May 27, 2014

I'm not a surgeon like this guy, but, boy howdy, is the back pain part correct!:

http://www.cracked.com/article_21177_5-things-your-doctor-really-wants-to-say-to-you-but-wont.html

Not looking forward to the ICD-10 conversion, either...

May 27, 2014

My current earworm. Three days and counting...

It's one of the more frightening earworms I've ever had. It's almost impossible to sing this song yourself and not feel a little rush when doing so. A little kick, a slight swelling of the chest, a little pride.

Because that's what the song is supposed to do. Make you feel good.

I saw a revival of Cabaret at the Paramount in Seattle in 1988. It was Joel Gray's last tour in the role of the Emcee. Back then, I was still a fairly straight-laced, conservative, Southern-raised boy. I was a little put off by the crazy, highly sexualized goings-on at the Kit-Kat Club for the first part of the play.

Then, a small group of young waiters came out on the stage, wearing a uniform of short red waiters' jackets. And they sang this lovely song. Beautiful, pastoral, optimistic. I loved it. It was such a contrast to the tawdry acts of the Berlin cabaret.

Then my dad, who had taken me to see the show, leaned over and whispered: "That's a Nazi Hitler Youth Anthem." *

I was instantly horrified. And I understood then, dimly, in my naive 19 year-old way, how it was that the German people - highly educated, enlightened, sophisticated, cosmopolitan, humane - could be drawn to the monstrousness of the Nazi regime.

* - I found out only recently that "Tomorrow Belongs To Me" is not a Hitler Youth song. It is an original song, written specifically for the Cabaret musical. (By Jewish songwriters, no less.) But it certainly captures the nationalistic spirit of the Nazis, as it was supposed to.

May 22, 2014

What's everybody drinking tonight?

The DU-ers I usually chat with in the evenings have gone to bed. What's everybody else doing?

May 21, 2014

Facing a potentially boring day in clinic. Anybody want to keep me company?

Any house-bound DU-ers want to help me out with this?

May 17, 2014

It's so great to have Obama out of office! Thanks, American Spring!

Oh. Wait...

May 17, 2014

Will is out of town. Having dinner alone. Ask me anything.

Place is quiet when 'Will the S Bardkicker' isn't around to party with...

May 15, 2014

Boring day in clinic. Ask me anything.

I guess I could use a little company.

If I don't reply right away, it means I'm visiting with a patient, but thank you in advance.

Will is in Stratford with his family. Things are slow in the Lounge. I just need some mental stimulation.

May 13, 2014

I'm not 100% sure, but I may have posted the very first thread on Discussionist.

I guess we'll see...

May 1, 2014

Happy May Day, everybody!

Power to the workers! Down with the running dogs of capitalism!

April 28, 2014

Has anyone ever read Edwin Abbott's "Flatland"?

If so, what did you think?

Interested in some opinions.