Who I am…
I am a lawyer, former mother of teenagers, and a quixotic seeker after and champion of factual truth.
I make the best damn brownies you have ever had that are not regulated by the federal government.
I love movies, Broadway, and intelligent conversation.
I think in song lyrics and movie and television quotes.
I believe in the use of proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar even in text messages. I am willing to debate the use of the Oxford comma, if you know what the Oxford comma is. It also makes me very happy if people use the subjunctive mood when appropriate.
I have been told I intimidate people. I am really just a fluffy-centered teddy bear. Really.
- It's all my fault. No, really. The views expressed in this blog are mine and mine alone and in no way whatsoever represent the views of anyone else, including any past, present, or future employer.
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Words to live by ….
“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8.
“Pray for the dead, fight like hell for the living.” Mary Harris (“Mother Jones”).
“Don’t boo. Vote.” Barack Obama.
“Man’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.” Reinhold Niebuhr.
“No one ever thinks of themselves as one of Them. We’re always one of Us. It’s Them that do the bad things.” Sir Terry Pratchett.
“Damning facts are still facts.” Steven C. Holtzman.
“If you don’t stick to your values when they’re tested, they’re not values — they’re hobbies.” Jon Stewart.
“Darkness never sustains, even though it sometimes seems it will.” Doctor Who.
“Writing is a form of mischief.” Stephen Sondheim.
“An idea is not responsible for the people who believe it.” Don Marquis.
“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it’s not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That’s why it’s your path.” Joseph Campbell.
“Truth is our strongest ally, our biggest weapon, and our best defense.” Me.
“Reality has a well-known liberal bias.” Stephen Colbert.
“The opposite of war isn’t peace, it’s creation.” Jonathan Larson.
“We live through times when hate and fear seem stronger.
We rise and fall, and light from dying embers
Remembrances that hope and love last longer.
And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love;
Cannot be killed or swept aside.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda.“If I can’t dance, I don’t want to be part of your revolution.” Emma Goldman.
“No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Samuel Beckett.
“I believe that the God who made (among other things) light, and space, and number, and time, and the spiral curve of Fibonacci numbers, must be acknowledged to understand more than I do about why there’s pain in the world.” Teresa Neilsen Hayden.
“No, it’s not fair. You’re in the wrong universe for fair.” John Scalzi.
“Liberals got women the right to vote. Liberals got African-Americans the right to vote. Liberals created Social Security and lifted millions of elderly people out of poverty. Liberals ended segregation. Liberals passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act. Liberals created Medicare. Liberals passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act. So when you try to hurl that label at my feet, ‘Liberal,’ as if it were something to be ashamed of, something dirty, something to run away from, it won’t work, because I will pick up that label and I will wear it as a badge of honor.” Lawrence O’Donnell
“So keep fightin’ for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin’ ass and celebratin’ the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.” Molly Ivins.
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Category Archives: Music
"I’m the friendly stranger in the black sedan…"
Well, hey, I’m the friendly stranger In the black sedan Won’t you hop inside my car I got pictures, I got candy I’m a lovable man Let me take you to the nearest star “Vehicle,” The Ides of March. Everyone … Continue reading
Another new song. Heh.
I have been living in a cave for quite a while: I just discovered Cee Lo Green’s “F*** You.” I am in love. I am sitting in the public library with my head phones, and grinning ear to ear and … Continue reading
Music of the soul.
Darkness is a harsh term don’t you think?And yet it dominates the things I seek“Roll Away Your Stone,” Mumford and Sons. So, you buy the new music. You listen with one ear and half your brain, thinking “that’s really nice” … Continue reading
Visioning music.
There is no day so bad that Aaron Copeland’s “Appalachian Spring” will not make it better. I close my eyes, and I am back east, in the Smokies. I can see the light leaves on the maples and birches budding … Continue reading
Did you know that "earworm" is the literal translation of the German "ohrwurm"? Now you do!
At any given time, I don’t really get an earworm. I get earworms, plural. All too often, one tune will chase another around my head like squirrels around a tree. Sometimes, it starts with something I hear, which for melodic, … Continue reading
I’m illiterate in classical music, remember?
I just asked the people in the room (Railfan and The Red-Headed Menace) if they would mind me playing music.* Since I knew they would not be happy with me playing my standards playlist (see yesterday’s post), I asked if … Continue reading
Phantom of the iTunes
How in the world did I end up purchasing “Heart of Glass” by Blondie? I don’t even really like it. And while I like the Fine Young Cannibals’ “She Drives Me Crazy” okay, I can’t remember buying it. Nor can … Continue reading
Today’s playlist
What I am listening to in the car today, as selected last night: “Cloudy” Simon & Garfunkel“Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight ” James Taylor“Don’t Ask Me Why” Billy Joel“Down in the Boondocks” Billy Joe Royal“Drops … Continue reading
Dear Josh Groban…
I love your Christmas music. Your voice seems tailored to fit well with traditional religious carols. However, when you changed the words to “What Child Is This?” you not only lost the theological meaning, you lost much of the human … Continue reading
New Christmas music
Each year, I add a few songs to my collection of Christmas music. Last year it was Josh Groban. This year it is… Straight No Chaser, “The Twelve Days of Christmas (Live),” and… “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” by… … Continue reading
OWS, the playlist.
I’ve been thinking. The Occupy Wall Street (and everywhere else, it seems) movement needs a playlist. So, going from only the things on my iTunes: “Fanfare for the Common Man,” Aaron Copeland“Fight the Power,” Public Enemy“We Shall Be Free,” Garth … Continue reading
Playlist for today
I often make playlists for the day. Today’s playlist: “I Miss The Mountains, ” Alice Ripley, from Next to Normal“Breathe (2 AM)” Anna Nalick“Bank Job,” Barenaked Ladies“The Downeaster ‘Alexa,” Billy Joel“Streets Of Philadelphia,” Bruce Springsteen“Sorry-Grateful,” Charles Kimbrough, Dean Jones, George … Continue reading
Small Graces.
I allowed myself a day to mope. Not to grieve: I suspect that will be a much longer process. I did what I often do when my heart is troubled: I drove. I drove one of my usual haunts in … Continue reading
My secret weapon…
Echidna Boy is a night owl. Getting him to go to bed before 1 a.m. is very difficult, especially that we don’t currently have the threat of school looming. (He comes by it naturally: my first week of work I … Continue reading
Here we come a caroling….
Last Saturday I attended a caroling party, and I discovered an unpleasant truth about myself. I am turning into a Puritan, at least where Christmas is concerned. The Puritans, you may recall, prohibited Christmas celebrations as being ungodly. I wouldn’t … Continue reading
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