Wednesday, September 19, 2001

farewell, mr. dressup

ernie coombs, better known as mr. dressup, has passed away from complications after suffering a stroke. he was 73.

most people outside canada have no idea who this man was, but i remember watching his show religiously as a little kid. mr. dressup, along with the puppets casey and finnegan, created an adventure in the boundless imagination of every kid who watched.

i think it's safe to say every kid truly felt love for this man. i know i did.

ernie coombs was born in lewiston, maine, in 1927, and arrived in canada in 1963. he became mr. dressup in 1964.

thirty years later he officially became a canadian citizen. he was named a member of the order of canada 1996.

among his accolades are the children's choice award, a lifetime achievement award from the children's broadcast institute, an actra best program award and two juno nominations for best children's album.

farewell, mr. dressup. you'll be missed.

9/19/2001 01.36.01 | you daring lousy guy

Tuesday, September 18, 2001

08.48 9.11

© ap/charles rex arbogast

the empire state building dominates the new york skyline at sunrise tuesday, sept. 18, 2001.

at 8.48am, new york paused for one minute to remember the victims of the attack exactly one week ago. may their souls find peace.

9/18/2001 22.51.58 | you daring lousy guy

prayers

© christina caturano/associated press

9/18/2001 20.17.13 | you daring lousy guy

lightening the mood

sometimes humour, even if it provides us a brief smile, can make us feel better.

with that in mind, i bring you the names of three businesses i've happened across in the past week:

• ka ka cosmetic center (would you put that on your face?)
• holy beauty center (... batman!)
• sing along hair center (i'm not sure i'd want someone boogeying around my head while holding a pair of scissors - ooops... oh well - you didn't need that ear anyway.)

9/18/2001 19.20.42 | you daring lousy guy

second coming

excerpt from second coming by william butler yeats

things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
the blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
the ceremony of innocence is drowned;
the best lack all conviction, while the worst
are full of passionate intensity. . . . .

surely some revelation is at hand . . .
and what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

thank you for sending this, bob neufer.

9/18/2001 19.03.28 | you daring lousy guy

weary

9/18/2001 03.11.49 | you daring lousy guy

Sunday, September 16, 2001

the innocents

i went for a long walk today, as i do most every day.

along my journey i came upon two small children who were just hanging out together. they must have been no older than two years.

the little boy was white, the little girl - dark skinned.

i watched as they turned, held each other's hand, and made their way down a set of stairs. and i smiled.

there is hope.

9/16/2001 21.51.12 | you daring lousy guy

grim perspective

photo © ap

9/16/2001 13.49.25 | you daring lousy guy

min jung is back home safely.

and to everyone who helped her out while she was stuck in paris - a huge thank you!

9/16/2001 12.55.40 | you daring lousy guy

in my dreams i am lost and wandering.

jeffrey zeldman writes two poignant pieces on 911.

9/16/2001 11.20.50 | you daring lousy guy

Saturday, September 15, 2001

my brother sent me a link to this very long new york times article titled:
the education of a holy warrior.

in a word: sobering.

9/15/2001 12.40.48 | you daring lousy guy

thank you

lisa sent this link to me just now. it's hard not to look at it and not cry.

9/15/2001 04.04.33 | you daring lousy guy

light a candle

light a candle to remember those who were lost.

9/15/2001 03.42.04 | you daring lousy guy

min jung kim

um... i need your help.

i know i've already asked you to help with disaster relief by donating funds to the red cross, but i've run across a situation that's even more personal.

some of you may know min jung kim. she's a friend from san francisco who was travelling in europe when the terrorist attack happened.

i just read over at ernie's site that she's stuck in paris with no money left, and her credit cards are maxed. she was supposed to come home on wednesday, but the airport closures have fouled that up. now it's looking like tuesday might be the earliest she can get out.

needless to say, being stuck overseas with no bucks sucks. so i'm asking for a small favour: if you can spare a couple bucks, and you use paypal, why not fire a little over to her. she'll be able to withdraw the funds to her bank account and then should be able to access it with her ATM card at a bank machine.

i'm not asking for a lot. if you know her, she's cool people. i know she would appreciate it. besides, what's a few bucks among friends, huh? i've included her paypal donation button below to make it easy if you feel like helping out.

thank you in advance for helping out.

9/15/2001 02.10.23 | you daring lousy guy

jason has done something pretty cool.

he archived a whole whack of blogs from september 11 on his site on one page. it's a great way to get a feel for the reactions of the blogging community on 911.

one thing is certain: we've all been changed forever.

9/15/2001 00.50.39 | you daring lousy guy

i went back to edit my post on the americans.

the version i had originally put up was truncated. i prefer to read the complete and accurate account of gordon sinclair's editorial.

9/15/2001 00.32.29 | you daring lousy guy

Friday, September 14, 2001

on september 14, 1814, francis scott key, wrote the words of what became known as the star-spangled banner after witnessing the british bombardment of fort mchenry. in 1931 it became the official national anthem of the united states.

i bring this up in light of its relevance. it's well known that i'm a toque (rhymes with kook, meaning i'm canadian), and i especially like to tease my close friend jim about being a murcan (three guesses what that means), but the fact remains the are many awesome people in the united states who are special to me.

i'm proud to call them friends.

9/14/2001 23.32.13 | you daring lousy guy

survivor story

another amazing story of escape and survival from the world trade center.

9/14/2001 17.15.12 | you daring lousy guy

shock

what is so shocking about these attacks is simply this: any one of us, at any time, might have been in the world trade center or even in the area on september 11.

i'm considering how much more intense the shock must be for the people who definitely would have been there had circumstances not been different for them.

ultimately, the worst shock falls the hardest on those who lost family and friends there, at the pentagon, and in pennsylvania.

let's remember to support them.

9/14/2001 15.04.43 | you daring lousy guy

Thursday, September 13, 2001

jim offers a different perspective on the emotions he felt as the events unfolded on september 11.

9/13/2001 23.05.41 | you daring lousy guy

escape from the tower

a hong kong man working in the world trade center barely escaped with his life.

lui kam-ming was on the 91st floor of the south tower when the north tower was struck. he ran down the fire escape. he was down to the 65th floor when the second plane crashed into the south tower. it took him 45 minutes to reach the ground floor and get away before the south tower collapsed.he went to new york's chinatown district to call his wife, letting her know he was safe.

it's one more story of good news to help offset the pain we all feel, even if just a little bit.

9/13/2001 23.05.34 | you daring lousy guy

‹---- see this graphic? it's there for a reason. it'll take you to the red cross donations page, where you can donate online, or use a variety of other methods to help with disaster relief.

send a few bucks. every little bit helps.

and feel free to steal the graphic for your site if you wish. i made it this afternoon.

9/13/2001 23.04.05 | you daring lousy guy

i've decided to post the first set of photos that have come in to project chopsticks.

they gave me a nice lift when i needed one. i hope they do for you too.

9/13/2001 22.45.00 | you daring lousy guy

another prediction!

9/13/2001 22.39.19 | you daring lousy guy

america: the good neighbour

this has been sent to me by several people in my email. i've read it before. i agree with it.

to help lift the mood a bit, i am republishing it here.

let's be personal - Broadcast June 5, 1973 - CFRB, Toronto, Ontario.

Topic: "The Americans"

Widespread but only partial news coverage was given recently to a remarkable editorial broadcast from Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a Canadian television commentator.

What follows is the full text of his trenchant remarks as printed in the Congressional Record:

"The United States dollar took another pounding on German, French and British exchanges this morning, hitting the lowest point ever known in West Germany. It has declined there by 41% since 1971 and this Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as the most generous and possibly the least-appreciated people in all the earth.

"As long as sixty years ago, when I first started to read newspapers, I read of floods on the Yellow River and the Yangtse. Who rushed in with men and money to help? The Americans did.

"They have helped control floods on the Nile, the Amazon, the Ganges and the Niger. Today, the rich bottom land of the Misssissippi is under water and no foreign land has sent a dollar to help. Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy, were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of those countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.

When the franc was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.

"When distant cities are hit by earthquakes, it is the United States that hurries into help... Managua Nicaragua is one of the most recent examples. So far this spring, 59 American communities have been flattened by tornadoes. Nobody has helped.

"The Marshall Plan ... the Truman Policy ... all pumped billions upon billions of dollars into discouraged countries. Now, newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent war-mongering Americans.

"I'd like to see one of those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United States dollar build its own airplanes.

"Come on... let's hear it! Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tristar or the Douglas 107? If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all international lines except Russia fly American planes? Why does no other land on earth even consider putting a man or women on the moon?

"You talk about Japanese technocracy and you get radios. You talk about German technocracy and you get automobiles. You talk about American technocracy and you find men on the moon, not once, but several times ... and safely home again. You talk about scandals and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everyone to look at. Even the draft dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets, most of them ... unless they are breaking Canadian laws .. are getting American dollars from Ma and Pa at home to spend here.

"When the Americans get out of this bind ... as they will... who could blame them if they said 'the hell with the rest of the world'. Let someone else buy the Israel bonds, Let someone else build or repair foreign dams or design foreign buildings that won't shake apart in earthquakes.

"When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the Americans who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke. I can name to you 5,000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble.

"Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake.

"Our neighbours have faced it alone and I am one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles.

"I hope Canada is not one of these. But there are many smug, self-righteous Canadians. And finally, the American Red Cross was told at its 48th Annual meeting in New Orleans this morning that it was broke.

"This year's disasters ... with the year less than half-over … has taken it all and nobody ... but nobody ... has helped."

bob neufer sent these follow-up comments to me moments after i first posted this entry. thank you, bob:

Gordon Sinclair's tribute to the U.S., entitled "The Americans" was originally broadcast in 1973. It was around the time of the U.S. pullout from Vietnam, and Gordon was angry at what he perceived to be a strong backlash against the American intervention in south-east Asia.

His record went on to become a bit of hit in the United States and Gordon donated all the money raised by the sale of the record to the American Red Cross.

Regrettably, Gordon Sinclair died in 1984, but his recording of "The Americans" has often been replayed during times of national crisis in the United States, most notably during the Gulf War. He'll never realise how much comfort his words, broadcast more than a quarter century ago, are undoubtedly providing Americans in these troubled times.

9/13/2001 20.09.15 | you daring lousy guy

i'm getting tired of the way some newcasters speak.

they constantly speak in halting sentences...... trying...... to sound profound.

where were they educated - the william shatner school of broadcast journalism?

my. ship. my. crew.

9/13/2001 14.55.09 | you daring lousy guy

my wife told me this afternoon that she was heading out to meet a friend at the world trade center.

only then did it remind me that we have a complex here with that name.

9/13/2001 14.46.53 | you daring lousy guy

from an article in today's south china morning post:

professor paul wilkinson, an academic and author on political violence, says islamic fanatics may now focus their hate on so-called "lesser satans".

he also recalled a failed plot by the british-educated and bin laden-funded bomb-maker ramzi yousef, who was jailed recently for the 1993 bomb attack on the world trade centre. In 1995, yousef plotted to blow up 12 american planes over east asia, including one over the kowloon city approach to kai tak airport.

hong kong was also the subject of an alert in 1978. hundreds of police were placed on high alert after "credible" intelligence was received that one of the world's most feared terrorists, illich ramirez sanchez - known as carlos the jackal - was working with the japanese red army, an infamous terrorist group.

intelligence reports revealed their plan was to shoot down a lufthansa flight on its approach to kai tak airport using a rocket-launcher from a kowloon city vantage point.

the alert remained in place for three months before being eased.

this is a sad world we live in.

9/13/2001 12.28.40 | you daring lousy guy

yesterday proved that not everyone in hong kong is completely clueless.

a lot of people went to the u.s. consulate with flowers and wreaths. many stopped what they were doing to have a moment of silence or to pray. people were talking about it.

i keep looking at the 78 storey bank of china building...

9/13/2001 12.16.33 | you daring lousy guy

tv sucks

all day yesterday i was watching news feeds from the u.s., trying to learn whatever i could of the effort to free survivors from the world trade center ruins.

suddenly, the feed from cbs news was replaced with little bear. i was able to switch over and find another english language broadcast from abc news. that lasted until the early evening when local news stations began their broadcasts.

incredibly, afterward i could not get any more feeds. instead i was treated to mindless game shows and horse racing.

9/13/2001 12.11.10 | you daring lousy guy

Wednesday, September 12, 2001

unity

9/12/2001 17.44.03 | you daring lousy guy

a message from Soul of the Web. human stories from jimformation. documentation of events from jish.

i am very sad.

9/12/2001 15.17.25 | you daring lousy guy

apocalypse now

haunting.

9/12/2001 13.37.05 | you daring lousy guy