Banana Rose Kitten Box Monster
Balloon Lipstick Strawberry DNA Vacuum-Cleaner
Chocolate Electricity Blood Cable Butterfly
Elevator Shoes Antennae Mummy Telescope
Saxophone Chair Bird Cannon Policeman
Kaliedoscope Nightgown Syringe Ocean Moon
Secretary Accordion Canyon Pump Leopard
Magician Bottle Skyscraper Necklace Pill
Popsicle Snake Geyser Pencil Icecube
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Our Hero, thus far.
I started this blog around the time that I first moved into an apartment after living on the streets. My concept was to give a day by day account of starting a new business, sort of a rags to riches story with an underlying social message that living on the streets for part of your life doesn't make you a big dummy (despite the stereotypes that the Potty Mouths on the Sentinel Forum like to rant). Didn't quite work out that way - I went long periods without posting.
Now I'm giving it something of a reboot. My life is much improved these days - I'm in another, nicer apartment. I live near the beach, right in the thick of the local tourism economy. I live right next to an amusement park as a matter of fact and love to go on the rides. I'm getting much more focused about practicing my art, juggling and music on a regular basis, as well as making a redoubled effort to write to this blog regularly. I'm collaborating on a YouTube channel - KLSD radio - which is gradually but steadily taking Santa Cruz by storm.
Lynn Robinson hasn't answered my email about pressuring landlords to evict "undesirables" yet - what's up with that? I sent the first email April 29. No answer. Ran into her on the street and she said she'd write back. No answer. Resent my 3 questions on July 18. Still no answer. The emails were about the unilateral policy (meaning it's something she's gone and done on her own, not subject to a Council vote) of urging landlords to evict alleged gang members - apparently they're guilt of future crimes, like in The Minority Report. Here's the questions that I send her:
Seems like some pretty basic things that Lynn ought to know the answer to before embarking on the policy on the first place. I understand that much of the town is in a panic over gang violence, but I don't see how undermining people's housing and economic security is supposed to improve things. Apparently, Lynn Robinson doesn't know either.
As for starting a business, I've made some progress. Met a corporate lawyer who's willing to help me get the ball rolling. Decided that "Arts and Entertainment" is a good way to succinctly put the many-varied creative things I'd like to do under one umbrella. It's an Arts and Entertainment business. Found out about a new recording studio that's strategically located. Researching motion control cameras - a lost art I'd like to revive (Notable exception of recent motion control work: Moon). Lots of networking. Stay tuned.
Just learned that George Lucas was 33 years old when he made Star Wars (which came out the year I was born!) That will be my age this October - makes me feel like I haven't squandered time, and still have a shot at doing great things now! You'll see.
Now I'm giving it something of a reboot. My life is much improved these days - I'm in another, nicer apartment. I live near the beach, right in the thick of the local tourism economy. I live right next to an amusement park as a matter of fact and love to go on the rides. I'm getting much more focused about practicing my art, juggling and music on a regular basis, as well as making a redoubled effort to write to this blog regularly. I'm collaborating on a YouTube channel - KLSD radio - which is gradually but steadily taking Santa Cruz by storm.
Lynn Robinson hasn't answered my email about pressuring landlords to evict "undesirables" yet - what's up with that? I sent the first email April 29. No answer. Ran into her on the street and she said she'd write back. No answer. Resent my 3 questions on July 18. Still no answer. The emails were about the unilateral policy (meaning it's something she's gone and done on her own, not subject to a Council vote) of urging landlords to evict alleged gang members - apparently they're guilt of future crimes, like in The Minority Report. Here's the questions that I send her:
Have you or the City collected any empirical data to show whether this policy has been effective at reducing violent street crime?
What is the criteria for determining who qualifies as a gang member?
What happens to these people after they're put out of their homes?
Seems like some pretty basic things that Lynn ought to know the answer to before embarking on the policy on the first place. I understand that much of the town is in a panic over gang violence, but I don't see how undermining people's housing and economic security is supposed to improve things. Apparently, Lynn Robinson doesn't know either.
As for starting a business, I've made some progress. Met a corporate lawyer who's willing to help me get the ball rolling. Decided that "Arts and Entertainment" is a good way to succinctly put the many-varied creative things I'd like to do under one umbrella. It's an Arts and Entertainment business. Found out about a new recording studio that's strategically located. Researching motion control cameras - a lost art I'd like to revive (Notable exception of recent motion control work: Moon). Lots of networking. Stay tuned.
Just learned that George Lucas was 33 years old when he made Star Wars (which came out the year I was born!) That will be my age this October - makes me feel like I haven't squandered time, and still have a shot at doing great things now! You'll see.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Sentinel Watch
Sentinel Watch is going to be an ongoing feature on this blog. I consider a necessary correction for the fact that Santa Cruz's only daily newspaper exhibits an massive bias around the issue of social class which I intend to document (with statistics even!, eventually).
Here's a particularly striking example. Check out the off-topic photo and caption. An article about the City Council's budget deliberations manages to sneak in a TOTALLY UNRELATED dig against "unsavory characters" downtown. The Sentinel now is so trigger-happy to talk trash about the street people downtown that it's working it into articles about completely different topics. Classic work, Robot Monkeys!
My favorite comment on the article from the (usually dismal) Forum is this one from "Jack":
Little wonder the city's broke. The great thing (if you're a police chief) about underfunding everything but the police department (who just hired 8 more officers in the midst of a budget crisis that's resulted in reduced funding to everything but the police) is that it inevitable leads to the sort of social deterioration (violent crime, rioting) that provokes the upper middle class moral panic which provides ideological cover for continued over-funding of the SCPD and militarization of the city government. From the point of view of a cop who's concerned about job security, crime waves are good politics. Paradoxically, frightening crime is politically valuable for the police - it's a self-reinforcing funding mechanism. The police's stated mission of eliminating crime would put them on the all on unemployment dole if they ever actually succeeded in achieving that goal.
Welcome to Santa Cruz. It's fun to be a vampire.
Here's a particularly striking example. Check out the off-topic photo and caption. An article about the City Council's budget deliberations manages to sneak in a TOTALLY UNRELATED dig against "unsavory characters" downtown. The Sentinel now is so trigger-happy to talk trash about the street people downtown that it's working it into articles about completely different topics. Classic work, Robot Monkeys!
My favorite comment on the article from the (usually dismal) Forum is this one from "Jack":
What is the problem with this picture? I see 2 other police just standing there doing nothing. This is whats happened to our work force. It takes 3 men to do a 1 man job . and this is happening with all the people who work for the city and county. We better wake up because the other 2 officers are getting paid with benefits to do NOTHING.
Little wonder the city's broke. The great thing (if you're a police chief) about underfunding everything but the police department (who just hired 8 more officers in the midst of a budget crisis that's resulted in reduced funding to everything but the police) is that it inevitable leads to the sort of social deterioration (violent crime, rioting) that provokes the upper middle class moral panic which provides ideological cover for continued over-funding of the SCPD and militarization of the city government. From the point of view of a cop who's concerned about job security, crime waves are good politics. Paradoxically, frightening crime is politically valuable for the police - it's a self-reinforcing funding mechanism. The police's stated mission of eliminating crime would put them on the all on unemployment dole if they ever actually succeeded in achieving that goal.
Welcome to Santa Cruz. It's fun to be a vampire.
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