The Daily Privateer

Sunday in the Park With George

We're watching the Sondheim musical.  And discussing the economy.  Things are still good, we stopped buying Starbucks or eating out years ago.

I'm also reading about how Paul McCartney either was - or wasn't - from birth, a bass player.  Stu Sutcliffe was the original bass player for the Beatles - but they weren't really "The Beatles" then, IYKWIM.  When Stu was unable to get himself back from Berlin, the Beatles knew that "someone" had to play the bass.  This shows their musical genius (collectively, I guess, although the story is told as a conversation between George and John).  "Not me!" says John.  "And certainly not me!" says George.

And so Paul ended up the bass player.  I don't see how this means that he was "born" to be a bass player.

I believe he invented an entirely new form of bass playing, hence, "The Beatles" as we know them.

Still some authors contend that Paul was "born" to be a bass player.

I thank Ogs that Paul became a bass player, don't you?

What happened to my sense of humor?

I find things very funny, but I'm not funny.  I used to be way more funny.  Is it the chronic pain from my back?  I keep reading how pain makes your brain get all messed up.  I'd think a sense of humor might be the first thing to go.  On the other hand, I was way funnier when I was much meaner.

But, seems to me I lost my sense of humor a long time ago, found it again, and now, it hovers with insouciance just outside my consciousness.

So I'll keep trying to steal other people's humorousness.   Or thinking of names for The Band (our band).   I found this self-help book that's pretty good, all round.  I'm pondering whether the unfunny side of me comes from the Mennonite/Dutch part.  You know - the Funks. 

My ancestors, on my mom's dad's side, left Holland around 1536, to become the so-called Prussian Mennonites (the nicer ones).  The ones who were all into shunning and stuff went on to become the Amish.  Mennonites are way more liberal (and funny) than the Amish.

Later, they went on to become Catherine the Great's Russian Mennonites, then one of them - my great-great-grandpa, moved to central Canada to found central Canada's Mennonites.

Grandpa looked a lot like John Wayne.  He had the same name as his original Mennonite ancestor, but he left the Mennonite faith to become a missionary in Hawaii.  He converted to being Assembly of God-Pentacostal (I know, I know), but in his heart, he was still Mennonite, I think.  His sister, my mom's auntie, went on to marry into the Jackson family and produce a very famous - Buddhist - basketball coach.

Religion was important to Granny's family, too.  But, they were more mainstream and ecumenical.  Granny is related to James Madison (great great great grand niece or whatnot) and a direct descendant of the remarkably unfunny Zachary Taylor.

My dad is funny though, so there's that.  His grandmother, Ka'imi'ike'nao'u'ao fell for a guy known for his sense of humor and his wiles with women (Kamakawahine, some people have heard of him - Big Island guy).  But ultimately she spent more time married to my step-great-grandfather, Mr. Jinn.  Grandma K had 11 children with 7 different "husbands."  That was before the missionaries came.  She mostly lived by herself after the kids were grown.  She laughed easily, but her daughter, my grandma, was a rather serious woman whose hobby was translating Christian hymns into Hawaiian.

The story of my life - except I'm a girl.  And I don't wear plaid.

What is Fark?

Is it possible you don't know?

Most of my friends are either   a) academics (none of them has heard of Fark and none of them seems interested)   or   b)  people much younger than myself (who, you'd think, would already know about Fark).  My younger friends are into Deviant Art, Television Without Pity, and other web destinations - but I am able to astonish and amaze them with my clever wit, by stealing stories and pithy comments from Fark.

As an anthropologist and archaeologist (I took my first anthropology course in 1972), I am always looking for ways to see into the American psyche.  Fark has a few non-Americans, but it is a thoroughly American phenomenon. 

I'd like to explain more about Fark to you all, but first I need to be sure that you all understand the words "snark," "satire," and "asshat."  I first heard the word "snark" about 7 years ago, but when I used it in class as an example of a relatively new lexeme, only a couple of students had heard it. 

Today, some people at ShinyShiny, a gadget site for girls, complained about the masculinist and chauvinistic nature of Fark (it is both, I think, but, well, we all have our flaws).  Some of their dear readers had no clue what Fark is.  If you google Fark (or Drew Curtis, creator of Fark), you'll see that Fark and Drew are fairly net-famous.  Fark influenced the Mets and their baseball singalong fiasco (that was really funny, but you had to be there), and it influences other events as well.  It does not make most of its revenue from click-throughs, I don't think, but from subscriptions.  Kevin Smith, the film director, has a pay-for-posting board, I think it costs $2, so in the world of internet subscriptions, Fark is doing well.  I'd recommend it over Salon or the New Yorker, for most people.

Because it's funny and we need funny.  It's funny because of its editorial policies, overseen by Drew, but it's also funny because the people who post there are intelligent and funny, even when they're also asshats or crazy.

If I see you on Fark and I like you, I might just sponsor you - it's a whole $5 a month.  I think the Smith site is $2 a year or something.

So Drew Curtis rocks harder than Kevin Smith.  Bet that sticks in Kevin's craw, some days.

Fark is right here if you want to go there.