Jon Carroll, and Why I Like Him

I finally got a chance to catch up on my Jon Carroll feed in my Google Reader today while eating lunch at my desk (oh joy!), and I have to say, though I've said it many times before, that I really, really enjoy his column in the SF Chronicle (by the way, why is the website sfgate.com, but it's called the San Francisco Chronicle? I think I missed something...SF Gate: Home of the San Francisco Chronicle? What?). I really do.

His column is for the newspaper what I had kind of hoped (dreamed, wished, in that "this is what I'm aiming for, but I know it's not nearly the same" kind of way) my blog would be for the...non-paper? Interesting to read, personal, humorous, and often pointing to other interesting things/websites/people/articles, it is truly a fun read.

Here are some of my most favorite of his recent articles:

• The Bad News; The Worse News - about the economy (note: see this for my opinions on the matter)
• Hilarious Sex Talk - about a new book by Mary Roach (even the way he talks about her is lovely and silly and relatable)
• Is our kidz smart? LOL - about homeschooling, and the parental choices related to it
  
• A venti and a calico - cats in coffee shops, or tea shops in Japan
• Some say lasagna; they're wrong. - marriage and the state's involvement
• I protest mumble mumble - free speech, or the lack thereof. he also mentions a few interesting websites sent in by readers (something else I love that he does), in this case storyofstuff.com and donorschoose.org.

Carroll will be at Berkeley Rep on Monday night, in conversation with Leah Garchik, whom I also adore (though I don't read her as frequently), and I just purchased myself an $18 student ticket (thank the UC for student ID's that don't expire!). Proceeds benefit Park Day School, and I actually know a few kids who go there, so that's cool.

And in the style of the wonderful Mr. Carroll, I'll close this blog post the way he closes all of his articles: with a song lyric or movie quote that he ends with his name.

Now, a clever man would put the poison into his own goblet, because he would know that only a great fool would reach for what he was given. I am not a great fool, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of you. But you must have known I was not a great fool, you would have counted on it, so I can clearly not choose kimskitchensink@gmail.com.