banned books

This subject comes by way of The Silver Fox who finds that this is (or was) banned books week. The top 100 are below, and (like Foxy) I've bolded the titles that I've read. It's not as hard to believe that books can be banned anymore. I think that our freedom of speech and thought has really been crippled (cough, Patriot Act, cough).

Initial thoughts: what woman in her 30's has not read all of Judy Blume's books? Also, I buy Mem Fox's books for my 4 year old nephew. They are works of art. And everybody should read Vonnegut. And Sawyer. And Song of Solomon.

Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling - it was the only way I could've gotten through 9/11/01
Forever by Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Giver by Lois Lowry
It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Sex by Madonna
Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
The Goats by Brock Cole
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
Blubber by Judy Blume
Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
HalloweenABC by Eve Merriam
We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
Final Exit by Derek Humphry
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Julie of the Wolves by Jean CraigheadGeorge
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
The Pigman by Paul Zindel
Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
Deenie by Judy Blume
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
Cujo by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
Ordinary People by Judith Guest
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Fade by Robert Cormier
Guess What? by Mem Fox
The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Native Son by Richard Wright
Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
Jack by A.M. Homes
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
Carrie by Stephen King
Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
On My Honor by MarionDane Bauer
ArizonaKid by Ron Koertge
Family Secrets by Norma Klein
Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
Private Parts by Howard Stern
Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
Sex Education by Jenny Davis
The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier

besotted, pickled, three sheets to the wind or just plain drunk

Today's WaPo has an article about George Washington's whiskey business. It's rather interesting... Apparently he made out like a bandit on the stuff. Americans were all about quantity at the time, as opposed to quality, and drank a goodly amount till approximately 1840 when the damned temperance movement took it's nasty hold.

In other news, I have gone much blonder. Usually Autumn makes me want to go darker, but not this year. For some reason I think that my 34th year should begin a bit blonder. It's not a very drastic change, but I can always take it further later on...

Now, the man I'm dating (we've been out on two dates, traded countless emails and several fun phone calls) felt rather strongly about my staying more of a brunette. I explained that I needed to go blonde for my own sake. Change makes me happy. He's decided that as long as I continue to wear high heels, my glasses, and use my SAT vocabulary (properly, mind you) around him that he can deal. Bully for him.

By the way, I've been keepin' it real "high school" with this one... Trying something different. He says he likes to wait till the 6th date to know someone in the biblical sense. I think this is a fine idea and plan to make each subsequent date more and more difficult for him. We're going out again on Saturday, so send some sexy karma my way.

Lastly, do you find tonight's debate as painful as I do? Oy.

you can see lions only in kenya

A very unique Baltimore man sent me this link. It's wacky.

http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/kenya.php

I'm going on my second full day without a headache! Yay!!!!!

save the bunny

Where's the funny, Bunny?

Update - the Bunny has returned and is espousing the rock singing "genius" of Steve Perry. Scary shit, my friends.

poop, socialization problems and casual sex (or, the story of my life)

We'll start with the funny... this is from Roll Call via Wonkette:

"Bowel Movement. “If the president is the head of the American body politic, Congress is its gastrointestinal tract. Its vast and convoluted inner workings may be mysterious and unpleasant, but in the end they excrete a great deal of material whose successful passage is crucial to our nation’s survival. This is Congress’s duty.” — From “America,” the book by comedian and Daily Show host Jon Stewart. A spoof on a classroom civics textbook, Stewart’s book is published by Warner Brothers."

John Stewart AND potty humor? I'm all swoony...

Monday and Tuesday began with category 4 headaches - and this is after about a week and a half of category 2 sinus headaches. Finally, this afternoon, the headache went away. I'm a pleasant person again.

Our second agenda item this evening involves another piece from Newyorkmetro.com (last piece involved the fadeaway)... It's about how difficult it is for single 30-somethings in NYC to make friends. I think that the article is a bit more universal.

And then, via the Observer via Gawker, an article about Friends with Benefits and FB's. It's a scathing little indictment on how screwed up men and women are regarding sex. I also thought it was funny.

so not politically correct

Ok - I mean this in the most 7th grade way...

Swing dancing is totally gay unless you have a willing and able partner. And unless you've had a couple drinks.

On second thought, it's totally gay unless you've had many drinks. Then it's rather cool.

As you may have surmised, I went swing dancing tonight. It was rather so-so until I spotted the drag queen. Now, the queen would never have been spotted unless PamillaParkerBowles had pointed out her awful fuschia dress. Upon standing up to get a better look (I've been having a Dorothy Parkeresque month - if you don't have anything nice to say, come stand next to me) I said to PBB, "That's a dude." I was soooooo right. She had a face like Clint Eastwood's. Yick.

god save the florabama

Unfortunately, their webcams don't appear to be working. I'm sure those crazy mullet-wearing red necks are at the bar now, trying to finish off a few more cases of Dixie beer.

It's one of the best beach honky-tonks ever, so I really hope they make it through Ivan.

something's amiss

I don't know what it is, but everybody seems to be wearing extra loud crankypants (I'm borrowing that term from Ms. Chewy) at the moment. And I'm not exactly helping.

Of course, it doesn't help that I've had a sinus headache going on for about 10 days now - and tonight the pain is settling into my left year. Yes, I'm taking antibiotics for the infection.

The Alabama Slama has her own issues: her job situation is rather untenable, her mom's condo in Gulf Shores is about to meet with Hurricane Ivan, the idiots on nerve.com in NYC won't wink back at her (seriously, guys - she has the best. ass. ever. - hey TAS - maybe you should put that in your profile)...

My sister has morning sickness, except her morning sickness last 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This fact alone makes me wary of pregnancy. If I can't handle a damn sinus headache without getting snippy I don't know if I could handle being pregnant.

The Brooklyn Freckler's job is insane and she hearts a man who lives across the pond. A man with a Scottish accent. (When he comes back, could he bring a friend?)

Online dating is a crazy-ass crapshoot. Thank god for the delete button. And for the relative anonymity of screennames. I've gotten to the point that I no longer flirt in my responses. If I'm not flirting you KNOW there's a problem. I'm nearly surly. And I'm almost to the point of giving up. But then I wouldn't get treated to amazing dinners out with different guys. On Monday, the most recent contender (too metrosexual) had two free tickets to a wine/food pairing at Tosca. I put on extra black eyeliner and a brave face. It was worth it.

So, I'm really hoping this is a passing phase. For us all.

update from afghanistan (from 9/10/04)

The latest from my friend serving in Afghanistan... If you have a second, please send some pleasestaysafe vibes to him.

This is the official "Osama-Hunting Update Number 8" for our friends andfamily.

It's been a while since the last Update e-mail. I have been really busyhere. Our last round of operations ended and the new round kicked off alittle while ago. Of course, we can't communicate anything aboutoperations, at least not current and future ops, but I can tell you thatas a team and as individuals we are getting better at what we do by theday. It's a great feeling from the professional point of view when you watch the machinery getting faster, more precise, more effective each time you turn around.

The Army institutes a climate of learning--in theory. I've always admired the concept, but known that, in reality, learning had to compete with a rash of other, more pressing, priorities, and gathering learning comments and compiling them amounted to an administrative chore. And you know how it goes with those: you find the most expedient method o fknocking them out so you can get back to the things that 'matter' most.

Well, When mistakes can cost you so dearly you learn--fast. We'relearning by taking the so-called After Action Reviews (abbreviated AAR,of course) serious, letting all speak freely. All soldiers can contribute. It's not only the forum that allows for our growth. You should hear some of the comments; they're perceptive and creative in finding solutions. So the learning starts.

We turn the gravel outside our compound into fine sand, we're conducting so many rehearsals. Once we have a new way of doing things we train for it by rehearsing every action right here at our home. We rehearse how to get on and off the vehicles, how to take a village with vehicles, how to conduct re-supply operations, how to quickly re-fuel using hand pumps (actually measuring the time), and so on. Each time we do this, we get better. Confidence increases, and that is half the battle.

The effect on the ground is that the Taliban are thrown off their tracks, wondering why. It's like moving pieces on a chess board. Each time we mak a move, they are scratching their heads.

Tuesday to Thursday of this week I went to Bagram and back by convoy. I got to see some more of the country, to include a passage right through Kabul. In Bagram I had the usual things to take care off, to include an abundance of hot showers. What was more interesting is the trip itself. Most of the trip lead through rural areas. That and The BigCantaloup--Kabul.

We passed some serious checkpoints as we approached the city's valley. Once inside, I was shocked by the state of disrepair. Just 2 weeks afterthe end of the Olympic Games in Athens, we drove by Kabul's Olympic stadium, the five rings clearly visible on the outside. I think that's where the Taliban conducted their weekly public beheadings. Abundant everywhere, pock marks of combat: facades with thousands of little holes on their surface, others with big gaping holes, missing balconies. Apartment buildings with collapsed floors at mid-height, and subsequently stripped of all metal parts. Whole streches of previously proud avenues in rubble on both sides, rubble forming the platforms ofyears-old improvised shops. Factories in ashes with the occasional green of a Soviet tank carcass or turret.

We saw surprisingly few re-construction efforts under way. All rubbleheaps had been searched over--where it is safe--for re-usable items such as wood or metal hardware, electrical wiring, etc. Every usable space among the rubble was re-christened as a home, shop, or whatever.

We rolled right through it all, challenged to keep the convoy tight. Once we got out and passed the checkpoints on the other side we approached the Bagram valley. For a short while the countryside was what you would consider normal. This changed as we crested the pass into the Bagram valley. Suddenly our trained eyes noted the markings of major operations: burnt-out military hardware complete or in pieces, fire positions everywhere you looked, tank dugouts, BMP positions, machinegun nests, fox holes, and sniper positions. It doomed on us that this was the site of much suffering and tragedy. The fights that these hills and the valley had seen was fierce, bitter, and relentless, kin to trench warfare in France during WWI. You could tell the battle that raged here was driven by leaders who resorted to throwing more human beings and materiel into the fray whenever a certain position seemed close to faltering. Stubborn at the expense of human lives.

You imagine these individuals, pawns of ideologies, brimming with a fighter ethos, which irrationally fueled them to keep going and keep fighting so their brothers would not be let down. In the end the battle was lost and won. As it always is.

The history of Soviet Bagram tells us of 30,000 mujahedin who walked to battle from Kabul, entering the battle field at its only unmined stretch, a purposely set kill zone. Thousands died in a short span, but many kept on going to take Bagram back.

On our way back we spent more time in Kabul. This wasn't by design but simply because one of our trucks broke down in the middle of it all. We towed the truck to the main ISAF compound. That's the HQ of the International force in Afghanistan. It houses a melee of international military members in what amounts to a university campus atmosphere. I negotiated in French to get the maintenance shop to lend us a hand. I switched to German a minute later as the shop turned out to be a joint Germano-French operation. It caused some bewilderment on behalf of our troops as much as from the mechanics. I really had fun with that!

I wanted to have a lot more fun. How? Well, this ISAF installation must be the only place in theater that allows the consumption of alcohol (and where such consumption by US troops is legal or tolerated). I envisioned an over night stay to receive and install a new diesel fuel pump. Along with the arduous wait, I envisioned a relaxing bottle of beer or two (German, no less). I even had relations smoothed out to the bartender. Everything was set, until they fixed the truck!!! Oh well. I know the address now...

The other day we had to send home one of our soldiers because of a previous knee injury that flared back up and will require surgery. His knee got injured back in Ft Bragg on a training patrol. I remember driving him to the hospital like a bat out of hell (did you know those Humvees can go 75MPH!?). He worked very hard to get his knee to heal in time for the deployment, whereas others invented mysterious back pains that would keep them from being deployed. This soldier worked so hard, he earned everybody's respect the hard way. In the end, sending him off on the helicopter to Bagram and on home from there was just as hard for us as it would have been to get him killed on patrol. We all stood there late into the night at the gate of our compound, waiting for his ride to touch down. All were somber, quiet. 59 bear-hugs, not many dry eyes, and off he went, leaving a painful void.

Since being a teenager, I've always enjoyed these tight friendships that grow when you spend time together in an intense environment, but the strength of the relationships we form on this deployment is completely new to any of us. You always hear how tight the bonds are that are formed among brothers in arms and you think you know what people talk about when they say that, but there really is no way of understanding it until you experience it. I think it makes us all a bit richer for life.

OK. I gotta go back to scheming the Taliban's fall now. HA. All the best to you back home!!!

argh!!!!!!

Dammitall! Another tortured soul! I must be giving out some sort of "only the tragic need apply" signal... Oh well. At least that one only wasted a week of my life. And was well-endowed.

And to top it all off, I've lost my voice. Very. Very. Very. Aggravating.

Well, at least I'm allowed a few adult beverages with the antibiotic I'm taking for this fekkin' sinus infection. Thank the gods for small miracles.

baseball, fadeaways and more!

Hooookaaayyy... Just had my first post eaten by blogger. Now I get the frustration.

Tonight's first order of business is to send a very large juicy raspberry sound out to all you American League Baseball fans; to the Yankees fans, the Red Sox fans, and the Orioles (god bless your poor little hearts) fans. Eat it. The St. Louis Cardinals still have the best record in all of MLB. 93 wins, 46 losses.

The next item involves an article I found rather circuitously (New York Metro.com via Gothamist via Gawker) regarding a newish dating phenomenon called the fadeaway. While the article posits that this is a mostly male dominated activity, I definitely recognized myself in it. Ugh. Not proud. I'm making a promise to all future whiskypants date-ee's that I will be more forthcoming about the lack of chemistry thing.

Fortunately, I'm not dealing with a lack of chemistry right now. Mad props to you, Druid, you lovely man. Thanks for rocking my world four nights out of seven. Pleasepleaseplease don't be some sort of tortured soul. I'm soooo tired of those. And don't forget to take your vitamins.

Lastly, I'd appreciate any good health vibes you could send my way. Fekkin' ragweed.

cragganmore and talisker 10

Well, from what I remember, I liked the Talisker more. It is smoky like the Dalwhinnie, but has some sweetness.

Now, if you don't mind, I need to finish up my mac and cheese and take a nap in preparation for tonight's debauchery.