d u m b m o n k e y
el chango tonto
icq#391595

for current monkey biz go HERE

almost daily requirements
le mot juste
poem
Jon Carroll
Leah Garchick
APOD
nerve

diversions
spizzerinctum
joesparks
steely D
desipio
AYCYAS?
poot
encarta quiz
java poetry
cruelmonkey
Ralph
howstuffworks
straight dope

previous
monkey-biz

May ~ April
mar ~ feb ~ jan

6.30.00

fine lines here today
~ ~ ~
Big news in college hoops
At UNC, Bill Guthridge steps down with
Kansas coach Roy Williams a possible successor.
Updates at the Tarheel site.
more at UNCBaskeball.com.
dreaming of an open road
on this friday Am, especially w/a FULL work week ahead of us (AGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!) next week; inspired initially by this item leading us to seek out some material in the same vein, like this site of open road images, stumbling across these interesting pages along w/ this nod to Walt W. How about the option of a different kind of highway? For the neophyte open road seeker, particularly of the female gender, there's this book. This site refers to a radio show we should like to hear (nice watercolors), and here's another road tale. Seems like a weekend theme to explore & we wonder if there's any open road tales at the fray (we hope!)
damn, we get Tuesday off, but gotzta come back here Monday,
no time for a nice road trip ourowndamnself...

6.29.00

jerry & phil talk lakers
on A.C., Maddog & an xmas wish
~ ~ ~
last night's NBA draft
by Andy Dolan, courtesy On Hoops
hooo, 'dat Andy cracks us up!
big props to K.D. for his nice work on the Live draft reporting...

mercy, are we weary
this Am, but only one more 7 o'clock start to face tomorrow (we gotzta get up SO early to catch that first bus into the city), so some "leftovers", so to speak, from yesterdays ramblin' harvest of the web garden.
In light of some big news recently, here's an archived NYT item, perhaps we'll find a used copy of this tome at Pegasus, our fave used bookstore on Solano Ave.
these links go WAY back, & came across them sort of accidentally (yah, y'all know how that happens, eh?) & feature A.C. Clarke, one a review of Songs of Distant Earth, the other an essay. Found both of 'em interesting enough to share, one reason being that we were recently trying to straighten up some things around Chez Dumbmonkey & wrestling with the Library (damn, w/this many books it has become that), wondering how & when we might cull the collection of what may be determined as no longer useful or necessary (this is a SIZABLE quandary) & the esteemed Mr. Clarke has always provided thoughtful material for our ingestion.
ohhhh, & quickly now, vite vite! we are including this poetry related link along with this additional item on Izumi & offering our thanks to highly regarded satellite jockey (& pal-o-mine) M.E. for sending
those along for the dumbmonkey's enjoyment.
Ciao, bambini, we're on our way out the door...

6.28.00

seems that Hawaiian shirts have become
a topic of discussion & posting in blogdom of late,
so we'll include dumbmonkey's sartorial contribution
aiii-ya!, graphic intensive, may take a little time to load...
~ ~ ~
& what the hell...
yah, it's old, yet we'll include this story of
1 man's search for THE right shirt
The Limey
is definitely on our recommended list,
& now the DVD is available.
~ ~ ~
ohno, in the grip of anglophilia
after the post re The Limey,
so we had to visit Anorak for this nasty little bit
randy scandi???
ohhh lala
any Opera users out there?
~ ~ ~
dumbmonkey is tired this AM
but will continue to attempt bloggin'on righteously,
smiting the doubtful & scornful w/the mightiness of his posts...
altho we scared unto death of ethel's threat of dismissal,
so we be careful from here on out

oooh, we betcha he hatez dem new windows
opening all over da'damn place around here...

~ ~ ~
here's an idea
for the budding .com entrepeneur
Link Insurance
whilst perusing vintage dumbmonkey, discovering a couple of links had "gone south", & in our attempt to keep this leaky creaky craft afloat, we went to the original source, searched & become frustrated, finally located a single item from the original & replaced the link with it. MAYBE we'll seek out the entire original post later, but before we keeps'a ramblin': Link Insurance; see, we arrange w/our insurer to store the pages we link to (many of them, at least like the NYT or LA Times) so that when link dies, the insurer has the page copied & we post the copied link. Yah, is that a great idea or what? uhhh, not really okayokayokay, so it's got a few wrinkles to work out, but watch out,
somebuddy be offering you link insurance real soon...
yah... right
~ ~ ~
start Humpday off with
the daily puzzler

we too tired for it right now,
maybe after another double espresso...

6.27.00

investing in your children's education
is usually money well spent, & as tuition's not getting any cheaper,
one needs to become familiar w/some options that are available.
More on ScholarShare here & some basic info on UGMAs/UTMAs here
~ ~ ~
for the gurls in your life
some news here & the site here
~ ~ ~
desktop funstuff
at UBUBU.com
yah, simple minds/simple pleasures,
rightO, for Win-types only...

the word from Texans
who know G. Bush Jr., courtesy Texas Monthly
(one of THE BEST things in Texas)
~ ~ ~
a blast from the past in Paris
King Crimson at the Olympia
Fripp Fans should check out the DGM site
~ ~ ~
nothing else to say but
eeuuwwwwwwwww!!

6.26.00

what was old
becomes new again
s'funny, don't think many bloggers gonna recall Howard C. very well...
because it will be some time
before substantial benefits result from the recently mapped Human Genome,
we best begin taking better care of ourselves,
hence, this for menz, this for womynz & this for der kinder courtesy the NYT.
~ ~ ~
more health related news
we'll alert you to this news, again courtesy NYT,
alongside the following repost from dumbmonkey of 5.13:
The State of Maine
takes a courageous stand, it'll be interesting to see what happens next
'tho surprising not to see anything more about this at any of these.
we're including this and this for a little additional perspective
grew up on the Texas/Mexico border
in El Paso and while perusing news sites yesterday, came across a story that inspired the search resulting in a look at the border we'll feature this Am. While this is the border we are personally most familiar with, borders everywhere have some things in common, bordertowns in particular.
For a little historical perspective, here'a a PBS documentary that aired last year, & from the PBS site, this timeline link alongside this link on the early border dwellers.
The Border has it's own mythology, Barry Gifford examines it in Border Town, w/brief excerpt here; some discussion of Juarez & Bob Dylan;
here's a little about the music of the border.
Now, we'll include more on current border life, starting w/this brief snapshot, then this essay on la frontera as introduction to this extensive site, we'll also include these links with some info re crime & the environment in relation to the border, both from this '98 study. Modern life on the border includes stories like this & you've heard stories about this before, & not always from the border we are referring to. Modern life on the border includes tales of the maquiladoras
and concerns of border security.
We're going to wrap up this ramble w/two links, almost opposites in terms of what these individuals are perceiving & experiencing, first this one, & we'll close with the one we discovered initially, first of a multi-part series from the Washington Post.

6.25.00

considering a career change?
perhaps you have a dear cousin seeking employment in
the babylon of Silicon Valley or the S.F. Bay area
~ ~ ~
whoa, babee!
them's some CUTE toesies!!
quiet reigns again at chez dumbmonkey
& that is not to say the atmosphere is loudly raucous w/the Momz&Popz around (altho it can become so when the Santa Rosans show up), but that now it is only ourowndamnself & faithful poochster en la casa and the convivality & companionship one becomes accustomed to is suddenly gone.
these days, in our silverback years we are given more to meditating & ruminating upon our life and the lives of those around & closest to us &, when we can manage to avoid becoming overwhelmed by the events of the world at large, particularly those more horrible examples of apeman behavior, we offer up thanks to the universe at large, for bestowing so much good in our life, so much to be appreciative of. Some of us much luckier than others in that regard, to be well-loved & well-thought-of by those closest to you, by a number of good & close friends, by the majority of co-workers & the variety of folks one's circle of aquaintences encompasses: the clerks at the grocery, kids at the video store & coffee shop, the other regulars there, those familiar faces seen in your life, perhaps not daily, but often enough to become familiar.
Several years ago, we became committed to a course of action which involved assisting an aged couple living next door, longtime neighbors of ours, thru a period of time which eventually included both of their deaths. We haven't exactly come to terms w/all that we have experienced over that period of time, but something above all others resonates hugely in our soul & being these days, & it has to do with the care & maintenance of our relationships with those closest to us. We've glimpsed a little bit into that fleeting aspect of our days, how quickly time will pass, how conveniently so many things can be overlooked. While viewing American Beauty again recently, the mention of "all the beauty in the world" and how one's heart can barely contain the joy of that knowledge, ahh, it more than resonates, our eyes almost brim with tears at the thought of it.
so here on this quiet sunday morning listening to Coltrane & alone at the keyboard, we appreciate the occasionally grim & challenging times in our life, the periods of estrangement from those closest to us, the absolute enmity that occasionally existed between mon cher papa & ourself, the stupidity & ungallant behavior we indulged in, as all of these things & more have allowed us to enjoy & better comprehend the bounty & benevolence present in our life now, we'll keep our eyes, ears & heart open, hoping to learn more...

6.22.00

gamely trying to keep up
with the folks while they're visiting, matching their caloric intake, and we are all big league in this regard, experiencing the occasional twinge of consciousness as to "just how big a piece of pie do you want, son?" & wouldn't it be nice to have some ice cream with that? (OH YEAH!) so, we will be paying more attention to this kind of thing and perhaps apply ourselves a little more assiduously to more physical pursuits, bike riding, hiking, some hoops. Interesting chart in magazine we were perusing the other day suggesting substitute meal choices that were the equivalent caloric intake of some "poor" choices, here are some examples:
1 chicken nugget = 1 1/4 cups vegetarian lentil soup;
(caloric equiv. is 80 calories)
3-4 asst'd cookies = Mixed salad w/dressing, marinated hearts of palm & artichoke hearts, 3 oz. salmon, asparagus, oven-browned potatoes,
poached pear in red wine
w/the caloric equiv. of each of the above being 460 calories
& probably another 15 examples of this kind of thing. At this point in time we are thinking more along the lines of healthy choices re the care & maintenance of the silverbacked torso, rather than mere vanity, but there is no doubt some measure of that involved as well, but enough to force us into a gym and the regular usage of those torture devices, well, we don't think so...
~ ~ ~
Momz&Popz & ourselves had the pleasure of seeing Small Time Crooks yesterday, and as we all enjoyed it, happily recommend it, simple enough fare & any Woody Allen fan will appreciate it. It breaks no new ground, holds no great surprises or relevatory moments, but is a sweet & pleasant comedy, an ideal film to attend in company w/one's parents. We have challenged their comfort level on occasion, and recently viewed American Beauty in the comfort of the dumbmonkey viewing salon, and we know Momz&Popz are up to the challenge, they feel their finely honed sensitivities sometimes bludgeoned by coarse language and scenes of flesh slapping upon flesh whether it be erotically or violently (hooo boy, sometimes BOTH!), but we are of the opinion that one shouldn't get too complacent, and these films deserve to be seen, especially by folks who may sometimes choose not to, for similiar reasons. We've challenged the Momz to fare like Almodovar's All About My Mother or Magnolia while not being able to introduce our Popz to the same material, at least in a theatre (where we fervently believe a film should be seen) but may eventually do so thru videotape or DVD. Oh, we ramblin' now ain't we, well, what we are meaning to get to is seeing Elaine May on screen in Woody's latest, which is sort of a thrill for the dumbmonkey, 'cause we got this thing about smart, funny, interesting looking women, makes our heart go pitta pat, & we were a little disappointed to discover how little material about her was available on line. We also introduced the Momz & Pops to The Dinner Game, and heartily recommend it to any of you in search of a fine little farce. We'll include this interview with the director, Francis Verber, who you'll discover is responsible for some other French hits that American studios have attempted (& usually not so successfully) to convert for domestic audiences. C'mon folks, don't choose to Not watch a film just because it may be subtitled,
you will be missing out...

6.21.00

many shameful facts in the USA
but one of the most glaring is the state of Health Care & this story serves as another reminder of misplaced priorities. More on the report here
Shaquille steps up
& no, we don't mean on the hardwood,
but in light of this it's great to hear about this. Good ol' David L. had a few things to say about the finals, especialy those hordes of assholes intent on mucking things up, but he also gave us these, & you'll also find a funny bit by Biff Henderson, stage manager extraordinaire, altho you'll need that realplayer thingie to view it.
& no, we won't be keeping our post finals
celebration up for too long, hell, we'd indulge you...

6.20.00

a pleasant surprise
while waiting for the Muni train near Pac Bell Park,
the city that knows how (sometimes!!!) has inbedded little surprises in the concrete,
and here's the one we found there
the season came to an exciting close
last night, & Kelly Dwyer has pretty much nailed it, can't add much more from the dumbmonkey's perspective; the Pacers were a far worthier opponent than we initially gave them credit for, Croshere made a big impression on us playing w/a huge amount of confidence. We always hate to see good fellas like Larry Bird on the losing end, but when it comes to the Laker-dudes, rather it be Larry than the other way around. K.M., thanks for the note, ain't it a shame when assholes show up and make an ugly mess of things. Now the long days of summer are here, and we will attempt to find some distraction in the fates of the A's (boo Giants) & our own occasional forays onto the blacktop, so if you see a long-haired silverback out there hoisting something looking like an ugly skyhook (BUT IT WORKS~!!)
stop & say howdy, & we'll talk hoops for awhile...
~ ~ ~
sometimes it does come down to size
and this kinda thing always makes us shake our shaggy visage in wonder,
whew, what's next??? More on the microdrive here
~ ~ ~
Beijing + 5
from the Village Voice, a series examining the state of things
5 years after the 4th World Conference for Women.
~ ~ ~
hooooohaaah! don't let us kid ya' folks, dumbmonkey a happy fella today,
on vacation w/the Momz&Popz, Lakerdudes winning it,
the Big Fella accomplishing the MVP hat trick,
things pretty bouyant around Chez dumbmonkey,
come on over & have a glass of champagne...

6.19.00

gecko technology
& yesssssss, we aware this already in the news,
but indulge us, will ya, we be sure to return the favor...
~ ~ ~
and by the way
ALWAYS have an extra set of keys
~ ~ ~
Oh Yah, & remember
god's on their side
in celebration of those fools
being born every minute, there was this in Esquire in April, w/related story here & here, followed by this, & (yah we KNOW) it's unlikely this wasn't blogged earlier ( cardhouse may have dibs on that), but in our vacation state of mind, thought we'd bring it back, also use it as a blog-segue into this announcement and also to share the dubious acheivements of the week
told ya' we'd be back...
our tax dollars at work
courtesy NYT, & Acrobat reader required for your money's worth
some miscellaneous Monday Monkey-biz
firstly, this L.A. Times piece on mini-film web content; as the pro hoops season comes to it's not so sizzling finish the S.F. Pro-Am Summer Series kicks into gear, & dumbmonkey could waste plenty of your time telling you about seeing Hardaway, Peyton, Kidd, Davis & other players w/Bay Area roots of one kind or another, facing off against each other in Kezar Pavilion, GRATIS, with a crowd of true hoops fans in attendance, the games well-played & officiated, w/a 3 year old women's league now firmly established playing every Saturday. Probably not a lot of opportunity to see top caliber pros around this summer, as a few of them have Olympic Games commitments, but it's enough for some of us who'll be jonesing bigtime 'til the college season starts again in late Oct.
~ ~ ~
regular visitors understand the dumbmonkey "en famille" this week, w/Momz&Popz in town, & spending some time between the Albany homebase & Bro K's house in Santa Rosa, & enjoying a vacation of sorts, well, at least we ain't on the j-o-b, so that be a good thing, & will update here when & where possible, have some ruminations to share from Poppa's day yesterday, particularly inspired by our viewing (for us a re-viewing) of American Beauty, really worth seeing again if you've seen it once, and for those who haven't seen it, do so, & try to plan doing so without interruption or distraction, a more rewarding experience can be had. anywayz... enough of this chatter for now, be forewarned we will return

6.17.00

Stop. go no further here
hie thyself instead to Ethel for a bit of Mencken & Hicks,
then maybe, if you would be so kind,
come back and pick up where you left off, thank you...
tall in the saddle & quoting quatrains
time to celebrate the Bards of the Old West, or at least those living the traditions of the Old West, & we'll include this link, this other, & then howzabout some
Biscuits & Gravy, which'll have to do for now 'cause the dumbmonkey & his Popz gotzta go get some coffee!!, adios & Yippie Ki Yo Ki Yay!!!!

6.16.00

fast & furious, & just a few
links & misc to get us thru the AM, & because the dumbmonkey "vacationing" over the next week, posting may be somewhat irregular (so what else is new?) during that time, maybe a road trip involved & we likes to think we be able to post some snapshots, but then again, we could be having way too much fun...
courtesy Ftrain, archy & mehitabel (old, OLD school stuff)
left brain, right brain courtesy Viewzone
~ ~ ~
more miscelleaneous Bukowski
C.B. ate my balls
"question & answer"
These words...
from ATN, this appreciation
~ ~ ~
wishing you all a FINE weekend...

6.15.00

mining the riches of the web this evening, & we start w/ this link to the Golden Gate (a brief aside, that original link we tried has been a bitch to utilize, we offer our apologies & have changed it to a QuickTime movie file avail at the site, the original page we intended to post is #276 in the list of Alpha-indexed titles avail from this page); from this fine site, which is actually part of this institution, which is one place we don't mind seeing our tax dollars at work. Stepping out of the time machine for a moment, we'd like to express our heartfelt thanks w/a tip o' the ol'red fez to the crew at APOD & their ability to do it daily for FIVE years. happy anniversary!!!
why we're seeing more of #6 this days
Celtic Big Man Bill Russell
oooooh celtics, booooo hisssssss
praise Allah...
for the return of the marine layer
the city, obscured...
one of the sights we'll never weary of is that of the returning fog, especially when viewed while crossing the Bay Bridge heading home, a low lying mass of fog, like an arm outstretched thru the Golden Gate, fingers extending themselves over Emeryville, Berkeley & Albany. Marvelous sight once upon the Bayshore freeway passing E-ville, portions of low lying fog nearly upon the surface and appearing as steam rising from the water's surface. dumbmonkey thanks the clerk of the weather
for restoring the balance
here are a couple of bridge related links
Golden Gate Bridge
historical photos of both bridges
somebody tell the clerk of the weather
to chill out just a little bit, this is not why we chose to live in the S.F. Bay area.
~ ~ ~
yes, a certain professional basketball club managed to extricate themselves from a sticky situation in OT last night, altho for many moments there we were almost ready to belive that theory re conspiracy betw the league & NBC in order to have a game 6 on Sunday.
~ ~ ~
& while perusing cinema related sites we found this item which we thought interesting enough to pass along to our devoted & faithful readership, all 12 of you (TWELVE???) 'cause we're sure you're tired of hearing about m&m, or courtney's piece in salon or the MS court battle, on & on ad nauseum...
~ ~ ~
any parents out there should take note of this item, or perhaps you are one of those lasses young enough to be concerned with it yourself, you know all that soda pop can't be good for you...
~ ~ ~
closing out this Am's post w/ Bukowski related item from Salon, and dumbmonkey regrets not having included C.B. in our April poetry listings, but maybe make up for it w/future post devoted to Bukowski

y'all try & stay cool now...

6.14.00

i'm melting, i'm melting
kinda hot, ain't it?
leastways, around here it is...
the AFI's Top 100 Comedies
w/plenty of room for discussion,
& we'll be back with our own pithy comments later...
~ ~ ~
INTERIOR: Chez Dumbmonkey; Later that morning, bright & sunny, it will be a hot day in the Bay Area. The large, furry fellow sits in front of the monitor, paws busily typing away. POV is over his right shoulder, camera zooms in over his hunched figure to focus on screen.
WIT: Preston Sturges
there happens to be four of Sturges's films included in the list determined by the AFI, again, there is plenty of room for discussion of favorite omitted films, but considering the scope of the 500 titles that the Top 100 were selected from, dumbmonkey agrees with, oh, maybe 75% of the selections, but has no disagreement whatsoever w/the inclusion of these films by Mr. Sturges. Haven't seen 'em? Well, next time you are in your favorite video emporium, seek them out, and enjoy them, see for yourself & then consider many of the comedies released in recent years and see if you can come up w/any that compare in terms of excellent writing, the wit & style, the grace of the performances. Yah, definitely different times, no doubt, but Preston Sturges is a Giant in American film comedy, and you do yourselves a disservice if you haven't seen his work. Oh, yah, which films, you may ask. Ok, in order of our favorites: Sullivan's Travels, Miracle at Morgan's Creek, The Palm Beach Story & The Lady Eve.
we'll include this on Sturge's screenplays from The Atlantic online
& this link re Screwball Comedy to peruse.

6.13.00

goshdarnitall!
guess we don't watch enough TV, else we might have learned
about this earlier, at least we tuned in half way thru the list.
AAAAGGGGHHH! frames, how we dislikes them sometimes
bloggomania redux
cabinet
~ ~ ~
funnneeee
tip o' the ol'red fez to IBS
from the official record
somebuddy came to visit & left this calling card, & we believe we posted this
fine collection of lit links from bigbadcat once before, but the local heat wave has addled our brain, go, hie thyself there & peruse thereupon...
two must reads
ESPECIALLY if you might be stumbling across the dumbmonkey for the first time, or maybe perhaps you don't visit all the recommended links because, who knows, maybe assuming the wrong thing about 'em, Anyway, check out Sei Shonagon and one of my favoite scribes, Patti, both of them being real & writing about it.
Thank you, Sei & Patti
oh yah, read this too, from Ralph...
bloggomania
ennui says welcome to paradise; mebbe you get to the bottom of things w/ bottomquark; 9000 which may be a SAAB for all the dumbmonkey knows; presenting Silverblog & mebbe sometime we have Turquoiseblog to go alongside; & we'll include Archipelago, not only cause it's clever, but we love the word.
y'all blog on righteously now
magnetism & the birth of science
courtesy NYT, William Gilbert & brief bio here
climactic change
and it's effect on the Golden State
~ ~ ~
again, unearthly beauty
courtesy APOD
~ ~ ~
and on this day
along with this blast from the past

6.12.00

politics schmolitics!
just gimme a nice piece of ass

a lesson in civics (& maybe some gossipy smokey room stuff) from those krazy kats & kitties at Malapropism, el Espanto en la Maquina, Dr. Q.Queso
& la brilliante bleue sauterelle to whom we be tippin' our ol'red fez in a salute
to the politically astute & remember to always Blog On Righteously!
surrender the pink! surrender the pink!
Many many thanks
to Mr. Stilwell's Marginalia for the links provided to the BBC's Evolution site.
we loves to see the web utilized in this way. Gracias, Senor!
yah, but dat marginalia makes my eyeballs feel all funny
fog in the bay area
an explanation of our summer weather pattern
~ ~ ~
Hooooo Aaaaah!!
4 days & a wake-up before vacation #2 begins, & yah,
the dumbmonkey still got PLENTY of housework to take care of,
thank you very much, yet managed to put a dent into
the nearly insurmountable task...
~ ~ ~
BIG money in Crosswords
~ ~ ~
also from London Times
a word about K.D. Lang's new album
along w/this story re Women screenwriters in Hollywood
~ ~ ~
following link also featured elsewhere on this page,
but felt it worthwhile enough to post here,
& if you're able, follow thru & help Kermit do some good.
~ ~ ~
consider this a timely reminder
of the Stern Grove schedule, particularly these performers,
& what the hell, we'll repost this too...
~ ~ ~
we leave you w/this reminder,
it's in your power, so go out & make it a great week!
ciao bambini!!!

6.11.00

dumbmonkey counting his blessings
after a long day of domestic blaah (gotz to klean up da ha-ouse in prep for arrival of the Monkey Momz&Popz on friday, and BOY! we been too lazy for
TOO damn long... (might be hiring some help) ANYWAY...
tippin' our ol'red fez tonite to several lovely folk out there in cyberville,
a primero a el quarto de lagarto for the link to this
which in turn led us here, where, once we finish mopping the kitchen floor,
we may come back & visit, re-live those days of killing quarters by the roll;
we also want to say COWABUNGA and tip that ol'red fez TWO times to
Pat 'da K.C. Kat for mentioning yours truly TWICE (oh lala!) over this otherwise slow news weekend. ("Busted!" by Pat, those ain't my traps, borrowed the jpg from another site, so ain't sure at all what brand name they may be);
also wanted to send a BIG HOWDY (& how!!!) to RhondaK from FLA., for her faith in the spiritually restorative powers of the dumbmonkey page, & let you (yah You!) know about these events (particularly those of you in the Tampa Fla area) & to include this by the esteemed RhondaK from FLA. keep those cards & letters coming RhondaK dear, it's brings a smile to this aged silverback's face;
& lastly but by NO means leastly, the grand belle of West Topsham visited
this very cool place which makes me all kinds of varieties of envious.
man, we gotzta get ourowndamnself out to VT & see it ourself.
oooh, cannot get that catchy refrain outa our brain...
RhondaK from FLA.

oh yah, we almos' forgot...
reggie showed up
about fucking time Mr Invisible
Tech 2010
courtesy the NYT Sunday Magazine
uhhhh, the french fry that'll save our life?
~ ~ ~
dumbmonkey hates hisowndamnself for 'dis
but gonna do it anyway. Have ya seen this?
~ ~ ~

we listening to some JUICY big band music starting early this AM, out for coffee w/ faithful poochster alongside, took nice drive out in the hills, stopping by LHS parking lot to check out the morning view of the Bay, remembering the boyhood days in Jr. High, when as drummer in Stage Band, we provided solid rock steady beat to great Big Band tunes like Stardust, 1 O'Clock Jump, Take the "A" Train, Mood Indigo, oooooh baby, some real toe-tapping swinging sounds. we including a buncha related links below, now let's get jazzin'...
the Duke
credit where credit's due
big band theme song list
the great tunesmith, Hoagy Carmichael
red hot jazz
some swing links from Ink Blot
check out the site, then see the film
recording the big bands
get retro w/Atomic Magazine
One Beat Back (w/tunes!)
swingin' down the lane
is 'dis da same dumbmonkey that loves Foo Fighters?

6.10.00

some ramblin' thoughts about hands
standing in line for our coffee in the Solano Peet's yesterday AM there was this fellow a couple of people ahead of us, his hands resting on the counter. we couldn't help thinking what a handsome pair of hands his were (ours ain't bad either) and we remembered an ex-sweetie of ours had an intention of photographing people's hands, those of different tradesfolk, male & female, young and old. The sight of those hands also brought to mind the impulse of the sculptor, especially one who works with stone, and the immense patience and labor it must take to chisel some delicate & wonderful thing from something as unyielding as marble. Later, after we returned to Chez dumbmonkey, we set out seeking some references to sculpture on-line, & found much, related & unrelated, but (disappointingly) not very much about hands in particular, although we did discover several references to an exhibit of Rodin's that had made some rounds, "The Hands of Rodin", touring the U.S. a few years back featuring works from these folk's collection. Discovered this link, amongst others, re Rodin, then later same day ran across this post, which made me smile just 'cause of the serendipity of it, and to wrap this up want to offer up thanks for our hands, that have served us well, alongside thanks for the hands of those closest to us that we love to have touch us & those belonging to artists of various disciplines whose talented hands have touched us in other ways. some small miracle here, these wonders at the ends of our arms, so often taken for granted...
watched Kissed on IFC this morning
always pleases us to discover an interesting & challenging film that caught us unawares, like this one, released in '96. Screenplay is based on short story entitled "We So Seldom Look on Love" from the collection of the same title by
Barbara Gowdy, directed w/quiet authority & a delicate touch by
Lynn Stopkevich, with the luminously lovely Molly Parker in her first movie role, all of whom are Canadian (not that there's anything wrong w/that) but we remain mystified how such a strange & wonderful film got past us the first time around, as we particularly enjoy having our assumptions challenged. Look for it,
& challenge some of your own...

6.9.00

friday follies
DOH!!!
dumbmonkeys in the Pentagon
tired of the same old crowd?
maybe a a change of scene's in order
oooh, death by Midi...
tip o'the ol'red fez to MeFi

~ ~ ~
bad news
for Icelandic fans of Eastern European Lap Dancers
~ ~ ~
forgive the dumbmonkey for this one...
damn! this one too
Beware o'the BootyPic
~ ~ ~
just how many potty mouths are there?
well, here's another
~ ~ ~
more from our beloved Time-Life Operator
c'mon you CtS'ers, get yr dates right..

6.8.00

Legendary Lighthouses
courtesy PBS,
this site includes some fine photos of lighthouses around the U.S.,
& is a nice tribute to our maritime heritage
a tale of two reviewers
both went to see Mssrs Becker & Fagen on tour
from James Sullivan of the Chron
from Gene Marine of the Examiner
Fussy? Stoners? FUSSY?
& mr. marine probably happier
having his nipples pierced if you ask us...

funny New Yorker cartoon
from the 6.12 issue:
two women, seated across from one another
at table in coffeeshop, one says to the other
"He's playing very hard to get--he's got a restraining order."
be sure to try the seal blubber pizza
domino's in Iceland
damn, spending so much time watching the Finals
we almost missed this

this'un for the fellas
especially the wanna-be-daddys;
stay off the Hwy
~ ~ ~
courtesy McNeil/Lehrer;
job outlook in the "new" economy
~ ~ ~
spend a little time on the road w/the Sterns,
food & drink across the USA

6.7.00

couldn't happen to a nicer company
anybody see C. Rose in his smoochfest interview w/Billy G. on 60 Minutes II last nite?
Why is C. Rose considered such a fine interviewer? He got NO game...

Mssrs Jenkins & Weinstein
on the NBA Finals
~ ~ ~
2dF
w/more info here and here
pamie's having a contest, pamie's having a contest
repeat over & again, in a driveUcrazy singsong...
please...
enough of this nonsense

~ ~ ~
& in case ya missed it,
here's Big Gay Al, courtesy Salon
~ ~ ~
pity the Los Angeleans
yah, right
~ ~ ~
along w/something about Sealand
Cinema Alert
those of you in the hinterlands may not have the opportunity to see
Winter Sleepers, & while also directed by Tom Twyker (of the ever popular
Run Lola Run) be advised this is an earlier film, made a year or so before Lola,
yet exhibitng much style & panache. Local review here

6.6.00

our tax dollars at work
news on the warning label front from the FDA
true love in Kansas City
w/apologies AND a tip o'the ol'red fez to Elise & Tom
this couldn't happen to a nicer guy
Joe Dumars is a Class Act, all the way...
~ ~ ~
& a fine memorial peace on T. Puente
courtesy Village Voice
ooooh, no apologies, but no time
for the frivolous musings & monkey-biz shenanigans
you have become accustomed to here, please accept this,
we may be ranting ourowndamnself later...
rant courtesy Chuck

6.5.00

whoops! almost got past us
& likely to be rebroadcast, on History Channel
Basketball Dream Teams
Muchisimas Gracias a GirlHacker
for pointing us in this direction & in this spirit
we pass these along to you
the wee beastie, itself
some trickster tales
from the Coyote Madonna
trickster mythology
trickster has many guises
tidbit from the J.C.F.
trickster in Vegas? with mobsters?
Robert Hass meets coyote--?!
and we'll close this post w/ this link
seems like all this means is
you bettah be careful if you use
a womans bathroom anywhere in Phoenix
don't read John Carroll???
well, you should read today's
monday, monday...
waal, the dumbmonkey had hisself a nice weekend thank you very much, & it looks as our j-o-b schedule is back to normal so we don't have to be wakin'up at dark-thirty to catch that early bus into the city, but we will miss that ride, sometimes early, riding across that bridge, we've seen the city & bay at it's lovliest...
~ ~ ~
watching CNN a little this weekend & saw a walk in Venice featured, so we went here to find it, where there is a bunch of interesting stuff, but not sure we found what the news story was featuring, so if any of you locate it, email me will ya?
~ ~ ~
& yessssss.... a certain basketball team managed to succeed yesterday,
not altogether convincingly 'tho. we'd suggest that anyone who is neither a fan of the Lakers or the Pacers immediately begin enjoying their summer & waste no further time on the championship shenanigans. we feel fairly confident the Lakers will prevail & begin the new decade with one of many championships,
harkening back to the Eighties.
brief aside here for any fellow hoops fans,
the rest of you can go on about your business
& thanks for stopping by...
psychologically dumbmonkey was trying to prepare himself for hard dose of reality if the Lakers had lost Game 7, & in putting things in perspective we recalled WCF of '86, but let's set up a little timeline here: '80: Lakers beat 76ers, 4-2; '81 Boston beat Houston, 4-2; '82 LA beat 76ers, 4-2; in '83 Philly finally beat the Lakers, 4-zip (THAT WAS TOUGH); & then began a series of meetings between the great Laker & Celtic teams of the '80's, w/LA losing the '84 Finals to Boston, 4-3; '85, LA beats the Celtics (in BOSTON), 4-2; and then, with most of hoopdom expecting another Celts/Lakers finals in '86, Lakers have to take their game to Texas for the entire playoffs, meeting San Antonio in the 1st round, Dallas in the 2nd, & Houston (w/it's Twin Towers of Olajuwon & Sampson) in the WCF. You can see the shot that took the Lakers out on this page just scroll on down to the Houston/LA matchup, when, in OT, Ralph Sampson launches this prayer that happens to get answered, banks in with only seconds left, and ends the Lakers season that year. You get a glimpse of a player falling down just as the picture fades out, that was Michael Cooper who simply collapsed on the court out of sheer disbelief the season was OVER. the dumbmonkey was in TEARS, literally, we were blue for DAYS!!!, rooted for the Celtics to kick Houston's collective ass, which they did, dispatching them 4-2. You may remember the Lakers went back to back in '87 & '88, losing to Detroit's Bad Boyz in '89, & by this time, Jordan's Bulls had begun to make some noise in the East, and we think you all know the rest. Anyways, since that loss in '86, we like to think we can manage to maintain perspective, remembering "it's only a fucking game", you know, and part of us believes that losing yesterday would have actually made Kobe a better player, but still would have felt pretty shitty,
ask K.M., he can tell you how bad it feels when certain hopes are dashed

~ ~ ~
Back to our regularly scheduled programming:
here's something we not sure you'll be taking part in,
but perhaps you'll find it interesting anyway...
somewhat related, E. Bogosian weighs in on getting off
~ ~ ~
our pal Betsey tells us that she sees something a little different in dumbmonkey these days, more sure & thoughtful, but Betsey, it's only you going thru the change if ya know what we mean. In passing she also implied dumbmonkey responsible for something in her S.F. Call's This'n That, and we wanna let you know RIGHT NOW, we are not worthy!!!!

6.4.00

whew!
the party line on showtime
Game 7 of the WCF about to start, some folks say this is the real championship, maybe so, definitely be decided by team play, so good luck, fellahs...
now just play the game
psssst.... Paris anybody???
dumbmonkey's real life job involves putting ads in paper for folks w/variety of things to offer, & this was placed on Fri, seems like a pretty good deal to me
if you thinking 'bout spending some time in the city of light...
more unearthly beauty
courtesy APOD & HST
what a pleasant surprise
introducing Oz, by Sarah, and the story she tells
such a clever girl!

6.3.00

a busy afternoon @ chez dumbmonkey
cooking up some homemade menudo in the kitchen,
while the mongoose hums away contentedly
here's Ms. Williams & Passionate Kisses
we say Kelly Dwyer got game
and Sprezzatura is pretty good too
~ ~ ~
life is good, pt. II
whoa! check this out
some actual content avail on-line from the New Yorker, yah, admittedly only PDF files, BUT, a step in the right direction. We came across the discovery when visiting the site again, hoping they might have made the editorial decision to allow some magazine content on-line, kinda like esquire mag does, PARTICULARLY because we read this great profile on Lucinda Williams during our bus ride home yesterday afternoon, in New Yorker of 6.5, titled Delta Nights penned by Bill Buford, & impulse to share fine writing so great, we tempted to violate copyrights with impunity, but no scanner, so we safe on that account, anyway...
decided we had to hear some Lucinda today and thanks to being Napster-powered, we found some tunes, and (just goes to show you how it usually works for us) we out later tonite to visit Amoeba R & T (telegraph, if you gotta know) to buy some more Lucinda
life is good
yes, it is, just think of some of the alternatives, & damn, if you are having hard times, maybe you just need to find someone to talk to about it, someone who gives a damn enough to listen, & then, given the light of day, maybe the troubles won't be so overwhelming...
one of our brothers is going thru some tough times right now; he knows that he brought most of this on by hisowndamnself, still, he needs some help. well, help may be on the way, but he needs to examine his life and fully realize his responsibility, he has two young sons & a daughter which doesn't make it any easier, but certainly affirms that he's got to start doing the RIGHT thing. You can do it brother D., one day & one step at a time, don't let yourself down...
~ ~ ~
so the NBA finals are beginning to shake themselves down to the two teams competing, & my heart is w/ the Lakers tomorrow, more on that later, but my heart simultaneously goes out to those die-hard Knicks fans (and you know who you are) for a couple of reasons 1: we love the game, the Knicks are a storied franchise with great history; 2: Patrick Ewing has never been one of my favorites, yet he has the heart of a real competitor, and to play the pro game on the highest of levels takes more than he can probably muster right now, but he deserved an opportunity at a championship ring as much as Sir Charles, maybe more. (one of my favorite Ewing memories was during a game against the Warriors, once upon a time when we were season ticket holders, & it was a good game, Patrick playing well, Knicks up, late in the 3rd, & he comes out of the game for a little breather before finishing out the 4th quarter, & on his way to the bench pauses to get a tissue out of a box in front of someone there on the stats crew; here is this legit 7 footer, sweating like mad -P. really SWEATS, changes jerseys at least ONCE a game - and he daintily picks a tissue out of the box, very carefully & almost fussily, this huge man who could just grab the box and tear a handful out of it, very carefully picking a couple of individual tissues from the box, and thanking the person who it must have belonged to.) Pat, please come back for another year, even if your minutes are cut, and the offense isn't set up around you, the Knicks will be back, w/Spree, Camby & the rest, we'll be hearing more from this team,
of this we are certain.
~ ~ ~
read this poem the other day, usually try to visit the links we got lined up there on the left hand side & Poetry Daily has finally put together an archive (HURRAH!) & as we hadn't saved it & we liked it so, we found it again. hope y'all like it too.
many sincere thanks & courtly bow
along w/tip of our ol'red fez to Ribbit and FootPrints for their kindness in allowing the dumbmonkey a place alongside some of recommended sites to peruse. Lots of talk these days re links, whether they be solicited or exchanged or whatever...
as for ourselves, we put 'em there 'cause we likes 'em; we like their style, sense of humor, point of view & that most of 'em got something to say. (unlike ourselves, cause it looks like we had one too many espresso shots today and are just ramblin' on.) Mainly we wanted to say Thank You, ALL of you, who have thought kindly enough of us to say "right on dumbmonkey, we will tell our friends". Any of you out there doing this on a regular basis know how tough it is to keep up with everybuddy, and there is an ASTOUNDING amount of talented folk out there, makes me smile & very happy to see so much creativity & style, altho we also have to say that (speaking for ourselves now) we try to avoid those links that are the worse for wear, so to speak, you know the ones, they have been posted to DEATH!, but it comes w/the territory, ya know, we can deal w/it. There may come a time when (re-design?? ha!) the look of this thing may be altered (when the meds wear off) & we'll no longer have a list of faves or recommendations or what the fuck (oops, that one just slipped by), you know, try & be egalitarian about it, but---- oh, enough said...

6.2.00

reggie shoots indiana into the finals
& this from the Indiana Star
congrats to that Hick from French Lick
& his hard luck crew, w/a hearty Bon Chance! against the ? ? ? ? ?
& now they'll have to update their hoosier history
midday update
so what's up with Pip, by D. Steele of the S.F. Chron
& this brief tribute to Tito P. crediting the Chron, again...
an appreciation of the Big Aristotle
courtesy SI, & c'mon fellas, Kournikova on the cover?,
let's see her win some tourneys first OKAY?
machines in the news
first this news from Japan;
and a scary coffee machine item. NEVER buy your coffee from a machine,
'cause it's just yucky brown water to begin with & you oughta know bettah!!!
from pal Betsey, & at first we thought this item had to be from The Onion,
but now we not sure, and that's why we scared...
oooOOOOoohh, now we reassured...
YESSSS! it's Friday, & since we experienced something resembling the typical work week (close to slavery in my mind) we are very happy (believe it!) that the weekend is nigh, perhaps we back to our old funky but happy self
in a matter of a few hours...
only noticed this pro hoops related item this AM, & we have been feeling a bit under the weather lately, but ascribe that to working more than usual (UGH!)

6.1.00

& again, perusing a site we haven't visted lately
pleased to discover something interesting at esquiremag.com, this collection of recited work, and this summer reading opportunity for those w/the right toy...
putting some metaphorical meat on these bones
been a while since dumbmonkey wandered into Grey Areas and because of that, not sure at all how new this is. Years ago found a fascinating interview w/young fellow who hacked into the well & caused a little stir. Here's another
new Gray Area thing regarding subject making some news headlines these days...
First of June, 1868
FYI
vaya con Dios, Tito Puente
interviewed on Planet Salsa
another interview & short bio
more from the NYT
why we are some complicated monkeys
Calvin & Hobbes

useful
altavista
google
Crayfishy
DMOZ
MRQE
Online assist

la creme...
jessamyn
( y mi razon)
Chez Elise
42  ~ ~  Q
i was on fire...
Patti's gardencafe
hotsy totsy club
pith & vinegar
espanto en la maquina
GirlHacker
harrumph!
Ethel
IBS
Alamut
FootPrints
MetaFilter
LOOKA!
makura no soshi
rebecca's pocket
GMTplus9
Squishy
Time's Shadow
lake effect
metalingo
Magnetbox
los memepoolers
subtle

de la creme... linkwatcher
ghostlinks
WWWW
m3taQb'd
weblogs.com

Pitas.com!