I became insane with long intervals of horrible sanity.
The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all.
Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so
What I have been telling you, from alpha to omega, what is the one great thing the sigil taught me — that everything in life is miraculous. For the sigil taught me that it rests within the power of each of us to awaken at will from a dragging nightmare of life made up of unimportant tasks and tedious useless little habits, to see life as it really is, and to rejoice in its exquisite wonderfulness. If the sigil were proved to be the top of a tomato-can, it would not alter that big fact, nor my fixed faith. No Harrowby, the common names we call things by do not matter — except to show how very dull we are ...
May 28, 2007 - 8:00 p.m.
My health is greatly improved. Today I showered, I shaved, I actually opened my front door for the first time since I got home Friday night. I had a bagel with butter, I've been drinking. I need to drink. I'm really dehydrated; I weighed only 155.5 lbs this morning. That means I have lost 9.5 lbs since Thursday. Most of that is water. I'll weigh myself the next few days. I bet I get back to at least 162. Right now, my digestive system is working but it is still a bit slow. I can still feel when things pass through the bottleneck.
I had a ticket to see The Tribute To Bob Dylan Festival at the Warwick Valley Winery today and I am feeling well enough to have gone but I don't think it would have been wise. I'm not really as crazy as I sometimes make out. I feel bad because I had The Kennedys bring me a bumper sticker and I wasn't there to get it from them. Of course, it really isn't a big deal and they'll certainly understand.
Sow what am I going to write about? I could write about politics. I could write about my disgust with the president and with Wolfowitz who is blaming his resignation from the World Bank on the press. I'm not going to. I'm just going to let you hear a song courtesy of Christine Lavin.
"The Liar Sleeps Tonight: A musical tribute to The Bush Administration" The DANCE Mix 1:42
Listen for the dance drums that come up at the very end
(just imagine Karl Rove doing his "MC Rove" dance to that section!)
Brian Bauers (vocal) + Christine Lavin (guitar)
Recorded in NYC May 21, 2007This is an update of a version created by Mr. Whitekeys & The Fabulous Spamtones of Spenard, Alaska of the classic song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight." I added the new lyrics. Enjoy! – Christine
To download the mp3:
PC users: Right click and select "Save target as..."
Mac users: press Ctrl key and select "Download link target"
Thanks Rebecca for pointing the way to that.
I have time so I'm going to write about something I've been meaning to write about for a while, The Mets. Don't I always write about the Mets? Well yes but not a celebration of this year's team. Those of you who know me in person or who have read me for years know that though I'm a loyal fan I am far from blind when it comes to my teams. Ask me about the Knicks and I'll tell you not only do they suck but that they are going to suck till they pretty much get a new general manager who will bring in new players. I am pretty much doing what Jerry Seinfeld says fans do, I root for the uniform.
The Mets on the other hand are filled with players and management I have genuine affection for. They have so many remarkable stories. Let's just go through the team. If you click on a player's name you'll get his stat line at Baseball-Reference.com
- First Base - Carlos Delgado: The big guy is on the downside of his career but he's had a great one. I drafted this guy in my fantasy league when he was in the minors. What I really love about him is that when teams started playing God Bless America at games he refused to stand out of the dugout as a protest against the war. He does now as it is the policy of his team, The Mets. He used to play in Toronto so he only heard the song at road games. He took a lot of flak for it and deserves credit for following his conscience.
Backing up Delgado is Julio Franco, the last player to have played against Ty Cobb. Well OK that is an exaggeration but Franco is old. How old? He's a year younger than me. He was born August 23. 1958 back in the Eisenhower administration. He came up to the big leagues in 1982. He has all the records for oldest player to accomplish feats like hitting a home run and stealing a base. He is the Mets' best pinch hitter.
- Second Base – Jose Valentin: Last year the Mets planned on playing rookie Anderson Hernandez at short. He didn't work out. Neither did anyone else they tried. In desperation, they tried Valentin a veteran, also on the downside of his career, that they picked up as an insurance policy. He responded with what was arguably the best season of his career.
This year Valentin got hurt and they had to bring in this year's insurance policy, Damien Easley. He is a former all-star but he hasn't played as a regular since 2001 when he was 31. He of course responded by having his best season in years. He is batting .280 with 7 home runs in 93 at bats. He has not only hit home runs he's hit big ones to win games.
- Shortstop – Jose Reyes. If you listen to the Fox baseball broadcasts you can be forgiven for thinking his full name is "The Most Exciting Player in Baseball, Jose Reyes;" as that is how they seem to always refer to him. The thing is they are right. Jose is only 24 years old. His first three seasons he didn't seem as if he'd live up to his hype then last year he exploded. He hits for average, he hits for power, and he runs like the wind. You can pretty much fill in his name in leading the major leagues in stolen bases and triples. It is wonderful to watch him learn. His big problem was knowledge of the strike zone; a fatal flaw for a leadoff hitter. In 2005, he walked once every 27.1 plate appearances. In 2006, it was once every 13.3 plate appearances, doubling his walk rate. This year he has walked once every once every 8.6 plate appearances. He is a brilliant defensive player. The best thing about him though is the élan he plays the game with. There is always a huge smile on his face. He loves baseball and lets it show.
- Third Base - David Wright: Like Reyes he is a mere 24 years old. He matured a year earlier than Reyes and is already a two-time all-star. He has gotten off to slow start this year but I don't think anybody is that worried about him. He just does everything right. He is the Mets answer to Derek Jeter, a player who produces and leads at a young age. He just says and does all the right things. Maybe he should change his name to David Right.
- Left Field – Moises Alou: The Mets tend to be either very old or very young. Alou is old, he's 40. I was not happy when they signed him. It helped that he was batting .318, that is until he got hurt. You really have to expect that at his age.
When Alou went down he was replaced by the player I thought should have been playing since day one Endy Chavez. What is Endy doing? He is batting .337, that's what. He draws walks, he has some power, and he is an incredible fielder. He made The Catch the greatest play I ever had the pleasure of witnessing in person. Go watch it yourself. First go here then click where it says "Endy's amazing catch." Listen to the radio call too, just click on where it says, "Chavez's leaping catch." If you aren't a baseball fan just take it from me; it was a thing of beauty like Beethoven's Ninth or the Mona Lisa.
- Center Field – Carlos Beltran: I wasn't happy when the Mets signed Beltran. He was coming off an incredible post season but his lifetime numbers were really good but not great. I knew they'd have to terribly overpay him. His first season in New York he was hurt most of the year and had a terrible season hitting. The fans turned on him. I learned to like him. I saw a player who even though he wasn't 100% physically was totally sound fundamentally. He is not a good but a great defensive center fielder. He hardly ever needs to make a spectacular play. He positions himself well and gets a great jump on the ball and is fast. That is a combination that can't be beat. Last year he got healthy and his hitting returned with a vengeance. He had by far the best year of his career and was the best player on the Mets. This year his numbers are down a bit. That means he might be only the second-best center fielder in the game instead of the best.
- Right Field – Shawn Green: Shawn was for a while not just a star but a superstar. He has hit as many as 49 home runs in a season. His high for stolen bases was 35. The thing is that is all in the past. He hasn't hit 30 home runs in a season since 2002. His numbers were in serious decline. That is of course till he signed with the Mets. His power isn't back to what it was but he is batting .314 this year, a nice solid season. He is also one of the Mets' three Jewish players.
OK this had gotten way too long. I'll write about their pitchers and management another time.
I am thinking of going out and grabbing some dinner tonight. Wish me luck.
I signed the Pro-Truth Pledge:
please hold me accountable.
Memories: Not that Horrid Song - May 29, 2018
Wise Madness is Now In Session - May 28, 2018
The NFL and the First Amendment - May 27, 2018
On The Road Again - May 26, 2018
Oliver the Three-Eyed Crow - May 25, 2018
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Horvendile May 28, 2007
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