Return of the Freelancer
Given the dearth of new posts to TurkeyMonkey, and my continued obsession with “A Treasure’s Trove,” you might think that I’ve completely abandoned freelancing. Or at least that I’ve demoted it in my list of hobbies. And, to tell the truth, you’d be almost entirely right.
Still, to all those people who have been nagging me to stop treasure hunting and get back to my writing (and yes, Mrs. Mendes Mann, I mean you), let me point you to the latest issue of Penn Arts & Sciences — exhibit A of my defense of being labeled Slacker in the First Degree.
I have a short profile of Elijah Anderson, the Penn sociology professor best known for his ethnographic studies of life in the inner city, “Code of the Street” and “A Place on the Corner.” Anderson’s latest research project has to be one of the cushiest sociology gigs I’ve ever heard of. He’s been studying how different races interact in urban sanctuaries, which he’s grouped under the term “cosmopolitan canopy.” Specifically, what this means is spending days on end hanging out at Reading Terminal Market, and eating three squares a day at Down Home Diner.
Talk about taking it easy! Alright, so the article might not be on the level of a Seymour Hirsh expose … and don’t ask me what that title on the website has to do with my story … and jeez, this is now starting to feel like pitifully shameless self-promotion. But hey, give me a break. Ever since the wedding, I haven’t exactly had the best blog material to work with.
Now, if only I could figure out a way to pitch a freelance story that involved hanging out with strangers and gorging myself on comfort food. Even better, I could just find one of those darn bejeweled insects and write about that. Don’t laugh, surely one of the two is bound to happen sooner or later.
February 2nd, 2005 at 7:43 pm
Great profile Ted. Nice to see you’re back in the saddle.
I’m not sure what this has to do with anything, but I just learned that Kevin Bacon’s dad was a major city planner in Philly.
Did everyone know this but me?
February 3rd, 2005 at 11:27 am
G-money, so glad you asked! Yes, I met Ed Bacon a few years back, when I was working at the City Paper. He’s one of the nuttiest, coolest people I’ve crossed paths with in this city. At the time he was all bent out of shape because John Street wanted to get rid of all the skateboarders in Love Park (you know, the one with the cheesy Love statue and concrete walkways, just north of city hall). Anyway, the news editor at CP, Howard Altman, convinces 85-year-old Bacon that he should skateboard around Love Park as a protest. I have a very vivid memory of the dude teetering around the CP offices, laughing like the Ghost of Christmas Past. What’s even more crazy is that he actually did it! They called a press conference and Bacon hopped on a skateboard, Altman and our production designer held each of his arms, and they “skated” around the park — which is to say, they pulled him like one of those crippled dogs in a children’s wagon.
(Check out the pictures we got! http://citypaper.net/articles/2002-10-31/pretzel.shtml
What more?! Last year Bacon got in touch with the Penn Press because he was all bent out of shape about what has happening to Philly city planning. He’d been partially responsible for a lot of planning stuff in the ’60s (which, sorry to say, ain’t such a grand claim to fame), and he now wanted to publish a book denouncing the city’s current notions of urban revitalization. Somehow he’d linked up with this kid from Wesleyan, who worshiped Bacon as an urban planner and skateboarder-rights advocate, and the two of them had cooked up what has to be THE WORST MANUSCRIPT I’ve ever seen. I felt kinds bad for the kid, who stopped by our office every other day to receive more and more bad news — kind of like a dog in Kevin Stengle’s house. Ultimately, rejected the book, Bacon lodged a formal protest with Judy Rodin (Judy friggin Rodin!), and we had to apologize to him — and then reject him all over.
Ahh, the memories. Sorry to go on so long, but he sure is a fun character.