No man is an island, but some are pretty darn fat – R. Monaco There are many decent songs for commemorating tomorrow’s national holiday, some of them uniquely American and others simply noting the idea of independence. For patriotic pride I’ve always been partial to Ray Charles’ America The Beautiful, which gets it right without laying the bullshit […]
Category Archives: Posting
Essence of Camel
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Croquet lawns, village greens Victoria was my Queen – Ray Davies I was in Scotland last week, having arrived just in time to enjoy the full one hundred and sixty eight hours of non-stop television coverage devoted to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Elizabeth herself was a bit further south in London, floating around the Thames […]
To Build A Fire
Thursday, May 24, 2012
This is the now-retro 60’s style Preway fireplace in our family cabin in Lake Tahoe, California. Apparently these things are all the rage and can fetch in excess of $1000 in decent refurbished condition. If you look at ads from the era, they often depict a classy-looking woman in form-hugging evening wear, standing beside the […]
Apple Chigurh
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
In the Coen Brother’s film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s book “No Country For Old Men” the murderous yet oddly principled hit man Anton Chigurh (played by Javier Bardem) grows annoyed with a folksy gas station proprietor and makes the man call a coin toss for his own life. Cognizant of danger but unaware of the specific […]
Putney Swope Sequel
Monday, May 7, 2012
Tom Thumb, Tom Cushman, or Tom Foolery I date women on TV with the help of Chuck Woolery I was genuinely bummed upon hearing about Adam Yauch’s death last Friday afternoon, and as the feeling stuck with me I wondered why. Yauch, equally well known as MCA of the Beastie Boys, died at 47 after […]
Be True To Your School
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
On my first day of classes at Redwood High in the leafy Marin County suburb of Larkspur, the principal greeted incoming freshmen with an orientation speech that made note of what he referred to as “Redwood’s many notable alumni.” “Robin Williams comes to mind,” he remarked, adding that the comedian (and then television star) had […]
Great Grand Canyon Rescue Episode
Friday, April 27, 2012
I’ve been kind of sick for a week or so. It hasn’t been anything too severe, but enough to keep me locked in my house and head to an extent where these parameters have eclipsed a generally weak feeling and deep, bronchial cough. The last time I was notably sick was 2008, around this same […]
Spring It
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
I’m gettin’ old anything can happen now to anyone -Bob Dylan I haven’t had anything to say for a while now and some would argue it’s been longer than that. But I did have this photo, taken from my roof last weekend, and thought it a good excuse to post something. Actually, I did several […]
What’s In A Name, Chief?
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
very few of us left my friend from the days that used to be – Neil Young Two old friends from my Monaco Labs days, Scott Coleman Miller and Heather Gordon, were in town over the weekend to remind me that I come from somewhere. Scott goes by his middle name now and Heather has […]
Bang Bang
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Just finished re-watching the excellent HBO series “The Wire,” five years on from its conclusion. It had me re-examining how readily we accept, and even embrace, cinematic violence. Violence in The Wire is both prevalent and plentiful, but it is nuanced. It’s difficult to imagine an equally effective version of the show without it. Chris […]