Smokin' in the Boy's Room

Everyone remembers this almost sacred ritual of middle school with fondness. Ah, to be 14 again (ok, so nobody has ever wanted that, except for maybe Romeo, so he could not kill himself while his star-crossed lover yet lived). Anyway, I went to the public library yesterday, was browsing the bookshelf, and happened on this little ditty, "The Art of Smoking." My thoughts immediately turned to Brownsville Station and their reminiscent ballad to illegal behavior. So what if I was in the cooking section? My masculinity is still intact because 1. chicks like guys who will cook for them, 2. smoking is right alongside barbecuing as masculine methods of cooking, and 3. the first thing I thought of was really tobacco use, even though I was in the cooking section. I wish I had a candy cigarette to take a picture with-it's cold enough outside that my breath would look like smoke to a camera. Just imagine it in your mind. As an afterthought I realize that Motley Crue's Smokin' in the Boy's Room rooks harder, but on that fateful afternoon I thought of Brownsville Station first.

Lollipop

I found the Goodwill Industries store in Pasco today and I'll tell you, I was like a kid in a candy store. What a great place! It's twice as big and twice as awesome as the Goodwill in Richland-I just had no idea where it was. I got a few books, a board game, a dish, and I finally found a green vest-so don't worry, St. Patrick's Day is going to go off without a hitch. I've been looking for a green vest at every store I could think of for weeks-nothing. Finally, I saw the Goodwill truck today after leaving the Senior Center in Pasco-and I followed it to Mecca. That's right, Im like a wiley, ethical ambulance chaser.

So I'll tell you like I told my less intimate facebook friends: the party is probably March 20th at 9 or 10pm at The Avalanche Restaurant in Richland, WA. There will be music, jigging, pictures with a Leprachaun, and of course lots of (soda) drinking. This year we will have root beer pong, and dice, card, and dart games, plus more! It will be a blast as always. This is basically what I've been doing with my life-planning St. Patrick's Day. I don't have any other updates to add. Besides being like a kid in a candy store, I assume I'm the guy the Chordettes were singing about.

Only a Pawn in Their Game

Those who know me and the unschooled in rock and folk protest classics may think this post is about chess, Robert "Bobby" Fischer, or my former job title, "Chessmaster Tyler." However, while chess can be an interesting parlor game of strategy, Bobby Fischer was an important part of the U.S. victory in the cold war, (think Rocky IV when Rocky KO'd Drago and captured the hearts of the USSR, but insert Bobby and the evil steroid-induced mastermind Boris Spasky for Rocky and Drago) and those days as a "chessmaster" were formative for me, there is a much more important meaning in the title. Weirdly enough today is the 2nd anniversary of Bobby Fischer's death, but as Robert Zimmerman (Bob Dylan) fans know we are here to talk about Medgar Evers' assassination on June 12, 1963.

Mr. Evers was a civil rights activist and the first Mississippi Field Secretary for the NAACP. I'll let you read about his life and legacy at the link I provided. I think of him this time of year because of Nobel Laurette Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his work in the civil rights arena and subsequent assassination, (which you can read about at the link above). It is Martin Luther King Jr. Day tomorrow for those of you you have no idea what I'm talking about.

Zimmerman was outraged at Mr. Evers' death and wrote a protest song blaming his death on southern politicians. Arguing that the poor, uneducated, white southern man was a pawn in the hands of the southern politicians who wanted Mr. Evers dead, Zimmerman claimed that these grifty politicians avoided spending money on needed social programs and soothed white discontent by assuring them that "you got more than blacks don't complain. You're better than them, you been born with white skin..." This way they ease white unrest and gain a compatriot in the fight against desegregation and equality. Zimmerman claims politicians tacitly egged on the lynchers and then turned a blind eye to the murderous results. Here of course he shifts responsibility for the murder and the general racial injustice from the murderer and individuals to the government (a favorite ploy of protesters to absolve themselves of any guilt) . Whatever the case, Mr. Evers and Dr. King worked tirelessly until their untimely demise to erase or at least ease the racism and injustice ingrained upon their world. They tried to change the social order of things, and were killed for their efforts. May we never be guilty of such a crime.

Crumblin' Down

My friend Cherif is a member of the local electrician's union. The union has no work right now because "it's too cold for electricity." That's weird because I'm typing on a computer by the light of a light bulb, and a space heater is warming up my legs. Anyway, he knew I am also contributing little or nothing to society at this time (at least I'm a grad student who's a drain) so he called me up and asked me to help him fell a pesky wall in his home. I guess he just has too many rooms. I assumed it would either be like a TV show with lots of sledge hammers or we would be blowing horns and walking around his house a lot. He had one little 3 lbs. hammer and I guess Muslim's don't have shofars and don't exactly hold to Joshua's conquest/usurpation of the Holy Land. Needless to say, I was disappointed. But with some power tools and grunting that wall came crumblin', tumblin' down.
John Cougar's walls also came crumblin' down today as his melodious tones came whimpering though my weak laptop speakers. Some people make New Year's resolutions to break down "walls" in their life be they mental, physical, spiritual, social, cultural, economic, or institutional. I go out there and break down the wall.

Mormons, Mormons, Mormons!

We made it to the aughts! Just 9 days 'til Christmas. Garfield says that the greatest thing about Christmas is "the insomnia and anxiety kids get from having to wait." I feel ya buddy. It looks like the snow is going to melt all away before Christmas-we just need it to snow again to have a white Christmas.

To make this Christmas a little more special for my readers of the Latter-day Saint faith I've included this link. Watch the Mormon "tap"ranacle choir perform Max Weinberg's holiday song he wrote especially for Mormons.

Here I Go Again

Another quarter of school started for me today. I had last week off and spent my time getting ready for Christmas and sleeping in. That was really nice, but I'm back to the grind now. So far I've learned that (much to my surprise) statistics is not gobbledy gook, and health disparities exist not because of individual choices, but because of the Man. While I am supposed to have the support of an online community in my studies, I feel "like a drifter I was born to walk alone." But it's okay because I have David Coverdale to keep me company, and as you can see from the above clip that's all it takes to make one happy. Merry Christmas to all.

Christmas

About 8 months ago my now 3 year old nephew, with a serious look on his face, started wispering to his mom "let's talk about Christmas." That boy is a big fan of unwraping presents and everything else we associate with Christmas. Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, it is finally time to talk about Christmas. I just finshed getting my tree and decorations up today. Last night my roommate got home and I was wrapping presents in a decorated apartment, wearing my new santa hat, while Christmas music played on the radio. The only thing missing was the smell of cookies baking.

The Who's epic rock opera Tommy isn't usually discussed for its ties to Christmas. However, on one of Tommy's childhood Christmas mornings, Townshend poses the query; being deaf, dumb, and blind, (and thus not knowing who Jesus was or what praying is) "how can he [Tommy] be saved?" (Note of explanation: This is footage from the movie Tommy dubbed over with the original version from The Who.)

While we're giving to charities and developing the Christmas spirit of post-visitation Scrooge, let's remember the reason for the season and spend time looking at the creche and thinking about why Tommy without a knowledge of Jesus can indeed be saved from the eternal grave.