[MP3] Max Tundra - Which Song
[MP3] Max Tundra - Will Get Fooled Again

Please don’t fuck this up.

<3jp

Andy was able to leave early, so we decided to take off and grab lunch together. We received a couple boxes of 56-count oranges that were too ugly to sell but still tasted pretty good so, before leaving the warehouse, we each grabbed a box to take home (without really considering what I would do with that many oranges… alas). My suggestion of the Counter was met with agreement, so we both drove over (I went the fast way: Alton -> Irvine Blvd.). On my way over, I couldn’t help but notice a gigantic pumpkin hovering over El Toro, overlooking the city of Irvine, so I made a mental note to investigate after lunch. The Counter has a pretty solid beer selection and since I was planning on eating veggies for lunch (and since I had oranges, flying or otherwise, on my mind), I went with the earthy and fruity La Fin du Monde, which is a Belgian/Trappist-style ale made by the Canadian brewery Unibroue. For those unfamiliar with the Counter, basically you get a giant list of burger accoutrements and get to customize the shit of your sandwich. I opted for something a little lighter - as I wanted my alcohol to stick with me a little longer - and went with a 1/3lb. veggie burger with an herb goat cheese spread, red onions, sprouts, baby greens, and a dijon balsamic vinaigrette on a wheat bun. The Counter approaches the veggie burger from the “patty-made-of-vegetables” standpoint rather than the “textured-vegetable-protein-is-just-as-good-as-beef-and-you-can’t-even-tell-the-difference…-wait-you-can?” approach, which is much appreciated. Don’t get me wrong, I was vegan for a long time and love me some fake meat as much as the next hipster, but I’ll go to a vegan restaurant if I’m after some grilled seitan. Andy opted for a beef patty with grilled onions and mushrooms on an English muffin, even though he’s never liked mushrooms and still claims not to eat them.

After lunch I wanted to go check out the Great Park Balloon and see what all the fuss is about; Andy opted out, so I went solo. The entrance to the Great Park (as it exists currently) is just down the street from the Counter on Sand Canyon, so I didn’t have to drive drunk for too far (joke). As most people living in Orange County know, this project has been talked about for years, even before the base was decommissioned in 1999. The original debate was whether to develop a commercial international airport or public park lands and property development. Of course there is no lack of airports in the area with John Wayne just minutes away and Long Beach, LAX, Ontario, San Diego, Burbank, Palm Springs, and more, all serving the greater population. After arriving at the site, it became immediately evident to me how well the Great Park will fit into the Irvine community and make this area and even better place to live. If it ever gets finished, that is. The Great Park Balloon is the only current attraction while the park is being built. It was, of course, supposed to open this summer but the housing crisis has left the developers strapped for cash as no houses, commercial property, or soccer fields exist yet. According to the employees at the visitor center, the 27-acre “preview park” is now open, but looking around the site, all I could see was the Balloon. They explained that further construction was still being done on the preview park including a geodesic dome, “activity spaces,” and a botanical garden. There was no estimate to when those features would be completed, so really there was nothing to preview. Nevertheless, the site plans look amazing and the design incorporates the familiar outlines of the runways, preserving some of the history of the base. The Balloon/Great Pumpkin was unfortunately closed for the afternoon due to the wind, but I did learn that they are doing flights at night, which should be a fun activity on a clear day. It’s free to ride the Balloon and it’s open mornings and evenings Thursday-Sunday (I’d call first to make sure it’s not grounded).

After driving around the base for a little bit and checking out some of the old buildings (I told myself I’d come back and break in to poke around and take some pictures, but I suppose that’s a bad idea now that I’ve printed my intentions here.), I drove home toward home. Mike called on the way and we chatted about hockey and I threw out the idea of catching the train down later that night. A bottle of wine and a Kings game later (shutout!), I was on the 9:30 P.M. Pacific Surfliner to downtown San Diego. While waiting for Mike at the station, I noticed that the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, had finished construction on the Copley Building next door. The building has gigantic art installation out front in the form of a vertically-scrolling digital marquee. The artist is Jenny Holzer and the marquee displays personal, and often subversive, truisms in bold red letters. Some of my favorite phrases: “it is a gift to the world not to have babies,” “private property created crime,” “politics is used for personal gain,” and “offer very little about yourself.” It was quite entertaining to read those messages being broadcast the busy downtown street. Good work, MCASD.

I had a couple Arrogant Bastards on the trains, so I was feeling pretty good when Mike picked me up. I hadn’t eaten anything since the Counter, however, so I was pretty hungry. Mike was too, so we cruised down Convoy to the mythical BBQ (Best of the Best Quality) Chicken, but it was closing just as we were pulling up. I’ll have to hit it up next time… though I caught wind of an Irvine locations, so maybe I’ll just have to go looking for it. Not to be sent to the trailer park without our fill of Korean goodness, we went down to Thang Thang for the first time. Now, we eat at Dae Jang Keum a lot (which changed the way I think about Korean food), so since the owners run both restaurants, I was pretty excited. Mike ordered us some tteokbokki (rice cakes, 떡볶이) and sundae (blood sausage, not ice cream, 순대) while I got us some dakbal (chicken feet, 닭발, couldn’t find a link). The chicken feet were predictably very hard to eat, but still full of that wonderful gelatinous fatty goodness (and a shitload of garlic), while the sundae (which maybe could have used some salt) was the perfect counterpoint: devoid of spice and lacking the usual minerally flavor of blood sausage, yet incredibly textured as it came stuffed with vermicelli. The tteokbokki was amazing - its sauce sugary, sour, and spicy all at once - and I didn’t want to stop eating it, but someone had to put in work on the chicken feet and it wasn’t going to be Mike. From this point on, the night became more or less a blur. We went to a bar called Victor’s even though it was after last call, but still managed to get two beers. I smoked one of Mike’s cigarettes which made me feel sick. We got back to the hood and chatting about the election for awhile… and the next thing I knew I was waking up on the couch the next day. I felt like absolute shit in the morning to which there could only be one cure: KBBQ! (pronounced kay-bib-ick). So after a morning-long debate about whether or not skills you obtain in life can exclusively be a strength or a weakness, we cruised over to Dae Jan Keum and did it up right. We got ordered tongue, short ribs, marinated beef, in addition to all the banchan and salad. I could describe how incredible this meal was, but I’ll save that for another date when I wasn’t eating while hungover. Korean food cures all illnesses, I’m convinced; I walked out of there feeling like a million bucks. We headed back to Mike’s place to listen to some hockey (Kings lose…) before hopping on the train and heading back home. On the train home, I wrote some passages for a couple piano-based songs on the computer (just music) which I’ll keep playing around with and maybe come up with something. Despite feeling like crap that morning, I decided that I need to get out more. Here are some songs:

[MP3] Four Tet - Parks
[MP3] Why? - Me on Beer

Let’s begin with the language of the actual initiative, as it’s very straight-forward. The ballot measure is titled “Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.” The actual title states that we, as Californians, are being given the opportunity to strip rights away from a specific group of people. If a “yes” vote passes, the state constitution will be modified to reflect that “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” How, in good conscience, can any of us vote to take away the rights of another human while most of us will continue to enjoy that same freedom?

The proponents of this measure begin with the basic presupposition that marriage needs to be “preserved.” In order to determine what they’d like us to save, it bears exploring what marriage actually means. I’m under the belief that there are two definitions of marriage as they relate to our society:

1) The religious union of two individuals as defined by the tenets of their faith and the rituals and doctrine of the church to which the couple belongs.

2) The formal union of two individuals as recognized under state law to which specific benefits and civil rights are legally extended.

There are obviously people who believe in both of these definitions or just the second one (or neither, perhaps), but in terms of passing laws in our country, the first definition can not be used as grounds to legislate. Yet, in their own promotional materials, which ignore the fact that being gay and belonging to an organized religion are not mutually exclusive, ProtectMarriage.com claims, “God himself is the author of marriage. Its meaning is written in the very nature of man and woman as they come from the hand of the Creator.” God’s word, regardless of your faith (or lack thereof), is not a valid argument for voting “yes” on Proposition 8 and modifying the state’s constitution.

While on the topic of religion, there is misinformation floating about that if Prop. 8 does not pass, then churches will lose their tax-exempt status or be forced to marry same-sex couples. Even after the state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year, churches have always reserved the right to marry or not marry any couple they see fit. Catholic churches and Jewish synagogues, for instance, typically only marry couples that both belong to that faith. The Supreme Court decision [PDF] says, “affording same-sex couples the opportunity to obtain the designation of marriage will not impinge upon the religious freedom of any religious organization, official, or any other person; no religion will be required to change its religious policies or practices with regard to same-sex couples, and no religious officiant will be required to solemnize a marriage in contravention of his or her religious beliefs.” Churches will not be negatively affected by legalized same-sex marriage in Calfornia and they do not need to be protected by a “yes” vote on Proposition 8.

The next argument I’ve heard is related to the education children receive regarding the definition of marriage. ProtectMarriage.com argues, “State law may require teachers to instruct children as young as kindergarteners about marriage. (Education Code § 51890.) If the gay marriage ruling is not overturned, TEACHERS COULD BE REQUIRED to teach young children there is no difference between gay marriage and traditional marriage.” This statement is correct, but notice the “may” and “could” in those sentences. There is nothing in the same-sex marriage ruling or Proposition 8 that mentions education at all. In fact, California law already respects and protects parents’ rights to pull their child from any health or family instruction that they disagree with. Childhood education is not a valid reason to vote “yes” on Proposition 8.

With the opposition’s rationalization dispelled, it becomes clear that this is an issue of limiting the rights of a group of Californian citizens based on disagreement with the lifestyle they’ve “chosen” to lead. I will refrain from sharing my personal thoughts on childhood education, tax benefits to churches, or the place of religion in our society because they are fundamentally irrelevant to this issue. I encourage those on the fence and those who are planning to vote “yes” to really consider what’s on the table here. Please don’t deny any couples the rights of next-of-kin privileges, social security benefits, joint taxes, health insurance, and inheritance, among many others. Instead of working to “protect” marriage, let’s focus on protecting each other and our collective future by eliminating the walls we’ve built between each other and working together in harmony toward a better tomorrow. Vote “no” on discrimination.

I will leave you with this song:

I look into the mirror for evil that just does not exist
I don’t see what they see

Try to control the pull of one magnet to another

[MP3] Tegan and Sara - I Was Married

This site originally started about two years ago with the same basic intentions but, like most of my projects, my goals were too ambitious and I stopped updating it after a couple months.  Well, that combined with the dissolution of a long-term friendship and the beginning of a new romantic relationship.  Nevertheless, I decided to make this iteration of the site much simpler with the hopes that I’ll stick with it.  I’ve also sworn off relationships for the foreseeable future.

I suppose there’s a certain level of pretentiousness inherent in naming one’s blog “Iceberg Principle.” I certainly am a Hemingway fan and I try to apply his idea to my own writing; but at the end of the day, I really just like the way “iceberg principle” sounds.  I also like large masses of ice.  The header image is a photo I took of the Perito Moreno glacier near El Calafate, Argentina in Patagonia. The picture attached to this post is of me standing on top of Perito Moreno with a glass of whiskey and ice from the glacier - definitely some much needed warmth on a cold and rainy day in the Andes.  So yeah, I like ice.  And alcohol. Nevertheless, I hope through whatever content ends up on this site, all clichés will dissipate and leave some honest thoughts.

I don’t have too many “features,” per se, but I’ll take a moment to explain some of the static pages linked on the main menu.  The persistent images that appear at the top of the page are the eight most recent pictures uploaded to my Flickr account. On the “Photos” page, you’ll have the opportunity to browse my Flickr albums in an easy to view method without having to navigate Flickr. The “Archive” page will let you view a tag cloud to find old posts that may be of interest, while the search bar at the bottom of each page will let you look for something specific.

Expect some real posts soon… hopefully. In the meantime, here are some songs for you:

(right click and select “Save Link As” to download)

[MP3] Nada Surf - “Icebox”
[MP3] Jacob Borshard - Ernest Hemingway