I got a call from the White House, from the President himself, asking me if I’d do him a personal favor. I like the President, so I said, “Sure, Mr. President, anything you like.” He said, “Just act like nothing’s going on. Act normal. That would mean the world to me. Can you do that, Leon?” “Why, sure, Mr. President, you’ve got it. Normal, that’s how I’m going to act. I won’t let on, even if I’m tortured,” I said, immediately regretting that “tortured” bit
BIG NEWS! In the private democracy I live in I have been outvoted, per usual, 2 to 1, and Lucy and Babalu will be Fred and Ethel, the sillyass reason is unimportant (I didn't ask so don't know what it is, I eat the (wine I drink the bread) vote results and will honor the vote and not claim it rigged, nor crash a fucking unwatchable NBA game and then fall asleep as I'm booed). Too, turns out Ethel nee Lucy is NOT a Scottish Fold, a relief, actually, since I've read that Scottish Folds come with many unpleasant and debilitating for the cat health issues
Good news for me if not for you: I'm back on this drug, it helps me cope more than even tending this shitty blog BIG NEWS! Two posts before this one post (the link above), when Fred and Ethel were still Lucy and Babalu, I mentioned Lambert Strether, a character in Henry James "The Ambassadors," and remembered digibud Lambert and later wondered whether he (both the alias and the person using the alias) still online, and yes, look here and then bookmark it and read daily!
NEW OLD NEWS! I have done zero research into Graham Platner's history and character deliberately, I said to a question asked me yesterday by a chaired History professor renowned as a Liberal Sage with a specialty in New Deal history, though I noted that every professional (and amateur) Liberal and Corporate Democrat I would expect to campaign against a threat from the Left has united to fight Platner harder than they've ever fought Tronald Dump, so Platner can't be all *that* bad. He has a fucking Nazi tattoo, said chaired History professor, who lives one zip code east of mine and has the same congressman. You work on Jaime Raskin's campaigns, I said, he funds the Israeli genocide in Gaza and the Israeli ethnic cleansing of the West Bank and now southern Lebanon, you still voting for him? A Nazi tattoo is more disqualifying than funding genocide and ethnic cleansing and imperialist land theft? Chaired History professor informed me, That's different and fuck you
BIG NEWS! Fellowjeff's Noise & Syrup, my very favorite show of hundreds in the thirty years I've been listening for hours daily to WFMU, is on this Summer's schedule, the song above and below from the first show this morning!
For the record, if Platner is elected I fully expect him to fund the neverending Israeli genocide in Gaza and the Israeli ethnic cleansing in the West Bank and now southern Lebanon and to vote in general like all motherfucking Corporate Democrats, it's just illustrative that Corporate Democrats' Job One is to destroy even the most minor threat from the Left, I said to the other professor engaged in the conversation at the Circ Desk after Chaired History professor stormed out. Yup, second professor said
Good news about the Good News. Also, I seek more information, more clarity, about the transfiguration of Lucee and Bob-a-luuu into Fred and Ethel -- Lucee's becoming Fred, and Bob-a-luuu becoming Ethel. Did they die and were then reborn? Was Strauss' "Death and Transfiguration" the soundtrack, or was it XTC's 'Dying' on a near-endless loop? And were Lucee and Bobby-loo in Black & White, shifting to "Living Color" with the re-emergence of Fred and Ethel? There are so many details. There is so little time.
One voter wanted Ricky instead of Babalu but our next door neighbor is named Ricky so that won't work, the other voter's dog is Louie so she claimed trademark rights to Lou. I'm going to nominate Mertz rather than Fred and insist everyone say Mertz like it's a You Lose game show sound, not holding out much hope, though C will be easier to lobby than L on that one
the character fred mertz was portrayed by actor william frawley, who can be seen singing "carolina in the morning" with another entertainer of that era
In real life Vivian Vance despised Bill Frawley, who for five seasons was My Three Son's grandpa - when he left the show for health reasons and his brother Charlie took his place. I can remember this but not the combo for the safe in the Science Library, laugh
William t. vollmann's article in the July 2026 harper's magazine includes or is accompanied by a signature card from frederick Douglass, 1881 - there is no help for man outside of himself
later in the 19th century swami vivekananda expressed a similar thought, with much more mystical parsley around it
My July Harpers arrived yesterday, it's jam-packed with good, Thomas Frank and Chris Hooks in addition to Vollmann on the 250th birthday of the United States of Assholes, too bad Harpers online is still doing June, can't link yet
thanks for mentioning lambert strether's thejackpot.blog - i see it has been going for a number of months, but this is the first i've heard of it
ReplyDeleteGood news about the Good News. Also, I seek more information, more clarity, about the transfiguration of Lucee and Bob-a-luuu into Fred and Ethel -- Lucee's becoming Fred, and Bob-a-luuu becoming Ethel. Did they die and were then reborn? Was Strauss' "Death and Transfiguration" the soundtrack, or was it XTC's 'Dying' on a near-endless loop? And were Lucee and Bobby-loo in Black & White, shifting to "Living Color" with the re-emergence of Fred and Ethel? There are so many details. There is so little time.
ReplyDeleteOne voter wanted Ricky instead of Babalu but our next door neighbor is named Ricky so that won't work, the other voter's dog is Louie so she claimed trademark rights to Lou. I'm going to nominate Mertz rather than Fred and insist everyone say Mertz like it's a You Lose game show sound, not holding out much hope, though C will be easier to lobby than L on that one
Deletethe character fred mertz was portrayed by actor william frawley, who can be seen singing "carolina in the morning" with another entertainer of that era
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xA3xyw9SMWY
In real life Vivian Vance despised Bill Frawley, who for five seasons was My Three Son's grandpa - when he left the show for health reasons and his brother Charlie took his place. I can remember this but not the combo for the safe in the Science Library, laugh
DeleteBill was born on or near the year Friedrich Nietzsche died: who did Bill blow to get that plum role beside Vivacious young Viv?
DeleteDemokrazy is an inexact science; it's built as we go. Like your solution, though.
ReplyDeleteI had nicknames for My Two Cats, neither of which was Chip or Ernie.
ReplyDeletei celebrated my late cat with rap rhyme back in 2010, in the comments at
Deletehttps://fafblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/around-sunset.html
since then my second cat has also been laid to rest in the same patch of ground
William t. vollmann's article in the July 2026 harper's magazine includes or is accompanied by a signature card from frederick Douglass, 1881 - there is no help for man outside of himself
ReplyDeletelater in the 19th century swami vivekananda expressed a similar thought, with much more mystical parsley around it
My July Harpers arrived yesterday, it's jam-packed with good, Thomas Frank and Chris Hooks in addition to Vollmann on the 250th birthday of the United States of Assholes, too bad Harpers online is still doing June, can't link yet
Delete