miller's crossing

This is a story idea that I have about mix tapes.

It really has to do with the fact that my car, that I don't drive very often, has a cassette tape player. I really love that it has a cassette player and not a CD player. So, when I'm driving all over town running errands, I've been listening to old (and one new) mix tapes. These tapes haven't really been in circulation, but over the past year and a half as I've moved out of and sold a house, I unearthed several old mix tapes that friends had made for me and a couple I had made for myself.

In the soggy October night, I set out to fix a flat on my bike. Waiting for the glue to cure, I put on a Midnight Oil LP and poured a glass of red wine. Before I'd had my first sip, I noticed the subtle smell of old boyfriend nostalgia. The David Bowie I was singing earlier in the day should've been an early tip off to what was to come. Then, there was an email from the last guy that I read after work. ("...

See more from Moon's 40th birthday celebration here.

Sheldon Rampton is one of my favorite heroes, ever. He has helped me with this blog SOOOO much. Without Sheldon, there would be no Miller's Crossing. In fact, he coined the name. ... Well, you know, he thought it might work for the blog. And he just helped me register my blog on Technorati. So, we're getting ready for the big time here.

A million thank yous to Sheldon.

Is it always the poets who defend their art? Is it only the poets who are saying, "We need poetry"? I have a vision of poets queueing up to take their turn to stand on a soapbox in the middle of the Saturday market in Madison and proclaim to whomever will listen, "You need us." Beseeching among ripe melons and bright flowers, "Listen: We have something for your ears, to soothe you. Something for your mind, to spark you. Something for your heart, to heal you." They will gently intone to the shoppers caressing waxy purple eggsplants, "Listen to us. You may not believe this, but you will be better to pause a moment and consider our words. And then maybe you will join us."

I had the good fortune to attend a talk last night by Francis Moore Lappe, author of the groundbreaking book Diet For A Small Planet, published in 1971. She was in Madison, Wisc., with her new book Democracy's Edge and spoke at the Pres House on the UW campus.

As someone who has devoted her life to issues of food, she has come to understand and document that world hunger is created by humans. It is political, not environmental. For her, the intersection of food and democracy provides a clear framework in which to discuss how we as human can do better.

Vine Deloria, Jr. passed away on November 13 at the age of 73. Deloria authored over 20 books, including his best seller ''Custer Died for your Sins'' (1969). He made important contributions to several Native American organizations and institutions over the years, including serving as executive director of the National Congress of American Indians. He also was a professor of history at the University of Colorado.

For the past year, I've kept Spirit & Reason: The Vine Deloria, Jr. Reader on my bedside pile of books. When I can't take another bullet of digitalized news or printed page of politics, I turned to it to read one of his essays about things larger than the latest outrage. His writing has helped clarify my own thoughts on first peoples and "being Indian." His philosophical and religious writings are deeply provocative.