The Fourth weekend was nicer than most of those in years past. Holidays are good landmarks for comparing the now to the then. I logged plenty of miles on The 8, I can tell you that. We had good things to do in SD then more good stuff on Balistic Mountain.
My bandmates had a little party with lots of food, and all of it good. I'm told the meat was excellent as well. One advantage of being a single man at this age is that everyone, especially, but not exclusively, the wives want to be sure you don't starve. My freezer and the rest of the refrigerator is loaded with tasty left overs. Most of it the type that is as good or better reheated. It warms the heart to have such kindness shown. People I have encountered in this part of CA are something special. It has been suggested that I am attracting this sort of person in my life now. There may be some truth to that.
I was reading some lyrics and short things I'd written several years ago. My outlook has changed considerably. This is good. I'm still just as rebellious but other aspects have undergone some smoothing out.
It was a lot fun playing at that party. As usual I was more nervous because of the small crowd than I would be in a large place playing for strangers. Every time it started to mess with me I mentally put things in perspective; "they don't care, they just want to enjoy, so try to do the same, you self centered nincompoop". So, I had fun.
The remarkable thing about the two guitar players is that they are always in tune. I think the one may have perfect pitch. The other is close. He subtly checks to see if he's in tune with K. I hardly ever see K fiddling with it. He's real quick getting a string to pitch. That's a rare gift. I've played with some really good players but few who have his ear.
That is another puzzle; ho do I land in those circumstances? I know very little and don't really do anything much. Must be that I try to play with passion and not step on the others. Not much else I can do. That's how it has always been.
OK. I'm trying one of those hyped up natural sleep aids. Extract of this or that. Maybe I'll take melatonin, too.
Insomnia is for people who like to get no sleep at night. It is making me crazy.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Friday, July 3, 2009
One of These Days, I'll Jump
People sometimes respond with disapproval when I mention my desire to learn hang gliding. I think the latest in that art is more like parasail. I haven't researched it much lately; that activity is not yet in the budget. I also would like an ultra light.
It is probably dangerous, but not as dangerous as driving or walking through many neighborhoods, right here in SoCal, and for sure in Memphis. Unlike strolling through gang country, if I bought the farm riding a kite, I'd be doing something that appeals to me.
The firefighters up at Mt Laguna were checking out this place I sometimes go. Some sort of fire abatement scouting I suppose. The place I like is a launch spot. The firemen told me only real experts fly off there. The number of memorial plaques embedded in the boulders is testament to that.
Those guys compete for distance and some have made it a very long way, like a hundred or so miles I think. They told me that these fliers carry a radio of some kind so people will know where to pick them up. I can see how this particular place would be ideal yet very treacherous. It has an expansive view of other mountains in the range and a very large open valley below.
Maybe if I find myself in more robust financial repair, I'll go where beginners learn and work my way up. I doubt a good rig is cheap. I'm kind of certain that if I had the gear, I'd go find a hill and jump regardless of prior instruction. I understand a little about flight and aerodynamics. And I watched the The Right Stuff, and that Wright Brothers movie. What more do you need?
It is probably dangerous, but not as dangerous as driving or walking through many neighborhoods, right here in SoCal, and for sure in Memphis. Unlike strolling through gang country, if I bought the farm riding a kite, I'd be doing something that appeals to me.
The firefighters up at Mt Laguna were checking out this place I sometimes go. Some sort of fire abatement scouting I suppose. The place I like is a launch spot. The firemen told me only real experts fly off there. The number of memorial plaques embedded in the boulders is testament to that.
Those guys compete for distance and some have made it a very long way, like a hundred or so miles I think. They told me that these fliers carry a radio of some kind so people will know where to pick them up. I can see how this particular place would be ideal yet very treacherous. It has an expansive view of other mountains in the range and a very large open valley below.
Maybe if I find myself in more robust financial repair, I'll go where beginners learn and work my way up. I doubt a good rig is cheap. I'm kind of certain that if I had the gear, I'd go find a hill and jump regardless of prior instruction. I understand a little about flight and aerodynamics. And I watched the The Right Stuff, and that Wright Brothers movie. What more do you need?
Independence Day
No matter how it gets spun, once those guys signed the Declaration of Independence, it was on. They even included the word "honor" in their pledge. Sacred honor. I think the concept was more in vogue then than now.
I've seen accounts of what happened to those guys and it seems most lost everything they pledged, except their honor. I'm not of the school that thinks these were just rich guys getting richer. There are people who will forego fortune for honor and passion for a principle.
Like now, some were still a little more willing to restrict freedom than others. Those on the left of that day did not win. My version of left and right, since the published version is nonsense, would be left equals oppressive large government, and right equals minimal authority of the state. Today the right would rob certain rights and intrude in certain areas, while the left will steal and usurp what's left, and a good bit of what the right would take. Phonies, all. Misguided. The followers of these camps may be well meaning but I believe the movers and shakers of both are somewhat sinister.
The idea that the right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness is natural law, and not privilege granted to people by other people was not widely embraced by the world back then. I guess we've come full circle. Having such rights is not the same as being ensured success by the state. You can't have basic human rights if others enforce their view of lifestyle and private enterprise at the point of a gun.
The cool thing about having the document in its original form is that no one can dispute that it existed as written. They may find ways to misinterpret and all that, but anyone who cares can read and think for himself or herself. The absence of the universal pronoun and possessive, etc is still a pc move I lament.
If one were to write this afresh today, Homeland security would add that infidel to their ever growing list of domestic dissidents, which they often tag as potential terrorists or security threats.
"Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
Another spiffy excerpt:
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.
They said it, I didn't. And I mention no names.
The amazing thing is that they actually pulled it off. Many paid the price of incredible hardship, torture, death, loss of family, etc. This was a gutsy and bold move. By all rights they should have lost. But no.
Freedom is natural. The rest is unwarranted. That's all I'm saying. Maybe I'm somewhat rebellious by nature. Often, authority I've encountered was wielded by dogmatic morons.
So, have a good 4th, and for old times sake, just let your neighbor live as he/she chooses, and live your own life. Even if the miscreant dares ride down the road without a helmet or seatbelt, with a gay partner, eating food made from transfat; even if your neighbor is a Christian. It works both ways, and then some.
I've seen accounts of what happened to those guys and it seems most lost everything they pledged, except their honor. I'm not of the school that thinks these were just rich guys getting richer. There are people who will forego fortune for honor and passion for a principle.
Like now, some were still a little more willing to restrict freedom than others. Those on the left of that day did not win. My version of left and right, since the published version is nonsense, would be left equals oppressive large government, and right equals minimal authority of the state. Today the right would rob certain rights and intrude in certain areas, while the left will steal and usurp what's left, and a good bit of what the right would take. Phonies, all. Misguided. The followers of these camps may be well meaning but I believe the movers and shakers of both are somewhat sinister.
The idea that the right to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness is natural law, and not privilege granted to people by other people was not widely embraced by the world back then. I guess we've come full circle. Having such rights is not the same as being ensured success by the state. You can't have basic human rights if others enforce their view of lifestyle and private enterprise at the point of a gun.
The cool thing about having the document in its original form is that no one can dispute that it existed as written. They may find ways to misinterpret and all that, but anyone who cares can read and think for himself or herself. The absence of the universal pronoun and possessive, etc is still a pc move I lament.
If one were to write this afresh today, Homeland security would add that infidel to their ever growing list of domestic dissidents, which they often tag as potential terrorists or security threats.
"Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
Another spiffy excerpt:
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.
They said it, I didn't. And I mention no names.
The amazing thing is that they actually pulled it off. Many paid the price of incredible hardship, torture, death, loss of family, etc. This was a gutsy and bold move. By all rights they should have lost. But no.
Freedom is natural. The rest is unwarranted. That's all I'm saying. Maybe I'm somewhat rebellious by nature. Often, authority I've encountered was wielded by dogmatic morons.
So, have a good 4th, and for old times sake, just let your neighbor live as he/she chooses, and live your own life. Even if the miscreant dares ride down the road without a helmet or seatbelt, with a gay partner, eating food made from transfat; even if your neighbor is a Christian. It works both ways, and then some.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Hoping to Adopt the LocaL Cat
Here on Ballistic Mountain it is generally a bad idea to have an indoor-Outdoor cat. There are many dogs, judging by the barking heard. Sound travels a long way here. The dogs though are somewhat confined to whatever property they are defending. Fences don't do much to retain cats, and I wouldn't have one in-house only. Besides, my agreement here is no pets.
Nothing says I can't have a wild animal association. Making a house captive of it, or anything, is not my desire.
We saw a bobcat just down the dirt road that leads out of the hood on our way to cure the ills of the world by playing the Saturday benefit. I'm hoping it will cruise around my place and become my pal. I doubt I would ever try to pet it or pick it up, but I am not beyond talking to it. Maybe we can make a deal and it will play guard dog, shredding any intruders and keeping rabbits out of the neighbor's garden.
I don't know if it was male or female so a name would need to be neutral. You can never go wrong with Sparky. Calling it Bob would be too cliche.
Maybe I can bring it to me with the didgeridoo.
Nothing says I can't have a wild animal association. Making a house captive of it, or anything, is not my desire.
We saw a bobcat just down the dirt road that leads out of the hood on our way to cure the ills of the world by playing the Saturday benefit. I'm hoping it will cruise around my place and become my pal. I doubt I would ever try to pet it or pick it up, but I am not beyond talking to it. Maybe we can make a deal and it will play guard dog, shredding any intruders and keeping rabbits out of the neighbor's garden.
I don't know if it was male or female so a name would need to be neutral. You can never go wrong with Sparky. Calling it Bob would be too cliche.
Maybe I can bring it to me with the didgeridoo.
Movies That Make Me Cry
It could be that you have to experience some things in order to understand. Even if you only live a very small insignificant version of the experience with which you have deep empathy.
The first movie that ever made me cry was not Bambi--I never saw it. I'm pretty sure no one else in the theater had the same reaction. My first crying movie was Tucker.
I just watched a movie about the Wright Brothers and had a similar reaction. It was an interesting flick, and claimed to be true, not just based on true. They admitted to some license with a few characters but not the story.
Anyway what was pretty cool was that they actually found themselves in a race with a government funded project to do the same thing. They were up against people with impressive credentials and reputation. It did my heart good to see that they did it on their own without the grant.
Even back in 1900, graft, corruption and politics was killing spirits and thwarting reasonable advances. Watching it happen in the present but on a larger scale is somewhat nauseating. When I look at those speech impaired pompous twits pretend to know all about everything from auto design to climate control, I can not comprehend the gullibility of the public, or else the stupidity, but most likely jealousy and meanness. The latter accounts for the fact that we accept having a tyrannical agency like the IRS, and the general hatred and villainization of individuals who invent great things or build profitable businesses.
The biggest hurdle in bringing an idea to fruition is government and thieves. That's redundant. It takes so much effort and trial and error just to get a thing right, but that is nothing compared to battling the Tribe.
Now we are faced with a Cap and Raid bill which is guaranteed to help kill real innovation in true energy independence and screw with every average or below average income person in this land. You cannot raise the cost of everything and have it otherwise. Besides all the green mandates and initiatives from government are merely the dictates of GE and others who profit from bogus science and promotion of things they make. The bogus science leads to insisting on wind mills, for example, and GE makes the turbines, so forget any better designs finding an easy market. Locked out. That is just one example.
I was told that to do wind there is some law mandating a back up of natural gas. It provides a guaranteed market for oil companies who find they want to sell off the by product of their oil wells. On and on. Dimwits think penalizing them is the thing. The thing is to just let people live and tinker in peace.
Is it illegal, even now, to build your own still? Probably. I recall Ohio or some state coming down on a guy who produced his own fuel. They wanted to tax him under some fuel tax law.
If I believed legal means and writing and all that would do any good I'd be on it. This place is so far gone I think any effort you make just paints a target on you and there is no more due process. Just wait until some huge disaster, man made or natural, then there's a shot. In the mean time, I guess I'll just cry at inventor movies and find ways to enjoy life and avoid the insanity of the collective.
The first movie that ever made me cry was not Bambi--I never saw it. I'm pretty sure no one else in the theater had the same reaction. My first crying movie was Tucker.
I just watched a movie about the Wright Brothers and had a similar reaction. It was an interesting flick, and claimed to be true, not just based on true. They admitted to some license with a few characters but not the story.
Anyway what was pretty cool was that they actually found themselves in a race with a government funded project to do the same thing. They were up against people with impressive credentials and reputation. It did my heart good to see that they did it on their own without the grant.
Even back in 1900, graft, corruption and politics was killing spirits and thwarting reasonable advances. Watching it happen in the present but on a larger scale is somewhat nauseating. When I look at those speech impaired pompous twits pretend to know all about everything from auto design to climate control, I can not comprehend the gullibility of the public, or else the stupidity, but most likely jealousy and meanness. The latter accounts for the fact that we accept having a tyrannical agency like the IRS, and the general hatred and villainization of individuals who invent great things or build profitable businesses.
The biggest hurdle in bringing an idea to fruition is government and thieves. That's redundant. It takes so much effort and trial and error just to get a thing right, but that is nothing compared to battling the Tribe.
Now we are faced with a Cap and Raid bill which is guaranteed to help kill real innovation in true energy independence and screw with every average or below average income person in this land. You cannot raise the cost of everything and have it otherwise. Besides all the green mandates and initiatives from government are merely the dictates of GE and others who profit from bogus science and promotion of things they make. The bogus science leads to insisting on wind mills, for example, and GE makes the turbines, so forget any better designs finding an easy market. Locked out. That is just one example.
I was told that to do wind there is some law mandating a back up of natural gas. It provides a guaranteed market for oil companies who find they want to sell off the by product of their oil wells. On and on. Dimwits think penalizing them is the thing. The thing is to just let people live and tinker in peace.
Is it illegal, even now, to build your own still? Probably. I recall Ohio or some state coming down on a guy who produced his own fuel. They wanted to tax him under some fuel tax law.
If I believed legal means and writing and all that would do any good I'd be on it. This place is so far gone I think any effort you make just paints a target on you and there is no more due process. Just wait until some huge disaster, man made or natural, then there's a shot. In the mean time, I guess I'll just cry at inventor movies and find ways to enjoy life and avoid the insanity of the collective.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Things That Cross A Vagabond's Mind
For one thing, I have come to realize that I've been a vagabond in more than just the sense of moving here to there with ties either cut, forgotten or never formed. Odd, since that is probably the last thing I would have done, if I were me. I was raised and brainwashed to believe leaving is what you do, and that personal affection, and sentimentality are irrelevant. That is not my nature although you might never know it. People are made to form bonds. The world as we know it tends to stifle human nature to the point that it takes getting out of Dodge to feel any personal freedom. That's another thing people are designed to do, be free.
Herd instinct, tribal loyalty, illusory security, and things like that tend to be forces which engender inner conflict when it comes to individual freedom. That's why faulty logic is so easily used to promote restrictions and practices which actually penalize people for their intrinsic nature. Often, as we see more and more, people sign away their autonomy and rights willingly. If you have had experience trying to conform but just can't make yourself fit the prescribed mold, all the encroachments scare the hell out of you. Without ever doing anything morally off base or wrong, you can end up in hot water; just because you don't understand the set up. If you just don't fit, the only thing that is scarier than loneliness is authority.
I was remembering some incidents that happened when I was 19. In one sense I really was a jerk, as some others concluded. At the same time there was some misunderstanding and people who decided the haughty self righteousness of interfering in the business of others took precedence over the free will of their "friend". I was not really the only jerk. Just a guy who didn't know better. Either way, the whole thing was no good.
The event is not the crux of the matter so much. It is the realization of how lacking I was in certain aspects of my interpretation of the motives and actions of others. I'm glad that some of that has changed.
I had to be a social vagrant in order to come full circle. That's the sort of thing that crosses your mind if you are me. Probably some sort of effort to forgive myself for being here now, as I am, and for my many shortcomings. Acceptance is most likely a prerequisite for moving on in a healthy manner. That forgive yourself part can get a little weird I think. I'm not sure I did anything all that bad. Maybe hurt some feelings, but had there not been the busy bodies buzzing about, who knows? Two lives may have turned out drastically different. Mine sure may have. You never know though. Is normal good influence likely to overcome the influence of mescaline? Those were some screwed up times.
OK. These are screwed up times, but I'm not fooled by them now. My own world is a better place. Time goes much faster though.
From now on. That is all that's worth considering with any seriousness. If the past was flawed, then make different mistakes in the future. No need to repeat history.
Herd instinct, tribal loyalty, illusory security, and things like that tend to be forces which engender inner conflict when it comes to individual freedom. That's why faulty logic is so easily used to promote restrictions and practices which actually penalize people for their intrinsic nature. Often, as we see more and more, people sign away their autonomy and rights willingly. If you have had experience trying to conform but just can't make yourself fit the prescribed mold, all the encroachments scare the hell out of you. Without ever doing anything morally off base or wrong, you can end up in hot water; just because you don't understand the set up. If you just don't fit, the only thing that is scarier than loneliness is authority.
I was remembering some incidents that happened when I was 19. In one sense I really was a jerk, as some others concluded. At the same time there was some misunderstanding and people who decided the haughty self righteousness of interfering in the business of others took precedence over the free will of their "friend". I was not really the only jerk. Just a guy who didn't know better. Either way, the whole thing was no good.
The event is not the crux of the matter so much. It is the realization of how lacking I was in certain aspects of my interpretation of the motives and actions of others. I'm glad that some of that has changed.
I had to be a social vagrant in order to come full circle. That's the sort of thing that crosses your mind if you are me. Probably some sort of effort to forgive myself for being here now, as I am, and for my many shortcomings. Acceptance is most likely a prerequisite for moving on in a healthy manner. That forgive yourself part can get a little weird I think. I'm not sure I did anything all that bad. Maybe hurt some feelings, but had there not been the busy bodies buzzing about, who knows? Two lives may have turned out drastically different. Mine sure may have. You never know though. Is normal good influence likely to overcome the influence of mescaline? Those were some screwed up times.
OK. These are screwed up times, but I'm not fooled by them now. My own world is a better place. Time goes much faster though.
From now on. That is all that's worth considering with any seriousness. If the past was flawed, then make different mistakes in the future. No need to repeat history.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Slowpoke Mountain and a few minutes of the benefit gig
Lately my cellular deal is running spotty and slow. I'm used to the old fashioned rabbit eared TV setup, with the new fascist HD box, cutting out, losing signal or just catching every other second or so of a broadcast, resulting in the people on TV talking halting gibberish. Once in awhile I can catch what they are saying. Sometimes it works well all the way until the climactic twist of the thriller movie so I am left wondering if the hero really perished in the explosion. It doesn't always make for happy endings, and certainly is not satisfying. Possibly an ugly metaphor for other aspects of my life.
I'm trying to upload a clip which includes some pieces of the benefit we played. It was fun, but I now see that I'm not performing very well. Just not up to snuff. I'll amp up the game next time. We are better than that when you consider the individual abilities. What I do can improve the whole and I'd feel more like I'm carrying my weight.
It's so different from what I thought it was I do. This is not out there, fly through subspace, music. No acid rock/jazz/blues to it. It is time I realize that that was illusion anyway, enhanced by the vitamins, vegetables, and beverages I included in my diet at the time. We are not on that diet and haven't been for awhile. It's a tough life.
So, I wanted to upload another video, yet to be made but this slowness is too much. Since it is a bit warm in the cabin tonight, I think my patience is thinner than usual. That means I have to get to work on my home made cooling device. It will be some kind of evaporative set up disguised as something else.
=======================
OK. looks like the video uploaded
I honestly wonder why I play but I do it anyway. The thing is, if I'm going to do it, I need to raise the bar some. Maybe next time. If it is on video then I'll know if the next one is better. I cut out most of the worst
I'm trying to upload a clip which includes some pieces of the benefit we played. It was fun, but I now see that I'm not performing very well. Just not up to snuff. I'll amp up the game next time. We are better than that when you consider the individual abilities. What I do can improve the whole and I'd feel more like I'm carrying my weight.
It's so different from what I thought it was I do. This is not out there, fly through subspace, music. No acid rock/jazz/blues to it. It is time I realize that that was illusion anyway, enhanced by the vitamins, vegetables, and beverages I included in my diet at the time. We are not on that diet and haven't been for awhile. It's a tough life.
So, I wanted to upload another video, yet to be made but this slowness is too much. Since it is a bit warm in the cabin tonight, I think my patience is thinner than usual. That means I have to get to work on my home made cooling device. It will be some kind of evaporative set up disguised as something else.
=======================
OK. looks like the video uploaded
I honestly wonder why I play but I do it anyway. The thing is, if I'm going to do it, I need to raise the bar some. Maybe next time. If it is on video then I'll know if the next one is better. I cut out most of the worst
Friday, June 26, 2009
If I Were a Carpenter....
and you were a lady,
would you marry me anyway?
would you have my baby?
OK. I'd settle for no baby, and maybe not even the vows
No, I have no idea who you are. Just asking
would you marry me anyway?
would you have my baby?
OK. I'd settle for no baby, and maybe not even the vows
No, I have no idea who you are. Just asking
Strange Days and Jumper Cables in the road
The latest good stuff, according to traffic reports, were box springs and jumper cables somewhere on the local highway. Probably THE 805 or THE 163. That's all the goodies THE Juan0 once again missed retrieving.
News is probably a misnomer these days, and many which preceded these days. I could give examples of boondoggles which only affect the minority, so even those in the majority who are aware of the evil don't really care. That is the danger when power is not limited. Minor groups get screwed and plundered constantly. The danger to those who make a practice of always being middle of the road, go-along-so-you-don't-look-odd, types is that sooner or later you find yourself in the subgroup of the day to be raided. The whole thing comes down to limiting the power of anything or anyone to dictate or steal from the individual. It constantly baffles me why that is not grasped by the bulk of the literate public.
Maybe it is because most people have a rather low price on their scruples, and their scruples are fluid. Then there are the ones who enjoy the feeling that comes with doing the thinking for the masses. I know people like that. They have such a high opinion of their intellect and vision that they see no problem with others being forced to comply with their designs.
=================================
What a week when Ed McMahon (?), Michael Jackson, and Farah all check out. I'm glad Ed doesn't have to hassle with creditors or tax people any more. I'm sorry Farah's cancer couldn't be cured or go away. I liked her.
Michael, it is hard to think anything of validity except that he was an extraordinary performer. The guy was phenomenal. I know people think his alleged crimes were as certain as OJ's involvement in the demise of those slain, but I am not so sure. I kind of figure he was strange enough that he may not have actually been guilty of sexual misconduct with minors---just a very odd compulsion to love them like you would a puppy. I really don't believe he was a pedophile.
OK. I wasn't privy to court documents or weekend sleep overs at Neverland. I just think he was searching for his lost inner child or something. Either way, it was a painful saga. And I hardly ever paid attention. Some exposure to the scene was almost unavoidable. It is not uncommon for people of such extraordinary talent to be way out there--full tilt bonkers. But I guess it is uncommon for people to be that talented, so what was it I was talking about? Obviously I do not know what I'm talking about.
=================================
Saturday we play for the people running around a track to cure cancer. I've never been in a famous or big money making group but playing benefits here and there has convinced me that most bands that play charity gigs do so for the exposure as much as anything. I know they often pretend to be selfless and giving but they play because they are asked and it rarely hurts the chance for future paying gigs. Many do play for causes they hope to promote or help. Not meaning to detract from that. Just saying, that's all.
I have this idea that the purest form of generosity or charity does not bring attention or accolades to one's self. I'll go out on a limb and say it is one thing that bugged me about Jerry. He was as self serving as any, and I believe he got or gets a cut of the Labor Day proceeds. If I did not know first hand how he left kids at the Greensboro Cerebral Palsy school in tears with his sarcastic, callous rudeness, maybe I'd have another view. Be that as it may, the organization does supply some resources for people needing it. I'll leave Jerry loving to the French.
Is he still alive? If not, well, rest in peace. If he is, rest in peace. Quietly.
==================================
Every day, when I drive home there is a point about five miles or so before I get here where I go around a curve and the big vista suddenly appears. I have to think, every time, I lucked out pretty well. I like it. Still, I feel not quite home, but not quite not home. It does seem kind of natural to be here though. Being near the megapolis, yet out in a rural setting was what I wanted, and it is what I like. I'm especially impressed with some of my local friends' attitudes toward building permits when they've done additions or renovations. Just a shred of common sense and freedom goes a long way toward warming my heart these days.
If it weren't such a risk to own anything in CA, and maybe elsewhere, I'd be tempted to figure a way on a cabin I saw advertised on 2 acres not far away. The way they are taxing and regulating here, plus the big powerlink electric company scams makes me fear the hassles may outweigh any benefit. You need a bunch of money coming in from reliable sources to deal with that. Hell, what if I was just making the bills and putting food on the table then they force me to buy health insurance or sign up with the feds? The forced part worries me. I'm not geared for forced anything. Especially all the little plans hidden in various bills to ensure you are in the data bank more solidly than I'd like. Biometric national ID things and all that. Not just the stuff of conspiracy theories any more.
==================================
Whatever the noise being put out by mesmerizing media of all kinds, there are some good things to work on. Things which do not involve involuntary contributions from strangers, yet would be beneficial to people. I have to shake my head at the new infomercials cropping up telling you how you can get a piece of the trillions in bailout money. They've had those that tell you how to get government money (involuntary contributions from citizens) for all kinds of crazy things. What a bunch of whores. And I thought I was an easy slut.
Some tax money goes to uses that I find just dandy. In most cases it is only a drop in the bucket compared to what they take from the same people they then help, directly or indirectly.
===================================
This Saturday gig should be OK. It is in the afternoon and we almost know our set. I still screw up. They want to use me to fill some of the time by playing on a blues progression with the guitars, then having the guitars stop and let me just do my free form thing I make up as I go. Hopefully no REAL harmonica players will be there to jeer. One thing in my favor is that I have a somewhat unique style, so it isn't like I'm trying to be a Little Walter clone. There are an abundance of those, many of them very good. There are even a few Lee Oskar semi clones, and at least one I've seen is sensational in his own right, clone or no. I love that style, but I do what comes naturally to me. That is all I really can do. I probably cheat off of Willie Nelson's guy, Mickey Raphael, and off of Fingers Taylor, Buffet's ex harp player, more than anyone. But that's a secret.
=========================================
It's now over a year since I left Memphis not knowing where I'd wind up. The decision to change everything and to do it in this way is one that I do not regret. My darkest times now are like a blinding light compared to the normal state I was in for a long time before I left.
News is probably a misnomer these days, and many which preceded these days. I could give examples of boondoggles which only affect the minority, so even those in the majority who are aware of the evil don't really care. That is the danger when power is not limited. Minor groups get screwed and plundered constantly. The danger to those who make a practice of always being middle of the road, go-along-so-you-don't-look-odd, types is that sooner or later you find yourself in the subgroup of the day to be raided. The whole thing comes down to limiting the power of anything or anyone to dictate or steal from the individual. It constantly baffles me why that is not grasped by the bulk of the literate public.
Maybe it is because most people have a rather low price on their scruples, and their scruples are fluid. Then there are the ones who enjoy the feeling that comes with doing the thinking for the masses. I know people like that. They have such a high opinion of their intellect and vision that they see no problem with others being forced to comply with their designs.
=================================
What a week when Ed McMahon (?), Michael Jackson, and Farah all check out. I'm glad Ed doesn't have to hassle with creditors or tax people any more. I'm sorry Farah's cancer couldn't be cured or go away. I liked her.
Michael, it is hard to think anything of validity except that he was an extraordinary performer. The guy was phenomenal. I know people think his alleged crimes were as certain as OJ's involvement in the demise of those slain, but I am not so sure. I kind of figure he was strange enough that he may not have actually been guilty of sexual misconduct with minors---just a very odd compulsion to love them like you would a puppy. I really don't believe he was a pedophile.
OK. I wasn't privy to court documents or weekend sleep overs at Neverland. I just think he was searching for his lost inner child or something. Either way, it was a painful saga. And I hardly ever paid attention. Some exposure to the scene was almost unavoidable. It is not uncommon for people of such extraordinary talent to be way out there--full tilt bonkers. But I guess it is uncommon for people to be that talented, so what was it I was talking about? Obviously I do not know what I'm talking about.
=================================
Saturday we play for the people running around a track to cure cancer. I've never been in a famous or big money making group but playing benefits here and there has convinced me that most bands that play charity gigs do so for the exposure as much as anything. I know they often pretend to be selfless and giving but they play because they are asked and it rarely hurts the chance for future paying gigs. Many do play for causes they hope to promote or help. Not meaning to detract from that. Just saying, that's all.
I have this idea that the purest form of generosity or charity does not bring attention or accolades to one's self. I'll go out on a limb and say it is one thing that bugged me about Jerry. He was as self serving as any, and I believe he got or gets a cut of the Labor Day proceeds. If I did not know first hand how he left kids at the Greensboro Cerebral Palsy school in tears with his sarcastic, callous rudeness, maybe I'd have another view. Be that as it may, the organization does supply some resources for people needing it. I'll leave Jerry loving to the French.
Is he still alive? If not, well, rest in peace. If he is, rest in peace. Quietly.
==================================
Every day, when I drive home there is a point about five miles or so before I get here where I go around a curve and the big vista suddenly appears. I have to think, every time, I lucked out pretty well. I like it. Still, I feel not quite home, but not quite not home. It does seem kind of natural to be here though. Being near the megapolis, yet out in a rural setting was what I wanted, and it is what I like. I'm especially impressed with some of my local friends' attitudes toward building permits when they've done additions or renovations. Just a shred of common sense and freedom goes a long way toward warming my heart these days.
If it weren't such a risk to own anything in CA, and maybe elsewhere, I'd be tempted to figure a way on a cabin I saw advertised on 2 acres not far away. The way they are taxing and regulating here, plus the big powerlink electric company scams makes me fear the hassles may outweigh any benefit. You need a bunch of money coming in from reliable sources to deal with that. Hell, what if I was just making the bills and putting food on the table then they force me to buy health insurance or sign up with the feds? The forced part worries me. I'm not geared for forced anything. Especially all the little plans hidden in various bills to ensure you are in the data bank more solidly than I'd like. Biometric national ID things and all that. Not just the stuff of conspiracy theories any more.
==================================
Whatever the noise being put out by mesmerizing media of all kinds, there are some good things to work on. Things which do not involve involuntary contributions from strangers, yet would be beneficial to people. I have to shake my head at the new infomercials cropping up telling you how you can get a piece of the trillions in bailout money. They've had those that tell you how to get government money (involuntary contributions from citizens) for all kinds of crazy things. What a bunch of whores. And I thought I was an easy slut.
Some tax money goes to uses that I find just dandy. In most cases it is only a drop in the bucket compared to what they take from the same people they then help, directly or indirectly.
===================================
This Saturday gig should be OK. It is in the afternoon and we almost know our set. I still screw up. They want to use me to fill some of the time by playing on a blues progression with the guitars, then having the guitars stop and let me just do my free form thing I make up as I go. Hopefully no REAL harmonica players will be there to jeer. One thing in my favor is that I have a somewhat unique style, so it isn't like I'm trying to be a Little Walter clone. There are an abundance of those, many of them very good. There are even a few Lee Oskar semi clones, and at least one I've seen is sensational in his own right, clone or no. I love that style, but I do what comes naturally to me. That is all I really can do. I probably cheat off of Willie Nelson's guy, Mickey Raphael, and off of Fingers Taylor, Buffet's ex harp player, more than anyone. But that's a secret.
=========================================
It's now over a year since I left Memphis not knowing where I'd wind up. The decision to change everything and to do it in this way is one that I do not regret. My darkest times now are like a blinding light compared to the normal state I was in for a long time before I left.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
News According To Me, Dear PETA, Why Misfits Fear Pure Democracy
In the news:
A governor goes on a walkabout. Comes back bragging about chicks. Doesn't have sense enough to ponder out loud, "..well it depends upon what 'is' is".
It pains me to see how dumb the best of republicans are. Clinton or Obama could have done the same thing and managed to make Chris Matthews wet himself, in the Biblical sense, and would somehow end up being called courageous by the major news freaks.
Instead the guy starts crying and talking about God. For someone with a few good ideas he sure appears to be brain dead. Definitely a self destructive goof.
That scenario has been repeated many times. I don't get it. While Barney, Nancy and the gang rape the country, trash the limiting guidelines and some of that crowd blatantly uses the position for personal gain, there is no outcry at all. Maybe it is because they display the attitude of, "who you gonna believe---me or your own eyes?". And they don't ever back off and admit, "Yes, we make money by stealing your rights and freedom, oh, and of course, your money". If they were republicans they'd crack at the first hint of criticism or investigation.
I heard this South Carolina guy is stimulus scam resistant, as we all should be. It's a bill involving more money than anyone can imagine, and those passing it never even read it---only the part that put some stupid project in their state. A lot of "giving a man a fish" not much teaching him how---which means it won't create any lasting prosperity as revealed so far. Of course, when I'm in debt, pulling money out of one pocket, throwing p[art of it out the window, then putting what's left in the other pocket never helped much.
Another one being bandied about is the cap and trade deal. Again it has so many pages and hidden special interest perks that few will read it. The advertised concept is absolutely insane.
Global warming is again upon us. The next fews months will be warmer in this country than anything we've experienced all year.
------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear PETA
I'm not even a carnivore but many of the creatures in nature are. Flies will eat you if you sit still long enough, not breathing. Somehow I suspect the emotional aspect born of your hatred of your own species clouds the reasoning. Obama finally does something I understand and applaud and you go off on Buddha talk.
Did you never see the Helstrom Chronicles? Insects will take over the earth and function as one body and mind in many ways. Kind of like the dream of ultra statist, collectivist proponents.
You want to talk about killing innocent creatures? Talk to the coyotes that terrorize poor little vegetarian rabbits, or the lions that nail those pretty bouncing deer-like things. Lions don't even eat all of it. They don't make fur coats or shoes with what's left. Senseless killing. They could raid bean and peanut farms for their protein if they really cared.
No species on earth promotes the welfare of another species unless there is some angle that betters their own chance of survival. Except for humans. We've come to the point where we will endanger ourselves or others even if the benefit to some other species is dubious. Junk science rules the day over and over.
Insects are not endangered. As a matter of fact they are so abundant and resistant to all that comes their way, they are likely to win the world one day. They spread disease and they are annoying.
I like animals as much as anyone, in some cases probably more; some animals can communicate with me telepathically. Mammals dislike flies. That is a universal truth. I heard it from the cat's, dog's and horse's mouth.
Why can't you and others that want something to fight become freedom fighters? You know, fight for the right of people to mind their own business, travel here and there, and swat flies in peace?
Sincerely
Non carnivore in favor of ranching hunting and shooting those who'd shoot you for a dollar
-------------------------
last topic will wait until another time.
It is really beautiful out here these days. West coast scenery is large. East coast scenery is different. The ability to be mobile is a blessing. Those who are putting that under serious threat, if you follow what and how they are doing it, ought be cast into the sea far off-shore, or maybe in the waters of some other country.
A governor goes on a walkabout. Comes back bragging about chicks. Doesn't have sense enough to ponder out loud, "..well it depends upon what 'is' is".
It pains me to see how dumb the best of republicans are. Clinton or Obama could have done the same thing and managed to make Chris Matthews wet himself, in the Biblical sense, and would somehow end up being called courageous by the major news freaks.
Instead the guy starts crying and talking about God. For someone with a few good ideas he sure appears to be brain dead. Definitely a self destructive goof.
That scenario has been repeated many times. I don't get it. While Barney, Nancy and the gang rape the country, trash the limiting guidelines and some of that crowd blatantly uses the position for personal gain, there is no outcry at all. Maybe it is because they display the attitude of, "who you gonna believe---me or your own eyes?". And they don't ever back off and admit, "Yes, we make money by stealing your rights and freedom, oh, and of course, your money". If they were republicans they'd crack at the first hint of criticism or investigation.
I heard this South Carolina guy is stimulus scam resistant, as we all should be. It's a bill involving more money than anyone can imagine, and those passing it never even read it---only the part that put some stupid project in their state. A lot of "giving a man a fish" not much teaching him how---which means it won't create any lasting prosperity as revealed so far. Of course, when I'm in debt, pulling money out of one pocket, throwing p[art of it out the window, then putting what's left in the other pocket never helped much.
Another one being bandied about is the cap and trade deal. Again it has so many pages and hidden special interest perks that few will read it. The advertised concept is absolutely insane.
Global warming is again upon us. The next fews months will be warmer in this country than anything we've experienced all year.
------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear PETA
I'm not even a carnivore but many of the creatures in nature are. Flies will eat you if you sit still long enough, not breathing. Somehow I suspect the emotional aspect born of your hatred of your own species clouds the reasoning. Obama finally does something I understand and applaud and you go off on Buddha talk.
Did you never see the Helstrom Chronicles? Insects will take over the earth and function as one body and mind in many ways. Kind of like the dream of ultra statist, collectivist proponents.
You want to talk about killing innocent creatures? Talk to the coyotes that terrorize poor little vegetarian rabbits, or the lions that nail those pretty bouncing deer-like things. Lions don't even eat all of it. They don't make fur coats or shoes with what's left. Senseless killing. They could raid bean and peanut farms for their protein if they really cared.
No species on earth promotes the welfare of another species unless there is some angle that betters their own chance of survival. Except for humans. We've come to the point where we will endanger ourselves or others even if the benefit to some other species is dubious. Junk science rules the day over and over.
Insects are not endangered. As a matter of fact they are so abundant and resistant to all that comes their way, they are likely to win the world one day. They spread disease and they are annoying.
I like animals as much as anyone, in some cases probably more; some animals can communicate with me telepathically. Mammals dislike flies. That is a universal truth. I heard it from the cat's, dog's and horse's mouth.
Why can't you and others that want something to fight become freedom fighters? You know, fight for the right of people to mind their own business, travel here and there, and swat flies in peace?
Sincerely
Non carnivore in favor of ranching hunting and shooting those who'd shoot you for a dollar
-------------------------
last topic will wait until another time.
It is really beautiful out here these days. West coast scenery is large. East coast scenery is different. The ability to be mobile is a blessing. Those who are putting that under serious threat, if you follow what and how they are doing it, ought be cast into the sea far off-shore, or maybe in the waters of some other country.
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About Me
- John0 Juanderlust
- Ballistic Mountain, CA, United States
- Like spring on a summer's day
