How Not to Ruin Your Life by Ben Stein

I love NPR. One of my favorite programs is "Word for Word". It's always a hit o my iPod, Zune, or Creative MuVo. It's a weekly program that shares a full speech about relevant issues of our day. You can hear leading thinkers on an amazing variety of topics.

Recently, the "famous economist" Ben Stein (he is, after all, famous...and believe it or not, he is an economist. But he's not a "famous economist") was on the show. He's pretty funny, and not that stupid.

I loved his speech. It's funny, encouraging, and challenges each of us to live up to the best of our nature. Put it on your MP3 player and enjoy it on the way to work this week.

http://wordforword.publicradio.org/programs/2008/02/29/

War, death and destruction...

I'm teaching a course on "Virtue and Commerce" this semester and really enjoying exploring the different views of virtue revealed in characters of modern fiction. We use a good number of short stories.

I just discovered a new author whose works are very powerful...Heinrich Boll. He's a German who wrote during and after the Second World War. His work has a sense of hopelessness and chaos that is deeply true.

I read a story today, "The death of Elsa Baskoleit" (you can read most of it here) that has shaken me. It's only a six-page story and you can read it in just a few minutes. You should. It's gripping.

It makes me think of the tens of thousands of Iraqi families who have lost children and loved-ones in our current war. Whether you think the war is "just" or not, you must be disturbed by the escalating death count of the war. This short story is a powerful reminder of the depth of loss felt by those who lose a loved one to war. Not a happy thought..but worth reading to confront the truth of our situation.

Musicals Everywhere...

As I've said before, I love musicals. But Improv Everywhere has really outdone themselves this time with their most recent musical performance at the mall in Baldwin Hills, CA.

For our latest mission, 16 agents staged a spontaneous musical in the food court of a Los Angeles shopping mall. We used wireless microphones to amplify the vocal performances and mix them together with the music through the mall’s PA system. We filmed the mission with hidden cameras, mostly behind two-way mirrors. Apart from our performers, no one in the food court was aware of what was happening.

Hoarding...

Over the years I've had several acquaintances who were "hoarders". While I've heard descriptions of their homes, I've never really seen them. Today on Boing-Boing I ran across this short documentary about hoarding. Amazing.

POSSESSED from Martin Hampton on Vimeo.

My birthday...

I had a terrific birthday! I played baseball for about an hour with the kids before school, then Marcus & Michelle and I went for a haircut and shave, lunch, and shopping at TJ Maxx & Borders. So fun!

After school we went to Benihana's for dinner. Then for a long walk along the Santa Monica Promenade, where we nearly bought a Mac Book. Then on to Cafe Crepe for some yummy birthday crepes (with dark chocolate & strawberries, of course!). Finally, we came home for presents. It was so fun! Here are a few snapshots...

Conservative Politics and a full bed of children...

OK, these two threads are pretty much completely unrelated.

First, yesterday Matt had a G&T trip to the Reagan Library with other students from the Santa Monica/Malibu School District. If you've not been to the Reagan Library, you should visit. It's a terrific, interactive walk through history. There is a big piece of the Berlin Wall in the back yard overlooking the hills of Simi Valley, lots of videos of key speeches, and interesting artifacts of a far different time in our history.

I really enjoyed talking with Matt about some of these historical moments and how they affected me when I was his age (e.g., the Iran Hostage Crisis, the assassination attempt, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall..."). If you are one of the families coming to LA this year, schedule an afternoon for the Reagan Library. You won't regret it. (And of course, if you have more time you can take in the Nixon Library in Whittier while you're at it).

Second, while Marcus and I made a killer Asparagus Soup Matt went to a friend's house. About 10pm when I went to pick him up I discovered there were "plant people" growing near Baxter Drive! Apparently they were playing hide-n-seek in the dark outside and saw a "green face that looked exactly like a real face!" They were seriously all completely scared-to-death. The drive home was filled with cryptic references to plant people, goblins, and ogres. I offered to stop and look in the bushes to see if I could see anything. However, Matt said

"No! What if you DON'T see it!"

Of course, I thought that would be a good thing. But apparently, that would mean that the plant people were mobile and were probably en route to our house to consume Mom and Marcus as we speak.

He was so scared. Terrified. On the verge of tears. Constantly. After putting him to bed, and coming upstairs I remembered a few instances of paralyzing fear from my own childhood. And I decided to invite him upstairs to lay in bed and read with me. He was SO relieved.

While he read "The Dangerous Book for Boys", I read "That Hideous Strength". After about a half-hour we turned off the light and he slept like a baby.

It was terrific to have my ten-year old in bed with us cuddling us all night. It's been a long time. Of course, Marcus joined us at some point in the middle of the night. So by 5am I was completely squished, about to fall out of bed, and afraid to move or I might wake someone up. So, I just got up and came to start blogging. There are precious few opportunities ahead for me to cuddle Matt and Marcus. Despite the combined body heat, the constant kicking, and fighting for pillow space, it was a great night.

Going Broke in America

If you've had any occasion to see the ugly underbelly of modern consumer lending, you may find this book worth a read. Using psychology and behavioral economics Vyse explores why Americans are increasingly finding themselves in dire straits financially.

I recommend getting it from the local library and giving it a read. You'll think twice about what you buy, when you buy, and why you buy it.

If you read it, drop me a line and let me know your thoughts. You can also chat online with the author on 3/20 with Michelle Singletary from the Washington Post.