Mindless Philosopher

Took off work at a reasonable time to go see Fahrenheit 9/11 with colleagues. We were about to be let into the movie when the fire alarm goes off. No one moves. Clearly it can’t be a real fire as 1) no one smells smoke, 2) no one is screaming, and 3) no one is telling us to leave. Well, eventually, the staff does manage to evacuate the entire theater, and 25 minutes after the alarm went off, five fire trucks park themselves outside the building (go DC gov!). Well, perhaps there was indeed a fire since the fire fighters drag a hose inside and stay in there for a while. The theater is shut down for the evening and we’re all told to leave.
Not to be dissuaded by what is clearly a Bush administration plot to prevent me from seeing the movie, I hop over to Arlington and see it there. Overall, I have to say I did not like Fahrenheit as much as Moore’s first movie, Roger & Me. In Fahrenheit, Moore did not bring together all the small points he made into one over-arching thesis (as he did in Bowling for Columbine for instance). If I had to pick a one sentence thesis, it would be: “The men and women in the military devote a significant part of their lives to protecting us; anyone who needlessly puts them in harm’s way does not deserve reelection.” That’s my first take anyway; perhaps I’ll have more to say later.

See, sometimes anger’s subtle, stocked in metaphor
full of finesse and dressed in allure
yes, sometimes anger’s subtle, less rage than sad
leaking slow through spigots you didn’t know you had.
and sometimes it’s just
Vice Presidential
you see, and to me,
That’s poetry too.

Friday night was eat-in dinner and a DVD (The Last Samurai) with the WW crew. Had some problems ordering the Chinese food. They forgot the chicken platter and when we called back to let them know apparently they got it in their heads that they really forgot the veggie lo mein. So they re-delivered the veggies–not helpful. Eventually it was all worked out though.
Saturday I went into work and was mostly productive. Left at 7pm to go to a co-workers party in DC. Quite the number of beautiful people in attendance. Reminded me of a frat party (well, a non-MIT frat party). I survived there longer than I expected, somewhat because of the horseshoe pit they set up in their yard. If only people were playing bocce ball as well….
Sunday was strikingly similar to Saturday. Work and then over to a colleague’s gettogether. This gathering was much more low key. We tasted some wine and cheese and then walked around old town Alexandria before stopping at a nice restaurant whose name escapes me.
Got home, watched a Just Shoot Me rerun and crashed much earlier than usual.

The surprise WW Night dessert was really a candy: Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavor Jelly Beans! Including dirt, grass, lemon drop, vomit, and booger…unfortunately (fortunately?) my cold was inhibiting my sense of taste. I started with a good streak of “pleasant” flavors, but one of the last ones I tried was almost certainly earwax. They were a lot of fun; and the WW epi was a good one too. I had to define the term “shiksa” for some people in the room though; if you know which episode we watched just from that clue, you truly are a fan.
Prior to WW Night, I attended in GAP’s book club, where we discussed John Irving’s The World According to Garp. It was a fascinating dialouge notwithstanding the fact that it reminded me too much of High School English. (And, yes, I realize the irony of mentioning HS English in a sentence with an ill-defined pronoun). The funniest part of the evening was when one of the attendees spoke up with “So! Let’s talk about all the sex in the book.” There was quite the awkward pause; well, you probably had to be there.
I’m leaving work early to go home and curl up in bed with HP: ATGOF.
PS. I know more of you can write limericks than just JB.

Just a LOTD since I need to leave the office and get some sleep because I have a slight cold. Don’t worry K.C., I’m taking ColdEeze!
LOTD: The OED in limericks

Haven’t blogged for a while because, well, not much has happened. A few notable events are in the queue though:
Sunday my Dad got 2 tickets for us (through his synagogue) to go to the O’s game. The Orioles played terribly, and I think by now they might be worst team in baseball (when only looking at the most recent part of the season). But, we did get to see Barry Bonds hit a homerun. That was cool. Bonds is huge–even more so with his body armor on.
Wednesday, as usual, I hung out with the WW crew. It was my turn to bring dessert so I made Rice Krispie treats. Not hard right? Well, basic knowledge of cooking is required…like the difference between pots and pans. Turns out there isn’t one. News to me. Anyway, with a little remote help and a little more than the required mess, I managed to create some great squares; someone commented that they “restored [her] faith in the ability of boys to make Rice Krispie treats.” Next week I plan on bringing a special snack (no cooking required)….but you’ll have to wait to find out what it is; otherwise it would ruin the surprise.
And here’s your link of the week: Will Bush re-appoint W. David Hager? Not if you speak up.

Gave a homeless guy on the street a buck the other day. He commented that he liked my Democrat-donkey tie. That doesn’t count as vote buying right? Although, I guess we do have DC wrapped up.
LOTD, from Hillary: A West Wing tribute to Gail.

A colleague just called the binder I keep of national polls my “magical book.” That’s certainly a coincidence given my newfound avidity to Harry Potter and the debut of the third movie today. Perhaps I should label my upcoming state poll binder “State Book of Spells.”