Return of the Giant Bowl o’ Butter

If you’ve been reading for a while, you may recall that this is not the Giant Bowl o’ Butter‘s first appearance on Any Given Sundry.

In these confusing economic times, I think the Giant Bowl o’ Butter is a sign of hope. Or at least, a sign of faith that a large quantity of pancakes and toast will be sold today in one diner in the middle of the San Fernando Valley.

If you’re wondering what the heck is going on in the economy, let me steer you toward a couple of terrific episodes of This American Life. It’s an NPR radio show that you can listen to online or download to your mp3 player.

#365: Another Frightening Show About the Economy explains in a very simple way–it has to be for me to understand it!–what they’re talking about when they talk about a credit freeze. It’s a follow-up to #355: The Giant Pool of Money, which explains the mortgage crisis. The two are related, as you probably guessed. But there’s this whole world of high finance that I never really knew about, and it’s what’s behind your mutual fund investments, etc.

If you want more info on the economic situation from the folks who brought us this helpful stuff, check out the Planet Money Blog.

If you want a little fascinating escapism, check out the other episodes available on This American Life. The stories are always interesting, sometimes funny, sometimes touching.

Or check out the terrific storytelling that is going on at The Moth. I recommend Richie DiSalvo’s tale of his experiences with a man named Anthony the Hat in NYC.

Last Night’s Debate : My 22 Cents

When I walked into Andrew’s NoHo Diner this morning, this cobwebbed fellow reminded me of John McCain. There’s even a reference to his military service hovering behind him.

Of course, if this were John McCain, he would be lot paler. And a lot angrier.

It became even more clear last night that John McCain has no poker face whatsoever. He keeps chastising Barack Obama for showing his cards by saying what he would or wouldn’t do regarding foreign policy (“You don’t say that out loud!”) But seriously, McCain’s furious half the time and he can’t keep it off his face. Is this the man we want negotiating settlements with hostile nations?

I think not.

And stop telling me I’m angry about the country’s financial meltdown. I’m— What am I? I’m aghast. I’m bewildered. I’m a little afraid. But what does angry get you? Nothing rational.

McCain’s given up trying to be rational and is just resorting to spreading rumors started by bloggers like me. (And you know you can’t trust us.) He’s already got his base in his pocket, what he needed to do last night was gain people who find themselves in the center politically, and I can’t imagine he did that.

I agree with Barak Obama regarding abortion rights. No one wants more abortions. But I believe that it’s a woman’s choice and it needs to remain legal.

I understand what McCain was trying to get at when he commented on the definition of a “woman’s health” being stretched to allow late term abortions to women whose lives aren’t actually in danger. But an across the board ban is just wrong. As Rachel Maddow commented on the MSNB post-game show, this means you’re forcing a woman to take a pregnancy to full term even if it’s going to kill her. I can’t agree with that.

There’s no equivalent for men. There just isn’t. Unless you want to say that the prostate is involved in reproduction, so if you get prostate cancer you can’t treat it because of loss of potential life.

I’m excited that I might have an opportunity to opt into the same health care system that serves federal employees. As Obama said in the prior debate, John F. Kennedy didn’t know how we were going to get to the moon when he set it as a goal for the end of the sixties, but you have to set your intentions if you’re going to get a thing done.

I loved Barack Obama’s composure. I loved that he actually answered most of the questions. It was great that he confronted McCain about the rabble rousing that Sarah Palin’s been doing and which she is not responding to responsibly. McCain’s claim that Obama was somehow putting down the 99% of reasonable people at the rallies where epithets have been slung— Well, that was just a pathetic attempt to make Obama look elitist.

Guess what? I want a smart president. I want an educated, thoughtful, flexible, hopeful, inspiring president. I want the person with his or her finger on the button to at least be able to pronounce the word “nuclear.”

I’ll say it right out loud, I want an eloquent president.

Okay, there are probably pictures of me out there that are almost this embarrassing, but this shot from the debate last night is just too funny not to pass up. Click on the photo to see where I found it.

Traveller – Friday 9/5/2008

A guy walks into a North Hollywood diner at 5:15 a.m. and asks, “How far is it to Venice, California?”

“Twenty-five minutes,” P answers brightly. “You just hop on the 101 to the 405 and if you do it pretty soon, it’ll be fast.” She goes to do some side work in the back.

“Do celebrities come in here?” the Traveller asks the remaining servers. His hair is white and a little wispy. His skin is slightly florid. He’s trim. He’s wearing a purple polo shirt and light gray pants, and he carried in a very old fashioned tan leather satchel that’s now resting near his feet.

“A long time ago,” says A. “Not any more.”

“We had Carmen Electra not too long ago,” V says. “And Kristie Alley.” (She means Kirstie Alley.) “From Cheers.” Also from Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan and those Jenny Craig commercials.

The Traveller asks V if she knows how to get to Venice, California. She starts to tell him, but finds out he doesn’t have a car. “I think you can take the subway there.”

She starts to tell him how to get to the subway station, then looks across the restaurant to me, “You can get to Venice on the subway, can’t you hon?”

“No,” I say over my cup of coffee, “The subway doesn’t go anywhere very interesting, except downtown.”

He asks about getting a room there, if it’s under $80. None of us know for sure, but we’re doubtful. We live here, we don’t get rooms at the beach. A turns her back on him, rolls her eyes at me and releases a short string of profanities before saying, “If you travel all the way out here you’d better be able to afford a room!”

The Traveller comes over to my table. “How far is it to Venice, California, do you think?”

“As the crow flies, it may be only about 15 miles, but by road it’s more like 25. If you’re taking the bus, it will probably take you a couple of hours. I don’t know which line you’d need to take.”

“Have you been to Venice?”

“Sure.”

“Is it quite a place?”

“It’s interesting. More interesting on weekends. There’s a lot going on down by the water.” I shrug. “You might actually like Santa Monica if you’re going down there. It’s the next town north and it’s got more to it…a pier with rides and shops.”

“But Muscle Beach, that’s in Venice, right?”

“Right.”

I advise him to go back to the Greyhound station. They should have information about connecting buses. He asks about Hollywood. It’s on the other side of the Santa Monica Mountains from here. I tell him he might want to stop there on the way, but he seems really focused on Venice.

As he walks back to his seat at the counter, I notice that my forearm is stretched across the open pages of my bound notebook. It’s an instinctive thing that I find myself doing in public places even if the person I’m talking to could care less about what’s going on in my pages.

The traveler asks a busboy if he knows where Venice, California is. “It’s right next to Santa Monica, right? Muscle Beach is there.”

He only gets a shrug and helpless open palms.

I think he said he’d come from Atlanta.

I have a feeling he’s been dreaming about Muscle Beach for so long that he expects it to be in black and white.

I hope he gets there all right. I hope he’s not disappointed.

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Finally Diner – Wednesday 8/27/2008

I’m soooo tired I didn’t even notice how blurry this photo was.

Focus is on the reflection of the (silenced) TV screen on the surface of my coffee.

Finally got back to Andrew’s to write. I can focus on the page okay, thank goodness.

Superhero Waitstaff – Tuesday 8/12/2008

P poses with the lascivious looking plastic chef. That’s her artwork and lettering. She loves changing the special boards and she’s good at it.

I haven’t been getting to Andrew’s in the mornings very much lately because I’ve been going in to work early. Working 9 to 11 hour days. It’s just all hitting at once…aaah.

This means no writing in the mornings, and then I’m too beat at night. It’ll come back. But it’s frustrating right now.

I went in this morning with new scripts from three different shows that I had to read and do reports on by this afternoon. This is a huge amount of work. I vowed I’d power through the reading and breaking down part while I was at the diner because I am so sick of my desk at work.

“We’re gonna get you through this,” P said as she poured my fourth cup of coffee.

Whew! I made it.

Water Conservation – Monday 7/28/2008

I really like this graphic on the cards they put out on the tables at Andrew’s.

I actually drink the water, so I still get it!

Coffee des Artistes – Wednesday 7/9/2008

These are the guys I have coffee with most mornings. A pretty tough crowd.

Clearly John is uncomfortable with the personal nature of the project I’m working on right now. But it’s going really well and no amount of squeamishness on the part of motion pictures icons can stop me now.

Then there’s Chuck.

Chuck’s a man.

Chuck may not agree with what I have to say, but he’ll defend with his life my right to write it.

When I work at home, I miss my posse.

Starting Tomorrow – Monday 6/30/2008

Andrew’s / Sitton’s is really making an effort.

The servers aren’t really wild about having to figure out the 10% discount, but I think they’re kind of proud that the restaurant is doing this. I hope it works for everyone.

Earlier this month, they lowered the price of their breakfast specials from $4.95 to $3.95! This is an incredible deal in the L.A. area.

These are the $3.95 specials, which include coffee. Coffee by itself is $1.95 including tax, so you see what a deal these are…

2 Biscuits and Sausage Gravy, and coffee or tea. I had this the first time I was here, and unfortunately can’t recommend it.

The 2x2x2 : two pancakes, two sausages or bacon strips, two eggs, and coffee or tea. Really just way too yummy.

The Continental: two eggs, croissant, fresh fruit and coffee or tea. My personal favorite, especially since they let me substitute dry rye toast for the croissant.

Chef Detail – Friday 6/13/2008

The Chef outside Andrew’s. Once again, I’m getting pulled into the life of the diner I hang out in.

Kooky patrons are interesting. One of the servers’ daughters graduated from high school. I’m writing and writing at my table in the corner.

I moved tables so the guy who mops the floor every morning could clean where my feet usually are.

One he said (he’s not a native English speaker), “Every day you write too much!” and flashed a bright smile.

I’ll take that as a compliment.

My Friday the 13th was just peachy… How about yours?

The only downsides were finding out that a report I thought was due Monday was due on Friday, and the traffic was a mess on the way home. Nothing too unusual.

Rrrrowrr! – Friday 5/30/2008

Per Peaches (my boss), “The days of the shoe box diorama are over.”

This is her daughter’s creation, and the whole thing is about 2 1/2 x 3 feet! There are some pretty scary volcanoes in the background.

LittleVee reports that this dino only has one eye because he lost the other one in a fight.

You should see the other guy!

Coincidentally, Hydra sent me this apparently serious take on dinosaurs put forth by one Christian ministry: Pterosaurs: An Introduction. It’s a amazing. They seem to have been created to cover up Adam and Eve’s nasty bits!

For some reason, these keychains, sent to us by the other owner of the company–who works and lives in Massachusetts–struck my fancy on the way to Peaches’ office to snag the dino shots. I’m using a blue hibiscus patterned version right now.

This one’s for The Last Noel!

A little investigative reporting reveals this sad news: The men’s room at Andrew’s (fka Sittons) is stained-glass free! I went around the outside of the building to check it out, and there’s no window at ALL in the men’s room, which from this p.o.v. would be to the right of the stained glass window.

If there had been one, I would have seriously considered going inside again to get a shot with the light behind it.