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So far this week, with swell style and amidst a crazy-busy world that has gone ADD, I have:
- Launched a new website: www.marketsquare.com
- Returned to my four day per week fitness schedule that I abandoned years ago
- Solved my 7-year tax mess with the help of two tax attorneys and wound up with the largest IRS refund I've ever seen.
- Finally got to meet my favorite Noogler over dinner at Old Krakow
- Chose another digital piano which will replace my old broken Roland
- Finished writing a formal complaint that I will file with the State Bar of California
- Volunteered for a neighborhood safety watch program
Two days remain in the week, and as we all know, much can happen in a short while, especially in downtown San Francisco. The French composer Poulenc, very popular in the 1930s, saw it coming, this hyped-up society of ours. Oh, you must listen to his epic double piano concerto, and tell me if he didn't forecast our crazy age of cellphones and Crackberries!
Francis Poulenc: Concerto in D minor for Two Pianos and Orchestra:
I. Allegro ma non troppo
P.S.: Extra bonus points if you can name the two pianists whom I saw perform this concerto live.
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(By Daniel Culveyhouse | No comments yet | comment here)
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On January 20, 2009, exactly two years from today, we Americans will inaugurate a new president. Amidst all the recent news of politicians announcing their interest in running a presidential campaign, Hillary Rodham Clinton has confirmed her interest as well. In effect, they have all formed the most diverse— and the most exciting— circle of candidates the country has ever seen. In the Democratic arena, Clinton is the first woman nominee, Richardson the first Latino nominee, and Obama the second African-American nominee. On the Republican side of the river, not surprisingly, every potential candidate is a white male. The only thing we're missing is a segregationist from Alaska with an anti-gay pastor as his running mate! Or a transgendered Hawaiian... ok I'll stop.
Mrs. Clinton does have an uphill battle to wage against candidates of both parties, and winning the Democratic primary is only the first step. As reported by recent public opinion polls, support for Hillary is only somewhat favorable. There are plenty of Americans who remember the bitter fruits of Hillary's career, namely her past scandals and coverups. There are also some politicians, mostly Republicans on the bleeding right, that absolutely will not tolerate another Clinton White House.
To warm the public up to her platform, she is launching a series of webcasts through her website which begin on Monday, January 22nd. She will respond to questions from people who have R.S.V.P.'d to the webcasts. I've already sent my R.S.V.P., and during the webcasts, I will try to ask Hillary about how she will promote growth in nanotechnology and genetics, particularly in the Bay Area. I revealed a few weeks ago my devotion to research and progress toward the technological singularity, and though she might not be familiar with the singularity, she has already forged views toward the related fields. This is why I want to scrutinize and track how her policies might alter the industries that will affect this future event, so if I am able to pose these questions and Hillary answers, I will definitely report everything!
Also on Hillary's website, she will soon offer a blog which I'm sure will pique the interest of many Xangans. Maybe we should tell her to set up a Xanga account too while she's clearing the air. She's also recruiting folks through her site to raise money for her campaign, and these people are called Hillraisers. This is going to be one hell of a race, huh! If you plan on being a Hillary supporter, simply leave a comment or message with your email address so that I can send you an invite to Team Hillary. Lastly, she will feature a supporter's blog entry as the first guest post on her blog, so you can guess what I'll be busy writing tomorrow!
Her victory is more within reach every day, so long as Republican politicians keep making stupid and costly mistakes, such as allowing Ted Nugent, using machine guns and confederate flags as props, to kick off Governor Perry's inaugural event. And despite all of the damage control that Hillary must manage, the good news for me is that she has proven her resiliency and surprise factor over the years, and I believe that she has a fighting chance to win the White House in 2008. Though I dislike politics, I want to see her win, so this may be the race where I pull my head out of the ground and finally advocate change.
On a classical note, let the fight for the White House begin with some American music by John Adams.
John Adams: Short Ride in a Fast Machine, for orchestra
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(By Daniel Culveyhouse | No comments yet | comment here)
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Atop a ridge of bedrock in San Francisco sits an appealing oasis, one of our smallest but finest parks in San Francisco. I think of Kite Hill Park as a triumph of Mother Nature, rising high above all the "progress" and overdevelopment below. I visited the park today for a short photo study, and I discovered plenty of beauty to behold, but also some caution to heed.
Unfortunately, the park is eroding. Foot traffic and vandals are dislodging chunks of bedrock, threatening the houses below with potential rockslides. I was quite dismayed when I picked up large chunks of rock at the bottom of the access trail. These pieces used to be part of the park, but now it's just rubble to be removed.
Accessing the park was a little awkward. I had to walk down 19th Street, past Douglass, to find a small path on the side of a house. The path turned into a gnarly trail cut through bedrock, hardly an excursion for a dork like me wearing tennis shoes. I reached the top, enjoyed the views, and tried to identify a few of the trees at the top of the hill. Below are the best of the photos that I took. Click any of them for a larger version. While you inspect Kite Hill, why not pair it with a bit of sensuality by the Hungarian composer Miklós Rózsa, from one of his dance suites.
Miklós Rózsa: North Hungarian Peasant Songs and Dances, for violin and piano: No. 1
 | The Gnarly Path
to Kite Hill |
 | Country-like Setting
Above Packed Neighborhoods |
 | It's A Different World on the
Top of Kite Hill |
 | Dusk Slowly Sweeps toward
Downtown San Francisco |
 | Kite Park's Soulful Pine |
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(By Daniel Culveyhouse | No comments yet | comment here)
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Not really, but I realized that I never bothered being extremely superficial and vain during the eleven years that I've been blogging! It seems to be an obligatory gesture of all bloggers to show plenty of skin from time to time, and the more, the better.
I don't have any recent skin to bear in this entry, but I do have plenty of photo fodder from earlier in the century. You'll witness a few photos taken by Steven Underhill, as well as a few amateur photos. They appear further down in this entry, for extra work-safe padding.
Sorry, they're quite solitary. No photos of Daniel surrounded by hot Colt models, no photos of me on a beach or at a party hugging a boatload of Asian guys or something like that. It's just me. The question remains as to when I'll show some recent skin. The answer is... sometime this year!
Today's Classical Adventure
I have been introducing readers to more classical music, and I have another work today, from the 20th century. This work was composed by the French composer Maurice Ravel, and it is one of his more popular piano solos that he rewrote for full orchestra while sitting around waiting for World War I to end. It's called Valses nobles et sentimentales, which roughly means "noble and sentimental waltzes." You'll certainly notice a Spanish influence to the French impressionism he uses in the waltzes. And if you don't notice, well then, what the hell is your problem? :laughing:
Maurice Ravel: Valses nobles et sentimentales, for orchestra
The narcissistic photo spread can be found below. Scroll down.
Down.
Down.
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Down.
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(By Daniel Culveyhouse | No comments yet | comment here)
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Echoes
January 2nd, 2007 at 03:58 AM (2217 reads)
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 | Westfield, New Year's Day
by Daniel Culveyhouse |
But you also have the power to step forth from your mundane past, to follow a new calling unobstructed by old memories, tribulations, inconsistencies in your life. What you thought was your past experiences intimidating you from taking a plunge, going back to school, or entering a new relationship, is instead just your unwillingness to let go of your sore misfortune from years long gone. Nothing can stop you from becoming a far stronger and happier version of yourself.
Welcome to the year 2007 CE. The year of you.
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(By Daniel Culveyhouse | No comments yet | comment here)
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