Sunday, August 12, 2007
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Stuck in the Dog Days
It's Saturday night...almost the end of the night. I've been very restless lately. I have no real reason to be but I am. And apparently my thoughts on how I might move past this is not the way. Or so am I told by one who knows more than me.
But my gut tells me something else and while this one has not steered me wrong before and I don't really feel I'm in any real danger, I do feel that I'm standing still. This does not mean this one did not offer any thoughts on how to process these feelings and this sense of stagnation. And I will follow the road that is being suggested although I have my doubts. But I shall not blow up this bridge before I cross over it. I just hope it doesn't collapse while I'm trying to get across it. Bad analogy given recent events, I know.
I am also in a funk about this damn thing. I don't have a whole lot to say right now. I need to get in touch with some family members who I think are starting to worry about me. I don't mean to make them worry, it's just that I'm not in a good space to talk right now. Of course, I know that by talking I'll put myself in a good space but that part of the brain isn't being listened to right now.
OK, this is all I got right now. Everything is exactly as it is supposed to be.
But my gut tells me something else and while this one has not steered me wrong before and I don't really feel I'm in any real danger, I do feel that I'm standing still. This does not mean this one did not offer any thoughts on how to process these feelings and this sense of stagnation. And I will follow the road that is being suggested although I have my doubts. But I shall not blow up this bridge before I cross over it. I just hope it doesn't collapse while I'm trying to get across it. Bad analogy given recent events, I know.
I am also in a funk about this damn thing. I don't have a whole lot to say right now. I need to get in touch with some family members who I think are starting to worry about me. I don't mean to make them worry, it's just that I'm not in a good space to talk right now. Of course, I know that by talking I'll put myself in a good space but that part of the brain isn't being listened to right now.
OK, this is all I got right now. Everything is exactly as it is supposed to be.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
By an Associated Press Reporter
A friend visiting San Francisco expressed dismay at the quality of the San Francisco Chronicle. He noted that there were only a handful of pages devoted to international coverage and all were from the Associated Press.
It's like this at papers across the country. With the exception of the big boys (New York Times, WSJ, Washington Post), most have cut staffs so severely that the resources aren't there to have their own people overseas, on Capitol Hill, or anywhere outside of their own backyard.
Wall Street cheers this. Business people say why does each paper need their own person overseas or covering Congress? After all, a hearing is a hearing. A battle is a battle. Who needs more than one person covering it?
You know who likes this approach besides Wall Street? Government. The fewer reporters that are out there the fewer hassles, the fewer headaches, the fewer chances that a great wrong will be exposed. This is nothing against the Associated Press, but they can't be everywhere doing everything. Furthermore, as more and more papers count on AP for their bread and butter coverage, AP can't use its resources for more enterprise reporting.
I know the newspaper industry is under tremendous pressure. I know the Internet is a real threat. Ironically, newspapers are producing the content and then giving it away for free on the Internet. In all seriousness, the Internet exists off of so-called mainstream media. I don't have an answer for any of this. I do know that as more newspapers go under or cut staff, reporting will disappear. There will be even fewer voices probing, investigating, asking the questions. And that's not good for anyone.
It's like this at papers across the country. With the exception of the big boys (New York Times, WSJ, Washington Post), most have cut staffs so severely that the resources aren't there to have their own people overseas, on Capitol Hill, or anywhere outside of their own backyard.
Wall Street cheers this. Business people say why does each paper need their own person overseas or covering Congress? After all, a hearing is a hearing. A battle is a battle. Who needs more than one person covering it?
You know who likes this approach besides Wall Street? Government. The fewer reporters that are out there the fewer hassles, the fewer headaches, the fewer chances that a great wrong will be exposed. This is nothing against the Associated Press, but they can't be everywhere doing everything. Furthermore, as more and more papers count on AP for their bread and butter coverage, AP can't use its resources for more enterprise reporting.
I know the newspaper industry is under tremendous pressure. I know the Internet is a real threat. Ironically, newspapers are producing the content and then giving it away for free on the Internet. In all seriousness, the Internet exists off of so-called mainstream media. I don't have an answer for any of this. I do know that as more newspapers go under or cut staff, reporting will disappear. There will be even fewer voices probing, investigating, asking the questions. And that's not good for anyone.
A Simpler Time
The Yes Network was rerunning the Monday Night Baseball game the Yankees played against the Orioles in 1979, the same day Thurman Munson was buried in Ohio.
It was an emotional game that the Yankees won as Bobby Murcer drove in all five runs. Anyway, I watched that game as a kid and watching it again was a trip. There weren't two dozen replays of every pitch. The announcers didn't feel the need to fill every second with chatter, trivial statistical information that adds nothing to the coverage and keep in mind that one of the voices in that booth was Howard Cosell. The crew didn't feel the need to keep moving the camera every three seconds. Lord knows these days we can't be expected to gaze at the same image on the screen for more than three seconds without getting antsy.
Anyway, the game was just as compelling as it was 28 years ago. Now I'm not knocking better cameras, improved pictures, greater detail, all those advancements are good. What's not is filling the screen with clutter, crap, meaningless replays, stats, and other filler that adds nothing to the telecast. Just because one can do something, doesn't mean it needs to be done.
It was an emotional game that the Yankees won as Bobby Murcer drove in all five runs. Anyway, I watched that game as a kid and watching it again was a trip. There weren't two dozen replays of every pitch. The announcers didn't feel the need to fill every second with chatter, trivial statistical information that adds nothing to the coverage and keep in mind that one of the voices in that booth was Howard Cosell. The crew didn't feel the need to keep moving the camera every three seconds. Lord knows these days we can't be expected to gaze at the same image on the screen for more than three seconds without getting antsy.
Anyway, the game was just as compelling as it was 28 years ago. Now I'm not knocking better cameras, improved pictures, greater detail, all those advancements are good. What's not is filling the screen with clutter, crap, meaningless replays, stats, and other filler that adds nothing to the telecast. Just because one can do something, doesn't mean it needs to be done.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
W4M....
OK, so one of the subplots of last week's "Entourage" was a bet between E and Turtle as to who could get laid first. Looking to win quick, Drama convinces Turtle to hit Craig's List Casual Encounters to score. Turtle answers ad and the girl is a stunner. I won't spoil the twist except to say it didn't involve her having a penis.
But my hunch is that for those who haven't hit CL's CE section, they now will anticipate that like Turtle they'll answer one ad (oh, and the girl posted her phone number in the ad, yeah right) and hit the jackpot.
Let me paint a more realistic picture. First of all, most of the so-called women seeking men (W4M) on CL usually turn out to be guys who are so-called picture collectors. Don't ask me to explain, just think about it for a second.
If there is a woman there, odds are she wants to exchange something for the promise of a hook-up. Ski, X, whatever. Nothing is free or casual about it. None of this is said in a judging tone, just want to set the record straight.
Usually such an ad by an actual woman is placed in the evening, either early in the hopes of getting her night started right or late in the hopes of making a disappointing night a little more tolerable. Or they just really need to feed the beast inside of them telling them that this chemical will make everything else that is wrong go away. The same holds true for those answering the ads so don't go thinking I'm trying to be all above it all.
Anyhow, usually within seconds of said ad being place, the person who placed it is inundated with tons of responses. Most respondents ignore whatever the ad may be asking and go right into either their life story or a detailed description of why their anatomy will solve all of the advertiser's problems in life. I know this how? Well, for starters me and a female friend once placed an ad to see the response we'd get and I too have occasionally (in my dark past) answered CL CE ads. Because I was one of the few who didn't subscribe to either of these approaches, I would often at least get some initial response and when things went further would get the low down from the people I met about what types of responses they received. The best bet, if you must do this, is try to be clever and funny. If you show the slightest bit of wit you will move to the top of the list.
Most of the time, one doesn't get any responses from the person posting the ad. Sometimes it turns into a back and forth of emails, picture exchanges (here's a hint most women won't ask for a picture of it) while the clock ticks ever closer to daylight and when that hits and the last of the substances are starting to wear off, the last thing anyone wants to do is prolong the misery they're already in hunched over their computer hoping against hope that some savior is going to rescue them. And every now and then, the conversation moves from email to the phone and then in person and that's when it can get really interesting.
That brings me to the people I met. We all have our demons we battle and our issues and lord knows I have plenty. That said, lets just say my adventures could have served a b-roll material for Permanent Midnight. I went to one apartment where the host informed me we needed to be quiet because her daughter was asleep in the other room. I went to a project at 5th Avenue and 135th Street and hung out with two very nice girls and while we shared lots of things, it didn't turn into the orgy I was anticipating. That said, what the heck was I thinking heading over there at 4 a.m.? .There could've been anyone behind that door and anyone else's that I knocked on after a CL CE email dance.
Sometimes I hosted. That's a whole other game of risk. At least I have an intercom and a window to see what is at my door at 4:30 a.m. and whether there are four other people waiting to come in with her carrying led pipes. One highlight was the spiky haired blonde who preferred the injection method as a means of delivery. It was not pleasant to watch. Actually, it was really boring to watch. It took forever and made me wonder how heroin addicts put up with it. No wonder they're nodding off afterwards, it is hard and tedious work shooting up.
These are only the most memorable of my CL CE experiences and I'm not doing them justice here.
I realize that TV has to take short cuts. and while I think it'd be pretty funny to show Drama and Turtle enduring a more realistic CL CE experience, that wouldn't be the Hollywood ending everyone wants.
Speaking of Hollywood endings, I also had two very great experiences off of CL CE so I can't say that the system doesn't sometimes work. But those instances are too few and far between to be judged as anything but dumb luck. Of course, as Bukowski would say, "that counts too!"
But my hunch is that for those who haven't hit CL's CE section, they now will anticipate that like Turtle they'll answer one ad (oh, and the girl posted her phone number in the ad, yeah right) and hit the jackpot.
Let me paint a more realistic picture. First of all, most of the so-called women seeking men (W4M) on CL usually turn out to be guys who are so-called picture collectors. Don't ask me to explain, just think about it for a second.
If there is a woman there, odds are she wants to exchange something for the promise of a hook-up. Ski, X, whatever. Nothing is free or casual about it. None of this is said in a judging tone, just want to set the record straight.
Usually such an ad by an actual woman is placed in the evening, either early in the hopes of getting her night started right or late in the hopes of making a disappointing night a little more tolerable. Or they just really need to feed the beast inside of them telling them that this chemical will make everything else that is wrong go away. The same holds true for those answering the ads so don't go thinking I'm trying to be all above it all.
Anyhow, usually within seconds of said ad being place, the person who placed it is inundated with tons of responses. Most respondents ignore whatever the ad may be asking and go right into either their life story or a detailed description of why their anatomy will solve all of the advertiser's problems in life. I know this how? Well, for starters me and a female friend once placed an ad to see the response we'd get and I too have occasionally (in my dark past) answered CL CE ads. Because I was one of the few who didn't subscribe to either of these approaches, I would often at least get some initial response and when things went further would get the low down from the people I met about what types of responses they received. The best bet, if you must do this, is try to be clever and funny. If you show the slightest bit of wit you will move to the top of the list.
Most of the time, one doesn't get any responses from the person posting the ad. Sometimes it turns into a back and forth of emails, picture exchanges (here's a hint most women won't ask for a picture of it) while the clock ticks ever closer to daylight and when that hits and the last of the substances are starting to wear off, the last thing anyone wants to do is prolong the misery they're already in hunched over their computer hoping against hope that some savior is going to rescue them. And every now and then, the conversation moves from email to the phone and then in person and that's when it can get really interesting.
That brings me to the people I met. We all have our demons we battle and our issues and lord knows I have plenty. That said, lets just say my adventures could have served a b-roll material for Permanent Midnight. I went to one apartment where the host informed me we needed to be quiet because her daughter was asleep in the other room. I went to a project at 5th Avenue and 135th Street and hung out with two very nice girls and while we shared lots of things, it didn't turn into the orgy I was anticipating. That said, what the heck was I thinking heading over there at 4 a.m.? .There could've been anyone behind that door and anyone else's that I knocked on after a CL CE email dance.
Sometimes I hosted. That's a whole other game of risk. At least I have an intercom and a window to see what is at my door at 4:30 a.m. and whether there are four other people waiting to come in with her carrying led pipes. One highlight was the spiky haired blonde who preferred the injection method as a means of delivery. It was not pleasant to watch. Actually, it was really boring to watch. It took forever and made me wonder how heroin addicts put up with it. No wonder they're nodding off afterwards, it is hard and tedious work shooting up.
These are only the most memorable of my CL CE experiences and I'm not doing them justice here.
I realize that TV has to take short cuts. and while I think it'd be pretty funny to show Drama and Turtle enduring a more realistic CL CE experience, that wouldn't be the Hollywood ending everyone wants.
Speaking of Hollywood endings, I also had two very great experiences off of CL CE so I can't say that the system doesn't sometimes work. But those instances are too few and far between to be judged as anything but dumb luck. Of course, as Bukowski would say, "that counts too!"
When Talk Wasn't Cheap
I never thought I'd be writing something kind about Tom Snyder. Not that I ever had anything against him, I just basically took him for granted, enjoyed the SNL parodies, etc. and thought he was a bit of a blowhard.
But looking at old clips of him on You Tube (I recommend the one with Howard Stern) one realizes quickly how low the level of discourse on talk shows has become these days. I know we all know that but when you watch some of those clips, it really sinks in.
Today's late night talk is just one giant promo for whatever movie, CD, TV show, the guest has coming out. Host makes lame jokes, guest tells prepackaged amusing anecdote, then on to commercials and the next guest. Interviewing skills are no where to be seen. I'd say they've been lost but that would imply that Leno and even Letterman had them in the first place. I know TV critics all drool over Letterman but heck watching some of his clips on You Tube with Pete Townshend and Warren Zevon I see that even Dave is not all that probing. And that was Dave in the 80s and early 90s when he still had some power over who came on his show.
Snyder may not have been all that deep for his day either but by today's standards he is the Edward R. Murrow of talk.
I really don't want to use this as a forum to sit and whine about how much better everything used to be in them days. It was. We had better ghettos in New York in the 70s. The Yanks had characters. We had Son of Sam, not some random nuts who shoot up schools. And I walked five miles to school in the snow.
Great piece in the new Vanity Fair on Rudy's wife number three, basically confirming everything I had suspected. Lots of unnamed sources, but I'm willing to forgive in this case because...well because it suits my purposes to do so.
But looking at old clips of him on You Tube (I recommend the one with Howard Stern) one realizes quickly how low the level of discourse on talk shows has become these days. I know we all know that but when you watch some of those clips, it really sinks in.
Today's late night talk is just one giant promo for whatever movie, CD, TV show, the guest has coming out. Host makes lame jokes, guest tells prepackaged amusing anecdote, then on to commercials and the next guest. Interviewing skills are no where to be seen. I'd say they've been lost but that would imply that Leno and even Letterman had them in the first place. I know TV critics all drool over Letterman but heck watching some of his clips on You Tube with Pete Townshend and Warren Zevon I see that even Dave is not all that probing. And that was Dave in the 80s and early 90s when he still had some power over who came on his show.
Snyder may not have been all that deep for his day either but by today's standards he is the Edward R. Murrow of talk.
I really don't want to use this as a forum to sit and whine about how much better everything used to be in them days. It was. We had better ghettos in New York in the 70s. The Yanks had characters. We had Son of Sam, not some random nuts who shoot up schools. And I walked five miles to school in the snow.
Great piece in the new Vanity Fair on Rudy's wife number three, basically confirming everything I had suspected. Lots of unnamed sources, but I'm willing to forgive in this case because...well because it suits my purposes to do so.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Mutterings from the Mezzanine
Been a few days and while I have nothing big to say, I feel I need to at least put something out there just in case any one's wondering if I'm lying on the floor of my apartment while Fluff and Skinny gnaw at my bones.
I'm not although it's hot enough to make that a viable option. I could say I've been busy, but I haven't. I've maybe been a little preoccupied trying to figure out the career thing. I'm not challenged in this job and there are a lot of headaches but the flip side is that it is a comfortable work environment and there are worse places to be at right now. Not everyone can claim that their "transistiional job" pays than more than 30% what their other job did. I realize if I leave there may be a $$$ cut involved and while I'll take a cut, I don't want an amputation.
I know. NEVER TAKE A PAY CUT. Ya know, that's just not always realistic. Fortunately, for better or for worse I'm a single guy who is now debt free and confident enough that if I have to take a step back in the short-term, it'll work in the long-term.
Of course, I don't know that I'll have to take a cut. I'm assuming. I'm--to use the phrase of a friend of mine--blowing up the bridge before I even cross it. Let the cards be dealt and then worry about how to play it.
Maybe if I had a life outside of this then I'd better appreciate and focus on it and be very pleased that I had a normal job. But I don't have those things right now. Not whining about it, that's just the way it is for now. And anyway, I've foolishly always chosen career over women, etc. It's a bad habit and one I hope to be free of along with this insanity that my self worth is measured by my paycheck. Actually, not so much by my paycheck but by who signs it. See, I was until recently in a position that seemed more like a "calling" vs. a job. Now, I realize that's crap but I was full of self-importance and grandiosity. I worked for the equivalent of the Yankees in my profession and now...
But none of that matters. Of course, knowing it in one's head and accepting it are two different things. I'll get there.
OK, enough with the job crap. Rescue Me is still too over-the-top. Mad Men is getting better and The Bronx is Burning is great. If anyone can tell me what else the nasal-voiced guy who plays one of the beat reporters has been in I'll be extremely grateful. It's driving me crazy.
The heat is supposed to continue through the weekend, which means the lovely garbage smells will also be percolating up and down Broadway. Hmmm, might be a good time to empty the cat box too. Maybe after the laundry. In other words, SSDD.
I'm not although it's hot enough to make that a viable option. I could say I've been busy, but I haven't. I've maybe been a little preoccupied trying to figure out the career thing. I'm not challenged in this job and there are a lot of headaches but the flip side is that it is a comfortable work environment and there are worse places to be at right now. Not everyone can claim that their "transistiional job" pays than more than 30% what their other job did. I realize if I leave there may be a $$$ cut involved and while I'll take a cut, I don't want an amputation.
I know. NEVER TAKE A PAY CUT. Ya know, that's just not always realistic. Fortunately, for better or for worse I'm a single guy who is now debt free and confident enough that if I have to take a step back in the short-term, it'll work in the long-term.
Of course, I don't know that I'll have to take a cut. I'm assuming. I'm--to use the phrase of a friend of mine--blowing up the bridge before I even cross it. Let the cards be dealt and then worry about how to play it.
Maybe if I had a life outside of this then I'd better appreciate and focus on it and be very pleased that I had a normal job. But I don't have those things right now. Not whining about it, that's just the way it is for now. And anyway, I've foolishly always chosen career over women, etc. It's a bad habit and one I hope to be free of along with this insanity that my self worth is measured by my paycheck. Actually, not so much by my paycheck but by who signs it. See, I was until recently in a position that seemed more like a "calling" vs. a job. Now, I realize that's crap but I was full of self-importance and grandiosity. I worked for the equivalent of the Yankees in my profession and now...
But none of that matters. Of course, knowing it in one's head and accepting it are two different things. I'll get there.
OK, enough with the job crap. Rescue Me is still too over-the-top. Mad Men is getting better and The Bronx is Burning is great. If anyone can tell me what else the nasal-voiced guy who plays one of the beat reporters has been in I'll be extremely grateful. It's driving me crazy.
The heat is supposed to continue through the weekend, which means the lovely garbage smells will also be percolating up and down Broadway. Hmmm, might be a good time to empty the cat box too. Maybe after the laundry. In other words, SSDD.
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