Yesterday I volunteered to join Oliver’s class to a visit to the Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley. The focus of the visit was a presentation in the planetarium. The class had recently been studying planets and moons. Long time readers of Depot Dad will know that, among other kinds of nerdery, I am also a hardcore astronomy nerd.

But of all the interesting facts about the universe, there is one that seems universal and permanent: Most grown ups suck at talking to children, especially groups of children. Read More...

To appreciate this Depot Bell entry, one of the one hundred things that make me happy, you have to forget everything you’ve ever known, associated or felt about this piece of music.

Oh, and you know this piece of music, even if you think you don’t .

It is one of those pieces of music that is overly used in movies, movie previews and crass advertising. And it is a damn shame, because taken on its own merits, it is one of the most significant works of art in the 20th century. You will recognize the opening notes instantly, and it is a shame that these notes, a mere fraction of the long vocal piece, are but a moment, and not necessarily the most interesting moment, in a musical journey that visits such a wide range of moods, styles, tempos and subjects.

Well, maybe it isn’t such a wide range of subjects. The piece is basically a testament to one single basic idea. That idea might be best summed up like this: To hell with vows of chastity. Life is a carnival of physical pleasures. Let’s all drink and fight and screw until our hearts are content.

You know, that is a sentiment I can get behind. Read More...

After two years of intrusive construction vehicles, equipment and noise, the Whole Foods Market next door to my home finally opened this week. Now, every morning at 8am, I can fall out of bed, pull on some clothes and stumble about twenty yards and find this...



And these pics represent only about a tenth of the store, a new flagship large scale Whole Foods Market. Sure the produce trucks start lining up outside my bedroom window at 3am, but I’ve learned to take the good with the bad. The coffee bar here is serving free coffee for the first thirty days, which seems like proper karmic retribution for my coffee-free diet in March.

So do I even need to stock up my refrigerator anymore?

Cancer sucks.

But you probably already knew that, right?

And you probably already knew that cancer kills healthy cells. But would you like to know what cancer kills even more effectively? I’ll tell you. Cancer kills a healthy love life, that’s what.

Now on the one hand I can say that, in spite of my health, I’ve dated A LOT in the past year. It’s true. But the thing is, that they have almost all been first dates. Oh, yes, there were a handful of second dates and even a few third dates. But eventually they all come to the point where the woman has to decide if she wants to get in the ring with a guy who brings real risks to the relationship.

And so far, no one has been too keen on getting into the ring.
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Okay, if I’m going to get this blog going again, there are a few things I want to get out of the way first.

Most important is that I want to give my friends and readers an update on my health situation. The short answer is that things are going very well. If you want more detail, see below. But I want to say right here that because things are going so well, I certainly don’t intend to turn this blog into a “Jim’s Cancer Update” blog. There are a lot of things that I want to write about and share. But I know many of you will want to know the latest health news, so here it is... Read More...

So I’m thinking about starting this blog up again. Is there anyone out there who cares?