  Some days, it seems not enough to have cancelled my cable. My addiction to NPR , however somewhat removed in immediate relevance being an LA station that I tune into, is like having CNN blaring in the background. The recursive loop of headlines sucking me in like a long layover in an airport when the telly is all there is to distract from the mass of humanity flowing in and out of terminal waiting areas. Ive given it a rest today. Talk of prisoner abuse and our alliance to an increasingly outmoded UN is wearing me out. So much attention to matters that Im inept to help rectify No wonder Americans tune it out, opting for the bliss of not knowing and the luxury of making blanket comments to assess the state of foreign policy and world affairs.
Its a lot to take on, being a responsible global citizen. Today is my vacation from input. Indulgences like taking my new stereo for an extended test drive with the likes of Ibraham Ferrer, the warmth of his voice heating my home on such a dreary spring day. Actually showering and dressing in more than soccer shorts and a wife beater, pretending I have anywhere to go. Yes, the ankle surgery fallout is debilitating, but the slower pace of the days has its fruit. I get free range to retreat inward.
To be still in my leather chair and study the passing clouds. Tomorrow is another chance to hone my palate as a budding sommelier. Luis and Robin coming by to pick up my crippled self and taking me to a tasting of Australian reds. 2 pinots, a cab, a red, and 2 shiraz from various spots on the continent. Not that I have a job, but my self-indulgence once again wins out. Sex, drink, elaborate dishes from the kitchen, runners highs, massage, aesthetic improvements to the immaculate new condo.
I'm a pleasure-seeking professional. An epicurean to rival all others. Ok, so no sex. Although Ive been tempted to give the ex, Kerri, a call. I miss her hands. Oh, and the conversational connection. Seriously, Id like to know how she is. Been loving her for so many years now, its strange to suspend contact with her now that neither of us is doing those dangerous drugs, together or apart.
The sultry voice, her beautifully painted skin, her sweet self rumbling up on her motorcycle, our exciting each other in the dark of movie theatres and low-lit restaurants. Its almost enough just to lull myself to sleep imagining her soft skin next to mine. Got meself a gmail account yesterday. Username: Athene. Not a misspelling, no. In the older text, The Iliad , she was referred to as Pallas Athene. Who we all know from our schooldays as the one who was prophesized as someone who would destroy the patriarch. So Zeus swallowed his impregnated partner to prevent the birth, only to have a fully-armed Athene spring from his head.
Reeks of Christian theft of the idea of a female emerging from a man. Yet the idea of a female warrior who says feminism didnt exist in times past? Ok, besides the goddess worship of Isis. And the figure of Ishtar in Gilgamesh. Reminds me of urlLink my rewriting of that tale as a comedy to be pitched to Comedy Central. Heidi Fleiss cast as the vindictive sex kitten, Ishtar. Jennifer Coolidge as the sticky-lipped prostitute. My screenplay of the first act still cracks me up. Why I didnt earn an A+ on that project for the lovely Prof. Hayton, Ill always be unsure. When an A is Not Enough; The Charlotte Conrad Story. No school means one thing for sure. I can finally get to my booklist.
Volumes hitherto left on my overcrowded bookshelf gathering dust. Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond. Imagined Communities by Anderson. Another (x4) reading of David Foster Wallaces Infinite Jest . Some of Sontags fiction instead of the critical texts of Illness as Metaphor and Against Interpretation . Reread Milton. Reread all my favorite classic epic poems. Maybe try The Song of Roland in French (but not the original French).
Dantes other works beside the Inferno . Lots I want to absorb. And nothing but time staring me in the face. Not shying away from the self-imposed pressure to be the most literate me I can fabricate. That sounds plastic. The most literate me I can become. Literature is an endless pleasure. And will become even more so as I settle into a life after the university. I know I promised you all to keep this site as work-friendly as I lover of naked women can manage... aside from my respite on weekends when y'all aren't actually at work... so I'll post today's picture of the day with that in mind. Enjoy. So sexy nevertheless. 
