Fall 2009 at a (long) Glance

Some of you (at least, those of you bored enough to be checking this blog) may be wondering what the heck I've been doing this fall. It certainly hasn't been writing blog entries. While it's true that wedding planning has taken up some time, it's equally important to remember just how much of that workload Shelley is taking care of.

Something interesting happens to me when Shelley leaves me along for too long. I develop a condition that is better described as Jekyl-Hydism, than simple bi-polarism. In one state, I sequester myself in various enclosed spaces (studio apartment, library stacks) where I spend hours and hours in solitary servitude to the demigods of academia. I scribble clever little comments in red ink on the margins of xerox'd articles about the language policy of the Soviet union in the national delineation of 1924 (it's fascinating!). And I think to myself, "How could I have lived 28 years on this Earth and never thought about this before?"

Whether this state counts as Jekly or Hyde is a matter of prespective.

On the other side of the coin, I venture out into the big City with my wonderfully unorthodox buddies and stumble down the various rabbit holes they tend to encounter. It's generally a good pairing. We all tend to fall down (to carry the metaphor), but I usually keep my eyes open and land on my feet (metaphorically, and usually otherwise).

As a result, Fall 2009 has been an almost endless chain of dull stasis broken on rare occasions by flashes of hyper-dynamism. The camera tends to tag along on such occasions, but alas not always, and over the past two weeks the drudgery has become temporarily absolute as I prepare for writing term papers and prep my M.A. thesis for next spring.

But here is a very brief recap of what I have been doing, via the few photos that are on my Sony.

This is from the West Indian American Day Parade, and annual event out in Brooklyn celebrating New Yorkers "of the Islands." According to my friend Holly, who lives Directly on the parade route, the party starts about 2 am the day before, with street drumming, etc. then people sleep it off from 5-10, before coming back out for the main event. We're talking dozens of semi-trucks stripped down and packed full of sub-woofers, banners, politicians, and evangelists. Plus there's slaw, fried chicken, beans&rice, and Coconuts!

Did you know that Milwaukee Airport has modern art sculture in the shape of fishing tackle? Well, now you do. I want to tell you that the place was empty because I was passing through late on a week day evening, but I kind of got the impression it was never a very high-traffic zone.

Which is a good thing: more time to appreciate the art.



This is actually how I usually look: tired, slightly confused, and just a bit skeptical about whatever it is I'm being told at the moment. Oddly, I'm not actually tired (my college friends would be Shocked to know how much I'm sleeping these days), and the confusion comes and goes. Skepticism, I'm sorry to say, is getting thoroughly entrenched. Is that because of grad school, New York, or not being 21?

Well, whatever the cause, please know that if you ever see me make This Face (right) it probably just indicates I'm running low on caffeine. Time for a refill.


My employment with the Grand Poobah, Mr. Phil Schaap, continues to go well. We now have 2 books in print (and in need of selling... hint, hint, holiday present), with a 3rd one on the way as soon as I can finish tracking down some rare photographs. Sales have been off and on, but I'm using a lot of the skills I learned at KRTU, and we a totally redesigned website (philschaapjazz.com) coming on-line soon which should help.


Even though it's just me at home, I do end up cooking dinner just about every night, though the temptation of $5.25 cheap chinese just around the corner is a constant Jezebel to my David (but not my Davey, of course). The Buc-ee's shirt is something of a plug; but I have had several compliments from dance students. One in particular stands out, "Man, I really appreciate all the stuff you were showing us tonight, but like, I could barely even listen I kept looking at your t-shirt." "It's a Beaver" I explained.

And then sometimes I get a call to go clubbing down in the West Village at a no-cover converted parking garage with an army of suspended gord-lamps in the open space around the first floor staircase. This picture was actually taken while seated on a bench carved out of a giant gnarly tree trunk. The hot tub upstairs didn't stay empty all night. My buddy practically ripped her skirt in half on a particularly enthusiastic expression of awkward contempt for all the sexy people in the room. And that was about the half-way point of the evening. I turned in early at 3.





Not sure if this was as big a deal where you live, but apparently we just had "off year elections," including the NJ Governor and the NYC Mayor. Apparently, those are both important positions in our National Government, or at least so one would assume from the coverage they received. It doesn't help that both incumbents (Dems) are men of extreme personal wealth, and backed prominently by Obama. The fact that one (Bloomberg) also pushed through an amendment legalizing a third term added some Third World color. In the end, NJ's Corzine took a fall, and Bloomberg gets 4 more years (apparently 8 was not enough), but with a voter turnout of about 10%, is it really a victory for anyone? Oh, and NYC just elected its first Asian-American to city office. Way to go, progressives.

And sometimes I stop it all to go and get a bad haircut.

No matter how much $ I spend, there just doesn't seem to be any other kind. For those of you who just noticed, yes, my hairline is not what it used to be. I'm trying not to hyperventilate on a daily basis.

The rest of it, I hope, will grow back in time for the wedding.






Speaking of which, here's a final (silly) tally of who's "winning" the great RSVP race of 2009:
(assembled in only approximate order, but feel free to brag nonetheless)

1. Jordan Forbes
2. Pat & Kathy Laabs
3. Ken & Linda Abraham
4. Judye & Larry
5. Pete & Amy Rahn
6. Terry & Karen Smith
7. Ben Stull
8. Doyle Weber
9. Paul & Peggy Laabs
10. Craig & Anna Stalcup
11. The Moores
12. Neil & Sunita Crittenden
13. Audrey Reader
14. Dan & Kathy Schewe
15. Carl & Deborah Rubenstein
16. Richard & Judy Lambert
17. Mike & Laura
18. Jim & Carolyn Weber
19. Ray & Sheila Stevens


If this were chemistry, I would estimate there are about 2 parts per million of useful information in this post. I guess the volatility has a lot to do with what kind of parts those are.

Weber
::(lame) Texpatriot