Adventures of the Little Red Menace      

Yesterday, my friend Sunny and I went to the first weekend of the Brooklyn Art Museum's Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. The main and now permanent attraction is Judy Chicago's great 70s installation "The Dinner Party". It depicts her idea of an intimate gathering of some of the greatest women in history who in their own way hugely impacted feminism and all areas of women's equality. Guests include the original Primordial Goddess, Sappho, Saint Bridget, Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony and Virginia Woolf. Each plate and placemat was especially created for each guest.

The center currently boasts a huge array of feminist art from 1970 to the present and includes video, live performance, photography and paintings. It was noticed by some that a majority of the art portrayed women in pain and suffering, which was ultimately depressing as it seems that there may be no hope for women in the world to truly be treated as equals in every sense that there is. However, the sad truth is that while we have come a long way, we still have a looooooooooong way to go.

Especially since we as a culture seem to be taking steps backwards, whether it's the threat of overturning Roe v. Wade or the subjugation of women by teaching them how to act like strippers and pornstars in order to be empowered. If things continue at this rate, women will really be in more trouble than they can handle. Obviously, in a lot of other countries they already are.

By the way, I want to stress that I do NOT think that strippers and pornstars are unsavory and I do understand that a lot of women are in that business by choice. I just have trouble reconciling how an industry that ultimately objectifies women for the benefit of men is in any way empowering. If anyone out there can honestly and logically break it down for me, I'm definitely going to listen.

It also doesn't help when other women reject the term or idea of feminism. I've got news for you - if you're enjoying the range of employment opportunities you have as well as the ability to have your own place to live, you're a feminist. At the very least, you definitely owe a great deal of thanks to all of the women who paved the way so that we could, oh I don't know, vote? Or make our own choices about our livelihoods?

I advise everyone, female or male, to come out to the Brooklyn Museum and check out this exhibit. If for any reason, to support the idea of more art by women in major museums.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, manservant - basically any of his shit.

9. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbors house (which I think should already have been covered in #10)

8. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

7. Thou shalt not steal (unless it's downloading music)

6. Thou shalt not commit adultery (you all saw Fatal Attraction, right?)

5. Thou shalt not kill. Uh, yeah.

4. Honor thy father and mother.

3. Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. This is why you can't buy cameras at B&H on a Saturday.

2. Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven images.

and the number one Commandment of all time (drumroll please).....

Thou shalt have no other gods before me!!!

I must love and miss Walter Matthau deep in my very soul as I dreamt of him last night.

I was at my family's place and my mother had just turned on the TV to watch the Oscars. I begged her to turn it off because I just REALLY didn't want to watch. I had also stated that the only thing that would we worth watching was the Ennio Morricone tribute.

Then I asked my mother who else was getting a lifetime achievment award and she answered "Why Walter Matthau, of course". Then she gestured slightly over to her left and there was Matthau himself sitting at our dining room table. He appeared to be in his late 40s or early 50s. I immediately sat down next to him and gushed shamelessly. He told me he was very honored to receive his award and that he planned to get high before going on stage. This made me incredibly happy.

After a lengthy conversation, I asked him if he'd ever been in a film that was scored by Morricone. But he didn't answer me as by then he had turned into my roommate's cat. As I started to pet him, my four year old nephew Ben silently hummed the theme from "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly".

Then I woke up.

I should never take aspirin before going to bed.

PS - if you have had any Walter Matthau dreams, please share and I will gladly post them!

So I just found out that King Henry VIII has a MySpace page. Here is his quote:

"It ain't easy being beasty...just remember- bros before hoes dude"

This doesn't surprise me.

Among his top friends are Marie Antoinnette, Lord Byron and Chuck Norris.

Yikes! That smell.

Stories like this make me love this town.

First up, last week, a 50 year old construction worker saved a 20 year old man from getting creamed by an oncoming train. Seems the young man fell off the platform after having some sort of "medical episode". He happened to miss the rails and fell in the space between the them. The other man, making a quick decision after seeing the headlights of an oncoming train, jumped into the space and laid on top of the guy in order to hold them both down far enough so the train would pass right over them. The conductor couldn't stop in time, but both men narrowly escaped injury.

WOW.

Next up, yesterday a strange odor permeated most of Manhattan, parts of Brooklyn and Jersey City. I smelled nothing because I've been in and out of a bad cold since I got back from California. However, others smelled gas. It was stronger in some places and caused a few folks to become ill. But in the end, the odor remained mysterious and according to Bloomberg, not dangerous.

And it's only January 9th. Geez!

I hope you all had a more fun time than I. I came back from a long and great trip to Northern California with a wicked bad cold that pretty much leveled me yesterday. So this marks my first completely sober New Years Eve since, well, I guess since I was a kid.

Oddly, since I had decided that my focus for 2007 is my health, the universe tested me. There were moments yesterday that I thought I might be well enough to drag myself out. I figured I'd have all day today to recover. But I decided that if I was going to start taking my health more seriously, then I'd better stay home and focus on getting well. Especially because this particular cold going around tends to be long lasting.

But I spent a lot of time watching Simpsons DVDs on my new portable player. Since watching The Simpsons is on a long list of favorite ways to spend my time, it wasn't so bad at all.

I finally got out of bed at noon today. So half of the first day of 2007 is gone. It's raining and I have no idea what I am doing today. I'm listening to Tom Waits new record as I type. It's the Brawlers disc of "Brawlers, Bawlers and Orphans". I'm rather liking it so far. Style wise, it's nothing I haven't heard before. But hell, precious few can turn a phrase like that man.

Technically, the first record I attempted to listen to in 2007 was The Essential Leonard Cohen. But the damn disc is defective! "Sisters of Mercy" just doesn't have the same impact when it's skipping throughout.

My roommate's cat, a grey longhair named Samsom, is hanging out with me thinking of ways to stop me from typing. So I should go pay attention to him now. He pretty much rocks, as far as cats go. Plus, he could probably give a rats ASS about the change in year. Here's to that!

Here's wishing you all an interesting 2007!

I can't decide who looks the weirdest in this photo. Although I guess Patrick Cassidy (far right) looks the least strange.

All three, plus Shaun, are part of a star studded Sondheim extravaganza happening in LA in March. That's super exciting. especially if you're a Sondheim geek.

Gary, I think you should go.

I saw Grey Gardens on Broadway today. Might I say that the Beales are the most compelling characters on the Great White Way at this moment. As most of you must know, it's a musical based on the eerie Maysles Brothers documentary from the 70s.

Christine Ebersole, who plays Big Edie in Act One and Little Edie in Act Two, was out. She's the star of the show. But her understudy, Maureen Moore, was fabulous! She nailed it. The entire cast was amazing, including the children who portrayed Jackie Kennedy and Lee Radizwill.

This may very well be the best musical on Broadway this year and one of the best I have ever seen. It's funny sometimes and depressing most of the time. The songs work well with the material and the sets are very well conceived. It's a story that makes one wonder about their own regrets and how much they affect their own lives. Exactly what happens when you try to grab the brass ring and you miss?

Go see this if you can.