Newt Gingrich

The Republicans are being very fickle this year. So far they have nominated Michele Bachman, Herman Cain, Richard Perry, and now they are on the brink of putting Newt Gingrich in the White House. Newt Gingrich, an oldy but goody. I remember when he was, for a spell, the most powerful man in Washington. He was the man who forced our then president to have a tet a tet with Monica Lewinsky to relieve stress.

The best thing about Newt Gingrich is his slogans. The most famous is the "Contract with America". There are many more: American Solutions for Winning the Future, Renewing American Civilisation, Rediscovering God in America, Strong America Now, America only works when Americans are working. He loves the word America. I wonder if he means to include Canada in his slogans.

Siberian ice baptism

This is a small video of an immersion baptism in an icy lake. Personally I'd have waited til spring.

All Soul's Day

This day, recently passed, occurs on November 2. Unlike November 1, All Saints Day, it is not a holy day of obligation in the Catholic church. It is, however, for me, one of the great holidays because it honors those of us who have died and are in Purgatory. It is a day to pray for  the departed average Joe's. Most people, I suspect, end up here after death. The concept of Purgatory is that this is the place for people who have done a little bad but not a lot of bad. The minor evils one commits, known as venial sins, accumulate and one goes to Purgatory for a spell. How long has never been spelled out for me. It is something like waiting at the doctor's office, not a pleasant place to be, but at least you don't have hot spears thrust through your pancreas like in the other domicile.

That dirty joke you told, that will get you into Purgatory. That time you aggravated your wife for the fun of it. That will also get you into Purgatory. That little kiss you got from that teenage waitress. Well you get the idea. Purgatory must be a crowded place. Like a doctor's office in a practice that accepts Medicaid.

How to know when you are in a bohemian neighborhood

When you see a sign like this on a door, it usually is a sign that you are in a Bohemian neighborhood. If you are inside a shop and you see a sign that says, "unattended children will be sold" it means you are in a Bohemian neighborhood. You can be in New Hope, Province town, the East Village, South Street Philadelphia, Venice California or Boulder Colorado and you will know that you can get weird birthday cards, paraphernalia, and vinyl albums in the area if you look hard enough. 

Laundry

Recently I was talking to a lady who was complaining about spending sixteen dollars at a public laundromat. I can't figure it out. Before I was enconsed with my own washer dryer, I did use public or apartment building machines, but never spent more than four dollars on the project.

Ideally, one should have a wife or a mother to clean one's garments. During my college days I often avoided the college machines by trundling home my dirty clothes for dear Mama. Through the New Brunswick bus terminal, through the Port Authority, then onto Hackensack with a suitcase full of dirty clothes. Of course Mama was so happy to see me that she glady did my clothes and on Sunday night I was back in the dorm room with fresh laundry and a slice of butter cake.

When I ran away from home at twenty five I did have to learn to do my own laundry. I learned that I could save money on clothes dryers by draping clothes around the apartment. Trousers and shirts I hung up damp. I never to this day separate laundry. Everything goes in together except, perhaps, sweaters. I figure the undies can be grey as they won't  see them at work anyway. If the undies look really bad I soak them in the sink with bleach. I also put my shirts and trousers in the dryer to get rid of the wrinkles. Then I hang them up in the closet, still damp. No point in wasting electricity. The next day I am at work, quite dapper. At least I think so.

Editor's note: "she glady did my clothes" is a split infinitive.

Happy days

Yes, good news today, Quadaffi is frozen in a shopping mall, we are leaving Iraq, and the stock market is up. If they don't cancel Pan Am, I'll be a happy man. 

The human microphone

One of the things that 2011 will be remembered for is that it was the year the human microphone was invented. Since amplified sound is not permitted in Zucotti park, the speaker talks briefly then his words are repeated by the crowd. It reminds me a little of Catholic Mass when the priest says "et cum spirito too"  and the congregation repeats it.