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AAN Picnic. This year it was at Forest Park in Woodhaven. SSW reported on the trek there. I have to say also that I probably would have never known about the park had the picnic not been held there. We miraculously avoided two tropical storm remnants; on the plus side, it was a lot cooler than at previous picnics. Because we were doing the cooking this year, I didn’t do as much socializing. In any case, it was a load of fun!

F.B.I. Goes Knocking for Political Troublemakers

Blech! This is awful! He’s got to go Shrub!

=YC

I’m one of those New Yorkers who don’t nearly get around the town as I should, so taking the J train to the picnic the other day was incredibly fascinating since I had never taken the J or go out to Queens very much (umm, taking the 7 train to the Mets games don’t quit count). The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) usually do things ridiculously, but find something with a touch of class: ex., Grand Central (subway) Station still not pretty, but Grand Central Terminal (the commuter train and famous facilities) is so nice; Canal Street station has nicely renovated wall tiles reflecting the Chinatown culture – but otherwise still has leaky ceilings here and there (leaking what, I do not want to know). Weekend service also has a way of being lame, but when the trains work – you get the weird relief that the city still works.

But if having just a little confusion (but not by much, once you were able to figure out which direction was what, due to weekend changes), the J train, was a smooth ride – going along the Williamsburg Bridge (100 years old, as old as the subway system itself) and seeing that the train is right next to the car traffic (so not like the Manhattan Bridge, the way the Williamsburg apparently sticks the trains in the middle). NYC’s elevated train lines aren’t nearly reknown as that of Chicago’s (good grief, did anyone see how Spiderman 2 invented an elevated train in _Manhattan_ that apparently was… Bay Ridge bound – and looking straight out of Chicago’s els. Not accurate). But, gleaning out the window, the J train’s elevated line is amazing.

The J subway stations on the Brooklyn/Queens side were curiously interesting – stained glass panels – so cool to look. The subway passed by stunning churches – Brooklyn being the home of churches – and domed banks. Cypress Hills cemetary made for quite a view from above. The J subway station I got off had an ellipitcal opening with a screen – I thought it was a weird window or something to look out down to the street. But, once I got downstairs to the sidewalk and I looked up, I realized that the screen’s wire was shaped into a 3-D mask of a human face facing the street. Urban art. Wow.

Saw “Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.” Cute, cozy PG movie. Nothing too deep but continues the adventures of Mia as a 21st century American princess in Europe. Love Julie Andrews and Hector Elizondo – classy actors.

Olympics – good watch as far as the athletic drama is concerned. But, so weird to see the crowds not quite there at the gymastics events on tv.

Enjoy the week…

The passing of Julia Child today. She’ll be missed, particularly in light of her contributions to PBS and foodie/cooking shows. Lots of interesting writings about her, so don’t mind me as I link to them…

Boy, these Olympics opening ceremonies are getting bigger, longer, and more filled with symbolism than ever. Lots of teams with attractive looking people (hot men; hot women; must be something to do with being atheletic and good genes). …

I made two trips to the bank today, one to throw some money into my bank account so that I can pay off my zip car, and one to cash in my reimbursement for my Rhode Island trip. Boy did I ever need that money.

In a second one – two punch, two hurricanes, Bonnie and Charley, are crashing in on Friday and Sunday. Miraculously, Saturday is all clear for our picnic. Yay! As I write this, the hailstones are starting to bounce off of the AC….

I’ll likely post again later, but here’s something in the meantime…

I like this ad that Sprint has been running lately – “Business is Beautiful” – a bunch of people dancing and singing to a 1970’s disco/rock/gospel type tune; wherein business yuppies and health care providers and so on all sing and dance their love for Sprint’s business software/hardware capabilities. If I can find it, I’ll link to the ads. It’s the kind of ad campaign where you end up singing and dancing along to the tune, even if you don’t quite approve/appreciate/understand the stuff that Sprint is pushing on people (and they’re specifically targetting the entrepenurial sector of the tv audience – not like I’m going to use Sprint for my business purposes). The press release explains it…

CNN.com has this bizarre story that Colin Powell the man is meeting up with Colin Powell the cat (a black cat, on top of that) on Friday the 13th for a photo op. Huh?

Athens Olympics 2004 Opening Ceremony – let the NBC All Olympics, All the Time marathon begin…

Watching this really interesting Great Performances on local PBS (official link not up yet on PBS’ national website) – the world’s greatest living classical musicians playing loads of pianos at once, on the same stage – weird. And they all look so pleased and having fun with each other. Cool.

“Flicks you’re embarrassed to love…” – I haven’t watched most of these (not very good) movies in this posting, although, curiously, local UPN did recently broadcast the weird 1980’s summer volleyball movie, “Sideout” (I watched parts of it, because I had no life that weekend) very B-level kind of odd crap – definitely guilty pleasure stuff for someone out there (no, not me). Oh, and so pleased that someone in this article mentioned “Flash Gordon” – seriously guilty pleasure crap (Channel 11 used to have an annual showing of it at one point – I think people just enjoy it for the Queen soundtrack so you can sing along… “Flash… Ah-aahhh savior of the universe…”). Not that I love “Flash Gordon,” but it is one of those movies which sucks you in when it’s on.

A heart-warming story of… the drunk driver who tells the cops to arrest him. My goodness, I had no idea that CNN.com had these kind of little stories linked.

Umm, some stuff:

Empire State Building did tribute to Fay Wray, most known for her King Kong fame. Of the obits I’ve read, I liked the NY Times one – it made Wray’s life and thoughts interesting. This quote from the NY Times obit:

“‘When I’m in New York,’ Miss Wray wrote in The New York Times in 1969, ‘I look at the Empire State Building and feel as though it belongs to me, or is it vice versa?’”

It’s both Ms. Wray – you and the Empire State Building made each other.

The Associated Press obit was also nice, even if less wordy.

This NY Times article on the inequities of internships is not news to me; if you can afford it and tolerate it, sure, go for the unpaid internship for the opportunities and experiences. But, it ain’t a fun thing when you’re not earning money and need a living or else trying to justify a living without that feeling of being exploited. To me, unpaid internships are just part and parcel of the haves vs. the have-nots. Take them or leave them, I guess.

Boy, this NY Times editorial on the selection of Alan Keyes as the Republican candidate in Illinois’ US Senate race is just a tad harsh. Just a tad. And, really, how many editorials refer to… Mighty Mouse and Obi Wan Kenobi in the same sentence? –>

“In the noble tradition of the Marquis de Lafayette, the Seven Samurai, Mighty Mouse and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Alan Keyes is leaving home to go to the aid of a pitiable band of outgunned, hopeless supplicants: the Illinois Republican Party.”

Umm, ok. Whoever in the editorial board thought this up gets extra credit points for ingenuity.

Associated Press, via CNN, reports of cannabilism at a wedding banquet in the Phillippines. Guests were too drunk to realize what was happening… oh, good grief, where do these news guys get this stuff?

Tonight (8/10/04) Charlie Rose on PBS doing an interesting profile of Japan, coinciding with the anniversary of the WWII nuclear bombing – touching on politics and cultural topics. And, I’ll end on that positive note.

Building down the block is asking for $250K for a studio, up to $750K for a two bedroom according to the NY Times. What’s really amazing is that you can see my apartment and several buildings that other writers on this blog will recognize out the window of the (QuickTime required) virtual tour of one of their units. Look at the last 30 seconds of the video as the camera flies through the patio.

For the other amazing thing, The Amazing Race, they are traipsing through Egypt, with the pitstop at the Sphinx. Wow, what visuals! On the other hand, who knew that one team would be stuck because they didn’t know what the word “satchel” meant. If you missed the episodes, catch the hilarious recaps at Television Without Pity – The Amazing Race .

I’ve read the criticism in TV Guide: Matt Roush notes that PBS can actually hurt itself sometimes with the way it times its fundraising schedule. It’s the August pledge drive, so instead of showing the 4th episode of a Masterpiece Theatre mini-series (as per the national PBS schedule), local PBS did another round of either Jonathan Pond’s investing tips; the Dr. Phil lookalike show; or Great Performances.

Okay, so I like Great Performances; sometimes the investing stuff might be helpful (but the Dr. Phil stuff should really come from, well, Dr. Phil); and, I’ll applaud our local PBS for keeping “Now with Bill Moyers” at its regular time slot and same with Lehrer newshour.

But, I think that if you, Hypothetical Person in Charge at PBS, are going to seduce people into donating, keep doing your good A-stuff, not your weird, New Age-y, C-level stuff.

Example: like, tell people to give any amount for pledges during the convention, especially since you Guys at PBS are the only ones in free-tv showing it and without the partisan talk garbage. Lehrer’s ratings were up for the Democratic convention, so you know people are watching; tell the audience that it’s a public service or something, you know what I mean? (ok, that’s my Public Awareness message for the day; if you want to donate to PBS yourself, go right ahead). (and, yeah, I’m a PBS snob, can’t help it). 😉

Sunday’s NY Times’ does a story on Los Angeles’ Koreatown, a hip happening place, apparently.

Slate.com’s William Saletan parodies the Vet(erans) Against Kerry with his Vet(erinarians) Against Kerry (Vets Who Don’t Buy that Kerry Saved his Kids’ Hamster, because they were really, really there). Too funny. (plus, a weird little picture of a hamster).

Olympics at the end of the week. Cool, even if there are concerns about terrorism; how Athens will pull it off; and figuring out who among the athletes are on illegal performance enhancing drugs.

Is it just me or are these Back-to-School ads getting on earlier and earlier every year?

I know I should, but I couldn’t resist avoiding the previews/spoilers for the upcoming 4th (maybe last?) season of “Star Trek: Enterprise.” Can it get better? I’m still a little pissed about that annoying season cliffhanger. It can’t get any worse, I guess. Just keep an open mind, I’d say.

“Fruit of the Loom” – the Fruit are back, with a commercial wherein they visit a firehouse to see if their undergarments are approved. Nice to see the Fruit back – there’s something amusing about guys in fruit suits. (the Apple guy gets stuck in the firehouse pole’s hole – forgetting that his foam can’t fit…)

Back to your regularly scheduled Monday…