No motivation today. Just sat around and watched some TV. I note with great interest that Sen. Bill Frist is joining the fray on stem-cell research. The move would seem principled if he did it when the president first announced the severe funding restrictions (after "much deliberation," if memory serves), but now makes me wonder if he's found the wind has shifted after the California proposition to fund the research has passed. I'm inclined to distrust the Senator's motives, but glad to see him support this. The so-called "Culture of Life" issue should be an interesting one here, given that both sides can lay claim to supporting life.

CDs listened to:

• George Crumb: Night of the Four Moons (Dawn Upshaw singing. This disk is a curious mix of moldy oldies from the Baroque period and even earlier combined with 20th century composers. Dawn Upshaw is a fine singer, but I find the timbre of her voice bothers me the more I hear it. I think it's because the tone of her instrument is too distinctive, lacking a certain purity. What that adds in character, it takes away from the enjoyment of hearing the song and not "Dawn Upshaw singing." A shame really.)
  
• Dogs Die in Hot Cars: Please Describe Yourself (A glance at google shows that most of us have noticed that the singer, Craig Macintosh, sounds a whole lot like Andy Partridge of XTC. When you add in the lyrics mentioning "Apples and Oranges" and compare with XTC's disk, Oranges and Lemons, it's hard to avoid the subject. Still a solid disk with some nice production following traditional pop forms.)