January 15th, 2016
سحر پخير (sahr pikheyr) (A Pashto Good Morning to you!!)
This has been a week!
Losses – I managed to hang on to my flu or dreaded gulch or whatever it is but called on my doctor for re-enforcements. I lost at the weekly GLCPS&L poker game this week. We all lost David Bowie, one of the most fearless creative beings of our generation, this week to cancer. Severus Snape from “Harry Potter”, the memorable Marvin the Depressed Robot on “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy” and the excellent villain, Hans Gruber, from the first “Die Hard” movie also passed away this week. Allan Rickman was 69 when he lost his battle with cancer. This week I celebrated my Mom’s birthday, she would have been 86 years old this week. Thanks again Mom!
Wins- I had my teeth cleaned and got my dentist’s highest award – a 20 minute cleaning followed by a hearty, “Whatever you are doing, keep doing it”.
Have you ever seen “Charlie Wilson’s War”? It stars a gifted cast including Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Phillip Seymour Hoffman among others and was nominated for a number of Golden Globe and Oscars. If you haven’t seen it, get it. This movie is as amazingly entertaining as it is informative. If we want to understand what went wrong in Afghanistan just watch this movie. After Congressman Charlie Wilson marshaled all the resources needed to help the Afghani Mujahideen force the Russian retreat, we left a country devoid of basic services with an average age of male citizens of 14 years of age. Charlie Wilson navigated from $5 Million into $500 Million dollars in US aid for weapons (which he got the Saudis to match) to help them defeat a vastly superior army/air-force on horseback by the time the Russians exited Afghanistan in February of 1989. But then he found that Congress balked at providing the Afghans, the comparatively small funding needed to repair their bridges, rebuild their schools, and restart their agri-industry. There is a scene at the end where Gust is trying to inspire Charlie to go after more funding to help the Afghanis rebuild where Charlie clearly articulates the probable consequences leaving them to rebuild without our help.
This week I learned some stuff:
I learned its a good thing to have more to do than to be all done. Maybe that is why I have been perfecting my procrastinating skills. Perhaps, I have lost trust that I will find other meaningful things to do when I have finished these? I really have been sick but still feels weird to let myself off the hook for deliverables I promised in a mirror. Hmm.. maybe I am not done learning this lesson yet.
Website Update
Last week for the “New” Vocabulary Quiz!!
Added a recipe for Andouille and Other Stuff
Painting Update:
Didn’t make progress on painting project this week.
Writing Update:
No progress on my writing goals this week 🙁
Weird-Stuff-O-Meter:
All of the strange ass drivers seem to come out at the same moments these days. I had people stoping in the middle of intersections after starting when the green light came on, apparently hoping for a darker or brighter shade of green?? This week I had to opportunity to follow a very inspiring person on their 17mph tour of almost 3 miles of double yellow line country. I was inspired to combine some previous unconnected profanities during our exasperating journey together. Yes …Its Rain.. Falling from the Sky ..really ..it won’t hurt you….just drive on or pull over.
Music Update:
This weeks mix includes a couple of from David Bowie, and a few other tasty morsels for you:
David Bowie – Changes — This song ushered in my puberty I think. I may have had pubic thoughts before I heard this song but I was complete enflamed in teenaged love juices when this song came on the radio. It was soon different from all of the other songs on the AM waves in those days before FM became the staple source of music for us. Thinking back, I am not even sure how they got it on the air.
David Bowie – Space Oddity — Remembering singing the various Ground Control and Major Top parts and smiling at the very British, “… whose shirts you wear ” line. You will be missed David.
Eric Johnson – Trademark – From his, 1990 “Ah Via Musicom” album, this is an instrumental that displays Eric’s incredible skill with guitar. I got to see him live in some sort of Space Timeworn musical where he got to reprise some of Jimi Hendrix’s great tunes and he was spectacular.
Fleetwood Mac – Gypsy — Stevie Nicks and Christie McVie had such a magical collaboration with Lindsey Buckinghams excellent guitar work wearing in and out of the dance with John McVie and Mick putting the bottom on the whole thing. This song above the many other hits that this iconic band put out, stands out to me as deeply personal and played well in spite of all the back scene drama.
Jack Johnson – Better Together – This is a deep cut off his In Between Dreams album that came out in 2005. There is something about his Ukulele like guitar work married up to his deadpan vocals that is just magical for me and I hope for you to. And unlike others he tends to say stuff with his lyrics too:)
The Police – De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da — Eloquently titled tune that always impressed me. You could tell there was something very special happening with these boys. Google this one and read the interesting lyrics:)
Stephen Stills – America’s Children – This is the anthem from my early days. I still get goose bumps when I listen…perhaps even more now some 40 years since the first time I heard it sung. Our country seems more divided than during the Vietnam conflict. We need to find more to sing about today.
Styx – Too Much Time on My Hands — I loved Styx’ “Come Sail Away” that came out in the 1970s. This cut came out later in the early 80s and is the Tommy Shaw show. Tommy wrote and plays the lead guitar (in the break) on this tune from their “Paradise Theater”album.
That’s it… Do the best you can; Laugh every chance you get; And always remember, the best is yet to come! This one reminds us that we are taking the long way around getting our guns under control.
As always, thank you for being my friend!
James