another havel quote, movies, books

"The question of whether one or several political parties are in power, and how these parties define and label themselves, is of far less importance than the question of whether or not it is possible to live like a human being. To shed the burden of traditional political categories and habits and open oneself up fully to the world of human existence and then to draw political conclusions only after having analysed it: this is not only politically more realistic but at the same time, from the point of view of an 'ideal state of affairs', politically more promising as well. A genuine, profound and lasting change for the better... can no longer result from the victory (were such a victory possible) of any particular traditional political conception. More than ever before, such a change will have to derive from human existence, from the fundamental reconstitution of the position of people in the world, their relationships to themselves and to each other, and to the universe. If a better economic or political model is to be created, than perhaps more than ever before it must derive from profound existential and moral changes in society."

- This time from "The Power of the Powerless."

Back to work today, though not much of a grind. Just a few things to prepare for DSE. Cate is gone. Amanda and Neal are gone. Oh lonely wolf.

It was a movie weekend. I finally started downloading movies, eh. Goodfellas, The Color of Money, and Casablanca were the first three. But now I've gone crazy with The Fly and Eraserhead.
I'm reaching a maximum point of grossed out insanity, and I need a dose of sugarcoated Hollywood. Spiderman here I come.

In the last few weeks I read Robertson Davies's Deptford Trilogy, the new book on the Mats by Jim Walsh, Mark Twain's Conneticut Yankee, Trinity by Leon Uris, and The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer. Hopefully I'll finish the Havel soon. I picked up a few things at the library today: The Great Gatsby, Capote's In Cold Blood, and The Wapshot Chronicle by John Cheever. I've also had Teaching Community by bell hooks sitting around for a bit so maybe I'll work on that.

What, you expected reviews or something?


UPDATE: The version of Spiderman I downloaded was in a weird language. So I watched Elephant Man. I do not recommend to David Lynch movies in one day. I feel crazeee!

Basketball

I am terrible at this sport, haven't watched a full game in probably two years, and can only watch 2 minute highlight reals on a three inch window on my laptop.

But I am loving following this season's NBA through Deadspin, Free Darko, Britt Robson, and the Fanhouse.

KG leaving for Beantown and a putrid T-Wolves squad with McHale still at the wheel created the spark for my liberated fandom. I recommend this posting up at Free Darko: The Cheers of the Gratefully Oppressed.

Back to the Winter Wonderland

Cate and I got back into Oslo yesterday, returning to Sogn to see my friends Neal and Amanda. We shared a round of excellent scotch they brought over, had dinner at Punjaab Tandoori, and had drinks at Olympen and Gloria Flames. They're off to Bergen over the next few days.

Stockholm was excellent. The weather held up better, and the yellow and orange buildings held off the winter gloom quite well. Maybe Cate will write more? She kept a small journal, hopefully it will be blogged.

There are photos! Check them out!

This is an incredible article.

That's all I got for ya now. Keep your head up...

Samuel Clemens

For some reason lately I occasionally think of this somewhat bourgeois but valuable sentiment: "If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life." That is an introduction to the below paragraphs.

"Words realize nothing, vivify nothing to you, unless you have suffered in your own person the thing which the words try to describe. There are wise people who talk ever so knowingly and complacently about the "working classes," and satisfy themselves that a day's hard intellectual work is very much harder than a day's hard manual toil and is righteously entitled to much bigger pay. Why they really think that, you know, because they know all about the one, but haven't tried the other. But I know all about both; and so far as I am concerned, there isn't money enough in the universe, to hire me to swing a pickax thirty days but I will do the hardest kind of intellectual work for just about as near nothing as you can cipher down -- and I will be satisfied , too.

"Intellectual "work" is misnamed; it is a pleasure, a dissipation, and is its own highest reward. The poorest paid architect, engineer, general, author, sculptor, painter, lecturer, advocate, legislator, actor, preacher, singer is constructively in heaven when he is at work; and as for the musician with the fiddlebow in his hand who sits in the midst of a great orchestra with the ebbing and flowing tides of divine sound washing over him -- why certainly, he is at work, if you wish to call it that, but lord, it's a sarcasm just the same. The law of work does seem utterly unfair -- but there it is, and nothing can change it: the higher the pay in enjoyment the worker gets out of it, the higher shall be his pay in cash, also."
- From "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court"

Cate's contribution.
You may not be able to see the link if you're not on facebook. Sorry.

Don't take the above quotation necessarily as my own opinion. I don't know if the best summer of my life was spent gardening or teaching how to garden.


In addition:
Every day I am in Copenhagen makes me love this city more.

Cate is in Scandinavia with me, as the contribution should make clear.

Happy New Years. I love you all.

The Dude

This weekend I found a good little cafe/bar hidden away in Grunnerlokka called Cafe Mir. It is hidden away off the street, occupying two floors of a building covered with some pretty rad art. Downstairs has two foos tables. It is always good to find new places while exploring that I can dig on. I spent a few hours on Saturday early evening exploring. Much of the city center is lit up with Christmas decorations, and it makes the darkness bearable, really.

I also finally went back to the Munch Museum for the first time since SUST 05. I picked up some postcards too. I like Munch alright, he is a good artistic counterpart to Knut Hamsun's early work. They both capture the inner turmoil and dread of early-modernism with its existential crises. I think anyway. And Munch does a great job portraying the dark side of Norwegian society.

This is walking down Karl Johans Gate.

I've been pretty busy the last week updating the reading compendium for Divided States of Europe. Because the program hadn't been run before it needed to be filled out a bit. It needed to be spiced up with easier and less academic readings. The more interesting additions are part of Vaclav Havel's Disturbing the Peace, bits from Darkulic's Cafe Europa that I was reading earlier this semester, Lech Walesa's Nobel acceptance speech, and the chapter on Solidarity in A Force More Powerful. That's the less academic stuff, anyway. There was some heavier additions like Habermas as well as some research from a few Scandinavian NGO's. When the syllabus is complete I'll make it available.

We still haven't gotten the compiled evaluations back from HECUA, though we've been told this week. I'm just glad I've been able to sink my teeth in the syllabus project instead of stressing about the evals and feeling lonely with folks gone or leaving.

I do have a couple friends sticking around for the spring, but no one I am close to right now. Charloette, formerly a SUSTer, will be around. Tim, the German I hung out with a couple times early in the semester, has extended into the Spring. Knut Erik, Martin's friend, will be here of course. I've also met another German I got coffee with last week and we've made similar plans this week. She leaves this weekend but will be back in February.

There is also the small matter of visitors! Cate will be here in less than two weeks! We're staying in Oslo for Christmas, but will go for a week trip to Copenhagen, including New Years, and then to Stockholm. AND, I've got friends coming! That's right, Amanda and Neal ponied up the cash to make the trip: Jan 2-12. I've known Amanda for a couple years, first peripherally through Jane Addams School, then as a roommate of a friend's, then as Youth Farm West Side Program Director. Neal was in Americorps with me this last year, working on the West Side at Guadalupe Alternative Program. He also lived on my block, which led to many unplanned and excellent beers, guitar, and chillin sessions. We all hung out a lot over the spring and summer, and they became good friends of mine.

So things are looking good here overall. The wolf abides.

The National

Here are a couple goodies. They are a couple music videos from the band I went to see last Sunday, The National. They were really good, the best show I've seen since TV on the Radio. I've been digging on their last album, Boxer, this fall so it was a pleasure to actually see a band I liked live. Most of the show was excellent, the music was on, the band energetic, and even funny stage banter. They missed the mark on two songs, and sadly one of those was my favorite: "Fake Empire."

And the audience was pretty lame of course. If you've been to a show with me you know I don't usually move around too much. I'll sway back and forth, rock my head and bounce a bit on my right leg. Moving a bit but not dancing. Folks here are usually such passive listeners, that I'm in the top 5% rocking out. That is shameful.

Anyway, I like this band. Their songs could be accused of sounding too much alike, but I don't care. I like the sound. Most songs start a bit quieter then build into a bit of a jamming crescendo. They keep their songs short so they don't get too indulgent or experimental. Oh and it doesn't hurt that their lyrics are strong and fit my psyche here.





Here is that fave song of mine overlaid on a homevideo of a French family's trip to the USA. Yes, it is kinda strange. They can't do a good live version, from what youtube indicates.

I dream of better weather.