James Bewley » The Latest

		November 4, 2008 O! Yes We Did. Today, cranking a gigantic red-handled lever on a voting machine built circa 1934, I cast my vote for Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States!!! Bush and Company have been soundly rejected. Palin is going back to the woods. McCain can go back to being a normal independent Senator, the kind of guy I actually liked back in 2000. And we can move forward. I spent the weekend in New Orleans, walking for hours through the devastation of the Lower Ninth Ward. It remains a wounded part of the city, with fire hydrants pouring water into the streets and houses abandoned and collapsing back into themselves. But even there, in a place where America’s government failed its people so completely, in windows and on front yards, there were signs supporting Obama. Hope lives. Let’s get to work.

		October 18, 2008 Auburn Avenue On a bright Sunday afternoon, I took a walking tour of Auburn Avenue in downtown Atlanta. To stand in front of the house Martin Luther King, Jr. grew up in, the church he preached from, and his tomb alongside that of his wife, Coretta Scott, is to be humbled before God and the legacy of his great family. Things are still not perfect in Atlanta, just as things are not perfect in this country. But my visit there only reinforced in me the deep knowledge that we cannot afford to be divided or pulled apart into a “Pro-America” and its opposite. Here’s to only 15 days left in this campaign season. Lord Almighty, do I need a break.

		October 8, 2008 BEWDAQ 500 Up A Gazillion Points Though the world seems headed into the crapper, here are some great things that are happening in this, my official birthday week. 1) Discovered the riveting Paul Swan in a film by Andy Warhol at the gigantic Warhol exhibition at the ridonkulously awesome Wexner Center. If you can get to Columbus, get Jenni’s Ice Cream, and then go see this show. 2) I enjoyed the Biden-Palin face off while in the company of the incomparable John Waters. I’ll keep his thoughts on Palin in a giggle vault to unlock whenever I’m feeling low. 3) I passed by Peggy Olson from TV’s Mad Men on the street near NYU. Whatta doll! 4) All my pants are hemmed at an appropriate length. 5) The weather has finally slipped from muggy oppression to crisp with a hint of wood smoke. Fall is here and I’m headed to the Planetarium for some birthday good times on Friday. Happy Birthday me. I’ll worry about my 401k vanishing on Monday.

		September 14, 2008 Worse, Trust Me, It Will Be Worse It would be easy to get discouraged by the Palin-bomb of right-wing enthusiasm that the McCain campaign chose to drop just the other week. But I’m refusing to give in to the same old, woe is me, Democratic hand-wringing that so often occurs around this time, especially given the past few years of electoral history. The facts are if this country is going to get better, we must elect Obama-Biden. And despite the polls, I know we can do this. McCain is by his own staff’s admission, doing whatever they can to win, regardless of a little thing called the truth. Sound familiar? This absent pursuit of power is surely reminiscent of a certain dynamic destructive duo already installed in the White House. With McCain’s willingness to sacrifice all honor for the sake of winning combined with Sarah Palin’s naive, uninformed world view, electing them means certain doom for this country. I don’t understand how anyone who wants their children to be better off, for their grandchildren to live in a safe and just world, could in good faith, even consider electing McCain-Palin. Here’s a video of Barack Obama at his best in Concord, NH, he’s got real ideas, real compassion, and integrity. For those who consider Obama a toss of the dice, or too risky, I think a 72-year old sell-out, with an extreme right wing running mate with zero experience as a backup, a far more reckless choice for this country. More than reckless, it would actively be participating in the unraveling of the American dream. You want Obama’s specifics? Read his plans on www.barackobama.com .

		September 13, 2008 Happiness Is… The blissful union of two hearts in love. In this case, Maura and Rufus, who married just before the raindrops in a grassy clearing beyond the woods in Freeport, Maine.

		September 13, 2008 Happiness Is… A beautiful lady and a canoe for two.

		September 13, 2008 Happiness Is… A good day’s rest.

		September 13, 2008 Happiness Is… A tasty, locally-sourced, completely-organic meal.

		August 31, 2008 Bewley Man Tide Warning Bewley men. There are a lot of them. This was made abundantly clear at the Bewley family reunion yesterday, when my extended family showed up with an overrun of testosterone in the form of at least eight lil’ Bewley gents. Pictured here are just four of the most handsome! Thanks to Elizabeth and Steve for throwing such a great party.

		August 26, 2008 Littlest Obama-Biden Supporter Zoe (in pink), when asked by her father who the next President was going to be, said without hesitation, “Barack Obama!” When asked about the VP slot, “Joe Biden!” Any kid that enthusiastically shouts out Joe Biden’s name is ok with me. (I can even look past that cream cheese eating technique!) Though I am supposed to be relaxing, my entire week is now devoted to convention coverage and sweating the polls. So far it’s way to go, Teddy, Michelle, and Hillary. Three great speeches that seem to be hitting all the right marks. I personally wish more people could have seen Kucinich’s Wake Up America speech, as I tend to agree with that little elf-man. And then watching Gov. Schweitzer from Montana, I thought how awesome it would look if they were the ticket. Like Legolas and Gimli meets Laurel and Hardy.

		August 20, 2008 Vacation Update: Too. Many. Bargains. I wish Century 21 the mega-store was as orderly as these young ladies at the realty company of the same name. This store is madness. I think every European on holiday, armed with a strong Euro and a lust for Dolce and Gabbana yellow knit wear, is spending their entire vacation at this place. Screw the Waterfalls, these folks want to shop. Of course I had to take something back the very next day, which is like realizing that you left your lightsaber holster outside the Rancor monster’s lair, you don’t wanna go back to that awful place, but you did barter for like twelve hours with a Jawa to get that sweet holster. So I ventured back, got jostled by a Hassidic family trying to find the shoe department, and made my way up to the third floor, only to be told that I could only get store credit. Store CREDIT? You mean I have to come back? Again? My only solace came from picturing the clerk’s red apron collapsing to the floor and the warm humming saber in my bionic hand…yeargh.

		August 18, 2008 Chubby Warhol Takes Brooklyn Witness, the first appearance of Charles “Chubby” Warhol! Big thanks to Heather for hosting the WELCOME TO BEW-YORK party, wherein we caught Chubby basking in a Brooklyn sunset. And to all those who came out and enjoyed the rye manhattans on the roof, Nathan’s hotdogs, pastrami from Katz’s, and those taxi-cab colored M&Ms, we love you most of all. I’m taking the next two weeks off to prepare for my new position that begins September 8th. More on that later! Chubby-OUT.

		August 14, 2008 To Make the Best Better Who could predict that lil’ ole Wilmington, Ohio would be so much in the news of late? Seems like John McCain’s campaign manager, Rick Davis had at least some hand in the decision that will ultimately result in the town’s loss of over 10,000 jobs when shipping giant DHL pulls out. It’s a complicated and multifaceted story, but it happens to be focused on the town where my in-laws call home and the town in which I made my proposal for marriage. We visited the Clinton County Fair this summer, (a 4-H winner is pictured here) and among many other concerns, like who will carry on the tradition of strawberry jello cake, I worry what will become of the Swine Queen and whether a casino really IS the answer.

		August 10, 2008 Mancation 3: Prepare to Meet Your Doom The Wii shoulder is what I’m suffering from. It was worth virtually bowling a 254, but it’s a little embarrassing how sore it is. The bringer of the Wii was none other than the great BY1, who just left after a three day intensive Mancation. Our third annual celebration of all things of great import to manly men, this also marked Brian’s last throes of his engagement before he takes the big leap into matrimony in September. Needless to say I can’t talk about all we did and saw - for instance - we got really into this. We ate some great food, went on a fine muscle-building walk, and drank plenty of scotch. Oh…and we played way too much Super Smash Bros on the Wii. We did unlock Snake, from Metal Gear. (I realize that only half of this makes any kind of normal sense to a well adjusted person. But trust me. It was super fun.)

		August 10, 2008 My Indian Name is Lone Cloud I’m not complaining, but so far, August has been about a billion degrees cooler than the last two sweltering months. It’s almost…pleasant. This photo is from a few days ago on Smith Street. I somehow managed to misplace my cable that allows me to upload all these pics, so I have been remiss in Summer blogging. But I’m back. And I got an iPhone. Sweet mother of blog, I’m back.

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