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United States, North Carolina, Carrboro, English, Paul, Male, 56-60, All Music, All Food.

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Saturday, October 18, 2003

I'm probably totally out of it, but I hadn't been reading The Boondocks until the Washington Post pulled this week’s strip. I’d seen Aaron McGruder on Real Time with Bill Maher and was impressed enough by his wit and intelligence to find his site, but I only read one or two strips and forgot about it. Now I learn that the Post has never before killed an entire week of a comic strip and I’m curious what could be so tasteless, so objectionable, so disgusting? Condi Rice’s love life, that’s what. I agree that it’s not contemplation for those with weak stomachs. Certainly not something you’d want to read over your morning corn flakes, so maybe they did the right thing. However, if you’re not digestively challenged, you can still read the entire missing week at uComics. As with most acts of censorship, all that has been accomplished is to pique interest. Here’s the explanation: Post Executive Editor Leonard Downie Jr. comes right to the point: "The Boondocks strips in question commented on the private life of the national security adviser and its relationship to her official duties in ways that violated our standards for taste, fairness and invasion of privacy." As for the lack of an explanation, he says: "We edit all parts of the paper every day, including the comics, and do not usually notify readers about what we are not publishing or why." 10:38:33 PM    comment []

The goal is to heat up this lard with a little habanero extract, simmering just below the boiling point of water. Once the habs are dry, the oil will be heated to 360º F and then it’s time to fry up some pork rinds. I did this with the same lard a while back using ripe jalapenos. It showed promise, but the pork rinds could stand a little more heat. 2:58:41 PM    comment []

Mushrooms Galore Those crazy people at Harris Teeter are selling mushrooms for 99 cents a pound! White mushrooms, oyster, shiitake, cremini, and portabella. I got out early to get the pick of the lot and ended up with five pounds. The first store was sold out of shiitake, but the second one had a bunch of 'em. 10:52:27 AM    comment []

Remember where you parked 10:18:52 AM    comment []

6:00 am isn’t prime time, not even for NPR, but I’m often listening to the radio at then – even on Saturday. The show I just heard was On The Media and before you think stereotypes check out this week’s lead story – a defense of Clear Channel! But that’s not why I’m writing this. Every week when I hear the show’s theme music, I say to Twyla, “Damn! That sounds like Zappa, but I can’t name it.”     Now I can name it. First of all, it isn’t Zappa – but that is a high compliment. It was written by young composer/bassist Ben Allison. It is called Theme Music – catchy title, don’cha think? The group Medicine Wheel (also a CD title – but Theme Music isn’t included) performs it. Here’s their lineup:         Medicine Wheel. Michael Blake - saxophone Ron Horton - trumpet Frank Kimbrough - piano Tomas Ulrich - cello Daniel Freedman - drums Ben Allison - bass   You can read a review (NYT, on PDF at Ben’s site). The group is described as an octet there. Here’s a similar taste profile from Amazon:   Customers who bought titles by Ben Allison also bought titles by these artists: ·         Wayne Shorter ·         Scolohofo ·         The Bad Plus ·         Dave Douglas ·         Branford Marsalis   7:33:37 AM    comment []

While the odds we’ll snag Osama or Saddam are increasingly remote, they are still finite. That’s why we’re lucky to have Jerry Boykin who says “the enemy is a guy named Satan,” because there’s absolutely no chance we’ll nab him. Why ruin a good war by having an end in sight?   Boykin also believes the President was “appointed by God,” perhaps unconsciously inserting the word “Being” between “Supreme” and “Court.”   As Vinnie said in My Blue Heaven, “You see a problem, I see an opportunity.” After token resistance, Congress has approved $87 billion in welfare for recently devastated Iraq. Why should taxpayers foot the bill when there’s an ample reservoir of religious fanatics willing to send their life savings to televangelists like Falwell and Robertson? They could have Boykin on for a fund-raising telethon and raise gazillions for a faith-based initiative in our country’s war against The Evil One. It would still be a lot of money, but it wouldn’t be our money. 4:59:55 AM    comment []