Amazing photo collection over at the NY Times: “The Towers’ Rise and Fall”. “Rise, Life, and Fall” – I don’t know – the pictures of the “life” are what really hit me even as they at least make me smile; the rest – the death part – is still too hard to look at without the visceral sadness.
Category: Brooklyn
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This Week in September 2011
We seem to be loaded with 10th anniversary of 9/11/01 items this week. I think I agree with this post by Linda Holmes, over at NPR’s Monkey See blog, regarding how much we can digest of the tributes and so forth as they appear on television. I’m not sure how much I want to be inundated by images of that day, and how visceral it can still feel. I especially agree with Holmes’ closing statement from her post:
Think carefully about what you want to watch. Think carefully about immersion experiences, especially. They are potent, and depending on how suggestible you are, you may find that you are more transported than you intended.
I did find this photographic review of the week before 9/11/01 over at the Atlantic’s website to be a very interesting photo tribute.
A lot of food for thought this week.
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We Survived Hurricane Irene
… and Probably Should Get the t-shirt to express the survival.
Thankfully not so bad; we fared okay.
New Yorkers insist on grumbling, of course.
Look, I’m not going to second-guess the order to evacuate the coastal areas of the city or whether MTA didn’t need to shut down service. Hurricane Irene could have been a disaster and we got lucky. And, I’m glad to not have to hear about people trapped in Battery Park City or Coney Island or the Rockaways, or stuck in flooded subways or blown away on the elevated lines. Better to be safe than sorry – I’ll agree with the mayor on that.
Check MTA for subway service updates for Monday. Looks like service is expected to be up by 6am.
Pretty amazed – fascinating footage from AP, via NPR’s news blog. So the island of Manhattan was pretty unscathed; downtown was gushing with water during the height of Irene, but Times Square still glittered w/ lights, even if a people-less. Ah well.
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Come On Irene
At least the hype (hopefully hype) is exciting. I even got kicked out of the office early, but I work in Zone A, which got ordered a mandatory evacuation and the building’s landlord was turning off the electricity at 5pm.
The following embedded video was from a friend of mine, MW. I share it as a mild form of hokey entertainment for us Triscribers. Better that than to freak out.
Hope for the best, after all!
In case you (still) need to check what zone you’re in: check the interactive map.
As I note over at my other blog, all the libraries in the city are closed this weekend.
Also, no subways after 12pm on Saturday (check the MTA on that). Of course, this means that, on the bright side, the mayor’s not going to tell us to take on a Broadway show. Stay safe! (and dry?)
Oh, and don’t forget – have a manual can opener, if you’re going to have all that canned food this weekend. Just sayin’.
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Heat and Humidity in August 2011
Happy 20th Birthday, World Wide Web!
In a world of increasing austerity (supposedly): the DIY trend in Brooklyn, NY.
Speaking of austerity, a hilarious, cartoon look at an “Austerity Survival Guide” in the NY Times’ Opinion section (e.g., “In the event of further economic collapse, assist the wealthiest individuals first.” “Suffering from bad credit? Stop, drop, and roll. It’s all you can afford to do.” (sob, sob, sob)).
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Heat Wave Recovery In Progress
We had some three-digit days; that was a bit much (just sayin’).
Items of interest:
In case you need an excuse to visit Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Library branch (besides borrowing books, that is): an exhibit, 6/28/11 to 9/18/11: “Brooklyn’s Bridges: Engineering as Art & Inspiration.”
Interesting item from this July’s ABA Journal: “Second Lives: For These Former Justices, Retirement Is No Day at the Beach,” by Mark Walsh: Justice John Paul Stevens – (still) not an easy guy to pin down on issues; Justice Sandra Day O’Connor is candid about not liking how the current US Supreme Court is knocking on her decisions (i.e., abortion and affirmative action); and I’m curious to know more about what Justice David Souter meant about “fair reading model” of statutes (what?).
Entertainment Weekly did some coverage at this year’s Comic Con in San Diego, and I’ll let others go web surfing on the goodies. But, I thought this item about “Community” looked interesting – could it be that the gang could actually graduate by season 4? (not that anyone would have to graduate from community college in four years, if at all; and this assumes that that show can make it to four years, if NBC will be so kind).
So… could Jeff Winger (played by Joel McHale) will one day be a real fake lawyer? I don’t remember if he went to a real (tv) law school or passed a (tv) bar exam, but the show was pretty clear that he never had a real (tv) undergrad degree (from the country Colombia, not Columbia U), which was why the bar suspended (disbarred?) Jeff, a Damn Fine (tv) Litigator otherwise.
But, if Jeff graduates… well, it could be interesting to watch. It might even be believable.
Other interesting items from EW (strangely not from Comic Con…):
OMG. EW made me hysterical with laughter over their 1980’s redux. The comments to this particular post, “Who’s the coolest G.I. Joe?” – they are so funny, hitting at how EW forgot about at least two of the cartoon’s characters: Shipwreck and Lady J (that I even remember those characters only proves how I wasted the 1980’s).
Plus: “Who’s the coolest member of Voltron?” Hmm… Ahem. Maybe I’m the only one who thinks that Lance was the Chandler of the Voltron Lions team, if Voltron Lions team were like Friends (wasn’t he the sarcastic one?). And Princess Allura was surely a mix of the insecure Monica with the character development (gaining her own independence) of Rachel. And, Keith leads. He leads, man. (Oh, and the new Voltron cartoon on Nicktoons: my main quibble is why aren’t the team members wearing helmets?).
And, even a “Who’s the coolest ‘Duck Tales’ character?” Yes, my 1980’s were a waste of time…
This article from NPR.org about Kevin Clash’s career “Being Elmo” was such a great read. And, PBS’ “Independent Lens” is scheduled to eventually show this documentary about Kevin Clash – so that’ll be cool to watch. (he didn’t just do Elmo; he did the annoying baby dinosaur from the Dinosaurs show back in the 1990’s on ABC. The man’s talented).
The return of Captain Planet and the Planeteers, but in a live-action movie. Seriously? So… will Captain Planet and the Planeteers save Fukushima and stop global warming?… oh, wait, Captain Planet kind of was making us do that. Sorry… (and, really, where are original ideas? Talk about recycling!).
I don’t have BBC America (unless I get DVD’s?); so I’m not on the Law & Order UK bandwagon. But: Freema Agyeman (the remaining prosecutor) and Peter Davison (new chief prosecutor)? Doctor Who partnerships get a mashup, as the ex-Martha works with the ex-Doctor! Well, British actors get around… (I love these photos from All Things Law & Order; and how, in this post on ATL&O: Peter Davison does mention having gotten to know Agyeman from the Doctor Who connection/convention); and here, Agyeman goes a little into the Doctor Who connection too, while giving a lot of insight of her L&O: UK character).
Last but not least:
The passing of Betty Ford, definitely in a unique category of Republican First Ladies. Impressive that she was both ahead and so very much part of her/our times. NY Times obit here, with a lot of interesting stuff on her legacy. Daily News’ longtime DC Bureau chief/correspondent Thomas DeFrank has a good insight, after having interviewed her over the years.
The passing of former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General John M. Shalikashvili.
The passing of Amy Winehouse. Daily News Music Critic Jim Farber on her musical legacy; I agree – the playing of her “Rehab” song gets in the way of how she had quite a unique voice.
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Dr. Ken Jeong on “Stayin’ Alive”…
FC shared this on Facebook, and it so obviously belongs on triscribe…
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Follow Up: Lawrence Block Reading/Signing
Last post on Lawrence Block was here, referring to Ken Tucker posting at Entertainment Weekly about Block’s appearance on the Craig Ferguson show.
Thursday night – went to Partners & Crime for Lawrence Block’s book reading/signing. I had a great time! The reading and the Q&A were terrific; and I admired how Block was pretty even-handed about the e-book development (at least, from what I could tell; he was right about how the development is still not clear, especially about pricing, but it has been great for bringing back older books).
In addition to signing my purchased copy of his A Drop of the Hard Stuff (the latest Matthew Scudder book, but apparently a good entry for new Scudder readers – which would include me, since I’m behind on many things), Block signed my copy of Telling Lies for Fun & Profit! I can’t stop highly recommending this book, not just because it’s such a great title, but because there are great fiction writing tips. Block did say, though, that he felt Spider, Spin Me a Web was the better writing book, because it goes deeper into writing topics; either way, his tips are good stuff and he’ll be issuing more compilations of his Writer’s Digest columns (I think in ebook format). Yay!
I’m eager to read the Scudder book – the Block tone is rich stuff as I noted previously, after reading The Girl With the Long Green Heart.
See here for Amazon’s Lawrence Block page.
Plus, it never ceases to me how much great stuff is at Partners & Crime; I haven’t been there in so long, but I can’t seem to leave without buying something. Ah, those unique Lower Manhattan bookstores…
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June Already?
Last Friday: saw Kung Fu Panda 2. Great movie – entertaining; great art. I thought it was missing a scene (plot-wise), but otherwise fun. However, I do wonder if 3D is going to be everything…
Emil Guillermo posts on the AALDEF blog about the retirement of Shaquille O’Neal (recalling the anti-Asian problems of Shaq) and the possible side effects of Goodwin Liu’s withdrawal; Guillermo notes:
I’m concerned for the young legal minds out there who may take D’Affaire Liu as the way not to act. Speaking out on behalf of the generally silent community? Against the nomination of Samuel Alito? Against the nomination of John Roberts? What? And jeopardize my career?
But I’m also concerned for Asian Americans in general, who have trouble enough being what I call “Public Asians.” Voting? You mean taking a stand in a private booth?
It’s too easy for Asian Americans to lay back and do nothing. So when a Goodwin Liu stands up and loses, you’ll inevitably hear someone mention that age old quote about the nail that sticks out. The virtue of docility. You never get hammered.
But you never get to nail anyone either.
Dare to be the nail.
Hat tip to Angry Asian Man: the passing of Matt Fong, the first Asian American Republican elected to state-wide office in California; see also the obit in the L.A. Times.
Korean grocers are slowly decreasing in the demographics of NYC, as they decide (or their kids decide) not to continue the family businesses; as the article by Sam Dolnick notes, this is similar to the dilemma faced by other demographics of NYC-immigrant communities, such as the Italians and the Jews.
Last but not least: New York’s night court drama (particularly in small claims court) shall continue, despite cutbacks.
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More APA Items and What’s with the Law?
Follow up on the Goodwin Liu nomination (see previous post here) and it’s unfortunate news: as Dahlia Lithwick over at Slate reports, Goodwin Liu has withdrawn his nomination for the 9th Circuit. The number of Asian Pacific American active federal appellate judges will remain just one. Pardon me as I say that just sucks.
See also NAPABA’s press release on the subject: “NAPABA Disappointed by Withdrawal of Nomination by Professor Liu, Praises Liu for His Courage.”
Meanwhile, the legal industry is getting some attention on how it does business: this NY Times article by Catherine Rampell, available via Yahoo notes that a non-partnership track in big firms are possibly good for work/life balance, and is sort of like outsourcing – but a perception that it’s a “second class” track can’t quite be ignored. (then again, public service attorneys earning $60k/year are not considered badly off; it’s more of a private sector thing – who would feel a little weird to not make the kind of big money in the big firm, just because you’re not on the same track as others in the big firm?).
Interesting videos available via WLIW Channel 21: The Asian Indians in America and The Chinese Americans. They’re both more celebratory type of videos (sure, go ahead, celebrate those model minorities with their great work ethic, family values, and diverse cultures), but have some pretty fascinating talking heads giving their insights about being Asian Indian and Chinese in America. Guess we all need some positivity out there for the moment.