Objectivity Is A Very Spurious Idea

Back on the dole. My contract ended Friday so it’s back to sending out resumes and getting rejection letters. I don’t feel too bad, though. Tomorrow is, for all intents and purposes, my first day of unemployment so I can forestall any shame until then.

Much to my surprise, I received and Excellence in Writing Award from my editor for my review of the latest Willard Grant Conspiracy album. Apparently she really dug my Grant Wood analogy. It proved inspiring and I was able to write up a couple more reviews yesterday. I was really impressed with Zar’s Tusind Tanker. I don’t know squat about Danish folk music or understand the language but I really liked the album nonetheless. Next up is a Cowboy Junkies CD. I really don’t care for the Junkies but I volunteered to review in a vain attempt to get into their music.

Speaking of music, I’m downloading some interesting shows. In addition to the usual coterie of much-maligned progressive rock stuff, I’ve also got me Dick Dale and Southern Culture on the Skids gigs on their way. I also picked up Uncle Tupelo’s Still Feel Gone last week. I’ve gotten into this habit (good or bad: you decide) of going to Mad City Music and then stopping in at A Woman’s Touch. Buy some new tunes and then some condoms. I think one clerk smirked when she saw that I had a copy of Jethro Tull’s Stormwatch a couple weeks ago. However, the UT album elicited some nice comments from the woman behind the counter last week. Is it beyond the bounds of propriety to hit on the employees of a sex-positive store?

Pete has moved out and now the basement is all mine. I’ve got my computer setup and I brought some books down here as well. The map of Middle Earth that Ronaldo gave me is being framed and will hung on an as of yet undetermined wall to let those who venture into the basement know that they’ve entered my geeky realm. This will leave me with some more space in my bedroom when I get around to removing the empty desk and bookshelf. I’ll probably drag my dresser from its hiding spot in the closet and perhaps hang a couple of these 19th century Japanese wood block print thingies I have. My inabilities as an interior decorator are only eclipsed by that as a nuclear particle physicist. I’ve been threatening to buy window coverings for my bedroom for 2 years now but have never followed through.

Being a computer technician, the Internet and all things computer-related have an intrinsic novelty value for me. I’ve kept abreast of the progress of the next iteration of Windoze called Longhorn. (You may have heard that WinFS was dropped from it.) I download little utilities that I use perhaps once a year and even some I’ve never used. But that’s how it goes. A routine part of my life is encountering people who either don’t know much about computers or dislike them or both. My mom is a classic technophobe though she is getting better. I’ve met some people who have never been on the Internet and fail to see what all the hubbub is. And I understand their view. Exactly how much will going to McDonald’s web site enrich your life? Online banking is a convenience but certainly not a necessity. But I recently found something wonderful on the Net. Two sites which are not only interesting, they are proving themselves to almost be a necessity in this sound byte age. Only in the past few days have I discovered the wonders that are c-span.org and booktv.org. There are dozens and dozens of shows archived at these two sites that can be watched online. I’m watching a 3-hour interview with Howard Zinn right now. In addition to lefties as himself, there’s also shows with conservative guests like William F. Buckley, Jr. I tried watching one with Harold Bloom but he was getting over heart(?) surgery and I just couldn’t take his babbling. A real shame. In addition to speeches and interviews with authors at BookTV, C-Span’s site is brimming with speeches and Congressional hearings and more interviews. One can read a few quotes or see a couple excerpts from a hearing on the news but here you can watch the whole hearing. All the context for the quotes is there. You can see the vitriol in a Congressman’s eyes as he grills John Ashcroft. And you can see the calmness with which Ashcroft engages in circumlocution. Just fantastic stuff.

Another spot to check out is PBS.org. Some episodes of Frontline and NOW with Bill Moyers are there for viewing over the Net. And if you wanna record any of these things, here’s a couple handy programs for you. So when you wanna take a break from porn, there’s some stuff for you to check out.

My Dulcinea left a little while ago. Her hubby has moved out and she’s left to make a home again. Not only in the sense of getting some new furniture but also in creating a home without a father living there. I don’t envy the position she’s in. But she is an incredibly strong woman and I know she and her sons will pull through. I have tremendous respect for her and her ability to get through all the shit she’s had to deal with in the past couple years. Although I don’t find any great emotional bonds between her and me, I am happy to give her all the sex she wants.

I’m debating about what to do today. I’m contemplating going to Best But or some equivalent to get a CD player for my bedroom. I’ve got an amp and speakers but want to be able to listen to the radio. Not only has it been ages since I’ve listened to WORT outside of the confines of my car but Air America will be on our airwaves tomorrow, methinks. In addition, I want to be able to listen to music from my collections as well as audio dramas and audiobooks. I’m also contemplating heading over to Toad Hill and doing some reading. I’m in the middle of God’s Secretaries. It’s about the making of the King James Bible. Very interesting story. And a bit harrowing too. The parallels between King James & his Secretary of State Robert Cecil are eerily similar to Dubya and Cheney. A rather ineffectual leader with a strong subordinate really calling the shots. Plus the Gunpowder Plot and 9/11 come across as being brethren. That should be a quick read. Then I can get back into Naomi Klein’s No Logo. I hope she doesn’t mind too much that I snagged it from the Net. While the book is interesting, her desire to couch nearly everything in catchy terms and to use as many hip analogies as possible makes things tedious at times.

I suppose I should do some shopping too. Methinks it’s gonna be curry for dinner tonight. Perhaps I’d better not if I intend to go see Dream Theater.