Christmas Podcast

Perhaps as highly anticipated as Oprah's Favorite Things, it is with great pleasure that I present the second annual Unwilted Christmas Podcast.

Google Docs

For the next week, I plan on exclusively using Google Docs for all my word processing needs -- even those at work. My initial impression was that it has a lot of potential. I like the ability to add tags to my documents. But maybe I'm still old school -- I also wanted to be able to put them in different directories (there may be a way -- I didn't see it). Another initial impression is that I wish the work screen were bigger. Finally, I love the fact that I can directly save as a pdf file. I could always do that with Open Office -- but now I can do that on the fly anywhere there is a net connection.

On a different note, I toyed with getting a Sony Mylo but decided to wait. A little short on cash right now, and I'd like to see what people think after having used it for more time. I sounds fun, though.

Bright Eyes

Time for another podcast. This one featuring Bright Eyes. The last song features the main characters from one of the best novels ever written.

Humvee

About to get run over by a Humvee.

And So It Goes

Happy Days Are Here Again. Sort of. Really, I just feel like Binky in this Matt Groening cartoon from 14 years ago. All I can offer after this election is a pathetic wave of the flag and a "yay."

Nixon Now

I love the authentic 1970s feel of this ad. The fact that it is for Nixon makes it even better.

Hot New Look and Nostalgia

Yet another hot new look for unwilted. I wanted to upgrade to the blogger beta, which required the change and more traditional look.

While playing with the blog, I've been streaming today's A Prairie Home Companion and it is in Pullman, Washington back in the Palouse. Nostalgia. Two things come to mind. First we need a Western Garrison Keillor. Garrison's talk about the wheat and rolling hills and sunsets make me want to hop in the damn car and drive 1500 miles to be there again. Second, the Palouse is probably the ideal place in this country. Although this won't happen, just for a minute I did think about throwing everything away and taking the family up to some town like Dayton (Washington -- NOT Ohio). Buy a cheap house and make do.

Barenaked Autumn

I guess Barenaked Ladies have a new album. Saw them on Conan O'Brien last night (not a show I normally watch, but I noticed they were on so I recorded it). I think the song is just okay. They rely on being catchy and quirky, and I guess not every song can be that way. What is left is just blah pop. I'm sure they still put on a hell of a fun show, though, and I'm going to try to catch them on this tour if they play a smaller venue near me.

My Life is Back

The computer is up and running again, and I feel like my life is back. It is like being broke for a month and then all of a sudden getting some money. A great feeling. It is about time for a reformat, however, so I may do that over the long weekend. And I've already decided on an early Christmas present -- one of the new, cheap MacBooks and a home wireless network to go with it. It took me a while to get on the whole laptop / wifi thing, but I'm all about it now.

Freakin

Well, my desktop computer (which is also our TV, radio, phone, etc.) has officially freaked out completely. Hardware issue, and let's hope the answer is in the mail. Meanwhile, I'm on a borrowed laptop stealing wifi from a neighbor across the street. I'm in a corner of the house that we never use because I can only get signal quality from there -- and just barely at that.

So to all the loyal readers of unwilted (and there are about four of you), the updates will remain a bit infrequent.

Meanwhile, if you've not registered to vote against the pricks, please do. I'm sending in my Idaho absentee ballot tomorrow -- not that it will matter much there.

Best Song Lyrics

From Kris Kristofferson's The Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me:

I can read my fortune in the bottom of a glass
And I can see its time for me to make my last request
Will you fill my grave with whiskey when I'm laid away to rest
So the boys can say I drank my way to hell.

Update

Not many updates lately -- I'm traveling a lot right now. However, I did put up an Amazon book store (with a Western American Literature theme) and also updated the unwilted homepage. I've never made money as an Amazon affliliate -- and I don't expect to. It is just interesting to see how it works. If somebody wants to buy a book that way, fine. Also, I don't love the look of the new homepage, but I used Photoshop to create it and I was interested in that process.

Hackett and Taylor on Hardball

This is a bit old already (from about a week ago), but it was too good not to repost. Hardball ususally does not live up to the name, but here Chris Matthews goes after Van Taylor, an Iraq vet who is running for Congress in Texas as a Republican. Contrast his BS with Paul Hackett, who should have run for the Senate from Ohio but somehow didn't get support from national Democrats.

Why I Dislike Myspace

This is a bit of a spur of the moment post. At the risk of sounding old, I just have to say that I don't like myspace. And I don't really get why it is so popular. My critique is mostly technical/visual. I think I get the social networking concept and how that could be cool -- if it were done right. Myspace just does not do it well. It is not a visually appealing site -- it almost has a retro 1998 look to it (as if 1998 could be retro). Plus, perhaps due to its overwhelming popularity, it seems to still be full of bugs and glitches. Again, this is a spur of the moment post. I've not really thought this through, although I've known for a good while that myspace is overrated.

Edward Abbey's Bean Recipe

I'm making beans today, and am inspired by the below recipie (at least in part -- I'm doing my cooking in an old iron pot rather than an aluminium one). This is from the Orion article that is publishing several Abbey letters in anticipation of a bookthat will do the same.

**********

Victoria McCabe
19 May 1973

Dear Victoria,
Herewith my bit for your cookbook. This recipe is not original but a variation on an old (perhaps ancient) Southwestern dish. It has also been a favorite of mine and was for many years the staple, the sole staple, of my personal nutritional program. (I am six feet three and weigh 190 pounds, sober.)

I call it Hardcase Survival Pinto Bean Sludge.

1. Take one fifty-pound sack Colorado pinto beans. Remove stones, cockleburs, horseshit, ants, lizards, etc. Wash in clear cold crick water. Soak for twenty-four hours in iron kettle or earthenware cooking pot. (DO NOT USE TEFLON, ALUMINUM OR PYREX CONTAINER. THIS WARNING CANNOT BE OVERSTRESSED.)

2. Place kettle or pot with entire fifty lbs. of pinto beans on low fire and simmer for twenty-four hours. (DO NOT POUR OFF WATER IN WHICH BEANS HAVE BEEN IMMERSED. THIS IS IMPORTANT.) Fire must be of juniper, pinyon pine, mesquite or ironwood; other fuels tend to modify the subtle flavor and delicate aroma of Pinto Bean Sludge.

3. DO NOT BOIL.

4. STIR VIGOROUSLY FROM TIME TO TIME WITH WOODEN SPOON OR IRON LADLE. (Do not disregard these instructions.)

5. After simmering on low fire for twenty-four hours, add one gallon green chile peppers. Stir vigorously. Add one quart natural (non-iodized) pure sea salt. Add black pepper. Stir some more and throw in additional flavoring materials, as desired, such as old bacon rinds, corncobs, salt pork, hog jowls, kidney stones, ham hocks, sowbelly, saddle blankets, jungle boots, worn-out tennis shoes, cinch straps, whatnot, use your own judgment. Simmer an additional twenty-four hours.

6. Now ladle as many servings as desired from pot but do not remove pot from fire. Allow to simmer continuously for hours, days or weeks if necessary, until all contents have been thoroughly consumed. Continue to stir vigorously, whenever in vicinity or whenever you think of it.

7. Serve Pinto Bean Sludge on large flat stones or on any convenient fairly level surface. Garnish liberally with parsley flakes. Slather generously with raw ketchup. Sprinkle with endive, anchovy crumbs and boiled cruets and eat hearty.

8. One potful Pinto Bean Sludge, as above specified, will feed one poet for two full weeks at a cost of about $11.45 at current prices. Annual costs less than $300.

9. The philosopher Pythagoras found flatulence incompatible with meditation and therefore urged his followers not to eat beans. I have found, however, that custom and thorough cooking will alleviate this problem.

Yrs, Edward Abbey—Tucson

Cyborg

The most unpleasant development lately is the bluetooth headset for cell phones. I see these cyborgs walking around the city. The headsets look like they've been implanted into their heads. Peraonally, I've trashed my cell phone. I was in the heart of Los Angeles where coverage should have been perfect. I was calling another person who was also in the heart of the city. And it kept cutting in and out. Typical. So I let the contract expire and canceled the damn thing. There have been a few occasions when it would have been "nice" to have a cell phone. But I'm sure there were probably more occasions when it was nice to NOT have a cell phone. I don't WANT to always be available. And I certainly don't want to become a cyborg. I'm not up on the technology enough, but in Europe I never seemed to have problems with reception. And the rates were much cheeper and favorable to the consumer. I had a pre-paid plan there, and the minutes never expired. Here, the pre-paid plans include minutes that expire after 30 or 60 days or whatever. So you are essentially on a contract. In Euorpe, I could have the convenience of a cell phone for several months, make a few calls, and only pay a few cents. Plus, the reception was consistently good -- even when I was not in the town or when I went to other countries. Maybe I could become a cyborg if the reception were at least good.

How to Treat My Woman

I have the pleasure of listening to an "urban" radio station for much of the time I'm in the car. It is either that or light hits. The songs in this podcast inspire me, and teach me how to treat my woman.

Nick Cave Podcast

CAF had asked what I liked about Nick Cave, so I decided to do a podcast featuring him. As is typical, I don't include the most famous songs. Some of these are pretty obscure. I also added some spoken word from Nick Cave. For anybody interested in an album, I'd start with The Boatman's Call. Note: this podcast is a bit larger than normal, but not unreasonable for those with broadband connections (which should be everybody by now).

Kris Kristofferson Podcast

I had the luck of getting to see Kris Kristofferson in concert recently. Of course, he's a country artist. But the crowd was of the wine and cheese variety. Goes to the split within country music these days between the braindead mainstream and the leftist-artsy roots country. Of course, the mainstream will honor the patron saints, such as Kristofferson. But they don't go to his concerts.

In any case, it was brilliant. Just an old songwriter and his guitar. So here's a Kristofferson podcast with a few favorites songs from him.

The Empty

Fix

I reuploaded the unheard cure podcast becuase I realized the version previously uploaded was corrupt (not playing right).

Mechanical Turk

So I've spent the last half hour on Amazon's Mechanical Turk and I probably earned about 20 cents. That is, if my work gets approved. I found out about this site from this article, which gives a good background.

First, I wish I could think of some job to make some poor chump do for a penny. Second, I'm shocked that Amazon is able to use the word "Turk" for this service. Here's an easy prediction -- the name will change. Here's another prediction -- this will eventually make Amazon a lot of money. As soon as it is easier to post little jobs, and easier for poor chumps in Mozambique to get paid a few cents.

My Personal Prophet

I'd like to introduce the unwilted audience to my personal prophet, Kerney Thomas. I stumbled upon him late at night a few weeks ago, and have been obsessed ever since. I love the yelling, and the speaking in tongues. I also like how he says "Glory to God" when the caller in the below video tells him about having had a stroke a year ago. Honestly, I was drifting away from Christianity. Now, I'm right back there.

I did send Evangelist Thomas my address. So far, no letter. I'll be sure to keep you all up to date as he works supernatural miracles in my life.

[2009 Edit: No response from Evangelist Thomas. And Youtube took down the video I originally uploaded. But I've put up another similar one that somebody else uploaded].

Salon goes Right Wing

I was disappointed to discover that Salon.com, normally a favorite source of online news, headlined this article about an individual who was investigated for the production of child pornography.

Essentially, the author and another father took the kids camping. They took pictures of the kids skinny dipping, then got them developed. The store clerk reported the pictures. Instead of reacting with sincerity and cooperation, the author was defensive and uncooperative. His friend demanded to see the officer in charge of the investigation. He hired a lawyer. By his reaction, he made the process last longer than it normally does.

The author also obstructed justice. On the drive to the forensic interview with the authorities, he told the kids that the state wants to take them away from home. He admits this in the article.

All that said, the process worked. It worked more slowly than normal -- thanks to the author. But it still worked. There were no charges filed, and the state never even attempted to take the kids (when the children could be in danger, they take the kids right away -- so the state used appropriate restraint here). And now, the poor author (who has moved to France) complains about depression and tears. This guy has problems.

To make matters even worse, the author then cites an "expert witness" who makes a living testifying for child molesters and pornographers (I won't even repeat his name or website here). I would expect to see this individual cited in an article in the Weekly Standard, not Salon.com.

Overall, weak.

More Joe Feeney

I currently can't upload podcasts. So here's more Joe Feeney! [Video is down, but I'm keeping the post up for sake of completeness.]

Unheard Cure

It has been a long time since the last update. Here is a podcast with some lesser-known Cure songs. Enjoy. It will probably be a few more weeks before the next update.

Rush Limbaugh is Wasted

On today's Rush Limbaugh broadcast, El Rushbo admitted that he was wasted. The audio is here -- not edited at all (although perhaps only slightly out of context).

Tee Vee

Joe Feeney with a nice rendition of "Love, Here is my Heart" originally from 1964 on the Lawrence Welk show. Notice how Geritol sponsored the show even then? [Video is down but I'm keeping the post up for the sake of completeness.]

Hot New Music

Some hot new music for you -- all stuff released this year.

From a Child's Book

I have a fuzzy brown spot, can you touch it with your toes?

Last Post of Christian Nostalgia

At last, the last Christian podcast is here. The last song is also the last song I ever played over the airwaves during my radio days.

Cobra Kai

Cobra Kai. Strike First, Strike Hard, Show NO MERCY.

Canibus Concert

I attended a Canibus concert recently. I was pretty close to the front, as you can see. This is for real.

I LOVE Trader Joe's!

Here's another Unwilted completly unpaid advertisment. Trader Joe's. At first glance, a crappy little pseudo-grocery store. Upon more inspection, the best damn source for food and alcohol in the country. I've had four of their beers tonight, and I must say that they are top-knotch. Best hefeweitzen outside of Deutchland. I had some of their frozen pasta for dinner. I had some of their trail mix for a snack this afternoon. And I had some of their cereal for breakfast. Everything is top-quality and low-cost. In addition to the beer, wine, and frozen foods, there are many other favorites. The hummus, the vodka ("Vodka of the Gods"), the whole fruit jelly, the salads, the juices, the pita chips, the bread. On and on. If you live near a Trader Joe's and you don't know it, you are missing out.

Silence!

After about five months of listening to my computer sound like a blender or weed eater, I finally mustered up the balls to replace the video card fan -- the source of the problem. Damn near had to break the video card to get the crappy old fan off. But I was going to either replace the fan or break the card and buy a new one. The noise became that extreme.

The new fan is from Arctic Cooling. It is so huge that I had to take out the modem next to the video card, but I wasn't using that anyway (I have not used a modem in 6 years, and doing so would probably drive me to alcoholism).

As you might guess (because I'm able to write this), it all worked out. The difference is huge. Now I notice all sorts of noises that never even existed before.

Anyway, this is a huge quality of life increase. We use the computer for all our music and TV, in addition to the standard internet stuff, such as porn. Let the good times roll!

More Christian Music

As the below post indicates, I'm not exactly in a Christian music nostalgia trip sort of mood. But I pretty much had these particular songs lined up and ready to go. With the exception of one song (the second), these are more obscure than the previous Christian podcast. So here it is. A special prize to whomever can identify each of the artists.

Maybe I'm just not in a Christian mood because my icon for this blog (a picture of Jesus with guns and blood) has disappeared from the web. It was from some "Jesus Freaking" website. I kept meaning to save a copy for myself, but never did. Jesus left me.

I previously pointed out the irony that most of my Christian music was stolen. Also ironic are all the many unholy--even unnatural--acts perfomed with this holy music as a soundtrack. A lot of the Christian music sounds like pop music (most of it bad pop music). We just sort of ignored the lyrics. Or pretended that the "precious love" that they were singing about was of a more terrestrial sort. Some of the songs and artists -- Amy Grant, Margaret Becker, for example -- even sounded sexual when they sang to the Lord.

A suggestion to the local Christian radio station: take a black light through the studio. The carpet may need to be replaced before the next Shareathon.

Hot New Look

Unwilted has a hot new look. But what will I do when I'm not feeling goth?

Christian Nostalgia

Those of you old timers may enjoy this post, but the rest of you will be scratching your heads. In any case, I was driving home yesterday with the ipod on shuffle and a Keith Green song came up. Which set me down a road of nostalgia which continued when I got home. I dusted off some old Christian CDs (all of which were stolen -- an irony that brought me some pleasure at the time and even now). This is the first of what will probably be three Christian podcasts. Enjoy! And if there are requests for specific songs, I can try to do a fourth (assuming I have the songs).

The Big Lie

The below article was simply too good, so I'm copying all of it. It is from salon.com and the orignal link is here.

Who tells the truth to a man -- or perhaps a nation -- driving into the setting sun, convinced he's heading due east?

By Garrison Keillor

Jan. 18, 2006 | It's good to know how to lie, and lie effectively, so you can go backstage after the high school production of "The Crucible" in which your friend's daughter mumbled her lines and stood like a fencepost, trying to look horrified and looking drugged instead, and now here she is, fluttery, ashen-faced, perspiring, and you say, "It was fascinating to watch. You were so in the moment, Lindsey. So believable. It really resonated with that audience, there was so much intensity." The truth is that she has no more talent than the average cocker spaniel -- but so what? There's no need to face the truth all at once.

People ask you how you are, you say fine, even if you have a grinding headache. People congratulate you on having done a fine job raising your children, you say thank you, even though you know the truth.

On the other hand, one should not lie to oneself. If the book you've been working on for two years is a leaking boat that needs to be scuttled, this is not to be denied. You look in the mirror and it's clear: The zero-dessert policy must now go into effect. Your wife says your drinking is a problem. That means it's a problem.

On the third hand, self-deception is useful. Some things are better endured by ignoring them. Old age, for one. The whining sound under your seat on the 727 flying over Lake Michigan, for another. And when you're feeling overwhelmed by your obligations, it's better just to put on your blinders and haul the beer wagon forward.

But everyone needs a few friends with whom one can be honest. I quit smoking 20-some years ago because my friend Butch Thompson and I promised each other that we'd try to quit, and that before smoking another cigarette, we would call up the other one and tell him. This worked like a charm. I dreaded having to make that call, so did he, and we each trusted the other to be honest. This is what friends are for. If you go and do a shameful thing, such as shoot your parents so you can inherit their estate, you should have at least one friend to whom you could confide the cheesy details. You'd say, "I couldn't believe that was me, aiming the pistol at the back of Mom's head as she stood at the Mixmaster. I am feeling, like, totally remorseful right now. And I'm wondering if, like, it might've been a sugar rush from, like, the Twinkies." And the friend would say, "Well, you were having some big mood swings. And the job market is tight, so naturally you were anxious about money. But those bright orange coveralls look rather striking on you. And this Plexiglas partition between us doesn't bother me as much as I had thought it would. And I don't think you would've been a good parent anyway, so it's lucky that you won't have to face that question."

I have not been that sort of close confidant to my friends, alas. They don't reveal the seamy underside of their lives to me, perhaps because I am a writer who might exploit their shameful story, or perhaps because they have no shameful secrets to share. Or because they believe you're supposed to say "Fine" when someone asks how you are.

But who tells the truth to the man who is driving straight into the setting sun and thinks he's heading due east? His wife murmurs that, uh, maybe we should look at a map, and he accuses her of being a defeatist who tries to tear him down any way she can in order to conceal her own lack of ideas. The man is heading the wrong way and speeding and the idiot light is flashing -- low oil pressure -- and the idiot is trying to be manly and authoritative but everyone can see he's faking it, hoping for God to rearrange the landscape for his convenience. Someone ought to speak up, and yet he is fascinating. As the administration is these days, so resonant and believable. The Arctic icecap melts and the Chinese finance our tax cuts and someday we will have spent six years and trillions of dollars to bring democracy to Iraq, whatever that may mean, and the SUV of state turns toward the setting sun, driven by cocker spaniels. And there is so much intensity there, and they are so much in the moment.

Butt Rock

Just enjoying the MLK day in my own special way. Listening to some butt rock and having a Hurricane High Gravity or two or three. The swill is piss but it will get you there, if you know what I mean. So for those of you with a similar disposition, here are some kick ass jams to get you through the night. The rest of you can fuck off.

Tunes

Tunes here.