Evolving at the Speed of Life

1967 Redux

Last night I saw Hair.  No, you are not having a flashback.  September 23, 2007.  Hair.  Performed live in New York at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.  First time since the original Broadway run closed on July 1, 1972 after 1,742 performances.  It's been 40 years.  A bit of triva...

In the original cast...Melba Moore, Shelley Plimpton, Paul Jabara and Diane Keaton!

My mother took my sister, Barbara, and I to see Hair during the original run.  We were in our early teens at the time and had front row seats.  The fact that there was full frontal nudity had been widely publicized.  No surprises (although it did scare my sister a little).  But seeing the show again as an adult was a transformational experience.

On a personal note, my mother was apparently far more hip than I gave her credit for.  I'm not sure I would have taken kids to see it.  Not because of the nudity.  Because at a point in time when adults were trying desperately to "protect" their kids from the evils of war and recreational sex, this theatrical event was a rallying cry. 

From a cultural perspective, you would expect it to be nostalgic, and it was.  It brought me right back to the 60s.  I could almost smell the pot in the school parking lot.  It's also relevant...No more war!  And philosophical...Check out the lyrics to "Air" and consider how we allowed the environment to deteriorate this far.

Welcome! sulphur dioxide
Hello! carbon monoxide
The air, the air
Is everywhere
Breath deep, while you sleep
Breath deep
Bless you, alcohol bloodstream
Save me, nicotine lung steam
Incense, incense
Is in the air
Breath deep, while you sleep
Breath deep
Cataclysmic ectoplasm
Fallout atomic orgasm
Vapor and fume
At the stone of my tomb
Breathing like a sullen perfume
Eating at the stone of my tomb
Welcome! sulphur dioxide
Hello! carbon monoxide
The air, the air
Is everywhere
Breath deep, while you sleep
Breath deep

It was mind bending.  I hope the Public Theater brings it back to play to a whole new generation.  Maybe they can learn from our mistakes.

Forget the Cheerleader! Save the Seals!

I am sure NBC will make sure the Cheerleader on their hit show Heroes survives.  They can't afford to kill off the series.  Meanwhile at the end of March an annual horror will unfold on the ice in Northern Canada.  Hunters are allowed by the Canadian government to slaughter hundreds of thousands of seals with no rules around how to accomplish this goal.  Many of the seals killed are days old.  I'll spare you the gory details.  They gave me nightmares for a good long time.   

Russia and Belgium have already banned the hunt.  And the EU is pressuring the Scandanavian countries to follow suit.  Let's show Canada that it's time to end this barbaric

Take action to end the seal hunt!  Sign a petition.   Boycott American companies who buy Canadian seafood, including Red Lobster and Publix.  In fact, take a look at the products you buy and if they come from Canada chose another brand.

Driving Change

  Yesterday I bought a new car. After years of driving a gas-guzzling, environment polluting, soccer mom SUV my lease was up. Truthfully, I was about to sign on for another 3 year stint ruining the planet. Instead I did some homework and, frankly, I was astonished. Gas consumption is the concern for most people, which is not surprising given that it affects their pocketbooks. But when you really start to look at the emissions it will freak you out! Greenhouse gas emission ratings show the annual amount of greenhouse gases emitted by a particular vehicle in relation to the lowest and highest amounts emitted by other vehicles. My old car, the Volvo XC90, has a rating of 9.3. The Jeep Wrangler, which is what I was planning to buy, is rated 10.2. The Toyota Prius is rated 3.4!

Oil consumption is also staggering. The Prius consumes about 6.2 barrels a year, while the Volvo consumes 18 and the Jeep 20. The Prius rating on minimizing air polution is 8 out of 10 (which is the highest rating I've seen on the site) versus 6 for both the Volvo and the Jeep. Anyway, as you can see by the photo I've made my decision.

The bonus? This is one smart car! It has bluetooth wireless so I can talk on my phone hands free. It has a plug in for my iPod and it has navigation that talks to you. And everything is workable from the steering wheel.

If you want more information you should visit http://www.fueleconomy.gov/. It's really fascinating.