Ok, folks. I’ve been having trouble with GreyMatter’s comments engine, so I’ve (hopefully) turned it off. If anyone knows about these things, please drop me a line. Argh.
yikes
So after a day fully packed with meetings, I finally get a chance to glance at my email. NY Times headlines: Anthrax in the Senate. Anthrax in Pataki’s office. The airborne variety this time. Highly concentrated, weapons-grade. And I can’t help but be afraid of what’s coming. Much as I know it won’t help me, I can’t help it.
Is it just me, or does this whole thing over the past several weeks really just look like testing? Let’s make sure we get the mix right, fellas, make sure it’s as deadly as it possibly can be, and then we’ll set it loose. The next phase of this project isn’t another envelope – it’s something much worse. A ventilation system, a food packaging factory, something horrific and huge. These people want us dead, all of us. That’s the simple truth, and they’ll do anything to make it a reality.
My mother, whose childhood spanned World War II, says this reminds her of those dark years. I asked her if that was as terrible as it sounded. She told me, “One thing you learn during wartime is that the human animal is only capable of being afraid for so long, and then it’s over. You’re not afraid anymore.” I wonder when that moment will be.
In the meantime, how about this? It always makes me feel better…
oof
Out with Stephen, Molly and Jeff again last night. That girl’s going to be the death of me, but it’ll be fun dying. Drinks at Brasserie Jo, Dinner at La Creperie, Jenny Toomey (who’s amazing!) at Schuba’s. Home just a hair shy of 1:00, none too sober but with a smile on my face.
And now I’m taking said face, loaded with Vitamin B and Advil, to work.
la familia
12 people at Family Dinner last night. I think it’s a new record – at least, it is for my house. My table’s only built to seat 10, and moreover I only have 10 appropriate chairs, so we dragged my Georgian armchair in from the living room and my rolling chair in from the office and all got to know one another really well.
Among the lot of us, we produced a few good napkins, too, although I can’t seem to remember what they were. Brain fuzzy and all that. I guess that’s to be expected, considering the quantities of wine we went through (might have been more than a case, even).
Speaking of not being very bright today, I left my lunch (yummy homemade thai dumpling soup with mushrooms and bok choi), neatly packed in tupperware and ziploc, on the floor in my front hallway. <sigh> Guess it’s back to the pirates at Zoom Kitchen…</sigh>
One of the great things
One of the great things about Berlin, speaking of Germany, is that the history is everywhere, fused with the spirit of the place. I’ll probably be foisting a lot more photos from my recent visit upon you, but this one‘s my favorite. This doorway is right around the corner from the Häckische Höfe, home to hip and upscale galleries, restaurants and apartments – right next door to a swank clothing boutique. You can see where the bullets carved away at the façade. You can see the hell his city went through. And yet, all around you, there is this buoyant, joyous life. Ich liebe Berlin.
Phineas would like to register
Phineas would like to register a complaint. Phineas was not mentioned in yesterday’s entry, even though he (Phineas) was actually present and drinking. I hereby humbly beg Phineas to accept my most sincere and abject apologies.
But while I’m here, let me take a moment to say how very cruel it is that today, this rainy perfect napping day, of all days, when I honestly can’t think of anything I’d rather do than lie in bed and doze and read all curled up with a lovely boy, the telephone will not stop ringing. It began at 8:49 and has continued roughly every half hour since – alternating wrong numbers and telemarketers. I ask you, have these people no shame?
sigh.
Oh, and I’m blushing.
