I carry on a venerable tradition

Or at least an old one, as certified by Wiley in today's installment of Non Sequitur.

Finally down under 180

For a while now, Mrs. Curmudgeon (who reads running magazines) has been insisting that I could get below 180 pounds if I really tried. My position has been that the last time I dropped so far down was when I was a starving graduate student, a tetch over 180 isn't bad for a man of my height and advanced years, and that I really, really love cheeseburgers.

Well, I'm not too big of a man to admit Mrs. Curmudgeon was right all along. According to our "Health-o-meter" this morning, I've dropped down to 179.4. I was wrong, and she was right.

Of course, that might have something to do with having picked up the stomach virus that the kids puking all weekend, but still.

More or less human

There's a tendency amongst commentators, and especially Bible translators, to interpret "the heart" in the Old Testament as roughly equivalent to intellectual capacity or exercise; hence, "heart" is often translated in Proverbs as "understanding" or even "intelligence." However, a more literal rendering can allow for a more provocative reading, as in Proverbs 15:32.

He who ignores discipline rejects his soul,
but he who hears reproof acquires heart.

One might say that to reject discipline is to become less human; to embrace it is to become more so.

Scratch My Back

As a general rule, cover projects by songwriters creative in their own right make for fairly interesting listening. As part of his Scratch My Back project, Peter Gabriel got several of the artists whose songs he covered to cover one of his in turn; these have been issued as singles on iTunes. Paul Simon's version of "Biko" is a fine argument for the cover song genre. His stripped-down, guitar-centric rendering of Peter Gabriel's ominous anthem takes on the tone of a funereal lament while giving renewed plausibility to the thoughtful apartheid-era lyrics. In the same vein, David Byrne's cover of "I Don't Remember" gets at the original's frenetic sensibility while making it very much his own dance tune. On the other hand, Lou Reed takes a hatchet to "Solsbury Hill," turning all his latent misanthropy loose on what is, admittedly, a rather frail reed which Peter Gabriel was able to make a perennial radio favorite purely on the strength of an unabashedly sentimental and sincere performance. Peter Gabriel probably shouldn't have asked Lou Reed to contribute a track.

And actually, he shouldn't have attempted any covers himself. The album itself is monotonous; every song is performed at approximately the same slow beat. Peter Gabriel tries to turn everything into either a lullaby or a dirge or both. Take, for instance, his cover of "Boy in the Bubble." The first song on the still-astounding Graceland, Paul Simon's "Boy in the Bubble" was a frantic collage of dystopian imagery, heavily dependent on wordplay and a quick beat. By slowing it way, way down, Peter Gabriel makes all those stunning word pictures sound mildly silly. What was originally a panicked take on a world spinning completely out of control has become kind of boring.

I don't know what's happened to Peter Gabriel. Maybe hanging out with Richard Branson and the Elders has completely dulled his artistic edge.

Pop music has been saved

Why, yes, She & Him is (are?) dedicated to producing trifles on the eternal pop music themes of love and heartbreak. And that's the point: create a triviality with a good beat the kids can dance to, along with the promise that it's all going to work out and true love will be found. The ethereal vocals only help make the point.

I have a new crush.

It makes an '80s gamer smile

Today at shirt.woot, for those of us who don't understand how to play video games without a joystick.

God bless John Hickenlooper

There was little doubt John Hickenlooper would become Colorado’s next governor, especially after Tom Tancredo entered the race and peeled away the sloganeering nativist constituency from the Republican party. Nonetheless, the fact he won by a clear majority in a hotly contested three-way race indicates the high level of respect he has earned in our great state.

In both his Christianity and politics, Hickenlooper is liberal (being an Episcopalian Democrat), while I tend to think conservatism in either is suspiciously progressive (being an Orthodox Presbyterian reflexive reactionary). Still, I have been impressed with Hickenlooper’s work as mayor of Denver. He has studiously avoided the politicking and party chicanery of (at least some of) his predecessors. Moreover, he made the centerpiece of his administration a quixotic mission to rid Denver of homelessness and, believe it or not, committed actual time and resources to the effort. Most notable has been his willingness, in fact eagerness, to partner with Churches, Christian missions, and organizations of other religions to assist homeless families and provide resources to individuals WITHOUT, so far as I have been able to determine (and I have been paying close attention), trying to put any constraints on the beliefs and practices which lead faith-based organizations to get involved with the poor and needy in the first place. In one form or another, I have been involved with poverty alleviation since my late teens, and think it unlikely homelessness can be ended before sin is eliminated from the human race. John Hickenlooper, in all sincerity, disagrees with me and has done something real, practical, and long-lasting about it.

Martin Luther once said something about preferring to be ruled by a competent Turk (Muslim) than by an incompetent Christian prince. I would never vote for John Hickenlooper, but he has always struck me as competent, honest, good-natured, and motivated by a genuine desire to serve the people of Denver and, now, Colorado. I hope I am pleased with his service as governor as I have been with his service as mayor.