No game tomorrow -- only a few folks are in town.

Happy Hanukkah! Who's playing on Saturday?

The next Drink with Labor is Tuesday, Dec. 16, and it'll be a fundraiser for the striking grocery workers -- details in the e-mail. Those folks who wanted to be part of a bundled Left-Wing Frisbee donation, please bring your contribution then. If you can't make it, let me know how much you want to donate and we'll cover it.

You can also support the strike by turning in your Safeway Club Card; more info in the e-mail.

More in the e-mail. For the latest information, visit www.ufcw.org/hold_the_line

I don't want you to think I've gone over to the dark side or anything, but I'm starting to understand the appeal of building an empire. As the diaspora of former LWF'ers spreads to places like Chicago and Houston, I begin to dream of Left-Wing Frisbee™ franchises around the world. Can merchandising deals and the Wheaties box be far behind?

As the next step in our plan for global hegemonic power, LWF alum Josh Mason is looking to start a game and/or a drink with labor happy hour in NYC. If you know folks in New York who might be interested in either, put them in touch with Josh.

What with everyone traveling this weekend, we're doing an early
check-in for this week's game. One suggestion is to move the game to Sunday. What say you all?

Please RSVP for Saturday or Sunday (both at 3 pm); if you can make both, let me know which you prefer.

Last night, Keith and I spent a while talking with a woman who's supporting 3 kids on $100 a week. (She actually has 6 kids, but her ex-husband helps out, so she figures it as 3 for these purposes.) She and 470 other people have been on strike against Tyson Foods for the last nine months to keep Tyson from turning their decent jobs with solid pension and health benefits into low-wage dead ends. We figure if she can make it on five grand a year (with help from her mom, who's a 65-year-old forklift operator at Nestle, the local food pantry, and other community support), we need to dig a little deeper for her and everyone else on the front lines against the Wal-Martization of the world.

Call it tithing, sadaqah, tzedakah, or a payroll deduction to the United Way, I'm adding another zero to my contributions. Two of the hundreds of worthy choices if you're so moved:

• UFCW Local 538 Strike Fund, 2228 Myrtle Street, Madison, WI 53704; http://www.tysonfamiliesstandup.org
  
  
• The Community Services Fund of the Metropolitan Washington Council,
  1925 K St. NW, Washington, DC 20006

We also kicked around the idea of making a joint Left-Wing Frisbee donation to a strike fund or community services agency. Let me know if you're interested.

After the game, don't miss Dennis and Liz's holiday/birthday party! Details in the e-mail.

Ah, the noble filibuster. Whose mind doesn't immediately leap to Jimmy Stewart's lonely stand against pork barrel corruption as Mr. Smith? Though I can't remember exactly what it was that Stewart's character was trying to accomplish, I know it wasn't to bully the minority party into standing aside to let crooks and lunatics get lifetime appointments to the bench. (Think I'm being too harsh? Pickering said, "the wife is to subordinate herself to her husband"; Jones said the New Deal was "the triumph of our socialist revolution" -- and she didn't mean it in a good way; Estrada represented Bush and Cheney in Bush v. Gore; Owens saw no ethical problems raised by the practice of private law firms paying bonuses to judicial law clerks; and I could go on . . . .)

Mr. Smith gave me goosebumps. The front page photo of cots being wheeled into the "Strom Thurmond Room" (for pity's sake) for the Senate R's to rest up for their next assault just gives me the creeps.

Next week, on Nov. 22, y'all are invited to Dennis and Liz's holiday/birthday party. Details in the e-mail.

I'm concerned that I haven't been putting my M.B.A. to enough use, so consider this belated message my foray into just-in-time manufacturing methods. Next week, I'll see if I can't find some undocumented workers to write these missives for half the cost.

Sorry for the late notice. Who's playing tomorrow?

The weather's supposed to be crazy beautiful on Saturday, so do come out and play. The game starts at 3, so you'll have plenty of time to go home and get gussied up for the fabulous Carriage House Halloween party:

Chief Ike's (upstairs)
1725 Columbia Rd NW
Sat., Nov. 1
8:30 pm

Saturday's march to end the occupation shouldn't interfere with our game, but traffic and parking will likely be tougher than usual; give yourself some extra time to get there. The rally starts at 11 at 17th & Constitution; MLK III and various other sane speakers will join the crackpot neo-Stalinists from ANSWER on the stage. With luck (and a merciful moderator), the march should start around 12:30. More info.

**Halloween's a-comin! That, of course, means it's time for the fabulous annual Carriage House Halloween party, though the party's outgrown the Carriage House itself. It'll be at Chief Ike's (upstairs) next Saturday, Nov. 1, 8:30 pm. Costumes de rigeur.

** Location change this Saturday. **
The fence is up. We're on our winter field near the Washington Monument, close to the Ranger Station. Map here.

If you're driving there for the first time, pay particular attention to the parking directions, here and on the website.

There have been lower points in American political history, but not many. It's not just that Schwarzenegger is hideously unqualified to govern the world's 6th-largest economy, or that Maria "Skeletor" Shriver has less integrity than body fat, or that sexual harassment and assault apparently enhance Arnold's "manliness," or that his election is the ultimate triumph of celebrity over substance.

It's also that the Democrats couldn't find one person in the entire state of California who could provide a serious challenge to a talentless, B-movie ham (though I've seen enough trailers to make that claim, I'm proud to say that I've never seen a Schwarzenegger movie and thus have no penance to do for helping to fund his campaign war chest) whose political analysis consists of repeating movie lines written by other people and a fondness for Hitler's public speaking skills. This does not bode well.

** We're still playing at FDR

Hope I didn't confuse anyone last week by letting you know we may have to move soon. We're still playing on the FDR field.

At some point, the Park Service will probably fence off the field for reseeding, but I can't get anyone at the Park Service to let me know when that will be. Keep coming to the FDR field as always, but if you should arrive to find the fence up in the next few weeks, head over to our winter field near the Washington Monument.

Various boring business items:

**RSVPs

We had a good turnout last week. Please get your RSVP in for this Saturday and I'll let you know by noon on Friday if the game is on.

** Location change heads up

Also, it's getting to be that time of the year when the Park Service feels compelled to fence off our field for reseeding. I'm trying to get the date in advance, but if you should happen to arrive to find the fence up in the next few weeks, head over to winter field near the Washington Monument.

** Your periodic time nag

The game starts at 4. Not 4:20. Not 4:45. Please try to come on time.

** Unboring activist item

Tonight -- come out to support local parking workers, who will be joined by the 900 Freedom Riders.

Yesterday, the first buses left the West Coast as part of the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride. On October 1, more than 1,000 immigrant workers from across the country will arrive in D.C. to lobby for workers' rights and immigration reform before heading up to New York for a massive rally.

They're going to be tired and they may have faced hostile or even violent reactions in some of the cities where they stopped along the way (racist organizations are threatening violence at some stops). It'd be awfully nice if hundreds of DC'ers were there to give them a proper welcome:

Wed., Oct. 1, 6:30 pm
Rally to welcome the Freedom Riders
Bible Way Temple, 1100 New Jersey Ave., NW (at L St.)

Also, on Thursday we'll be marching to support local parking workers, most of whom are immigrants:

Thurs., Oct. 2, 7 pm
March to support local parking workers
Farragut Square (Conn. & K Sts., NW)

More info: http://www.iwfr.org and http://www.iwfr.org/DCflyer.pdf

Hope everyone here suffered nothing worse from Isabel than exposure to local news hysteria. Weather's supposed to be beautiful tomorrow, though driving down near the river could be messy; check the paper and consider Metro.

On September 11, 1973, the Chilean military, with the help of Nixon, Kissinger, and the CIA, overthrew the democratically elected government of Salvador Allende. For 17 years, Augusto Pinochet ruled Chile by torture and murder. Thousands were kidnapped, beaten, imprisoned, "disappeared," and executed. Today, we remember them, too.

I've been totally delinquent on the messages. The default is always that there's game unless I sent a message that it's cancelled.

Alas, the nays have it. No game tomorrow.

>>> Who's around this weekend? RSVP and I'll let you know by 3 if we've got
quorum.

I didn't make the 1963 March on Washington, on account of I wasn't born yet. But I was there in 1983 for the 20th anniversary, deep in the heart of the Reagan years. Another 20 years gone by and we give you the USA Patriot Act, racial profiling, Bush's assault on overtime pay, an outrageous unemployment rate, and so much more.

Thousands of folks will gather tomorrow at the Lincoln Memorial to commemorate the '63 March, celebrate our progress, and demand better. Details in the e-mail.

**Dennis has the cones but won't be at the game tomorrow. If anyone wants to pick them up from him, let him know.

Saturday 23rd
The 40th Anniversary March on Washington

Even if you're too young to remember the great blackout of '77, you likely know that it is remembered for two things in particular: looting and arson. This time around, we're happy to report that things just about everywhere seem to have stayed remarkably calm. New York? No looting, but cooperation aplenty. Cleveland? Everyone's getting along. Detroit? Peaceful. Ottawa, capital city for those oh-so-polite Canadians? Major looting and vandalism! It's a world gone mad, I tell you.

Yes, I know I've been the worst frisbee coordinator of all time lately. My apologies and have a kick-ass game tomorrow!

I know someone who grew up thinking that part of Mass was chanting "Me a cowboy, me a cowboy, me a Mexican cowboy."

Granted, there was no good explanation for why a bunch of Anglos would express their religious devotion by claiming to be Mexican cowboys, not to mention why they would mock imperfect speakers of English, but it didn't make all that much more sense to her when she found out people were actually saying "Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa."

(Oh -- and sorry about forgetting to send out an announcement last week. Me a cowboy . . .)

So it's 4:59 p.m. on Friday and I haven't sent out a game reminder yet. What possible excuse can I offer? I got swept up in one of yesterday's tornadoes? The dog ate my PDA? Give me a minute, I'll think of something . . .

Anyway, tomorrow's weather is supposed to be lovely, so see you on the field!

In an impressive burst of patriotic fervor, the game will go on! So that you might hold one another accountable (or at least buy the right number of pitchers at Mackey's), here's who said they would show up:

• Brad
• Plevan (sez Brad)
• Jim (no more lame knee excuses!)
• Nick (with cones *and* bonus guest star Nathan)
• John Nolan
• Neil

Have a grand old time!

I know you'll want to spend most of your weekend exercising your constitutional right to sodomy, but do take a break and join us on the frisbee field.

The great thing about Zeus and his Olympian cronies was that at least we mere mortals had a shot at influencing them. I mean, sure, they were incredibly vain and vindictive and if you pissed them off you might be turned into a flower or a stag and sometimes they ate their children. But they also dallied with the common folk and if you caught Zeus in the right mood and maybe flashed a little leg, you might be able to get him to, say, hold back the thunderbolts for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. Whereas with this modern monotheistic thing, I don't even know where to begin.

Among the many high points of Wattstax, a 1973 concert film/documentary just re-released in theaters, is Rufus Thomas' performance of The Funky Chicken. The stadium crowd -- understandably -- poured onto the field to dance the Funky Chicken while Thomas sang, but then he had to get them back into their seats before Isaac Hayes came on. Thomas, pushing 60 and wearing a hot pink jacket, shirt, shorts, and cape and shiny white boots, cajoled the crowd off the field with deadpan lines like "Power to the people and please return to your seats," "Power to the folks and please move off the field now," and "Don't jump the fence; it don't make sense." And 100,000 people climbed back up into the stands. I'd like to see one of today's young whipper-snappers pull that off.

Power to the people, and get your a** to the frisbee field!

Nathan is officially a big brother! Baby Mozden-Weiner was born about 12:06 p.m. She's exactly the same weight Nathan was at birth -- 8 lbs., 10 oz. -- and 22" long. Everyone's doing well.

I know you've been on the edge of your seat, waiting to hear about my college reunion. Wait no longer. The highlight, of course, was the annual alumni vs. current students Ultimate game. Yeah, so they're 15 years younger and faster and are probably all hopped up on Ecstasy, but that doesn't mean we couldn't take them. Well, actually, it does. But they thought having an old-timer around from the first-ever Oberlin women's Ultimate team was really, really cool -- and they weren't just saying that.

It seems like it was just moments ago that we had 2 feet of snow on the ground, but, somehow, it's almost Memorial Day. Who's going to be around to play this weekend? Please RSVP.

(I myself will be making a pilgrimage to the hallowed ground where first I played Ultimate. I'm still trying to decide on the appropriately solemn ritual to enact. I think it'll involve both a frisbee and that other sacred totem of my undergraduate days, a shopping cart "borrowed" from the local IGA. Not that Ann K. would know anything about that . . .)

I know I shouldn't curse the rain, because a return to last summer's drought would be infinitely worse. But maybe it could stop being all gray and gloomy every Saturday?

Please note, however, that clouds or a little rain won't stop us from playing. We've had good games the last several weeks, whatever the weather. So if you're home looking out the window, wondering if anyone else will show up, get yourself down to the field -- we're there, waiting for you!

It's spring! There's no better place to be than on the frisbee field. See you there.

Also, Lynne's still looking for someone to sublet her place. Details in the e-mail if you know anyone who's looking.

Don't let anyone fool you with those maypole shenanigans -- May Day is about workers' victories and struggles. For news and pictures from May Day actions around the world, check out: LabourStart and ICFTU

And be part of May Day here at home!
(Note time change to 4:30 on J for J rally. Other events, including a great Sunday book reading, in the e-mail.)

4:30-5:30 p.m. - Justice for Janitors rally - SEIU L. 82 is bargaining for the janitors who clean most of the office in downtown D.C. Key issues are health care benefits, more full-time jobs, and wages. Show your support at a May Day Action/Rally at Franklin Square on 14th and K Street. (Other Justice for Janitors actions listed in the e-mail.)

And then celebrate the real Labor Day at Lynne's 2nd Annual May Day party at 7. Please note you'll need to RSVP to Lynne to get the access code for her building.

Baby Koenig-Schreier is here! She's a few weeks early and a little small (5 lbs., 11 oz.), but she and her parents are all in good shape. Pictures are acomin', but I can personally attest to her adorableness.

Now that the spring weather is bringing out bigger crowds, things are getting a little confusing on the field. What say we all try to bring a light and a dark shirt each week so we can tell who's on our team? (Don't worry -- this is not the beginning of a slide down the slippery slope toward standardized league play. I promise our goal boxes will continue to be charmingly askew.)

In honor of Passover and the celebration of, and renewal of struggle for, freedom, I bring you a poem by Ariel Dorfman that uses the words of human rights activists:

My thanks to Danny for sharing Dorfman's book with me.

**GAME IS AT 4 AT THE FDR MEMORIAL**

Civil twilight, daylight saving time, it's all come together: We're back at 4 o'clock for the rest of the summer.

Also, while Lynne's gallivanting around France and Spain, she wants to invite everyone to her 2nd annual May Day party, so save Thursday, May 1. Details when she returns. And, she's looking to sublet her apartment in Adams Morgan from June to November. Details in the e-mail if you know anyone who might be interested.

**GAME IS AT 3 AT THE FDR MEMORIAL**

In honor of our return to the FDR Memorial field this week, some excerpts from FDR's "Four Freedoms" speech. First, the famous bit:

"We look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms. The first is freedom of speech and expression--everywhere in the world. The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way-- everywhere in the world. The third is freedom from want . . . everywhere in the world. The fourth is freedom from fear . . . anywhere in the world."

[The fifth, bien sur, is freedom from sidelines and stall counts.]

A less famous bit, which, I remind you, was delivered in the middle of a world war:

"The nation takes great satisfaction and much strength from the things which have been done to make its people conscious of their individual stake in the preservation of democratic life in America. Those things have toughened the fiber of our people, have renewed their faith and strengthened their devotion to the institutions we make ready to protect. Certainly this is no time for any of us to stop thinking about the social and economic problems which are the root cause of the social revolution which is today a supreme factor in the world. For there is nothing mysterious about the foundations of a healthy and strong democracy.

"The basic things expected by our people of their political and economic systems are simple. They are:

Equality of opportunity for youth and for others.

Jobs for those who can work.

Security for those who need it.

The ending of special privilege for the few.

The preservation of civil liberties for all.

The enjoyment of the fruits of scientific progress in a wider and constantly rising standard of living.

"These are the simple, the basic things that must never be lost sight of in the turmoil and unbelievable complexity of our modern world. The inner and abiding straight of our economic and political systems is dependent upon the degree to which they fulfill these expectations."

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Saturday is the big cherry blossom extravaganza; you'd be wise to use public transportation. *Next* week, we move to 4 pm.
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Someone just introduced me to the concept of "civil twilight." This is not to be confused with the twilight of civilization, much as it might feel like we're on the brink right now. According to the U.S. Naval Observatory, civil twilight is the period of the day during which there's enough sunlight to engage in outside activities without artificial light. Feel free to drop this exciting fact into your next cocktail party conversation.

Meanwhile . . . the rapidly increasing amount of civil twilight is bringing some changes for us in the next few weeks:

This week: 3 pm at the Washington Monument
April 5: 3 pm at FDR (Daylight saving time starts 2 a.m. on April 6)
April 12: 4 pm at FDR (Civil twilight until 8:09!)

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This Saturday: D.C. Labor for Peace Fundraiser Party & Theater Reading - Enjoy Food, Friends, and Tony Kushner's New Play!
Saturday, 3/29, 7 pm, address in the e-mail

Scheduling a frisbee game seems like the height of frivolity just at the moment. Nevertheless . . . we're back at the Washington Monument field this week, so if you need a break from CNN, come on by.

Today - 4:30 pm; meet in front of the AFL-CIO and march to Dupont Circle to join a larger anti-war vigil.

And Trish's band party is Saturday night, 8 pm. NW. More details in the e-mail.

The votes are in and (Danny's eloquent denunciation of the Stalinists at ANSWER notwithstanding) they're overwhelmingly for moving the game to our old winter field. It's the large triangle of grass bounded by Independence Ave., Ohio Dr., 23rd St., and the Polo Grounds. Here's a map.

Whether you're a woman yourself or you just appreciate those plucky gals, you're sure to want to celebrate International Women's Day on March 8. You could try to hunt up a Happy International Women's Day card at your local Hallmark shop (try the Increasingly Absurd Reasons to Send a Greeting Card Collection (TM); it's next to the Thanks for Cat-Sitting cards -- which I'm not making up), but why not help stop the war and then play a little frisbee?

Code Pink is rallying at Malcolm X Park at 11 a.m., then marching to surround the White House. Men welcome. Wearing of pink encouraged. Details.

He dedicated his entire life to making millions of kids feel perfectly normal and completely special. That, my friends, is a mensch.

Fred Rogers, rest in peace.

Damn, I love a good blizzard. (Well, as long as I've got electricity and a good book and that box of Thin Mints I stashed in the freezer.) Up next: the great flood of '03. See you on the swamp -- uh, field.

Also, in news of serious dedication to hostessing, Trish Westwater is throwing her annual band party -- even though she's living in New York. It'll be March 22 in Mt. Pleasant -- the exact address TBA -- and we're all invited.

You may have missed it while you were out stocking up on duct tape, but -- just in time for Valentine's Day -- there's been some good news this week. Alan Greenspan's integrity in resisting pressure from the White House could well doom Bush's disgusting tax cuts; Democrats in Congress are showing some backbone on the appointment of right-wing whack job Miguel Estrada to the bench; the new appropriations bill pretty much guts the terrifying Total Information Awareness Office; and some reports are saying that 10 million people will turn out worldwide for Saturday's anti-war protests.

Sounds to me like it's time to celebrate with some frisbee!

(And everyone who's going to New York: chant extra loud for those of us who can't make it.)

He's no Adlai Stevenson, but Colin Powell seems to have persuaded at least a few more people with his performance at the U.N. yesterday, bringing us that much closer to war. It's feeling pretty unstoppable at the moment, but let's not abandon all hope quite yet. Here are 4 things you can do:

1. Go to New York on Feb. 15

2. Make a donation to United for Peace

3. NYC officials are refusing to issue a permit for the march past the U.N.; call them and tell them to grant the permit:

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg: 212-788-9600, 788-3010, 788-3040
NYC Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly: 646-610-8526
NYPD Chief Joseph Esposito: 646-610-6710

4. Ask your friends and relations who have voting representation in Congress to contact their reps and senators (and if they need some convincing, tell them to check out this pretty compelling ad that was run in the local Midland, Michigan paper.

And then take a break and come play some frisbee.

"Hope unbelieved is always considered nonsense. But hope believed is history in the process of being changed . . . . Hope is believing in spite of the evidence and watching the evidence change."

Doesn't it seem sometimes like we keep playing the same point over and over and over again?

Arctic, schmarctic. The frostbite danger's not *that* high. Actually, it's really not bad out on the field, so throw on an extra layer and get out there!

See you Saturday.

I've got a cousin on the hospital ship that just left Batimore for the Gulf. She's just one of the 150,000 American and 23 million Iraqi reasons to brave the cold on Saturday and march to stop the war. The rally starts at 11 a.m. on the West side of the Capitol (though unless you have a particular penchant for long-winded speeches, you'd be wise to arrive after 12).

After the march, frisbee's still on (and Plevan's back in town and "aching" to play), so come on out!

I've never been a big believer in New Year's resolutions, knowing that most of them amount to little more than a short-lived revenue boost for Bally's, but I'm nevertheless going to propose one. Since it's too cold to bring the kids to the field, some of the parents among us have hired a Saturday afternoon baby-sitter. When other folks don't show up to play until 3:30 or 4, they're waiting around while the meter's ticking. They'd really appreciate it if folks would come closer to 3.

So, everyone repeat after me: I resolve to show up for frisbee as close to 3 o'clock as I possibly can, even on the weeks when Kris doesn't nag us.

See you Saturday! At 3!

Ring in the new year with frisbee tomorrow!