Stanza-palooza!

I was invited to Buttonwood Books in Cohasset on Wednesday night where once a year they sponsor an open mike evening of poetry for local poets. Their notice is here:

Wed. Apr. 26, 7 p.m.

Middle School Poetry Open Mike Night Event

Location: Buttonwood Books & Toys

Open Mike: ALL contest participants are eligible to read at the open mike event. Parents and Honored Guests are invited (and encouraged!) to read their favorite poem or one of their own creations. Advance sign-up is required for all who would like to read. (This will enable us to better facilitate the evening). Please call Buttonwood at 781-383-2665 to sign-up. Light refreshments will be served.

When Katie and I arrived at Buttonwood we were greeted by the poet, the Honored Guest, who invited us there.

My daughter.

She had taken it upon herself to sign up for a reading of one of her poems.

Now, ordinarily she guards her poetry like the gold at Fort Knox, which I believe is the custom of teenaged girls everywhere. Once in awhile I am granted a looksee but for the most part not so much. So the idea of watching her present her poetry to a willing (and mostly unknown) audience was an unexpected parental pleasure.

We spoke briefly before the event started. I told her that she would do great, because she had spoken of being very nervous just a few hours earlier. Then, a few minutes after 7PM, the event started. Jenna was the 3rd reader.

I watched as her name was called, and she walked to the microphone, notebook in hand. She stood straight, and announced that her poem had no title, as the previous two entrants had. Then, with a pause, she started reading her poem. And I sat enthralled, listening to my daughter talk of want and need, the desires of a young woman and a missing piece of her life - a boy.

Her poem ended to polite applause and she took her seat in front of me. I leaned over and whispered "Well done, honey" as the next poet took the stage.

It was a quick evening, as only 8 people presented their work. We drove her friend home (there for moral support) and then we brought Jenna back home. I hugged her and told her how very proud I was of her.

Jenna has told me that she wants to be a writer; that it is "so awesome when I tell a story with my words that people actually read!" Like any father, I support her endeavors. I believed her when she told me she wanted to be an astronaut (age 5), a fireman, (later age 5), a veterinarian (age 6-9), and a hairdresser (10-13). But this, this "I wanna be" sounded different. And so, if she wants to be a writer then I will proudly attend any event that she invites me to. She may change her mind about writing tomorrow. She may decide that she wants to be a horticulturalist or a ditch digger or a mime (gosh I hope not). But whatever it is, I know that I will support her on whatever path she chooses, writer or not.

But I will say this:

With short, staccato stanzas she made me forget that she was my daughter. For a brief moment she was just a young woman - like the girls I had known in the 8th grade - expressing herself through her words. Words that she had chosen and arranged in just such a way to make her feelings known. Carefully selected words, chosen for impact and lyricism and spoken with conviction. A powerful conviction. Conviction from a young woman in search of herself and exploring the feelings that fill her.

This young woman, this talented young woman, is my daughter. And I am most proud of her.

Frakkin' Awesome!*

Ronald D. Moore (Formerly of ST-TNG) has done it again!

Here is an excerpt from a press release from Sci-Fi Channel regarding their upcoming new series:

'CAPRICA'
From executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick ('Battlestar Galactica'), writer Remi Aubuchon ('24') and NBC Universal Television Studio, this new series is set over a half a century before the events that play out in 'Battlestar Galactica.' The people of the Twelve Colonies are at peace and living in a society not unlike our own, but where high-technology has changed the lives of virtually everyone for the better. But a startling breakthrough in robotics is about to occur, one that will bring to life the age-old dream of marrying artificial intelligence with a mechanical body to create the first living robot - a Cylon. Following the lives of two families, the Graystones and the Adama's (the family of William Adama, who will one day become the commander of the 'Battlestar Galactica') 'Caprica' weaves corporate intrigue, techno-action and sexual politics into television's first science fiction family saga

Oh dear gods of Kobol this is awesome news.

So say we all!

*Of course, if you don't know what "frak" means then you clearly do not watch 'Battlestar Galactica' in which case this blog will mean next to nothing to you. That makes me sad.

How did FOX News Ever Let this Guy In?

President Bush attended a town hall meeting and defended the government's eavesdropping program on April 6th.

Now, as you know, President Bush often holds "town hall" events where he takes questions from a hand picked crowd of "real people" who lob softball questions at him to make him look good. And at this event the president got plenty of easy ones. One woman requested a picture with him and another asked about how young people can get involved to help. One questioner simply told the president people are praying for him and another said he has a friend from Iraq who is grateful that he has made the country safer.

On April 6th, however, one of the people was a real guy - not a hand-picked Bush supporter. Harry Taylor is a small business owner and a leader of his local "Operation Democracy" team, which is MoveOn.org's network of members who organize events to ensure that Congress and the media pay attention to what local folks have to say without the Republican spin — but Harry took it to the next level.

And the one above that.

In a hostile room, with the attention of the national media focused on him, here's what Harry Taylor stood up and said to the President of the United States:

HARRY TAYLOR: You never stop talking about freedom, and I appreciate that. But while I listen to you talk about freedom, I see you assert your right to tap my telephone, to arrest me and hold me without charges, to try to preclude me from breathing clean air and drinking clean water and eating safe food. If I were a woman, you'd like to restrict my opportunity to make a choice and decision about whether I can abort a pregnancy on my own behalf. You are—

PRESIDENT BUSH: I'm not your favorite guy. Go ahead. (Laughter and applause.) Go on, what's your question?

HARRY TAYLOR: Okay, I don't have a question. What I wanted to say to you is that I—in my lifetime, I have never felt more ashamed of, nor more frightened by my leadership in Washington, including the presidency, by the Senate, and—

AUDIENCE MEMBERS: Booo!

PRESIDENT BUSH: No, wait a sec—let him speak.

HARRY TAYLOR: And I would hope—I feel like despite your rhetoric, that compassion and common sense have been left far behind during your administration, and I would hope from time to time that you have the humility and the grace to be ashamed of yourself inside yourself. And I also want to say I really appreciate the courtesy of allowing me to speak what I'm saying to you right now. That is part of what this country is about.

Bush's reply?

He defended the National Security Administration's surveillance program, saying he authorized the program to protect the country.

"You said would I apologize for that?" Bush told him. "The answer is absolutely not."

Of course not.

I don't know Harry Taylor personally, but I'd like to shake his hand.

You Better Watch Out!

And I am NOT talking about Santa Claus here.

Take a look-see at this:

Beware The Easter Bunny

If Snakes Could Talk

A team of scientists led by Neil H. Shubin of the University of Chicago say they have uncovered several well-preserved skeletons of a 375-million-year-old fish, called Tiktaalik roseae; a large scaly creature not seen before, that they say is a long-sought missing link in the evolution of some fishes from water to a life walking on four limbs on land.

Obviously you know where I stand on this subject.

However, not to be outdone by Creationists with cries of preferential treatment (do any even know my blog exists?), I am also presenting here the Top 10 Intelligent Designs (or Creation Myths).

As you read the article about the missing link, you will note that some Creationists say that this discovery is not enough to disprove their beliefs because scientists have not yet found evidence of an animal with both fins and feet.

Okay...

As far as I know, we have also not yet discovered a talking snake.

Who IS This?? - The GUY Answer!

Oh. My. God.

HUGE kudos go out to my longtime friend Lisa Vinson who, in an amazingly short amount of time, correctly identified the first GUY victim of "Who IS This??" as none other than GREG EVIGAN!

That's right! Greg Evigan!

He's the one without the hat.

I'm just waiting to see who the first poster is that writes "Who the @#$%^!! is Greg Evigan?"

Let me tell you who Greg Evigan is:

Gregory Ralph Evigan (born October 14, 1953 in South Amboy, New Jersey), was a teen idol during the late 1970s and early 1980s. He auditioned for, and got stage roles in "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Grease" (where he got the leading character). He married Pamela Serpe on June 3, 1979 and they have three children.

Evigan is best known for his work in two television

hits: 1979's B.J. and the Bear, where he starred as B.J. McKay, a truck driver whose best friend was a chimpanzee named Bear, and 1987's My Two Dads. My Two Dads lasted until 1990, which in my mind is about 2 years too long.

B.J. and the Bear is most noticeable for two other contributions to society: it proudly introduced Judy Landers to unsuspecting teenaged boys everywhere as well as introduced Claude Akins as Sheriff Elroy P. Lobo, a truly awful ripoff of Jackie Gleason's character "Buford T. Justice" in Smokey & The Bandit. However, he did get his own TV series The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo for 2 seasons on NBC.

It was with B.J. and the Bear (which actually began in 1978

as a made for tv movie) that Evigan reached pop star status, and he began receiving cover from such magazines as Tiger Beat, Teen Beat and many other magazines geared towards teenaged girls.

In 1994 he starred in the short-lived series TekWar, based on novels by William Shatner. This show lasted exactly one season on USA.

And he has lived in guest star Hell ever since.

It's quite possible that Mr. Evigan would be pleased to know that he has at least one ardent fan who remembered him so quickly on "Who IS This?? - The GUY Edition".

Or maybe not.

Congratulations, Lisa!!

Who IS This?? - Special GUY Edition

Never let it be said that I don't satisfy my audience.

Look! Look and be amazed at the first male photo for 2 posters favorite blog game - Who Is This??

Note the sunglasses that just ooze cool and those eyes that peak out over the top - like my Nana used to do with her glasses. I don't know about you, but nothing says "cool" and "hip" to me like a guy who wears a t-shirt with a sport coat over it.

Now onto the history.

Our mystery male has had a very long and, in some respects, fairly successful career. At least he did, until his last network series was cancelled in 1990. But before he was a nobody, he was a somebody. In 1979, in fact, he was a big somebody. He had just launched his first successful TV series where he reached pop star status, and he began receiving covers from such magazines as Tiger Beat, Teen Beat and many other magazines geared towards teenaged girls. However, this series only lasted two years and then it was off to guest star land where he appeared on such notable shows as "Matlock" and "Murder She Wrote".

But his fame would not be denied. In 1987 he picked up his second successful TV series and was once again a hearthrob to teenaged girls - although I personally never knew any woman in the mid- 1980's who actually thought so.

But Fame is a fickle mistress, and she abandoned him in 1990. He took some time off, wooed Fame once again, and was rewarded with a third series - direct to syndication. This only lasted one season and although he did suds it up for awhile over on FOX he was eventually banished to guest star Hell where he clearly made one heck of a living appearing in every god awful show or TV movie between 1994 and 2005.

So now, I simply have to ask the question - Who IS This??

Is it Hot in Here?

Mother Earth is pissed off about the constantly rising CO2 emissions and she's finally doing something about it.

Unfortunately, we're the target.

Is it just me or is this @#$%!! really scary?