life appointments

Connection and server issues in my new surroundings; regular posting -- and relatively prompt correspondence -- should resume by next week. In the meantime: I'm not in the business of recycling material from press releases, but for those wondering what might have been "abridged" from the version of Randy Newman's about-to-be released new song that just appeared as a New York Times op-ed piece, the missing verse -- sung, it says here, to the tune of "Columbia, Gem of the Ocean," though, not having heard the song, I can't quite make out how -- runs: You know it pisses me off a little That this Supreme Court is gonna outlive me A couple of young Italian fellas and a brother on the Court now too But I defy you, anywhere in the world To find me two Italians as tightass as the two Italians we got And as for the brother Well, Pluto’s not a planet anymore either ~~ In other juridicial news, longtime Nothing Painted Blue drummer Kyle Brodie has of late ascended to the bench in San Bernardino County, following in the footsteps of his paternal grandmother. His first posting: civil court in Wrightwood. See p. 101 of this immense pdf, if you don't happen to believe me. I hardly believe it myself; at any rate, it's a strange thing to report that someone you've (a) known since 6th grade and (b) covered "Slip It In" with at Maxwell's a dozen years after that is now to be addressed as "The Honorable...." Oddity: he was sworn in at Upland City Hall the same day that we played as The Human Hearts (much later, and with many thanks to Bob Massey) out in 29 Palms at the invitation of The Chairs of Perception, the current incarnation of The Urinals/100 Flowers; John Talley-Jones reminded me that the last time I opened for them was the evening of the day I officially filed my dissertation. "Ack Ack Ack Ack" (which we also used to cover) must have some spooky institutional mojo. All this sorta reminds me that my friend Ben Schwartz was recently in a jury pool with Henry Rollins, but that story's not mine to tell.