Crawford newspaper that bills itsself as "Bush's hometown paper" endorses Kerry for president:

"Four items trouble us the most about the Bush administration: his initiatives to disable the Social Security system, the deteriorating state of the American economy, a dangerous shift away from the basic freedoms established by our founding fathers, and his continuous mistakes regarding Iraq." (Via Salon)

Last night Kim and I went to dinner at Sammy Chu's because even though I loathe the Empire-esque / East Sac-Land Park (rich) snots that it seems to attract, I am a slave to their crispy tofu and the dried green beans. And let's not even speak of the ginger kamikazes or the mango with sticky rice shall we? As such, weeknights are a good time for places like Sammy Chu's...it's less crowded and the people seem less, well, icky. Because it's usually not as busy on a Wednesday as compared to, say a Saturday night, I found it really hilarious when the hostess asked us if we had a reservation.

In Sacramento? On a Wednesday night? Oh please...we're growing up, but not that fast.

Tomorrow: SF for some work and then dinner and another performance of The Black Rider. I'm taking the train down - which if you've never done it - is a lovely trip between Sac and SF (no, really). Cory's meeting me at the corner of Powell & Whatever at Some Time (details TBA) and he'll chauffeur me home. Unless he's still feeling sick and then in that case I'm getting a giant coffee somewhere and blasting the stereo all the way to the H street exit.

It's the best thing Woody Allen's said in years:
"If you observe [Bush], it's quite amusing. If you listen to him as he speaks, if you follow him closely, it would provide you a great many laughs. But it's . . . comic moments against a very, very tragic background."
(via Page Six)

Also, for those of you who woefully weren't aware of this fact: Dan Rather was my Anderson Cooper long before Anderson Cooper became my new Anderson Cooper (or new Dan Rather? ...Anyway)...so I'll admit that through good times and bad times (uh, hello, like now) I always hold on to a bit of affection for the crazy-talking Texan (maybe it's the Texas part? Maybe it's the crazy-talking? Perhaps just his inimitable blend of the two?)

Anyway, also from Page 6...this:

AS if Dan Rather didn't have enough problems, a new off-Broadway play is dredging up one of the strangest episodes in the CBS anchor's life. Playwright Paul Allman's dark comedy "Kenneth — What Is the Frequency?" is based on the 1986 mystery in which two well-dressed men beat Rather up outside his Upper East Side home while repeating that phrase. (The bizarre beat-down inspired R.E.M.'s song, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?") Fresh from a critically acclaimed run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the play debuts here Oct. 21 at 78th Street Theatre Lab.

Really, what other newscaster inspires such art?

It's the first day of fall and I'm sitting here listening to the Go-Betweens, wishing it was going to be only 60 degrees today and not 90.

But really, what difference does a span of 30 degrees really matter? I'm in an air-conditioned room most of the time anyway.

I slept 10 hours last night and am finally feeling, well not quite normal ... but you know...OK.

Santa Cruz, you're not that far...

Well, when I said I didn't want to miss the first rain of the season, torrential downpour and hail isn't quite what I had in mind. Luckily, when we finally returned home late yesterday afternoon the water had subsided, we did not need a canoe to reach our house and there were no puddles in our living room from our sometimes-leaky roof.

The Highway One trip and Santa Cruz were beyond lovely and I may post pictures later. Among the favorite things: Pumpkin patches, riding the rollercoaster (it feels as though it's been years since the last time I did that...though in reality it's only been since Sept. 2001), really good food and, of course, the ocean.

Now, back at home with a vacation hangover and dealing with the fact that life just sort of goes on without you, regardless of your best intentions.

Random Friday musings:

• Last night's class did not suck. This is a good thing.


• This morning Cory made me hide the new Paris Hilton memoir because he didn't want the washer repair guy to say something like heh, heh...you guys are into Paris Hilton...


• I am so craving junk food right now...yet at the same time I want something healthy and organic and fresh...I think this means I need to hit up the Co-Op for dinner.


• The only really bad things about going out of town this weekend are 1) I will miss our cats...2)It's supposed to rain here on Sunday and I don't want to miss the first rain of the season.

OK, that's it...I am really really hungry right now...

Kinko's surveillance camera solves CBS document source mystery!!! (Via Instapundit)

Confidential to Bobby: What video editing software did you use for that "Ted Dancing" clip? (Said clip is very kick-ass by the way...)

Goodbye Johnny Ramone.

Big congrats to Judy Blume for the news on receiving an honorary National Book Award...although it would have been nice to see her win one back in the day for Deenie or Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing or Forever (OK, maybe not Forever ... I think that book was over-hyped --because of all the juicy bit, of course). I recently re-read Are You There God, It's Me Margaret and was pleased to find it as compelling a read as when I was 11.

Erg...way too much to think about. Been sick. Cat's even sicker...poor baby. Too much homework. Too much work-work. Santa Cruz this weekend (so what the hell am I complaining about???). Volunteering here last Saturday and wanting to do something similar in Sac --but where to start??? Billy Bragg on the iPod, the Black Rider and a broken washing machine.

More later.

It's been a crazy, hectic, mind-numbing, sometimes depressing week ....but tonight there is artistic relief via The Black Rider. While I'm thrilled to see this William Burroughs-written production because I'ver heard it's wonderful and because, of course, Marianne Faithful is in it, I would go see it even if it'd been deemed a giant stinking no-star mess because it also features my beloved Mary Margaret O'Hara.

I think I must be America's biggest M20H fan....OK, that sounds like such a stupid thing to say, but someday I'll post my story of meeting Miss O'Hara at the 2001 Harry Smith Festival and, well...anyway, her one and only full-length album, "Miss America," has been my favorite since 1989 and this will mark only the second time that I've seen the Canadian singer perform in person since that time.

Many thanks to Steve for the live CD....

And a full report on the show later....

According to Chicago's NBC news station, llinois Republican U.S. Senate candidate (by way of Maryland) Alan Keyes knows the answer to What Would Jesus Do --at least when it comes to Keyes's political battle against Barak Obama

Keyes, who has focused his campaign on abortion, said that his statement about whom Jesus would vote for was based on Obama's pro-choice votes in the Illinois Senate.

"Christ would not stand idly by while an infant child in that situation died," Keyes said. "And I'm not the only person, obviously, who thinks if you are a representative of me, I cannot vote for you if you would ignore the dignity and claims of that child's life. So, yes, I did respond quite logically -- you'll see it's quite logical, right -- with the conclusion that Christ would not vote for Barack Obama, because Barack Obama has voted to behave in a way that it is inconceivable for Christ to have behaved."

Keyes also reportedly accuses Obama of racism. Oh, and he's also a socialist.

Sigh. It's only September 7th...exactly eight more weeks of this fun left to go. (Via Talking Points Memo).

p.s...I will say, however, that my trip with Suzannah to this place was like a vacation ...or at least a mind trip. A wannabe frat boy from Yuba City said I reminded him of his sister (and for that he almost got decked), a girl kissed me on the cheek and there were jello shots and $2 shooters at every turn.

Sheesh. The things I do for my job sometimes. Really, I know you're jealous...ha....well, at least the company was good; I'm lucky to have friends willing to go through battle with me.

Well, I'll admit that my Labor Day weekend wasn't quite what I envisioned...no barbecues, no trips to the waterfront, no long drives to nowhere...in fact I even had to work yesterday (but the nice trade-off is that I get a four-day weekend starting Thursday). Still, I did manage to sleep in a little, get in some shopping, creative loafing etc....we also had dinner with some friends on Saturday night and drank beer and tequeila shots and last night Cory & I went out for a quiet dinner and then a short drive while we listened to the new Rilo Kiley.

Today I've got the iPod blasting power pop (thanks to C. for loading about 500 more songs for me this wekend) and it's a good way to approach a Tuesday that's really a Monday - and one that promises to be scorching at that.

Also, I think it's been decided that I'm the only one in the book group wants to read Maureen Dowd's 500-plus opinion opus so if anyone out there has any ideas for a good book to suggest...I'd greatly appreciate it...something decidedly non-Oprah-esque, but perhaps a few degrees shy of, say, The Sound & the Fury. Right now my tastes are leaning towards Virgina Woolf fare (which I don't think will go over well) or stuff like Courtney Eldridge's Unkempt collection but I can hear the complaints about that one now: all the narrators are so self-absorbed, I didn't like them What can I say? I like self-absorbed....well sometimes.

Me, studying yesterday at the Curtis Park cafe, bored because this genius, groundbreaking novel is a goddamned difficult read - especially on a hot, sunny day.

I'm not sure what's going on - are the planets and stars in some weird state of flux? Is everything misaligned? Maligned?

Last night I felt frustrated after class and started to cry. I stopped myself ButI should have played the Madonna greatest hits CD on the way homeinstead of the new Elliot Smith because, of course, that just made me melancholy.

This morning I woke up at 6 a.m. and, feeling anxious as I have for much of this week, couldn't go back to sleep. So I went for a run and tried to clear my head.

It helped, a little.

But then, watching the news this morning (children taken hostage/killed/emotionally scarred for life in Russia, disaster in the apocolyptic state of Florida, election crap, etc) I wanted to cry again. And I did, in the bathroom, for a second. That's all I could allow for however because there's work to be done, things to accomplish, places to go, people to see.

Then I learned that my uncle Herman who'd been fighting cancer for the last few years, died. He and my aunt - my father's sister - were married 25 years.

Herman was a fabulous person who played a merciless game of Monopoly - even against, no especially against 12-year-old girls.

Really, I think I just need to take an hour here or there and let it all out with a good sob.

Today is getting on my nerves.