Monthly Archives: April 2004

Note to April: Good Riddance

Don’t tell April I said this, but it was without much doubt one of the most aggravating months I’ve had in a very long time. Parts of it were good, particularly with By The Way, which has become a lot more flexible and fun now that AOL Journal entries have an expanded character limit; this […]

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Aw, Go Fly a Kite!

Well, okay. This is one of the nice things about working from home. You can take a kite break when necessary (and it is necessary). Athena’s home because of a dental appointment today; she had to have a tooth extracted because an adult tooth was coming up in back of it. So she’s having a […]

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Athena’s Mix CD

I think that one of a parent’s more minor but nevertheless important responsibilities is to make sure his or children grow up with a love of music that doesn’t totally suck, and that while allowing for a child’s own emerging musical tastes, one can work within those tastes to present that child songs that are […]

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Upgrade

They’re adding local channels to my Satellite service, which apparently means I need a second satellite dish in my yard (it has to do with the fact I have satellite Internet. It’s all very complicated). As it has become my understanding of the world that anything that can go wrong with satellite installation will go […]

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Google-icious!

Well, isn’t this groovy: Go to Google, type in the word “Whatever” and then hit the “I’m feeling lucky” button. Go on, I’ll be here when you’re done. Hello again! Yes, for reasons passing understanding, this is the top listing for the word “Whatever” on the whole Web. This site in general has been the […]

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Reader Request Week 2004 Wrapup

Well, I think that once again we’ve had a pretty successful Reader Request Week around these here parts. Credit for this, of course, goes to the Whatever readers; you guys set up the questions, I just knock them down. Let me also take a moment to remind folks that although I designated last week as […]

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Quick Saturday Observation

Call me a reactionary old fool, but I don’t want to live in an America where people are punished for crank-calling the hated leader of a Communist country on live radio. There, I’ve said it. Another thought: Anyone else think the increase in the size and frequency of FCC fines looks weirdly like the increase […]

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Reader Request 2004 #5: Objective Newspeople

For today’s reader request, we go to Dave Schaefer: Hi John. I’m wondering what you think about the contrast between a journalist or writer’s personal and professional work. The local student paper recently ran an article on why it was a bad idea for journalists to have personal websites or participate in online discussions. The […]

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Racist Backtracking at its Finest

I thought I’d elevate this out of the Unassimilated Hispanic Menace comment thread, mostly because I find it amusing to watch racists wriggle. Be warned there’s some bad language coming up. Let me first note that by and large, the comments in the thread there have been interesting and thoughtful, as is par for the […]

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Caskets

The woman who sent a picture of American caskets from Iraq that ran in the Seattle Times (and was then spread around the Web) got fired for it. You’ll recall the government and the military don’t actually like us thinking about the fact the dead come home in boxes. Fortunately The Memory Hole used the […]

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Reader Request 2004 #4: Fatherhood and Pie

Today, a two parter from Claire: 1. How has fatherhood changed you? What is your experience like as a father? How has it changed your relationship with your wife? 2. Pie or cake? Well, first: Pie. All the way. I don’t believe this should even be a matter of discussion. Now that we’ve got the […]

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Reader Request 2004 #3: Can Writing Be Taught?

Aurora asks: It looks like you have already got plenty of suggestions. Anyway here goes: Do you think that writing can be ‘taught’? Art schools exist without raising eyebrows, but when you mention creative writing courses, people give you sardonic grins. Heh. You think people don’t raise their eyebrows at the idea of art schools? […]

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Reader Request 2004 #2: The Meaning of Life

Today’s reader request, from Karl: I would like to know what you think about the question, “what is the meaning of life?” Is it a good question? Does it have an answer? Do you know it? Is it a stupid question for people that are too anal? Oh, goody! I finally get to use my […]

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The Unassimilated Hispanic Menace

“The persistent inflow of Hispanic immigrants threatens to divide the United States into two peoples, two cultures, and two languages. Unlike past immigrant groups, Mexicans and other Latinos have not assimilated into mainstream U.S. culture, forming instead their own political and linguistic enclaves – from Los Angeles to Miami – and rejecting the Anglo-Protestant values […]

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Reader Request Week 2004 #1: Boys and Girls

Welcome to Reader Request Week 2004, in which I write about subjects suggested by you, the fabulous Whatever reader (did I mention you’re fabulous? Well, you are). To kick off the week, let’s start with the first question I was asked for Reader Request Week 2004, which comes from Jennifer: Why aren’t there more close […]

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One Minor Point of Clarification

Yes, I’m still on break until Monday, and still soliciting topic suggestions for Reader Request Week 2004 (see previous entry). I just wanted to jam in a quick note here about the “Iraq = Vietnam” meme: 1. Iraq is not Vietnam. Politicians and liberal commentators who insist it is are the political equivalent of the […]

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Reader Request Week 2004: Get Your Suggestions In

I’m taking until Monday off around here in order to catch up on some housekeeping on a couple of other projects. But! Starting next Monday, I’m doing Reader Request Week 2004, in which I write on subjects requested by you, the fabulous Whatever readers. I do this for two reasons: One, you guys suffer through […]

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Note to LiveJournal Users

I keep meaning to mention this and keep not mentioning it, so: Apparently someone has set up a LiveJournal feed for the Whatever called ScalziFeed. I didn’t do it; I don’t know who did. But I don’t see any harm in it, so if you’ve got a LiveJournal account and want to be notified when […]

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Athena’s Point of View

I’m having one of those weeks where the mere idea of expressing an opinion about any issue of relevance makes me break out in hives; since it’s a good rule of thumb not to inflict yourself on others when you can’t stand the smell of your own thoughts, I’ve been consequently fairly quiet around here […]

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