What to Do? (Part II) 4 November, 2009

So it’s Wednesday in New York City (and everywhere else in the world. Except maybe Australia. It might already be Thursday there). ANYWAY. Options, options for what to do tonight…

1. Trivia Night with Jason et. al. I heart trivia night, but it’s SO far uptown, and I always spend more than I should on unhealthy-but-delicious foods (lobster mac & cheese, YUM) and beer there.

2. Watching the World Series Game Six. I really don’t care about baseball, and I think it’s boring as hell to watch on TV. But it’d be fun to hang out with Matt, and it’ll be pretty crazy to watch the Yankees win out in the city. Would be fun to be in the mix of that, assuming the fans don’t start tipping over cars and stuff. They don’t do that, do they?

3. John Hodgman book reading/signing. This has been a week for book signings at B&N in Union Square! Monday was Augusten Burroughs (I ended up skipping that because I’d been to his once before, and I wanted to dog-sit instead.), yesterday was Plouffe (which was great, more on that another time), and tonight John Hodgman will be reading from his book More Information Than You Require (John Hodgman is a regular contributor to The Daily Show, and he’s also the PC in those “I’m a Mac, I’m a PC” commercials)

4. Go Home and Do Nothing

So I’m torn. Let’s open it up to a survey…

What to Do? 3 November, 2009

So it’s a Tuesday afternoon, and three things are happening tonight in the city. Well, technically there are more than three things happening – but these would be on my list:

1. Cast of Glee signing copies of the new Glee Soundtrack at Borders in Columbus Circle

2. Jen Somethingorother, who does the Cake Wrecks blog, signing copies of her Cake Wrecks book at the Barnes & Noble in Lincoln Triangle. I don’t really want a copy of the book, but this book signing has free cake…

3. David Plouffe speaking about and signing copies of his new book The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama’s Historic Victory at the B&N at Union Square.

So which one am I going with? Obviously the Plouffe reading/signing. I’ve been looking forward to this book anyway – regardless of what happens with his Presidency, Obama’s campaign and win were game-changing and historic, and I think reading Plouffe’s inside take will be interesting. However, it’s also gotten good reviews – and Arianna Huffington at HuffPo had a great take on it this morning: What would Candidate Obama think of President Obama? What indeed. I really recommend reading the piece – and I think that the book will serve as a great reminder of why we all got on board with Obama to begin with – and what he could be doing differently in his presidency.

But I’ll let you know after I’m finished reading it

UPDATE: David Plouffe responds on HuffPo: “No Difference Between President Obama and Candidate Obama“

Pablove 8 October, 2009

Yes, yes, that’s right – a new post. Things have been crazy hectic lately, but they’re slowing down now, so I hope to have all sorts of new posts soon (Becky’s Wedding! My Birthday! Equality March in DC!)…but not yet. However, I wanted to take a quick minute to post this…

I’ve been on twitter for a few months now (follow me!), which is great for keeping up with news/celebs/random causes/etc. I follow Lance Armstrong on there, and a few months ago he tweeted (I still hate that word) about a little boy named Pablo, and linked to the Pablog. So I went and read. Pablo was five at the time, and was battling cancer; the blog was for updates from his family. I of course don’t know these people AT ALL, but I love a good blog (and Jeff, Pablo’s dad and the site’s main updater, is a good writer). And the story of Pablo sucked me in. I mean, what a cute kid!

Pablo Thrailkill Castelaz

Shortly after I started reading this blog early this summer, Pablo passed away – he was only six years and six days old. I won’t even get into how unjust and cruel it is that a small child would have to face such a terrible disease; it’s a fucked-up fact of life. The thing is, while Pablo’s family was able to comfortably care for him (his dad is the head of Dangerbird Records), they know that many people are not able to give their sick kids the same level of care. So Pablo’s family, while he was still alive, started The Pablove Foundation to improve the lives of kids with cancer, both in L.A. (specifically to the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, which provides care to anyone – regardless of the family’s ability to pay) and nationally.

So why am I writing all this, about a kid and family I do not know? Well, Pablo’s dad is setting out on a remarkable trek – he is about to bike across the United States, from Florida to California, to raise money for The Pablove Foundation. They’re just getting started and pretty grassroots (despite their Lance Armstrong connection), so I wanted to put this out on my blog – if even one person is able to donate to Jeff’s ride, then this was worth my time!

And I promise, more blogs about frivolous topics soon

Decisions, Decisions 8 September, 2009

Borders sent me a 30% off coupon, good for one item, that’s only good tomorrow – and we all know it’s because of all The Beatles stuff they have coming out tomorrow! I mean, just look at the items on this link:

http://www.borders.com/online/store/MediaView_beatles

I think I’m going to go with using it on The Beatles Trivial Pursuit…at least that’s something I can play now!

Well, maybe 10 things YOU didn’t know… 8 September, 2009

In honor of Beatlemania Redux, The Mirror has gathered up a list of “Ten Fab Facts You Didn’t Know About The Beatles“. Let’s be frank – they weren’t all things I didn’t know. I knew 5 – but not 5 of the others (number 7? About Cher? I didn’t have a clue about that!). But my favorite fact that I learned is this:

2. At 2:58 in Hey Jude Paul McCartney can be faintly heard saying “Oh, fucking hell” after he made a mistake during the recording of the song

You know I pulled out my phone to listen to the song as soon as I read that – and yes, you can hear it. Isn’t it crazy that you can have heard something, well, god only knows how many times, and still not have heard everything?

Listen for yourself…this isn’t the real video for the song, as that version doesn’t include the slip-up.

(not the greatest quality audio…)

It’s Beatlemania Here on the Blog! 8 September, 2009

Tomorrow, 9/9/09, both The Beatles: Rock Band and remastered editions all of The Beatles albums will be released. Woo! It might not be quite as big as 6/1/67, but it’s up there. So, in honor of that – and because I have to make due with not buying Beatles: Rock Band just yet – I’ll be posting beaucoup Beatles this week!

Happy Birthday, Blog! 3 September, 2009

I realized late last night that I’d started the blog exactly one year before, on September 2, 2008. Obviously I went to bed instead of blogging about it – so I’m doing so now, quickly! I’ll blog much more soon…I’ve just not been into it the past couple of weeks. I have a long weekend coming up, and I’m sure I’ll be blogging then. I mean, I still haven’t blogged about that Britney Spears concert…

Find Evan Ratliff 20 August, 2009

Okay, Wired Magazine has an unique “open source” game going on – they want you to find one of their writers.

Evan Ratliff

Evan Ratliff wrote a story for Wired about people who choose to “fall off the grid”, to disappear (it’s an interesting read, and you can do so here). So now, as a sort-of companion piece to that story, Evan himself is disappearing. For 30 days (August 15-September 15), Evan is going to leave behind his home, family, friends – everything. The challenge is to find him; if you do, you get $5,000. And that’s Evan’s motivation for staying hidden: if he’s found, then $3,000 of the award money has to come out of his own pocket, from his fees for writing the story.

So what’s really interesting is that the magazine is hosting the ‘hunt’. They’re helping provide clues (though nobody at the magazine knows where he is, either), the sort of things a private investigator would have access to – credit card purchases, license plates, etc. The challenge is for others to investigate and find more info. The whole thing is fun – well, to me. I’m a big nerd. But really, it’s pretty interesting – and completely original.

So! Want to follow along? You can here:

- The original post about this ‘game’
- http://www.wired.com/vanish/ : the wired.com blog about the search
- http://findevanratliff.blogspot.com/ – a blog someone else set up
- On Twitter: @nxthompson, @EvanOffGrid, and @EvansVanished

Have fun playing detective

The Washington Post on “Right Wing Rage” 17 August, 2009

My worldly friend Matt (how’s Papua New Guinea treating you?) posted Rick Perlstein’s OpEd piece from the Washington Post on Facebook…and I thought it was good, so I’m stealing it. It’s basically a reminder that irrational outrage is nothing new. My favorite bit is this:

The various elements — the liberal earnestly confused when rational dialogue won’t hold sway; the anti-liberal rage at a world self-evidently out of joint; and, most of all, their mutual incomprehension — sound as fresh as yesterday’s news. (Internment camps for conservatives? That’s the latest theory of tea party favorite Michael Savage.)

Now, before anyone says anything: I know there are rational concerns about the health care overhaul, and not everyone that is against it is ‘crazy’. But death panels? Seriously? Oh, and people: Medicare is a form of socialized health care. All I’m saying is: fight with reason, not with irrational rage.

You can read the Perlstein piece here. Check out the White House’s site about health care reform here.

Obama and “The Gays” 6 August, 2009

My friend Austin shared a commentary written by Dan Savage in this month’s Advocate, and I wanted to share it here. In it, he talks about why the Gay and Lesbian (or LGBTQAMSNOVP) community supported Obama…

Remember when he practically spooned Melissa Etheridge during the Logo–Human Rights Campaign debate? Remember when he positioned himself to the left of Hillary Clinton on the Defense of Marriage Act? While Clinton came out in favor of a partial repeal, Obama said he favored — and would fight for — a complete repeal, and described DOMA as “abhorrent.”

That was pretty sweet.

Then there was Barack Obama’s open letter to the gay community. “Equality is a moral imperative,” candidate Obama wrote, before reiterating his promise to repeal DOMA. He also promised to end “don’t ask, don’t tell,” to pressure Congress to pass the Matthew Shepard hate-crimes act, and to lift the HIV travel ban. And then this line in particular jumped out at me, as it must have for other gay parents: “As your President, I will use the bully pulpit to urge states to treat same-sex couples with full equality in their family and adoption laws.”

…and why he is now making us angry:

…his Department of Justice chose to celebrate the beginning of Gay Pride Month by defending DOMA, leaning on every bigoted argument against marriage equality that Pat Robertson ever advanced.

and

Take “don’t ask, don’t tell.” During the campaign Obama promised to “end” the ban on gays in the military, but now he talks about “changing” it. Apparently, the president hopes to find some middle ground, a “bipartisan solution,” some compromise that pleases both advocates of gay equality and raving antigay bigots. Someone needs to tell the president that “don’t ask, don’t tell,” crafted in 1993 by the Clinton administration, was the split-the-difference middle ground, it was the “bipartisan” compromise, and it’s proved to be as unworkable as it is unjust.

The way Obama has “dealt” with gays and lesbians (and their allies) sucks. Really, really sucks. And so I’m torn…I’m mad – really mad – at Obama, but not in the way the angry conservatives (and irrational bigots) are. My anger could be mollified. Outside of the gay & lesbian issue, I have no problems with Obama…but the thing is, the gay & lesbian issue IS my issue. We all have that one “thing” that we’re most passionate about, and civil rights is mine. Gays & Lesbians deserve equal rights – period. Obama isn’t delivering – period.

The worst part is, if he’s not, who would? Clinton promised us less, and it was her husband’s administration who created a lot of the anti-gay laws (DOMA and DADT) that we’re trying to repeal today. And a Republican? McCain or anyone else? Forgetaboutit. As angry as I am at Obama, I have to remind myself that it could be worse; lest we forget, Bush and the Republicans ran their 2004 campaign on passing an amendment to the constitution that would have stripped gays and lesbians of equal rights. So things aren’t as bad, comparatively…

I haven’t given up hope on Obama, I think just because I can’t – it’s too awful. And outside of that stupid DOJ briefing (I will never, ever understand the rationale for that Bush-era p.o.s.), I can’t say it’s not completely unexpected. (though you have to wonder why they can’t repeal DADT at least, something most people support, and something that everyone in the country would benefit from). The worst thing, to me, is that a person who campaigned as being strong for equal rights; a person that was able to be elected while being strong for equal rights, STILL ISN’T DELIVERING. So there’s the sense of hopelessness – we’re a small minority group, and they know they “have” us. “Things would be worse under Republicans (or at least they would going by the rule of the last 15+ years)”, Dems think, “so why would gays and lesbians change their loyalty?”. And the sick thing is, it’s true; things could be worse. And I know eventually change will come, as progress can’t be stopped; no amount of right-wing, fundie hatred will put gays and lesbians back in the closet. But when? And how can we make this happen? Because voting for the man that was for us sure didn’t do the job.

Anyway, read Dan Savage’s article – he’s a better writer than I.