October 5th, 2023 

“ Dobroho ranku”, or “Good Morning!” in Ukrainian, an Eastern Slavic language spoken mainly in Ukraine.  I have decided that the UJT will remain focused on Ukraine until we can all rejoice at the end of hostilities.  It has been 581 days since Russia invaded Ukraine.

This week I learned some stuff:

    • We have new grass sprouted in the front yard!!!
    • I attended my first watercolor class and 2nd Ceramics class this week. I am enjoying both.
    • October 5th is the  278th day of 2023. Just 81 days (corrected) till Christmas.  On this day in 1905, the Wright brothers pilot the Wright Flyer III in a new world record flight of 24 miles in 39 minutes; Today in 1945, a  six-month strike by Hollywood set decorators turns into a bloody riot at the gates of the Warner Brothers studio; President Truman makes the first televised Oval Office address today in 1947; The first Beatles single “Love Me Do” is released in Britain today in 1962; Today in 1970,  the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is founded; Tylenol products are recalled after bottles in Chicago laced with cyanide cause seven deaths today in 1982; Chester A. Arthur, American general, lawyer, and politician, 21st President of the United States was born today in 1829; Robert H. Goddard, American physicist, engineer, and academic was born today in 1882; Eugene B. Fluckey, American admiral, Medal of Honor recipient was born today in 1913;  Donald Pleasence, English actor s born today in 1919; Today, Reinhard Selten, German economist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate was born in 1930; Today is Steve Miller, American singer-songwriter and guitarist ’s birthday in 1943;  Today in 1959,Kelly Joe Phelps, American singer-songwriter and guitarist was born; Tecumseh, American tribal leader passed away today in 1913;  Lars Onsager, Norwegian-American chemist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate died today in 1976;  Rodney Dangerfield, American comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter  passed away today in 2004;;Finally, we lost Steve Jobs, American businessman, co-founder of Apple Inc. and Pixar today in 2011.

This week’s Website Update:

    • Week three for our Vocabulary Quiz
    • A new Musical Trivia Quiz  Yeah!!!!!!!! 
    • I didn’t upload any new recipes.
    • I have been doing some research on fermented foods (kraut, pickles, kimchi, etc. I am going to give it a try at home as soon as I get the stuff.
    • The Home Page quote for this week’s wisdom is from Zig Ziglar, “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”.

Writing, Ceramics, Bonsai Trees, Stained Glass, and Painting Update:  

    • I still haven’t gotten to the Juniper that BJ got me for my Birthday.  
    • My stained glass project inched closer, traveling at the speed of glaciers! I have the new design done and I have started to lay out the template. Once that is done I can start picking and cutting glass. My ceramics class is canceled for this week, so here we go!
    • I  did manage to get some more of the paper editing done on Grandpa Stories”. My goal is 3-5 chapters each week till it is don

Weird-Stuff-O-Meter:  

    • On September 23rd,1962, I was 10 years old and an avid fan of cartoons. On that day we got a new one that was like no other before. “The Jetsons “ premiered telling us about a “normal” family set in the future. Do you remember the sound effects for George’s air car? Thinking back, it sounds like a Tesla! I was talking it over with Alexis as Harriet, our vacuum cleaner, came by. It’s hard to imagine a world without Siri, Alexa, Smart  Phones, or GPS guidance. My car tells me to get back into my lane and when I need to get my oil changed and tires rotated. Doctors are making house calls again! Just via my smartphone. Amazon knows what I like and even sssholes can Tweet (and buy the company). We have much less to do than our grandparents and it takes, a lot less time to get it done, and usually, some kind of automation helps us do it. And so it goes…

Music Update:  

Here is a new batch of music for you to try out. 

This week’s UJT Radio Program:

    • Rolling Stones  – Sympathy for the Devil— From the vinyl!!!  This is the song that I discovered what a genius Keith Richards is. He plays in a strange new world of tunings and phrasing that I had never heard before. This one is from their 1968 release, “Beggar’s Banquet”.
    • Joss Stone – I Fell in Love with a Boy –  I just this lady’s voice! This one is from her album, “The Soul Sessions” released in 2003.
    • Dave Mathews Band  — You & Me — This is a song that I just connected with. Some special thing that I cannot define. This one is from their 2009 release, “Big Whiskey & the GrooGrux King”.
    • Blood, Sweat & Tears  – God Bless the Child    Another wonderful voice from my past. This was a great band that did with horns what ELO did with Cellos…introduced them in a big way in Rock and Roll. And they did it well. This one is from their 1968 release, “Blood, Sweat & Tears.
    • Bob Dylan   — Joey — One of my favorite poets just putting it to music. This is just one great song from his wonderful album, “Desire” released in 1976.
    • Zephyr  — High Flying Bird — From the vinyl!!!! This was a great band out of Colorado. They never had a commercial hit but had kind of a cult following born mostly out of their live performances. I never got to see them live but I thought they were brilliant. Candy Givens played piano and did the vocals. Tommy Bolin was just going through puberty when he played with Zephyr. This one is from their album, “Sunset Ride” released in 1972.

That’s it… Do the best you can; Laugh every chance you get; Always remember… The best is yet to come! As always, thank you for being my friend!