Lao Tzu on Keeping It Simple

To satisfy the mind and heart,
let there be
A visible simplicity of life,
Embracing unpretentious ways,
And small self-interest
And poverty of coveting.

Why the anti-Bush t-shirts?

so my beef with Bush
is the standard
foreign-policy/fiscal-policy
1-2 punch

first, I think his war was unnecessary,
was sold to the public dishonestly,
and seems to be counter-productive
in the broader effort to observe
that one commandment about killing

second, his tax cuts and his Social Security plan
both seem to put the short-term interests
of people at the highest end of the wealth spectrum
before the long-term interests
of the entire nation

overall, I do not think Bush is a dumb-dumb
I suspect that much of his image
including the simpleton aspect of it
is carefully designed
to appeal to key audiences

but I would guess that he isn't too interested
in most of the day-to-day stuff
and that he defers most of that stuff
to his advisers

and I don't think it's controversial to say
that we deserve more from a president

note that all of these criticisms
are focused on Bush's policy
and not on judgments regarding his character

so what am I doing with the shirts?
many are on the level
of schoolyard name-calling
not substantive ideological critique
but hey, neither those types of objections
nor the plastic wrapper that encloses Twinkies
ever stopped Karl Rove

by putting the shirts out on the street
I hope to get discussions like this one flowing.
you can either accept Bush-type bullshit without fighting
or you can roll up your sleeves

Yay, another Independence Day!

Subject: RE: travels

hey there ***,

thank you once again for the update from your adventuring...so this time you're camping in new zealand with latin chicks from beijing. sounds great, but it's not the kind of thing for a homebody like me...the sex-on-the-riviera lifestyle is dashing and all, but i just know i would quickly start to miss my nightly "frasier" re-run on UPN, so i'm going to fasten my couch-buckle.

yes, life is nice in san diego...i recently stumbled across a neat-o panoramic picture of the two of us from one of your visits a few years back, attached for your enjoyment...i've also sent a copy to the good people at National Geographic, suggesting it soon be published, with the caption "THIS IS FOR THE G'S - two pimps at leisure in venice beach, ca." will watch for publication and keep you posted!

so enjoy new zealand, and don't forget to brush your teeth after eating kiwi, if you know what i mean. ciao for now.

Subject: RE: my new baby

Are You There, ***? It's Me, **.
by Judy Blume

Dear ***,

Hi, my name is **, and I thought I'd send you an email. I feel kind of silly writing this to you because I'm not sure if you're real. And if you are real, I'm not sure if they have emails in Fallbrook. But you know what they say: "If you never call an escort service, you'll die without knowing what it's like to pay for it." So here goes.

Things are pretty good down here in ****. I have the same old job, so Monday through Friday I'm a bit of a working stiff. But on the weekends all my friends get together at people's houses and at bars and stuff. Weekends are my favorite.

Actually, weekdays are pretty fun, too. A bunch of us bought 20-game Padres packages, so we go to the new ballpark every other Tuesday. At the ballpark they sell sodas and weiners. Do you like to eat weiners, ***? I bet you do.

Anyways, on Wednesday nights we play softball in a league in UTC. It's really cool, even though our team - the *** - isn't that good. One thing I like to do when we're losing is to make fun of the other team. Like if some guy on the other team drives a Hyundai I'll yell out "Hyundais suck!" right when he's about to swing. It's fun!

So the weekend of July 4th is coming and it's totally going to be the best weekend ever. There are tons of parties on Friday and Saturday, and then of course July 4th is on Sunday. Do you think it might be possible for you to come down and say hello? If not, I understand. I'm sure it must be difficult to get a babysitter with only three weeks notice.

You know, I was just thinking about that Hyundai thing that I said before. I hope you don't think I'm a bad person or anything. I'm actually really pretty nice. For example, if a girl is fat, I won't snicker "roll her in flour and go for the wet spot!" until I'm pretty sure she's out of earshot.

Well, ***, it's past my bedtime, so that's all from me for tonight. I hope this email reaches you. Hey, if it does, maybe you could give me a sign or something. I know! If you're really up there, could you make the rash in my crotch go away? Heck, if you could just reduce the itching a bit, that'd be proof enough for me...I've gone through three tubes of Lotrimin and I'm still scratchin' myself raw. Anyways, bye!

Stars can twinkle through the night

Stars can twinkle through the night
The moon can shine so very bright

The sun can rise and light the day
The wind can make tree branches sway

Rain can soak you to the bone
Snow can make you feel alone

Grass can grow a healthy green
And smell so good…know what I mean?

When it’s dark, crickets can sing
Piss off a bee and he can sting

Birds can fly and fish can swim
Monkeys can swing from limb to limb

Yes, there’s talent everywhere
But nowadays, I just don’t care

You see, I’ve met this special girl
If the world’s an oyster, she’s a pearl

I used to look around this joint
And I’d wonder “what’s the point?”

But when she looks into my eyes
She answers all my hows and whys

She can twinkle like the stars
She lights up this world of ours

All she has to do is smile
And I’m in heaven for awhile

Yeah, dogs can bark and cats can hiss
But I can think about her kiss

Subject: RE: *** pix

i can't see the pix either but i can imagine what they portray...some poor damsel - one probably treated poorly by mother nature already - in the sinister clutches of *** the Vulgar, who is plying her with sweet nothings whispered in her ear, with the intent of plying her in other ways in the wee morning hours of that New Year's Day. i'm reminded of a young lass *** and I came across at a block party during one of his journeys to San Diego...she was of the big-boned variety, with lots of meat on those bones, as well...perhaps as a result, she was hungry for male companionship, and seemed remarkably unfinicky with regard to the male's qualifications. in short time, our *** had exposed her to his charms, which easily hypnotized her...soon, out of the corner of my eye, i saw them lean in toward each other in the initiation of a mouth-to-mouth embrace. but as i turned to take in the situation more fully, i noted that the kiss quickly ended, apparently by her volition. later, when i asked dear *** what had happened, he explained that, at the moment he realized a kiss was imminent, he had been eating some rather tasty barbecue chicken, and given his companion's apparent enthusiasm for well-prepared victuals, saw no need to clear his mouth of said chicken before engaging in the embrace.

Living on the Street

I could be
living on the street
searching for something to eat
someone else's Nikes on my feet

I could be
sitting on a throne
with a kingdom all my own
living with crowns of gold and walls of stone

I could be
working at the plant
feeling like an army ant
"I'd love to quit but I just can't"

I could be
living in the hills
making money just for thrills
never sweating any social ills

I could be
running for my life
or crying for my dying wife
with both eyes on the reaper's knife

I could be
sitting in a class
barely caring if I pass
at night I'm drinking and I'm smoking grass

I could be
heading off to war
never been this scared before
someone tell me what I'm fighting for

I should be
thanking god above
I should be spreading peace and love
there's so much I'm undeserving of