Throwback Thursday: Ideology of the White House

Originally written and saved as draft in 2016:

Voting for a lesser evil is definitely not a new concept but I don't think it has been more true than in this election cycle.  Sadly, I have to admit that for the first time, I have voted out of fear and not truly my conscience.  Despite this, I stand by my vote as being most true to my ideology while considering strategy in regards to Ohio's electoral vote strength, which is actually diminishing.

To make an informed vote based on your own ideology, check out Vote Smart

How the state of Ohio represents America as a whole has always fascinated me.
Ohio's Status as a Political Bellwether




West Wing actors campaign for Clinton

Martin Sheen and humane letters of University of Dayton

Allison Janney

Dayton.com: Chuck Lowe

Daytonians at the Oscar, Grammy, and Sag Awards

1x6: Mr. Willis of Ohio

Mr. Willis of Ohio (Swiss band)



Finally, how I would prefer hearing politicians speak of women:

Throwback Thursday: Trust Us With Your Life

Originally written and saved as draft in 2011:   

In my relentless quest to obtain tickets for a recording of 'The Graham Norton Show', I've been requesting tickets to various show recordings via SRO Audiences.  The other week, I procured 'priority tickets' due to my American status, for a new show for ABC called 'Trust Us With Your Life'.  

Comedy great Fred Willard from Shaker Heights, Ohio, was the host.

Fred Willard's obituary in The Guardian (2020).

Throwback Thursday: 'Exotic' and 'Ohio' are NOT synonymous

Originally written and saved as draft in October, 2011:

I may be on the other side of the pond but one news story from my home state became widespread this week and could not escape my notice.  As an undergraduate, I volunteered with the Hueston Woods Nature Center and became aware that many animals brought to the center for rehabilitation were wild animals surrendered by owners.  While mountain lions and bobcats are natives to Ohio, they really have no business being kept as domestic companions, which people finally realize when the animal grows up and no longer is able to be re-acclimated to the wild.  While Cougie (cougar) and Eli (bobcat) were still majestic creatures (who liked the odd cuddle), they were sadly sentenced to lives behind bars due to humans that thought it would be cool to have them as pets.

GQ's story on the Zanesville zoo escape in 2012.

Wise Words Wednesday: Toni Morrison

 

Why Toni Morrison Matters

Years ago, I was amazed that my Italian friend mentioned that Toni Morrison was her favourite author.  I simply didn't realise and was pleasantly surprised by the universal influence of her writings and I'm reminded of this by the Southbank Centre hosting 'Why Toni Morrison Matters' later this month. 

Toni Morrison's birthday, February 18th, is now an officially celebrated day in her home state of Ohio.  Perhaps best known for novels such as Song of Solomon and Beloved, Morrison was born and raised in Lorain, and her early novels The Bluest Eye and Sula were both set in Ohio. 

She once told an audience at Oberlin College:  'In my work, no matter where it's set, the imaginative process always starts right here on the lip of Lake Erie.'

Ten facts about the incomparable author

How Ohio shaped Morrison's fiction

Calvin and Hobbes, Eighth Wonder of the World

As with most things in my life, which I feel passionately about, I will procrastinate dealing with it or writing about it (ie dissertation, etc.) if I think I'm unable to do it justice.  This is definitely the case with posting an entry about my all-time favorite comic, Calvin and Hobbes. Or as Calvin once, and so much more eloquently, put it:  I'm learning real skills that I can apply throughout the rest of my life ... Procrastinating and rationalizing.

Bill Watterson looks back with no regrets, Cleveland Plain Dealer article

The Tiger Strikes Again, Washington Post

Ohio's Most Famous Recluse

Why Bill Watterson is our hero
Calvin aged 26 years:  not for the feint of heart

Ironically, a Throwback Thursday entry as it was written ages ago!

No Longer Pretending

While watching 'The Importance of Being Morrissey', I was of course a bit distracted and delighted that one of the interviewees was Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders. 

 

Chrissie is a girl from Ohio
Chrissie's love letter to Ohio:  My City Was Gone

Happy belated birthday!  Born 7th September, 1951.

Started:  5/16/11

Wise Words Wednesday:

“The secret to success is to do the common things uncommonly well.”

― John D. Rockefeller Jr. Forest Hill:  The Rockefeller summer home in Cleveland Heights The Rockefellers on The American Experience