A sample of some obscure – and some maybe not obscure – tunes from my strange and off-the-wall collection.
Today’s selection: Uriah Heep "July Morning" 1971
Considered by some the best composition by Uriah Heep; released on the 1971 album "Look At Yourself".
Formed in 1969, the band name still exits with only one original member - the lead guitarist, Mick Box - remaining.
Continue reading →Jean wrote me and recommended this book: "one of the best books ever written for all ages…"
I'm happy to pass on her suggestion to y'all.
From another reviewer: "I can’t recommend this book enough, whether you are 12, 22, 42, or 92 years old."
“How do they look so together and perfect?” Asked the boy. “There’s a lot of frantic paddling going on beneath,” said the horse.
“The greatest illusion,” said the mole, “is that life should be perfect.”
Have at it ...
Continue reading →from a long time ago ...
A couple of these guys were work buddies but I lost touch not long after I left the area. Seattle was funky weird then instead of psycho weird like it is now.
Last of three Eastern Roman Empire churches erected on this site; built 360, completed 537AD in a grand style of Byzantine architecture.
This mosaic dates from 1122
Emporer John II Komnenos (1087 - 1143) & Empress Princess Piroska (Eirene) of Hungary (1088 – 1134) m. 1104 stand on either side of Mary the Virgin and the Christ child.
The mosaic was plastered over rather than destroyed upon the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The plaster was removed in the 1930s.
I had a chance to visit while it was still a secular museum; the structure was re-converted to a mosque in 2020.
Introducing "Little Calico":
I've never made any secret of my fondness for cats. I have nothing really against dogs but to have a dog - or dogs - requires room to run, at least in my eyes. I don't like fencing a dog in yet most places I've lived do not allow dogs to roam free nor are dogs of the size I like suitable for the apartments I've lived in.
Yes, I know there are exceptions.
I wouldn't mind having two right now - two, because I live in coyote country and a coyote will injure or kill a single friendly dog, even of German Shepherd size. The dog wouldn't realize it was in a serious fight right away. But Wile E won't mess with two though - two dogs would tear the coyote apart if it wasn't fast enough on the escape. Can't though; I'd have to keep them penned up where I live. I wouldn't want a feather duster; I'd want one or two to take boonie-bouncing with me.
My last dog was a female Norwegian Elkhound:
Had her as a pup ... No, this is not her; even if circumstances had not gotten in the way, she'd have lived her life out sometime in the 80s. By then, my life was on a path that having a pet was not practical.
This was the mid-70s; she was stolen by someone I had thought was a friend - I never saw the dog or "friend" again; never even knew where they went. She was the last dog of mine ... I suppose after almost 50 years I don't miss her much anymore, only had her for about 6 months as a puppy. But sometimes I think about her. Time has a way of fading some memories ...
Sometime around 1990, I had a girlfriend with a retriever. We'd travel - for fun or work - but I-Can't-Recall-His-Name didn't take to travelling well. Said girlfriend passed ICRHN off to a friend who was better able to take care of him. They got along very well and when the inevitable breakup with the girlfriend came, it turned out the dog preferred to stay with the friend.
God visited me some time ago ... oh, it might have been about 1997. I didn't realize it at the time. Didn't think about it at the time. No burning bushes but a beautiful healthy German Shepherd deep in the Wilderness.
At least it was a dog that looked like a German Shepherd. Kind of like this picture but a little fuller.
I was out in central Nevada someplace out along US50. There's a lot of not-much through there. I had pulled off the highway to take a break. This dog came out of nowhere - I was a long way from any town or ranch, yet this dog came up to me from out in the sagebrush and just stared at me.
I stared back.
Where did this dog come from? He obviously hadn't been wandering for long; his coat was too clean, he appeared well-fed.
A dilemma.
Do I take him in? I live in a small apartment. Besides, if he had wandered off, his owners must be looking for him.
Or did they dump him? I didn't think about that at the time.
Do I try to bond with him? Then what? I can't care for him.
So I ignored him until he wandered away.
A few minutes later, I had second thoughts. Called out to him - he couldn't have gotten too far away yet; no response.
I didn't think much of it at the time, but - not even being sure "God" exists - I now feel I failed a biblical test.
And it bothers me much more now than it did 30 years ago.
Figure that.
Continue reading →General (Lt Colonel) George Armstrong Custer.
Died this day in 1876, age 36, of over-confidence.
A sample of some obscure - and maybe not obscure - tunes from my strange and off-the-wall collection.
Today's selection: Dandy Warhols "You Were The Last High" 2003
A band from Portland, OR first formed in 1994 as a group of friends who "needed music to drink to".
Apparently, the band is still active, with 3 of the original 4 members and a newer drummer.
One of my "newer" selections ... more than 20 years old? Oh my.
Continue reading →
