Big words

From the pinata:

I received a call on Thursday from a guy at an Ivy League school; a friend and former coworker is up for a job there, so I was serving as Mr. Reference Person. Naturally, I wanted to use the largest words possible in my conversation, in the obviously preposterous notion the size and command of my vocabulary was ultimately going to determine whether or not my friend would land a job at Prestigious U.

Actual words that came out of my mouth: "His sense of propriety is unassailable." Proof positive that I am indeed something of a weenie.

I had initially tried to present all of my verbal responses in iambic pentameter, but I was unable to keep track of my syllable counts. If I had only been able to work "forsooth" into the conversation, I think he'd be in like Flynn.

Politics and Religion? Why not just talk about death and go for the trifecta of uncomfortable topics?

From the pinata:

This article (actually, it's sort of an amalgam of two articles) is from the San Diego Union Tribune this week. It relates to the topics of faith, politics, and culture that have been at the hub of some of our recent postings.

And then there's this. I thought this was the sort of thing we all decided was bad - maybe I missed something?

I hope the gang in the Exodus group bears in mind that Moses and the people of Israel spent 40 years in the desert during their Exodus - the original one, that is. It would be a darn shame to spend the next 40 years of one's life trying to find South Carolina.

I promise that my next post will be about something smashingly funny.

Holy Cow!

This is news, indeed.

What? Huh? Really?

It won't be easy for us dems to give the guy credit. It's easy to stay cynical. But when someone does the right thing...even if he's the guy responsible for some of the slimiest, most outrageous political behavior of the year, and this guy is...then we have to give him at least a little credit. Don't get me wrong, because I don't trust the guy for a heartbeat. But if he does the right thing, he does the right thing, whether I like it or not.

Politics is funny. Someone does the right thing and our instinct is to continue hating the guy. Gotta fight that urge sometimes.


Posted by Teodoro Callate

Alanis, We Have A Problem

It's not that you are an annoying singer. Because even though you are, you have your own style and I respect that. You sound like you, not like everyone else, and that gets you a lot of points.

It's not that your songs are annoying. Because even though they are, they are also kinda catchy and they stick with you. And lots of people like(d) them, and that counts.

It's not that you look funny. Because even though you do, you are also a very attractive woman, in that bizarre way that only Canadians can look. I have no idea what that means, but it feels right so I'm sticking by it. So that counts.

It's not that you give off an annoyingly precious and pretentious vibe these days, because even though you do, I think you've offered enough substance to be forgiven those sins. Heck, I have a blog. You can do what you want.

It's not that you are held up as the pioneer of grrrrl rock, because even though you are not, the misplaced musical history that has been put on your shoulders is not your fault. That's the fault of bad music journalists that haven't done their homework and/or need to sell new magazines. You didn't blaze a trail, but that's OK...the people that truly blaze trails are few and far between, and that doesn't mean the rest of us can't earn a living. Go ahead and earn. Fine.

The problem, my dear, is that you wrote one great album, your first, and maybe some good parts of some other records that came later. And I can even forgive those sins, because writing good songs is really, really, really hard. But rather than push yourself and keep trying to write and create actually be an artist, you've decided on the worst copout of all: the reworking of an ENTIRE album with nothing but the volume turned down. Hey, they're your songs, and you can do with them what you like. But we're not talking about reworking an album of 30 years ago after you've released 20+ works containing new material. We're talking about 10 years and reworking your one true hit record, when you only have another two or three records in your catalog. We're talking about reworking the tunes the way they'd sound good in Starbucks. Which is fine, but not exactly a challenge, no?

I want more. If you want me to respect you as an artist...which I have done despite how annoying you can be...then I want you to push yourself and surprise me. This is not surprising. This is something I hear for the three minutes it takes me to get a cup of coffee.

The angry rock girl from 1995 is now the artist that is just reworked enough to not piss me off when I need cafeine.


Posted by Teodoro Callate

Very Sad T.V.

That new Bobby Brown/Whitney Houston TV show is the saddest television I've ever seen in my life. Besides the fact that those two are just a big car wreck that you can't help but slow down in order to observe the carnage...besides that, because it's a given...their daughter Bobbi is so very, very, truly sad and troubled. She's a depressed child in an ultra-dysfunctional household, and we are bearing witness to her development as a person who will likely be troubled for a long, long time. She's surrounded by cash and material goods and cars and homes, and she's also surrounded by a family that lacks a single healthy adult. She is unbearably alone, and has no safe haven or retreat. She's the most obviously depressed person I can think of on television, and that is more than sad; it's an absolute shame.

Teodoro Callate Welcomes All

I'd like to welcome myself to not-really-but-kinda anonymous blogging. I'd also like to welcome my compadres Kevlar and Vinissimo. The only question when naming the blog was whether or not to add "caliente" to the title.

Looking forward to Team Hombre Caliente. Welcome to those who previously read another blog that has since vanished. Come back often. With three of us contributing, I think we'll have some fun here. And knowing my compadres, we'll have some serious and ridiculous posts in equal measure. Likely, we'll have some really good intellectual discussions about important things as well. Seriously!

Except that I will start by being away for the weekend. So, hey, compadres, I've given you the ball and I look forward to watching you run. Run Vinissimo! Run Pinata!

About Teodoro Callate: He gained his nickname in 1984 when Pablo Cohen kept making him laugh in Freshman Spanish class, and Mrs. Tillman blamed the ruckus on Teodoro. Told him to shut up frequently. Thus, the name stuck: "Teodoro, callate!"

I've been so mistreated.

Initial post from one of the Hombres: IRA disarms!

From Kevlar Pinata:

I'll fire away to get this started. From the Associated Press:

---
BELFAST, Northern Ireland - The Irish Republican Army renounced violence as a political weapon Thursday and said it will resume disarmament, taking a dramatic step designed to revive Northern Ireland peace efforts after a 35-year conflict that killed and maimed thousands.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair called the move "a step of unparalleled magnitude," while Prime Minister Bertie Ahern of Ireland said it heralded "the end of the IRA as a paramilitary organization." The White House also welcomed the announcement.

But local leaders in the British territory and some analysts warned that the IRA, which has previously fallen short on fulfilling its public promises, had left key questions unanswered and was not disbanding.

The IRA said all its clandestine units had been ordered to dump arms and cease all activities, as of 4 p.m. (11 a.m. EDT) Thursday.

-end of snippet-

---

Wouldn't it be nice - really, really nice - if this actually panned out? I'm one of these American Irish diaspora people (my great-grandfather came over from Ireland) and have a long family history of people feeling strongly about this. My people, such as they are, are from County Derry - even though that's in Northern Ireland and currently referred to as Londonderry, my family could never utter the "London" part of that because it acknowledges British authority.

So we've got all kinds of political discord and unhappiness in the world, but if the IRA really does stand down on violence and we see real honest-to-goodness debt forgiveness for developing countries willing to put internal corruption in a choke hold, I think we've got a few smashingly wonderful things going on in our world today.

Plus, the Padres beat the Cardinals by one run last night and Red Hook ESB is on sale for $8.99 for a 12-pack at Rite Aid. Life is beautiful.