Clear and crisp

From the liner notes to Garbage's new CD, Bleed Like Me:

Special thanks to Dr. Peak Woo for rescuing my voice.

That's from lead singer Shirley Manson's acknowledgments, and it's the first line. She's referring to Mt. Sinai laryngologist (voice specialist) Peak Woo, one of the superstars in my biz. Voice is an interesting subspecialty, populated by egomaniacs, ex-Rock'n'rollers, and cross-dressers. And that's just what's rumored. God only knows what's actually true. And these docs have clout. I know of at least one instance in which a laryngologist affected the course of a presidential election (can't stump if you can't talk). It's all the patient's fault, naturally. In the case of the presidential candidate, his doctor blamed the surgical failure on his patient's unwillingness to give up cigars. Some folks, like Matthew Good, follow their doctor's advice. They give up smoking, hydrate like crazy, and work with voice coaches or speech therapists to learn to avoid bad vocal habits. Others, like Axel Rose (click on the link. Really), thumb their noses at their docs. Not that I know this for a fact. Maybe that's Axel's real voice. *** For those of you who aren't BBSers, here's a link to an interview transcript you have to read. Alan Colmes interviewed anti-abortion activist Neal Horsley on his (Colmes's) FOX News radio program. Horsley (snicker . . . snicker . . . whinny) reveals his affection for farm animals. This sort of thing humbles me as a writer. You just can't make up stuff this good. D.