Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
How to win a fight (part III)
I haven’t slept it almost a day and I have to go to the dentist now for what’s hopefully my last cavity to be filled. I hope this article doesn’t inspire me to kick him in the nuts while he’s drilling in my teeth.
I had absolutely no idea what that video was about. I’m so tired. Oh yeah has anyone seen Mu-- oh wait, he’s back, never mind.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 07/18 at 06:59 AMMorning Mr Z and all expendables.
“What feels like freedom is often nothing more than longer chains and bigger cages...”
Terrific line.
I thought <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68mWBVOJ8yA&search=sperm whale” target="new">this</a> was pretty cool, the largest brained animal on the planet at 3000ft below…
Try putting him in a cage.Posted by Mew on from horriby humid London 07/18 at 07:01 AMHello Expendables. What a lousy night we had. Power was mostly off...no AC, minimal fan power, very minimal sleep. Michele and I got up and hit the gym ASAP...just to get some cool air. I am one cranky, hot, and tired son of a bitch at the moment. Makes me realize how spoiled and soft we’ve all become.
Anyway, it’s supposed to be even warmer today in NYC so if I disappear for a while, that means my connection has flown north for the summer.
Thanks for the link, Mew. And Cat Lady: I deleted the video in the main post anyway.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 07/18 at 07:37 AMDid I hear someone say cool air?
MZ, I had power-off/minimum power a while back—ain’t no fun… And yes, I think we’re spoiled to death with all of our creature comforts, etc.
At any rate, off to go work in the Houstonium heat shortly.
Be cool, y’all.
Posted by RT on from The Buyou City 07/18 at 09:03 AMI only really meant that because I was too exhausted to focus on it… like now. Good night!
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 07/18 at 09:48 AMI just learned the cause of our power outage: A transformer exploded (taking out two cars) resulting in a major fire. Con Edison has reduced power output to our area so we have dimmed lights, slow fans, etc. Despite the record heat, I’m afraid to turn on the AC. It might blow everything out in my apartment.
Looks like another long night and day here...at least until the thunderstorms hit tonight and cool things off a little.
Captcha is mocking me: “faith”
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 07/18 at 10:25 AMIt’s gonna be 104F here today. I am NOT going outside. Well, I have to go outside to get to the writer’s group. In 104F heat. No greater love hath any control freak than to brave such horrible conditions for his subject peoples.
MZ, you have my empathy...power off a few weeks ago, only for one day, made me a screaming hysterical Fury. Go to a movie, any movie, and spend the money gladly.
CatLady, does the dentist still have his nuts? I haven’t been to the dentist in 20 years...sheer terror keeps me away. It’s a common trait among the sexually abused, weirdly enough, to be irrationally terrified of dental work. Weird, no?
RT, that Houstonium heat is a bugger, ain’t it? Fare well, and stay within normal operating parameters.
Cooling thunderstorms to all who won’t be flooded by them,
MudgePosted by Mudge on from Austin, Texas 07/18 at 11:39 AMMudge: I just took a walk with the goal of enjoying the AC provided by supermarkets, drug stores, etc. Well, silly me. No one in my vicinity has anything approaching cool air. That would likely include the local move theater. To top things off, I passed another transformer fire nearby. Con Ed’s repair crews are spread thin.
I’m counting the minutes till Michele gets home so she can pick up and rive me around in her car...with the AC blasting.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 07/18 at 12:29 PMSubway to Manhattan, MZ, thnece to the IMAX on the UWS and even see my husband in the process. Get cool however you can!
xoxo
captcha="forces" as in “bring ‘em home to fix the exploding transformers”
Posted by Mudge on from Austin, Texas 07/18 at 01:20 PMIt’s about 10-12 blocks in the blazing sun to the subway and the thought of being in those sauna-like tunnels sounds worse than the AC in a move theater sounds good.
Con Ed now has a car circling the neighborhood with a loudspeaker imploring us not to use the AC or other “non-essential” appliances.
Time for a cold, cold shower.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 07/18 at 01:38 PMIt’s hot here too, but not as hot as yesterday, and all modern luxuries are functioning at full power.
I got here too late for the now deleted video, but holy shit Bruce Lee is FAST, doubtless I’d hurt myself in attempting any such feat, more than any intended mark.I look away when a frisbee comes at me, so it’s hardly suprising. Mickey if you and Michele ever migrate north to the land of air conditioning, I’ll sign up at the gym of your choice, but not until then...I must kick my own ass into resuming regular yoga. (if I start telling other people then it’s more difficult to procrastinate indefinitely)
Where are the “british” Expendables today?
Hi to everyone
Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 07/18 at 02:47 PMoh oh...forgot
...and I especially liked the haiku at the end of the article.
I found it to be both contemporary and serious.Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 07/18 at 02:51 PM#9-- Ah, ha-- perfectly cool in the Kitchen today! A.c. blasting all day, though I shudder to think of my ConEd bill later this month…
Amelopsis! And Mudge… oh what a glorious day here today!
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 07/18 at 03:46 PMThis is the first time I’m staying away from NYC in the summer; I’m planning to visit later this year. It’s hot here too, but we’ve a beach nearby and a naturally cool, shady apartment. Hard to relate to talk of A/C, although I’m sure I’d feel differently sitting in Manhattan right now. All talk in the real world today is of Lebanon.
Nice thing: I teach drums to a 12-year-old girl who just formed a band with one of her classmates who sings and plays piano. I gave them a lesson today and one of the songs in their two-song repertoire (both original compositions) is an impassioned plea for world peace. It was wonderful work, certainly beyond their years. I asked the friend where the idea for the lyrics came from and she said she was talking with her older brother about “current events” and it just seemed natural that she write this song. What a mature, and yet obvious response...these girls shame many established artists.
Posted by Keir on from The Hague 07/18 at 06:21 PMWell, here it is almost 8am on Wednesday and there’s no MZ-related posting...Astoria must still be in the throes of its power woes.
Hi Empress! hi Keir! morning CatLady!
Posted by Mudge on from Austin, Texas 07/19 at 06:52 AMGood Wednesday morning, Mudge. Mickey must be experience power at the whimsy of ConEd.
Certainly better that than the reality of life or death at the whimsy of a missile into your bedroom...as Keir mentioned yesterday the real news is all about Lebanon and the hopelessly backward and twisted response that Stevo Harper is promoting here. Nevermind the war crimes and collective punishment being thrust upon the nation, just evacuate ‘our’ lebanese and then we can go back to letting Israel destroy it’s neighbours in peace.
It’s quite revolting. Of the more than 250 known dead, 8 were Canadians who died in their family home.
I hear stories describing how difficult life is for Israelis in the seaside paradise of Haifa or Eilat so fearful for the air raid sirens and undergoing the difficulties of going to shelters each night, etc.
I want no one to suffer, but MY GAWD this is nothing when compared to the chronic suffering and terror that Palestinians live through daily, and that is now inflicted on the Lebanese.
Spin World is most apt.Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 07/19 at 08:16 AMUmm I got a little carried away there. I’m sure Mickey’s irrated but not traumatised by his lack of electricity...that was just me getting all frothy over the wars.
Keir that story of the young drummer girl is really quite touching. Their empathy is truly their only hope I fear.
I wish I could hear her band’s song.Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 07/19 at 08:19 AMbut MY GAWD this is nothing when compared to the chronic suffering and terror that Palestinians live through daily, and that is now inflicted on the Lebanese.
Amelopsis this is true but I have another word for what the Israelis in the area of Haifa are experiencing: martial law. Imagine being a person of conscience in this place. The army wants the streets deserted, the people to stick close to shelters, and so forth. Recall how the fear of an attack brought many Iraqis closer to the despicable Saddam Hussein. The fear of an attack inevitably brings many Israelis closer to their despicable government.
But of course this fact neither exonerates the deplorable Western reporting nor alleviates the suffering of the Lebanese right now. Democracy Now is on fire, however. Interview with Syria’s president yesterday was eye-opening.
Posted by Keir on from The Hague 07/19 at 08:46 AMHey Mudge and Amelopsis and Keir, and good luck to Mickey with ConEd… this simple article from the BBC seemed pretty good last night:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5193228.stm
Really relavant passage to me:
----The existence of an independent, non-belligerent state to the north,” he wrote in Monday’s Ma’ariv newspaper, “could be achieved now.”But the widespread destruction of Lebanon’s infrastructure, and the killing of Lebanese civilians and soldiers, may seem a curious way of achieving this desirable objective.
Yeah. Curious.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 07/19 at 10:52 AMI have not been overly vigilant in seeking out real news online lately but it sounds as though a visit to Democracy Now will be in order.
Canada has a very large Lebanese population...something around 45,000 so our local ethnic stations give some greater coverage than do the other MSM. Of all the tv news, I’ve found their coverage of wars to be quite balanced.
Now it seems that while he’s on his neocon inaugural tour of the global state, our PM is so graciously going to meet a single boatful of Cdn. evacuees in Cyprus ‘to help with the evacuation’ and fly 120 chosen from among their numbers on his own plane back to Canada. The other boats transporting the evacuees are all going to Turkey.
So much distracting nonsense. While I’m concerned for the evacuees, I’m more concerned about all those who cannot leave or have nowhere to go. They should not have to leave.Keir, you point out the crucial part of the real control being excercised by the state of Israel, done a la democracie style...fear based control is by far the most efficient and cost effective method to very quickly gather a populace to embrace their own protection. It seems all “democracies” are now putting into action all the practice and groundwork they’ve done over the years and seeing how far we’ll allow them to take it.
Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 07/19 at 10:55 AM-
Grey Victory by Natalie Merchant (when she was with 10,000 Maniacs) the song is obviously about the bombing of Hiroshima but I think the lyrics are an appropriate companion to the two photos
GREY VICTORY
there was light
and atomic fission
swelling wind
rising ash
tide of black rain
cement seared shadow traces
reminiscent of their
last commandsinstantly one thousand
flames arising
ill scent of
burning hides surrounding
a settlement
debased entirely
Enola Gay had made a casual deliveryplease build a future darling
with our bomb
cherish and love it
for the sake of
earth bound kingdom comethe undersides of
fallen metal trusses
evil debris of
human bodies
each window’s glass
shards pelted
secure confines
brittle collapseneighbors lay beside
each other unknowing
faces scorched
of all familiar bearing
too few hands
wounds for closing
marred by thirsting
anguish
fear
lamentinghere we stand
at the door to
Gold Atomic Age
don’t spoil your face with worry
trust in earth bound kingdom comePosted by TM on from 07/19 at 01:44 PM Damn it last week I was whining about Mudge being missing, and now I have to do the same about Mickey??? Nooo…
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 07/19 at 01:53 PMY’all: good resources here.
TM, those photos are fucking disgusting. Horrible. Jesus.
Posted by Keir on from The Hague 07/19 at 04:08 PMThanks for this post, Mickey! And ‘hello’ to all my fellow expendables - James, Mew, RT, Mudge (glad to see you back), Amelopsis, Keir and TM.
Am back from Melbourne - our trip there was eventful in that our car broke down halfway between Daylesford and Melbourne and had to be towed 70 kms to my mother-in-law’s place. That was fun - NOT! Thank God Alan’s trusted car mechanic found only the ignition defective and not the engine, as we had feared.
Ciao for today ..
Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 07/19 at 05:11 PMRe the ‘coverage’ of the present ‘conflict’ in the Middle East and proof that the ‘Israel lobby’ exists down under as well:
http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2006/s1691313.htmPosted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 07/19 at 05:22 PMHi all, it was 101F today and I just trudged in from the heat to find no MZ. James and Keir and the Empress make fine companions, but where’s our furry-ab’ed Fearless Leader? Not sweltering, I hope....
My house has a rat under it. The rat scared the dogs and me awake this morning, banging away on the bottom of the bathtub.
I hate rats. They’re destructive and nasty-stinko. Roomie won’t hear of a kill-trap and I won’t hear of poison with the dogs around. We’re stumped. The sonic irritators work on me, but leave the roomie, the puppies and the rat unfazed.
Where’s RMJ? I’m missing her. Come back to me, beloved!
Posted by Mudge on from Austin, Texas 07/19 at 07:07 PMHello Expendables. We had zero electricity untl a few minutes ago. I slept on the damn fire escape in nothing but my boxers. I’ll be back to posting tomorrow and will read all the above comments tonight.
Captcha sez: hot.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 07/19 at 08:24 PMSo, MZ sez it was a hot night in the city, eh? Hope you’re getting to sleep in today in the AC to compensate for the day before.
Mudge...how about a no kill trap? Caught and relocated a couple of feisty chipmunks in one a few years back. Worked like a charm. If you can’t rent them, I think they cost around $50 or less. Need more info? Let me know and I’ll search out a link ... You just cant’ go killing the thing (although I wouldn’t want to have him determined to get up through my bathtub...those beggars are just persistent enough to succeed!) and the poison is a horrible method anyway - bleeding to death from a brain aneurism!
Good morning to Every Expendable - the weather here’s absolutely lovely...hot but not smoggy and so far not too humid.
Now I’m looking forward to reading Mickey’s next post ....
Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 07/20 at 08:25 AMSlept on the fire escape in boxers, huh? I would say we might be seeing some lewd pics of Mick on the Internet soon, but then again, he usualy provides those himself!
I must say my aunt, uncle and I have made it this far without AC, though we might put some in this weekend.
Posted by JOS on from Chicago 07/20 at 09:24 AMMe again. I spoke too soon. Power is back...but now my cable provider has issues. Thus: no internet connection or cable TV for me.
I’m at a public computer and will try to make a post from here.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Angry Astoria 07/20 at 09:40 AM
Next entry: Power (outage) to the People
Previous entry: Welcome to Spin World
Copyright © 2005-2007 Mickey Z.
