Metaphor Country

Suicide by Hypothetical Ancient Bolivian Reed Boat

I live in Jersey City at the moment, right on the Hudson.  Which means that yesterday -- I guess as a warmup for the Independence Day festivities -- this guy went sailing by.

Or more accurately, this guy went wallowing by.

For more detail -- if you're morbidly curious, or just morbid, or just curious -- here's a New York Times article (restricted to Times Select members).

Now, speaking as someone who's done a little sailing -- that boat was not a pretty sight.  As in, lumbering up the river, with the wind behind it, down at the bow and doing some nasty rolling...

Unfortunately the guy's got passengers -- who didn't look all that comfortable either.

And if that's the Hudson, imagine what the North Atlantic will be.

Best case outcome -- he gets the thing pointed out through the Narrows, it catches the first ocean swell... and falls apart.  Still in view of land, where the Coast Guard and the NYPD Harbor Unit can get at it.

Because if it holds together 'til it's halfway to the Canaries, we're talking Darwin Awards here.

So hope for visible ignominious failure -- which in this instance would be sort of a good thing.

More lessons in the interdependence of good and bad perhaps to follow.

Who Says You Can't Take 'Em With You?

This morning on the PATH platform they were making their usual round of Blade Runner-style PA announcements ("The PATH Police are working to keep you safe...  A new life can be yours, a chance to begin again in the off-world colonies...") 

I could have sworn I heard the announcer say, "...and please remember to take your personal tragedies with you when leaving the train."

Now, that's really wonderful advice.  I mean, don't leave them lying around where they'll only create suspicion and alarm, and have to be removed by robotic devices, and generally create delays.

On reflection, I'm forced to admit that the voice was probably talking about personal packages, not personal tragedies.

Nevertheless -- the alternate reading stays in my head, and leaves me somewhat hopeful.

I'll take my encouragement where I find it, thanks.

NYC Economy -- Going South?

A week from Monday Mrs. Deconstruction (spouse) starts a new job at a law firm in Philadelphia.  She's moving there on the merits -- but also reports that the New York litigation market is soft, very soft.

The New York communications market is soft, very soft as well.

All this being the case, we've got to make the geography work somehow.  Not sure what the solution will be -- an exercise with a map and some string suggested Princeton, but downtown Philadelphia is a possibility as well.

One of the complicating factors -- how to work with our friend Judith, who's been helping us keep on top of apartment entropy (translation: she cleans) since a couple of apartments ago.

This morning Judith calls out of the blue, all hesitant, to tell us that we're now the only people in New York employing her -- her agency isn't booking any jobs at all -- so much as she regrets it, she's about to take off for Florida, where she has family and where there seems to be demand.

There are several lessons from this -- not least of which is that if you're not to quick to jump in and take action and intervene (as in, breaking the news to Judith), the universe seems to take care of itself (as in, Judith breaking the news to us).  Buddhist-influenced observations about this will follow at some point.

But the more obvious and useful observation is that, if you're willing to draw conclusions from direct experience (which at the end of the day I have a certain amount of faith in), it seems like the New York economy is going south in all kinds of ways -- including literally.  Is anyone commenting about that?  I know there are more learned and sophisticated ways to look at it but when the housecleaning agencies are hurting for demand, that tells you something, doesn't it?

I'll be keeping an eye out for more microeconomic signs like that.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal writes today about the growing demand for $70,000-a-year butlers.  It seems there's a severe shortage.

Can you say "income disparity," boys and girls?

Or maybe, "new career opportunity"?

Things are most definitely funky out here in timespace -- at this particular time, in this particular location.

Updates to follow as we see where it goes.  And where we go.

WWJHOHiP?

I've never before had the occasion (or for that matter the opportunity) to reprint a whole press release. But since I link occasionally to Beliefnet (an excellent site, by the way), I seem to be on their media list -- which is why they just sent me this. It deserves an audience:

Media Advisory

Press Contact: Jocelyn Weiss The Morris + King Company

WHAT WOULD JESUS HAVE ON HIS IPOD?

In a New Beliefnet.Com Online Poll, 55% Vote That Jesus Wouldn't Even Own an iPod

New York, NY - January 9, 2006 - Beliefnet, Inc., the leading multi-faith spirituality media company and online community, today announced the results of their online survey on "What Would Jesus Have on his iPod?" More than 55% of those polled voted that Jesus wouldn't even own an iPod-- proving that even the "Digital Messiah," Steve Jobs still has room for further converts.

The following is the complete poll results:

What would Jesus have on his iPod?

* Classic Rock - 11%

* Traditional Gospel - 7%

* Christian Rock - 13%

* Hip-Hop/ Rap - 3%

* Soul/ Funk - 4%

* Songs of King David - 11%

* Jesus would never have an iPod! - 55%

About Beliefnet

Beliefnet is the largest religion and spirituality website, according to Media Metrix, attracting 2.5 million unique visitors per month. More than 5.5 million people subscribe to Beliefnet's daily email newsletters, accounting for more than 11 million subscriptions. Beliefnet also runs Soulmatch, a faith-oriented online dating service and has just published a series of "Beliefnet Guides" with Doubleday press. Additionally, Beliefnet regularly partners with ABCNews World News Tonight on its religion and spirituality coverage. Beliefnet is independent and not affiliated with a particular religion or spiritual movement. Beliefnet, Inc. is a privately held company funded by employees, individual investors, Softbank Capital and Blue Chip Venture Company.

Further proof that you can't invent anything anymore.

Additional question -- what, no classical?

Beyond that, and speaking personally -- I have to say I find this encouraging. I've mentioned before that, as a native and therefore safety-minded New Yorker, I don't use an iPod, because when I'm outdoors, I want to hear everything that might be gaining on me. And wasn't it Jesus who said, "Those who have ears will hear"?

Biblical exegetes, take note.  "As opposed to those who have earbuds" is clearly the missing text.

And now, on with modernity, already in progress.

Transit Strike, Day 3 and Out

Day Three of the transit strike -- more trying (as usual once the novelty wears off).  Appointments in midtown.  Ridiculous to get the car out (this isn't the suburbs -- it takes the garage guys a half hour to dig it out, and then you've got to garage it someplace else once you get where you're going).  So, cab arbitrage.  Exorbitant fees.  And lots of people left at the curb, because cabs aren't going to Brooklyn or the Bronx.  Maybe Queens, if they're heading to their garages at the change of shift.  The stranded are, as usual, the ones who can least afford it.  And the cab drivers aren't making much, either -- fares are high but there's lots of idle time, and after the rush, empty streets, because, again, the networkers are staying home.  All of which suggests that, pace Instapundit and the Tech Central Station crowd, free market improvisation and techno-libertarianism are great if you're an upscale Manhattanite, and much less so if you live in the other four-fifths of New York.  A role for government in our lives, perhaps?  Points to Glenn, though, for this, which links to this, raising the question of class conflict between the working class and the government-worker class.

As you've already heard, it's over -- the union folds, Bloomberg stands by his "thugs" remark, and I guess Pataki leaves it to the professionals again.  A plague on all their houses.

Transit Strike, Day 2

As anticipated -- my wife and I have spent the day working from home, networked to our offices.  Which only helps prove what I suggested yesterday -- that given the state of technology, the ruling and secretarial classes will be much less affected than the working poor.  Which means that this is on target.

Glenn Reynolds offers a long post that reports popular reaction on the TWU blog (comments now seem to have disappeared), touches on the value of exurbs, and the likelihood that transit workers will be replaced by robotic systems.  All of which seems more than a little depressing to this hard-core New Yorker. 

But then, I seem to be part of the trend.

Meanwhile, in the New Republic, Joel Kotkin and Harry Siegel say, shockingly, shockingly, that the Democrats are to blame.

Anybody win any bets on that one?

Transit Strike, Day 1

Have been lucky when it comes to transit strikes.  Was just short of my sixth birthday for the Lindsay edition in '66, so wasn't much affected.  Was in college for the 1980 edition -- lived off campus, but in walking distance.  Today, was out of the city on business and had to drive back in -- expected the worst, but by 7:30 p.m. the northbound Jersey Turnpike was a ghost village, and so were the GW Bridge, the Henry Hudson, and the West Side in general.  So made record time.

Tomorrow?  Who knows?

Over at Andrew Sullivan, Julian Sanchez links to coverage at the World Socialist Web Site, which calls the strike "the biggest class confrontation in the US in a generation."  Uh-huh.  So far I can report that my dry cleaner has been forced to close, with resulting loss of income.  And am doubtful for the financial health of convenience store staff, home health aides and such.  Meanwhile, my urban professional colleagues from financial services and related sectors are networked from home, and still productive.  The capitalist structure trembles.

Good going, workers of the world.

More to follow.

Quick Notes on the Search for Meaning

Looked for meaning over the weekend.  Sometimes found it, sometimes didn't.

Saturday morning, stopped by here for a quick, yet not quick mediation on "How awesome is this place."  Genesis 28:17.  You could look it up.

Saturday night, here, for this.  Netrebko is the real item.  Villanzon might be -- but whatever he is, he's not the next Domingo.  Cut the guy some slack.

Sunday afternoon here, for this.  Jammed to the rafters.  The usual mixed feelings about the democratization of art -- a great thing, but not when you actually want to look at the drawings.  Yes, unfair and contradictory, I know.  Sue me.  By the way, Van Gogh is a painter, not a draftsman.

At the end, tired but in a good way.

Awesome place, dude.

Changing Times, Et Cetera

One of the nice things about having been away from the blog for a while is that you find you're less caught up in the day-to-day or hour-to-hour shifts of opinion, which might mean that you're better able to see the big, long trendlines developing.

Case in point -- the long slide of the Bush administration.  From a remove it looks like this: post-9/11, a bunch of us are willing to support them because a) we're staggered and b) whatever else we think about them, they seem competent.  That sense of their competence erodes slowly in Iraq -- then gets wiped out altogether during Katrina week.  The result?  A new story -- we shift from "competent" to "flailing."  And events that we would have considered separately before -- like Cunningham -- now become part of the picture because they fit the picture.  And on the other hand, all the backdrops and all the uniformed audiences in the world can't help set things right because the fundamental story has changed.  A year or a year and half ago, those staged events would have looked like more evidence of mastery and control.  Now they look like part of the desperation.

Times are, to coin a phrase, changing.  The whole cluster of sensibilities -- executive leadership, command and control, the market system -- that used to be a support and a comfort, now seems disconnected from a negative, uncertain lived life.  Yesterday in Slate, Edward Jay Epstein wrote about Hollywood's tendency to vilify business.  Why do they do that?  For want of more challenging targets?  Maybe -- let's not underestimate Hollywood's gift for superficial emotionalism and simplification.  But there's also this -- an increasing sense that all those business values that we staked so much on haven't actually done us a lot of good.  If there's a rise in communitarianism, post-Katrina -- and there will be -- then entrepreneurial individualism is going to suffer.  It's a long time since I've agreed with Krugman, but in this case I do.  A worrisome sign.

On Sunday afternoon I went to see Syriana.  There's plenty wrong with it.  I'm not a fan of strong conspiracy theories, the kind that require lots of collusion in smoke-filled rooms.  No one can believe in active conspiracies who's tried to arrange a conference call that stretches across more than one time zone -- people just aren't that competent ("what do you mean, 2 o'clock Central?")  I lean toward weak conspiracies -- conspiracies of neglect, conspiracies of compromise, conspiracies that happen on their own when people can't stand up to the corrosive effects of money on the table.  Those reservations aside -- I was struck by the size of the crowd and the amount of energy in the theater.  This is not exactly mainstream entertainment, but it packed the house.  Granted that 10023 isn't the heartland -- and it'll be interesting to see how the film does when it opens there on Friday -- but there really seemed to be something in the air that hadn't been present before, even here on the lower Upper West Side.  Anti-Bush, of course, but also anti-business, anti-corporate, and strongly in favor of getting to the bottom of what's wrong -- and something seems decidedly wrong -- with our quality of life.

A year ago my friend Joe Apocalypse kept telling me that "the center is going to move left."  I didn't believe him at the time -- but now, he's got me wondering.  Joe, bless his dark heart, has been right before.

So step lively, and watch the changing times.

Produced and Abandoned?

No, not exactly.  The blog will rise again.

It's just that the work demands ran all the way through August and September.  And I'm only now digging out.  Priorities, you know.  First, the bills I put aside and forgot to pay.  Then the blog.

Back shortly with more.  There's a lot to take note of.  For example, just a minute ago -- strange sound outside, and I go to the window and look around, and find out that the night before the first night of Rosh Hashanah, there's somebody on the rooftop across the street, practicing his shofar.  New York moments, yet again.  So the scene goes on, whether or not I'm there to write it.  Might as well write it.  Can't not blog.

As I've probably said at some point in the recent past... more to follow.