infinite summer, cancer, endorsing

still reading infinite jest. i have mixed feelings about this book at this point (page 500). wallace has grabbed me in and now i'm invested and even in love with some characters so i keep reading. but the last hundred pages have been violent and gritty (think a man impaled and cats being burned alive) and also just heartbreaking (a whole scene of a boy watching his mother die on christmas morning that nearly brought me to tears). also, there are other injuries and trouble. and some of these end notes are really freaking long. but you HAVE to read them. so much good, funny stuff happens in the end notes. sigh. this is a labor of love, no doubt about it. i'm finding myself less and less interested in the "mystery" portion of the storyline and more and more praying like mad that my favorite characters, ones i really freaking LOVE, i'm just hoping things end up okay for them. mostly because i've lost most my trust that DFW believes in happy endings. or in happiness at all. ever. (all of which makes his suicide even sadder and more tragic, if that's even possible.)

a good friend (one of the gays) was diagnosed with testicular cancer. we did a lot of partying in honor of the right ball that he knew he was losing. he was a super sperm donor and the ball removal was successful. we're hoping for only radiation and not chemo so cross some fingers his way. testicular cancer is, luckily, a super treatable cancer and nobody was ever worried about him dying so this hasn't been a morbid last couple weeks. it's been more about finding strength and laughter among us. what doesn't kill us, etc.

i have a LOT of ironing to do. why haven't i invested more in wrinkle-free clothing?

i'm part of an organization that endorses city-wide races so have been doing all these interviews with folks running for city council seats. i'm not tough enough for this work. most of the candidates have their hearts in the right place and it's just heartbreaking to see them all and know that some of them don't stand a chance. i want them all to win. i want a 5th grade democracy. that's not to say that some of them aren't shallow and full of platitudes or just plain wacko. and i also have my favorites which i'll write about just before election day in case anyone here votes in nyc and gives a shit. i met a GREAT great guy tonight running for a seat in brooklyn. a dude who just gets it and gets the system. he totally rocked my world, politically speaking, and as much as one's world can be rocked by someone running for city council which isn't much but counts for something. the guy up in my district is pretty good too. lots of energy. now we just need christine quinn to stop acting like a mob boss and start acting like a reformer. she's really putting a cramp in everyones style. and kind of just being sucky.

work is slowing down so i may get ownership of my weekends back. hallelujah!