All the Presidents' (Men and) Portraits

Sunday morning's ritual: a large cup of coffee and piles of newspaper
spread out all over my bed. Then, out into the world to the farmers'
market, with its abundance of color, texture, and taste. The Santa
Monica market is brimming with eccentric characters vying for
attention. Last Sunday, it was a slim, shirtless young fellow, with his
pants so low that the only mystery remaining was whether he'd been
circumcised or not. Looking at the multitude of his boring tattoos, I
wondered if he had been exposed to art in school or had ever been taken
to a museum. You see, I have a theory that if our schools provided a
decent art education, then maybe young people like him would at least
choose more interesting tattoos. And maybe with more art education in
school, we would be spared the embarrassment of seeing hoards of
abysmal portraits of our leaders in the halls and chambers of power
throughout the nation...