Let's revisit this enterprise, shall we?

The road to hell, they say, is paved with good intentions. I have had every intention of refiring up the ole blog and mixing it up with the world again. But to what end, I ask? Every day I see more and more things that confirm my unverbalized belief that the world in which we live is rapidly heading into the bowels of the proverbial crapper. It makes a man want to purchase a plot of land out in the middle of nowhere, get a bunch of goats, raise vegetables, and watch reruns of Little House on the Prairie.

With that said, I suppose I must prevail, if only to be around long enough for the release of the latest installment of the Halo series coming out this month for the Xbox 360. Now, if I can just get my dissertation finished some day and find a real job, those goats might become a reality. Maybe some of them will play Halo with me...

On a lighter note, I am once again engaged in pushing back the walls of ignorance at Tennessee Tech, teaching the students American history. I know what you are thinking. "Could anything be more exciting?" Probably, but at least it keeps me from running amok on the streets at 3 a.m.

Oh Captain, My Captain!

I begin my tenure as a new adjunct teacher at Tennessee Tech University. It will add a bit of time on my semester to get that work done, but it will be worth it to gain experience. The money doesn't hurt, either. Tonight: The American West! I know that the kids will be so excited that they will hardly be able to stand it! Wait until we get into Populism - that will blow their minds!

A return to form...

I have just installed a new application that will make my blogging easier (thanks, Macbook!).  As a result, I hope to start doing this again, at least more than I have in the past several months.  Here's hoping...

Great features from the good old David Letterman show!

These are brilliant and should have more exposure than they have...

I still haven't found my blogging muse to return, but...

An underrated song by an underrated innovator. I am learning this song on my ukulele, so you will be in trouble once I do!

The Best - Dragnet's take on drugs....

The coolest damn toy in the whole wide world...EVER!

I was quite blessed growing up to have to loving parents that provided for me and my sister in many tangible and intangible ways. I never had to worry about my food or shelter or anything, and Santa Claus was always overly generous. One thing that we received from him one year was the MAC (Mobile Action Command) series of action figures by the Matchbox Car company. These were intrepid adventurers and rescuers that followed me through a wide variety of adventures in at least two states. Their secret mountain headquarters had everything that intrepid rescuers and adventurers might require to aid them (except women and beer, but that is a different action adventurer). I miss playing with them and thank my parents for their largess. I have GOT to find those guys...

Why don't they make stuff like this anymore?

I don't understand what makes people think that modern necessitates better. After all, wasn't the old stuff the modern stuff once? Case in point is the new videos that dominate the airwaves of EmpTV, bands filled with the best angst money can buy. Whether or not you are a Rundgren fan, the above video displays more intelligence and interestingness than any of the crap that is out there today. To be sure, that Rundgren video then was probably deemed too ultra-modern and too wacko and too plastic by the people that saw it then. But if we are in the post-modern age, why aren't people making videos like this, in a wry wink-wink to the past and how cool they are in the present? Just a thought...

An old new band interest of mine...made all the more interesting by their use of ukuleles

This is a band called "Beirut." Their music reminds me of Europe in the years after the war, when Henri' and I drank wine in the cafes of Paris as we hunted down Nazis hiding in public as bakers, accordianists, and sommeliers. We need to get more of us with ukuleles to gather together to create our own counter-factual music, because we don't do anything else anyways. C'est La Guerre!

Joining the world of the Macs...

I have recently purchased a MacBook, mainly because I am supposed to be a liberal academic and liberal academics use Apples exclusively. I have been slowly getting used to using a Mac, made more difficult by the lack of a right mouse button. But, I like what it can do and feel that much more academic-y merely by my purchase of it. Now, if only it came with a PhD dissertation built in that I could use to get the Dr. in front of my name...

Teaching about the Indus Valley and ukuleles

This week, my world civilization class will be studying the Harappan culture, located along the Indus River Valley in modern day Pakistan. I am thinking about just having them watch Ravi Shankar videos, despite the fact that Shankar is from Bangladesh. Do you think that would bother the students? Decisions.

For those that didn't know, I purchased a ukulele over the summer, which is a so-so teaching aid, I am finding. But it is hard to deny how cool ukuleles can be:

Enjoy!

Where has the time gone...was it all but a fever dream?

Many things have transpired since last we at the Variegated Brainstem puked forth our wisdom, wit, and frippery. Tom Waits came to Knoxville, playing the hits we all love so well. The Olympics occurred in China, with the US of A winning a number of different coloured medals. Obama and McCain became the front runners in the presidential race. Hardee's thick burger is more popular than ever.

Hopefully, as the days of future past come back again, the Veeb will be able to provide more insight into all that we are witnesses to in this glorious age. Until then, keep watching the stars!

A break from the Variegated Brainstem...

The Variegated Brainstem editorial staff is tired and in need of a vacation. We haven't been posting as much as in previous days, mainly because we have nothing good to report - we need some new adventures. We are not ending our blog, but will publish as things come to us. In the meantime, please stand by...