The Daily News

1   So...Johnny Ramone walks into a bar...

2   Yesterday I wrote a DN, as always, and once again was late in running; consequently, the DN was locked in a "private" prison.

3  What an idiot.

4  Ah, you guys know me by now. I'm consistantly an idiot with the DN.

5  I would cop to being overworked as my excuse, but really, I stand before you a jocular idiot.

6  Ask me if I care.

7  Haha!

8  Hey, dude, I'm tryin'.

9  Quick tidbit from the Oakland Coliseum: Witnesses report that one of the hecklers yelled to an umpire, "Hey, ump! If I were your wife, I'd give you arsenic!"

10 Not missing a beat, the umpire looked up, addressed the woman, and retorted in stately fashion, "Madam, if I were your husband, I'd take it!"

11 Great stuff.

12  Anyway, I get home last night, and my beautiful wife, Helene, is grinning from ear to ear.

13  I had just arrived from another adventure as advisor to the best class I have ever advised, and was in great spirits because of it.

14  Things got better.

15  She gave me a sly grin, and then produced two tickets to the Opera San Jose's  Marriage of Figaro, which, besides the music having been written by Mozart, is the single hottest ticket in town, because Marriage of Firaro opens this Saturday at the new/old California Theatre,  located almost next to Original Joe's.

16  The California Theatre in downtown San Jose served in 1927 as a vaudeville/film house. Thanks in large part to the San Jose Redevelopment Agency, and the Packard Humanities Institute, the Theatre has returned from a place of restaurants and mini-mall stuff, to a brand new, state-of-the art performing arts theatre, complete with a 50 foot by 30 foot proscenium, chandeliers, and an amazing restructuring that brings back the inimitable age of Art Deco. The General Director is a gal named Irene Dalis, who used to visit the place as a child, watching movies, and living through the amazing early days of vaudeville, old movies, and the like.

17  And it is officially re-opening this Saturday, but there are tours going on all day Friday, so you might just want to go down and enjoy a tour.

18  I drove past the California <in our time, labled affectionately, The Fox> a few days ago, and reported my delight to my Drama Class. It looked marvelous! It lit up in the early night sky, with twinkling lights, and the mysterious Deco interior lighting easily seen from the streets south of First.

19  Our town has reason to celebrate!

20  If you are even remotely a patron of the arts, you know.

21  You know.

22  Wonderful.

23  I am dazzled, dizzy, and looking forward to many new dreams in an historic place housing arts, and directly next to the very marvelous Joe's.

24  Imagine...

25  Love ya all, just have braggin' rights tonight.

26  Check it out.

27  As my daughters would say, "Good times; good times!"

28  Peace.

The Daily News

1  So...I keep hearing the news is controlled.

2  Fancy that.

3  I have been all over, and it's been all over me, but as a very wise man once said, "You can't hurt steel."

4  Yeah.

5  Oh, not the Daily News. In many ways, this dumb little format tells Truth, at least as best as it can do.

6  "I thought the security people did another great job tonight. It went well, which was to be expected."
                                                --Rangers' Manager Buck Showalter.

7   On the cover of this morning's Merc: the bloodied face of A's season ticket holder Jennifer Bueno, looking decidedly disgusted and pained after having her nose broken by a chair hurled at her by Rangers' piteher Frank Francisco Tuesday night.

8  In the business, that entire incident is called a "hot spot". As soon as a situation begins to look a little out of the ordinary, even heckling, security, and any other personnel, is supposed to get there immediately and cool it down.

9  Another great job. Okay, Buckeroo. Because nobody else had a chair hurled their way last night. Those guys were crackerjack, as were your boys, who were able to focus on the game. Nice to hear.

10  Ah, who cares? It's clearly a Rangers' controlled media anyway. Ya can't win.

11  So Night before last I was in bed at 9:30, safe, secure, and with a tummy rumbling from a healthy dose of warm milk.

12  How wussy is THAT?

13  Anyway, I just thought that I was easily going to move sensibly to Tuesday, but my dog had other plans.

14  She woke me at midnight, a harsh bark that jolted me into the school day. Only challenge was, it was midnight. I was done. The insomnia creeps in like a robber, and then jolts you into non-sleep, especially if you are a worrier. I am a YB Worrier.

15  Haha. Bad joke. Anywho, I was up for the night, checked my El_Directore Xanga Site, and found this wonderful piece I wrote several years ago that captured what 9/11 meant to me, a soulful piece I wrote just about a year after-the-fact.

16  The only challenge was that it smothered my Xanga "New Weblog Entry" page so that I could not delete it, and I couldn't reach any editing tools.

17  So I spent the good part of that night creating a new Xanga.

18  So let it be written; so let it be done.

19  The new site is this: Xanga.com/El_Directore19. Basically, you add a "19" to the product, and it flows.

20  Just thought you'd like to know.

21  More REAL news tomorrow.

22  Peace.

 

 

http://www.xanga.com/El_Directore19

 

The Daily News

1  Argh!! I once again pressed the "private" button on xanga, which means, essentially, that the last two Daily News's were written with all the care and love God could bring, and then not seen by the masses.

2  Don't get old.

3  Drives me crazy.

4  And now, my other Xanga, xanga.com/El_Directore, has been embraced by a piece I wrote two years ago called, quite simply, 9/11. I thought it appropriate to link it, and it appeared in this gargantuan format, and totally wiped out my Xanga site. I can't seem to be able to delete it, and I can't possibly get to a new weblog entry, so it is like an old oceanliner rusting in the ripples and waves of the bay.

5  Such a great piece! Argh!!! I haven't really the time to come home and explore what the problem, or challenge is, because I arrive late, cook dinner, rest for like 60 seconds, and then I go online, check e-mails, which totalled 49 yesterday, my all-time record, and THEN I begin writing the
DN!

6  Don't get me wrong; I'm not THAT well received; I had about 20 pieces of spam, 20 pieces asking if I want to build new muscles, increase my money-making potential, impeach Bushie, or any number of other things for which I clearly exhibit no time whatsoever.

7  Fortunately, I got in there tonight and was able to put a couple of toothpicks between my eyelids, and keep awake, despite amazingly little sleep due to my chronic insomnia.

8  Ah, it's a livin'.

9  So we went out shopping for Senior Spirit Week supplies today, went to, quite naturally, this Halloween store at the Fairgrouds. It was called appropriately enough, "Spirit". We ran into April Heath and Peter Zarate, two of our own, and it was funny, because just before we went in, I mentioned our Opening Night of The Creature Creeps, a show we did a couple of years ago beginning on Halloween. We laughed, and remembered what a GREAT show it was, when we ran into Peter, who was the lead in that show. Just another coincidence in a series of coincidences.

10 Gotta love the odds on that. He was down from his home in Sacto, just visiting for the day.

11 Now, I don't see people I knew from the past who LIVE here, for God's sakes. What are the odds?

12 It certainly delivered; Peter just returned from Scotland, did a Shakespeare spoof, and has been actively involved in Theatre and tech everywhere he could.

13  Peter is sharp enough, however, NOT to major in Theatre. He is actually studying to be a lawyer, and begins at UC Berkeley this Spring. I mentioned that being a lawyer WAS majoring in Drama, only it pays.

14  Such a kick-in-the pants. I love stuff sometimes. It's just a kick-in-the-pants.

15  I look forward to a lot more kicks-in-the pants

16  Hmm. The Real World.

17  I got home late, as always, checked my Xanga, which was still under seige, and just decided not to mess with it tonight. I've had around two hours of sleep in just as few days...

18  Anyway, I hope things get great, because my goal is to have my greatest year EVER at YB, this year.

19  More to come.

21  I hope you experience a good, swift kick-in-the-pants today.

22  'Til the next time...

The Daily News

1  Okay, so I might have over-reacted on Friday about the censorship and all, but it WAS an issue, at least on Friday.

2  Welcome to America, 2004.

3  Short-attention span.

4  I have a lot of news regarding AMTSJ student series, but I just don't have the info at my fingertips, so stay tuned. Some GREAT deals, as always. Just think about saving like $10.75 by the first, and you might just be seeing Peter Pan!  How fun!

5  They have this deal now where you can order either an entire five-show package for like $55 <round figure, like my mom!>, or show by show. I had a boatload of fundraisers this weekend, so I didn't really gather all the info as needed for today, but I'll try to get it out there to you tomorrow.

6  The rally on Friday worked for me. It was different: the lights went down, music played, the band rocked; there were black light posters, glow necklaces, computer graphics, and great dances. WAY different and unique! Congrats to ASB for all the hard work!

7  Too bad some idiots started tossing glow necklaces at the performers, but that stuff just happens. Mr. Rocha almost popped an aorta, grabbed the mic, and reprimanded the culprits. Hopefully, someone out there understood all the work that went into that very special rally.

8  Seniors and ex-Seniors know what that first rally meant.

9  Alumni just smile...

10 I didn't catch the Raider game, but I did watch the Niners yesterday. At first, I was shaking my head, but as the game progressed, I realized that the Niners will wind up being enjoyable this year. We have two potentially great quarterbacks, so I am going to enjoy watching. Raider fans, your team might have lost, but they also have a bundle of talent.

11  I'm WAY glad that both Presidential candidates decided to stick their heads in the sand and allow the NRA to bring back assault weapons and uzis. Not a word out of either guy. Not a peep.

12  Barry. 700 is a pretty magical number, no doubt about it. Ruthian. Aaronian. I just hope it doesn't become Balcoian.

11 So it's Fall!  Some things are just religious, and I always think that Fall is just such a time. School is back; things are fresh; hopes are alive, and we will have major heat, followed by clouds, leaves, and all the wonderfulness that is Autumn. It's always the same, culminating in Halloween, so everything is exactly as it should be.

12  I went to the school yesterday for a brief stint. Walked out on the good ol' stage, and a beautifully timed click just happened. Alumni, you remember those?

13  Well, if you're new to all of this, it was just Heidi, giving us all a great send off.

14  Heidi?

15  Well she's this...

16  Ah, nevermind. In brief time, in brief time.

17  So happy Monday everybody!

18  There will be SO much more; I promise.

19  'Til the next time.

 

 

http://www.bharrington.com

http://www.El_Directore.com

The Daily News

1  Anyone out there noticing the weather?

2  Actually, the a/c in my room rocked. It wasn't until I walked outside that I finally got blasted by the heat. Glad I jumped all over THAT one. I was told today that I am clairvoyant. I guess...I certainly anticipated that when it gets hot in sannozay, and you have no a/c, you'd better kindly inform someone.

3  Clairvoyant. LOGICAL works.

4  So Beatles' fans! We have NEWS!! No, the immortally greatest rock band in history is not very likely to re-unite sometime soon, but ex-Beatle <c'mon! that's like saying "ex-Catholic, or ex-CIA> Paul McCartney performs LIVE, along with Neil Young, Tony Bennett, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sonic Youth, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, and Tegan and Sara at the 18th annual Bridge School Benefit, right here at Shoreline at 5 p.m. Oct. 23 and 2 p.m. Oct. 24.

5  Okay, so tix are a tad steep: $55.75 for reserved, and $38.75 for lawn, which always works for me. Why the .75?  Anyway, they go on sale Sunday morning at 10 a.m. Go to www.bgp.com, any Ticketmaster outlet, or even http://www.ticketmaster.com , or you can call (408) 998-8497, (415) 625-8497, (510) 625-8497, or (925) 685-8497, or just go to the Shoreline box office 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday.

6  A BIG thanks to the Merc News for that tidbit. Even if you aren't into the Beatles, you can bet that McCartney will play Yesterday acoustically, and this could be your best opportunity to witness rock royalty at a reasonable price. And time will stop.

7  I never had a chance to see Sinatra, Elvis, or John Lennon, and I now have regrets. Appreciate where a lot of YOUR music came from, and support the Bridge School Benefit. The money goes to children with severe speech and physical impairments.

8  Again, I would like to site the Merc for all this wonderful information.

9  This Saturday, the Senior Class holds a car wash at Save Mart on Capitol and Aborn, right next to the 76 station. Come on out and help this wonderful group, maybe even MEET a few!!! We'll be there from 8 'til 3, so get that good friend of yours feelin' clean and mean!

10  I thank Evelyn Huynh for getting me the name of the playwright of Thugs. I was wrong about him being local. His name is Dave Tucker. Looks like we might just be able to get that one to the stage later this year, so looking forward to another great production.

11 There's a lot more news, but I have to teach today, and I am also busily getting a rock concert, play, Spirit Week,  Friday night concession for a night football game <Bellarmine/Piedmont>, and a buncha other things going on.

12 Nothing like busy to keep you busy, and young!

13 I wouldn't trade my job for anyone's!

14 Peace, y'all...

The Daily News

1   Well it's GREAT to be back!

2   Hot stuff.

3   Still trying to beat this heat, and I stayed in my room with a coupla kids just trying to come up with skit ideas for Spirit Week. We did okay. Our original intention was to paint posters, but the heat was unbearable once again. The room felt cool and nice.

4  So we just chilled in the comfort of Peace 61, one of the most down-home rooms in the school. Yeah, a bit ghetto, but home, y'know?

5 Things immediately going on: I was approached by Nick about the Senior Class sponsoring a rock concert on October 5, with FIVE local bands playing.

6 After some meetings, negotiations, and what not, we decided to go ahead with the plan. I'll bring more to you shortly, but we all agreed, and it has now the approval of both Dr. Calloway and Mr. Moser. I am definitely warming up to the idea, and it was approved by the Senior Class officers, so if you think about it, pencil in that night for us. Senior year can be expensive, so we all thought a concert might be a great go.

12  Joe-the-Bear was pensive, meditative, and gave a tacit approval to the idea. I salute Joe-the-Bear. He knows his stuff, but always tells me to walk softly. I take lots of advice from Joe-the-Bear.

13  So we have a rock show!

14  FIVE local bands. Whew. Crazy.

15  Also, I was approached by the Pigeon Players about FINALLY bringing another great play to our stage. Fun stuff, and the show they have chosen is an original called Thugs, written by a local playwright. With all due respect, my computer crashed, so I lost the script, as well as the playwright's name, but it will be a world premiere, and I am pretty excited about it. That show should theoretically go up in early January. The set for the One-Acts will double, and maybe triple, as the set for our season. The last time we did this, we wound up mounting FIVE shows in on year, a YB record!!!

16  And I'm game. I want this to be a wonderful year in the Theatre, as it will probably be my last. Look for a lot of soul, and meaningful pieces. I have an idea from my first year directing EVER, and I want to bring it. It's time to reach back, and put up everything burning inside as I move to June, so expect stuff that is above and beyond anything you have yet seen.

17  And I'm serious! I want to bring amazing stuff this year, because it is an amazing year, and I hope somehow, somewhere, the stars will shine for all of us.

18  That's it for today. I've never felt better.

19  How about you?

20  Peace, y'all!

 

http://www.xanga.com/El_Directore

The Daily News

1  Sad news weekend. The situation in Beslan is one of the worst stories of our generation, amazingly gruesome and horrid. In our history, have we ever seen the like? Well, sadly, yes...

2  Hurricane Frances has torn people's lives apart in Florida; and we had terrible fires in Sonoma County, and THEN Clinton almost blows an aorta! OY!

3  Sometimes it's good for us to count our blessings.

4  And I forgot all about De La Salle losing ridiculously to Bellevue, a Washington high school, in a game that drew 24, 987. Can you imagine us trying to house a crowd that size? 24, 987 for a high school football game. Amazing. Isn't Bellevue a mental institution?

5  Anyway, some sad things, I imagine.

6  Sooo...

7  How'd YOU beat the heat?  I simply went shopping, for two straight days!! I swear, I drove around in the air-conditioned Tundra, went into Target like for a year, went to the movies and FINALLY saw The Village, and strolled around bookstores. I'm a firm believer in air-conditioning, which is a natural move for a white boy. See, when white boys are younger, their whole thing with hot weather is that it is a perfect time to go to the beach and work on a tan! Go figure!

8  But when white boys turn into white men, we realize little things like, uh, skin cancer? And unbearable discomfort? Head for the stores, o big white men!

9  I must have spent a gajillion dollars on useless stuff. My favorite shop was the dollar store. They played this really fun old music, and I must have strolled around there for a year, and then left without spending a dime! How's THAT for sales resistence? While I was in there, some craggy smoker-biker gal looked up at me, and I was amazed! She was tatooed from head to foot, except her face. I thought I was looking at Rod Steiger, this old actor from the sixties and seventies, who played the lead role in Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man, one of my favorite books as a lad. She coulda BEEN Steiger, I swear. I almost asked her for her autograph, but I figure I was just hallucinating from the heat.

10  Anyway, the heat can cause severe hallucinations, so I would advise avoiding it, and going to places that are air-conditioned.

11  Like Florida.

12  M'bad.

13  It took everything I had to get to the computer and write this, because I have no air-conditiong at home, just this jet-stream wonderful cooling fan, which does work, but it's really tough to get motivated, unless you've experienced a really cool heat hallucination, like that tatooed lady. I swear, I was staring at this dark turquoise dragon, and it's head twisted and looked at me, and the story began to unfold...

14  Together they would travel on a boat with billowed sails...

15  Wasn't that Peter, Paul McCartney, and Mary Magdalene...?

16  I heard she was holding hands with John Lennon at the Last Supper...

16  I gotta get in out of the heat!

17  'Til the next time...

 

ah, here is the original Leonardo Al Fresco, as he was known in the villages.  Al Fresco, after whom my bald Uncle Al was named. Uncle Al was a perfect cross between Sir Elton John, and Dick Cheney, but I digress...

Note Mary Magdalene NOT holding Lennon's hand, but they do form a "V", which was code for "Cold Turkey has got me...on the run..."

 

peace.

 

 

http://www.xanga.com/El_Directore

 

The Daily News

1  Leave it to me to report each night on the Rebubz Convention, only to have to miss the big one. Yep, I missed Dubya at the center of the arena. I DID see it, but never heard the speech.

2  Funny thing is, I was at the Niner game, working, and something exciting happened in the game.  When it did, I looked up at one of the teevees they have in the concourse, only to see GW waving amid a whole bunch of hoop-la. I'm pretty sure that the speech had just ended, because someone told me they scheduled the game that late in the evening so nobody would miss the speech.

3  I just can't imagine them taking a football game off, in the HOME park, for Kerry. Wouldn't happen. In fact, almost any time there is a non-sports' related thing happening in the world, the ballparks tend to pretend that the outside world doesn't exist.

4  Except Candlestick Park, last night.

5  Or tonight. I did just get home about fifteen minutes ago; it's like 2:57 a.m. and I need to go to sleep AND get up in three hours. We had to work WAY late, all because of the convention.

6  The weird thing was driving home at 2 a.m. I deliberately avoided 280, because I heard that the night before last, someone shot and killed a motorist on 280, right near Canada College, with a tilda.  The frightening thing was that a gun was found on the center divide, at least if I have my story accurate.  I almost took 280 home, just to defy the gods, but thought WAY better of it, and I am home safe, and quite glad about that, thank you veddy much.

7  Okay, so here I am, and Xanga is starting to mess with the fonts and stuff. I actually LIKE Xanga. I don't like Geocities or AOL, even though I am sort of hooked on it, or into it, or whatever. But Xanga has been pretty kind, so I won't trip when it occasionally turns stupid.

8  Anyway, very freaky thinking of going on that highway last night. To be perfectly honest, I'm really glad I didn't, because there are quite a few things I need to straighten out before my number is up.

9  That's it, a very brief DN.  I didn't trust Xanga, so I copied and saved this particular DN in word, because if it had disappeared after having spent my insomniatic hours on it, I would not have been a very happy camper.

10  Turns out that Xanga started changing the size of the fonts, and messing with me in the middle of the night, and when I finally submitted this piece, it threw me offline. Had I not saved this, I would probably have thrown my computer through the window!

11  But, no harm, no foul, and I will STILL support Xanga as a pretty cool little operation. So I think I'm off to bed.

12  So, see you in a few.

10  Peaceout.

 

The Daily News

1  Haha!!! I LOVE the Daily News!!!

2  Hell, and I write it!!!

3  Thanks to all of you who have sent back e-mails;
sometimes I feel I am writing this stuff for just meself!

4  Ah, life's wonderful, ain't it?

5  Just bathing in the Repubz convention.

6  Tonight, some guy, and I apologize, because I really don't know the guy's name, gave this King Hell great speech, mean, targeted, and clearly kicking ass on anyone who even PURPORTS to be a democrat. Oh, the guy's name is Zell Miller, and HE'S a DEMOCRAT! From Georgia!  Say, isn't that where wolves wear sheeps' clothing? I would have re-worded all this, but I am in fear of Xanga mixing around my paragraphs and jumping words all over the page. Anyway, the guy's name is Zell Miller. That's right. You heard it. Zell. You wonder why the guy is just a little angry. Zell. JAY-zuss.

7 Way to deliver, meat. I'll bet you are the guy the Bushies wanna get in there in four years.

8  That's money.

9  Cheney, meanwhile, was just about the boringest speaker in the history of speakers, but I listened, because HE was Senior Class President in his own high school class, which probably really WAS the Class of '23.

10 Still, I love this hoop-la, like nobody's business.

11  Wherever you come near the human race, there's layers and layers of nonsense.
                       Stage Manager, Our Town, by Thornton Wilder

12  The Wildman. The Wildmeister. The Wildoreeeno. Yeah Thornton, it's yer birthday, yeah Wilder. Bahrm-Chicka-Bahrm-Bahrm.

13  Sorry.

14  Just getting a tad froggy.

15  Argh.

16  Yuh gotta luv it!

17  Think I'll just bow out, and say, "Have a wonderful day!"

18  Love life; it's pretty short.

19  Peace.

 

The Daily News

1  I think I have recovered from the shock of having my first entry yesterday disappeared from Xanga.

2  I am a firm supporter of Xanga, but like most mainstream weblog sites, it isn't without its challenges. Still, it works a whole bunch better than Geocities, which is pretty Quaker.

3  So let's just give it a bash: The Republican National Convention is on as I am writing this; well, a re-play, but I am hearing it for first time tonight. AHNULD is speaking, and if I may eat just a touch of crow, the guy has pizzaz. I LOVE a good speaker, even if I don't agree with most of his stuff. Ahnuld delivered; fair enough.

4  Arnold delivered. It reminds me of whenever the Dodgers do well: by accident of birth, I automatically hate all things L.A.  Sorry. Just the influence of liberal parentals who were Kennedy democrats, and devoted Giants' fans. I was raised with great disdain for both Republicans, and all things L.A.  For years, I hated all things blue: the sky, sad people, and some great music.

6  I'm turning around regarding L.A. I actually am beginning to like So-Cal.

7  And I am enjoying this wonderfully eloquent deliverance by the Govenator. Clean, innocent battles, politically, make me laugh, and I goof on all the wonderfully patriotic hoopla coming to us from both sides.

8  Unfortunately, Arnold also blew his cover when he acknowledged Richard Nixon as a major inspiration. Nixon once proclaimed, "I am not a crook." Uh...Scott Peterson claims he never did anything that could be construed as "foul play".

9  Arnold embraced this dunderhead criminal as his role model.

10 The speech rocked, with the exception of his cheerleading of "Four more yeuz! Four more yeuz!" That was Nixon's belch. Doesn't work for a Kennedy liberal, dude.

11 Nixon has more dirt than Bush's laundry.

12 So, Ahnuld, nice try. Didn't work with those in the know.

13  And Bush's dumbass daughters embarrassed virtually everyone walking around who might have a brain, and I gracefully include the Olson Twins.

14  Haha! Take none of this with anything but a grain of salt.

15  But come on: how stupid are the Bush Twins? I mean, no way!

16  Ditzzes.

17  Communications majors. I ask you.

18  jk

19  Those girls need to lay off the sauce.

20  Anyway, I absolutely love all this stuff. Arnold rocked, whether I like him or no; I must give him major props for eloquence.

21  The Ditzzes...Oy.

22  But what a race! Hope you all keep an open mind; don't just listen to my musings and ramblings; just READ, stay informed, and be sure that you get to the Truth somewhere. What makes America absolutely great is that we all have the right to measure issues, and to think.

23  Love the Repubz, great theatre, and I look totally forward to more.

24  The main thing is, no matter what you believe, nor where it is you throw your political beliefs, love the fact that you have a right to vote, and that you have wonderful freedoms, and that you live in the greatest country on the planet.

25  Peace.