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December 31, 2005
Dispatches from London - Heathrow Calling
Since I’m posting this well after I started writing it this morning (about 4 am EST) when I was waiting at Heathrow, and only now (6 pm EST) finishing it….
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Anyways…
I intended to write more from London – I really did. I was going to do nightly blogging, discuss the days events. It’s not that I think you really care whether or not I went to the British Museum – it just felt like the cool thing to do.
I had witty observations about the British! Squares are Streets. Circuses (Circusi?) are Circles. Pudding is dessert. Candy are specific. One moment, you’re staring at a mirror image of the States – TGI Fridays, McDonalds, and Borders Books. The next moment, you’re hovering over Bangers & Mash, Mushy Peas, and Christmas Pudding (which is completely disgusting…)
But I did get one of the two things I came for (the other being that whole family bonding thing…)
That’s right – I got photographed crossing Abbey Road. Even though, as Mr. Casey so graciously pointed out on my Flickr account, I’m crossing the wrong way & I don’t have the correct stride. But I would like to point out that in fact in England they drive on the left, so therefore things are backwards and Mr. Casey’s assertion that I am going the wrong way is merely the result of American arrogance and imperialism. But who can blame the bloody colonial?
But alas, I got too busy being a tourist and relaxing to write. But I do want to now hit some of the highlights of my trip.
On what was probably the worst weather day of the year in London, I went to both Abbey Road and Lord’s Cricket Grounds. I tried to use my production industry creds to get myself into the studio whether the Beatles recorded – “No, I used to TEACH at Full Sail…” (Who cares if I was just a lab instructor for a few months, it still counts… YES it was in Lighting…)
I can’t quite decide if my tour of Lord’s was the equivalent of touring Fenway Park, or Yankee Stadium.
Apparently, England is not a very good Cricket team (Fenway 1, Yankee 0) but everyone in England is a fan of the English team – they’re hardly the underdogs (Fenway 1, Yankee 1). The Grounds have been there since the mid 1700s (Fenway 2, Yankee 1) but they’ve been renovated including a press box that is positively modern (Fenway 2, Yankee 2). But the field slopes 8 feet from end to end, giving it a positively unique feel (Fenway 3, Yankee 2) – so once again, Fenway Park and by proxy the Red Sox win this battle. Thus, using the English & Lord’s Cricket Ground as evidence, the Yankees suck.
I’m pretty sure I understand Cricket now. The Bowler (Pitcher) bowls (pitches) the ball towards the Batsman (Batter) in attempt to collect the Wicket (no equivalent). If he collects the Wicket, it’s an out. He collects the Wicket by knocking it over. If the Batsman hits the ball, he can run to another Wicket to collect a run. If he hits it beyond the outfield, he can collect 6 runs. He apparently carries the bat with him as he runs, in order to beat the defense into submission. And if the Batsman glues the Wicket, the bowler can’t knock it over and it’s a Sticky Wicket. This is the equivalent to a Spitball.
Another cool thing about the British – when we hit a bird with a Baseball, we feel guilty. When the British hit a bird with a Cricket Ball (who knows what it’s actually called), they stuff the Bird. And pose it.
Another important “pilgrimage” I made was a trip to the Globe Theatre. Sure it’s not the original, but it still has the feel, the smell, of a true Cathedral of Theatre. Between the Globe and seeing Mary Stuart on the West End (which was quite excellent) I’ve spent more time in theatres this week than I had in the past year. It’s reminded me to get myself involved in some local theatre around the District.
The Brits have a reputation for bad food and warm beer. That’s only 15% correct – the desserts (or “puddings”) are awr-ful. But the food itself is fine, and the beer is awesome.
Fuller’s makes several good Ales – I recommend the ESB, and the London’s Pride. And get this – they come out of Casks you have to pump rather than more traditional kegs. The next time I am at the Brickskeller (which will likely be this week) I will consider procuring some English beer. And no, it’s not served Warm.
Another thing I noticed is that the crowd at Indie night at clubs is universal. It was like looking into a weird kaleidoscope and seeing the same people from Bar-BQ-Bar and DC9. I suppose there’s a certain cookie cutter element – after all, we all danced to the same music.
Yes that’s right – I said danced. As in I danced. As in I got out on the dance floor and grooved. For those who aren’t aware, I’ve often been quite anti-dance. As in Orthodox Jew anti-dance. And yet – I felt the urge to boogie. I figured why not? If I was terrible and got laughed out of the club, they would forget about me by the next time I got to London.
But I enjoyed it! I liked dancing! Granted it’s not something I will do all the time, and certainly it would’ve been more fun with friends – but I did have fun and will definitely dance again in the future. As long as it’s to pretentious indie rock.
More on London soon.
Posted by MikeSager at 6:24 PM
December 26, 2005
Dispatches from London - An English Christmas
The first lesson I've learned from my travel to London is to get a neck pillow when flying on the Red Eye. I used to have one from when I toured, but it didn't quite occur to me to acquire one for this (the touring one I had was a terrible blow-up $2.99 Target special, but it was still better than none at all).
Once I sat down on the plane I called my folks to relay that I was preparing to take off. They asked if I was sitting next to a cute girl? As luck would have it, I was. I got talking to her in the morning - her name is Katherine and she works for an architecture firm in Georgetown. I gave her my card at the end - I doubt she'll call, but we talked the whole way from Heathrow to Paddington when we took the Heathrow Express.
From Paddington, I took a cab to Belsize Square where Lauren & Jacob's flat is. The Cabbie asked me what I normally do on Christmas - my answer was "Eat Chinese food and go to a Movie." He didn't quite catch my drift, and seemed a little confused. But it was amusing nonetheless. And he said something so wise, only a Cabbie could say it. "The only major difference between Americans and Brits is Americans think 100 years is a long time, and Brits think 100 miles is a long distance." Truer words were never spoken.
I arrived at their flat, dropped my things and we started to celebrate English Christmas. Now what are a couple of nice American Jews doing celebrating English Christmas you may ask? As I quickly discovered - Christmas is to England what Thanksgiving is to the US. So it made perfect sense.
Lauren & Jacob whipped up a fantastic traditional English Christmas meal including Turkey, Brussel Sprouts, and Stuffing. And we had Christmas Crackers - which seemed to be a bit of a misnomer to me since they weren't Crackers but Quasi-Firecrackers.
After this large lunch we decided to take a walk. And off we went to the Hampstead Heath. The Heath is a large park in the middle of London. It supposedly served as an influence for Narnia, but I failed to notice any crucified Lions about.
No the real purpose of the Heath became abundantly clear - the Heath is a magical playland for Dogs. People bring their Dog and let them off their leash. The dogs run around, frolic, sniff other dogs, and have lots of great mud to play around in. Many puddles to jump in. If I were a dog, this would be the most wonderful place in the world.
After a nice brisk walk through the Heath it was time for a Pint. So we made our way over to the Freemasons Arms pub. The place was quite full, but we sat down at the bar and enjoyed a drink to help warm up from the cold. And for the record, the beer was actually cold - I'm not sure where this rumour of warm British Beer started, but it appears to be unfounded - much like the rumour of extrua "u"s addeud intou everuy wourd.
As we were enjoying our drink, I noticed a couple of familar faces standing at the bar next to us.
and 
Yes - David Schwimmer from Friends and Joey Slotnick from The Single Guy and Every Brief Character Actor gig not done by William H Macy or Paul Giammati were standing next to us at the Pub. However, since I didn't actually know them, and admittedly meeting actors became a lot less exciting after I started meeting politicians we didn't acknowledge them. But it was quite amusing to have American "star" sightings in England.
We headed back to the Flat and watched the new Doctor Who and Creature Comforts before heading off to sleep. I managed to stay up for about 48 hours with only an hours worth of sleep in the middle. I actually managed to adjust fairly easily to English time.
The next day we Lauren & I headed off to do some shopping. I was thinking - Day After Christmas, must be a good day for Sales. But those wacky Brits! Calling today "Boxing Day" and having many of the stores closed (Paul Frank - I'm looking at you!). We first walked through another park, and stopped by a Coffee Shop. The clerk was very confused when I said "a to go coffee" to which Lauren quickly corrected as "Black Coffee to Take Away". The excuse that I was quite tired didn't make me feel any less like an idiot tourist.
Some shops were open over in Camden, which is the equivalent of Greenwich Village. A lot of the stuff there was clothes I would've worn in my goth heyday, but now didn't really appeal much. There were a few good stores we went through briefly - I'm going to go back later in the week when more stuff is open.
We then headed over to Trafalgar Square on our way to Covent Garden. It is absolutely beautiful there, even if there was the largest gathering of Pigeons I've seen this side of...well...ever.
Quite a beautiful area, I must say.
Then it was onward over to TKTS at the Covent Garden. Most of the shows running you can see in New York - a bit of a disappointment I must say. And The Producers had a cast of No-Names. I'd rather see that in New York where I might have a chance of seeing it with someone I've heard of. We selected Mary Stuart for this evening, which we'll be heading off to shortly.
We then went on to the Covent Garden to browse the shops. As I said earlier, Paul Frank was closed - which means I will have to return to this area. Another discovery I made - Urban Outfitters is EXACTLY THE SAME in the UK as it is in the US. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, but they even carried the "Idaho? U da Ho!" shirt that would only really make sense to sell in the US. The prices, on the surface, appeared to be exactly the same. It was as if they replaced the $ with a £. Wait a second - that's not the same at all! I think I may be able to form a lucrative career as a Urban Outfitters T-Shirt smuggler - buy it in the US, and return it in England. Hmm...
We moved on down to Oxford Circus, after a brief rainy walk to the British Museum only to discover it was closed. This was the only part of town that was completely mobbed. We stopped by both The Top Shop and H&M. Top Shop was quite expensive, and the clothes didn't strike me as any different than H&M. We then got back on the Tube (passing the Street Evangelist who asked us if we wanted to be "Winners or Sinners".) A quick train ride back to the flat, which a quick Donkey Picture taken for good measure.
Tonight we're off to the theatre, with a brief stop at Picadilly Circus. Then perhaps a pint, and back home to watch some DVDs.
Happy Christmas!
Posted by MikeSager at 12:05 PM
December 23, 2005
Debating What to Say...
The recount has wrapped up - and we lost. Reality is we didn't lose the recount on Tuesday or Wednesday. We lost it on Monday when the judges who heard the very compelling argument to manually recount the optical scan ballots in 156 precincts statewide instead decided to do it in 9 Republican heavy precincts. Re-counting the machine tapes netted nearly the same result that was there election night, and according to my calcs they should've netted an identical result. But I digress.
The reality of the situation is that it's very likely that Creigh Deeds won this election. The localities that showed substantial undervotes that were above normal, higher than the percentages for other races this year, & higher than the undervote on the AG Race in 2001 were mostly Democratic-leaning. Not all, but most. It was very likely that Senator Deeds would've picked up a sizable amount of votes in these areas, enough to flip the election. Our expert witness was Kim Brace of Election Data Services - who's been analyzing electoral numbers for many many years. Theirs was a man with a degree in Astrophysics and no election background. And yet, the courts sided with them.
Recount day for me was spent mostly at a Conference Room table running & rerunning numbers. There were some rumors on various blogs of pickups for Creigh, but they were completely fabricated. On Wednesday I was in the basement of the courthouse, laptop in tow, running all the totals as they came in. Early in the day there were a couple of places where we thought we'd picked up some substantial votes because of the tapes - but those gains proved to be simple mistakes made by those bringing us numbers. The tapes brought what I referred to as a Dim Sum of Gain Some Lose Some. Everytime we picked up a vote in one precinct, we drop one somewhere else. That's why, after all was said and done - there was very little shift in the vote totals. Had we been able to actually recount, things would've been different.
Creigh was the far better choice for Attorney General. Now he returns to the State Senate, deciding what to do next. As for me? Election 2005 is FINALLY over. I go into Cycle 2006 in a much different position. I'm not going to be working on any races this year, beyond the scope of providing support to them through work. And it's quite nice that all the campaigning is over, and I still have a job.
I'll write again from London.
Posted by MikeSager at 9:19 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 19, 2005
Captain Psycho Comes to Iran, Free Redskins Tickets, Gone Recountin'!, Finn MacCool's
Great - so we call the more moderate reform-minded opening to the US Iranian regime "evil" and what do we get? Someone who is actually evil. This guy is psycho. And we could've avoided this by trying to work with the Iranians in 2001 and 2002 when they opened the door to dialogue. Instead we spit upon them and called them names on the International Stage. This psycho who's running the show now is a product of our foreign policy. It is regrettable we did not open a dialogue when we had the opportunity.
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Yes - I went to the Redskins Cowboys game yesterday. Yes I went for free. Yes I feel that football lacks the grace, strategy, dignity, or athleticism of Baseball (Let's see if THAT gets the comment thread fired up...) But damn if that wasn't fun and exciting. I am to understand that this game was the equivalent of seeing the Sox beat up on the Yankees - which in itself is always a good time.
I've been to 2 other Skins games. 1 Skins/Dallas at RFK. The other - I don't remember who we played, but it was the year Fedex Field opened. I generally don't watch Football on TV. But I think I could get into occasionally going in person. But I'll still take Nats tickets any day of the week.
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I'm in Richmond working on the Deeds recount. I don't plan on posting anything about it until everything is settled. But it's kind of cool being on the inside of this. Even if it meant I had to give up a date and a Jewish singles mixer.
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To the person who leaked Kerry's comment at the Christmas Party last week - thanks a whole lot. See if he ever buys us an open bar again... You couldn't have just enjoyed your free drinks & red meat like the rest of us - no, you HAD to go and embarass the guy. Then again, it's not like anyone takes Hotline or Drudge seriously anyways. And guess what - he was right!
Posted by MikeSager at 3:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 17, 2005
Quick Nationals Thoughts
A week later, the Soriano Trade still feels like the Winter Meetings Massacre.
Rick Short should stay here and play instead of being dispatched to Japan. Once again, I am completely befuddled why this GM insists on signing below average backup infielders on the expensive when we have perfectly good above average infielders on the cheap. Grrr...
Frank Robinson staying - hooray! I may not always agree with him, but he's Frank Fuckin' Robinson. Now let's see if we can get him to break his "call a bunt anytime there's a guy on first with less than two outs" habit.
Randy St. Claire staying - phew! I was terrified they were going to let him go and our pitching staff would proceed to really suck. Randy St. Claire is the best pitching coach in baseball - period. Anyone who could turn Esteban Loaiza, and Hector Carrassco from the top of the scrap heap to the top of the free agent market in a year deserves respect. The guy knows how to teach, and knows how to get the best out of his players.
Posted by MikeSager at 12:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 12, 2005
Who Exactly Thought This Was a Good Idea?
Everyday, Iraq resembles Vietnam more and more. Things are becoming more and more of a debacle, and we continue to lose our soldiers.
We need to take a step back and ask ourselves why? How did we get here?
The first thing is - what exactly was our plan for after we got rid of Saddam? Turn the keys over to a well-connected Ex-Pat with ties to Iran who's barely spent any time in Iraq? Pardon my Freedom, but Who the Fuck Thought THAT was a good idea?
Next - nobody arguing that Saddam is an evil bastard. But he had no teeth - he was a caged animal with a lot of bark that we could control. Now we're going to get a theocracy - no matter what we do, no matter how long we stay. Plus, the fact that we can't seem to maintain electricity or prevent the roving gangs or keep women from feeling like they have to put on a burka - the fact that we, the United States, the richest country in the world can't manage to do better than a psychotic totalitarian dictator - that's shameful. And we're supposedly winning the hearts and minds of the people? I'm sorry, but Who the Fuck HONESTLY believes that?
Furthermore, a simple look at history would've made anyone with half a brain recognize that pushing together a coalition of warring tribes together into one country only works if you rule with an iron fist where the people are terrified of you. Hardly what we'd call freedom. Yugoslavia worked because they feared the Soviets. The Shities could barely restrain themselves from butchering the Kurds because they feared Saddam. And now we're going to sweep in and say "All of you play nice!" because we couldn't dare give them each their own country (lest we piss off Turkey). What - we're supposed to undo hundreds of years of ethnic and tribal tension? Seriously - Who the Fuck Thought THAT was a good idea?
My favorite bullshit argument is "We have to fight them over there lest the fight us over here!" People who make this claim then point to the fact that there hasn't been a major domestic terrorist attack in the US since. I would like to point out that we haven't had an Alien Invasion since we landed on the Moon, nor have I been mauled by a Tiger on the Subway since I started wearing cardigan sweaters lined with Tiger repellant - I don't think one has a fuckin' thing to do with the other, thank you VERY much.
No matter when we leave, depature day + 1 is going to equal an Islamic Theocracy on par with Iran. And then all the different tribes will declare all out war on each other. This is whether we leave tomorrow, or 20 years from now. This is like Vietnam with LESS of a plan or goal! It's time to cut our losses and get out of there.
Seriously - Who's Brilliant Idea was this? Who exactly thought this was a good idea?
Posted by MikeSager at 1:30 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Vengeance is Not Justice
There's been a lot of discussion of the death penalty recently, especially as we see midnight approach for Stan Williams in California. I think we need to take a serious look at what constitutes justice in this country, and what constitutes vengeance.
I am not 100% against the Death Penalty. But the ultimate punishment must be reserved for the most extreme cases, and our society must benefit from the execution.
How does Stan William's death benefit our society?
Look - I'm not arguing that he shouldn't pay for his crimes. And his crimes were brutal. But life imprisonment while continuing his work to educate and prevent children from joining gangs is justice. I firmly believe that Death Penalty should be reserved for those who can never be reformed, and their crimes have an extra layer of malice. Hate Crimes. Terrorism. Serial Killers.
But we must ask ourselves - why are we so anxious to execute Stan Williams while Buford Furrow (who shot up children at a Jewish Community Center and then brutally murdered a Postal Carrier simply because he was a federal employee) gets to live out his days in San Quentin? I understand that Furrow accepted a plea bargain - was Stan Williams ever offered that?
One thing I am tired of hearing about is "Victims Rights". A misnomer that pro-death activists have latched onto in order to propogate their vision of Saudi-style "justice". Executing these criminals do not bring closure. It does not bring peace to these families. It is empty, state-sponsored vengeance. And vengeance is not justice. When we determine punsihment for crimes, we must consider society. What punishment does society demand for such a crime? Does anyone honestly believe that someone contemplates murdering another human, but changes their mind because they're afraid of the death penalty?
The death penalty is also very unjust in the cases in which it is applied. If you're African American, you are MUCH more likely to recieve death than if you are Caucasian, FOR AN IDENTICAL CRIME. There is a very real institutional racism that is present here, and for that reason many states have already placed a moratorium on the Death Penalty. Now this is certainly symptomatic of much deeper problems with race relations in our country, but surely we can start making steps in the right direction but calling for a halt on executions except in the truely rare case where society benefits.
Tim McVeigh. Osama Bin Laden. Eichmann.
But not for the guy who shoots the clerk while robbing the convience store. While reprehensible, and certainly worth life imprisonment - we should not kill. We are only surrending our morality for a brief emotional fix that ultimately accomplishes nothing.
Vengeance is not Justice.
Posted by MikeSager at 8:49 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 10, 2005
Soriano
So I got home on Wednesday to find out that the Nats have traded Wilky and Sledge for Soriano. SORIANO? We got rid of Wilkerson for an overpriced redundant Second Basemen? Then I looked at the stats.
.....
This Soriano guy... SUCKS! And we sent ALL our tradebait away for this?
This is BULLSHIT!
Once again, Trader Jim continues the steady process of destroying our team for his Major League Baseball overlords to ensure that when a new owner buys it, it will be years before we're competitive. Alright - I don't actually believe Cap'n Leatherpants actually wants to sink us, but it certainly feels that why when he makes trades like this one. EUCH! I can't believe this! Wilkerson had an off year and his OBP was 40 points higher than Soriano - 40 POINTS! Wilkerson can play any outfield position and first base! Soriano is doing nothing but complaining about them moving him to the Outfield, despite the fact that he's a shitty Second Basemen. If the Nats need someone at Second who can make an error every other game, they should hire me! Seriously - I'll do it, and I'll do it for HALF the money that Soriano wants!
But no...we have to have Mr. Alfonso "I'll Swing At Anything Even if It's So Far Outside It Misses the Screen and Takes Out the Vendor Who Always Refers to Water as Healthy (You Know the One)" Soriano!!! GRRR!!!!!
I'm not sure how I feel about losing Sledge either. On the one hand, I like him better than Ryan Church. I think he's a more disciplined hitter and was a good defensive outfielder. One the other hand, he ripped his hamstring clear off the bone. Last time I checked, ripping meat off the bone was only preferable if you intended to eat it. And since Mr. Sledge is a baseball player, not a Soccer player, I don't believe that was his intention. So we'll see....
Posted by MikeSager at 11:50 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 3, 2005
The Areas of My Expertise, White Folk Singers, Haircuts, New Nats Home
It's very bizarre when a book becomes a "hit." And yet, that is exactly what seems to have happened with John Hodgman's The Areas of My Expertise. A reference to it on BoingBoing a month ago was my intro to the book - the article mentioned the now infamous 700 Hobo Names. My next encounter was finding people were uploading sketches of said Hobos to Flickr. These being sketches, they were subsequentially banished by Flickr.
Then one afternoon, my boss came in and told me to read the book. He pointed out the section on the most difficult beards, and the concept of Hair Blighter. After this, I went out and bought the book - I had just finished Blink and was looking for something new to read anyways. Slowly but surely I've been getting into the book.
Yesterday, while reading my usually diet of DCist and Wonkette I'd found that both had made mention of Mr. Hodgman himself making an appearance last night at the Warehouse Theater. That night, following a trip to the Mac Store my friend Sandy & I made our way to the Warehouse theater. And we didn't get into the 8:00 pm talk. But at that point they'd decided to add a second event, since SO many people had arrived to see this. So I hung out on the couch, drank a Harp, and read the book. At one point it occured to me to call my boss to inform him that Mr. Hodgman was there. And upon flipping through the numbers in my cellphone, I found that I did not know his number. Doh!
The wait was well worthwhile. The show opened with a brilliant piece by Adam Mazmanian (for whom, sadly, I cannot find a website). Following was cartoonist David Rees, who is author of a series called Get Your War On. His work ranges from fiercely political to the slightly surreal.
Then Mr Hodgman began his portion of the evening. He was accompanied on guitar by Jonathan Coulton. He read some Hobo Poetry, discussed the Hobo roots of the Big Rock Candy Mountain, had a question and answer session using Walkie Talkies (I got to ask whether he plans to write about any other transient groups at any point), and finally he read from he portion of the book detailing Washington DC. The reading ended, and Mr. Hodgman preceeded to sign the various books. When it was my turn, he asked about my Snakes on a Plane shirt. I explained it was a new movie. He asked if this film was about Snakes on airplanes, to which I responded "Yes. And Samuel L. Jackson". He observed that movies seem to now more than ever have their title based upon the content of the movie - I pointed out this started with Soylent Green. I then told him about my boss recommending the book, to which he asked "What do you do?" I explained how the company I work for makes software for Democrats. He smiled and said, "A worthy cause". We talked about '08 and he signed my book. And with that I was off, making the long journey home from the district.
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In our continuing efforts here at Carpetblogger to bring you the best in White Folk Singers covering well-known Hip Hop songs, I would like to point out that Jonathan Coulton does a fantastic cover of Baby Got Back available on his website. He performed it for us last night, and I would urge you to check it out.
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So I got a haircut yesterday. Short.
How short?
Before:
After:
I know it looks good, but it's not me. It'll take sometime to get used to, and I regret doing it. But what's done is done.
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It looks like MLB and the Nats have tenatively agreed on a stadium deal. On behalf of the DC Metro area, and the Nationals, I would like to say "It's about fucking time!" Seriously - MLB had no business agreeing to pay their rent regardless of circumstances. And they're greed has screwed the Nats for the year - perhaps that was their goal. We'll see. Maybe we can yet liberate someone from the Marlins fire sale.
Posted by MikeSager at 4:34 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack