On the go blogging

I am still on the mass transit kick because i am servicing my car. not so bad considering that its sunny and warm and i am getting a brief look at pretty thorough transit system. if i weren't paying for insurance and a garage i might do it everyday. especially since i can blog as i roll out.

so last night I was watching a comedy show from the 80's and it blew my mind how much of it was stereotype humor. It was completely racist in tone. Then i remembered movies like Soul Man, Revenge of the Nerds "what the fuck is a robster craw?", Nine to Five (ludicrously sexist), and basically all the comedies i could think of enjoying at one point.

It was as if the 60's and 70's had finally integrated the popular movies and network tv programming wasn't mono-toned anymore. so the 80's were the last hoorah for pure base race humor because it had finally become aware of itself. America knew it was wrong but it loved how funny it could be. Everybody saw that it was going to change finally and wanted to go out laughing about it. It's good to re-affirm that things are changing and it's informative to look back at what we used to laugh at. but boy was it UGLY.

I think the democratic nomination race is literally a race between the different thresholds of prejudice of various regions as they pick between two riske' choices. Its just that base for a public that gets wooed by a cowboy accent and a pickup truck. If we cared about the real issues rather than some ideal image of a commander-in-chief the country wouldn't be spiraling out of control because of bad leadership that you want to drink a beer with. the whole thing irks me.

So the south is ready for a black president. Makes sense since they are so familiar from hundreds of years of close proximity and and a Clinton liberal woman who has been jilted and represents NY ain't gonna fly in such a paternal culture. The coasts are into Clinton because Bill was their hero and they INSIST on voting against the south at all costs. Plus she's in NY now. They get to fight over the rest. Looks like standing in a pickup and avoiding talking about her rich past got her the blue collar states and obama got the whites west of Chicago. I wish it weren't that simple but it really seems like it is.

I guess i should state that i can't stand Hillary because she voted to give Bush power to wage war in Iraq. Pandering and political maneuvering aside, that one vote alone is fatal. McCain? forget about it. we need MUCH more change. like a 167 degree turn. McCain is like a 10 degree turn from the current course. Plus, the two of them are trying to win voters by supporting that insane gas tax break. that's some stupid, tunnel vision shit to try.

That leaves Obama. I like him. he seems almost impervious to assault. He DID NOT VOTE FOR IRAQ. Done. I just hope he doesn't take a womping from Classy McCain. he's got a LOT of political experience battling for the prez seat. plus he's a vet and all those things that the Red States gulp down like budweiser. i'm a little worried that good old America is still not done getting our asses kicked by the GOP. yeehaw

I am actually walking while i write and i just had to run across the street to make the light and one of my flip flops flew off forcing me to chase it with one barefoot. that's even worse then chasing a hat in the wind. It was kind of an eye opener for me. I am NOT in California anymore. The sticky stuff my bare foot stepped in while i was flailing like a beach bum in uptown traffic is testament to that. I used to mock flip flops back when all i wore were high-tops to play bball, or to go skating. Now i want to live life as if i can always hear the sound of the waves crashing just a few feet away. Well, that's always a possibility, California is always going to be there. knock knock on wood.

There is really something romantic about riding a train. Not the lusty hipness of the NY subway with its people watching and its wild pace and herd-like flow. I mean the wanderlust of a real train. Like the Metro-North i am on. Getting to feel like i am neither here nor there but really everywhere at once. Like i can put everything down and just watch the planet roll by. As if it were a "show and tell" and i didn't bring anything so i can just sit and be an observer. Its really a mini vacation. And when i think about all the incredible and adventurous rides i've been on around the world, it was often the getting there that i remember most fondly. Its little moments, like passing a backyard in rural southern Italy and catching a glimpse of a family eating at a table in the garden. I will never know anything about them yet i remember them better then people i was friends with for years.

Anybody ever notice that the foliage is so dense around new york in the warm season that it compares with a Peruvian rain forest? Its DENSE. And super green. Such a contrast to winter when its just brown tree trunks and patches of ice and snow. looks like you would need a machete to cut a path just to hike through it.

on a lighter note. Graffiti is starting to get thicker and thicker as i approach the Bronx from the north. woods are being interrupted by seedy side streets. which leads me to some funny memories.

Ever try to walk past two cops at 4AM with 8 full cans of spray paint hidden in various pockets and under your pants and jacket? Its like the game of operation. You cant let the cans show, you cant let them touch each other and make any audible TINK noises. But the hardest part is keeping the steel ball inside each can from rolling around. Forget it. It takes ninja skills and Buddha style balance. Plus an iron will to keep your cool, because those cops KNOW you're up to no good. they stare at you without even blinking. but they play the game. the game of cat and mouse. if you don't peep, they don't leap.

There are whole fields of trashed cars in the Bronx. Junk. and each car isn't even stacked, so its like a car has a 1000 square foot apartment, considering that a building with multiple floors could be there. Meanwhile there are hipsters in Brooklyn paying 800 bucks a month to live in ply wood stalls in a 10 story factory building. Wow.

The last time i was in Haarlem it was 1991 and i was getting chased by 20 or more random hoods. I guess they wanted my bike. I just looked down on it from the train and it looked...different. Smaller. Or maybe i am bigger? Like 3 or 4 inches would make that kind of difference?

Now i am walking past Citarella on Broadway looking at all the huge cuts of meat in the window. I just now remembered that when i was growing up they used to do extravagant meat arrangements that bordered on art installation. On july 4th it would be a huge meat American flag with fatty strips as white stripes and star shaped steaks. For Thanksgiving it would be a huge turkey. But totally made out of steaks and various cuts. Not the actual bird. I always wondered if they were saying something about the country or just trying to sell meat? in this neighborhood it could have been both at the same time.