelter? That's totally cool. But don't think that you can simoultaneously cheat & represent the people.
- l i n k -
Ugh. The local Hotel Council has launched a, um... er... interesting ad campaign.
- l i n k -
NPR ran a piece on today's pop (thanks Dave!). Check out the artists Beck & Mark Eitzel (and some record companyA&R guy) listen to.
- l i n k -
7.16.2002
I find myself, inexplicably, with nothing to say today.
Talk amongst yourselves?
oh. there is this. mission of burma and mike watt & the secondmen on july 26 at the fIllmore. that should be fun.
- l i n k -
7.15.2002
Power Commercial-Free TV to the People
Over the last few years, Diamond went through a few name changes. First, they changed the name to Rio, and then (I think) S3, before settling on Sonicblue. Despite the name changes, however, it appears that Sonicblue's philosophy remains the same: a commitment to customers over corporations. For as long as DVRs have been on the market, a cheifcriticism I've heard of them has been that they won't let you skip commercials. To the dismay of industry execs, Sonicblue cut through all that bullshit. Product placement, anyone?
- l i n k -
Wanna know why we don't need a public toilet in
- l i n k -
A Tomato's Story
(A juicy tale by yours truly)
- l i n k -
7.14.2002
Happy Birthday MeFi
Today is Metafilter's third anniversary- l i n k -
7.12.2002
Please vote for this
- l i n k -
I was 12/17
- l i n k -
It is now more than six months since the president promised "a lot of government inquiry into Enron." Since then, Playboy has done a better job of exposing the women of Enron than the Bush administration has done at exposing its men.
- l i n k -
7 songs and a confession # desyat
- kompressor: kompressor want to get with you
- they might be giants: the house at the top of the tree
- yeah yeah yeahs: art star
- neutral milk hotel: glue (gerbils cover)
- minutemen: do you want new wave or do you want the truth
- ministry: stigmata (warning: Real Player clip)
One night when I was in high school, I went out to a bar in Athens, Ga. At the time, I had really long hair, and I think I was wearing some sort of funky T-Shirt. This obnoxious drunk guy came up to me at the bar and started asking me for acid. WTF?!? Just because I've got long hair I'm a drug dealer? Okay. Fine. So I went into the bathroom and carefully tore off a piece of my Subway frequent sandwich card and sold it to him for $10. I stayed there with name withheld to protect the--if not innocent--youthful accomplice for another couplfe of hours, and we kept saying we needed to leave before the guy wised up. But we were underage, and in a bar. So we stayed. Eventually, the guy comes back up to me, saying "hey man, that shit's the fire. got anymore?" So I sold him another two pieces and we split. Dang. And I was only two away from a free sandwich.
ps: desyat is Ukranian for ten, yo
- l i n k -
The news about the Polio Virus is far less remarkable to me in terms of its potential as a terrorist weapon, than the fact that we're synthesizing life. Any technology has the potential to be misused, whether by terrorists, evil geniuses, the military or well-meaning SUNY scientists.
- l i n k -
hipsters
- l i n k -
One of my favorite aspects of reading weblogs is that they aren't professional. This was one of the reasons I initially began keeping a weblog, too. I was tired of obligations: to readers, to editors, to advertisers, to the rules of grammar. I wanted to do something for me. Weblogs allow you the freedom to write, or not write as you feel like it, or as events dictate; to inject a piece with your personal feelings; to say things you could never say in a "respectable" publication, even though you should be able to; to make it look how you want it to look, damn the reader surveys. Weblogs are never obligated. And along those lines, I've always liked it when I go to read someone's site who posts regularly, and there isn't a post that day. It always makes me wonder, "huh, what's [your name here] got going on today?."
- l i n k -
7.10.2002
Yahoo!
- l i n k -
The House passed a bill to allow airline pilots to carry guns. Well of course. Because, you know, pilots are a responsible bunch.
- l i n k -
Hello
Hello, coming to you live from the mass mediated streets of New York, Carrie Dashow said her first hello in 1972, and began counting them in 1999. She continues her quest for 1 million hellos within the setting of the downtown arts festival.Peep it
- l i n k -
Sign of the Times
I'm kah-razy about theYeah Yeah Yeahs. Their EP absolutely blows me away. "Our Time" is an anthem if ever I've heard one (albeit for the generation below mine, I guess). I Can't. Quit. Listening.But I noticed something unusual when I was browing their site. Under "Music," the band proclaims "YYY Wants Remixes! Please Remix!" The Remix (and it's later day cousin the Mash-up) are of this day and age like never before. And although I'm certainly used to hearing them, this is the first time I've seen a band asking for it.
- l i n k -
Status Report
- Economy: In Ruins
- Cheney: Evil and Crooked
- Bush: Corporate Puppet
PS: What Mark Morford said
- l i n k -
IS Baseball still relevant?
- l i n k -
7.09.2002
The frog thing is really creepy
- l i n k -
Yesterday I finished up a project I'd been working on for two week and handed in a column. I've got another story due tomorrow, but I spent today at the beach. Freelancing rules.
- l i n k -
Or here's another idea, how about you don't hire drunken pilots and people won't make jokes about you.
- l i n k -
Sham I am (Thanks Geoff!)
- l i n k -
I'm not exactly overwhelmed with confidence.
- l i n k -
7.08.2002
When Vegans Attack!
Have you read Time's story on Vegetarianism? No? Well. It's about what you'd expect from Time on Vegetarianism. Approving, yet... Not.Disclaimer: I'm not a Vegetarian. I eat a lot of fish. I eat the occasional fowl. Pigs I try to stay away from but, well, it's a magical animal. Ditto red meat; I indulge a few times a year. I think you can screw yourself up with a Vegetarian diet if you aren't careful. I'm certainly not an advocate, or an animal rights zealot. But. There's a lot to be said for the diet. I try not to eat too many animal products because a) meat's kinda gross nowathesedays if you haven't noticed b) like many Amuricuns, I've got a history of heart disease in my family so I try to watch my cholesterol c) i try to be an environmentalist and pig farms aren't exactly eco-friendly, foo.
Moreover, if done right, it's a healthy diet.
Although I thought this was a fairly balanced article, here's the part of the post where I gripe about it. The article focused too much on teens. You wanna know about morphin rangers and homies or whatever the nuts it is that's being confiscated in junior highs from sea to shining sea these days? Ask a teen. You want to know about nutrition? Ask an adult. Furthermore it matters not if the kid is a vegetarian, a macrobiotic, or a cannibal, his/her diet and nutrition is ultimately the parent's responsibility. And:
- "They also avoid honey, since its production demands the oppression of worker bees." This an incredibly facetious statement, and a blatant misrepresentation of most Vegans I know (and I arguably live in the Vegan Crucible of the world). Yet it's taken seriously; the conservative Post scoops up that ball and runs with it.
- "In a survey of 11,000 individuals, 37% of those who responded "Yes, I am a vegetarian" also reported that in the previous 24 hours they had eaten red meat; 60% had eaten meat, poultry or seafood." What? Who the hell is this being asked? What were their ages? (After all, the article does focus on teens. Teens are more likely to be vegetarians one day and not the next.) What overall percentage responded, "Yes I am a Vegetarian?" If it was disproportionately high, then we know that the study's flawed. The article even goes on to speculate that those being asked don't understand the term "vegetarian." If the respondents didn't understand the question, then why do their responses matter? When the question is flawed the answer is irrelevant. Bah!
- The graf attributed to "Dr." Michelle Warren (Ph.D? M.D.? Dre? All of the above?) is particularly troubling. Warren cites the "peculiar color" of a small subset vegetarians' skin, noting that "I think it's very unattractive." What the fuck is that? Why do I care what "Dr." Warren finds attractive? "Dr." Warren's turn-ons and turn-offs have nothing whatsofreakinever to do with the pros or cons of vegetarianism. Furthermore. "She also is troubled by the reasons some young vegetarians give for their choice of diet. One female patient, Warren says, wouldn't eat meat because she was told it was the reason her father had a heart attack." But ya know what? It probably was. Damn those vegetarians and their ability to follow logical chains of cause and effect.
- l i n k -
I take immense comfort in the realization that, at some distant point in the future, I won't be able to recall any of I Get Wet, and whether that'll be due to its legitimate forgetability or a future struggle with Alzheimer's I don't much care Great review of Andrew "Why-the-fuck-is-this-guy-everywhere-please-God-make-it-stop" W. K. on Pitchfork. (via wattlist)
- l i n k -
I love naked people, part XXI (thanks Geoff!)
- l i n k -
Santa Cruz, July 4
- l i n k -
Recycled pet food, breasts injected with pig and cattle proteins, banned carcinogenic antibiotics... proteins extracted at high temperatures or by chemical hydrolysis from old animals or parts of animals which are no use for food, such as skin, feathers, hide, bone and ligaments... pushing the carcass through a giant teabag-like screen to produce a slurry of protein, then bound back together with polyphosphates and gums.
What's that being described, you ask? Why chicken nuggets, yo. Have some for lunch. Yum. (via mefi)
- l i n k -
While the rest of the economy (and certainly the dotconomy) sputters and falls and gasps for air and asks you to "wait up, wait up. come on. just wait up for a second, okay? I feel like I'm gonna puke. oh yeah. I'm gonna puke. I'm gonna puke." eBay just keeps on rolling. I guess garage sales are recession proof.
- l i n k -
Cool! I just saw that I'm listed on Corante's blog list. Color me astounded (which is an off shade of light blue, I think).
- l i n k -
It's Still The Economy, Stupid
Salon has an interesting interview with Joseph Stiglitz. Stiglitz is the former chief economist for the World Bank, and a Nobel Prize winner.The fiscal mismanagement of the current administration -- leading to a change in the fiscal position of the United States over the past year -- is absolutely phenomenal; going from huge surpluses to huge deficits and the deficits are probably going to be larger than people anticipated. That means that foreigners are already losing confidence in the United States because the United States had earned a reputation for sound fiscal management -- and now that reputation is being destroyed.Although I'd altogether rather have a solid economy, If Bush continues to bungle things we can rest assured he'll be a one-termer. Assuming The Supremes don't get involved, that is.
- l i n k -
7.03.2002
Matt Groening has been picked to curate All Tomorow's Parties 2003
- l i n k -
I remember Lawn Char Larry Walters. Ahhh... to be a kid again. And not have a cold. Or just to not have a cold, I'd settle for that.
- l i n k -
Harper pointed this out to me. Playwright Tony Kushman's speech to Vassar's graduating clas of 2002 is positively hysterical. It's riddled with passage such as this one:
I mean who could blame you, really; hasn't this past year, your senior year, hasn't it been the worst year ever in the history of humankind, maybe it's the beginning of the end of the world, but please, you should not feel personally responsible. Blame someone else, blame your parents, why not? They are blaming your grandparents. Or blame the Bush Administration. That's what I do; if that gets old, blame Ralph Nader. And Happy Graduation!Thought provoking too. Enjoy.
- l i n k -
Wow. Now that's a lot of naked people
- l i n k -
7.02.2002
Waxy Backlinks now work with PHP. Shine on you crazy bloggers.
- l i n k -
Laurel Wellman volunteers as the Chronicle's first Weblog columnist. But isn't that what Mark Morford has been doing for years?
- l i n k -
Meme Du Jour
The DEN movie is hysterical.(WARNING: If you have to wear a tie to the office, this probably isn't safe for work. At the very least, you'll want to put on headphones, or turn your volume way down)
If you don't remember DEN, check out Matt Welch's tale of woe about his time in the DEN of iniquity
- l i n k -
Who owns silence?
- l i n k -
The War Against Bad Things, a play in one act. (via MeFi)
- l i n k -
Chlorinated Coho
The Coho Salmon in Redwood Creek are in danger, and (no surprise), it's due to us. Coho are endangered, and Redwood Creek in addition to being one of the Coho's largest runs, is the very last wild salmon runs in California. Once you see them fighting their way upstream, you'll never feel the same about them again. It's truly is one of the most amazing things I've ever seen.The problem? Chlorine from the water supply for Muir Beach. Muir Beach needs a new containment facility--something other than an oversized Pepsi can. And, "Many of the people who live here are urban professionals who just want to turn on the tap, have water come out, and not think about it." Indeed. One of the biggest problems we have as a nation is that we tend not to think about where things come from before they get to us, or where they go after we have finished with them. But you don't expect that in Marin. Can't we all chip in to buy Muir Beach a new containment facility? I'll cough up a few dollars.
- l i n k -
She's great!
My Mom is out of her cardiac cath and doing well. No further surgery is required. Thank so much to everyone for the outpouring of support.- l i n k -
From the State that Brought You Car Culture...
California is poised to become the first state in the nation to regulate greenhouse gasses from cars. This is fantastic news. Despite having a bunch of oil industry cronies in the White House, we can still make progress when we act in our communities, our cities, our states. I was so incredibly discouraged when The Supremes handed the election to Dubya, that I virtually renounced politics altogether. But in the months that followed, measure by measure, San Francisco and California restored my faith in the process.You're used to hearing Republicans talking state's rights. But it's about time we do too. If we want to fight Global Warming and the destruction of our planet, we can't wait on Washington DC. We have to do it at home first. And like Burton says, "there's no way in the world they're going to make a clean car for California and dirty cars for other places."
- l i n k -
7.01.2002
Thank Goodness
- l i n k -
The rankings were based on median household income, compared with median house value. Atlanta's median income is $52,000 and the median value of a house is $135,000. Compare those figures with the country's most expensive housing market -- the San Francisco Bay area -- where median income is $62,000, but the median value of a house is $353,500.
You get what you pay for.
- l i n k -
TCPA provides for a monitoring component to be mounted in future PCs.
Scary stuff.
- l i n k -
Noooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- l i n k -
(click me)
- l i n k -
Junkie's Delight
A public toilet on Haight Street, though sorely needed (try taking a whizz *anywhere* on the Haight), will become an instant shooting gallery for junkies. I've watched hookers and johns go in those JCDeaux toilets to do their thing, and I've been in more than one covered in blood and littered with needles. A public toilet on Haight Street would be a Hepatitis factory. Bad idea.- l i n k -
I missed the Pride parade yesterday (I was working). It's the first time I've missed it since living here. What a bummer.
- l i n k -
