tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60053252011-12-13T22:53:22.826-05:00Thoughts, politics, soapbox rampages, amusing quotes, and excellent names for rock bands.mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comBlogger10401100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1166413663448332272006-12-17T22:45:00.000-05:002006-12-17T22:47:43.480-05:00

...The title will be [My name]: The Girl in the Boys' Powder-room. Or perhaps it should be 'Bois'"

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162937660177430052006-11-07T17:09:00.000-05:002006-11-07T17:14:20.230-05:00

Just in case you were wondering (Hey, Google-bot) how to do the time signature 3/8+3/4 in Finale and not have it beam all screwy, here's what you do. Go into the time signature tool, choose composite. In the first box on the top row, type the number 0.75. In the box below it, type the number 2. Now, you're thinking, this is insane, there's no such thing as .75/2 time. And you're right. But

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162610594694020982006-11-03T22:22:00.000-05:002006-11-03T22:23:14.723-05:00

Bet you can't buy tinned octopus at your dollar store. Not that I do.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162594628158597232006-11-03T17:52:00.000-05:002006-11-03T17:57:08.300-05:00

My neighborhood has a very high concentration of 99cent stores. There's a huge one, actually, about half a block from my house, but that involves crossing a fairly major road without a stoplight, so I generally just visit the one at the foot of the subway station. (Out here, our subways are above ground.) Tonight, I was on my way home from the Farmers Market with a cheese pumpkin that I was

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162481389051114332006-11-02T10:13:00.000-05:002006-11-02T10:31:21.716-05:00

You absolutely have to go, right now, check out the Amazon.com reviews of K-Fed's new "album." I haven't laughed that hard in a LONG time. Here's my favorite: I'll be nice. Relative to a pool of vomit, this album is pretty solid. I'd rather have this album thrown at me at high speeds than a chainsaw. If I was stranded on a desert island, I'd rather have this album than a tumor. If I had to lick

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162400742830290422006-11-01T12:04:00.000-05:002006-11-01T12:05:42.863-05:00

I think this is a friendly gesture much in the same way that fishermen offering worms to trout is.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162272012752846182006-10-31T00:09:00.000-05:002006-10-31T00:20:12.810-05:00

I invented this yesterday out of (sorta) necessity. I had an old, stale, slightly moldy gingerbread lying around, but I felt bad that I had neglected it, and I like gingerbread and didn't want to throw it out entirely, so I revived it and it was delicious. Ingredients: A loaf of gingerbread, more or less. Stale is completely fine. And if it's just minor mold we're talking about, cut/scrape it off

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1162271265596022162006-10-30T23:48:00.000-05:002006-10-31T00:07:45.626-05:00

Here's what you need: About a pound of either ground lamb, or even better, lamb sausage8-10 smallish eggplants. And I mean smallish. No larger than a pear. 3/4 cup quinoaA lemonA tomato or two. Flavorful and ripe is better. Onions. I'd say 3 small ones. Garlic. 3 cloves or soOlive oil. Lots. Oregono First, prepare the eggplants. The easy way to do this is to boil them until they're soft, then cut

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1161654236399250172006-10-23T21:35:00.000-04:002006-10-23T21:43:56.403-04:00

This recipe is best if you get all your ingredients from the Union Square Farmers Market. I shop Saturdays, so all references to location are based on the Saturday vendors. 3-4 apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced (I recommend Honeycrisps and Empires from the apple guy at the NE corner of the park)Cream (Try the Ronnybrook Farms guys, at the north end of the park, in the middle-ish)

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1161652744358851262006-10-23T21:15:00.000-04:002006-10-23T21:19:04.393-04:00

The following sign: AttentionCUSTOMER'SWe Moves the company Boca, Jones and Armour to The Refineration in The Produce Section

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160652412169934132006-10-12T07:24:00.000-04:002006-10-12T07:26:52.220-04:00

Q: At work yesterday, of what fictional character did you most remind yourself? A: That would have to be Mrs. Lovett. Q: So you cannibalized an Italian barber? A: Actually some Nittany Lions.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160527448795515742006-10-10T20:42:00.000-04:002006-10-10T20:45:43.466-04:00

...through the looking glass...CHAPTER VIIITHE QUEEN'S CROQUET-GROUNDA large rose-tree stood near the entrance of the garden: the roses growing on it were white, but there were three gardeners at it, busily painting them red. Alice thought this a very curious thing, and she went nearer to watch them, and just as she came up to them she heard one of them say, `Look out now, Five! Don't go

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160360656056284802006-10-08T22:22:00.000-04:002006-10-08T22:24:16.083-04:00

I have decided that my new drink of choice will be the Frosted Austin, which does not, in fact, exist. Yet. I am depending on you, loyal reader(s) to suggest an adequate recipe. Do not disappoint me.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160283309686201002006-10-08T00:53:00.000-04:002006-10-23T21:34:54.390-04:00

All the money in the world cannot buy a good toupee. Right, Mr. Schwartz?UPDATE: I'm just sayin'.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160180001079335492006-10-06T20:06:00.000-04:002006-10-06T20:25:09.536-04:00

In which our interviewer seeks, in very small intervals, to learn the truth about the woman behind the fruit.* Q: What one activity in your childhood educational experience was the most relevant to your current employment? And it can't be a whole year or school or subject. A: Tangrams.*And Katie Holmes was unavailable.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160179598992044012006-10-06T19:56:00.000-04:002006-10-06T21:08:58.610-04:00

Dear iTunes, You suck. No. I don't mean it. I'm sorry. Really. Don't be mad at me, iTunes. I'm just a little testy because it's now 7:50 on Friday and this week's episode of "The Office" isn't up yet, and I've made the concious choice to buy it from you rather than find it illegally somewhere, even though that would have been free and I would have had my fix of sweet, Office-y goodness at least

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1160011175908651572006-10-04T21:03:00.000-04:002006-10-04T21:19:35.956-04:00

Today I executed a very advanced pre-walking manuever and was very proud of myself. I was trying to get from my place of employment (oh, and exciting, I now HAVE a place of employment.... a real one!) to church. Pre-walking is the fine art and subtle science of positioning yourself on the subway platform in such a way that you'll board the subway car that will let you out closest to the stairs at

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1159879814777073952006-10-03T08:49:00.000-04:002006-10-03T08:50:14.806-04:00

...is for cookie, and that's good enough for me.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1159708307255876652006-10-01T09:02:00.000-04:002006-10-01T09:13:30.283-04:00

I like meatloaf. We very rarely had it when I was a kid because my father had it all too frequently when he was a kid, but nonetheless, I like it a lot. So last night, having just straggled back in to town, I really felt like making a meatloaf. I did a little innovating, and thought I'd share my recipe with you, because it was way good. 1 lb ground beef, approximately8 oz blue cheese, crumbledAn

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1159276456036035192006-09-26T09:11:00.000-04:002006-09-26T09:15:17.656-04:00

Dear George, You were only barely Batman then, and you certainly aren't now. Sincerely, The MangoP.S. You're right. We don't want you in politics.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1158289522510671322006-09-14T22:41:00.000-04:002006-09-15T11:01:46.113-04:00

CNN's running a big special on geniuses this weekend, and consequently has the requisite "Are You A Genius?" quiz on its website. Which is great and all, except that the questions look suspiciously like they were ripped off the math section of the PSAT, which says some very sad things about the educational system in this country, if you ask me. In response to this, I present the official

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1147288042810938042006-05-10T14:52:00.000-04:002006-05-10T15:07:22.840-04:00

Hey guys. I realize I've been gone for, like, a month. I really need to stop doing that. But I have an issue that needs your help. Springfield, MO, has five high schools, which have had open enrollment for decades. This has enabled families to choose which school was best for their children, as long as they were willing to provide their own transportation. One of the results of this policy was

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1144457144507340462006-04-07T20:44:00.000-04:002006-04-07T20:45:44.526-04:00

Me: "Yeah, um, the piano is playing everything BUT your note."Actor:"Oh...process of elimination."

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141748581188995862006-03-07T11:15:00.000-05:002006-03-07T11:23:01.203-05:00

I am a musical segregationist. Or at any rate, I never want to deal with integration again. Do I sound like a horrible person? Let me explain. Yesterday I spent something in the neighborhood of 18 hours integrating the score of my show. This means going through the score and libretto, copying and pasting the dialogue into the score, making sure all the fonts are right, making sure everything's

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141614182616955492006-03-05T21:58:00.000-05:002006-03-06T02:08:58.426-05:00

Okay, we have another round of DVD-bashing, presented by the curiously bearded Jake Gylenicantspellthis. So let's think about this. The only people who are SEEING this montage-that-can-only-be-enjoyed-on-a-big-screen are the 5000 or so people in the theatre. The other 3 billion of us are not appreciating it all. I'm sorry. If you make obscure crappy movies, there's no chance in hell I'm going to

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141612757070533872006-03-05T21:38:00.000-05:002006-03-05T21:43:09.320-05:00

I'm sorry, are they using Aaron Copeland for this montage of how important Hollywood is? Becasue that's not okay.UPDATE: And then Jon Stewart saves the day: "And none of those issues were ever a problem again. [...] Congratulations to us."

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141612195060391772006-03-05T21:28:00.000-05:002006-03-05T22:25:42.580-05:00

I'd just like to point out that Dolly Parton by sheer force of being Dolly Parton, was infinitely more interesting than whoever it was that just sang, despite the fact that that chick had the Looming Firey Car of Doom and Fire Dancers in her performance.UPDATE: Nor did Dolly require pimp-dancers and a gawdy room wallpapered in drink-carriers. Then again, given that this song has about 25 discrete

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141585172827565612006-03-05T13:45:00.000-05:002007-03-04T23:37:34.480-05:00

Every now and then, I, like everyon else, get really odd search strings. I've never completely understood why people phrase their searches as questions. Google is a search engine, not an oracle. Anyway. I mention all this to say: To the dear reader who was wondering, "Did President Bush trade nuclear secrets for mangoes [sic]?" I'm gonna go out on a limb and say, "No." One of the few benefits of

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141532118545322452006-03-04T23:07:00.000-05:002006-03-04T23:15:18.560-05:00

The New York Times has a great article on Michael John LaChiusa today, complete with adorable picture. I saw his Bernarda Alba today (Thanks!) and it was incredible. Like nothing I've ever seen, really. Anyway. Go look. Also, See What I Wanna See is now available on iTunes, and completely worth the $9.99. It's actually worth far more than that, but all they'll take is $9.99.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141414165657103532006-03-03T13:49:00.000-05:002006-03-03T15:22:09.176-05:00

I went down to the Danish Embassy for the rally today, and it was a pretty good time, despite the fact that I'm still defrosting. Let me tell you, if you ever want to set a record for the quietest, most orderly rally ever, get a group of Danes together. Nonetheless, we got moved across the street to the Dag Somethingnorwegian plaza. I a There, anyonewho wanted to speak was given the chance. This

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141402399353465872006-03-03T11:10:00.000-05:002006-03-03T11:13:19.370-05:00

I'm heading down to the Danish Embassy rally soon. I'll post pictures later. It's a pity that the only phrase of Danish my grandpa remembers is, "I love you, pretty girl." Although maybe I should have him teach it to me, in the event some hot Danish guy wants me. Because that's likely. Anyway...Freedom!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1141196671881817812006-03-01T01:59:00.000-05:002006-03-01T02:04:31.896-05:00

Friday, March 3rd12 NoonThe Danish Consulate885 2nd AvenueSolidarity with DenmarkBring appropriate cheese, legos, clever signs, ancient and traditional cookies, flags, whatever, as long as it's respectful and not amplified. And probably wear something warm, given how the weather's been this week. And if you're going to be there, drop me a comment and we'll try to run into each other, swap cheeses

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1140720977812072902006-02-23T13:51:00.000-05:002006-02-23T13:56:17.826-05:00

Upon further consideration, here's my suggestion re: the whole ports thing. Go ahead. Let DPW buy the management company, for all the good and pleasant reasons Bush et al. have suggested. International good will, helping an ally, incorporating Arab states into western democracy, etc. In return, congress, Homeland Security, the Coast Guard, everyone who's currently concerned, gets serious about

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1140589741424405692006-02-22T01:27:00.000-05:002006-02-22T01:29:01.426-05:00

So, after reading my "Worth it All" post of...last month... my mother wrote Joe White, who runs Kanakuk, and who is one of my favorite people EVER, and he's sending me a copy. Yay for Joe White! And soon, I will have the proper version of "Worth it All." Huzzah!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1140589419113150682006-02-22T01:05:00.000-05:002006-02-22T01:23:39.156-05:00

Dear George,I can call you George, right? We're in that place, yes? Okay, good. Here's the thing, George. I like you. Really. I do. I realize that I'm one of about 4 people left in the country who still like you, still more or less think you know what you're doing, still think you're the best man for the job, at least out of the options presented. I mention this to provide some level of context

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1140571353970145812006-02-21T20:10:00.000-05:002006-02-21T20:22:34.006-05:00

Today was a good day. I presented the Brand New Opening Number to my musical to the faculty and they thought it was brilliant. Points to me! I also had a casting meeting to try to find people to perform it and hopefully I'll be able to have my first choices there. We'll see. If all goes as planned, I will have worked with 75% of the cast before this. More importantly, the girl we want to play the

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1140497290240312562006-02-20T23:46:00.000-05:002006-02-20T23:48:10.240-05:00

I just wrote a song the text of which is an abridged version of Proverbs 31:10-30ish. Infinite P31W points to me! I'd like to cash them in now, please. Actually, on second thought....not yet. Please.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1140497179610480572006-02-20T23:45:00.000-05:002006-02-20T23:46:19.626-05:00

I've been in Connecticut for the last week. The week prior to that I was working and it was nutty. I'm back.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138897462042103612006-02-02T11:01:00.000-05:002006-02-02T11:24:22.143-05:00

I was pawing (well, scrolling) through my old music collection last night, and there I found Michael W. Smith's "Worth It All" was suddenly struck by the betrayal and outrage, pent up all these years...Perhaps I should explain. I went to Kanakuk Kamps (actually, being a girl, I went to Kanakomo, but same general outfit) for 9 years. Wonderful place. They put the FUN in "Fundamentalist". Actually,

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138725603995908462006-01-31T11:37:00.000-05:002006-01-31T11:40:04.023-05:00

I've been following the race for House Majority Leader, and I've decided I feel strongly enough about the outcome that I'd like to call my representative and express the opinion that under no circumstances should Roy Blunt win. Unfortunately, my representive IS Roy Blunt. Gah.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138674379288855722006-01-30T21:20:00.000-05:002006-01-30T21:26:19.290-05:00

This, despite the tragedy involved, is quite possibly the best news story ever: The Swedish chef from the Muppet Show created a world-famous stereotype of laid-back Scandinavian cooks. But a disagreement between two chefs in a Gothenburg canteen has left that image in the soup.The pressure of cooking seems to have got to the pair, whose bitter row boiled over into a full-blown punch-up. The fight

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138674044410319152006-01-30T21:16:00.000-05:002006-01-30T21:20:44.440-05:00

I'd just like to point out that my Muse and I are, collectively, the best big sister ever.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138337159663833972006-01-26T23:43:00.000-05:002006-01-26T23:45:59.676-05:00

One of CNN.com's current headlines reads, "Hamas' past casts cloud over the peace process."No shit, Sherlock! You think? (Bonus points to anyone who gets the reference in the subject)

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138330766431200932006-01-26T21:57:00.000-05:002006-01-26T21:59:26.446-05:00

Okay, "The Office" really has perfected the art of toying with my emotions. Michael realizing he has no actual friends: Sad!Jim desperately asking out Brenda: No, babe, no!The voicemails at the end: Aw!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1138136538353013442006-01-24T16:01:00.000-05:002006-01-24T16:02:18.373-05:00

I just wrote a kickass song called "Conspiracies and Mysteries". How much do you wish you were me right now?

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137957344034831622006-01-22T13:59:00.000-05:002006-01-22T14:15:44.050-05:00

Yesterday I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art with a friend who is a liberal despite, or more likely, because of the fact that he has absolutely no awareness of what's going on in the world. And we'd wandered into the American Wing, (his first observation: "Ah, European Art." My response, "No, these look early American to me.") and we happened upon the famous painting of Washington crossing

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137956351401989052006-01-22T13:57:00.000-05:002006-01-22T13:59:11.423-05:00

This is exceptionally good news: The Office has been renewed for a third season. Yay!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137818477929665032006-01-20T23:37:00.000-05:002006-01-20T23:58:09.156-05:00

I'm a bit ashamed to announce it, but the most exciting part of my evening, by far, is the discovery that 'alive' and 'arrive' rhyme.UPDATE: 'Amend' and 'ascend' also rhyme. Jackpot!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137792993471792052006-01-20T16:35:00.000-05:002006-01-20T16:36:33.486-05:00

F^$%.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137770070050444232006-01-20T10:14:00.000-05:002006-01-20T10:14:30.053-05:00

I have auditions this afternoon. So exciting!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137770021971377612006-01-20T10:04:00.000-05:002006-01-20T10:13:42.000-05:00

QandO has a great post about a blogger conference call with the various options for House Majority Leader, which basically boils down to, "For the love of God, not Roy Blunt." As a native Missourian and someone who voted for Blunt, I have to say -- I couldn't agree with you more. I voted for Roy Blunt for one reason only: Until we have Osama's head in a hatbox, and Iran is a secular democracy and

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137693859350621682006-01-19T13:02:00.000-05:002006-01-19T13:04:19.373-05:00

Tonight, 9:30 ET/8:30 CT, NBC. The Office. The best show you're not watching. Unless you're Mike. In which case you are watching. Take the half an hour. It's worth it. I promise.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137561710647165072006-01-18T00:20:00.000-05:002006-01-18T00:21:50.660-05:00

Cross a pug and a beagle and what do you get? A monochromatic, angry-looking beagle. Boo.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137515712487529392006-01-17T11:25:00.000-05:002006-01-17T11:35:12.516-05:00

You may now stop congratulating yourselves for your bravery for writing, directing, acting in, and fawning over gay-oriented films such as Capote and Brokeback Mountain. To hear you talk about it, you'd seriously think that no one has ever made a gay movie before, or if they had, they'd been met by picketers and firebombs. Remember the The Birdcage riots? Remember when Blake Edwards and Julie

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137469829164463192006-01-16T22:49:00.000-05:002006-01-16T22:50:29.180-05:00

Did someone just say "as the Reverend Journalist Edward R. Murrow"?And do they exist in the same general reality as I do?

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137468166864276262006-01-16T22:18:00.000-05:002006-01-16T22:22:46.883-05:00

I'm sure Joaquin Phoenix was fabulous in Walk the Line but it had no business in the comedy/musical catagory. A biopic about a singer is, almost always, a movie with songs. That does not make it a musical. A musical is where people burst into song to express their feelings. Walk the Line is not a musical. It's also a bit weird to group musicals in with comedies, because, since about 1960, the two

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137466457747249072006-01-16T21:53:00.000-05:002006-01-16T21:54:17.750-05:00

I refuse to see any movie that declares itself (or is declared by any member of the creative or artistic team) to be "important."

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137465715756780562006-01-16T21:40:00.000-05:002006-01-16T21:41:55.770-05:00

Did I just hear them give a Best Foreign Film Golden Globe to the movie Paradise Now from the country Palestine? That's what I thought. Of course the film from the politically correct made-up country won. That's why we love Hollywood.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137464157838102372006-01-16T21:14:00.000-05:002006-01-16T21:15:57.853-05:00

We get to hear an acceptance speech in a beautiful Irish accent. Yay. Of course, that acceptance speech is for playing Elvis, which is a bit of a heresy, but whatever. And it was REALLY short. He actually ran out of people to think. Interesting.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137462708686937052006-01-16T20:50:00.000-05:002006-01-16T20:54:30.406-05:00

Steve Carell just won the Golden Globe for The Office. Yay!UPDATE: And his speech was really cute. The joke was that he hadn't written anything, but his wife had and handed it to him, and it was consequently very "his wife Nancy"-centric. I love men who love their wives.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137445964210522372006-01-16T16:12:00.000-05:002006-01-16T17:05:52.743-05:00

Holly and Susan, this is for you.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137443344842540942006-01-16T15:27:00.000-05:002006-01-16T15:29:04.856-05:00

Man: "Do you sell motor oil?"Clerk: "..."(Duane Reade is the New York CVS/Walgreens)

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137401171322715132006-01-16T03:42:00.000-05:002006-01-16T03:46:11.323-05:00

Really the only decent rhyme* for "Thank you" is "spank you", which is not ideal in the context of a father-daughter song, especially when used by the daughter. And especially when it's not a comedy song. To borrow an expression from a friend, any song that uses the phrase "spank you" ceases to be a drama and is simply an ugly comedy. *"Yank you" is a bit grammatically obscure. And an even worse

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137400734824128732006-01-16T03:35:00.000-05:002006-01-16T03:38:54.836-05:00

The trouble with writing at 3:34 in the morning is that my schlock-filter tends to be down. Granted, when you're trying to write a semi-frank to frank love song, that's actually pretty helpful in getting started. I mean, it's one thing if you're trying to write an indirect love song -- you can write about pancakes or whatnot. But all of the really good ways of telling someone you love them have

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137399315433415152006-01-16T03:07:00.000-05:002006-01-16T03:15:15.446-05:00

There's really nothing like getting to the point where you now have to write the 11 o'clock number. Because it has to be a humdinger. And it has to be new material. I mean, one of the nice things about writing a second act is that you have a lot of material from which to draw reprises. But no. The 11:00 has to be soaring, heartbreaking, uplifting, and entirely original. And, in this case, it has

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137393946837109082006-01-16T01:37:00.000-05:002006-01-16T01:45:46.856-05:00

For hours of procratinatory fun, go check out Fametracker, which is probably the funniest, best-written celebrity-oriented website I've ever seen. Lots of great sections, including the "Hey, It's That Guy!" section, the "Fame Audit" section, the "Galaxy of Fame" section, and my personal favorite, "Celebrity vs. Thing", in which the author debates the relative merits of, say, Tom Hanks versus

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137250982498886452006-01-14T10:00:00.000-05:002006-01-14T10:03:02.513-05:00

I think that this is good advice. I'd add that if you're overcome by the sheer hilarity of the mental picture, he's also probably not the one.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137219476838275852006-01-14T01:12:00.000-05:002006-01-14T01:17:56.856-05:00

I realize that most of you live far away and can't do this, but if you're in the area, run, don't walk, to the Pixar exhibit at MOMA. If I were a visual artist, I'd kill to work there. When you see the range of artwork put together for each movie, just to figure out each color, line, character, etc, it's just amazing. What it appears that they do is give all of their artists the story, and set

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137121768344568912006-01-12T22:05:00.000-05:002006-01-12T22:09:28.363-05:00

Okay, I have a confession to make. I really, REALLY love NBC's "The Office". Yes, I'm sure it pales in comparison to the British version, which I have chosen not to see. I love it anyway. Oh, iTunes, precious iTunes, thank you for bringing it to me. Tonight's episode, what with the grill and all, was really very funny. It had a certain understated quality about it, weirdly, but was

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137117274757861772006-01-12T20:53:00.000-05:002006-01-12T20:54:34.770-05:00

Julie Andrews has gone through virtually her entire life with the same haircut.Discuss.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137083111352318572006-01-12T11:16:00.000-05:002006-01-12T11:25:11.366-05:00

Remember what I said about pensions being so my-grandma? Well, now Fortune is saying it too. It really is over for the corporate pension. Now that IBM has opted out, telling employees last week that their pension benefits will be frozen in 2008, it's hard to see what's to stop every last American corporation from preparing its eventual exit from the pension business. Lots of reasonably healthy

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137050888689873612006-01-12T02:20:00.000-05:002006-01-12T02:28:08.710-05:00

I really hate news stories about polls about facts. You know what I mean -- things with headlines like, "Poll: Majority of Americans Believe Moon is Cheese," or "Poll: Most Americans Think GWB Eats Only Okra for Breakfast," or, as in this current case, "Poll: Iraq won't be governing itself soon." My general belief is that headlines like this are a stealth way of reporting what the media would

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137047555674637962006-01-12T01:29:00.000-05:002006-01-12T01:32:35.676-05:00

The next time someone tells you that the American tendency to consider marriage to be a religious covenant is a relic from Puritan times, you can tell them they are wrong. The Puritans of New England rejected all of these Anglican ideas. They believed that marriage was not a religious ceremony but a civil contract. They required that this covenant must be "agreed" or "executed" (not "performed"

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137047181661274082006-01-12T01:23:00.000-05:002006-01-12T01:26:21.663-05:00

And you thought your parents were strict: The Puritan believed in the Calvinist Theory in which because of Adam’s original sin, all infants were naturally disposed to do evil things in the world. This led the Puritans to believe the utmost purpose of child rearing was what they called "breaking the will."Breaking the will typically involved strict attention to detail. Children would listen and

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137046827207506662006-01-12T01:15:00.000-05:002006-01-12T01:20:27.210-05:00

So apparently there are salamanders in Massachusetts. And the people of Massachusetts are committed to their salamanders, as evidenced in the following: The spotted salamanders commonly seen in New England and the eastern United States are glossy black with two rows of bright yellow spots down their backs and tails. They can crawl up to half a mile. One night every spring they leave their

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137046405119177462006-01-12T01:12:00.000-05:002006-01-12T01:13:25.133-05:00

I'm looking for good Puritan terms of endearment. Preferably one that a mother would use for her child. Any ideas? I'm leaning towards, in this case, salamander. If there are salamanders in Massachusetts. Or England.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137044812539072322006-01-12T00:46:00.000-05:002006-01-12T00:46:52.556-05:00

Did Puritans wear socks?

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1137043177850123412006-01-12T00:18:00.000-05:002006-01-12T00:19:37.866-05:00

This is fascinating. Like the Anglicans, the Puritans brought their customs to the New World. Perceiving the Anglican wedding customs as excessive, they had turned their backs on the belief that marriage was an unbreakable and mystical union blessed by God. To them, marriage was a civil contract and, if the rules were broken, dissolvable by humans.Puritans believed that true love was the

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136937718603840792006-01-10T18:58:00.000-05:002006-01-10T19:01:58.623-05:00

Totally Incongruous Ted Kennedy Thing Of Yesterday:It was revealed that he owns a Portuguese Water Dog named "Splash".Totally Incongruous Ted Kennedy Thing of Today: Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy told Alito that his judicial opinions suggest otherwise."Time and again, even in routine matters involving average Americans, you give enormous, almost total deference to the exercise of governmental

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136920377275988772006-01-10T14:12:00.000-05:002006-01-10T14:12:57.296-05:00

"Put Katie in the haunted house!"

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136873498111168112006-01-10T01:02:00.000-05:002006-01-10T01:11:38.146-05:00

PJ O'Rourke's review of the new Wonkette novel expresses the deepest desire of my heart: Creative writing teachers should be purged until every last instructor who has uttered the words "Write what you know" is confined to a labor camp. Please, talented scribblers, write what you don't. The blind guy with the funny little harp who composed The Iliad , how much combat do you think he saw? I will

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136869898088904122006-01-10T00:06:00.000-05:002006-01-10T00:11:38.100-05:00

Here's the song in question from the previous "What meter do you prefer?" post. I'm going to let you see for yourself which you'd prefer. I've decided to go with the meter the song is actually in. It just makes more sense. But you don't have to take my word for it. Click on the thumbnail for a close-up. This is the 4/4 version. This is the 6/8-5/4 version. And this song kinda rocks, by the way.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136773316213513532006-01-08T21:20:00.000-05:002006-01-08T21:21:56.226-05:00

...play from a score in which every other bar is 6/8 and rest are 5/4, and the beats fall at their proper locations within the bars, or would you rather play from a score in which all the bars are 4/4, but the beats fall in kinda screwy places in the bars?

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136772565120117902006-01-08T21:08:00.000-05:002006-01-08T21:09:25.136-05:00

"He gave her the A, if you know what I mean..."

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136660465431658872006-01-07T13:58:00.000-05:002006-01-07T14:01:05.443-05:00

E. M. Zanotti over at The American Princess mentioned that she wished she had a good nickname for Iran's President Ahmadinejad. I propose "Mad Nejad". Feel free to contribute other suggestions, or to use mine in your own writing.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136617561626505972006-01-07T01:44:00.000-05:002006-01-07T02:06:01.646-05:00

I'm sure most of you have seen this by now, but one of the late Sago miners wrote a note to his family before he died. It read, "Tell all -- I see them on the other side. It wasn't bad just went to sleep. JR I love you" His nephew, on CNN.com, said that his uncle had intended to say "I will see them..." and he's probably right. But I choose not to believe that. Pretty much my all-time favorite

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1136181978931045062006-01-02T00:30:00.000-05:002006-01-02T01:06:19.013-05:00

Today's NYT has an article that basically lays the blame for the suffering of the film industry on the lithe, hairless shoulders of Orlando Bloom. Which might be slightly unfair. Let's look at this. IT was months before the cameras were set to roll on one of 20th Century Fox's most ambitious projects for 2005, a $140 million historic epic about the Crusades by the director Ridley Scott. And still

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1135913771142169652005-12-29T22:32:00.000-05:002005-12-29T22:37:34.343-05:00

It's not really that often that a CNN.com article makes you stop and go "Oh, wow..." but...Oh, wow...The teaser: Maybe it was the time the taxi dumped him at the Iraq-Kuwait border, leaving him alone in the middle of the desert. Or when he drew a crowd at a Baghdad food stand after using an Arabic phrase book to order. Or the moment a Kuwaiti cab driver almost punched him in the face when he

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1135085188564755542005-12-20T08:14:00.000-05:002005-12-20T08:26:28.596-05:00

Fuck. Project of the day: Get to LaGuardia. Preferably not on foot. I hate the transit workers. Their demands are unreasonable. And it pisses me off that the MTA caved on raising the pension age to 62. Hey Albany! Why don't you pass a law raising the pension age for ALL government workers. Or here's a wacky idea...401(k)s. Their time has come. Pensions are so my grandma. I'm sorry, I'm not

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1134712205532360762005-12-16T00:49:00.000-05:002005-12-16T00:50:05.546-05:00

No word yet. I'm going to bed. I hate them all.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1134709312064048472005-12-15T23:59:00.000-05:002005-12-16T00:01:52.076-05:00

Three minutes. In three minutes we will know whether or not I will have to walk 3 miles, in the ice and sleet, up hill, both ways, to the hospital for joint diseases, all because the f$*#ing transit workers union demands the right to retire at 55 (a compromise from their demand of 50 and the city's demand of 62, and 55 is the status quo now) and a large raise and a pony. I hate them. MTA too.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1134417060493061092005-12-12T14:49:00.000-05:002005-12-12T14:51:00.506-05:00

The stage manager only calls in dead. Thus, if you're really sick but not actually dead, you have to go to work, which sucks royally. On the other hand, you get the God-mic, which almost makes up for it.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1133241528884387552005-11-29T00:13:00.000-05:002005-11-29T00:18:48.896-05:00

I'm not the sort of girl who gets hit on all that often. Really. I mean, proposed to occasionally, but generally, I don't get hit on. Except, oddly enough, in the grocery store. Or in the very close vecinity of one. Tonight I got hit on twice, once by a drunk guy just outside the grocery store who asked me if I played ball, and once by the stock guy in the grocery store who came up to me and told

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1132636345027878342005-11-22T00:11:00.000-05:002005-11-22T00:12:25.040-05:00

The Mango got a new SM job! And it pays! Yay!!!

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1132516646839517742005-11-20T14:56:00.000-05:002005-11-20T14:57:26.856-05:00

Brilliant.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1132379109422392502005-11-19T00:15:00.000-05:002005-11-19T00:45:09.490-05:00

I saw the movie of RENT tonight. And it was pretty good. Not perfect, mind you, but good. It actually took me quite a while to buy into, for a couple of reasons. One was that I know the soundtrack so well that basically any change sticks out to me. I assume this will be the experience of a significant part of any given audience. Another was that the real opening sequence (RENT) came a little out

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1132268612801490982005-11-17T18:00:00.000-05:002005-11-17T18:03:32.813-05:00

"Well, I wanted to be there for your [thing], but I had to go teach [major male movie star] how to sing "Little Buttercup" in falsetto. And he was in drag. Sorry."

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1131954894281164162005-11-14T02:52:00.000-05:002005-11-14T02:54:54.283-05:00

Okay, I love it. This feature in the Theatre section of the Times is being deliberately cheeky towards Andrew Lloyd Webber. For example: Spectacles, of course, are nothing new to Lord Lloyd Webber and the "Woman in White" director, Sir Trevor Nunn. The two teamed up on "Cats," "Starlight Express" and "Sunset Boulevard," and individually tackled "The Phantom of the Opera" (Lord Lloyd Webber) and

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1131954179837381342005-11-14T02:41:00.000-05:002005-11-14T02:46:20.396-05:00

...there are three witches. Their names are Nobs, Squiddle, and Hunch. There's got to be a breakfast cereal that would want to license those from me, right?I think this show is going to offend both fundamentalists and wiccans. That means I'm doing something right.

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6005325.post-1131942087280799092005-11-13T23:10:00.000-05:002005-11-13T23:21:27.296-05:00

Today I saw Joe Brooks, the man behind (and beside and in front of and beneath) the monstrosity that is In My Life. I was walking north passed the Marquis, he was walking south. I was very tempted to approach him, though I do not approach celebrities (but he's not one, so that makes it okay) but what do you say to a man like that? "Hey, I hear that through your monumental hubris and lack of

mangohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09232007563067045342noreply@blogger.com