The guilt, the Catholic guilt...

hello, friends,

so, this summer, i went to japan to visit brother rob.

i have been totally remiss in posting photos. there are literally HUNDREDS more, but i am posting those that i like best. suspiciously, the photos from my ascent of yote did not wind up on a CD -- this will be rectified shortly. i did climb that god forsaken mountain...

without further ado, this one is for bert:

this is the family that rob teaches japanese to. he's a cardiologist. the kids are SO CUTE.

rob likes to make friends, and, one night, when we were going home to go out (what was THAT about?), we encountered a street festival. rob stood on top of a newspaper box and took this really cool photo.

this is another one of rob's friends. it needs no explanation...

the photo below was taken at one of the many summer beergardens in sapporo. the beautiful girl to rob's right is aika. next to her, i felt old, fat, haggard, dowager-esque, hostile...you get the picture.

this was on the climb of yote. do you SEE how high up we were? do you see the cloud-lines? we did that two more times. oy.

but it sure was beautiful, right? this other photo,

which i do not know how to turn, was on our first climb. it was amazing (despite not having food or water or, frankly, rest). i keep thinking about what a remarkable thing it was, for my baby brother to use what can only be described as psychological warfare on me to make me continue.

rob, for all the bad words i used on you during my time in japan -- i am truly sorry.

there will be more. but aren't they so cool?

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,

volansky

Persian/Polack Wedding

hello, friends,

the perisan princess' third cousin gilda (all US persians are, apparently related. to nakissa) sent some photos from both the wedding of the persian and the polack and the bachelorette party.

here they are:

it is shocking what weddings can do to some of the smartest people i know:

so, last week was a long one, with lots of theater time, as well as some late-night tossing and turning. i think i was on san fran time through to thursday.

the girl and i went back to philly on saturday (having seen a fabulous MOST FABULOUS on friday night), and had the good fortune of watching THE MOUSE THAT ROARED with d.p, jason and the sandwich. if you haven't seen this peter sellers classic in a while, do rent it. it rocks (and some of the lines sound eerily familiar).

we also took some time to visit with the ex-in-laws. i've actually been on an up-swing, feeling solid about myself and my life (thanks to all of you for your help) and it seemed like i was finally ready. we had a terrific visit, and i got to meet sister barb's baby colin. such a sweetie who giggles. it's darling.

busy week ahead, with a production of miss melly's play QUAKE (read it if you don't know it -- it's fantastic!) on the horizon. and a certain 23-year old turns...not 24.

be good to each other. please.

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,

volansky

A joke -- for the theater crowd

hello, friends,

this just in from gavin in DC:

Jack: So .... [pause]
Jack: So he won then. [pause]
Jill: Yes.
Jack: Yes. [longer pause]
Jack: He waited long enough.
Jill: Yes.Jack: Yes ... he did.
[pause]Jill: Yes, he certainly waited long enough.
Jack: Words. [pause]
Jill: What?
Jack: Words, in conversion, he was good at that.
[pause]Jill: Yes ... he waited long enough.
Jack: I think... [pause]
Jill: ...and pauses, he was good at that too.
Jack: Yes.
Jill: Yes. [pause]
Jack: Yes. [pause] I think his word/time ratio was the smallest ever heard.
Jill: Yes.
Jack: Yes. [pause]
Jill: Yes, he waited long enough...J
Jack: Well done, that's what they say...
Jill: Yes, they do say that...J
Jack: Well done, like the toast... [long pause]... How's your cornflakes, then?...

how much do we love this guy?

congratulations, mr. pinter.

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,

volansky

I'm Not Dead Yet

hello, friends,

it was as though it was 1987 all over again. but this time, i wasn't there.

i was driving back down to chestertown today, as i'd spent the weekend in california at the wedding of the persian princess and the polack. it was so beautiful -- they were able to combine traditions of both backgrounds, making for the polka, done persian style, a culture all its own.

i'll admit it: i cried. good friends, good laughs, good wine. and the sisters are total rock stars.

so, i was listening to the radio, checking in on the mayhem that took place in baltimore. if you've not heard, go here, click on the subject line.

but i was safe.

at any rate, michaela majoun was telling me all about the U2 concert last night and suddenly, she said it:


my boys were together again.

bono was playing in philly and who showed up but bruce springsteen? and patti came out to sing, too.

last time that happened, it was at the vet, and i was sneaking cigarettes from my sister with roomie emily.

so sad.

but not dead.

we're rounding 2000 visits friends -- let's get that number UP! do i have to repost the rove story, given recent events?

get out there and tell your friends about volanskyism.

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,
volansky

ps just got cable down in chestertown and i settled in to watch LAW AND ORDER: SVU tonight and there was NO MELONI!

Pesky Homos...

hello, friends,

...sapiens, that is.

those pesky humans who got Ai Ai smoking! i just don't know what to say about this, except if a chimp can do it, so can i.

here are the details:

A female chimpanzee in a Chinese zoo has managed to kick the habit after smoking for 16 years, Xinhua news agency reported.

Ai Ai, 27, first took up smoking after her mate died in 1989.

After a second spouse died in 1997 and her daughter was moved to another zoo, the broken-hearted chimp's health reportedly started deteriorating.

Zoo keepers say they are giving her mouth-watering food and playing pop music to improve her mood.

"In the first few days, she squealed for cigarettes every now and then," Xinhua reported one zookeeper at the safari park in the Shaanxi province, north-west China, as saying. "But as her life became more colourful, she gradually forgot about them altogether." Her new, busy lifestyle includes walking after breakfast, exercising in the evening and being served "fried dishes and dumplings at every meal" on top of bananas, rice and milk, he said.

Now and then, she can also borrow her human friend's walkman to listen to music.

It is not clear how Ai Ai developed her addiction, and whether she was first given cigarettes from the same guardians who have helped her quit.

now, i've had a problem lately with mr. tobacco. in fact, i just can't stop. but would someone please reassure me that i do not look like this:

other things to note:

i am a deep disappointment to paul rudnick and his stellar cast of MOST FABULOUS STORY EVER TOLD. i owe you guys one.

baby bjorn is growing up! he is cute-as-a-button and developing quite a personality. i hope to get some photos of him being cuddled by aunt shel.

aimee aimee and i had a delightful night on saturday -- we've been chums for over 20 years! yikes...if i ever do run for office, she's the one that the CIA will be watching...

off to sleepytime. peace, safety and love to all.

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,

volansky

Those Wacky Nobels!

hello, friends,

so, i didn't win the nobel this year. just like i didn't win a macarthur grant. ah, well. if we all be patient, i will someday rule the world.

i won't attempt to explain the winner for this year's peace prize. if you want some smart observations, visit steve clemons' www.thewashingtonnote.com as soon as humanly possible. he's also got some provocative comments about judith miller.

but physics, well, i do know physics.

stop laughing.

i'm serious. cut it out.

at any rate, i had a student last year who majored in physics and drama. he was my "got to" student who got the rest of us thinking differently about science (like, "wow. check out those particles!"). i fired off an email asking the question on everyone's minds: "what the heck are they talking about?"

helpful mike ridgaway responded back with a brief overview:

"Quantum optics, like regular optics, is the study of light and how it behaves. Quantum optics, however, deals withlight on an atomic level. I'm sure you've heard before that light acts as both a wave and a particle. The wave aspect of light has a frequency that corresponds to the color we detect, much like how the frequency of a sound wave correspondsto the tone we hear. These scientist have developed new and incredibly precise ways (within 0.000000000000001 units) to measure the frequency oflight, specifically the kind emitted from atoms. This is what they're talking about when they refer to the color of atoms. Their research extends to applications in atomic time measurements, where atomic emissions and behavior are used as units of time."

got that?

it is just so cool.

here are pictures of the winners:

aren't these guys just darling?

almost as precious as marbury and madison.

cordelia got a fantastic new haircut this weekend -- as soon as i figure out how to scan a picture of her, i'll post an image of the little cutie. she came out of the groomer with a big bow with a pumpkin on it around her neck.

fall break this weekend coming up and i get to go to san francisco for the marriage of the persian and the pollack. we've missed them greatly while they've been in london, but we have full faith and confidence that the event will remind us instantly how much we love them both.

that' s enough for now. be good to each other and light a candle for those poor folks living in pakistan, india and turkey.

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,

volansky

Former Students Working Hard!

hello, friends,

while we all ponder the implications of harriet miers and a roberts-led supreme court (and wonder why justice stevens had time to dine with super smart nicholas in new york city on friday, when we all know that red mass was happening on monday...), we are instructed by ms. popcornkernel as to the judiciary act of 1801:

here's what she has to say:

"Well, to begin at the beginning…

The Constitution declares that there will be three branches of government, but the details were a little vague. For example, the Constitution did not specify how many justices were to sit on the Supreme Court. Shortly after the Constitution was ratified in 1789, Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789 stating there would be one Supreme Court, three circuit courts, and 13 district courts (one per state). They also specified there would be one Chief justice and five Associate justices, but the scope of their power was undefined.

The judiciary act of 1801 gave Adams, who was at the very end of his presidential term, the power to appoint judges as he saw fit. He planned to fill the nation’s courts with Federalists to stack the courts against the incoming Republican president, Jefferson. He reorganized the district and circuit courts, changing their sizes and adding lifetime positions. The judges that Adams selceted were referred to as Midnight Judges, because it was rumored that these appointments were being signed at midnight before Jefferson could take office. One of these Midnight Judges was William Marbury, appointed on March 3. Keep in mind that Adams made all of his appointments in 19 days.

After Jefferson’s inauguration on March 4, 1801, he and his Secretary of State James Madison treated nearly half of the appointments as void, including Marbury’s. In the 1803 case of Marbury vs. Madison, the court unanimously voted that Marbury had a right to the Supreme Court position, but that the Judiciary Act of 1789 was unconstitutional. Marbury never got to sit on the Supreme Court. The case of Marbury vs. Madison was the first time the Supreme Court exercised the power of judicial review, declaring that acts made by Congress years earlier were unconstitutional."

isn't that impressive? i'm so proud of my girl.

ms. popcornkernel says that she's been unable to find concrete evidence that there was no supreme court from 1801 to 1803, but georgetown wouldn't hire someone who didn't know what they were talking about, would they?

absolutely not.

if this were a celebrity death match, who would you vote for?

no fair voting for the guy on the left (marbury) whose picture, due to the limits of this bloggers technical abilities, looks bigger than james madison.

so, i look forward to seeing who votes for who.

and, finally, oh brother, where art thou?

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,

volansky

Sad, sad news...

hello, friends,

the theater world has lost a monumental -- and overwhelmingly important figure: august wilson died today after his bout with liver cancer.

wilson, who only recently (august) announced that he had only months to live, had just completed his ten play cycle investigating the african-american experience in the 20th century. from JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE, to KING HEDLY II to FENCES, these plays, with poignancy, violence and profound insight, helped to articulate the long struggle from 1900-2000.

my own interaction with mr. wilson was limited, but certainly the highlight was the time he showed up for a performance of KING HEDLEY II at philadelphia theatre company. he had said that he couldn't participate in the "american playwrights in context" discussion, citing work on GEM OF THE OCEAN. i found a wilson scholar to discuss the great man's work. imagine my surprise when i looked out from the stage and saw him sitting there, grinning. we laughed a lot.

he will be so so missed -- and i challenge others out there to keep his memory, and remarkable work, alive.

RIP...

gotohellifyouhatefreedom,
volansky