Kindertransport

Last weekend, I watched Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport

Kindertransport is the name given to the rescue mission that took place nine months prior to the outbreak of World War II. The United Kingdom took in nearly 10,000 predominantly Jewish children from Nazi Germany, and the occupied territories of Austria, Czechoslovakia, and the Free City of Danzig. The children were placed in British foster homes, hostels, and farms.

People taking in refugee children and feeding, clothing and providing shelter for them with no retribution and little reimbursement. Do you think something like that is happening in the Middle East? Some saintly person is risking his reputation and possibly his life, thinking only of the children and the possible hope for the future of his country and the sanctity of family? Someone who hopes beyond hope that the next generation will learn lessons from this generation, just as they did in 1940?

I doubt it. The world is not as kind as it was.

Even during a Holocaust.
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Female Sportscasters

Call me sexist, but I just don't like listening to female sportscasters. The latest trend, specifically in college and pro football, is to have two guys calling the plays in the booth, with a woman down on the field for colour commentary and all the "how do you feel?" questions. (The only exception to all this is Gayle Gardner, and merely because she reported the scores and didn't yell them or try to be one of the boys. I miss her on ESPN.)

Sportscasters as a group are the most inane people in media with incessant banalities being passed off as "insightful commentary." But toss a woman into the mix and no matter how enthused or spontaneous she might sound, she still comes off as though she's reading from a teleprompter. And, in a way, women broadcasting sports sorta pisses me off.

Somehow, they seem like they are horning in on someone else's territory. I don't think it's absolutely necessary for both sexes to share everything. I mean, I'll never know what it feels like to give birth, so women shouldn't know what it feels like to tell me about a trap play or a sweep. Men and women should be allowed to have different clubs without fear of the other one wanting a piece of it.
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The Game Plan

When is this theme ever going to die? Confirmed bachelor(ette)'s life gets turned upside down by the sudden addition of precocious 7 year-old child who teaches about love and responsibility.

Gag me.

This theme dates back to the days of Shirley Temple, and probably even further than that. I personally don't know any single person who's life was changed for the better with the sudden responsibility of taking care of child. Seriously. None.

If those kids wound up on my doorstep, I would farm them out faster than you can say "Santa Claus ain't real," and go back to watching TV in my underwear.

I'm just saying.

Those Crazy Fugongians

Nearly 500 school children in Fugong, Yunnan Province, China have to cross the often raging Nujiang River each day to get to school. The only problem is that there is no bridge.

In order to cross the river, the children have to take the journey via a single steel cable stretched across the canyon. Children as young as 4 years old have to transverse the river by themselves each day.

The children fasten themselves to the cable with a carabiner and a rope to slide over the 200 meter wide canyon. Occasionally children get stuck in the middle of the cable and have to wait up to half an hour in order to be rescued.

Officials finally agreed to spend the $35,000 to build a bridge after a TV program drew attention to the dangerous situation.

Example of how it is to cross this river on a steel cable:

Children's Health Insurance Veto??

For the past 4 years, he's been killing our adults. But why stop there? Get them while they're young, W!

How can you take an expanded health insurance program away from children? It's apparently not enough that he's been sending young men and women to their deaths in a war that doesn't mean anything; now he wants to stop a bill that would expand healthcare for US children. And he did it in his usual sneaky fashion: behind closed doors at the White House with no press coverage, which should have been huge considering this was only the 4th Veto of his entire appointment presidency.

What where the other three vetoes?

1. expanding federal research using embryonic stem cells
2. spending that would have required troop withdrawals from Iraq
3. easing restraints on federally funded stem cell research

Yes, yes. This is the compassionate conservative YOU people elected, and then re-elected. Be proud of yourselves, America.
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Deodorant Wars

Well, it's happened again - my deodorant has stopped working. Almost like clockwork, every 18 months or so, I have to go shopping for a new deodorant because mine suddenly stops working. It apparently takes my body a year and a half to figure out the code in each deodorant just enough to render it useless. And that time has come again.

I've used Speed Stick, Dry Idea, Arrid, Degree, Sure, Ban, Gillette and Right Guard (I prefer gels over sprays and solids). For the past 18 months, I've been using Mitchum. What attracted me most to it is the fact that it is unscented. I prefer not smelling too perfumey - not because I am all into the "man smell" (quite the contrary - I love the smell of soap on clean skin), but I just don't want too many smells on my body at once. It's the main reason I never wear cologne or after shave (but that's a whole other blog).

So now it looks like it's on to Tom's, Arm & Hammer or perhaps (sigh) Old Spice. At least for the next 18 months.

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Creepy Bus People

There is a mother/son combo that gets on the 156 with me sometimes in the morning. Their relationship bothers me a little. The son is about 6 or so, old enough to be in school; the mother seems to be an older first-time mom. They hold hands at the bus stop (sure, that's normal), and hold hands while walking on the bus - him in front of her (awkward, but ok), and then hold hands the entire time they are sitting on the bus together (which seems weird). Each time, they deboard at the zoo.

The really strange thing is the way she talks to him. I can't capture the tone, and it might not translate how I want it to, but she speaks to him the way you talk to a child you don't know, like your boss' kids. Today, for example:

Son: We rode the 151 yesterday and had to jump a puddle.

Mom: You did?!

Son: Yeah.

Mom: When you were with Daddy?

Son: Yeah.

Mom: Did you like that?

Son: Yeah.

Mom: I'll bet you did. I bet Daddy liked it too.

Son: Yeah.

Mom: You're such a good boy.

Mom says that last line constantly. There's just something about the way she talks to him that tells me the kid is going to grow up to either sing Judy Garland medleys in piano bars, or cover Asian women in Wesson oil before killing them, leaving the 7 of Clubs behind as a calling card.

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And Speaking Of Side-By-Side Comparisons . . .

He's baaaaack!


Here's a side by side comparison of OJ Simpson's mugshot from 1994 after being booked on double homicide charges (left), and his mugshot from 2007 after being booked on multiple felony robbery charges (right).

I'm a firm believer that you can't do a bad deed and truly get away with it. Let's see how this plays out. With any luck, he won't have R. Kelly's judge.
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Don't Let America Fool You

When I first saw this month's cover of Glamour while standing in line at the Jewel (really, I swear that's how it happened), I noticed covergirl America Ferrera, the otherwise ugly ducking star of Ugly Betty, and thought, "hey now, America has dropped some major pounds. Good for her, but how will that affect her character?"

And then I saw her on last week's Emmy Awards and noticed the weight loss was not so prominent.


Pasting photos side by side (Vogue, left/Emmy, right) will show that Glamour, just like GQ did to Kate Winslet, has taken the heroine of the everyday normal girl and airbrushed her to hell and back. Here is a person who, along with the character she plays, stands up against what fashion has long dictated is the "right look". And now she is its latest victims.

Young girls who see America and Betty as role models will pick up Glamour or Vogue or Mademoiselle and be barfing in the toilet within minutes. And no one is held accountable.
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2 : 1

Today marks my 2-year anniversary of moving to Chicago. Since then:

2 jobs
2 cardiologists
2 apartments
2 Super Bowls
2 gyms
2 volleyball championship tee shirts
2 games of putt-putt golf
2 Wright Brothers
2 holiday parties at Neil & Bob's
2 Oscar Nights
2 watch batteries
2 dinners at Ole Ole
2 gluhwein parties
2 seasons of Project Runway
2 blog designs
2 Vegas hotels
2 farewell parties for Matt
2 trips to southern Illinois
2 birthdays
2 IMLs
2 Blue Man Group New Year's Eves
2 Cirque du Soleil shows
2 vacation trips
2 Volley Follies
2 Hallowe'en contests
2 weddings
2 "Dave's birthday parties for himself"

. . . and through it all,
1 BF

I'm glad I moved.
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Stop, Hey, What's That Sound?

If this dude put as much energy into redecorating his place, he might not be living in such a dump. But, enjoy.


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R. Kelly Is Still Out There - Guard Your Children

Five years after being charged with child pornography, the R. Kelly Chicago trial had been set to start on September 17th. But a Cook County judge has postponed it because the lead prosecutor had a baby recently.

Kelly was charged in 2002 and is accused of engaging in videotaped sex acts with an underage girl. Since his arrest, the case has been hit with numerous delays. A new date hasn't been set and the trial has been delayed "indefinitely". Since being charged, Kelly has had six best-selling albums and three nationwide tours.

This man will never go to trial. R. Kelly has been arrested and accused enough times for us all to accept the basic idea that he has deep, ingrained pedophilic tendencies. Where's Chris Hansen when you need him??
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That Tuesday

I was living in DC at the time, working for a graphic design firm. I was walking to the office and stopped in the little corner store to get my usual quart of milk that I was drinking every morning at the time. The news was on a small TV but the sound was off. So I wasn't really sure what I was watching. I watched for a few minutes, as the building was burning and smoke was filling the sky.

I entered the office and sat down at my desk. Nancy, the Production Manager came in and asked, "Have you heard?" We started receiving phone calls as rumors began to fly around DC. At first we heard that a plane had landed on the steps of the Capitol Building. And then we heard it had landed on the Mall. And then we heard another was headed towards the White House.

My boss, the principal designer, brought a small television from her home upstairs (the business was in the combined basement apartments of two townhouses). We watched as the first building collapsed, and then the second. And we were told a plane had crashed in rural Pennsylvania (40 miles from my parents' house) and another had crashed into the Pentagon.

The TV news was telling America that the Pentagon was located in DC. My parents, not knowing exactly where I was working in relation to the Pentagon (which is actually in Virginia), called me at work, frantic. The phone lines had been jammed, and it took them a few hours to get through to me. I can't imagine how panicked they must have felt.

Outside the window, people in suits were walking home. Some seemed to be strolling casually,; others were running. This was about 11:00AM. All of us at the design studio wanted to go home as well. No one knew if it was over, if it was just the first wave, if there was more to come. I lived and worked 11 blocks from the White House. Anything seemed possible.

I wanted to go home, pack a bag, and drive to my parents' house. We heard rumors of streets being blocked, so that no one could get out of the city. Was it worth the effort? Was it even safe to go outside r travel? Were there gases or poisons in the air? Would I get stuck if I tried to drive anywhere?

My boss wouldn't let us leave. "Nancy's husband is out of town, Dop and Chris both live alone. I don't see the point". So we stayed at work all day, but didn't actually do any work. I think my boss - an unmarried woman in her 40's - just didn't want to be alone either.

I left work at 6:00 and walked home. I turned on the television and watched the same scenes over and over and over and over. Each time, it sunk in a little deeper, made me a little sadder.

That night, a group of friends and I all sat outside on the sidewalk in a big circle with candles. We held hands, we cried, and we prayed. The world as we had come to know it was now changed forever. We figured nothing would ever be like it was.

And it still isn't.
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Fight Club

Sorry, folks. I just don't understand how this can be classified as a sport: two men, locked in a cage, beating each other until one either bleeds excessively, passes out, or - at worst - dies. All while a crowd is cheering them on. How does this differ from a mob, hate crime attack or gangland beating?

Cheetah Gym

My old gym closed last week without warning. And not just that one location - but all three Cheetah Gym locations in Chicago. The owner cited "employee theft and graft" as the reason. And it begs the question - how much loss does it take through employee theft to close a small business.

The owner, David Wilshire, had posted an harangue on his company's website last week (thanks, Jim!) that was nothing more than a "poor me" essay on how he has nothing left in life and that he's lost everything. However, miraculously, all three locations - as well as a new location in Logan Square - will reopen this week. Wonders never cease.

Sounds more like a case of a drama queen overreacting. If you have a chain of stores, and one or more employees steal, that's no cause to close everything down - especially when you've just taken every member's money for their monthly memberships. It doesn't sounds like the public is getting the true story, or at least all the details, about whatever happened at Cheetah Gyms last week.

But I, for one, am glad I don't go there anymore.
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Symphony In Black

I have long been a fan of art deco. Back before I really understood what art deco was, I fell in love with its long, sleek lines, chrome accents, and punches of black and purple. When I was a kid, I remember wanting to buy an old silver bus and convert it into an apartment. Perhaps it was art deco's association with jazz, perhaps its association with Chicago, perhaps it was the thoroughly modern fashions of high society puttin' on the ritz - whatever it was, I loved it (you can imagine my glee when black lacquer and chrome was all the rage in the 80's).

And then one day flipping through a book, I saw Erte's Symphony in Black, arguably his most famous artwork. And I fell in love with her. The sassy fur hat, the daring bare shoulder, the glorified muff, the Morticia Adams train! I shuddered. I think it was my first awake wet dream. Tall and slender with killer purple eyeshadow - she was the epitome of garish style, taking her black greyhound out for a walk on its diamond collar and leash.

I wanted to be her.

Several years ago, I was at a drag show and when the curtain parted, there stood my favourite piece of art in the flesh. I was overcome by the strange feeling you get when you realize there are others out there who think like you do. Granted, no one with me knew what we were witnessing. But I was about to see my heroine come to life - albeit through the body of a drag queen. The music started, and without moving, SIB sang, "How Lucky Can You Get" from Funny Lady. I went all giddy. I don't remember the drag queen's name, but I thanked her afterwards for doing great justice to something I had long admired.

When art deco makes another revival about 20 years from now, Symphony In Black will be hanging back up on my wall for me to admire, envy and adore. Some little boys want to grow up to be firemen, policemen, even ballet dancers. I just wanted to walk a dog.
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How I Spent My Labor Day Weekend

Saturday:

Woke up with The BF who proceeded to leave me and go for an 18 mile run. I popped in a Netflix movie - in this case, Funny Lady - and then took a shower. Unfortunately started watching a marathon of Cycle 5 of America's Next Top Model . . . which is what I continued to watch for the next 10 hours. I did manage to move from my bedroom to the living room after the 5th elimination, and I made a quick trip to the Jewel to order a cake for work on Tuesday. Otherwise, I watched Tyra go from ghetto to demure in .009853 seconds and a house full of bitchy spoiled girls just get more bitchy and spoiled.

Sunday:

Woke up with The BF, had some breakfast and sent him off to BMG. I took a shower, and then unfortunately turned on MTV and yet again got sucked into a marathon, this time of Cycle 3 of America's Next Top Model. After my fifth hour, I decided to save myself and spent some time in Border's. I met The BF after work, and we rented Team America.

Monday:

Woke up with The BF, had some breakfast and watched Word Wars, a documentary on the National Scrabble Championship Tournament. I then went into the office and decorated the space for the start of our fiscal year on Tuesday. Blue and white balloons and streamers everywhere. After I sufficiently gayed up the office, I met The BF so we could finally see The Bourne Ultimatum, where I also had to snap at and shush an older couple half way through the film. Great movie, by the way!
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Designed To Sell

The BF and I watch this show frequently on HGTV. Designed To Sell is your basic $2,000 budget-per-show re-do that helps the lazy, unmotivated, clueless homeowners get the maximum dollar amount for the home they are planning to sell.

First off, you have to catch the episodes with carpenter Steve Hanneman (left); he's quite the cupcake. He's not on the show's website, so I'm not sure where he went and what he's doing now. But his personal website is "under construction" - so that's a good sign. He's still not as hot as Carter Oosterhouse (or The BF for that matter), but then few are.

But I digress.

The show is good enough. I mean I watch it when it's on. But the thing I don't like about this show is the host, Clive Pearse. He more or less just gets on my nerves. He was apparently a big deal on the BBC, but over here he's just annoying. He fails at being "spontaneously" funny, and he moves and stands uncomfortably, especially for a host of a television show. He tries to disguise his doughy shape with too-large shirts, yet keeps an open collar to show off his collection of jeweled neckwear. Besides all that, I hate the way he says the word "plants".

In sharp contrast to him is Designer Lisa LaPorta. On the outside, she is the combination that usually makes me roll my eyes to the back of my head: short, female, perky, overachiever. But in spite of all that, I really like her. She's not a bit overbearing, and I've never seen a design of hers that I didn't like. She's creative without being condescending.

Aside: sometimes, Lisa gets a little strange. During one of her "Lisa LaPointers Moments" (cute huh?), she was imparting wisdom on how to maximize the curb appeal of your home: Step 1, take down the dilapidated old mailbox from your house. Step 2, paint the mailbox -- and then a 3 minute commercial for suspense -- Step 3, put the mailbox back on the house. Step 4, stand back and admire your work and the value it has added to your house. I mean. Come on. Really?

But as much as I watch and like the show and hate the host, I also sometimes have a problem with the budget unveiling. On one episode, they said they only spent $30 of their weekly $2,000 budget on paint; that's $30 to paint two rooms, one of which was at least 14x30 and already painted slate blue. There's no way only $30 of paint did the trick. I just painted my 10x12 bedroom and it cost me $52. Also, on a recent episode, they added stainless appliances to update a kitchen, but the items failed to make it into the budget at the end of the show.

Still the show does teach and explain well, so it does its job. I just wish they would get rid of the awful host. The designer, however, can stay. Oh yeah - and bring Steve back too!
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Uncommonwealth

There are 4 states in the US that don't call themselves states. They consider themselves commonwealths. Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia have all gone against the grain and decided they didn't want to be called the same thing everyone else was. You know what the difference is between a state and commonwealth?

Absolutely nothing. Legally, they both mean the same thing. Has nothing to do with how the government is run, the year they became ratified or joined the Union, how they issues taxes, nothing. Okay, technically a commonwealth is said to govern itself for the common good of its people. But isn't that what ALL states do? If a state doesn't govern itself for the common good of its people, then who is it governing for?

So why have these four chosen to be commonwealths when the other 46 chose to be called states? I'm not complaining - just pointing it out.
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Springfield, Part Deux

Today I continued my Lincoln tour. My first stop was the
law office of Lincoln while he was an attorney in Springfield,
the several years prior to his presidency. I ended up getting my own private tour of the building since I was the only person there at the time. It was interesting to see how the court system was set up in the mid-1800s, as well as to see the office Lincoln shared with different colleagues during his 25 years as a practicing lawyer.

Next stop was just steps across the street to the Old State Building. At first I was impressed by the building. It looked like it had been well-restored, with impressive Senate and Representative Chambers, and I was imagining the statesmen like Stephen Douglas giving one of his great orations on the very spot on which I stood. And I was snapping pictures left and right. Until the guide admitted half-way through the tour that everything we were seeing was new. The original building, while located on that acreage, was completely dismantled in the early part of the last century and that 98% of this new building's contents were basically fakes. With that, I raised an eyebrow and sneered (those who know me have seen this look), and proceeded to delete 20-some images from my camera (thank God for digital). I turned around and left the tour and the building.

I don't want to see reproductions of things. The whole fun of pursuing history is ... well ... the history of it. I want to walk the same floor boards as Washington, Look out the same window as Jefferson, sit in the same chair as Franklin, climb the same staircase as Lincoln. I'm not interested in a reproduction or a remodel. Otherwise, I don't really see the point.

Dinner at Jimmy John's, followed by a much-needed nap (I think I was just getting crabby), I hit the gym. I slept very well.

My visit to Springfield was nice. I didn't get a chance to visit Lincoln's gravesite, but as The BF said, "Now you have a reason to go back." (He thinks I'm a nerd.)
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