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Monday, April 29, 2002
So yeah... I spent most of my weekend at work. Saturday I was at the office from 9:30 AM until 1:30 AM... with only two short breaks for lunch and dinner. And then Sunday I was at the office from 11:00 AM until 7:30 ish with only one break for dinner. I'm working on this project right now thats a real thorn in my side. I'll probably feel more comfortable to talk about it when it's over. At the moment whenever I talk about it I get all worked up into a frenzy. Luckily (do or die) it has to be done by the 15th of May. So my life will hopefully settle into some sort of normalcy then. | private feedback | (0) public comments The rest of my trip to Chicago was pretty uneventful. Saturday mom was in her conference all day... so I was a man-on-the-town alone. It was so nasty rainy and cold that my first order of business was to buy a sweatshirt at the GAP ($48!!) since they had already taken all of their coats and even light spring jackets out of rotation. After that I went into Boystown and hung out for the afternoon in a cafe there. It was nice to just be in that neighborhood and hang out. I was home by 9 Saturday night. Mom finished up with her conference by then and we stayed in Saturday night. Sunday we got up and went to the Shedd's Aquarium. It was either that or the Zoo. We figured with the weather the way it was we'd better do something where we're inside. :-) Mom loved the dolphin and beluga whale show. I love the penguins. Heh. This was the second time I had been to Shedd Aquarium... the first time was with Neil when I went to Chicago for Harlie's wedding last March. We had dinner in one of the Hotel restaurants and then got upstairs just in time to watch Six Feet Under since things come on an hour earlier in Chicago. We got up at 2:30 the next morning in order to be out of the hotel by 3 AM. Everyone that we talked to said that we should be at O'Hare two hours early in order to get through all the security precautions and check-ins, etc. Our flight was at 6 AM so we were at the airport by 4. Of course the ticketing counter wasn't even open until 5 so we ended up sitting around for an hour until we could even get in line and get our boarding passes. The flight home was quiet. We were in Rochester by 10:30 AM. Mom had a class that afternoon which was why we traveled so early. (Long-term parking at the Airport for 4 days was $45!! Yikes.) Monday night I hooked up with a friend from Rochester and went to The Spot cafe. Tuesday morning I was on a bus by 10:30 and on my way to Ithaca. I was soooooooo happy to be home. Everything turned green while I was out of town. It was like coming back to a brand new Ithaca. There is something about all the green on the trees that make Ithaca feel more cozy and warm... and cleaner. Odd but true. The sun was shining and I remember why it is that I live here... for days like that. While I was gone my Airport Base Station and Airport Card had come in the mail. Wireless networking in my apartment... Woohoo! It's amazing that I can sit in my living room with no cord attached to my computer and still surf the internet just as fast as if I had an ethernet cord plugged into my laptop. I love it! And speaking of Macs, Lori got a new iBook while I was away. She loves it. We also went to hang out at the new Internet Cafe where Borealis books used to be, called WOWNET. It's really nice in there. I think with more people in and out it will feel a bit more cozy. They have like 16 brand-new flat panel iMacs, HDTV and game consoles for rent. And they're open extremely late. Somedays until 1 AM! Lori says this is going to be our new place. ;-) Let's see, now that I'm all caught up on my Chicago trip what else is there to say? Well... friday Josh and I went to see a movie at the Mall. "The Sweetest Thing" with Cameron Diaz and Christina Applegate. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would, in fact I was laughing hysterically through most of it. The weird thing is that I normally don't go in for low-brow humor but for some reason when two extremely beautiful women have such potty mouths it really makes me laugh. If Jim Carrey (who I can't stand) said the same stuff I would be completely repulsed. Go figure. I would definitely recommend that you see "The Sweetest Thing." Its super cute. MMMMM I'll have to type out the rest of my weekend... I worked most of it... later. I have to get ready for a meeting at 11. | private feedback | (0) public comments Thursday, April 25, 2002 So I finally decide to get off the train at Lake and State Streets, which is near the bend of Wacker Street. (We were staying at the Hyatt Regency on Wacker, but wacker bends around so I didn't know what part of Wacker we were on.) Turns out that due to construction its not as easy to find anything on Wacker as it used to be. So here we are, my mother and I carrying around our HEAVY bags, aimlessly wandering trying to find out where the hotel was. Apparently we were close because no cab wanted to pick us up for the measly fare... they kept sayin, "No, you don't need a cab, its just a block or two that way." We'd walk in the direction and NOT see a hotel and stop another cab. Finally my mother is cursing... "Just stop a F*cking cab! Tell them we don't care how much we have to pay them! Tell them we don't give a sh*t if it's only a half a block!" Well.. how do you argue with that? So I stopped a cab and convinced him to let us in. Of course by that time we had walked so far off course that it WAS a significant ride back to the hotel. But we were finally placed on the steps of the Hyatt Regency in one piece. Turns out that when mom got up to the counter (making me hide in the bushes because she didn't want them to know there were TWO of us) she had inadvertantly cancelled her reservations at the hotel when she cancelled her airline ticket. I had found a cheaper fare for us and so she didn't need the more expensive one anymore. So... after waiting a little while for a room, we got things straightened out, got unpacked and got lunch... at Houlihan's which was right around the corner from the hotel. Mom would check-in at her conference and then we'd have the afternoon to walk around the city, shop, whatever. I should say that it was beautiful this first day in Chicago.. it was almost too hot. 90 degree weather and the sun was beating down on us. I almost changed into shorts and sandals at the hotel to get out of my traveling clothes. We ended up walking around a bit.. I found an Internet cafe to check my mail and we found some shops... it was really beautiful. Oh how things would change by nightfall. Apparently the lunch at houlihan's didn't agree with me. By 6 we were back at the hotel and I needed a nap... I was completely nauseous and light-headed. Mom decided to go to her conference reception. When she got back I was hovered over the toilet bowl. :-( I couldn't sleep at all that night, but the next morning I was convinced that I would have to get out and enjoy the day because I was only in Chicago for a few days. I got so much medicine to cover up any symptoms I had. I was on medication all day, and probably doing more harm to my body than good, but I was out beating the streets with only a little bit of dizziness by noon. And... it was considerably colder on Friday... about 60 degrees. Mom and I decided to check out the Museum of Contemporary Art, they had an exhibit on Mies... the famous architect that revolutionized city architecture. It was really cool to see his old models and his sketches and learn a little bit about his life. My favorite thing of his is the only (or one of very few) house that he designed just outside of Chicago called the Farnsworth House. I love simple, straght lines of contemporary structures... and this house is really just that. The walls are all glass so I don't know how I'd feel about living in it, but... its still fierce! After walking around the museum and the city a bit I was ready to go back and take a nap. Mom and I met my friend Harlie (who complains that she's not on my friend page... so she'll be there shortly) and her husband for dinner and then went with them to The Baton to see a Female Impersonator show. (I had been calling it a drag show, but I think when the performers have had plastic surgery its gone beyond drag, right?) This was Harlie's only birthday wish. She's had a fascination with drag queens since she was in Ithaca and I introduced her to one at the Common Ground. Heh. Anyway, it was a two drink minimum and I still wasn't feeling so hot so I drank soda... the show lasted an hour and a half... the performers were amazing. At the end of the show it was raining outside... we caught a cab back to the hotel so I could rest and hopefully enjoy the last two days of my trip without being as sick as I felt then. | private feedback | (0) public comments 15 minutes until I have a meeting... lets see how much of this story I can pound out. So we wake up early Thursday morning to get to the airport. I dunno what to expect at this point cause I haven't flown after 9/11. I didn't even wear a belt, I was seriously afraid to wear anything metal so that I wouldn't raise suspicion and hold us up in line. It turns out, however, that everyone in Rochester gets individually searched with the handheld metal detectors. I couldn't believe it. There were more security personnel than there were passengers. After spending $8 for a bagel that I only got to eat half of we were standing in line to board the plane to Pittsburgh... and my mother gets picked out of the boarding line to be searched. My poor mother. I didn't want to leave her behind so I stepped out of line and told the passengers behind me to "Go on ahead, I'm waiting for them to stop frisking my mom." The flight was pretty uneventful... as was the connection in Pittsburgh to Chicago. The entire way to Chicago my mother was asking me what the best way to get to the hotel was. I always tend to think in terms of money whereas she thinks in terms of convenience so my answer was "Let's take the subway! It comes right up to O'Hare and it's only $1.50 to get us into downtown." Her response? "Are you sure you don't wanna take a cab?" Of course I had no idea where we should get OFF the subway since I didn't know where the hotel was, but mom would have a pamphlet right? Well before I knew that she didn't I had convinced her to take the "20 minute" Subway ride into the city. She complained the whole way... My mother is NOT a public transportation kinda girl. I should have known. I was busy looking at my collapsable Chicago street map to try and figure out where the hell the hotel was. I must have changed my mind about ten times where to get of the subway which didn't make mom feel any better. About an hour into the "20" minute ride I said, "Oh this is the Clark and Division stop, only a few more stops to go" at which point the driver announced something completely different. This perplexed look must have came across my face and I said, "Oh, OK." And my mother bursts out laughing hysterically. We knew right then we were sunk. We didn't know where the hotel was, we didn't know where we were getting off the train... and we had five bags... one of which was a HUGE garment bag that mom apparently packed every pair of HEAVY shoes she owned. I got to carry this one. | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, April 24, 2002 A common problem of mine... waiting days to update my blogger and then not knowing exactly where to start. So... you're going to get the whirlwind tour of my last week. Last Tuesday was the last day of work before vacation. I was in such a good mood because I was actually getting a whole week off. It's been over a year and a half since I've gotten a full week off work. Up until now my longest "vacations" have been three or four day weekends about every six months... I don't even take sick days generally. So I was really looking forward to this, and even as it seemed like it would never come... the week beforehand zoomed by because I had so much to do preparing for my trip. So this last day of work I thought would also go by fast, but two clients called with emergencies, printers decided that they weren't going to follow my directions and co-workers dumped last minute work on me. So... I ended up working until about 7. I only left because I promised friends that I would see a movie with them, so I hiked it on down to Fall Creek Movie Theater to see "Monsoon Wedding." Great movie... slow in parts, but definitely worth seeing if you get the chance -- about an arranged marriage in India and a few sub plots, mostly relationship-based... and the set was covered in marigold flowers (apparently very important to the engagement/wedding ceremony in that country) which made for some beautiful scenes. So after the movie I walked one of my friends home and then went back to the office until 11 pm. I had a few last minute things to take care of. At home I spent the night (until 3 AM) cleaning and finally passed out with the windows in the apartment open (because it was so hot) until about 5:30 AM... Why would I wake up at 5:30 AM you ask? Well... it seems that my cat jumped or fell out of my open bedroom window (two stories up) and was meowing at the top of her lungs to get back in. I was shocked that she was outside, she's NEVER gone outside for more than a minute or two since I've had her. So, I can only imagine she was pretty scared. And she's long haired so she was a mess by the time I got to her.. burdocks in her hair, dirt and mud all over her. So... I spent my morning doing the best I could to clean her up. Wednesday morning I had planned on being ready to go so that Brett and Jamie could come pick me up in the early morning. I was supposed to help them move and then hitch a ride back with them so that I'd be at Mom's in time to spend the night and get to the airport Thursday morning. They ended up going to the storage shed without me, so I didn't have to help them load the truck there. Which ended up being fine because I was packing anyway. I did help them load things up at the apartment and then fell asleep in the truck on the way to Rochester. Helped them unpack when we got there, got to see their new digs (kinda small but with some cool features... a deck, a cupola, hardwood floors, nice lighting fixtures... and its in a really neat renovated church/boarding school), and got to get dinner with them at a great thai restaurant, Mamasan's. I got to mom's sometime around 8:30 and I was exhausted. Knowing I had to get up early (5 AM) for the trip to the airport, I went to bed early... To be continued... | private feedback | (0) public comments Friday, April 12, 2002 I recently typed out some thoughts on the slavery reparations lawsuits that are currently being filed. I've had lots of conversations with friends about this topic and done a lot of research. I thought that I would put up a few links for whoever is interested... Charles Krauthammer's Washington Post Article IN FAVOR of reparations (but at the cost of affirmative action). Uncommon Knowledge, a discussion show where panelists wrestle with the topics of the day... have a streaming video online (about a half hour long) with people on opposite sides of the reparations issue. Very interesting to watch if you've got some time (and either Real or Windows Media Player). And, an article that a friend forwarded to me, but I can't seem to find it on the web anywhere, so I'll just post it below. It's worth a read: Cold Cash Can't Repay This Debt By: Leonard Pitts Jr. Source: The Sun - Baltimore, Md. Original Publication Date: 04/17/2001 MIAMI -- Here's the gist of the argument: America owes black people a unique debt. That debt stems from the fact that -- unlike Hispanics, women, gays and other marginalized groups that have laid claim to the nation's conscience in recent years -- blacks were subjected to centuries of mistreatment that was both unimaginably brutal and government-sanctioned. Sadly, the attempt to pay America's debt through affirmative action has created a moral morass. The solution: End affirmative action -- and embrace reparations. Pay $50,000 to each African- American family of four. Charles Krauthammer, a columnist for The Washington Post Writers Group, made that argument in a recent essay. In fact, Mr. Krauthammer -- a political conservative, no less -- has been arguing this line since at least the mid-1980s. I have to admit this proposal intrigues me. Trade affirmative action for reparations? It seems, at the very least, a creative contribution at a time when much of the nation's thinking on the conundrum of race is anything but. Unfortunately, creative is not the same as good. For what it's worth, I support affirmative action, though somewhat less than wholeheartedly. Unlike Mr. Krauthammer, I am not that troubled by the morality of it. Rather, I have a fear that, in creating separate standards and set-aside slots, affirmative action reinforces in the people it purports to help a sense of victimhood, a self-destructive notion that black means less than good enough. Problem is, affirmative action is the only game in town. Meaning, it's the only machinery government offers -- outside of slow, costly and unwieldy courts -- to directly address the nation's historic and continuing discrimination against its black citizens. The flaw in Mr. Krauthammer's proposal is that it fails to take that discrimination into account. Candidly, my first instinct is to quibble with the amount he proposes to offer. Fifty grand per family? Seems a tad meager given what we're talking about. On the other hand, given what we're talking about, I can't name a figure that would be enough. Besides, the issue isn't money, ultimately. If the only problem besetting African-Americans were poverty, then the solution would be simple: Work harder, work smarter. But racism doesn't care how hard or smart you work. If you don't believe me, find a rich black man and ask him. Granted, paying reparations to African-American families would have tremendous emotional and symbolic impact. But that money would do nothing to fix -- or confront -- the systemic problems. This would become painfully apparent once some black man was pulled over by police for no apparent reason while driving to the bank to deposit his $50,000 check. But as long as we're debating wild ideas that will never see the light of day, here's a modest counterproposal: 1. Keep the money. Use it to put a college education within reach of every talented black high school student. Do this for a generation. 2. Encourage young African-Americans to once again invest in the notion of education as a strategy for uplift -- something that seems to have been lost in these days of gangsta nihilism. 3. End Black History Month. Mandate instead that no child of any race can graduate from an American high school without demonstrating proficiency in American history, including the nation's legacy of violence, subjugation and discrimination against African-American peoples. 4. Offer some incentive -- not necessarily financial -- that rewards non-black employers for increasing the representation of African-Americans in their businesses. 5. Create a streamlined structure for the binding arbitration of employment discrimination complaints. When someone is judged guilty, levy punishments that hurt -- a lot. 6. Apologize. Meaning a formal statement from the nation to its African-American citizens. 7. Assuming the aforementioned measures create verifiable progress, end affirmative action. Pie in the sky? Definitely. But the proposal is, at least, based on an understanding of that "debt" Mr. Krauthammer says black people are owed. He, on the other hand, recognizes its existence without grasping its nature. Meaning that it's a lovely fiction to think you could make black folks whole by writing a check the way you do when you dent somebody's fender. But it's a fiction nonetheless. If reparations were ever paid -- a huge if, in my book -- it would be a potent gesture. But only that. The money might buy someone a college education, a small business or a luxury car. But equality of opportunity? You might as well put the checkbook away. | private feedback | (0) public comments Thursday, April 11, 2002 On lunch yesterday I did a little shopping at the music store on the commons. I enjoy browsing music stores but I rarely buy anything. Yesterday, however, two things caught my eye... both were soundtrack albums. "Beautiful Thing" and "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." I had just seen "Beautiful Thing" again Sunday afternoon and thought it was the cutest movie. The soundtrack is pretty good... mostly Mama Cass and The Mamas and the Papas (Did I spell that right?). But I just about flipped over "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." It was one of my favorite movies growing up... My father knew that if he wanted to keep me happy as a kid (I was *maybe* 11) he just had to put me in front of the TV with either "Charlotte's Web" or "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." I loved Dolly Parton and all of the Aggie Boys. (I should have known I was gay then, right?) I can recite a bunch of lines from the movie. My ultimate favorite is when Burt Reynolds punches Dom DeLouise and then says, "If I ever catch you in my county again I'm gonna knock you so flat you'll have to roll down your socks to shit." Does it get any better than that? I should be careful, this is a family Web site, but *I* watched that movie probably every other weekend when I was in my formative years... and I suppose I didn't turn out so bad. *big cute grin* And.. a lot of people don't know that "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" is where Whitney Houston's song "I Will Always Love You" originally came from. Dolly Parton wrote it for that movie. Went bowling with the gang last night. I had a blast! And I did a little better than I thought I would. I actually broke 100 on two games. Yippee! But it was all in fun and I can't wait to do it again. It's been years since I picked up a bowling ball. :-) Yikes, I just looked at the clock... it's a little after 10:30. I haven't done a lick of work. I've spent my morning responding to emails and typing this out... so I had better get a move on... | private feedback | (0) public comments Tuesday, April 09, 2002 Well, work is pretty insane at the moment. Just when you think its about to calm down... BAM... something else hits the fan. ;-) Was at the office until 8 last night. Though I did get to take a short break to go to the gym. I hadn't been to the gym in about a month and a half, so it felt so great after my brief visit. Of course that means that I ditched BookTalk, but I hadn't read the book anyway. *grin* Then went to dinner at Benchwarmer's with Rodney... he gave me my digital camera back. He had borrowed it to take pics at his Volleyball Awards Banquet. Congratulations to Rodney for taking home the coveted "Most Likely to Look the Best After a Volleyball Match." heh. It was quite a surprise, since everyone had him pegged for "Most Improved." I jest, but his team did such a great job this year! I spent a good portion of my weekend with Brett and Jamie. They came to pick-up mail and to visit. I already have the 17th off work and that's when their apartment in Rochester will officially be done, so I'm going to help them move and catch a ride back to Rochester with them. Then my flight to Chicago leaves from Rochester early in the morning on the 18th. I'm so excited. After the last few weeks at work, I desperately NEED a vacation. Still no word on how I'll pass the time while mom is in her conference... Have meeting #2 this morning in about 20 minutes... so I gotta jet. P.S. I know that new header thing with my picture is pretty silly. It was a late night addition a few days ago. I'm working on a new one and hopefully will have it posted soon. :-) | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, April 03, 2002 I'm forcing myself to post SOMETHING on my page since I've had the same commentary up since last Friday... even though the Internet is super slow today (our IT person says some fiber optic cable in NYC broke (?). It sort of fosters a sense of unity in me to know that everyone is experiencing a slower than average Internet speed today. Over the past few days I've thought of a lot I wanted to post here. Hopefully I'll remember it all now. First off, congratulations to my friends Rodney, Don and Alex and their teammates for winning the Syracuse Volleyballers Tournament last night. Mike and I went as cheerleaders and then out to Rain Lounge to celebrate afterwards. Volleyball is actually pretty exciting to watch. ;-) Tonight is Michael Moore's talk at Cornell. Apparently, so many people wanted to see him that he had to schedule a second talk at the State Theater. I think that says volumes about the type of people in Ithaca that our little city needs this guy to talk twice to accommodate the demand. I'm very excited, and I also get to spend the entire evening with Lori. We're going to get dinner and then camp out at the Statler Auditorium for good seats. Hopefully, he'll stick around afterwards to do a book signing. I'd really like to tell him how much I like his book. I got a long email message using my feedback form (nice to know it doesn't have a length limit) from a friend in response to my reparations lawsuit posting. Thanks for that J! It really made my morning. ;-) Ok, ok, I gotta get back to work. More later! | private feedback | (0) public comments |
Hey! I'm Shane... a proud gay progressive Democrat who has recently relocated to New York City from Ithaca, NY. As I am no longer in Ithaca, I haven't quite decided the fate of this blog. Drop me a line!
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