February 18th, 2021
“ʔédúhų́n k’ą́mbį́ ɂedlánet’é”, or “Good Morning!”in Chipewyan, a Northern Athabaskan language spoken in parts of northern Canada . It is Day 350 since the first California Lock Down. We are opening up more vaccine delivery points that we can keep stocked with vaccine. The numbers are going down but we have to remain vigilant in our distancing, masks and hand washing. There is simply nothing to be gained by loosing our hard won disciplines.
We lost a musical great this week. Not only was he a musical innovator and technician but he was a generous and open person who was giving anyone who wanted to make music – what ever he could to encourage them. Chick Corea was a driving force in Fusion Jazz. A keyboardist that start in the 1960s with Miles Davis band. I discovered him as leader of the Return to Forever band with a teenaged Al Dimeola on guitar, Stanley Clark, bass, Lenny White on drums and Chick’s keyboards. They just blew this old rock and roller away with their precision and collaboration in fusing their sound. John Mayer was particularly eloquent in his tribute to Chick on Instagram.
This week I learned some stuff:
• Did you know each year is assigned colors? I didn’t either. For over 20 years, Pantone’s Color of the Year has influenced product development and purchasing decisions in multiple industries, including fashion, home furnishings, and industrial design, as well as product packaging and graphic design. The 2020 Pantone Color of the year was “Classic Blue” which I thought was a gentle prediction of how we were all going to feel about that particular year by the end. I suppose “Shitty Brown” was already used… perhaps in 2017? Anyway this year we get two colors for the year from Pantone – “Ultimate Grey” and “Illuminating”. Which I think is a colorful hedging of bets… we are going to come out of this tailspin just not sure how fast so we have the lovely contrasting haze grey shade with the bright yellow contrast for the year. Well done! You can read all about it on the San Diego Tribune website.
• YouTube is video heroin for geezers like me. It is an absolutely bottomless abyss of content both sublime and ridiculous. The variety of subjects, quality and accuracy of the content provided is astounding and entertaining. For me, it reminds we of camping trips to the Glades when I was a boy. Sitting around the campfire, full of Dirty Moore canned beef stew cooked in the can in the fire, I would become so mesmerized looking into the glowing coals and flame I failed to notice that the mosquitoes were literally eating me alive! I returned from that trip as one big itchy welt. I was watching YouTube for a half hour before another show I wanted to watch and the next thing I know I am nodding off as 1am still staring.
• February 18th is the 42nd day of 2021. Just 316 days till Christmas! Today in 1791, Congress passes a law admitting the state of Vermont as the 14th state to join the Union. Prior to that Vermont was an independent sovereign state as was Texas, California and Hawaii; On this day in 1878, John Tunstall is murdered by outlaw Jesse Evans, sparking the Lincoln County War in New Mexico; Today in 1930, Elm Farm Ollie becomes the first cow to fly in a fixed-wing aircraft and also the first cow to be milked in an aircraft; On this day in 1954, the first Church of Scientology is established in Los Angeles; Today in 1970, the Chicago Seven are found not guilty of conspiring to incite riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention; Today in 1979, Richard Petty wins a then-record sixth Daytona 500 after leaders Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough crash on the final lap of the first NASCAR race televised live flag-to-flag; Today in 1848, Louis Comfort Tiffany, American stained glass artist was born. He was the first design director and stained glass designer for Tiffany & Co.; Born today in 1871,Harry Brearley, English inventor of “Rustless Steel” which brought affordable cutlery to the masses; Jack Palance, American boxer and actor was born today in 1919; Today in 1931, Toni Morrison, American novelist and editor, Nobel Prize laureate was born; Today in 1954, John Travolta, American actor, singer and producer was born; Michelangelo, Italian sculptor and painter passed away today in 1564; Charles Lewis Tiffany, American businessman, founded Tiffany & Co. passed away today in 1902; And finally, Andy Devine, American actor best known for his Roy Rogers’ sidekick role of “Cookie” and many other western characters passed on this day in 1977.
Website Update:
This week we made the following changes:
• Have you noticed that I replace the Countdown of Shame function on the UJT Home Page with a kind of Quote of the Week deal. I used to just capture cool quotes whenever I heard them and added them the
• Last week for our New UJT Vocabulary Quiz!
• Week 2 for our Musical Trivia Quiz !
• This week I got busy with some new recipes for you. I have added recipes for Smoked Brisket Chili and Thursday’s “Steak” (you will have to read the recipe to figure out what that means).
Writing, Ceramics, Stained Glass and Painting Update:
• I finally start back to work on my stained glass project this week.
• I missed my watercolor classes this week but i did order some new mediums I am looking to try!
• Grandpa Stories is still not re-published.
Weird-Stuff-O-Meter:
• Its funny how something just sticks in your head and no matter how many times you encounter it you have the same reaction – sometimes good or it can be a bad reaction too. I cannot help myself. If Captain Ron is on, I am watching and laughing the whole way through just as if it was the first time. McClintock with John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara was on this week and I couldn’t pass it up.
• It seems as if there might be something to this whole biorhythm thing. It might be actually a thing. I never really investigated Biorhythms or Transcendental Meditation both practices were very popular in the 1970s. For what ever reason at the time, I just never connected with these concepts. Sitting on my ass repeating a “mantra” for long periods of time would drive me up a wall instead of relax me. And to me, Biorhythms seemed to me just another spirit crutch used in the same way some religious folks “God’s will” as a rationalization things not going as planned as in, “My biorhythms must be on a down cycle” kind of thing. I was never very much of a sit on my ass and explain away my failures kind of guy. But it my creativeness seems to go through the kinds of peaks and valleys of focus, interest, activity and level of creativity described in Biorhythms. But heading back to today, I have no excuse nor even any real explanation for the dip in my productivity as an artist or creator. I just don’t get it… yet!
Music Update:
Once again, your fossilized DJ takes you on another meander through the dusty cobwebs of my music library. Did you enjoy the new play list feature available now on UJT Radio?? It provides more data that it did before – artist, album name, duration of the song and sometimes the album cover artwork. I haven’t figured out the secret decoder ring needed to get every album artwork to show but I am working on it.
This week’s UJT Radio Program:
• The Fix — The Sign of Fire — This one kind of captured me from the first time I heard it. This one comes from “Reach the Beach” released in 1983.
• Love – Always See Your Face — From their “For Sail” album released in 1969. Just a little band out of LA headed up by a fellow by the name of Arthur Lee. To be honest, the only time I ever heard these guys was when the radio over played ‘7 and 7 is” and when I visited my buddy Duane Tannenbaum’s house. Duane was a guitar player and a huge fan of Love. This song is one of the one Duane turned me onto one day in his black light lit, day glow painted garage/hippy hangout. Thanks Duane!
• Chris Isaak — Wicked Game — Chris is an interesting guy. He has done a lot of acting on TV, movies and even had his own show for a few years. This was his greatest musical hit by far. This version is from the remastered Best of Chris Isaak album. I like Chris’s rockabilly singing but for me, James Calvin Wilsey’s guitar made this song the hit it was.
• Lifehouse — Easier to Be — Another deeper cut from their album, “Lifehouse” released in 2007. The guitar work on this one is so tight.
• Barcelona — Faded — This is another deep cut from their 2007 release, “Absolutes”. This is an eerie song. It’s almost like he is singing to himself alone in the dark.
• Bruce Hornsby — Listen to the Silence — I just love everything that Bruce does! This one is no exception. Its so tight and sweet! We get this one from his great 1998 release, “Spirit Trail”.
I try not to listen to music after I make the UJT Radio selections. Otherwise I am afraid will never stop revising the list.
That’s it… Do the best you can; Laugh every chance you get; And always remember … The best is yet to come! As always, thank you for being my friend!