What It Is: 8/10/09

What I’m reading: Moby Dick.

What I’m listening to: The soundtrack to The Big Lebowski. I really never imagined that “I Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)” was sung by Kenny Rogers.

What I’m watching: Yankees sweeping the Red Sox, Diner, and Slaves to the Rhythm, the Princes Trust charity tribute concert to Trevor Horn from 2004. We saw a shorter version once on HDNet, and got the DVD from Netflix. It’s a really amazing concert, with performances by a ton of great acts that Horn produced, including ABC, Pet Shop Boys, Grace Jones, Seal, Yes, and Frankie Goes To Hollywood (with a new lead singer because Holly Johnson apparently has irreconcilable differences with the rest of the band and Horn). We also caught I Am Legend, which, um, hey. . .

What I’m drinking: Juniper Green & tonic.

What Rufus is up to: With the promise of another Sunday thunderstorm, we canceled our grey-hike. Of course, it never rained. Still, it was so muggy that the hike would’ve been awful.

Where I’m going: Nowhere in particular.

What I’m happy about: That I was able to disassemble a Mac Mini, upgrade the hard drive and memory, and actually get it to work again when I put it back together! Now I gotta figure out how to configure it as a media server . . .

What I’m sad about: That the Red Sox managed to score two runs in the finale of the Yankees’ 4-game sweep, after being held scoreless for 31 consecutive innings. I was hoping for 3 straight shutouts, but I’ll take a 4-game sweep, esp. after the team’s early-season struggles.

What I’m worried about: That I too will fail a steroid test because I was careless with my supplements and vitamins.

What I’m pondering: How to integrate my pal Mark’s recent post on our dumbification and partizaniness with this article by NYTimes movie reviewer A.O. Scott on Hollywood’s responsibility for national infantilization. And how to tie it up in a neat bow with this ad for the new Melrose Place: