Blogging Through Real Life
Category: Kitchen Sink...
Posted Thursday, August 26, 2004 at 08:22 AM [GMT-6]

The fact that I'm beginning this post at 6:45 a.m. should tell you something about the state of affairs around here lately. I've been consumed with a new design project and I'll still doing triage on my schedule after working Rock the Desert last weekend. So, all I can offer is this pitiful attempt...

• I know I promised a report on RTD, and I did actually start one. But, after a thousand words into the post I realized that nobody would be interested and I abandoned the effort. It's instructive to consider how, immediately after a major event, every detail seems significant, but after the passage of a bit of time, the important impressions begin to emerge (or the truly insignificant recede). In my pursuit of immediacy, I often lose perspective. Time will tell whether I've truly learned a lesson.


• Speaking of detailed perspectives, today's Wall Street Journal has interviews with fifteen "credentialed bloggers" who will be covering next week's RNC. Many of them, or their blogs, will be familiar to regulars blogosphere lurkers: Kevin Aylward of Wizbang!, Tom Bevan of Real Clear Politics, syndicated radio host Hugh Hewitt and novelist Roger L. Simon.
  
  Two things stand out. Of the fifteen, only one is a woman, Karol Sheinin, a political consultant who blogs at Spot On and contributes to Dean's World. Since most statistics show the blogger population to be roughly split between the genders, it's hard to figure why there's no more female representation in this group. For a political party that's struggling to attract female voters, this is not a great signal to send.
  
  The other interesting tidbit is that the WSJ emailed its questionnaire to more than fifteen bloggers. I know of no self-respecting blogger who wouldn't jump through hoops for a chance to get some free publicity from a national publication, so I'm wondering who doesn't need (or want) the props. OK, I can think of a couple.


• Speaking of women and wrong messages, I notice that a local organization is promoting an upcoming seminar targeting women-owned businesses. They've selected the ill-advised title of "Making Cents," an obvious play on words with a bad subliminal message. Right off the bat, they're lowering expectations.


• Speaking of subliminal messages, is the Brazilian Olympics women's beach volleyball team so mentally challenged that they needed to have "BRA" printed on their swimsuit tops to ensure proper donning of their "uniforms"? [It's a joke, folks; lighten up.]


• And, finally (mercifully), speaking of athletic supporters, Abbye and I have been enjoying serenades by the Midland Lee High School band as we go on early morning walkies. (Yes, we really do refer to them as "walkies." Got a problem with that, bub?) Their practice field is a mile away, but the prevailing southerly winds bring in the signal loud and clear, and the sounds transport me back to those halcyon days of youth, playing and marching to the sounds of "The Conquerors," "Cyrus the Great," and "March Grandioso." Hmmm. These are the exact same sounds we're hearing today, which leads to the question of the day: has no one composed new marches in the past 30 (or 40 or 50) years?