SEATTLE was a strange place. The mountains were beautiful, like giant monuments to aspiration and challenge; but they also looked fake, like mountains painted on a scrim, to people like me who ordinarily don’t see anything taller than the Washington Monument. The colors were very “West Coast”–more neutral, more dark greens and maroons, less grime and beat-up-ness. There seemed to be a lot of money sloshing around that city. Everything we saw was Georgetown-esque. No doubt there are less fancy... Read more

PART FOUR: The fireworks on the Mall were fantastic. Security was less than maximally tight, but whatever, nothing happened. The smiley-face, peace-sign, etc. fireworks were lame and tacky, but in general, the weeping willows and spouts and arches of light were just amazing. Best moment: Four songs were played during the fw’s. Two were marches, the kind of thing you recognize immediately but (if you’re musically illiterate like me) can’t name; one was a breathy and unsatisfying “God Bless America.”... Read more

PART THREE: Shamed, on the other hand, actually had an intriguing idea, as vs. my daft one. Why not draft Ben Ali for mayor? (Or an Ali son.) Are you with me here, people? Read more

PART TWO: At the potluck, I realized that I really really want Marion Barry to run for something again. Not because I think he’ll be good for the city–no way, I like snowplows and semi-competency–but because I have come up with a terrific campaign slogan. Marion Barry: Rock the Vote. Read more

NOTES FROM THE FOURTH OF JULY, PART ONE: Had a great time. Consumed much potluck with Russo, Shamed, Tepper, Sanchez, and several blogless but no less worthy individuals. Russo decorated the apartment with quotations about America or Americans–ranging from, “On every question of construction carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text or invented against it, conform... Read more

Wasting away again in Margaritaville, Searching for my lost watcher of blog… The Agitator: Nifty Bush/Gore Coke/pop/soda thing you’ve probably seen on InstaPundit already; but if you haven’t, click here, it rocks. The Chickpea Eater: Filioque update. The Rat: Wedding scoop (congratulations Michael and Monica!!!)–the wedding is part of the marriage, not a separate weird insanity-fest. See E-Pression for more on the same subject. Unqualified Offerings: Hedayet speculations; precrime copycats (and OK, I have now added Thomas Disch’s The Dreams... Read more

“Did you go to your high-school reunion?” “Yes, I did. It was just as if everybody had swelled.” –John and Joan Cusack, “Grosse Pointe Blank” Read more

POETRY WEDNESDAY. From Love’s Labours Lost: When icicles hang by the wall, And Dick the shepherd blows his nail, And Tom bears logs into the hall, And milk comes frozen home in pail, When blood is nipp’d, and ways be foul, Then nightly sings the staring owl: ‘Tu-who; Tu-whit, Tu-who’- A merry note, While greasy Joan doth keel the pot. When all aloud the wind doth blow, And coughing drowns the parson’s saw, And birds sit brooding in the snow,... Read more

AAAAUUUUGGGHHHH. Blogger just ate a post I spent a lot of time on (about celibacy and pacifism). OK. Grunt. I will try very hard to reconstruct this dratted thing eventually–and post it on Monday. But for the moment I am signing off, and I almost certainly will not be posting anything here until Monday. I’m gonna soak up some fireworks on the Mall with Russo and Shamed; then I’m off to Seattle for a friend’s wedding. But fear not. All... Read more

Well I met her in a club down in old Soho Where they drink champagne and it tastes just like cherry blogwatch B-L-O-G, blogwatch… Chickpea Eater’s Bookblog: From Ayn Rand to St. Augustine. Good stuff about the Trinity, and a very interesting question about the filioque. (To my readers for whom there is no such thing as “a very interesting question about the filioque”: Humor me. That’s all I ask.) Discriminations: Good post on pretty-vacant battles against Bush judicial nominees.... Read more