NewYearsEve IV

I watched my recording of last night's USC/Hawaii game today and tonight will watch Arizona/Toledo--always a sucker for the Pac-10 and remember when it was the Pac-8 (all West Coast Schools). Now it is the Pac-12. Sigh. The only constant is change, or as Heraclitus said, 'all is flux.' (Neither 'Heraclitus' nor 'flux' is dirty, by the way, despite what Sarah Palin or any of her fans might think, should any of them read this).

Tomorrow's the annual Big Day, though--New Years Day for us academic types: the start of another college football season. This year for the first time I actually ordered ESPN Game Plan so that I can receive any of the Pac-12 broadcasts that aren't shown down here in the Deep, Dark South. UCLA/Kansas State, for example, will be replaced tomorrow by Kentucky/Louisville down here. I plan to pay for the service out of my Social Security check, which would REALLY piss off SP and her fans (!).

I've been addicted to college football since my senior year in high school (1959), when my buddy Dennis Butler and I were recruited for the band programs at both USC and UCLA, superb players that we were (!!). USC took us to their Washington game (ho-hum), but UCLA took us to their USC game. USC was unbeaten and ranked third but UCLA upset them 10-7 still running their single-wing offense (!!!).

Both of us thus went to UCLA for not-the-best of reasons, but there you are. The Y chromosome struck again and would strike many more times in the future, at least in my case. I'll let Dennis speak for himself. I rooted for UCLA against USC my entire life until Pete Carroll came, after which I switched. Don't know what I'll do now, really. Pete was the ultimate college coach and neither Lane Kiffen nor Rick Neuheisel is. We'll see, I guess.

Dennis is the one I bought the Unit from, by the way, the one you see below. He never rooted for USC and never will.

OK: U-C-L-A, Fight, Fight, Fight (!!!!); Fight On, Trojans, Fight On(!!!!!). And while we're at it-- I've always loved Cal and their wonderful old stadium in beautiful Strawberry Canyon since I first played there in the UCLA Marching Band in 1960 (our flight up there was my first time in a plane): Go, Bears (!!!!!!)

Unit

After instructional set-up at my buddy's in Costa Mesa . . .

. . . first outing in Kings Canyon NP (that's a bear box Erin is hiding behind) . . . note slide-out diner . . .

. . . slumber party in Tahoe: Sam and Beck (grandson #2) . . .

. . . note fold-out galley . . .

. . . galley left, diner right, breakfast cook center in the coolest Gear Queer shirt ever . . .

. . . underway near Mt. Shasta, NorCal.

Birthday

My first birthday present today to myself was to re-read all of my Politics posts and congratulate myself on a bunch of prescient (note the dates), cogently written, insightful, beautifully formed little essays. Dang, they're good. I kid you not. Go ahead, read 'em if you haven't already, you'll see what I mean; there are only eleven of them. You don't have to agree, simply admire. Time or Newsweek really ought to use me as a contract consultant, Don't you think?

Now that the Leo-nine narcissism is out of the way, the bad news is that I'm 68. The good news is that I may become 69 in a year. My brain doesn't feel that old but my bod increasingly does; I won't list my physical afflictions because no one really wants to hear about them, including my doctor. It's enough to say that I do my utmost to just keep moving, even though my 'wheels' seem to be progressively morphing from round to square. Or maybe oblong is more accurate. Sigh. It could be worse. (It can always be worse).

My second BD present to myself will be a dinner this evening at our best local Dago restaurant, Mezza Luna (yeah, the same chain where OJ and Nicole were last seen fighting). You used to could get Gulf oysters for half price (.50) during Happy Hour but no longer. Them days is over. Nowadays they get most of them off the coast of North Carolina. I like them better than Gulf oysters, actually, but they cost more. But after the first of two martinis, the taste doesn't really matter. After the second martini, I don't really care--on to the entree.

I resigned from my church job a few days ago. I gave it a good go for a season, but I'm afraid that kind of work just isn't for me anymore. There were good reasons I left that kind of work in 1985 and apparently those reasons haven't gone away in the interim. I will miss those few wonderful people, though, a few of whom I came to really love in my short time with them. My teacher Jim Vail just took a new church position not terribly long after resigning from the one he had held for forty years. He's 86, I think. Some people really do love it and I'm glad for him and his new church home.

***

I'm a lucky man as I begin my 69th year of adhering to the planet: families old and new that love me, two fine grandsons, a good woman, a good dog, enough money left after the Bush Debacle to live decently and travel a bit for a few more years, a fairly busy lineup of professional engagements to keep me both interested and involved, including a Christmas concert with a superb choir on Taiwan come December.

And I do love the slower pace of retirement; I am stunned by what I used to pack into a day for thirty-seven years.

Happy Birthday to me.

TravelSummer

It was great to be back in Italy after twenty years; a gorgeous country with wonderful people. The national party that went on after Milan beat Munich for the European Cup (for the first time in 40 years) was not to be believed; we stayed with it until about 1:30 AM and then finally went to bed. It was also fun to speak that language again; it came back faster than I had imagined it would. Erin's tour was a smashing success, particularly for all of those Bama kids, many of whom had never been out of Bama, a few of whom had never been on a plane. And they performed an extremely difficult repertoire beautifully. Oh, and Patti and Gene Colwitz had a blast--they were the stars of the trip, especially on the bus.

***

And I was back in Bulgaria for the first time since 1999, but working and earning a few bucks this time at a choral/orchestral workshop. The six conductors worked with two teachers for two weeks on the Mozart Requiem and a Sinfonia Concertante, performing both in a final concert. They had a fine professional orchestra and a beautifully trained Bulgarian choir to work with, and I got to know Danail Rachev, who is the new conductor of the Eugene, OR Symphony. He and I worked together well with the six conductors. While everybody there (especially the young) now seems to speak a bit of English (it wasn't that way in '99), the second language was German in the resort village where we stayed, so I had no problems whatever with my second language, only the boorish tourists who spoke it--Germans have replaced us as the most despised, arrogant tourists around. With good reason. Wilkommen an unser Welt, Freunde. The hotel, food and folk dancing were great, by the way; Eastern Europe is a place all its own, especially around the Black Sea.

***

Then a month of camping in our 2004 Fleetwood Bayside Elite pop-up camp trailer with hot and cold running water, slide out diner, fold out galley, and heater that came on automatically when the temp went below 50F several times. We picked it up at my buddy's in Costa Mesa and drove to Kings Canyon NP. After that, Patti and Gene then joined us (two full king size beds) in Yosemite NP, Jedediah Smith SP, and Tahoe (Sugar Pine Point SP), where we all camped with Libby, Lee and the Boys, celebrating birthdays of the Boys (late), Lee, Libby, and me (early). It was a fantastic time and the best birthday present imaginable--we all just wished Meg could have been there.

Then to Glacier NP, where these pics were shot (the second entitled 'Man, Dog, Fire.' Grunt). I'd never been there and I'm delighted we went: spectacular beauty, Sam learned to swim in Lake MacDonald, Erin and I did a bit of minor whitewater rafting (nine in the raft, only I got wet), historic, picturesque lodges.

And finally, a week at the 11-acre Colwitz Estate in Wisconsin that is Valhalla to Sam: he rolls in the acres of grass, runs in the oat field with only his tail visible, poops where he wants, swims in The Lake That Gene Dug, and runs free without leash at all times. It was a fitting reward for the superb traveler and camper that he was; he's now a confirmed Western Mountain Dog.

RightStuff

Went to hear Tom Wolfe at the UAH campus today (he's the commencement speaker tomorrow). Was thrilled: he's as brilliant as he seems to be in his books, all of which I love. Despite being a conservative and a supporter of Dubya, I like him anyway. But then, he's a millionaire several times over; of course he supported Dubya. Unlike Dubya, though, he actually learned something at Yale.

***

Speaking of millionaires, I'm a fan of a podcast called Blast the Right, run by a guy named Jack Clark. Words of wisdom and truth from him right here now that distills accurately what RightWing politicians are and do; a filter through which to run everything you hear from them:

"Everything the right-wing does is designed to accomplish one of two things: either (a) transfer wealth from everyone else to the already rich, or (b) distract everyone else from the fact that (a) is occurring."

God, that's good. And true. Just watch and listen to everything they support and everything they oppose. Don't pay any attention to their blather; keep the above italics in mind and you'll read them correctly.

***

We leave Sunday for Italy, where Erin works for two weeks and I do serious research on Italian food (I think this time osso bucco and gorgonzola); then to Bulgaria, where I work for two weeks and Erin lazes about on a Black Sea beach near Varna doing serious research on suntan lotion and Bulgarian booze. Things could sure be worse . . .

ThreeDot . . .

I've been hearing via email and word of mouth from folks near and far recently that some out there actually read this stuff and occasionally enjoy it. Since I don't do Facebook, this is the only way anyone can find out what I'm thinking or if I'm thinking at all, and I didn't realize so many kept in touch this way because so few comment . . . Really funny that McCain promises no cooperation with the Democrats for the rest of the year; as if there was any cooperation from the Republicans during all of last year--you can't mourn for what you never had, you doddering PalinPanderer. Now what Obama should do is dig up Tiger's most graphic description of what Tiger wanted to do to one of his mistresses--that should be exactly his description of what he's gonna do to the Republicans--and then 'ram' some more stuff 'down their throats:' financial reform, immigration reform, cap and trade, climate change legislation, bring the Boys and Girls home. Ram away, Mr. Obama, and if they don't like that you're doing what you were elected by most of us to do--with or without them--tell 'em they can just kiss your black a** . . . I'm so happy for my daughters and grandsons that he found a pair with Pelosi's help, and that the RightWing is hysterically impotent; impotent except for the violence into which HanBeckBaugh goad their Crazies, who then accommodate them . . . Had fun with Erin's choruses (community and school) last week while she was in Boston working at Mt. Holyoke and then working late on the UAH musical--I worked with all three of them and it was fun to be back in the saddle again for awhile, though I'm glad I could get back off the horse and retire to the ranch house . . . Spring done come to Bama; lawns will be green again soon--the fields and hills already are; this is the nicest time of year 'round these here parts . . . Have taken up hatha yoga three times a week per the Doc's advice and dropped Tai-chi for the time being; still lifting and shooting hoop a couple of times per week . . . Enjoying the heck out of the NCAA Tournament. When are the college presidents gonna figure out that a playoff would be the best possible thing for football, too? . . . Just realized that 'incredible' and 'unbelievable' are synonyms . . . Sam has an ear infection. Again. Goldens are famous for allergies and it's spring, as I said. Sigh . . . The South has so many reversible names: Prescott Parker; Parker Griffith; Tyler Taylor; Foster Bailey . . . Incredibly gratifying to hear from former students back in LA who still remember me and actually miss me; and I even hear occasionally from former UOP students, a few of whom manage to remember me fondly--they're too old to miss me . . . Gonna make a late, unhealthy breakfast now of sausage, eggs and toast: yum, then do a bunch of stretching: groan--right hamstring, quads and both hip flexors are really tight . . . Lots of travel coming up soon: Italy with Erin's kids; Bulgaria for a conducting masterclass; a western camping trip with the new Unit . . . Miguel Felipe (or is it Felipe Miguel?) in town from Boston returning Erin's favor; he's a talented, funny guy, lots of fun to be with, talking shop and professional smut . . . Maundy Thursday service tonight with the Episcopalians, replete with foot-washing: DoubleGroan. Love the people in that choir, though . . . Hope y'all have a resurrection Come Sunday . . . No Foolin' . . .

Exceptional

On Erin's Facebook this morning was a post from a local theatre star (don't know what his day job is): "Heard on Neal Boortz this morning: 'What if Americans spent less time expecting things and more time being exceptional?'"

First thing you need to know is that that latter word is a RightWing buzzword meaning that Amurrca deserves to do anything it wants because it has the best of everything in the world and never, ever makes mistakes. HateRadio/TV frequently blasts Obama thusly: "He doesn't believe in Amurrcan exceptionalism!!" It's in the DailyMemo from the RNC and Roger Ailes to FauxNews (Fair, Balanced and Blond), for example.

Second thing you need to know is that Neal Boortz kicks off the local HateRadio lineup here in Huntsville starting at 1000 AM. He is followed by Limbaugh, Hannity, Levin, and then a guy at night whose name is something like Schnitts. That's fifteen hours daily of vile, poisonous hate directed primarily at Obama, who is referred to as jerk, coward, man-child, idiot, fool, arrogant, narcissistic, and other euphemistic epithets that are code for uppity you-know-what. They hate him, of course, because he is so damned smart, cool-under fire, has utter control of issues and facts, tells the truth, can speak off the cuff without teleprompter, monitor or even notes (without repeating himself), and stops bullshit in its tracks. I have problems with his leadership so far, but that's because I'm more liberal than most, and would love to have seen him give those Dems several whacks upside the head, ála Johnson, and git 'er done. I think he's far too idealistic for his own good and underestimates Republican hatred for--and envy of--him. ('Bipartisan,' my ass, sir. You should have given up on those bozos long ago, kicked Democratic butt, and dragged this benighted, stupid society into the Land of Reason).

***

Enough prologue. To Erin's correspondent:

We are exceptional, dude, ipso facto. We don't have to spend any time trying to be. Among the most advanced societies in the world (I speak primarily of most of Western Europe and much of East Asia), we are utterly exceptional. Let me count the ways in which we lead:

• We are the most obese, the laziest thus least fit, the dumbest (much of the reason for this is our rate of evangelical church attendance) , the sickest because of lack of decent health care, the least informed (see 'dumbest' and watch ClusterFox for ten minutes), and we have the smuggest, most uncaring, most sanctimonious, least tolerant Christians in the entire world; economically, we are shameless whores to big corporations and field more monopolies than 'socialist' countries (you think our health care industry wants 'free market principles?' Uh-uh).
  
• We have far less public transport than other countries and the worst road conditions (I've driven/ridden on them all), we use more fossil fuels and eat more meat, we pollute more than anyone except the emerging giant of China, we are the most in debt to other countries--mostly to China, and we have the largest, most shameful financial gap between Haves and Have-Nots in the civilized world; we also have the least knowledge of--not to mention sense of--history (for most of us, history extends only to last Tuesday);
  
• We make the worst cars, following a half-century head start on the rest of the world, recent Toyota problems notwithstanding, and our government bodies have the most disdain for intellectuals, artists, and the highly educated than any since those of Stalin and Pol Pot. Other than bad cars, by the way, we don't make anything else anymore, including sense;
  
• Finally, we are approaching Italy in competition for the Lamest, Least Effective, Most Venal Government. And we also win the prize worldwide for Male Politicians with the Neatest Hair (many look like televangelists or Southern Baptist ministers, especially the Republicans), and we have already won the prize several times for Proudly Stupidest Person Ever Elected President.

There! See how Exceptional we are?! And without even trying! I am so proud of my country! Proud enough, at least, to have continued to try to help improve it my entire life. But I think I may join Kurt Vonnegut, who gave up trying at the end of his life. After reading the news daily, I am coming to that place, too. More and more, I find myself agreeing with Bill Maher, who has maintained our cultural stupidity for some time now, especially after witnessing the Palin/TeaBag phenomenon. His latest, after watching Republicans stall at the HC Summit, and seeing poll numbers about the health bill?

'This country sucks.'

Yeah, Bill, at times it do. Exceptionally so.