AJ, BJ, CJ, DJ

September 13, 2012

Aziz Ansari - LA Times

The humor flows — all night, in fact — but it's less yanked from a reservoir of trusty one-liners and more in the form of observations, curiosities and insights. There's much on Ansari's mind these days, like romance, marriage and babies — or a lack thereof. At 29, the still-single Ansari — a self-described "indecisive commitment-phobe" — finds domestic responsibility terrifying, if hilarious. In fact, it's the focus of his "Buried Alive" show.

"It's about being scared of hitting that point in life where you're settling down and the feeling is almost like being buried alive. I couldn't imagine having a baby … or getting married now," he says. "But I love hearing about other peoples' lives, their relationship stories. That stuff is always super fascinating to me."

His inherent curiosity drives much of his joke-writing. Ansari is a funny urban anthropologist, a writer-performer who scribbles observations in a pocket-sized Moleskine notebook (classic black, lined) and has been influenced by the autobiographical humor of Louis C.K. and Patton Oswalt.

"Patton writes about what it's like to be a new father, Louis writes about what it's like to be newly divorced and raising kids," he says with the faintest hint of a Southern accent. "My stuff is, like: the guy who's not married and has no kids and is kinda scared and bewildered by it all."

Ansari regularly peppers people around him with relationship questions, this reporter not excluded. Suddenly, the tables are turned and he's the one firing off the questions. "How old were you when you got married? How long did you date beforehand?" He is particularly fascinated with how people meet in the modern world — "just the randomness of it all," he says.

What Would Prophet Mohammed Do Tumblr?
The Prophet Muhammad is believed by Muslims to be the final messenger of God sent for mankind. He is regarded as the ultimate example of a humanity, morality, mercy and peace, and throughout the history of Islam, Muslims around the world have sought to emulate his perfect character. Recently, the spirit of the Prophet has been undermined through actions supposedly taken in the name of Islam. This project is an effort to reclaim the legacy of Muhammad, and to celebrate his universal messages of mercy, morality, humanity, and peace.

Coterie Room Poutine

A Terrifying Way To Discipline Children

Among the recent instances that have attracted attention: Children in Middletown, Conn., told their parents that there was a “scream room” in their school where they could hear other children who had been locked away; last December, Sandra Baker of Harrodsburg, Ky., found her fourth-grade son, Christopher, who had misbehaved, stuffed inside a duffel bag, its drawstrings pulled tight, and left outside his classroom. He was “thrown in the hall like trash,” she told me. And in April, Corey Foster, a 16-year-old with learning disabilities, died on a school basketball court in Yonkers, N.Y., as four staff members restrained him following a confrontation during a game. The medical examiner ruled early last month that the death was from cardiac arrest resulting from the student’s having an enlarged heart, and no charges were filed.       

Today's Photo:

Thursday Night Football and an open grill.
The Packers defense has players named AJ, BJ, CJ, and DJ.