Thursday, December 02, 2004
Magdalena Zurawski & Ange Mlinko of "minor america"
The new blog Minor American is conducted by the blog duo Magdalena Zurawski and Ange Mlinko. More than once Mlinko's snide, elitist remarks have raised my brow.
But it was Magdalena's comment against Philadelphia being "the loneliest of cities" which pissed me off to no end!
I love Magdalena, she's a good friend, but I'm still pissed off! Loneliest of cities? What ridiculous bullshit is this!?
In honor of this amazing city, FILLED with it's endlessly interesting people and streets, and buildings, and museums, and bakeries, and pizza parlors, and river boats, and sex shops, and liberty bells (most especially the thousands of miniature ones in all the gift shops), and Benjamin Franklin's home and post office, and all my friends I love so much, and all the apartments I've lived in, and the apartments of boyfriends and the apartment of one boyfriend's mother's where we made the most delicious love when she was at church, and all the hot sexy catholic priests, and for the Amish with their pretzels, and for all the brilliant Frank Furness architecture, and for the bookshops and poets (even the ones I hate more than anyone I've ever met), and for the Polish and Gay and Italian and Irish and Jewish and African American community centers and museums, and for the noise of the children in the school yard who wake me up each morning as if I lived by the ocean and the tide rolled in, and for the taxi cabs and and pigeon shit and every other fucking wonderful blessed beautiful thing and person I left out! For all this and more, I am never lonely in this city!
And in honor of Philadelphia, I want to now reprint a page from my book The Leo Journals:
We walked to my apartment. My dead neighbor's mail keeps piling up. I wish he had sent the post office a change of address before killing himself. The mail he's not reading is starting to creep me out. Maybe I'll fill out a change of address card for him, send it to Alaska. He mentioned once he wanted to go there. Poor, sad little Owen. He was 22 years old. Imagine killing yourself in this city! It's unthinkable! This isn't New York or Boston, this is Philadelphia for crying out loud! Philadelphia is the city where you give someone flowers everyday for the rest of your lives! Only for Philadelphia will I risk sounding completely ridiculous! Leo understands, he knows this is the city! Owen, how can you do that thing in our Philadelphia? Get up, brush your teeth and shave through your frown! Hey, we miss you.
Dear Magdalena,
when you were in this city, many of us loved you and took you into our lives. You are my friend and I still love you, and I hope you are happier. But to be honest, Philadelphia doesn't need minor americans, we need great ones.
Take care of yourself,
CAConrad
But it was Magdalena's comment against Philadelphia being "the loneliest of cities" which pissed me off to no end!
I love Magdalena, she's a good friend, but I'm still pissed off! Loneliest of cities? What ridiculous bullshit is this!?
In honor of this amazing city, FILLED with it's endlessly interesting people and streets, and buildings, and museums, and bakeries, and pizza parlors, and river boats, and sex shops, and liberty bells (most especially the thousands of miniature ones in all the gift shops), and Benjamin Franklin's home and post office, and all my friends I love so much, and all the apartments I've lived in, and the apartments of boyfriends and the apartment of one boyfriend's mother's where we made the most delicious love when she was at church, and all the hot sexy catholic priests, and for the Amish with their pretzels, and for all the brilliant Frank Furness architecture, and for the bookshops and poets (even the ones I hate more than anyone I've ever met), and for the Polish and Gay and Italian and Irish and Jewish and African American community centers and museums, and for the noise of the children in the school yard who wake me up each morning as if I lived by the ocean and the tide rolled in, and for the taxi cabs and and pigeon shit and every other fucking wonderful blessed beautiful thing and person I left out! For all this and more, I am never lonely in this city!
And in honor of Philadelphia, I want to now reprint a page from my book The Leo Journals:
We walked to my apartment. My dead neighbor's mail keeps piling up. I wish he had sent the post office a change of address before killing himself. The mail he's not reading is starting to creep me out. Maybe I'll fill out a change of address card for him, send it to Alaska. He mentioned once he wanted to go there. Poor, sad little Owen. He was 22 years old. Imagine killing yourself in this city! It's unthinkable! This isn't New York or Boston, this is Philadelphia for crying out loud! Philadelphia is the city where you give someone flowers everyday for the rest of your lives! Only for Philadelphia will I risk sounding completely ridiculous! Leo understands, he knows this is the city! Owen, how can you do that thing in our Philadelphia? Get up, brush your teeth and shave through your frown! Hey, we miss you.
Dear Magdalena,
when you were in this city, many of us loved you and took you into our lives. You are my friend and I still love you, and I hope you are happier. But to be honest, Philadelphia doesn't need minor americans, we need great ones.
Take care of yourself,
CAConrad
