Simple, Yet Effective

Finally, a way to get a dog’s attention.

Pet Photography Tips, Courtesy of B&P Blog

 

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A Story Is Coming. . .Maybe

This morning held a bit of a surprise for me, but I’m not sure I want to lay it all out here yet.

For now, I am thankful for the intrusion and will leave it at this:

Remember whenever you’re in a position to help someone, be glad and always do it because that might be God answering someone else’s prayers through you.

 

 

After The Fact

Elissa, Baby Creech and John. 3/15/2019

Did you go to church today?

What would your preacher, pastor/priest say if they had to answer for their actions each week?

What if we had to answer for what we learned at our respective services?

Too bad these types of details seem to be more important than the message of God’s love for us and our responsibility to follow his law. But, this is where many of us have come to as a society.

John is a very funny guy, using family friendly language. Our daughters and soon to be born granddaughter are fans.

 

Tu Eres La Mas Bonita

Smile, it’s Saturday night and the Garza brothers are making some happy “Texican” music.

Henry Garza is a very talented guitarist with a unique style. That being said, you might hear hints of SRV and Mark Knopfler in this song.

Los Lonely Boys.  “Senorita”

“You’re my little señorita y tu eres la mas bonita
You got it going on hey hey hey”

 

 

A Question For The Ages

 This is a little longer than normal.

May I suggest you get a glass of wine and a bowl of cheese doodles.

As I get older, I find myself pondering life’s  bigger questions. Not that I am some intellectual giant, but after almost sixty years on this planet, I have had the time to solve most of the little questions that concern me. The big ones still intrigue and confound me.

I continue to ponder how perspective and experience can influence two people observing the same situation, but interpreting it with a completely different outcome.

***

  My WP stats page indicates I have been following Dina Honour over at Wine and Cheese (Doodles) blog since March 30^th. 2015.  I have read every post she has published since that date and I find her writing interesting, sincere and edgy. That being said, our perspectives on social and political issues are 180 degrees  polar opposite and I often say to myself, What was she thinking? We have commented on each other’s blogs and have had some interesting exchanges. While we couldn’t be more different I think we respect each other’s opinion and happily (?)  agree to disagree.

  Yesterday, she published a post entitled The Glory of Meagan Rapinoe.

  Regardless of your opinion of the goings on surrounding Rapinoe, I strongly encourage you to read Dina’s column before going any further here.

Seeing the title, I silently said to myself that this will  likely be one of those posts where I want to argue almost every sentence. I read it, not once, not twice, but three times., trying to take it in. As is usually the case, there is little to nothing in her piece that I agree with, but I appreciate and respect her perspective.

Our life experiences have brought us to different places.

If I had the time, and if anyone else cared, I would love to start an argument (in the philosophical sense) and address each paragraph.  That would be laborious, but there are 5 points I would like to respectfully address.  I really marvel at how different our perspectives are and I need to stress that I am not being critical, but simply offering a different perspective. I will cite the statement from Dina and then offer my view.

As I begin, I will admit that I do not look up to sports figures as any kind of heros and believe that most of them are overpaid and take themselves just a bit too seriously. Thus, as we begin, I admit that prejudice.

***

She’s the larger than life embodiment of the woman so many of us have within–the one we often force to stay hidden and quiet. The one we convince ourselves isn’t good enough– even when she is. The one we caution to stay silent and still when someone says something shitty, out of fear or conditioning or reluctance to confront. Because that’s not what nice girls do, is it? Nice girls don’t confront. Nice girls don’t demand recognition for their accomplishments, even when they’re warranted.

Rapinoe? She’s strong, outspoken, confident, talented. She knows exactly how much she is worth, of what she’s capable of. Not only does she expect to be recognized for that, she demands it.

  While my experience is being around strong women (mother, wife and daughters) the thing that I find most confusing is the “Not only does she expect to be recognized for that, she demands it.” In my world, recognition is awarded by working hard, being humble and deserving the recognition for your accomplishments. If you need to demand that you be recognized, doesn’t that screams of not being good enough to get recognized simply on the merits? (asking for a friend).

***

So of course, people hate her. Oh, they find plenty of reasons why, but underneath it all its because she’s upended the idea of what girls are supposed to be like to succeed

   My friends on the progressive side, when referring to those on the right, tend to use the word  “hate” when “disagree” may be more appropriate.  I am almost 60 years old and I can’t look back and think of anyone I have hated in my entire life. I may disagree, I may not care, but I don’t hate. I do not think I am special or unique as most of the people I know feel the same way. I have heard it described as folks on “the right” think liberals are good people with bad ideas. Many liberals, on the other hand (and I am not including Dina)  think that “conservatives” are bad people with bad ideas and are to be hated.   That might be something to think about.

***

Oh my God I’m endlessly tired of listening to society whispering and shouting at young girls to act like ladies, to be nice, to put the comfort of those around them above their own–to put the comfort of others above their own safety, even. And here come Megan Rapinoe, blowing that bullshit out of the water with her hot-pink hair and her megawatt smile, singing, dancing and penalty kicking her unapologetic way into our lives, taking JOY in what she does.

  My wife and I have raised three daughters into adulthood. Never did we (as proud conservatives) whisper or shout at them to act like ladies. They took risks, made mistakes, re-organized, tried again and joyfully succeeded, all without the hot pink hair and the need to call attention to themselves and/or their sexual orientation.  We provided our girls with enough space to make their own mistakes, to learn from those mistakes and to be their own, strong, successful women. Mission accomplished.

***

I want to take up space. I want to fling my arms to the side and say LOOK AT ME. I am here. I am worthy. I exist and I will not let you dictate how I must be.

 I addressed this previously, but I sense the political statement coming into play in that statement. Here is my metaphor.  Picture someone as a very successful, regional sales manager for Coke. It gets discovered that they make a big deal about only drinking Pepsi and continuously and  publicly  badmouth the CEO of Coke. How long before Coke fires that person?    Taking it a step farther, the fact that her disrespect for the Country and President didn’t get her kicked off the team or land her in jail (I bet the Russian girls wouldn’t try it with Putin) shows how  great and tolerant The United States really is.  I also go back to that, if you have to fling your arms out wide and say “Look at me” there might be something missing.  If someone is worthy of being noticed, people will do so without being asked to.

***

She doesn’t care if you find her sexy because she doesn’t find you sexy either. Her value in this world is not calculated on how many men find her bed-able. She doesn’t care if you like her or not. She doesn’t need your permission, your validation, your stamp of legitimacy.

 I don’t care what she cares and I think it is interesting that Dina is injecting this into the discussion.  “How many men find her “bed-able,”  Really? Please give us a little credit.  That makes the assumption that all men process all women that way.  Who is trying to validate her?  Legitimacy?  Legitimizing what?

***

  The girl kicks a ball.  That should not elevate her to national hero status aside from being on a team that won more games than their competitors. Like actors and musicians, what makes her opinion any more important than yours or mine?

I wonder how all the gushing fans would react if Meagan, with the exact same skill set, was a church attending Christian, heterosexual, monogamous, MAGA hat wearing conservative?  A strong, independent woman. One who is firm in her convictions, loves and respects her Country and who doesn’t care what people think about her.

Meagan who?

So, in closing, I hope Dina understands I’m just asking the questions that continue to perplex me.

But, as I often tell my wife, “If two people always agree, one of them is not necessary.”

Prepared for incoming.

Outgunned

Our daughter, the one expecting our first grandchild in a few weeks, sent this to me today.

Women always have an answer.

A pregnant woman was arguing with her husband and as the event got more and more heated, she brought it to its conclusion by stating, “I have two brains and you have just one”

Checkmate.

Try Listening

As found on SwissMiss blog A random photo of a recent drawing of Martha Listen Completely “When people talk, listen completely. Don’t be thinking what you’re going to say. Most people never listen. Nor do they observe. You should be able to go into a room and when you come out, know everything that you saw there and not only that. If that room gave you any feeling you should know exactly what it was that gave you that feeling. Try that for practice.” — Ernest Hemingway

Another Year, Another Song

10 July 2019 will mark six years since the sudden death of Peppi Marchello, founding member (with his bother) of the band, The Good Rats.

I wrote about his death here: My Youth Is Officially Over

Isn’t it interesting how we often anchor events of our lives in music? It is said that the music you listen to during your high school/college years will be the music you love for the rest of your life.

True that.

Peppi and the boys had a unique way of connecting with their fans, including calling you just to say hello every now and then. When you talked with him at a show, he made you feel like you were the only one there. If you grew up in the New York City Metro area during the 1970s, chances are very good you saw The Good Rats play at least once.

A lot of grown-up events have taken place in my life (plus I turn 60 next year) in the last six years and I guess I was on target when I mentioned the passing of my youth.  The good news is I have some great memories to cherish.

One of my favorite Rat’s songs played live a few years before his death and a few years past his prime, but he was still out there night after night, getting it done.  This not the original band in the video, but Peppi with one of the incarnations of The Good Rats.

The boys would meet, on a dead end street.
Brag about their women, to pass away the time.
and shoot, the breeze, on their knees.
Oh how I miss that City line

The original, studio version of City Liners

Where Does The Time Go?

While skimming this morning’s paper, I perused the “Today in History” column, I saw that Louis Armstrong died on July 6, 1971. If someone had stopped me on the street and asked what year “Satchmo” died, I would have guessed the mid 1980’s and I would have been wrong.

We don’t hear much about him these days, but he was a giant back in the day and a very strong memory of my childhood. I can still see my grandmother singing this song while preparing a family dinner.  I sit here wondering if any of our three daughters ever heard of him? (Maybe they would recognize  “It’s a Wonderful Life”)

As one of the comments on Youtube states:

How can you watch Mr. Armstrong & not just have a big smile on your face?

From 1965, recorded in Berlin, Germany.

Binge Bait

There just isn’t much on TV that interests me.

Every now and then, however, I find out about a show, usually on NETFLIX, that sounds interesting and then I investigate.

Yesterday, while babysitting the three dogs during neighborhood fireworks and intermittent thunderstorms, I started watching  Mindhunter.  I had heard an interview with the man who is the subject of the series, retired  FBI agent, John Edward Douglas.   Douglas is well-known for his ground-breaking research in profiling serial killers.

 I needed to try this show.

Seven of ten episodes are behind me and I have the weekend in front of me. Season two will be out before Labor Day.

Interesting, and then some.

Binge-worthy