An Angry 'Times-Picayune' Calls for Firing of FEMA Chief, and Others, in Open Letter to President Bush: "Here is the text.
***
We heard you loud and clear Friday when you visited our devastated city and the Gulf Coast and said, 'What is not working, we�re going to make it right.'
Please forgive us if we wait to see proof of your promise before believing you. But we have good reason for our skepticism.
Bienville built New Orleans where he built it for one main reason: It�s accessible. The city between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain was easy to reach in 1718.
How much easier it is to access in 2005 now that there are interstates and bridges, airports and helipads, cruise ships, barges, buses and diesel-powered trucks.
Despite the city�s multiple points of entry, our nation�s bureaucrats spent days after last week�s hurricane wringing their hands, lamenting the fact that they could neither rescue the city�s stranded victims nor bring them food, water and medical supplies.
Meanwhile there were journalists, including some who work for The Times-Picayune, going in and out of the city via the Crescent City Connection. On Thursday morning, that crew saw a caravan of 13 Wal-Mart tractor trailers headed into town to bring food, water and supplies to a dying city.
Television reporters were doing live reports from downtown New Orleans streets. Harry Connick Jr. brought in some aid Thursday, and his efforts were the focus of a 'Today' show story Friday morning.
Yet, the people trained to protect our nation, the people whose job it is to quickly bring in aid were absent. Those who should have been deploying troops were singing a sad song about how our city was impossible to reach.
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Kayne West says George W Bush doesn�t care - NME.COM
Kayne West says George W Bush doesn�t care - NME.COM: "'I hate the way they treat us in the media, when you see a black family it says they're looting when you see a white family it says they're looking for food,' said West before personally targeting the President.
'George Bush doesn't care about black people,' he declared adding that America is set up 'to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off as slow as possible', Billboard reports."
'George Bush doesn't care about black people,' he declared adding that America is set up 'to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off as slow as possible', Billboard reports."
Good site for political commentary and stuff
Man, I like the way this guy thinks and talks.
http://www.xoverboard.com/
In other news, I'm growing my hair back again... Shampoo and conditioner, I almost forgot what it was like.
http://www.xoverboard.com/
In other news, I'm growing my hair back again... Shampoo and conditioner, I almost forgot what it was like.
Friday, September 02, 2005
Gasoline Rant
Okay, so I've been in and out of the country this summer, and haven't driven around much. When I left for China, gas around $2.36 for 93 octane (the only grade my car could take, I think... @#$%@# 1.8 liter Turbo Volkswagen engine). High, but manageable.
So... I fill up my car for the first time in a while.... cost me $50 bucks! Gas around my area has now skyrocketed to $4.07 for the same grade.
Public transportation is looking much more appealing now.
But hey, at least it's still cheaper than in Europe... over there, I saw prices for 97 pence per liter. So... basically that equals about 7 or 8 US Dollars per gallon.
So... I fill up my car for the first time in a while.... cost me $50 bucks! Gas around my area has now skyrocketed to $4.07 for the same grade.
Public transportation is looking much more appealing now.
But hey, at least it's still cheaper than in Europe... over there, I saw prices for 97 pence per liter. So... basically that equals about 7 or 8 US Dollars per gallon.
Finally got around to it...
Photos from the England-Scotland COS tour are now up! You can access them here.
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Off to Scotland soon!
Yeah yeah, I know, never update until something big comes up.... But anyway, I'll be touring with the Children's Orchestra Society in their tour to Scotland and England. It'll be the first time I've stayed for any length in a European country! I'm quite excited!
Originally, I was just supposed to do a little piccolo and chaperone or do sectional work in the trip, but it seems I'm playing more flute than I bargained for, because one of the flute students had a last minute cancellation of the trip. Fortunately, we have a viola player that could fill in for some of the stuff.
The COS is a very talented bunch, and I'm proud of the musical spirit of these young folks that is well beyond their apparent years.
Unfortunately for me and my metabolism, we've been rehearsing pretty often, and I've tried to make it to most of the recent rehearsals.... meaning I've put some severe disruption in my training schedule for martial arts. :( I'll go for one more kali class (and possibly the muay thai class afterward, depending on what the schedule holds) to try to get some last minute exercise before having to rush off to JFK airport for the flight to Edinburgh. At least it's not as long as the flight to Asia, and thus, less inactivity. The trip is also relatively short (yay!), going from the 18th to the 27th. I'm scheduling my lessons around beginning of September, because I'm guessing I'll need some adjustment from jetlag and some "me" time.
Looking forward to this trip... I think it's going to be a good fun one.
Originally, I was just supposed to do a little piccolo and chaperone or do sectional work in the trip, but it seems I'm playing more flute than I bargained for, because one of the flute students had a last minute cancellation of the trip. Fortunately, we have a viola player that could fill in for some of the stuff.
The COS is a very talented bunch, and I'm proud of the musical spirit of these young folks that is well beyond their apparent years.
Unfortunately for me and my metabolism, we've been rehearsing pretty often, and I've tried to make it to most of the recent rehearsals.... meaning I've put some severe disruption in my training schedule for martial arts. :( I'll go for one more kali class (and possibly the muay thai class afterward, depending on what the schedule holds) to try to get some last minute exercise before having to rush off to JFK airport for the flight to Edinburgh. At least it's not as long as the flight to Asia, and thus, less inactivity. The trip is also relatively short (yay!), going from the 18th to the 27th. I'm scheduling my lessons around beginning of September, because I'm guessing I'll need some adjustment from jetlag and some "me" time.
Looking forward to this trip... I think it's going to be a good fun one.
Friday, August 05, 2005
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
UHnnnn......
Got back last Thursday from the long trip in China (actually wasn't that long, just felt like it), finishing off assisting in some solos for a certain youth orchestra tour (It's not Children's Orchestra Society's gig, and you'll see why I stress this later). Planes, with their hideously pressurized and recycled air, get me very sick, and I've lost my voice. Only the Airbus 330, with it's heavily moisturized air streaming from the top in a heavenly fog, gave the most comfortable ride.
Trained in kung fu on Sunday, vaguely remembering my forms. Was a rough workout. Gao seemed pleasantly surprised to see me back there.
Had full intentions of training Muay Thai Monday, but jet lag and relapse of illness caused me to oversleep my nap... Just as well, since it's not good to be hitting people, or being hit by people, while sleepy and dizzy. :)
I'll probably make up for it tomorrow if I go to the JKD class on Tuesday. I really need the exercise, because pretty much all I did in China was eat, drink, and sit on a tour bus. Didn't really gain that much weight per se, but definately had some muscle reduced to fat.
So people ask me regarding China and Taiwan... How did it go?
The performances went alright, but I had a lot of profound disagreements with the way the tour was being operated. Logistically, planning was okay, and the touring company was top notch, with the exception of some near disasters at the Beijing train station, barely making our train. The main beef I had was the focus of the tour... it seemed a lot less centered on the children and the music, and more centered on shopping for the parents, and excessive sightseeing to the point that some people (including myself) became ill because of the constant shift between 101 degree humid weather outside and dry 70 degree tour bus temperature, as well as excessive political posturing for the benefit of certain top members of the organization.
Being a musician, a tour should focus on the music, and the music must be as top quality as possible. Anything less, to me, is unacceptable. Rehearsals were too long and too far spaced out, and lacked detail and polish. Mostly they were just unneccessary run-throughs, more for the benefit of the brass ringers - who were there anyway just to cover up a shockingly weak string section core, and the conductor - who is a nice guy and good musician, but is clearly lacking confidence in his group, the sense of which subliminally affected his orchestra. This was exacerbated by the fact that the children were exhausted.... sightseeing was compressed and rushed through, even on the day of a concert, tiring the kids to the point that they didn't want to and/or were unable to rehearse/perform at maximum concentration. On one particular concert day, the kids were made to wear full concert dress in an outdoor setting in near 97 degree weather, for about 3 hours... all just to take fancy pictures and a meeting with the Mayor of Taipei (who wasn't wearing a suit, by the way). I had it easy... all I had to do was play a 7 minute piece, with maybe maximum 20 minutes of rehearsal... the poor kids were faced with a nearly 3 hour rehearsal with no break(!).
It is why, after seeing what happened during the course of the year, and especially on this recent tour, that I'm severing all ties to this organization best unnamed, and concentrating full-time with the Children's Orchestra Society. It is, in my opinion, the choice for any young musician and parent of a young musician, because it's all about the music, and it's all about the children.
Okay, enough ranting... I'll be posting again soon for a pic or two.
Trained in kung fu on Sunday, vaguely remembering my forms. Was a rough workout. Gao seemed pleasantly surprised to see me back there.
Had full intentions of training Muay Thai Monday, but jet lag and relapse of illness caused me to oversleep my nap... Just as well, since it's not good to be hitting people, or being hit by people, while sleepy and dizzy. :)
I'll probably make up for it tomorrow if I go to the JKD class on Tuesday. I really need the exercise, because pretty much all I did in China was eat, drink, and sit on a tour bus. Didn't really gain that much weight per se, but definately had some muscle reduced to fat.
So people ask me regarding China and Taiwan... How did it go?
The performances went alright, but I had a lot of profound disagreements with the way the tour was being operated. Logistically, planning was okay, and the touring company was top notch, with the exception of some near disasters at the Beijing train station, barely making our train. The main beef I had was the focus of the tour... it seemed a lot less centered on the children and the music, and more centered on shopping for the parents, and excessive sightseeing to the point that some people (including myself) became ill because of the constant shift between 101 degree humid weather outside and dry 70 degree tour bus temperature, as well as excessive political posturing for the benefit of certain top members of the organization.
Being a musician, a tour should focus on the music, and the music must be as top quality as possible. Anything less, to me, is unacceptable. Rehearsals were too long and too far spaced out, and lacked detail and polish. Mostly they were just unneccessary run-throughs, more for the benefit of the brass ringers - who were there anyway just to cover up a shockingly weak string section core, and the conductor - who is a nice guy and good musician, but is clearly lacking confidence in his group, the sense of which subliminally affected his orchestra. This was exacerbated by the fact that the children were exhausted.... sightseeing was compressed and rushed through, even on the day of a concert, tiring the kids to the point that they didn't want to and/or were unable to rehearse/perform at maximum concentration. On one particular concert day, the kids were made to wear full concert dress in an outdoor setting in near 97 degree weather, for about 3 hours... all just to take fancy pictures and a meeting with the Mayor of Taipei (who wasn't wearing a suit, by the way). I had it easy... all I had to do was play a 7 minute piece, with maybe maximum 20 minutes of rehearsal... the poor kids were faced with a nearly 3 hour rehearsal with no break(!).
It is why, after seeing what happened during the course of the year, and especially on this recent tour, that I'm severing all ties to this organization best unnamed, and concentrating full-time with the Children's Orchestra Society. It is, in my opinion, the choice for any young musician and parent of a young musician, because it's all about the music, and it's all about the children.
Okay, enough ranting... I'll be posting again soon for a pic or two.
Monday, June 27, 2005
Meow meow MEOW! (translation: very late cat pics!)
Chabi and Nabi pics, finally, as promised... using my new S-E 710a. :)
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Why, hello there
Yup, another month without posting anything... it's no wonder the women think I'm unreliable. :-)
Anyway, decided to switch to Cingular and get a new cellphone... Verizon is great, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't work internationally and accept SIM cards. I got a Sony Ericcson S710a phone, and it takes great cat pictures. I just have to get off my lazy ass to actually post a few. It's a full featured phone, and I've been having fun playing with the Bluetooth connectivity.
Was working out in Kali class yesterday, trying out some of the newer sticks I bought to test out... my training partner for the class was going fast and furious during the Heaven Six drills, and I looked at my left stick - completely shattered on the surface! A quick inspection of his sticks revealed the reason... they were like 35% bigger in diameter and much much heavier! Turns out size, at least in stickfighting, does matter. :P
Ok, I promise to post more often... (fingers crossed). :)
Anyway, decided to switch to Cingular and get a new cellphone... Verizon is great, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't work internationally and accept SIM cards. I got a Sony Ericcson S710a phone, and it takes great cat pictures. I just have to get off my lazy ass to actually post a few. It's a full featured phone, and I've been having fun playing with the Bluetooth connectivity.
Was working out in Kali class yesterday, trying out some of the newer sticks I bought to test out... my training partner for the class was going fast and furious during the Heaven Six drills, and I looked at my left stick - completely shattered on the surface! A quick inspection of his sticks revealed the reason... they were like 35% bigger in diameter and much much heavier! Turns out size, at least in stickfighting, does matter. :P
Ok, I promise to post more often... (fingers crossed). :)
Saturday, June 11, 2005
Monday, June 06, 2005
"It's hot, hot. Africa hot! Never got this hot in Brooklyn!"
Name the movie that this quote came from. Clue: Matthew Broderick said the line.
Anyway, it is indeed hot in NYC now... all the strange weeks of sometimes unseasonably cold weather has given way to perfectly seasonable yet muggy weather. And my air conditioner died, with impeccable timing. Time to find a replacement.
On a quick preview note, The Children's Orchestra Society, of which yours truly is an assistant conductor and alumnus, will be having it's final concert for the 2004-2005 season on June 12th at 4pm. Concert will take place at the Ralph and Ricky Lauren Performing Arts center. It is located at 30th Ave & 75th Street, Jackson Heights in Queens. More details to come in a few days.
Anyway, it is indeed hot in NYC now... all the strange weeks of sometimes unseasonably cold weather has given way to perfectly seasonable yet muggy weather. And my air conditioner died, with impeccable timing. Time to find a replacement.
On a quick preview note, The Children's Orchestra Society, of which yours truly is an assistant conductor and alumnus, will be having it's final concert for the 2004-2005 season on June 12th at 4pm. Concert will take place at the Ralph and Ricky Lauren Performing Arts center. It is located at 30th Ave & 75th Street, Jackson Heights in Queens. More details to come in a few days.
Saturday, June 04, 2005
Saturday, May 21, 2005
What I do as part of my living...
These pictures were taken by my friend Raymond Kim at the May 12th JSE showcase.
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
UNLEASHED!
Saw Jet Li's new movie on Sunday... it's very good! Bob Hoskins and Morgan Freeman were their usual amazing acting selves, but Jet Li really impressed me with his improvement. You could actually see his character develop within himself as the movie went along. It is reported that Li actually got acting coaching this time around, and it shows!
The martial arts choreography was done by Yuen Woo Ping... pretty good, although I prefer the fancier moves of his usual repertoire rather than the nitty gritty no-holds-barred style of fight that (rightly so) was drawn up for the combat scenes in "Unleashed". Camera angles were a bit choppy, but that's to be expected when working with stunt people who aren't used to memorizing long complex move sequences.
The nice thing about this movie? Mozart's music saves the day. :) Go see it!
The martial arts choreography was done by Yuen Woo Ping... pretty good, although I prefer the fancier moves of his usual repertoire rather than the nitty gritty no-holds-barred style of fight that (rightly so) was drawn up for the combat scenes in "Unleashed". Camera angles were a bit choppy, but that's to be expected when working with stunt people who aren't used to memorizing long complex move sequences.
The nice thing about this movie? Mozart's music saves the day. :) Go see it!
Monday, May 09, 2005
Hello again.... :P
Oopsie... it's been quite a while since I posted anything, eh?
Things have been going okay in the world of Ken. Let's count the ways.
Music: Students are doing well as always, though the NYSSMA debacle that happens every year has reared up it's ugly head again. It's a crap system that just stamps a grade on music students, most of whom are forced to perform a piece that's above their level. The parents usually don't even understand the system... all they see and care is whether their child has an "A+" next to their name. Never mind that it takes away valuable lesson time better spent on etudes and improving musical attributes in favor of spoonfeeding (or forcefeeding) a student a piece they may or may not be ready for. My non-NYSSMA students are 9 times out of 10 the better-advancing ones.
Orchestra-wise, the JSE is finally shaping up to become yet another fine group in the COS continuum. The recent round of placement auditions has upped everybody's level, and they did a fine job in the May 7th showcase. I'm looking forward to June's concert! Will announce that when the time draws near.
Martial Arts: Gao's Kung Fu Academy recently had a nice demonstration appearance at Union Square NYC Sunday May 8th. My friends Jason Kong and Peter Lundgren recently attained the Academy's first Black sashes. Congratulations to them! It'll probably be about another year before I attain Black sash... 4 more forms to learn, and lots and lots of repetition and practice.
I love kung fu, but it's beginning to take an extreme toll on my body, particularly my knees and my ankle, all of which have been suffering injuries the past few years. The low stances, the huge expansive movements, and the frequent jumps... very beautiful stuff to behold, yet increasingly troublesome for old Ken to pull off. Hee hee! There's also the issue of combat efficacy in training, since we don't do any sparring, mostly forms and conditioning (the sparring is supposed to start around Black Sash level in the Academy).
I've recently starting taking Filipino Kali classes, as well as some basic Jeet Kune Do and Muay Thai basic training at Progressive Martial Arts Academy. These are very compact and combat-efficient styles... not as pretty, but very much straight to the point. In particular, I like the Kali classes, due to the speed and intensity of the training as we practice double stick, single stick, and blade drills. Sifu/Guro Nick Sacoulas is an excellent teacher and coach. Surprisingly, I've found quite a few similar maneuvers between the systems I've been studying. While studying something other than kung fu might be construed as disruptive to kung fu training, instead, I've found many things that affirm concepts on either side of the system fence. :)
I'll still study kung fu as long as I'm able, because of its deep historical and cultural ties to a long-ago ancestral homeland, and its beautiful movements that lend itself better to film, as well as it's top conditioning regimen that improves strength and flexibility. I'll continue to study Kali/JKD/MT as long as I'm able, because it's no-nonsense and straight to the point, needed for friendly sparring and deadly combat. Martial Arts expression is what I'm looking for, and these all are part of my training.
Cats: Cute as ever, and the weather is getting warmer, so I'll be letting them outdoors once in a while. They both act as ambassadors to my flute studio. ;)
Love life: Non-existant, as always. Too busy with all the things I want and/or have to do. And the few people I want to get together with are too busy too. Oh well.
Hobbies/Gaming: City of Heroes still is my main hobby. Recently started Guild Wars as a side diversion. Finished Jade Empire, and I highly recommend it for anybody who wanted to play their way through a kung-fu style tale.
Well, that's it for now. Will post again as soon as I can... that'll either be several days or several weeks. :)
Things have been going okay in the world of Ken. Let's count the ways.
Music: Students are doing well as always, though the NYSSMA debacle that happens every year has reared up it's ugly head again. It's a crap system that just stamps a grade on music students, most of whom are forced to perform a piece that's above their level. The parents usually don't even understand the system... all they see and care is whether their child has an "A+" next to their name. Never mind that it takes away valuable lesson time better spent on etudes and improving musical attributes in favor of spoonfeeding (or forcefeeding) a student a piece they may or may not be ready for. My non-NYSSMA students are 9 times out of 10 the better-advancing ones.
Orchestra-wise, the JSE is finally shaping up to become yet another fine group in the COS continuum. The recent round of placement auditions has upped everybody's level, and they did a fine job in the May 7th showcase. I'm looking forward to June's concert! Will announce that when the time draws near.
Martial Arts: Gao's Kung Fu Academy recently had a nice demonstration appearance at Union Square NYC Sunday May 8th. My friends Jason Kong and Peter Lundgren recently attained the Academy's first Black sashes. Congratulations to them! It'll probably be about another year before I attain Black sash... 4 more forms to learn, and lots and lots of repetition and practice.
I love kung fu, but it's beginning to take an extreme toll on my body, particularly my knees and my ankle, all of which have been suffering injuries the past few years. The low stances, the huge expansive movements, and the frequent jumps... very beautiful stuff to behold, yet increasingly troublesome for old Ken to pull off. Hee hee! There's also the issue of combat efficacy in training, since we don't do any sparring, mostly forms and conditioning (the sparring is supposed to start around Black Sash level in the Academy).
I've recently starting taking Filipino Kali classes, as well as some basic Jeet Kune Do and Muay Thai basic training at Progressive Martial Arts Academy. These are very compact and combat-efficient styles... not as pretty, but very much straight to the point. In particular, I like the Kali classes, due to the speed and intensity of the training as we practice double stick, single stick, and blade drills. Sifu/Guro Nick Sacoulas is an excellent teacher and coach. Surprisingly, I've found quite a few similar maneuvers between the systems I've been studying. While studying something other than kung fu might be construed as disruptive to kung fu training, instead, I've found many things that affirm concepts on either side of the system fence. :)
I'll still study kung fu as long as I'm able, because of its deep historical and cultural ties to a long-ago ancestral homeland, and its beautiful movements that lend itself better to film, as well as it's top conditioning regimen that improves strength and flexibility. I'll continue to study Kali/JKD/MT as long as I'm able, because it's no-nonsense and straight to the point, needed for friendly sparring and deadly combat. Martial Arts expression is what I'm looking for, and these all are part of my training.
Cats: Cute as ever, and the weather is getting warmer, so I'll be letting them outdoors once in a while. They both act as ambassadors to my flute studio. ;)
Love life: Non-existant, as always. Too busy with all the things I want and/or have to do. And the few people I want to get together with are too busy too. Oh well.
Hobbies/Gaming: City of Heroes still is my main hobby. Recently started Guild Wars as a side diversion. Finished Jade Empire, and I highly recommend it for anybody who wanted to play their way through a kung-fu style tale.
Well, that's it for now. Will post again as soon as I can... that'll either be several days or several weeks. :)
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Catblogging - Round Peg in Square Hole Edition
Something about Chabi attracts him to small confined places...
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
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