My favorite Adam pic

New Movies

I'm getting to see a ton of new movies before they are released through a film club, so check out my reviews before plonking down your $10. See the link on the right.

Front Page!

Click on the picture to zoom. I'll upload a couple more photos of the Walk once I have them.

AIDS Walk results

The preliminary # is in, we raised $125,000! It's less than I hoped, but still on budget. This is a total of the pledges written on pledge sheets and $ is still coming in. It will creep up a bit to probably at least hit 130k. We had twice as many walkers as last year, many of whom signed up at the last minute and didn't raise $. We can draw on those people to raise $ next year and to grow our mailing list.

Tomorrow is the big day

Tomorrow is the AIDS Walk! Last year we raised $130,000. Usually I'm really good about guessing income, so I want it on the record that this year my bet is on $165,000. We've had a huge response to our recruitment efforts (which includes a part time staffer and an intern) and tremenous press (front page on this Sunday's News Supress). It doesn't seem unreasonable that we would do 20% better.

Any other bets? Following is the story:

AIDS Walk a chance to show heart and sole
October 1, 2006

When Crystal Young was diagnosed with HIV 15 years ago, she moved into a hospice. Back in the early 1990s, the virus that causes AIDS was considered a death sentence.

"I was scared," said Ms. Young, 40, of Lompoc. "That's what you did back then."

She is no longer afraid. It takes longer to recover from colds and infections, but other than that, life is normal. She is raising a teenage daughter, working and living the life of a regular adult.

Ms. Young will share her story this weekend as one of hundreds of participants at the 16th annual Heart & Sole AIDS Walk sponsored by the Pacific Pride Foundation, Santa Barbara's largest care and education organization for those with AIDS and HIV.

This weekend's event is the primary fundraiser for Pacific Pride, which, like other programs around the state, has seen its funding from the government slashed each year. Public funding decreased about 5 percent this year, a significant cut in a $2 million total budget.

That has worried health workers, particularly because the number of new HIV cases has risen as the number of people being tested has declined significantly. That trend is true around the country and in Santa Barbara County, where 33 new cases of HIV were diagnosed in 2004, compared to seven in 1999.

At the same time, the number of people who were tested declined to 2,790 in 2004 from 4,060 in 1999, according to the Santa Barbara County Department of Public Health.

The intent of Saturday's walk is to raise both money and awareness, organizers say. This year is especially significant: It is the 25th anniversary of the first documented case of HIV/AIDS in the United States.

"I remember when we first start doing this back in the late 1980s to early 1990s, we were going to funerals almost every week," said David Selberg, executive director of Pacific Pride. "It's amazing how far we've come."

Ms. Young was diagnosed on Jan. 7, 1991. She contracted the disease from a man who was using intravenous drugs.

"I was shocked," she said. "At that time, it seemed like there were no women being diagnosed. I thought it was just for gay men and drug users. It was scary, very scary."

She planned her funeral and moved into Sarah House, a hospice that opened in Santa Barbara specifically for AIDS/HIV patients.

Because of improved medical treatment and better understanding of the disease, Sarah House now has to room to admit people who are dying of other ailments, such as cancer and Lou Gehrig's disease.

The decline in death rates is certainly good news. But at the same time, health officials fear that the public has become complacent.

Decreases in funding have meant cuts in outreach and education. Much of the money Pacific Pride receives through grants, contracts and private donations is earmarked for specific causes, such as HIV testing, case management and primary health care.

The goal of Saturday's walk is to at least match last year's total of $130,000, which largely goes toward paying overhead costs that don't receive public funding. The money will also be used for the organization's food pantry, services for gay and lesbian awareness, and outreach to schools, the mentally ill, the homeless and others.

"We need to fill in those holes," said Jodi Segal, director of development for Pacific Pride and co-organizer of the AIDS Walk. "Without our donors, our budget falls apart."

Pacific Pride's fundraising goal throughout the year is about $300,000, roughly half of which comes from the AIDS Walk.

Mr. Selberg said a particular need is reaching out to youth, who account for many of the new cases. The organization recently assigned two part-time workers to reach out to online chat groups and Internet sites, which have become common venues for soliciting sex.

In Santa Barbara County, about 1,500 people currently live with HIV/AIDS. With offices in Santa Barbara and Santa Maria, Pacific Pride serves about 600 clients in its programs.

Organizers expect about 500 walkers and 200 volunteers to participate in this year's AIDS Walk. The 10-kilometer event starts at Leadbetter Beach, takes walkers along the shoreline and ends back at Leadbetter, wrapping up with a gathering for speeches, food, music and free massages. Also, prizes will be awarded to the biggest fundraisers.

Registration opens at 8 a.m. {this is wrong, it's actually 9am} Saturday, and the walk begins at 10 a.m. For more information, visit www.pacificpridefoundation.org, or call 963-3636.

My view:

Things you have to believe to be a Republican today:

* Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.

* Trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.

* A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multi-national corporations can make decisions affecting all mankind without regulation.

* HMOs and insurance companies have the best interests of the public at heart.

* Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in schools.

* A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.

* Government should limit itself to the powers named in the Constitution, which include banning gay marriages and censoring the Internet.

* The public has a right to know about Hillary's cattle trades, but George Bush's cocaine conviction is none of our business.

* Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host.
Then it's an illness, and you need our prayers for your recovery.

* You support states' rights, which means Attorney General John Ashcroft can tell states what local voter initiatives they have the right to adopt.

* What Bill Clinton did in the 1960s is of vital national interest, but what Bush did in the '80s is irrelevant.


...Ahhh, government at its best.

I need a sponsor!

Please sponsor me for the 2006 AIDS Walk. The AIDS Walk is my most important event for the year, raising $150,000, which is half of my budget. All money raised pays for HIV education and services provided by Pacific Pride Foundation (my employer!) in Santa Barbara County. If I raise $500 then I get a cool canvass tote bag!

You can sponsor my sending me a check or donating online.

Pacific Pride Foundation
126 E. Haley St., Suite A-11
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Thank you to everyone who sponsored me last year, and to mom and dad for donating $75 this year! Only $425 left to go until I get the tote bag!

End of an Era

I'm very sad to report that I sold my Vespa today. Even though I love it, I barely ever ride and never have felt comfortable on it. Here's a photo that was taken before I bought it by the owner of the Vespa shop, who bought it back from me. He loves this bike and wants it for his personal collection. It's a 1964 small frame with a new ET3 engine in it, so it goes 40mhp+. The guy drove me home on the back of a new scooter, which was fun. Maybe one day I'll get another one with a more solid frame that feels a bit sturdier.

Finally, Some Prime-Time Racism

From LA Times Weekly Columnist Joel Stein.

Battle of the races on 'Survivor' places discussion of stereotypes where it belongs -- in the mainstream.

September 19, 2006

I'VE NEVER BEEN interested in "Survivor," but the new, racist "Survivor" — that, I was psyched about. If "Battle of the Network Stars" made good TV, weekly competitions between poorly fed "tribes" of African Americans, whites, Asians and Latinos were going to be awesome. So, last Thursday night, I got some brie and water crackers, put on a J. Crew sweater vest and settled down on the settee to root for whitey.

None of my white friends wanted to watch with me because — although it was fine for the other races — they felt it was unbecoming for Caucasian Americans to root for their own kind. I found that condescending. Cheering for the whites is no different from rooting for my college football team, for U.S. Olympic teams or for men to finish before women in porn scenes. The latter, unlike the men's Olympic basketball team, never let me down.

But it turns out lots of people got freaked out about this. As soon as CBS announced this season's theme, leaders of the New York City Council demanded that the network abandon the idea, and GM, Coca-Cola, Campbell Soup, Johnson & Johnson and Febreze ended their advertising on the series. You know you've stumbled into a huge pile of it when even Febreze walks away.

No one got upset in past seasons when the show used gender and age to divide people. But we've somehow decided that racial issues can only be discussed in books, college lectures, NPR and other mediums that are so boring people can't get riled up. Songs by Coldplay are probably largely about race.

Unlike 30 years ago, when "All in the Family" and "Chico and the Man" made cutting jokes about race, we've set so many rules about talking about skin color that we rarely do it at all. "Survivor: Cook Islands" isn't trivializing race — it's just not avoiding it like the rest of us. If there really were a group of people stranded on a deserted island, this is exactly how things would go down. Just like in jail.

So I was pumped for some serious racial tension as soon as the contestants pulled up to the island. The giant old ship conjured different images depending on which team was on camera: a slave ship, a makeshift raft from the Dominican Republic, a boat full of Vietnamese or an afternoon sailing cruise to Nantucket. My team was going to rock.

Not only, to my delight, was my team the best looking, but the whiteys seemed to have a really fun attitude, joking and bonding and having a great time. A few minutes into the show, however — long before any contests or voting anyone off — something weird started to happen. I started to turn on my own people.

These white people were a little too preppy, too frat-boy, too happy with themselves. While other teams were fighting over hut building, the white folks were making toasts to each other over little bits of coconut milk and lying down to sleep half-naked and spooning en masse, thrilled with their total super awesomeness. It turns out I kind of hate white people.

The black team wasn't doing it for me either, with its sexism, infighting and talk about representing and feeling each other's vibes. They loved themselves almost as much as white people do.

The Latinos were kind of likable and hardworking if quiet, but those Asians — they were terrific. In fact, better yet, they were like me. They were laid-back and self-effacing. There was a journalist, a lawyer, a management consultant — just like my friends. One of them even went to Stanford four years after I did. And they won the first contest handily, even though their chicken was stolen by the white people. White people who probably didn't even eat the feet or eyeballs.

I don't know if my feelings are because of the fact that this is a particularly nice group of Asians, or if Jews are culturally more akin to Asians than other white people, or because Asians are a completely superior race destined to rule the planet. All I know is that the show is allowing me to make these kinds of racist comments in public.

And I think that's good. Not just because, as CBS argues, getting to know these contestants will help dispel stereotypes. It also will allow us to see which stereotypes are true and discuss which differences make us uncomfortable. Maybe if we admit that race is a factor — just like gender and age — we'll be a little more honest with each other. And maybe we'll also realize that, if we're going to survive, we really need to band together against the yellow people.

movie blog

I've just upgraded my movie blog, so go check it out. Jim can now add reviews and I may add a couple of other reviewers. Please comment to get a discussion going on the films!

Alimony Update

You may remember that Gavin agreed to pay me $800 a month for a longer period of time instead of $920 per month. Well, the first of the month came and went. I left him a message and an email telling him that I'm frustrated, etc and that he knows the penalties for not paying. A few days later I got a check for $400 with a promise for the rest later this month along with an email saying "don't flip, potato chip." He always was charming, but unreliable.

I'm going to tell him that he can either set up an automatic payment with his bank or see me in court. No more renegotiating and not following through. I have better things to do with my time.

SB in Vanity Fair

The News-Press Mess has made it to Vanity Fair. In case you don't read the papers, here's the scoop - The SB News-Press, our daily paper, has been corrupted by it's crazy owner. She is interjecting opinion into news (a major no-no) and been repremanding people when she doesn't like their stories they cover (also a major no-no). It's become a major first ammendment battle and international news. There is a 6 page story starting on page 190 in the October issue of Vanity Fair. It's not posted on the website yet, but hopefully will be at www.vanityfair.com. I have a scanned copy of the article if you want me to email it to you.

2 Fun Blogs

Ever wonder what fleas, tax evaders and fetuses had in common? Check out indexed.

Plastic action figures doing yoga. What's funnier than Barbie and GI Joe cursing over yoga? Visit yogabeans

Yoga Misunderstood

I constantly run into people who think yoga is something that it is not and is for something it is not. So, here's my version of yoga 101.

People say things like "I can't do yoga because I'm not flexible... because I'm not patient... because I'm out of shape... because I have an injury..." All of these statements are filled with misconception that yoga is something you achieve when in actuality it is a practice.

Let's start with an analogy everyone can relate to - homework. Homework and tests serve different purposes. Tests are checking to see if you have already learned the material. Homework is designed to teach you how to do something and to practice different scenarios. Yoga is like homework.

Here's one other analogy before I talk about what yoga is - yoga is like dance. You can dance fast or slow, standing up or sitting down, structured or unstructured, coordinated or not, square or ballet or salsa or tribal or any other way that suits your fancy. What ties all of this together is moving your body to music. Yoga is as varied as dance.

Hatha Yoga is as moving your body with breath. All you have to do is breath in while you move into one pose and breath out while you move into another pose. It's all the stuff that you do in between that makes different styles and teachers different. You can do yoga in a way that is relaxing or builds your flexibility or makes you sweat or gives you better balance or tones your muscles or focuses your mind. So, anyone can do yoga no matter what their physical state. One of the leading yoga teachers today developed his style because he was in a wheelchair and told he couldn't walk.

Just like homework, the benefits of yoga are in the doing, not in the completing. Let's say you are working to become more stronger. You have trouble doing pushups, so working on pushups really builds your strength. One day, doing a pushup is easy. You aren't done building strength because you can do a pushup, so now you have to find the next thing that is going to help you build strength - either more pushups or another excercise. The same holds true for yoga. If you are working to create flexibility and can't touch your toes then a forward fold is great for creating a stretch. Once that pose is easy, you have to find something else to get that same stretch. The yoga is in the stretch, not in the touching of your toes.

So, in a way I'm lucky that I can't touch my toes because no matter what pose I'm doing, I can still get a great stretch.

Make sense? Now that you have no more excuses, go practice.

Baby!

Scott & Kim had their baby! Now I'm "Crazy Auntie Jodi," courtesy of Alex Kaplan. Here are the new baby pics! You can email them at segalsm at hotmail.com.

Now I have proof that I'm right.

I'm now a reviewer for the 2007 Santa Barbara International Film Festival. This verifies me as a bona-fide movie critic! They get 2000 submissions and will screen only 200 at the film fest. It's the reviewers and staff that decide what makes it into the festival. I pick them up at the office and return them within 4 days of checkout. I'm allowed to have friends watch them with me. Based on my involvement, I get rewarded with different levels of passes to the film fest. Let me know if you want to watch them with me!

Alimony/Gavin Update

This has been a busy week! The court told me that I only have option left to get the alimony if Gavin doesn't voluntarily pay. I wasn't about to face him in court with charges that could put him in jail, so I emailed him for lunch. We met on Monday. We were both relieved to see each other. He understands why I shut him out, and I understand why he kept trying to get me to talk with him - we were both hurt and upset. It's been a long time so we are ready to talk again and re-establish a relationship.

Without getting into too many details, he agreed to pay me a slightly lower amount per month for a longer period of time, so it will add up to the same total. The first check is supposed to arrive on September 1st. I hope it works!

Pandora Rocks!

Pandora is like Tivo for music. Enter an artist or song you like and Pandora will play songs with similar qualities. You get to approve or disappove of each song, letting you make the selection more sophisticated.

It's all free and includes music from unsigned artists. You can have multiple radio stations and login from anywhere.

Alimony update

I talked with a lawyer who wants a 3,500 retainer in order to file the forms and appear in court. She estimates the total costs to be 3k-5k. Since that's almost 1/3 of what I'm owed and 10x more than I have in the bank, I think I'm going to pass. I'm trying to see someone at the courts to get some advice. Unfortunately, you have to line up a couple of hours in advance of when they start seeing people in order to get a spot. I tried on Monday, but didn't get in. I'm going to try again next Monday when they are open again. If that doesn't work, then I'll try Legal Aid or a 3rd lawyer. Wierdly, I probably won't be poor enough to qualify for Legal Aid. It's really frustrating that someone willing to do the work herself can't get a straight answer on how to make it happen. Anyone have any ideas?

Photos of Us

Jim's parents came to visit last week. His mom took these photos, so now you can finally see a little bit of our little bitty house and a bit of SB. It's the trade-off for living in paradise.