MC Hawking finally gets his wish

Jesse Helms represented the ugliest parts of my adopted home state’s history. The only thing sad about his death is that it did not occur several decades earlier.
(Thanks to LGM for the links to Mother Jones and Salon.)

If only all his questions were this easy to answer

Alfie: Dad, what’s this Scooby Do about?
Me: It’s about some kids with a dog, and they catch a bad guy pretending to be a ghost.
Alfie: Oh, I like that one.

NCDOT WTF SNAFU

Personally, I’d have loved to have one of those tags.
(Thanks to Ed Cone for the tip.)

Sorry About Dresden live at dotmatrix project

Sorry About Dresden played the inaugural dotmatrix project show in Greensboro in April. Because of a babysitter snafu, I missed it. Fortunately, I now have a taste of the experience, thanks to the live recording  that Sean’s made available on Amie Street (a terrific source for independent music). The early bird gets it cheap (currently [...]

When you’ve had it with the aggravation

I just got home from a backpacking trip in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The ride home, while pretty, got pretty tedious after the first couple of hours. This song was a nice pick-me-up. Fortunately, I didn’t totally overdo it on the accelerator, because there were plenty of North Carolina state troopers on the [...]

Flowers fade away and rooms get rearranged

I’ve been getting our garden in order, with vital assistance and encouragement from young Alfie. I’m very pleased with how it is turning out, and looking forward to tasting the fruits (and vegetables) of our labors.

This explains why I feel like crap

For the past few weeks, I’ve been astounded by the sheer volume of pollen everywhere, like a yellow blizzard that doesn’t melt away. I thought perhaps that my perspective was skewed after three years in relatively pollen-free San Francisco. But, it turns out that Greensboro really does have it worse than nearly everywhere else.

Elon Law Talent Show

I apologize for the late notice, but Debris readers in Greensboro (or willing to make the trip) are cordially invited to the inaugural Elon Law School Talent Show, which takes place at the Law School (201 North Greene Street) tomorrow evening. Admission is $4, with the money going to support student activities.
I will be performing [...]

Max Weber in Mayberry

Max Weber, the towering figure of modern sociological theory, was born 144 years ago today. It turns out that 104 years ago, while in the U.S. to attend a scholarly conference in connection with the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, Weber and his wife visited their cousins in Mt Airy, North Carolina.

Sorry About Dresden headline inaugural Dotmatrix music show

Sorry About Dresden are a band I discovered haphazardly a few months ago. I had no idea that they were from nearby Chapel Hill.
Now, thanks to local music impresario Sean Coon, I’ll get the chance to see Sorry About Dresden, along with opening act The Radials, live in the nice intimate setting of Greensboro’s Green [...]