So there I was -- two Friday's ago -- daydreaming my way home on the "F" train after my darkroom class. And there - across from me - was someone who looked suspciously like Michael Barrish. It might not have been him -- hell, I don't even *know* Michael Barrish. But this guy had a passing resemblance at least. He was fast asleep, so I inspected him, head to toe, all the way from the Lower East Side to Prospect Park. All the time I'm playing ping pong... Is it him? Probably not? But is it? Nahhh. But it looks like him. Should I say hello? No. That's too strange, esp. since I'd have to wake him up. Sleeping dogs, etcetera.

But then I remember to look for the fingernails & the bag. Nope. Wasn't him after all.

Apple sauce. Cereal. Bread. Found grocery lists at keaggy.com

A Canadian Phrasebook-in-Progress - over at geist.com. I think, perhaps, you have to be from Canada to appreciate how truly funny the phrasebook is.

hipstersareannoying.blogspot.com:
"One of the more bizarre outcroppings is the homestead hipster, what we might also call the staking-a-claimster. ... At once the very picture of drunken manliness, yet tamed by their liberal arts over-education. Homestead hipsters have items tucked away in their cupboards and studio spaces that mere city dwellers cannot understand: Pickled cactus shards in jelly, soy caviar, tile caulking, industrial-sized vitamin bottles, decaffeinated tea, canned hams, ball-peen hammers, dehydrated scuttlefish, soldering guns, wet-naps, packing peanuts, hard hats, R-Kelley records etc."

Brilliant!

Like zeebah, I couldn't resist the Belief-O-Matic over at beliefnet. You take a quiz and the computer matches your beliefs to a religion. My top ten matches - hilariously enough - were 1. Mahayana Buddhism (100%) 2. Sikhism (97%) 3. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (96%) 4. Neo-Pagan (96%) 5. Liberal Quakers (95%) 6. New Age (92%) 7. Unitarian Universalism (91%) 8. Hinduism (90%) 9. Theravada Buddhism (83%) 10. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (81%).

Well Laura just got the finger from NYPL. Not literally of course, but it amounts to the same thing.

She is sitting in the next cubicle right now figuring out what to do. Apparently librarians on TN visas cannot "supervise" staff. NYPL didn't know this or never bothered to find out. When Laura went to reapply for her TN the INS told her nope, no visa for you, and told her she'd have to be out of the country by December 26th. Or else.

The library's response? She needs to hire her own lawyer (with what - uhhh - her "huge" librarian's salary?) They told her that their responsibility to her is "zero" since she applied for the TN. Argghghhhhhh.

Hooray! Watch Wallace & Gromit in Soccamatic - their first film in six years.

Even though it is a short work week I *so* don't want to be here.

Maybe it's the bombing in Bali, the sniper, the smallpox scare, or the coming war. No matter. I just feel that there may not be enough time to do all the things I desire.

Yesterday Darla and I explored the Augustinian Academy on Staten Island. We first went there last November, but we were too scared to go inside. This time we braved it and if the photos turn out I'll post a few here. We learned a few things: 1. bring a tripod 2. bring a flashlight 3. bring a machete (for the weeds...) and 4. travel in pairs (there were gaps in the floor that went straight through to the basement).

In my dreams I will make photographs as gorgeous as S. Baliani or Henk van Rensbergen. One day.

The library's computers put to good use by a regular patron -- meet Liz Brady and a short excerpt from her list of "Names of Criminals (Dates of Criminal Activities against Me, most were in spring 1990 actions)" --
NYPD; O'Connor, Carol, the actor, c 1987-1990; O'Gorman, Ned, party attender, c 1983, spring 1990; Pakistani newsmen on the corner near my Elmhurst apt, 1985-1990; Paolucci, Robert, Mensa member, partier, c 1983- spring 1990; Parl, Chas., Princeton Univ., BA, MBA Columbia U.,( Salomon Bros., bonds, 1970’s), long time Bayside resident, parents immigrants, 1982-1990’s, spring 1990;Parl, Mrs. Chas, 1982-1990’s; Personnel Pool, employment agency; Peruvians next door to my Elmhurst apartment, worked for Fedex, c 1985-1990; Phillipines in several apartments in my Elmhurst apartment building, 1985-1990; Pritchard, Hugh, Mensa member, Univ of Maryland computer center employee, 1982, 1990’s, Washington, DC area; Prokop, Ruth, Esq, Washington, DC, lawyer, spring 1990, 1990’s; Reed/Read/Reid, John, New York University MBA, Metropolitan Opera Guild member, financial analyst at Spencer Trask c 1974, Queens landlord, NYC, spring 1990; Roblin, Linda (maiden name), Rosemary Hall classmate, Greenwich, early 1990’s; Rosenfeld, Tab, attorney, Finley Kumble, 1987, spring 1990; Rutherford, lawyer, White & Case, spring 1990; Samouce, Col. USA Ret, classmate of my father, spring 1990; Samouce, Mrs. James, resident of VA, 1990’s; Sansbury, Ralph, Mensa member, former doctoral candidate in mathmatics at New York University, partier, 1983-1984, spring 1990; Savalas, Telly, the actor, Elmhurst, c 1987-1990; Schaeffer, Erwin, Hungarian origin, Canadian citizen, New York, NY, 1983-1990’s, spring 1990; Scholz, Walter Rosen, actor, producer, New York, NY, 1983-1987, spring 1990, 19990’s; Schwebel, Stephen, President of International Court of Justice, Hague, c 1990, early 1990’s; Shepard, David Allan, Jr,, cousin, son of oil company executive, 1983; Shepard, Marie, c 1997; Sibley, Maj Gen Alden, 1983, spring 1990; Sipe, Barbara, (Mrs. Harry Sipe), resident of VA, c early 1990’s; Sipe, Lt. Cmdr. Harry Sipe, resident of VA, c early 1990’s; Slater, Patrick, Queens resident, banker, retired, loitered near my Elmhurst apartment, c 1985-spring 1990; Sloan temps, employment agency, late 1985-early 1986; St Bartholomew’s Church, 1984- spring 1990.

Looking for a unique way to protest the coming war? War is fickle, tickle your pickle!

Sheesh... www.punkrockers.com - video and audio clips of "early" punk rock. I think I must be a million years old. It's 20 years since I was sneaking out on my parents to see L'Etranger, Black Flag, the Violent Femmes, Discharge, the UK Subs, and many many more. It's funny I stumbled on this site today as I've been working a little bit each evening on a scrapbook of high school and early university days.

I don't have many pictures of those years (I was super paranoid and wouldn't let anyone near me with a camera) but I have tons of flyers from bands, letters from friends and people who picked up one of my 'zines (Generic Product - 1980-83 and Anomic Perspectives - 1983-84).

And if you remember this record please write. I may just have to marry you.