2009 Articles

I guess I do this blog/Op-Ed/therapeutic piece for myself (and-a-couple-of-you out there) – to flesh out my Master Plan for humankind.  I don’t think the Brain – from “Pinky and the Brain” –is too far off in his suggestion that we all want to take over the world! Sure, I tell my students that you […]

Well – some of the ol’ gang wanted me to make-my-way back to the Zoo for our 30th …the big 30th Year Reunion of the Class of ’79.  I had to politely decline – because I truly don’t want to remember any-of-my-fours-years-there. Don’t get me wrong – I love the people that I shared my

All that recent contemplation about death got me to thinking about sex – and I’m sure Freud would have understood.  But what I don’t understand is: what was the causal factor that moved my brain from my little head back up to my big head (where I’m hoping my brain belongs…because life seems so much

A wonderful, stately, classy – grand dame I know — has been diagnosed with terminal, pancreatic cancer (I gather that once you have cancer of the pancreas – you are dead – just not as quickly as from a Black Mamba bite).  So Giti and I went to visit her this weekend down in Leucadia

Publisher Arash suggested that I do something special for article #100.  I can’t believe that this is the 100th essay/article/op-ed that I’ve penned…gosh, it’s been almost 2 years of writing at The Doctor’s Inn – so I’ve managed some 60,000 words in the past couple-of-years – which I know wouldn’t impress Anthony Trollope who kicked

Not too long ago, The Calender section of my beloved Times had an article about a TV show I found particularly horrifying back-in-the-day – but fondly remembered by The Times writer – known as “30 Something.”  God how I detested this show, and, even though I loved “The Big Chill” when it came out –

I went to see “District 9” the other day – and couldn’t quite frame a response to the experience…suffice to say, the film did seem to be quintessentially South African.  I was pleased to re-experience the Afrikaans framing of “fuck”: pronounced “fok” – which was used quite liberally throughout the film.  I was also pleased

I couldn’t get too worked up over Teddy Kennedy’s death – as I have looked at him as a murderer ever since Chappaquiddick (conspiracy theories aside).  Whether he had to make sure that a potential Kennedy heir (his own child lodged in Mary Jo Kopechne) would not live – or, whether he truly braved river

I normally enjoy Steve Lopez articles in my beloved Times (sorry Tami A. – I’m STILL olde school) – but his attempts to come-to-some-understanding of the dilemma that is the Los Angeles Unified School District – are woefully naïve.  I was pleased at a recent Steve L. proffering, however – of how therapeutic surfing is

My publisher, Arash the Magnificent (though I’ve threatened to replace him with his cousin, Shaheen) has informed me that I am three weeks behind in my entries.  I had fondly hoped that I was only 2 weeks behind – but, alas, it seems to be at least 3 weeks (unless I have a lost article/essay