2007 24 ways

November 30, 2007

The third annual (and third AWESOME) ‘24 days’ UI design countdown has begun again. Bookmark it. Learn it. Love it.

Aristotle (ca. 384-322 BCE)

July 18, 2007

A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious. On the other hand, they do less easily move against him, believing that he has the gods on his side.

Recommended Radio

May 9, 2007

Richard Dawkins: An atheist’s call to arms

May 6, 2007

Bill Moyers on Patriotism and the American Flag

April 6, 2007

I wore my flag tonight. First time. Until now I haven’t thought it necessary to display a little metallic icon of patriotism for everyone to see. It was enough to vote, pay my taxes, perform my civic duties, speak my mind, and do my best to raise our kids to be good Americans.

Sometimes I would offer a small prayer of gratitude that I had been born in a country whose institutions sustained me, whose armed forces protected me, and whose ideals inspired me; I offered my heart’s affections in return. It no more occurred to me to flaunt the flag on my chest than it did to pin my mother’s picture on my lapel to prove her son’s love. Mother knew where I stood; so does my country. I even tuck a valentine in my tax returns on April 15.

So what’s this doing here? Well, I put it on to take it back. The flag’s been hijacked and turned into a logo - the trademark of a monopoly on patriotism. On those Sunday morning talk shows, official chests appear adorned with the flag as if it is the good housekeeping seal of approval. During the State of the Union, did you notice Bush and Cheney wearing the flag? How come? No administration’s patriotism is ever in doubt, only its policies. And the flag bestows no immunity from error. When I see flags sprouting on official lapels, I think of the time in China when I saw Mao’s little red book on every official’s desk, omnipresent and unread.

But more galling than anything are all those moralistic ideologues in Washington sporting the flag in their lapels while writing books and running Web sites and publishing magazines attacking dissenters as un-American. They are people whose ardor for war grows disproportionately to their distance from the fighting. They’re in the same league as those swarms of corporate lobbyists wearing flags and prowling Capitol Hill for tax breaks even as they call for more spending on war.

So I put this on as a modest riposte to men with flags in their lapels who shoot missiles from the safety of Washington think tanks, or argue that sacrifice is good as long as they don’t have to make it, or approve of bribing governments to join the coalition of the willing (after they first stash the cash.) I put it on to remind myself that not every patriot thinks we should do to the people of Baghdad what Bin Laden did to us. The flag belongs to the country, not to the government. And it reminds me that it’s not un-American to think that war - except in self-defense - is a failure of moral imagination, political nerve, and diplomacy. Come to think of it, standing up to your government can mean standing up for your country.

2006 Aural Stimulation

December 31, 2006

(Alphabetically by ranking - author)

5-stars

4-stars

3-stars

2-stars

1-star

Zimmerman at 65

May 24, 2006

Happy Birthday Bob Dylan.

A Queer Taste for Muslim Rioters

March 9, 2006

FrontPage magazine.com - A Queer Taste for Muslim Rioters by Richard J. Rosendall

Multiculturalism defeats itself when it tolerates the intolerant. If we fail to appreciate and defend our cherished and hard-won Western liberties, we will lose them - and Muslims who dream of those same liberties will lose all hope of them. To paraphrase a memorable ad campaign from thirty years ago: Anyone who favors censoring blasphemy should be beheaded. Am I kidding? Of course. Unfortunately, the other side isn’t.

Emphasis mine.

Me? A Conservative?

February 15, 2006

Andrew Sullivan - Daily Dish

I support almost all of Bush’s tax cuts (I support the estate tax) but also believe in balanced budgets and spending restraint (heretic!); I oppose affirmative action; I oppose hate crime laws; I respect John Kerry’s military service; I believe all abortion is morally wrong and that Roe vs Wade was dreadful constitutional law (but I do favor legal first trimester abortions); I support states’ rights, especially in social policy, such as marriage; I oppose the expansion of the welfare state, as in the Medicare prescription drug plan; I supported John Roberts’ nomination and Sam Alito’s; I believe in a firm separation of religion and politics, but I certainly take faith seriously and wrestle with my own.

I guess I must be Conservative. But given that my definition of a Conservative over the past six years has been Dubya and his ilk, I would’ve never noticed it. But if agreeing with Andrew Sullivan on every one of these points makes someone conservative, then by God, color me red all over.

Internet Music Archive

February 9, 2006

I know that Musical Family Tree has been mentioned by Ned, but where would someone go if they wanted free downloads of live music from national acts? Why the Internet Archive’s Live Music Archive, of course.

Notable downloads include such amazing bands as Ween, Spoon (and Britt Daniel solo), Tenacious D, Fugazi, and The Minutemen (incl. Mike Watt solo). Seriously, there’s something there for everyone.

A few other notables from bands a bit more obscure would have to include Magnolia Electric Company (from the Bloomington/Indy area), The Supersuckers and a newly discovered artist for me - John Vanderslice.

As for anyone into the ‘Jam Band’ scene, you’ll be overwhelmed with the amount of material you’ll find here, including the Grateful Dead and all their many musical derivatives can be found posted. There’s more than 2500 Dead concerts alone! Enjoy.

Politically Incorrect

February 8, 2006

‘Sensitivity’ can have brutal consequences - Mark Steyn in the Chicago Sun-Times.

Very few societies are genuinely multicultural. Most are bicultural: On the one hand, there are folks who are black, white, gay, straight, pre-op transsexual, Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, worshippers of global-warming doom-mongers, and they rub along as best they can. And on the other hand are folks who do not accept the give-and-take, the rough-and-tumble of a “diverse” “tolerant” society, and, when one gently raises the matter of their intolerance, they threaten to kill you, which makes the question somewhat moot.

The controversial Danish cartoon of the Muslim prophet MuhammedAnd that’s just it for me, Militant Islam has to recognize that their methods are working against them. Their reign of terror (literally and figuratively) is going to come to a bloody and violent end for them if they insist on being pig-headed zealots with no tolerance for other cultures. I, for one, am not going to respect their requests that the world treat them with respect all the while they result to murdering anyone that offends them. Where’s their tolerance?

And another quote from Christopher Hitchens in Slate magazine entitled Cartoon Debate:

Islam makes very large claims for itself. In its art, there is a prejudice against representing the human form at all. The prohibition on picturing the prophet-who was only another male mammal-is apparently absolute. So is the prohibition on pork or alcohol or, in some Muslim societies, music or dancing. Very well then, let a good Muslim abstain rigorously from all these. But if he claims the right to make me abstain as well, he offers the clearest possible warning and proof of an aggressive intent. This current uneasy coexistence is only an interlude, he seems to say. For the moment, all I can do is claim to possess absolute truth and demand absolute immunity from criticism. But in the future, you will do what I say and you will do it on pain of death.

Good luck finding sympathy for your cause when, as a so-called “peaceful” Muslim, you aren’t willing to publicly denouce all calls to violence such as we’re seeing in response to a CARTOON, for God’s sake! If there’s no room for debate and everything ends in “Death to the Infidels” don’t be surprised when you find yourself getting carpet-bombed by Dubya’s Army. When violence and murder are your only forms of negotiation, I don’t know what alternatives there are for dealing with you.

What I’m trying to point out is that the zealous factions of Islam are making it much harder on the people they claim to be advocating for. When is someone going to point out to them that their actions are having precisely the opposite effect? Didn’t Muslims learn this after 9/11? Then again, I honestly think that a global war with the West is just exactly what these nutjobs want anyway, so maybe it’s pointless. The Muslim world has to flush these despots out themself else they’re going to continue to suffer alongside them because they refuse to distinguish themselves.

Truthiness

January 26, 2006

The Onion AV Club interviews Stephen Colbert and he gives one of the smartest and most accurate descriptions I’ve read about the current adminstration and it’s relationship to the media. Absolutely brilliant.

AVC: You’re saying appearances are more important than objective truth?

SC: Absolutely. The whole idea of authority - authoritarian is fine for some people, like people who say “Listen to me, and just don’t question, and do what I say, and everything will be fine” - the sort of thing we really started to respond to so well after 9/11. ‘Cause we wanted someone to be daddy, to take decisions away from us. I really have a sense of [America’s current leaders] doing bad things in our name to protect us, and that was okay. We weren’t thrilled with Bush because we thought he was a good guy at that point, we were thrilled with him because we thought that he probably had hired people who would fuck up our enemies, regardless of how they had to do it. That was for us a very good thing, and I can’t argue with the validity of that feeling.

But that has been extended to the idea that authoritarian is better than authority. Because authoritarian means there’s only one authority, and that authority has got to be the President, has got to be the government, and has got to be his allies. What the right-wing in the United States tries to do is undermine the press. They call the press “liberal,” they call the press “biased,” not necessarily because it is or because they have problems with the facts of the left - or even because of the bias for the left, because it’s hard not to be biased in some way, everyone is always going to enter their editorial opinion - but because a press that has validity is a press that has authority. And as soon as there’s any authority to what the press says, you question the authority of the government - it’s like the existence of another authority. So that’s another part of truthiness. Truthiness is “What I say is right, and [nothing] anyone else says could possibly be true.” It’s not only that I feel it to be true, but that I feel it to be true. There’s not only an emotional quality, but there’s a selfish quality.”

Letter to Ellie - Year Three

January 24, 2006

Today you are three years old. And you are a bright, independent and assertive little girl. You love to be helpful and are very determined to do as much as you can for yourself. As of late, when I’m getting ready to leave for work you will scan my lunchbox to ensure that there is enough food for me. You’ll ask if I’d like a piece of string cheese (I always say “yes”) and eagerly retrieve it from the fridge and packing it up before sending me on my way. You’re also very complimentary, often telling your Momma how good her dinner is and saying “Please” and “Thank You”. Okay, not so much the “Please’s” but you’re pretty good about the “Thank You’s”.

You are a great big sister to Ethan. You are very nurturing to him and eager to help your mother and I with anything he needs. You even made a calendar in order to track his physical therapy. Ethan loves you so much. He beams in excitement and easily bursts into laughter more easily for you than anyone else. Lacey would probably come in a close second, but it’s obvious that he will emulate and look up to you for a long time. So, keep it up.

You’re also pretty difficult at times. You can be very bossy and are extraordinarily strong-willed. You can blame your mother and me for these traits which anyone who knows us would have believed we had nearly perfected. But natural selection marches on and you display these traits with more vigor than anyone could have predicted. Your intelligence and strong will leads you to invent wild excuses for not going to bed or taking naps, which drives your mother and me crazy because we just need a break every once in a while and who the hell doesn’t love naps?! Seriously. One of these days you’re really going to want a nap and not be able to take one, so I’m only trying to help you by advising that you go to your room right now and lay down. For the love of God, please.

Three years seems like a fairly short period of time to me when I think of it as just a number. But when I try to remember what life was like before you were born, I struggle to identify with the memories of what seems like a previous life.

And this is because having children is such a radical shift in a person’s life. Your life as an individual ceases to exist in the context of free will. Now, the needs, wants and demands of your children dominate your days and nights. This may seem like a dramatic explanation, but you will surely understand this better when/if you have your own children. And I hope that some day you choose to do so, because that’s the thing: raising kids is the hardest and the most rewarding thing that I believe we can do as living beings. I don’t think I would have believed this until I had kids, but I believe it to be true now. Children test you every day to act without regard for yourself, which is an amazingly difficult thing to do. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten it completely right, but I’ve had some pretty good days.

And for every test there is an immediate reward. Watching you grow and learn new things on your journey to becoming the person that you will be is the greatest joy I’ve ever experienced. It is one that your mother and I feel blessed to share in as your parents. And having you around helps us grow and learn which means more than I can articulate. I can only express my love and gratitude for having you in my life.

So, Happy Birthday Ellie. I love you.

2005 - The Year In Music

January 7, 2006

What? Surely you didn’t think my poor excuse for blogging in the past year would mean that I would publish the music list, did you? Of course you didn’t.

Lot’s of great stuff this year - almost too much to rate it all, but I made a swag at the items of note. I’m sure that I listened to much more, but I’m keeping it to the albums that I purchased and/or refused to return them to the library until I absolutely had to (aka: The ones I need to buy).

There were some much welcomed surprises (Antony and the who? Did anyone know that Blues Traveler was still making albums?) and a few major let downs (Weezer and Billy Corgan), but overall I think this was a very strong year for music.

Artist Album Rating
Antony and the Johnsons I am a Bird Now 9.8
Stevens, Sufjan Illinois 9.7
Iron and Wine/Calexico In the Reins 9.6
The National Alligator 9.4
Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy & Matt Sweeney Superwolf 9.3
M. Ward Transistor Radio 9.3
Spoon Gimme Fiction 9.2
New Pornographers, The Twin Cinema 9.1
Vanderslice, John Pixel Revolt 9.0
Marley, Damien “Jr. Gong” Welcome to Jamrock 8.9
Beck Guero 8.8
Johnson, Jack In Between Dreams 8.6
Okkervil River Black Sheep Boy 8.6
Bird, Andrew The Mysterious Production of Eggs 8.5
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Clap Your Hands Say Yeah 8.5
West, Kanye Late Registration 8.5
Winechuggers Grand Rapids 8.5
M.I.A. Arular 8.3
Broken Social Scene Broken Social Scene 8.3
Decemberists, The Picaresque 8.2
Blackalicious The Craft 8.0
Doves Some Cities 8.0
Green Day American Idiot 8.0
Malkmus, Stephen Face the Truth 8.0
Mann, Aimee The Forgotten Arm 7.9
The White Stripes Get Behind Me Satan 7.9
Magnolia Electric Co Trials & Errors 7.8
Common Be 7.7
The Hold Steady Separation Sunday 7.5
Super Furry Animals Love Kraft 7.5
Blues Traveler Bastardos! 7.4
Sigur Ros Takk… 7.1
Black, Frank Honeycomb 7.0
Gorillaz Demon Days 6.9
Sleater-Kinney The Woods 6.6
My Morning Jacket Z 6.3
Coldplay X&Y 5.0
Dave Matthews Band Stand Up 4.4
Weezer Make Believe 2.0
Corgan, Billy The Future Embrace 1.0

Defending the Rednecks

January 5, 2006

I came across this fascinating article on Will Campbell, a baptist who actually appears to understand what religion is and who lives his life like an actual Christian - a true rarity in any time.

Nashville Scene - Nothing Sacred

Once, in a Katallagete open letter to Billy Graham, Campbell characterized evangelists who conduct big crusades as "Astrodome Isaiahs," then went on to say: "True, some are ‘led to Christ’ in the instituted Church today, but it is done against the stream of five-point grading programs, ‘evangelistic crusades’ planned and executed more like the Pentagon than St. Paul… Who spread all these lies about Jesus? He judges us by what we do to the children, the prisoners, the whores, the addicts, the scared and bewildered, the poor, the hungry - to ‘the least of them…’ "

Proof that nothing changed after Sept. 11

September 6, 2005

Proof that nothing changed after Sept. 11 - Mark Steyn

One thing that became clear two or three months after “the day that everything changed” is that nothing changed — that huge swathes of the political culture in America remain committed to a bargain that stiffs the people at every level, a system of lavish funding of pseudo-action. You could have done as the anti-war left wanted and re-allocated every dollar spent in Iraq to Louisiana. Or you could have done as some of the rest of us want and re-allocated every buck spent on, say, subsidizing Ted Turner’s and Sam Donaldson’s play-farming activities. But, in either case, I’ll bet Louisiana’s kleptocrat public service would have pocketed the dough and carried on as usual — and, come the big day, the state would still have flopped out, and New Orleans’ foul-mouthed mayor would still be ranting about why it was all everybody’s else fault.

Stop blaming this disaster on this-or-that partisanism and send help. Stop bickering and donate to the Red Cross.

It’s Alphabetical

June 8, 2005

I went to see the Pixies last night at the Murat Theatre. It was spendid. My pal Jason scored front row tickets for us. Thanks again Jason - way to go!

The sound seemed a bit “quiet” (relatively speaking, that is) from the front row and the band didn’t appear to miss a single note on any song - which is pretty good given the 14-year hiatus. I think it sounded “quiet” because the P.A. system was up too high and was shooting the music over our heads. Nevertheless, I couldn’t have had a better time and I stood there dancing and singing along the whole show with a giant, childish grin on my face. I’d waited far too long for this.

I’ve ordered my copy of the show from PixiesDiscs.com and can’t wait to hear it again.

About three or four songs into the set, I mentioned to Jason that I sensed some sort of bizarre order to the songs and suggested that, with exception of the first track, the set list might be chronological. I was wrong. There was a theme, alright, but it wasn’t chronological, it was alphabetical! Apparently, it was the first such set of the Pixies Reunion, it was also the longest so far of this leg of the tour. Lucky me. (and several thousand other folks)

Here is the setlist (and an iMix of the same songlist for those of you with iTunes):
Allison
Bone Machine
Broken Face
Cactus
Caribou
Dead
Debaser
Ed is Dead
Gigantic
Gouge Away
Here Comes Your Man
Hey
I Bleed
In Heaven
Into the White
La La Love You
Monkey Gone to Heaven
Mr. Grieves
Nimrod’s Son
No. 13 Baby
Stormy Weather
Tame
UMASS
Vamos
Wave of Mutilation
Where is My Mind?

Winterlong - #Encore

Ethan Thomas Huffman

June 4, 2005

Ethan Thomas Huffman - 5 days oldEthan Thomas Huffman
May 30th, 2005 @ 12:01 p.m.

8.0 lbs 0 oz
20 inches

Sarah and Ethan are doing well. I’m still in awe that he was born on my birthday, which everyone agrees is a pretty special thing to have happen. We’re all at home and adjusting in each of our own ways.

We’ve appreciated all the phone calls, emails and visits from all, so feel free to drop us a line. Email is probably the most preferred, since our time is pretty well split between the kids and trying to get caught up on being out of commission for a few days.

Expect twice as many pictures now. Just don’t count on them being terribly frequent.

Once more, this time with feeling!

February 17, 2005

First of all, there’s a new Summitt in the world and that’s just about the coolest thing going right now, so shouts go out to Dave and Julie and Dane. We love you guys and are so happy for you all. Keep those pictures coming!

I know that I promised more frequent blogging in 2005 and so far I haven’t delivered much, I know, but I have been pretty busy with redesigning the site, so I hope that makes up for it.

The Gallery is finally online and, while there isn’t a ton out there yet, it’s a lot more than there was. Anything is greater than nothing, you see. I definitely want to give props to Matt who provided me with the PHP that powers the index page in the gallery and in the Music section, as well. Thanks Matt! Now let’s see you get that blog back up and running, eh?

The Gallery section is something that I’ve been meaning to get around to for such a long time. It feels really good to finally have the framework in place to actually pull it off now with relative ease. And it’s that ‘relative ease’ part that I’d like to share more about.

In the past (when I actually had galleries) I had to do a lot of legwork to prepare images; editing, resizing, formatting and sometimes some scripting and/or HTML coding in order to publish an album of images. It was pre-production, basically. And, in general, pre-production sucks. Bad. Pre-production at such a monotonous level sucks bad.

I realized that I had a ton of things that I wanted to produce and then I calculated how much work it was going to be to prep all those pictures. Everytime I sat down with good intentions, the effort died before it even got started. A dreadful feeling always set in when I even began to think about all the work. I wanted a better way to automate this activity.

At first, I thought that I might create a batch action in Photoshop - automating the process of duplicating an image, then resizing it to a web-friendly size (such as 400x600) and then resizing again as a thumbnail and then moving on to the next image. It’s nice that Photoshop can do this, but given the amount of time it would take to do it all, it seemed far too daunting. After all, I have more than 10,000 digital pictures in over 348 separate albums. And since I don’t truly want to post each and every one of these albums, let alone every single picture, I’d have had to run that batch on each folder individually, and only then after isolating the images from each album that I wanted to actually post. I’m tired just typing that out, let alone actually doing it. So, procrastination kept winning the battles, but I stayed on the hunt for something to help me solve my problem. And then along came Google and saved the day.

Last July, Google announced that they had purchased Picasa, a photo organizing and sharing tool. The best part of that story was that they were giving the software away. For FREE! And it wasn’t your typical freeware, either. It was a sweet program that had tons of great features. But mostly, it helped users get all the images on their computers into one program where you could quickly scan through them, rather than using the clunky Windows folder paradigm which required a lot more clicking and a lot more time. I fell in love immediately.

Then last month, Google released Picasa 2, which added tons more functionality; image editing, direct upload to photo printing websites such as Ofoto, sharing images over an IM (via Hello - also owned by Google, Inc.), web site creation, burning CD’s of slideshows & other presentations, backing up photos, importing pics from your digital camera, printing your own pics, etc. Could it possibly do more? I don’t think so. There’s just nothing it doesn’t do.

And it’s that “web site creation” feature that finally filled the void for me. That’s right, this FREE(!) utility came along and gave me what I had been wanting, nay NEEDING, for several years. Someone please tell me how I can give Google my money. Seriously, I regularly use five of their programs and they won’t let me give them any money for their services because they don’t charge for any of them.

Now, I’m not naive to think that this romance is going to continue one-sided indefinitely. No, eventually the piper is going to come calling in some form, but frankly, I don’t care. I’m willing to pay up. Just show me where to sign.

Birthday

January 24, 2005

Ellie in her snowsuit and hat with rosey cheeks from the cold weather. Ellie,

Today you are two years old. For the past two years you have added a whole dimension to my and your mother’s life that has increased our happiness in more ways than we ever imagined. We love you so much and we are grateful for every moment that you are with us.

Tonight we will have a small party for you with just your Nana and Viejo and Mommy and me. These are the people in this world who love you more than anyone else. Someday when you have your own children you will understand the awesome magnitude of love that we feel for you.

On Saturday all of your friends are coming for your party. You’ve been talking about it all week, refering to it as your “potty”. You even discovered the party supplies Mommy bought because you have the uncanny ability to sense anything within a mile radius that has a picture of Dora the Explorer on it. And you have even been putting on your party hat from last year. You’re almost as excited as we are.

So, Happy Birthday Ellie-Bean. I love you.

An Offer I Can’t Refuse

January 18, 2005

In my Inbox this morning: My name is Mr. Ali Ibrahim,I am the regional manager of the Trust Bank Tema Branch Accra Ghana. I got your information during my search through the Internet.

I am 44years of age and married with 3lovely kids. It may interest you to hear that I am a man of PEACE and don’t want problems, I only hope we can assist each Other. If you don’t want this business offer kindly forget it, as I will not contact you again.

I have packaged a financial transaction that will benefit both of us, as the regional manager of the Trust Bank; it is my duty to send in a financial report to my head office in the capital city Accra at the end of each year.

On the course of the last year 2003 end of year report, I discovered that my branch in which I am the manager made Two million five hundred fifty thousand dollars [2,550.000.00] which my head office are not aware of and will never be aware of. I have since placed this fund on what we call SUSPENSE ACCOUNT without any beneficiary.

As an officer of the bank I can not be directly connected to this Fund, so this informed my contacting you for us to work so that you can assist receive this money into your bank account for us to SHARE.

While you will have 30% of the total fund. Note there is practically no risk involved, it will be bank to bank transfer, all I need from you is to stand claim as the original depositor of this fund who made the deposit With our branch so that my Head office can order the transfer to your designated bank account.

If you accept this offer to work with me, I will appreciate it very Much. As soon as I receive your response I will detail you on how we can achieve this successfully.

Best regards, Mr. Ali Ibrahim Whaddya say, folks? Should I go for it?

Pretty (Ugly before)

January 13, 2005

Heartbreaking lyrics from the late, great Elliott Smith’s last album
Sunshine, been keeping me up for days
There is no night time, it’s only a passing phase
And I feel pretty, pretty enough for you
I felt so ugly before, I didn’t know what to do

Sometimes is all I feel up to now
But it’s not worth it to you
‘Cos you gotta get high somehow
Is it destruction that you require to feel
Like somebody wants you, someone that’s more for real?

Sunshine, been keeping me up for days
There is no night time, only a passing phase
And I’ll feel pretty, another hour or two

I felt so ugly before, I didn’t know what to do
I felt so ugly before, I didn’t know what to do
I felt so ugly before, I didn’t know what to do
Ugly before

Out of touch

January 11, 2005

Election protest shows why Dems don’t count - This is an excellent article that expresses some of my own feelings of how the Democratic party has been heading in the wrong direction - to the fringe. I’m a moderate liberal who has adopted the political title of Independent because I don’t like calling myself a Democrat. That has to change in the next few years else we’re in for more of the same from the Right. I think the neo-cons and the Right are on the fringe, too, but they’re winning over the (majority of the voting) people with their tough-talking swagger, while the Democrats looks more and more out of touch with reality.

I’ve hesitated to say it publicly, but I was terribly disappointed with Michael Moore’s latest movie, Farenheit 9/11. I felt it was a shallow string of conjectures aimed at exposing a great conspiracy that doesn’t exist. A conspiracy theory that could only serve to divide people into conspiracy “believers” and “non-believers”. I’m a non-believer, folks. Bowling for Columbine was a much better investigative argument. Moore should be ashamed for some of his antics. Asking Lawmakers to sign their children up for the Armed Forces is ignorant and betrays the fact that we have an all-volunteer army - people willing to die for you and me. Please don’t leave me any comments that suggest that his stunt was analogy for sending other people’s kids off to war. I understand that, but it’s still ignorant and disprespectful. The left needs to be smarter than that and less willing to resort to publicity stunts like this to get their points across. Ever heard of a thing called ‘debate’. Let’s give that a try again.

Is driving around reading the Patriot Act from an loud-speaker the way to get folks to pay attention to your ideas? By yelling at them? Cramming it down their throats, Mike? Bill O’Reilly would be proud of such a technique.

A quote from the article:
Another two years of Tom Daschle obstructionism and Michael Moore paranoia. You don’t need to run a focus group to know that’s the formula that will sweep Dems into office on Election Day 2006, right?

A Democrat chum said to me on Thursday, oh, well, they’re just doing this to toss a bone to the base. But they’re running out of bones to toss, and the base needs a reality check, not more pandering. One reason why the party has shriveled away to Greater New England plus the ”minority neighborhoods” of a few cities is that it’s all fringe, and no mainstream. The base is out of control; the kooks still holding their post-election vigil outside one of John Kerry’s mansions sound no loopier than the big-time senators. The party has no urge to move on from moveon.org. Precisely, it’s time to Move On and work on tearing down the edificial lies that the public is buying. And it’s not getting done with these methods. I know the election was close, but so was the previous one and I’ve walked away a loser in both. I’m not going to lose again. Not if I can help it, at least.

Ultrasound

January 5, 2005

Ultrasound image of the unnamed HuffmanThis morning Sarah had her first (and likely only) ultrasound for baby #2. It was raining like hell all day, but her Mom, brother and I all made it up to the doctors office in Carmel to witness the youngin’ in all it’s skeletal glory.

As you can see from the picture, the ultrasound shows that the new baby is a boy. I have to say, I’m pretty excited. I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t mattered to me, but it kinda did. Not a lot, mind you, but a little - yes. You see, I was the only male growing up in my family. I had four sisters and my mother. I had two second cousins - both girls. I had an aunt and a mother and a grandmother. Other than my step-grandfather and various stepfathers and a few uncles by marriage (all of whom came and went except my grandfather), I was it. The lone male. There wasn’t another male born in my family until I was 17 when my cousin and namesake Christie had her son, Evan. In the 13 years since then, there’s still only been 2 more - one by my older sister and another by my other cousin Leslie. So, needless to say, the women have had their time in our family.

Sarah was happy, too, of course. She likes the idea of having a boy and a girl, as do I. So, it was a blessing that we both got what we wanted. Now, just a few more months till the little bugger comes out into the world. Pretty exciting, I’ll say.

At the Helm

January 3, 2005

Set the controls for the heart of the sun, Ellie!

Ellie sitting in the office at the computer

2004

December 31, 2004

My top ten favorite albums of 2004 (in order of my completely subjective scoring system) Best reissues of 2004: The rest of my 2004 acquisitions: Happy New Year all. Here’s looking to 2005. Cheers!

Christmas Eve at the Huffmans

December 24, 2004

The Huffman Christmas tree on Christmas Eve

Status

December 20, 2004

Ellie and her new haircut[Sigh] Blogging? It’s been really hard for me to do for the past couple of weeks. The election kind of left me feeling down and out and for a lot of reasons coming to vent about it on my website just seemed so god-damned trite.

Not that there haven’t been tons of things to report on. There have been plenty, in fact:
Believe me, I know just how lame this place has been for the past little while and I want to say that 2005 promises big changes. Huge, in fact:
  1. Full-blown gallery dating back to 1974! (but mostly 1999-Present).
  2. A shift in topics from being less personal and more professional (i.e. Web Design/Development).
  3. The ongoing practice to become a better writer and designer.
  4. Possibly moving the blog off this domain and to someplace less visible to potential customers - I’ve already procured the domain name.
 How’s that for a New Year resolution?

The Politics of Victimization

November 30, 2004

Mathew Gross: The Politics of Victimization - [Mel Gilles, who has worked for many years as an advocate for victims of domestic abuse, draws some parallels between her work and the reaction of many Democrats to the election.— Mathew Gross]

Watch Dan Rather apologize for not getting his facts straight, humiliated before the eyes of America, voluntarily undermining his credibility and career of over thirty years. Observe Donna Brazille squirm as she is ridiculed by Bay Buchanan, and pronounced irrelevant and nearly non-existent. Listen as Donna and Nancy Pelosi and Senator Charles Schumer take to the airwaves saying that they have to go back to the drawing board and learn from their mistakes and try to be better, more likable, more appealing, have a stronger message, speak to morality. Watch them awkwardly quote the bible, trying to speak the new language of America. Surf the blogs, and read the comments of dismayed, discombobulated, confused individuals trying to figure out what they did wrong. Hear the cacophony of voices, crying out, “Why did they beat me?”

And then ask anyone who has ever worked in a domestic violence shelter if they have heard this before.

They will tell you, every single day.

The answer is quite simple. They beat us because they are abusers. We can call it hate. We can call it fear. We can say it is unfair. But we are looped into the cycle of violence, and we need to start calling the dominating side what they are: abusive. And we need to recognize that we are the victims of verbal, mental, and even, in the case of Iraq, physical violence.

As victims we can’t stop asking ourselves what we did wrong. We can’t seem to grasp that they will keep hitting us and beating us as long as we keep sticking around and asking ourselves what we are doing to deserve the beating.

Listen to George Bush say that the will of God excuses his behavior. Listen, as he refuses to take responsibility, or express remorse, or even once, admit a mistake. Watch him strut, and tell us that he will only work with those who agree with him, and that each of us is only allowed one question (soon, it will be none at all; abusers hit hard when questioned; the press corps can tell you that). See him surround himself with only those who pledge oaths of allegiance. Hear him tell us that if we will only listen and do as he says and agree with his every utterance, all will go well for us (it won’t; we will never be worthy).

And watch the Democratic Party leadership walk on eggshells, try to meet him, please him, wash the windows better, get out that spot, distance themselves from gays and civil rights. See them cry for the attention and affection and approval of the President and his followers. Watch us squirm. Watch us descend into a world of crazy-making, where logic does not work and the other side tells us we are nuts when we rely on facts. A world where, worst of all, we begin to believe we are crazy.

How to break free? Again, the answer is quite simple.

First, you must admit you are a victim. Then, you must declare the state of affairs unacceptable. Next, you must promise to protect yourself and everyone around you that is being victimized. You don’t do this by responding to their demands, or becoming more like them, or engaging in logical conversation, or trying to persuade them that you are right. You also don’t do this by going catatonic and resigned, by closing up your ears and eyes and covering your head and submitting to the blows, figuring its over faster and hurts less is you don’t resist and fight back. Instead, you walk away. You find other folks like yourself, 56 million of them, who are hurting, broken, and beating themselves up. You tell them what you’ve learned, and that you aren’t going to take it anymore. You stand tall, with 56 million people at your side and behind you, and you look right into the eyes of the abuser and you tell him to go to hell. Then you walk out the door, taking the kids and gays and minorities with you, and you start a new life. The new life is hard. But it’s better than the abuse.

We have a mandate to be as radical and liberal and steadfast as we need to be. The progressive beliefs and social justice we stand for, our core, must not be altered. We are 56 million strong. We are building from the bottom up. We are meeting, on the net, in church basements, at work, in small groups, and right now, we are crying, because we are trying to break free and we don’t know how.

Any battered woman in America, any oppressed person around the globe who has defied her oppressor will tell you this: There is nothing wrong with you. You are in good company. You are safe. You are not alone. You are strong. You must change only one thing: stop responding to the abuser. Don’t let him dictate the terms or frame the debate (he’ll win, not because he’s right, but because force works). Sure, we can build a better grassroots campaign, cultivate and raise up better leaders, reform the election system to make it failproof, stick to our message, learn from the strategy of the other side. But we absolutely must dispense with the notion that we are weak, godless, cowardly, disorganized, crazy, too liberal, naive, amoral, “loose”, irrelevant, outmoded, stupid and soon to be extinct. We have the mandate of the world to back us, and the legacy of oppressed people throughout history.

Even if you do everything right, they’ll hit you anyway. Look at the poor souls who voted for this nonsense. They are working for six dollars an hour if they are working at all, their children are dying overseas and suffering from lack of health care and a depleted environment and a shoddy education. And they don’t even know they are being hit.

Smile

November 4, 2004

Wake up, put your shoes on
Take a breath of the northern air
And rub those eyes
Genuflect beneath the starry skies

Before you climb the mountain
First the foothills must appear
Step high and light
And take up your staff and shining armor

(Chin up, chin up)
You don’t really have a problem
(Chin up, chin up)
In your hour of despair

And smile when you’re down and out
(Find something inside you)
Smile when you’re down and out
(Find something inside you)

The stars on the horizon
Stretch as far as the eyes can see
They represent
The souls of those like you and me

And smile when you’re down and out
(Find something inside you)
Smile when you’re down and out
(Find something inside you)

(Chin up, chin up)
You don’t really have a problem
(Chin up, chin up)
In your hour of despair

And smile when you’re down and out
(Find something inside you)
Smile when you’re down and out
(Find something inside you)

- The Jayhawks

Halloween 2004

October 31, 2004

Ellie Huffman dressed in a cow costume for Halloween 48 hours left and I am nervous as all hell. Please, GOD, let America make the better (even if only slightly so) choice. I really need a reason to believe in this country again.

How can any person look at that amazingly cute little face to the right and subject her to four more years of suffering? She’s never known life when a religious ideologue didn’t rule her country. Please, for the sake of the children, do not vote for George W. Bush.

Week Nine

October 29, 2004

A photo of a fetus at week nine.The embryo is officially called a fetus, or “little one.” Now the size of a strawberry, this mysterious inch-long being has hands that can flex at the wrist, and meet over her heart. Her trunk is elongating and straightening, her tail is disappearing, and her arms and legs are longer.

Umm, tail? Ok, that freaks me out a little bit.

Round Two

October 17, 2004

Ellie cheesing for the camera One thing about collecting music that really bugs me is when record companies “reissue” or “remaster” albums by an artist.

Typically, whenever a company decides to “reissue”, they throw in a couple of tracks to entice fans who might already own an album to buy the record again. Buy it twice, that is. Full retail value times two. All for a couple of previously thrown-away or outtake tracks.

Can you sense my bitterness?

In 1993 Rykodisc reissued a number of Elvis Costello records. These reworkings did, in fact, have some extra tracks thrown in. In the case of his debut, My Aim Is True, there were nine additional tracks. Luckily for me, I hadn’t purchased this album on CD yet, so I benefited by picking up the record, getting 22 tracks for roughly the same price as someone just a year earlier, who would have gotten only 13.

Elvis Costello’s catalog is currently undergoing another major “reissue” and recently Columbia Records announced that fifteen Bob Dylan albums would be remastered and re-released.

Unlike the Costello situation, I already own every single one of these Dylan recordings in either Cassette or Compact Disc format. So, if I wanted to enjoy the music that I’ve already purchased (albeit “better sounding”), I’ll have to shell out another $14-$15 a piece.

To put it bluntly, that’s bullshit. What does being a loyal fan get you anymore? Nothing. Never mind the fact that there isn’t a single god-damned additional track on any of the fifteen reissues. Just a new mastering, SACD format and SOME of them come with a 5.1 surround sound mix. Not all of them, mind you. Just some. Select albums. And not Nashville Skyline or Highway 61 or Freewheelin’, either. But Slow Train Coming does, THANK GOD! {That’s sarcasm, folks}

I wish that every time an album gets reissued fans who’ve already bought the records could trade in their existing copies for credit toward the new one. Will artists ever respect their fans enough to do this? I doubt it.

But guess what? Despite my frustration and utter distaste for the recording industry I bought them anyway. Well, eleven of them, actually. Not Slow Train, Oh Mercy, Love and Theft or Another Side of.

Yeah, I know, I’m a frickin’ loser. I’m all talk and no walk. But WAIT! Lemme tell you this. I didn’t pay $14-$15 like Columbia Records woulda liked me to. No, I only paid about $7 a piece for them by ordering them through Columbia House. You see, I already had to buy four more albums from them at “regular club prices” by November in order to complete my contractual obligation, so I waited until the usual “buy ONE get THREE free” promotional rounds and gobbled up the lot of them that way. Pretty clever, eh? No? Well, I thought so. I got all eleven for about $75. $75 bucks I was going to spend anyway, too.

So, why did I shell out for them? Well, the new versions of these records come in nice little digipaks full of great photographs. That and, well, because I’m a sucker. I didn’t have a couple of them on CD, so that was sort of one reason. But the main reason is because I shell out for Bob like no other. Hell, I’ve got the man’s Self Portrait framed and hanging in my living room, for chrissakes. What do you expect?

Other than that little episode all is well in the Huffman house. We’re off this week to Charleston, SC to visit Sarah’s friend. It’s Sarah and my second trip to Charleston and the first for Ellie. We’re looking forward to it.

Oh, and there’s one other thing you should all know:

Two lines = Pregnant

Sleeping Babe

September 27, 2004

Ellie asleep in my arms

Birthday Momma

September 18, 2004

Happy Birthday, Sarah. I love you.

Engagement photo of Christopher & Sarah Huffman

2004 Election in a Nutshell

September 15, 2004

John Kerry has a twisted toungue| George Bush has a twisted mind

The Blog of War

September 10, 2004

Ellie at the dinner table - laughing mischeviously Long time no blog, eh? Pathetic.

First of all, a quick picture of the adorable Ellie to draw you all into my vacuous ranting. Muahahaha!

Issues anyone? Class? Class?? Anyone? Is anyone else just about sick to death of hearing about John Kerry or George Bush and what they may or may not have been doing 30-35 years ago. Frankly, I could care less. It sickens me that I have little choice but to choose between them. As I’ve said before, Kerry is getting my vote as the lesser of two evils. But for crying out loud, could we at least get back to them lying about what they’re going to do once elected (or *shudder* re-elected) President? Just pick an issue, any issue so long as it takes place in the here-and-now, and let’s run THAT through the mud for the next 60 days. YEESH!

Honestly, though, I’m beginning to hate the media more and more as the days go by. Self-serving, opportunistic liars and greedy egomaniacs - all of them.

Thank God for movies and music. And praise be to Allah that I’ve been enjoying several awesome movies and listening to some outstanding music lately, else I think I’d lose my flippin’ mind.

One such movie I took in recently was the latest Errol Morris documentary - The Fog of War. I’m linking to Roger Ebert’s review as I feel that it’s the most balanced review of the documentary as an informative piece of entertainment. However, I don’t really see this movie as simply entertainment and I encourage anyone with more interest in the subject of high office relations in the politics [Ref.] of war to dig just a little bit for more backstory and even some criticisms of Morris’ portrayal of McNamara [and of McNamara’s portrayal of history]. (Here are some starters: One, Two and Three, ) I was shaken by this film, to be honest. Aside from McNamara’s ability to tell the truth or recall the exact facts from 40 years ago, I find it fascinating that a former Secretary of Defense sat down and spilled his guts about some pretty gruesome topics - such that war is. So I would highly advise checking it out.

I also rented Kill Bill Vol. One last weekend and absolutely LOVED it! Again, I’m linking to Ebert’s review because, well in this case, I absolutely agree with him. I loved Vol. One so much that I tried to rent Vol. Two the very next day - only to find that the movie place was all out. So I rented it on Tuesday and finished Vol. Two tonight. Let me first say that I love Quentin Tarantino films. Jackie Brown may be the only film of his that I wouldn’t recommend as being “great”. But I have begun to feel that Kill Bill is his best work so far. Beautiful imagery and cinematography, great acting, wonderfully simple storytelling and some of the best fight scenes employing American actors that I’ve seen in a long, long time. And it’s those qualities that people like the Wachowski brothers need to pay attention to. Had they made the fight scenes in either of the two Matrix sequels even HALF as good, or simplified the plot - rather than convolute it with philosophical double-talk, and actually hired some decent actors, well… I’m just going to stop there because it’s not just the Wachowskis who need to do this - it’s 80% of Hollywood. Anyway, Kill Bill was a lot of fun. It is pretty graphically intense, in that there is a lot of blood and fighting. But I didn’t find the violence to be over the top. It’s an American director’s tribute to Kung-fu movies. And it goes without saying that if Tarantino is directing there’s a very good chance that there is going to be lots of blood. Simply put, Kill Bill rocked.

On the music scene, I’ve been enjoying Mic City Sons by Heatmiser. Apparently, Elliot Smith had a band in the mid-nineties and they put out some decent albums. If you like Elliot Smith, then you’ll most likely dig the tracks he sings on. Some of the other tracks remind me of The New Pornographers, especially their latest record (The Electric Version, I think?). Good stuff.

I’ve also been listening to the latest Magnetic Fields record, simply entitled i. The jury is still kinda out on this record, but there are definitely some good songs on here.

And I just can’t stop listening to A Ghost Is Born by Wilco. It’s been out forever now, but I swear I listen to it two or three times a week still.

At home I am currently engaged in a battle with the weeds that have consumed our yard. I never in a million years pictured myself a man who gave a shit about having a manicured lawn, but ladies and gentlemen let me tell you, the crabgrass, dandelions and the whatever-the-hell-else’s started this war and I am determined to finish it. I won’t stop until I have no more weeds. I’m not aiming for a golf course, just a decent yard that my daughter can run around in without cutting her foot on a spiny weed. I’ve reluctantly resorted to killing large sections of the yard and starting over with new seeding. So far, so good. The back yard is beginning to look better. This weekend is all about the front yard. Look out!

Steve Earle

August 25, 2004

Steve Earle lays it down righteously: I believe we’re good people who created this really amazing fucking document called the Constitution. I think it’s what we’ll be remembered for. Maybe rock ‘n’ roll. Maybe jazz. I’m one of those people who like to think maybe baseball. But believe me, we’re not going to last forever. Every country that’s ever been the most powerful country in the world ceases to be the most powerful country in the world at some point. Britain had to learn to carry itself differently after it wasn’t the most powerful country in the world anymore, and I think they did a pretty fucking good job of it. Or you can be like the Soviet Union, start out with ideals, and end up ceasing to exist. The way we’re carrying ourselves right now, while we’re the most powerful country in the world, is going to determine whether we even exist in another hundred years, and how we’re treated if we do. It makes me concerned for my grandchildren and their children. Read it for yourself »The Onion A.V. Club | Steve Earle | August 18, 2004

Decency

August 11, 2004

Uncle Seth, teaching Ellie to surf. And she actually stood up, although I didn't get the picture.We’re back from our annual vacation to the West Coast of Michigan. A grand time was had by the Huffmans and the Jenkins (and cousin Hucek). This year was slightly different in that we didn’t stay at the usual place, a cottage at a resort called Watervale, which Sarah and her parents have been visiting for approx. twenty years. No, this year we rented a cabin, literally a two minute drive from Watervale, from a coworker of Sarah’s dad, Tom. Personally, I liked this place a bit better, as it had laundry facilities and a bit more privacy and space. Some, however, would have preferred to stay at the usual place, but seeing as how this place was half the price, we couldn’t really pass it up.

Alas, we’re back, which is good in some ways, and not so good in others. I really oughta start playing the lottery. You know, you can’t win if you don’t play. And I never play, so…

Someone on TAG recently linked to this Kurt Vonnegut article, which I found to be hilarious and one of the more sane things I’ve read in a while. Vonnegut is so cool. Not bad for a guy from Indianapolis, eh? Anyway, what especially got my attention was this quote for Dave:
A sappy woman sent me a letter a few years back. She knew I was sappy, too, which is to say a lifelong northern Democrat in the Franklin Delano Roosevelt mode, a friend of the working stiffs. She was about to have a baby, not mine, and wished to know if it was a bad thing to bring such a sweet and innocent creature into a world as bad as this one is. I replied that what made being alive almost worthwhile for me, besides music, was all the saints I met, who could be anywhere. By saints I meant people who behaved decently in a strikingly indecent society. Perhaps some of you are or will become saints for her child to meet. You’ll have to read the rest of the article, but I think that the part of acting decently in a strikingly indecent society is profound. I feel that most people struggle in their own ways to act decently. And that’s the battle that we’ll all fight for the rest of our lives. And I’m glad to fight that fight, to be honest with you. The idealist in me wants a perfect world, but the realist in me knows that that’s impossible, so I think that what I really want is to act as decently as I can. And I want as many other folks (like YOU!) to act as decently as they can to illustrate to even more people that acting decently is it’s own reward. I truly believe that that’s the way to a perfect world, or as close as we can get. And I already know that Dave is a decent guy. He’s a decent husband and he’ll be a decent father. And each of us have that legacy to pass on.

All right, enough of the sappy shit. How do people like the links to the right? Are you checking them out, or do you all forget that they’re there?

On the State of Affairs

July 25, 2004

In reading through the comments of Lawrence Lessig’s plea to Bill O’Reilly, I came across a comment that quite eloquently describes the current right-wing ideology as I perceive it. Surely, it’s been said a million times before, but never did it resonate with me quite the same way it did just now. So, I’m copying it all right here for you and for my own preservation:
The left is rightly contemptuous of the far right’s easy view that america is the embodiment of good in the world and that those with antagonisms toward us are pure unadulterated malignancy. The right wing has slipped into a very manichean view in which all the light is on our side. The left should be quite open about reminding people that our own history and behavior is more problematic than the simple visions of the right. I have seen no definition of terrorism that the US would not stand morally condemned by as well, whether it be killing innocents, brutalizing non-combatants, engaging in vigilante justice, acting outside of the bounds of international law, using weapons of mass destruction on civilians(people seem to forget that we are the only nation in history to slaughter tens of thousands of civilians using strategic nuclear weapons not once, but twice, and we slaughtered those civilians to demoralize the enemy). In truth, what we are really arguing is nothing more than that the state is the only legitimate practitioner of violence.

If one is of the belief that ones enemies are pure evil, then by definition such people can have no valid grievances and they can have no legitimate interests. The facile dismissal of many people’s sense of being wronged by US foreign policy is a big part of what fuels hatred of the US and a willingness to resort to violence. Once someone becomes convinced that their interests will never be recognized as legitimate and that there is no hope that the other side(which holds a disproportionate amount of power in the world) will ever have anything other than contempt and disregard for their concerns, what remains is “its either them or us”.

Once WE accept the pure evil malignancy argument there will be only one response from the state, the destruction of that pure evil. We set ourselves on a fanatical path that IS the mirror image of terrorist logic. Each side believes the destruction of the other is the only possible outcome because each side believes the other is unredeemable evil.

In other words both sides have subscribed to a vision of the world in which their enemies are no longer human but demonic. Such a vision can only end in the destruction of one or the other or, more likely, the destruction of both.

The left should keep reminding us that being civilized means refusing to be pulled into that fanatical logic and they should make this argument in a fully open way without talking around the point for fear of being condemned as “aiding the enemy”. Oh, and this fellow calls himself “a disillusioned conservative”. Believe me when I say that I am very pleased to know that these people exist.

Five more days to vacation, and boy, do I ever need it.

Quickies

July 22, 2004

First of all, what’s happened to Liz and Pat? I hope they’re not gone for good.

You may notice that I have added a sidebar to the left of my blog. I’ve moved the navigation to that side and added some quick-links to the right. I’ve wanted to do something like this for a while. I wanted to be able to post quick links to interesting stories without wasting space in the blog area. I certainly don’t have time to post to the blog every day, but I feel pretty confident that the quick-links will be pretty frequently updated, as they only take me about one minute to post. We’ll see how it plays out.
Movies
 Sarah and I caught Spiderman 2 about two weeks ago (our first theater movie together in so long I cannot remember the last one). Color me smitten with this movie and its predecessor - the first comic book adaptations that I have found to be nearly flawless. I like Doc Ock as a villain so much more than Green Goblin, so this movie was even better for me than the first.

Last weekend, we rented two films of note. The first was called City of God. This was a brutal and violent film about life in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. Heartbreaking and well-acted, I thought it was too gratuitously violent at times, but otherwise a very well-made foreign film. Not recommended for people who cannot stomach violence. In fact, Sarah was turned off because of it. I don’t blame her. It was pretty graphic.

The second film was the documentary Spellbound. This is a fascinating look at the 1999 US National Spelling Bee and, more importantly, the colorful participants therein. I really enjoyed this movie and highly recommend it.
Consumerism
 I’ve been meaning to share some shopping habits that we’ve come to acquire over the past couple of years, as I find such things interesting. Especially when it comes to alternative and organic foods. We aren’t a totally organic household, but we do eat as much organic as we can afford.

Sarah and Ellie and I belong to Costco Wholesale, where we buy alot of non-perishables and other frequently used items in bulk. I like the idea of places that leverage consumer buying power by consolidation, especially when they are businesses that treat their employees well, as highlighted in this article: Costco’s love of labor: Employees’ well-being key to its success. From the time we joined two years ago, I noticed a higher quality of employee and much better service than I get in alot of super-stores. I’m all for saving money on bulk goods, but I’m not willing to sacrifice good service and I want to reward employers who offer good-paying jobs like these by giving them my business. Costco does both for us. Check them out if you can. They are a great alternative to Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club.

Another store of note in Indy is the supermarket Trader Joe’s. TJ’s specializes in unique and exotic foods. They carry alot of meat alternatives as well as organic foods. They carry Fair Trade coffee and lots of organic dairy products that we use. But the real catch is that the prices are low, unlike some other groceries in town that carry alot of products that we like. TJ’s also has incredibly low prices on wine. Good wine, too. I’m not much of a wine drinker, myself, but for $3 you can get a bottle of Charles Shaw that Sarah’s folks swear by. (In fact, if you drank wine at my Birthday party, you’ve already sampled it!) $3 is cheap, people.

Unfortunately, we can’t do all of our shopping at TJ’s, as they don’t always have everything we need, but we get what we can there and then hit the Marsh to supplement whatever else we need. We’ve found that it is still important to read ingredients and labels at Trader Joe’s, as some items are pretty high in fat and/or sodium. But, generally, they do a much better job than the traditional stores here. I only wish that their selection were large enough that we didn’t need to go anyplace else.

I can’t remember who or when it was, but I recall a discussion on the blog a while back about the potentially harmful effects of aluminum in deodorants that prompted me to switch to Tom’s of Maine Natural Deodorant. I don’t know if there is a link to Alzheimer’s or not, but if Cecil Adams is skeptical, so am I. And PBS specials like Trade Secrets keep me on the watch, although it might just be more propagation of the fear that Phil is talking about.

I’ve been using Tom’s now for several years, and although it is about twice as expensive as other, aluminum-based brands, it has a minimal impact on my wallet, as it takes me about 6-8 weeks to go through a stick. So it comes out to only about $30 per year. If it turns out that Aluminum is linked to Alzheimers, then it will have been a wise investment, for sure.

Anyway, that’s about all the consumer whore I have in me tonight.

Wedding, Etc.

July 13, 2004

Ok, Ok, YEESH! So, there was this wedding a few weeks ago where a certain somebody got married and I’m being harrased to put up my pictures. Well, there you go, then. They’re up.

Don’t you people know I’m busy? I mean, I do have a life, you know? And a job. And an incredibly cute baby! Which reminds me - I wanna say congratulations to the Summitt’s, who are now expecting another Jr. blogger-to-be. That is so completely awesome! You guys will certainly rock as parents.

Otherwise, life is kinda kicking my ass right now. Work is sort of hectic at times. Ellie is a ball full of energy, draining what little I have left when I get home from work. And Jovi’s passing was, while somewhat expected, a depressing loss that seemed to happen all too suddenly. She was only four years old, folks. Four. Years. Old. Cancer is such a bitch.

On a brighter note, I’m glad that Kerry chose Edwards as his running mate. I really do believe that that was the only winning ticket for the Dems. And yes, I am one of those guys you read about that is so determined to vote Bush and his bullshit administration out of office that I’d vote for just about any Democrat right now.

Say what you will about voting this way, but the past four years have been giant steps backwards to me, and I’ll do just about whatever is necessary to stop the hemorrhaging that is going on in this country in regards to foreign policy and American Civil Liberties.

I’ve ordered my bumper sticker and made my donation. Hopefully, in four years I’ll be able to get back on the horse and vote my conscience. But this time, I’ll take the low road if I have to, so long as I get to my destination in November.

His Goal In Life Was To Be An Echo

July 5, 2004

Wilco: A Ghost is BornThere are only a few artists in music today that carry the reputation with me enough to guarantee that I’ll buy their album without ever hearing it first. It’s the result of being burned one too many times by albums that never achieve the level of quality that I had come to expect from an artist that I love. Or sometimes its just a bad recommendation from a friend, but mostly its the former.

Bob Dylan did it to me during the Eighties and early Nineties, though he’s been on a tear as of late. The newest Bootleg Series is incredible, as all six of them have been to me. Neil Young is completely unpredictable - a veritable schizophreniac when it comes to delivering consistently enjoyable music. Young can deliver emotionally and sonically overwhelming tunes or lifeless, underwhelming noise, with little room in between. Sonic Youth, Tom Waits, Superchunk, and yes, even Frank Black, have all made me regret a purchase or two.

So, the list is pretty short of bands that have failed to please me. The Jayhawks haven’t failed me yet. Radiohead do a damn good job. Yo La Tengo is mostly good with some mediocrity, but never a waste of money. Pavement managed to skate through better part of a decade without making me regret [save the Westing (By Musket and Sextant) EP - not a full-length, so I won’t count it]. The Pixies never seemed to compromise, despite becoming more and more thematic (by way of Blacks obsession with space) with their last two albums. The Super Furry Animals, The Flaming Lips, The Beatles - all impeccable bodies of work. I cannot recall a record from any of these afforementioned bands that I didn’t love. And I consider that a fairly hard thing to accomplish. Very hard, indeed.

As you might have already guessed from the album cover above, I would also add Wilco to that prestigious list. Their latest, A Ghost Is Born, took two or three listens to sink in, but I had a feeling the very first time I heard it that it was another winning record from Tweedy, et al.

This album is a more subdued record than Wilco’s previous efforts. It is filled with melancholy songs about life and stardom and drug addiction. A Ghost is Born actually reminds me alot of Neil Young’s haunting 1975 masterpiece Tonight’s the Night - a bare-bones, powerful and emotionally raw record that chronicles the trials and tribulations of fame, drug addiction and loss, and the pressures of Rock and Roll life.

Not that I really ever feel sorry for guys like Tweedy or Young, but their pain is obviously real, and I have tremendous respect for their willingness to bear their pain on wax, and to do it with such skill. Given that Jeff Tweedy checked himself into rehab back in April, A Ghost Is Born might be the last such record by him. And I, for one, certainly hope he takes care of himself because I’d sure like to have him around for many more years making music as great as this.

Hang In There! You Live In The Richest Nation In The World

July 4, 2004

Via The Onion:
Ever have “one of those days”? You know the kind: The boss is screaming “I want it yesterday!,” the kids have the flu, and your hair is sticking up on end like Don King’s. Well, on those days, it’s important to keep things in perspective. After all, you live in the richest, most powerful nation in the whole gosh-darn world!

You may have a run in your pantyhose, and the floor of your car may be covered with a week’s worth of Styrofoam coffee cups, but you shouldn’t be a frowny Frank. Keep that chin up, and remember that our country has more than 1.3 million military personnel on active duty and the most advanced weapons systems on Earth. That should turn anyone’s frown upside down.

Even on a Monday-heck, even on a rainy Monday-our nation has nearly three times the purchasing power of Japan, which has the world’s second largest economy. That’s gotta make you smile. So hang in there!

Speaking of “Hang In There!,” have you ever seen the poster with the picture of the kitten hanging from the branch? I have it on the wall of my cubicle at the insurance agency. It reminds me to keep reaching for the stars, even when I feel discouraged. Sure, life’s an uphill battle. Sometimes, you want to throw your hands up and say, “I give up!” But at those moments, you owe it to yourself to give it another try.

Psst… I’ve got a secret remedy for a case of the blues. First, buy yourself a treat. Ice cream, flowers, a foot-massage kit-it doesn’t matter what, so long as it’s something you love. Then, take a look at the latest statistics from the World Health Organization. At least in your country, you don’t have a one-in-three chance of being HIV-positive, like the people in some places! Did you know that AIDS will account for 44.7 percent of adult deaths in South Africa this year and is projected to account for 78.6 percent by 2010? Not in America, though! That’s why, around these parts, every day is a rainbow day!

Sometimes, it feels like I can’t do anything right. This morning, for example, I dropped my toast on the floor. (Guess which side it landed on.) Then, when I got to work, I realized I’d forgotten my desk keys-again! I was this close to getting seriously down on myself when I remembered something I definitely have done right in my life: I was born in the U.S.A.! Just think where I could’ve been born: North Korea, Cambodia, Burkina Faso. I could be dead by now, killed by starvation, malaria, tidal wave, rebel insurgents, drought, civil war, well poisoning, a land mine… I won’t bore you, but the list goes on and on!

You know that old saying, “Life begins at 40”? Well, not in Sierra Leone! The life expectancy there is 38! I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore, Toto!

Did you know that the U.S. makes up only 4 percent of the world’s population, yet we have a third of its automobiles and consume a quarter of its energy supply? Keep that in mind the next time you get passed over for that big promotion at work!

Now, I’m not saying I never complain. There are lots of things that make me mad. Like waiting in line. It drives me absolutely batty! Doesn’t it seem like every time you get in line at the post office, the line you pick winds up moving half as fast as the one next to it? But if you switch to the other line, the one you’d been in suddenly starts moving! At times like that, I just close my eyes and think about our country’s 3.9 million miles of paved roads, enough to circle the Earth at the equator 157 times.

Yes, whenever I need a super-duper pick-me-up, I just think about my elite status as an American citizen. That never fails to put the feather back in my cap. Sure, there’s a war going on and lots of other problems, but let’s keep in mind that over the past 20 years, our economy has grown at a faster rate than at any other time in our history. That means when Friday comes, it’s time to celebrate with a happy-hour raspberry margarita at Applebee’s! Why not? I’m from America, the wealthiest country in the entire world!

Anniversary - Number 3 in an infinite series

June 23, 2004

Sarah and I on our wedding dayToday is mine and Sarah’s third wedding anniversary. In many ways, that day seems like a million years ago and in so many ways it seems like last week. So much has changed in those three years that its hard for me to compare either myself or Sarah to the people I see in the pictures in our wedding album, but there we are - two lovers making the ultimate commitment to one another in front of everyone we love. In the years since, I graduated from school and become a father while Sarah finished her thesis and gave birth to Ellie. We bought our house just weeks before the wedding and I can barely recall what it was like to live anyplace else. That’s a lot of change in three years.

Anyway, I guess I’m just feeling pensive and reflective. And I want to say ‘Happy Anniversary’ to my dear H-B. I love you, Sarah.

Huffman Prairie Flying Field

June 8, 2004

Huffman Prairie Flying FieldSome of you may or may not know this, but Robert Pollard loves me. I know, you’re saying to yourself right now, “Self, there he goes again - blowing his own frickin’ trumpet, making absurd claims like he knows Bob Pollard or that Pollard knows him or some shit. Man, Huffman has finally lost it.”. But you’d be wrong Mister/Missus Fancy-Pants. Else how could you explain that the very last song on the very last Guided By Voices album is entitled “Huffman Prairie Flying Field”? Huh? How? Coincidence? What? Oh. Well, ok, maybe. But if it’s not coincidence, then surely it’s because he loves me and wanted to show it by bowing out with a tribute to me.

Yeah, that’s gotta be it.

p.s. Read a review of Huffman Prairie Flying Field at Pitchfork.

p.p.s. Guess what, folks? There really is a Huffman Prairie Flying Field. It’s located just outside of the GBV home town of Dayton, Ohio.

The Pros and Cons of Politicking

May 30, 2004

20. Jesus, Messiah, Nazareth

Pro: Would put Bush in uncomfortable position of attacking his personal Lord and Savior, could redefine Christianity instantly for political gain, likable
Con: Mythical
Read more of McSweeney’s Internet Tendency: PROS AND CONS OF JOHN KERRY’S TOP TWENTY VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES. Simply hilarious.

Guide to Springfield USA

May 29, 2004

The Guide to Springfield USA is a fully-realized map of the hometown of everyones favorite family, The Simpsons. Color me impressed not only by the accuracy and enormous know-how it must have taken to create such a masterpiece, but by it’s digital, aesthetic beauty, as well.

Design Eye for the Usability Guy

May 28, 2004

What happens when designers use Jakob Nielson’s own advice against him to illustrate that usability doesn’t have to equate to visually unattractive websites? See for yourself at Design by Fire: Design Eye for the Usability Guy.

p.s. For those of you who received invites to next weekends shindig, please RSVP if you’re coming, else there won’t be enough food and beverage for everyone. If you didn’t get an invite and feel left out, it’s probably unintentional, so just let me know.

Busy Bees

May 12, 2004

Ellie and I just after I finished running the Mini MarathonThis past weekend was full of excitement. Saturday was the long-awaited and long-trained for Mini Marathon. I did fairly well, although I didn’t quite meet all of my goals. My first goal was, of course, to finish the race. Obviously, I did that. Originally, my second goal was to average a ten minute mile pace for the duration of the race. I actually finished in 2 hours and 14 minutes, which is pretty damn close to that (approximately 10 minutes 20 seconds) , so I did that, too. However, about two or three weeks prior to race day, I had revised Goal #2 to be to finish the race in under 2 hours, which would have been an average of about nine minutes per mile. That didn’t happen. Unfortunately, on my 12-mile, long run ten days earlier, I did something to my left knee that caused me to have to slow down my pace in order to make the long distance, so I wasn’t able to push myself like I felt I could. I ran pretty strong all throughout my training and I still feel pretty confident that I could have accomplished Revised Goal #2 had it not been for the injury.

Alas, excuses are for the weak. I’m still very proud of my time and would very much like to give a shout out to my buddy Jason who stuck with me all the way to mile ten and a half (or was it eleven?), when I finally told him that it was OK to go on and not wait for me. At that point I knew that I was going to make it and I didn’t want to hold him back. He was a sport to stick with this rookie and for cheering me on. Thanks for all your support, Jason.

All in all, the Mini was a great experience and I am certain that I’ll be back next year. Hopefully, this time Sarah will be running with me.

So, Saturday was pretty nice, but Sunday was great. First of all, it was Mother’s Day. Sarah, Ellie and I had brunch at our house with Sarah’s parents along with her brother, Dan. It was pretty relaxed, and I hope Sarah knows how much I appreciate her and how great a job she does with Ellie. It’s amazing, folks. It’s not easy, but Sarah loves that baby and has done more to make her who she is than I have. Good parents are, unfortunately, a rare thing it seems, so Ellie sure did luck out.

The Huffman family at Chris' graduation from the Indiana University School of InformaticsBut, while it should have been a day all about Moms, I had big things to do, myself - for Sunday was also my Commencement ceremony.

Yep, after all the 7 years of hard work and diligence, I finally walked the walk of a college graduate. It was pretty darn exciting, I tell ya. Granted, I finished classes back in December, but…

In recognition of my graduation, Sarah and her parents had my diploma framed beautifully for me, and I was very thankful for all that they have done to support me through school. I could have never done it without all of them. Especially, Sarah.

So, it was a pretty crazy weekend, but one full of excitement and great accomplishments. Now, it’s back to the working week and some time off from running to let my knee heal properly.

Google and Free Speech

May 1, 2004

As pointed out by Tom a few weeks ago, a search for the term “Jew” on Google resulted in top results that pointed to antisemitic websites. Google has now come forward to explain their hesistation to make any changes to the world’s most popular search engine to prevent results that contain “hate” speech.

And I agree that they shouldn’t be in the business of stifling speech, even if it is distasteful. Protecting free speech means protecting unpopular speech, as well. But, it is pointless now because attempts to engineer “desired” results have apparently worked. At least for now, that is.

Indy MP3 Project

April 29, 2004

I recently acquired a copy of the Indy MP3 project, a disc containing 170 songs from Indiana musicians. As they put it: The point of the Indy MP3 Project is to put an end to the notion that Indianapolis is not a music town. The album is being given away at locations all around town and they have given permission for people to make copies of the CD for their friends/families. Now that’s what I call a good idea. If you want to get people interested in your music, then let them sample it and then choose for themselves if they want to pursue it.

For a full listing of bands that made it onto the disc and locations where you can pick up the disc, as well as catch some live performances of those bands, check out the IndianapolisMusic.Net page.

Some artists of note: (in no particular order): America Owns The Moon, Otis Gibbs, The Slurs, and Mike Milligan and Steam Shovel (of whom the brothers Mike and Shawn Milligan are from my hometown - Kokomo, IN).

With 170 tracks (!), I have a feeling that this one will be spinning in my tray for quite some time.

Big Brother and your Blog

April 28, 2004

Yahoo! News - Blog-Tracking May Gain Ground Among U.S. Intelligence Officials. Let the conspiracy theories begin. There are two elements to this story that I find interesting: 1.) That this illustrates my Senior Capstone (154kb) assertion that blogs are, indeed, having a massive impact on how information is used in our society - and 2.) that this approach is, essentially, Googling a portal for what you’re looking for. “Big Brother” will just create an index on sites of their interest, therefore filtering out all of the needless/worthless crap, and then “spy” on them by searching for clues using search criteria. Now, I want one.

And I don’t think that this is a civil liberties infringement, as implied in the article. If you post your shiz-nit in public view, it’s not private and you have no claims to privacy. Period.

The big question for me is “how accurate can this approach be?”. If results can be engineered, isn’t it just a matter of time before they are? Yes. And if so, doesn’t that call into question the integrity of the system? Yes.

Lucinda Williams

April 22, 2004

Besides putting out one of the best records of 2003 with World Without Tears (which you can listen to on her website), Lucinda Williams is a living legend - a songwriter of such intensity and honesty to rival any other. Right this moment this song is rocking my world:
I think I lost it
Let me know if you come across it
Let me know if I let it fall
Along a back road somewhere
Money can’t replace it
No memory can erase it
And I know I’m never gonna find
Another one to compare

Give me some love to fill me up
Give me some time give me some stuff
Give me a sign give me some kind of reason
Are you heavy enough to make me stay
I feel like I might blow away
I thought I was in heaven
But I was only dreamin

I think I lost it
Let me know if you come across it
Let me know if I let it fall
Along a back road somewhere
Money can’t replace it
No memory can erase it
And I know I’m never gonna find
Another one to compare

I just wanna live the life I please
I don’t want no enemies
I don’t want nothin if I have to fake it
Never take nothin don’t belong to me
Everything’s paid for nothing free
If I give my heart
Will you promise not to break it

I think I lost it
Let me know if you come across it
Let me know if I let it fall
Along a back road somewhere
Money can’t replace it
No memory can erase it
And I know I’m never gonna find
Another one to compare
Money can’t replace it
No memory can erase it
And I know I’m never gonna find
Another one to compare

John Kerry on Meet The Press

April 20, 2004

Here is the transcript from the April 18 Meet The Press with guest John Kerry. A very interesting read, indeed.

My favorite quote: George Bush has no record to run on. He has a record to run away from. He can’t come to a city and talk about creating jobs, because he hasn’t created them. He’s lost them. He can’t come anywhere and talk about health care for all Americans, because he has no plan. He can’t come and talk about keeping the promise to our children and our schools because he broke it and he doesn’t fund it. He can’t talk about cleaner air or cleaner water because he’s going backwards on those policies. So what does he do? He distorts my record. This president no