Sunday, October 31, 2010

Lazy-Ass Librarian: Everything New is Old, Eventually

If you're really ancient like me, you may remember some of this vintage computer stuff. Here's a fun collection of old computer ads, compliments of Uneasy Silence via Good.Is.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

To the fucking assholes who broke into our house and stole a bunch of shit

Dear Fucking Assholes:
Thanks a whole bunch for stealing our stuff. And for breaking our window. We will certainly miss our televisions and computers. I know we were lucky to have them as long as we did. And it is just stuff, after all. And no animals were hurt.
I do wonder why you stripped the bed and took the sheets and mattress pad. Not to mention the sheet on the couch. It all needed to be washed anyway. Perhaps you're allergic to pet hair. I'd like to think so.
Anyway, I hope that you both got big~ass hernias from carrying the big tv and the desktop computers. Yeah. One of those really bad hernias. And I hope you dropped all our shit on your toes.
Oh, and by the way, you know my kid, whose art and college admission essays were on the computer you stole? And whose Nintendo you took? She hopes you both get crabs.
So anyway, thanks for just totally making our day, you stupid fucks.



Friday, October 15, 2010

Happy Birthday, Kiddo!


Today is my kid's eighteenth birthday, and my thoughts are racing. What have I forgotten to teach her? What haven’t I said that I need to say?   
     It's like leaving for a year-long vacation and wondering if you left the coffee pot on. 
(Sigh… Okay, for you younger readers, there was a time when coffee pots didn't have an automatic shut-off) 
For the moment, the most important thing to say comes straight from the movies: Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.  I saw this movie with my parents when they were still married. 
     No doubt you already know the theme – interracial marriage – and it was pretty darned controversial in 1967.
     At one point, Mr. Prentice (played by Roy Glenn) and his son John (Sidney Poitier) argue. Mr. Prentice, who is a mail carrier, angrily talks about his sacrifices for his son, but John sets him straight: 
MR. PRENTICE: … I worked my ass off to get the money to buy you all the chances you had! You know how far I carried that bag in (all those) years? 
JOHN PRENTICE: You tell me what rights I've got or haven't got, and what I owe to you for what you've done for me. Let me tell you something. I owe you nothing! If you carried that bag a million miles, you did what you're supposed to do! Because you brought me into this world. And from that day you owed me everything you could ever do for me like I will owe my son if I ever have another. But you don't own me! 
     My mother wasn't one to talk over movies, but at that point I clearly heard her say, “Amen!” 
I took it to heart, and I tried to raise my daughter accordingly (with some major fails, I'm afraid). Last week I remembered to pass the message on to her expressly. So I can mark that one off the list.
     But I'm still pretty sure I left the coffee pot on. And the iron. And did anybody get the cat out of the closet? God, I think I left the door unlocked ... Jesus, I need to make a list.
     Happy birthday, sweet pea. I am so very, very grateful to be your mom.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

In Praise of HIV Negative Gay Men!


Mark King (myfabulousdisease.com) posted a lovely video giving kudos to gay men who have managed to stay HIV-negative. He wants people to share the video, and I'm happy to do so here. I would like to extend the praise to any sexually active person who has remained negative. 



Mark's timing is pretty much perfect, because it ties in nicely to something else I want to share: Graphic Intervention: 25 Years of International AIDS Awareness Posters.  It's a nice exhibit -- 153 posters, most with translation and commentary.

I Take One Everywhere I Take My Penis / USA 1993

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Arrrrgggghhhh!! No time to write!

... and people are starting to complain (talk about a high-quality problem!).

For the moment, I'll just have to serve up Maureen Dowd's latest column. She's one of my favorites, and today she's got a movie review along with scary politics.

Monday, October 04, 2010

It really, really does get better.

Following the tragic death of Tyler Clementi and too many others, I'm proud to plug the It Gets Better Project, a grass-roots effort to support GLBTQ kids victimized by bullying and bigotry. The videos produced as part of this project can reassure struggling teens that they really can survive high school and go on to have wonderful, amazing lives, if they'll just stick it out a while longer. These videos have been made by people just like you. I hope you'll consider making one of your own -- it's as easy as telling your story. Your unique voice may be just the one a kid needs to hear to make it through the day.

Here's a great example from Mark King and his brother Dick.

Friday, October 01, 2010

Lazy-Ass Librarian Friday: The Sinister and the Sublime

Today, I'm kinda torn between happy and evil. Or maybe children and machines. Or maybe old and new. Or maybe, oh, just whatever. Fact is, I love both of these and I'm posting them together even though they have nothing to do with one another. Compliments of the fabulous Good.is

First, the sinister, and you really have to watch a video or two to get the full effect: Seven Creepy Robots with Useful Applications

And now, the sublime:  The Nine Best Sesame Street Guest Appearances

Ah, the world is a splendid and remarkable place. Happy Friday, everyone!