I play rochambeau with ghosts, take photos of space, and ride my bike in the bus lane.
When I had my car fixed in Bergen recently, I took a stroll and found some parks.
If you ever get sick of the grass, just put some cement in there.
Place benches next to nice neighbor’s sign.
Place benches in inviting formations to foster public debate and near sign discouraging public debate when the sun goes down.
He got the view of the river and I didn’t.
Happy Halloween! There were many raised eyebrows this year at Halloween being the second holiday in money-making only to Christmas. The crowd promoting the war on Christmas seem to be starting the war on Halloween [via Sadly, No!]. I always marvel that it’s the one holiday that adults get to have away from their families if they want to and at the same time, I wonder why Halloween doesn’t happen more often.
A bright moment ruined by the arrival of occupants who decided this was the best place to wait for the train that would be here in a few more moments.
I posted a similar photo to facebook and it didn’t quite capture the feeling.
Meanwhile, yesterday was the 40th anniversary of the internet. The very first message sent over the internet was “lo” and then “login.” I joined the internet in 1993 right after my wife left me. I was only one in my family to have a public email address and a 2400 baud modem.
I’ve been fighting (sort of) with Verizon all week about my crappy internet connection. They’re sending me a new modem.
Carnegie Hall at Night
Rest stop at Columbus Circle
Avenue of the Americas Fountain at 55th
Arch windows at 73rd and Amsterdam
Sunset outside the Circle Line depot
As I mentioned earlier, I’m looking into an image change. Bear with me as I try on a few different WordPress themes. In the meantime, I’m also learning how to build themes from scratch.
I really like this photo. Even though the composition is completely split in half, both halves are satisfying and normally, you’d see the top half with a sunset over it. Hmmm.
I got booked to DJ a party at SiP for a bunch of jazz musicians this Saturday night. DJing for musicians is sort of like compiling a slide show for photographers. It’s curating a museum show for artists! I’m flattered and nervous.
I don’t have the screen shot but for a little while yesterday afternoon, the Huffington Post lead story was “PEACE PRIZE?” and linked to a story at the Washington Post about how Obama already secretly sent 13,000 additional troops to Afghanistan. I went to look for the Huffpo story again and it’s gone.
The WaPo story talks about how the additional troops are not combat-oriented but no matter how you slice it, it’s military personnel above and beyond what was initially announced back in March. The story also goes into detail about troop increases since the U.S. first invaded. Mercenary troops and security hiring probably continue apace so I put it out there again: PEACE PRIZE? Really?
The conservatives essentially say that the Nobel Peace Prize was given to a man who has done nothing to deserve it and they’re far less than half-right. The part they were right about was lampooned on SNL a little over a week ago.
The Nobel Prize committee says Barack Obama has created “a new climate in international politics.” In reality, Obama’s rhetoric has largely cloaked a continuation and extension of Bush’s foreign policy.
Apart from the diplomatic rhetoric, there has been no meaningful reversal of US foreign policy in relation to the George W. Bush presidency, which might have remotely justified the granting of the Nobel Prize to Obama. In fact quite the opposite. The Obama military agenda has sought to extend the war into new frontiers. With a new team of military and foreign policy advisers, the Obama war agenda has been far more effective in fostering military escalation than that formulated by the NeoCons.
Since the very outset of the Obama presidency, this global military project has become increasingly pervasive, with the reinforcement of US military presence in all major regions of the World and the development of new advanced weapons systems on an unprecdented scale.
Granting the Nobel Peace Prize to Barack Obama provides legitimacy to the illegal practices of war, to the military occupation of foreign lands, to the relentless killings of civilians in the name of “democracy”.
Notwithstanding, we have a domestic policy that rewards catastrophic financial failure and ineptitude courtesy of the taxpayer. (This episode of Bill Moyers Journal is must-see TV.) If there were any true conservative brains in media land, they would be praising Obama’s foreign policy, mocking the Nobel Prize committee for giving it to a warmonger in their camp, and focusing on the socialist policies governing U.S. finance. It’s sad and tragic that connecting the dots is such a scorned skill amongst the DC Villagers.
On weekend nights the guys at 53rd and Sixth have a line stretching down the block while the chicken dudes a block or two away have nobody. You can pretty much make your own dish yourself. I’m usually vegetarian and don’t eat this crap but I tell you from days when I sampled the street chicken, there is little difference between any of them. (Several also serve falafel.) If you’re standing in line for chicken at 4 am, you’re more of an idiot than I thought.
Opening shot of Ghost Town, looking down Sixth Avenue, included here mostly as sauce.
