Friday Odds & Sods is Too Cool For School

Or for most any other activity this week.  Although the promised Snowpocalypse or Snowmageddon or Snow-Letter-to-the-Ephesians turned out to be a bit of a bust, at least in the Metropolis, your Humble Scribe was unfortunately taken ill much of the week and could not enjoy a Snow Day along with the rest of the city.  But never fret, Dear Reader.  Not even being stretched out on my sickbed will keep me from delivering your weekly Odds & Sods!

• An article in the New Yorker about the evolution of the first gay rights movement in Wilhelmine Germany, especially interesting as a counterexample to the usual interpretation of German history as being an autobahn direct to the Third Reich
• In honor of the upcoming Sunday's festivities, a look at the very bad year of Roger Goodell 
• From the Lion in Winter files, two stories: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar writes a novel and David Simon goes from Baltimore to Yonkers
• Finally, a song about medicine that will speed up any convalesence

In 1814, We Took A Little Trip...

So I am admittedly about three weeks off from commemorating the actual 200th anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans.  But in my defense, I was probably still really hungover from New Year's at that point.  And since the Battle of Fort St. Philip just concluded a week and 200 years ago and since this is around the time of the British evacuation from Louisiana and since this is my blog, by God, and I will do with it as I please, I feel quite justified in marking the occasion of General Jackson triumph with this post.  

Now Memorialized in Stamp Form!

Now at this point, this post could go in a couple directions.  We could talk about the battle, and how cool it is to think about Jean Lafitte and his crew of pirates blasting away at Redcoats.  Or this would be a great opportunity to discuss the evolving reputation of Andrew Jackson over the last 200 years, from "Savior of New Orleans" to ruffian responsible for the Trail of Tears.   That would in turn be a nice segue into considering the historical understanding of the War of 1812 itself, and how it has mostly faded from the historical consciousness of the nation.

But in point of fact, I think it much more fitting to the spirit of New Orleans and the spirit of history and the spirit of lazy Sundays to turn over analysis to the hands of very capable Zydeco musicians.  

Friday Odds & Sods is Best Served Chilled

Hello once again, gentle reader!  It seems hard to believe that we are already almost done with January, and thus one-twelfth of the way closer to the end of the year.  Or if you wish to adopt a more positive view on the matter, you can say that  we have almost 11 more months of seeing what 2015 has in store.  I generally would not be so positive in matters chronological, but I think it is always wise to give readers options when possible.  Speaking (or rather writing) of options, continue on to see what's on tap for this week's Odds & Sods

• Further tales of the Way We Live Now: Lindsay Lohan has a mobile game.
• In honor of Monday's celebration, and as a personal recognition of where we as a nation have been, and where we're going, Dr. King's Letter from a Birmingham Jail
• As a big fan of the blues, I was excited to hear that Folkways is going to be reissuing Leadbelly's recordings in the near future.  In honor of that, their Tumblr is doing a song by song review of Leadbelly's influences as well as later recorders of his work.  Check it out
• Finally, a little more Leadbelly to close out the week, and a good soundtrack for anyone who's a got a ramblin' mind

Holiness on Trial: Thoughts on the Euthyphro

Among the hazards of being a recent escapee from academia is the persistent impulse, despite numerous signs to the contrary, to buy books.  The holiday season is particularly perilous, with the unwary ending up with armfuls of tomes that will most likely end up in some corner or closet until that fateful moving day when, walking to the van with an overstuffed cardboard box of unread paperbacks, the fateful question is asked: "How did I end up with so many books?"

Be that as it may, I have stolen a few moments in the New Year to begin cracking open some of my new treasures.  One book in particular that I wanted to share is an enjoyable translation of Plato by R.E. Allen.   It has that particular combination of artistry and directness that is always the sign of a quality translation, and the introduction, though a bit dated (the book was originally published in 1984), is both lucid and very sound-minded when dealing with some of the wilder branches of Platonic speculation.  The volume I'm reading has an interesting mix of dialogues, consisting of the Apology, Euthyphro, Meno, Gorgias, Menexenus, and Crito.  I've just finished the Euthyphro, which I had not previously read, and wanted to share some thoughts on the dialogue.

Friday Odds & Sods is In It To Win It

Now that we have reached the halfway point in January, Dear Reader, I wonder if it is not about time to start coming to some conclusions about the tenor of 2015.  Certainly, world affairs seem to be taking the same downward slope that they have been since lighting a fire was deemed the disruptive innovation (or is that innovative disruptor?) of 100,000 BC. Nevertheless, as long as the sun will rise tomorrow, one has the obligation to hope for better things.  Here's hoping that this week's Odds & Sods provides a note of inspiration for all and sundry

• From the archives of the Metropolitan desk, the story of Freedomland, the greatest theme park the Bronx has ever seen.   
• Speaking of archives, for legal historians or anyone with an interest in crime and punishment, this site contains the complete proceedings of the Old Bailey from 1674 to 1913.  
• Finally, two stories to provided a glimpse of The Way We Live Now and a new spin on an old adage: Social media giveth and social media taketh away
• For this weeks song, a number that I find myself coming back to every now and again this time of year

  

Friday Odds & Sods is Nolens Volens

A busy (and freezing) but rewarding weeks is concluding for your humble correspondent. There is something about this time of year, and the forced confinement indoors that it brings, that really allows one to focus down to the bare essentials of tasks, and the dispatch them with dispatch.  Of course, dear reader, writing for you is never just item off my checklist, but rather a thing of beauty and a joy forever, and it is in that spirit that I present to you this week's Odds & Sods.

• In the category of news from the Metropolis, two items: An audacious plan from 1916 to join Brooklyn and Manhattan, and a look at the impact of the police strike on one community.
• I'm not one generally to offer much comment on newly-breaking current events, but I found this interview with author Michel Houellebecq to be an interesting insight into the psych of modern France
• A handy website for figuring out what to do with the last drags of your New Year's Eve party
• And finally, an enjoyable little tune with a long history

Friday Odds & Sods is In With the New

A confession of sorts: I have never really been one of New Year Resolutions.  I certainly have some goals that I can reel off if needed as well as ambitions and hopes for 2015, but nothing that carries the combination of weight and weightlessness I associate with a Resolution.  A New Year Resolution, after all, is both a definitive stand towards the next 365 and a quarter days, and also so very easily broken.  One need only look at the variety of exercise equipment that will begin filling the nation's trashcans in the coming weeks to see this is the case.  I like to keep things loose when it comes to starting the new year, letting things develop and reacting accordingly as I strive to become a better person than I was the day before.  Of course, as I mentioned, I do have some things I want to accomplish this year, in particular to become a busier and better writer and hopefully you, gentle reader, will be the beneficiary of that!

• Some reading for you as we start the New Year includes a cure for all the partying you did Wednesday night and the story of a famous New Year's Eve death.
• RIP today to Mario Cuomo, who eloquently summed up the best part of the American experience.
• Small children try to explain who Socrates was and why he's important.  
• A song to serve as a reminder, if case any was needed, about the inevitable passing of time and the need to still keep laughing nonetheless.  

Happy 2015!

I am always one for marking the passing time, as many of my previous posts will show, and the turning over of the Gregorian odometer that is the start of a new year seems worthy of at least some comment.  So whether you spent last night in the company of friends and loved ones, alone in quiet contemplation, or, God forbid, doing something silly like standing in the cold in Time Square packed cheek to jowl watching Carson Daly, I wish you all the best in 2015.  In honor of the occasion, and to help you have an even better celebration in 364 days, please find below a recipe, from David Wondrich's Punch,  that I found went over quite well last night:

Yale College Punch

Requirements

1 Bottle Champagne

1 Bottle Brandy

5-10 Pineapple Slices

2.5 Cups Soda Water

.5 Cup Confectioner's Sugar

Preparation

Pour Brandy into punch bowl and place pineapple slices in same.  Refrigerate for one-two hours.  To serve, pour in Soda Water and Sugar, stir, then add Champagne.  Enjoy.