the gentle whisper

I hope everyone is having a great summer. I wish I could spend mine here. In Cuba. At the decadent and lavish Hotel Moron. I shit you not, that is the name of this hotel.
Speaking of hotels, I want to put in my 1 1/2 cents on the state of politics in the our country. 24,000 Iraq citizens/soldiers verified dead. Yes, 24,000. That's about 5,000 more people than all of Easthampton. Last night I watched Bush attempt to speak(and I'm not just trying to be a judgmental prick, the man literally can't form sentences)about the state of Iran's nuclear platform. He's basically ready to bomb them too. Parents who have children in the military really should consider funeral arrangements because this is going to make Vietnam look like an afternoon stroll through Look Park. For the record, I'm not a Democrat, Republican or a Liberal. I believe that democracy is on the brink of no longer being a viable means of installing a government. In my opinion the whole system has to be thrown and started from scratch. Coupled with the fact that our economy is in the toilet, the environment is being completely ignored (anyone else notice that our winter was 2 months longer than normal and our summer is the hottest on record?), and treason (Karl Rove) gets the proverbial turned cheek by the White House AND the press. All this chaos. It makes it hard to stay balanced. Hard to find peace. Hard to choke back the 24 hour bile.
Yesterday, I went to lunch with a friend at the Apollo Grille. We then put the finishing touches on a benefit show at the Pulaski Hall this Sunday. It's for a 22 year old friend of a friend who is probably no longer with us as I type because of ruthless cancer. Shortly after dropping off my friend (who's preparing to move across the country and loves to speak passionately from the heart about art and life) I took my beautiful dog, Scooter, to the park to go swimming. I had to hose him down when we got home because he was a mud pit. He hates it as I put my thumb on the hose to gently mist him. Crooked rainbows dancing across the glowing grass of our home. I was laughing like mad. As soon as it stops he goes on crazy, playful runs and smiles from ear to ear. We settled in for a few and watched 20 minutes of a Elliott Smith DVD and 10 minutes of the Sox. I then went out to dinner with the love of my life and then came home and fell asleep on the couch with her while some Judy Garland movie gently whispered us to sleep...
So, for those of you who let politics consume you my advice is just take a step back and look at who you are and where you are. If you can't find the balance and peace in that then you might as well book one of the rooms at the good Ol' Hotel Moron.