Today I bought some Spanish language tapes. I plan to listen to them in my car instead of NPR. Let’s face it, NPR is pretty darn repetitive and depressing these days. Crooked CEOs here, crazy murderers there. Maybe if I drop out of the media cycle for a while, things will pick up. Maybe when I come back, there will be peace and prosperity for all. Either that, or I’ll be reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez in the original Spanish. One must make the best of things.<\/p>\n
And speaking of making the best of things, maybe I’ll at least learn not to buy Robert Mondavi Woodbridge Cabernet Sauvignon. It was on sale at Safeway, and it’s pretty grody-to-the-max, as we used to say in the 80s. (Actually I<\/em> didn’t used to say, but I’m sure somebody<\/em> in the San Fernando Valley did.) I kind of like the Woodbridge white wines, though. Maybe that’s because whenever I think of Woodbridge, I get a mental image of Sam extending a glass to me with a smarmy grin on his face, saying, “Would<\/em> you like some?” just like the guy in the commercial. At least it’s OK for drinking while journal-writing and refurbishing Mom’s website<\/a>. And I also now know not to inflict this wine on Significant Others. It’s not like I’m picky in that regard… I’ve served $1.99 Trader Joe’s wine to Significant Others without a whit of shame. Well, maybe one or two whits. But that’s all.<\/p>\n Of course, if I had given up on NPR today, I would have missed out on this radio essay by Mikel Jolet<\/a> (RealAudio clip). Jolet is a writer who’s exactly my age. It’s a fun little piece, and the end is the real kicker. (For the record, I own a few polo shirts… but I have never<\/em> owned a pair of Dockers, and the khakis I do own are rarely well-creased.)<\/p>\n