WEIRD WEB SEARCH OF THE DAY

Somebody was looking for "washers for the meat packing industry" and found my blog. They had to go to page 23 of the search--which means they looked at listings for 100s of higher ranked sites! Talk about persistence.

ART BUCHWALD IS DYING

It is sad to read that political satirist Art Buchwald is living his last few days, having decided he did not want to be tethered to a dialysis machine so many hours a week.

When I was younger, much younger, I eagerly awaited his three-times-a-week newspaper column, where his exagerated fictional characters pointed out the failings of the people in power. I think I started reading him when I was in high school. Somewhere along the line I stopped reading him--perhaps it was when I moved to New York, and his column wasn't available in the Times.

But also somewhere along the line I acquired a comedy album he did. It's around here somewhere--I'll have to dig it out. It explained how he became a Paris-based columnist for the New York Herald Tribune--without ever having graduated high school or college. (When USC discovered he lacked a high school diploma, they made him a "special student." He said he later got his revenge, when he was named alumnus of the year.)

I also remember seeing him at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Fund Pro-Am Tennis Tournament out in Forest Hills. He wasn't exactly the greatest player. All he hit was lobs. Totally. When he played Billie Jean King he called the match "The Lobber vs. the Libber."

So now he's spending his last few days in a hospice, attended by family members, various Kennedys, and award-bearing writers. Except it's gone beyond a few days. They're calling him "The Man Who Wouldn't Die," as he explained in a Washington Post column a few days ago. He checked into the hospice at the beginning of February. He's been there so long Medicare has stopped paying for it. Meanwhile, he's having the best time of his life, he says.

NO SURPRISE HERE

Bush's Approval Rating Falls to New Low says an AP-Ipsos poll. Even his Republican supporters are beginning to desert him. He is alienating his social conservative base (which he no longer needs to get himself into office) with some of his pro-business proposals, such as the Dubai port debacle and his immigration "reforms." The business bloc already was in his corner, so it's a net loss for his support.

The poll also indicated more people want the Democrats running Congress than the Republicans. Unfortunately, this doesn't mean the Democrats will actually win in November. It's amazing how many people think Congress is failing in its job, but that their representatives are OK. They haven't figured out that Congress isn't going to change unless they change who they vote for.

TODAY'S WEIRD WEB SEARCH

"thisby and pyramus is stupid"
Is this a real search, or just someone expressing an opinion?

WEIRD WEB SEARCH OF THE DAY

"world record holder for longest headstand" actually lists this blog first!

300 AND COUNTING (SLOWLY)

This is my 300th post on this blog. Granted, I haven't had much time for it the last few days, with my Office Clean-up Project.
Briefly: Saturday I went to the New York Philharmonic, where Frank Peter Zimmermann did a fantastic job with the Brahms Violin Concerto. Monday I did my volunteer lawyer thing for the Name Change Project at the West Village TransLegal Clinic, followed by some dinner at Lips, and then Jason Cosmo's show at Therapy. Yesterday, after a lawyer's appointment (even lawyers need lawyers sometimes), I went to the Sarah Bernhardt exhibition at the Jewish Museum. I didn't finish it. The most interesting part so far is listening to a recording she made--her "golden voice" was well-named. I also loved some of the art nouveau posters for her plays. Finally, I went to a private meeting of people active on the MyHusbandBetty Message Boards.

SOMEBODY REALLY HAS TO LEARN HOW TO DO WEB SEARCHES

"do you have any pictures of the uniforms for men's snowboard cross" hit this blog.

And, no, I don't.

OSCARS, MY QUICK THOUGHTS

No big surprises--I've read a few things that said Crash could upset Brokeback Mountain for Best Picture. It wasn't totally out of left field, such in 1981, when Chariots of Fire beat out On Golden Pond and Reds. Of course, Crash was the only one of the five nominees I haven't seen.

I was a little disappointed Transamerica didn't win in either of the categories it was nominated in. I knew Felicity Huffman had an uphill battle against Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line for Best Actress, but I was hoping Dolly Parton's "Travelin' Thru" might pull out a win for Best Song. Instead a hip-hop mess, "It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp" from Hustle & Flow, won. Actually, I thought the third nominee, "In the Deep" from Crash, was the best. I guess the Academy voters wanted to seem hip and with it.

I thought Jon Stewart did an OK job as host, not great, but not a disaster either--though I could have done without his opening "Good evening, ladies, gentlemen, and Felicity" line.

I thought the music they played during the acceptance speeches was distracting, annoying, and just plain disrespectful of the winners. They need to find another way of keeping them short.

Finally, the dresses. The best dress I saw was Salma Hayek's. I loved the color. I can't think of any that were really bad--Charlize Theron's was a little bit much, with the big bow or whatever on the shoulder, but she's stunning enough to carry it off.

AN OMINOUS WEB SEARCH

Someone in Dallas, Texas just reached my blog doing a search for "jewish names in forbes 400." I don't get good vibes about this one.