Sunday, June 30, 2019

10 Unsettling Astronomical Incidents and Phenomena

4 Creepiest Things in Outer Space

Sunday, June 30, 2019

 You know, I'm not willing to argue any philosophy right at this moment, but there are benefits to nihilism. However, it isn't for everybody & I'm not too sure it's for me. Still, there's something to be said in having nothing invested in the future apart from my own comfort & general contentedness. See, I'm not going to lie - & this is just me, mind - but I am a very self-absorbed individual & much of my liberal politics comes from not giving a shit beyond what I think is right. If you don't like that, tough titties, because I ain't got the time.

 Anyhow. Back outside.

Saturday, June 29, 2019

"Fat Man in The Bathtub" (Live) - Little Feat





You know, there are still some poor, sad bastards who don't dig them some Lowell-era Little Feat?

Saturday, June 29, 2019

 Actually managed to not sleep all day & get some stuff done. I don't understand why I'm so sleepy - not tired, exhausted, not getting enough rest - but there you go. I could go back to sleep right now & sleep through the night, but I'm up & about.

 Such as it is. In any event, I'm in the best mood since I had my two days off. Don't get me wrong, I'm not exactly singing with joy & still remain a moody, grumpy bastard, but the weight of the depression is off my shoulders. Why do I want to sleep so much, though? The dreams are weird but boring. Like getting stuck in 2-hour in Tupelo in the old Chevy Silverado I had as a teen. And I get the most random people from my past - people here in Mississippi where I grew up & the folks I met in Gainesville, Athens & New Orleans - rarely someone who was important to me, just someone I remember, usually with light fondness, in a role that could be filled by anyone. I wonder what that means. Maybe it's my mind telling me I really don't have that many friends.

Friday, June 28, 2019

Friday, June 28, 2019

 Woof.

 Wound up sleeping all day again. This time was earned, though, as I was up until 5 a.m. playing Pathfinder: Kingmaker. That's one thing about getting older, I just can't do that anymore. It's a good game, though.

 Man, I slept like the dead, too. Momma's misplaced her checkbook, so she's spent the whole day coming & going, getting payments changed, & I haven't moved. She's wound pretty tight now, & I'm still inclined to go right back to sleep.

 I really need to get this sleeping thing under control. My mood's no better, I'm just too sleepy to go one way or another.

 Anyhow.

Thursday, June 27, 2019

Thursday, June 27, 2019

 Just for record keeping's sake.

"Murder Can Hurt You", ABC, 1980



 You know, I halfway thought I made it up.

 In the late spring of 1980, ABC aired a television movie called Murder Can Hurt You. It was a spoof of television police detectives that made up a surprisingly large percentage of regular network viewing in the '70s. Undoubtedly inspired by 1976's Murder By Death, Neil Simon's brilliant parody of your famous literary "super-genius, sort of weird" detectives of the '30s & '40s, this followed much the same formula: tired of the tropes & cliches, an evil mastermind gathers some of fictional law enforcement's snoopers - their traits & eccentricities highly exaggerated, & roasts all of them for the tired plots, the recycled story lines, & increasingly bland characters.

 Except it's not very good. It's not funny. It's not clever. The impersonations & parodies aren't good. It's sluggish. It was written by a guy who did a mess of late '60s/early '70s sitcoms like Happy Days Gilligan's Island, as well as toy leech favorites like Transformers & G.I. Joe. It smacks of "we need a comedy to fill a dead night, finish it by this weekend" air about it. There are a couple clever, short gags, but most of the actual jokes land with a thud. That, or whatever wit happens gets smeared into the ground by repetition.

 The cast is sort of weird. Burt Young plays a somnabulistic Columbo. Buck Owens can't act at all, bless his ol' heart, but he's playing a parody of Dennis Weaver's "cowboy in the big city" McCloud. And at one point, he's wearing longjohns & you can see his package. You know, I love Buck Owens & I've always read his life went to shit, both artistically & personally, when longtime guitar player/right brain Don Rich died in a motorcycle accident in 1974, & I just thought people were being shitty about Hee Haw. Whew, son. Thank goodness for Dwight Yoakam.

 Anyhow. It's not good. Granted, apart from Colombo, I never cared for the "cop detective" shows. I prefer the private eye like Rockford Files. Even at a young age & fairly conservative, parochial mindframe, I didn't care for the whole idea of cops. I don't know if that's what turned off of them or if it was just a matter of which channel the antenna could pull in.

 You can go to IMDB or Wikipedia & look it up yourself. I come across it today or YouTube, but I'm not sure it was worth taking up space in my brain for 39 years, but there you go.

 Boy, that was bad.

Wednesday, June 26, 2019

Wednesday, June 26, 2019

 Last night it was Vegas, which does make a little sense. I spent a night in Vegas on my recent trip & would love to go back to spend some time there. One of the odd things about these "going back to school but can't make it happen" dreams is I never know where my classes are or, for that mater. I used to be a stickler for such information, but I will freely admit my steadfastness in such matters has diminished over the years.

I'm going to get this out of the way early. I feel another all-day snooze coming on. The depression has set on me like a wet blanket. I am have energy or will to do anything. I went back on the Lithium yesterday, so maybe that'll perk me up. As it is right now, I am definitely in that "lay down & never get up" frame of mind.

Tuesday, June 25, 2019

Tuesday, June 25, 2019

 Well, for whatever reason, I slept today away again. I really don't understand it. I slept fairly well last night & used that infernal machine, but whenever Otis woke me up this morning & I got breakfast in me, I decided a little nap before going to gym was all I needed. And the day is gone.

 Ah, well.

 Can't really remember any specifics about my dream except that I had to come up with ten short stories for some sort of examination & I couldn't think of any. Which I can't now, but that's mainly because I've got a sleep hangover. Anyhow, I prefer short stories to full-length books these days. Short, self-contained little tales that can exist independently or as part of a larger whole (what I call the Wodehouse Technique).

 Plus, they lack the need for  unnecessarily lengthy philosophical digressions in an attempt to give a good yard "heft" or, even worse, crowbared-in love/sex scenes. Book I read the other day that a was a neat little urban fantasy with an intriguing overall plot & series hook was torpedoed by a useless & fairly graphic sex scene just hammered on after the denouement. What was the point of that?

Monday, June 24, 2019

Monday, June 24, 2019

 Just a thought, but is the number of people who've declared for the Democratic nomination that unprecedented? I mean, I get that 24 is a heavy number, but is it so unusual? I want to say that commentators noted the high number of Republican candidates in 2016 - 17 or so - especially considering the paucity in the Democratic field, particularly with the VP not being the favored candidate. I also want to say 1992 was noted for it's robust Democratic field. Maybe I'm misremembering.

 It also occurs to me how uncomfortable being around couples was when I was a kid. Used to make me want to climb the nearest tree, & the impulse stuck with me until I was well into my thirties. It's cool now, though, I almost prefer it.

 This starts the second week of doing this, & I couldn't tell you if it's done any good or not. I have been out on the front porch, enjoying the yard, & could almost say I was struck with a notion. Not a great notion, true, but I will take what I can get.

 Now, two versions of one of the best country songs of all time: "Cherokee Fiddle". Here's the original release by Michael Martin Murphy, & here's the cut by Johnny Lee, featured on the Urban Cowboy soundtrack. The former (released in 1977) hit 58 on the Billboard US Hot Country Charts, while the latter got up to #10 in 1983.

 Got back in deep with Pathfinder: Kingmaker, almost back to where I was before the last update/DLC. It's pretty nifty - I'm partial to a little "no story, just make a team & kick some ass" from time to time. However, it ruined all my portraits & I'm weird about that. Still, it's fun & the update added enough new content so the road already traveled wasn't too tedious. I wish the Pillars of Eternity series had such a feature.

 And sense I'm in a rare good mood, the 1984 television series adapted from/based on the "Sherlock Holmes" books by Arthur Conan Doyle from Britain's Granada Television staring Jeremy Brett as the titular Great Detective &, first, David Burke &, later, Edward Hardwicke as the noble Dr. John Watson is all over YouTube & really good. Check it out. Also on YouTube, clips from "The Amazing World Of Gumball", a Cartoon Network show that has that sort of friendly other worldly wackiness that makes a good cartoon for young kids, middle aged stoners & folks who in general wave their freak flag.

Sunday, June 23, 2019

Sunday, June 23, 2019

 Another weird day of sleeping. After waking up last night, I wound up staying awake until 1 p.m. or so. It's now ten 'till 8 p.m. Another round of dreamless sleep, too, which is always welcome.

 Boy, I got nothing today. I did get to go commune with the front porch today - knock out one half of Oregon - but it was too damn hot to enjoy. I honestly don't remember what was buzzing through my head. I haven't been able to do much lately besides sleep & watch Gumball. No games, no reading, no movies, no fun. Twitter is just dull & the world is too evil & sad to pay much attention to.

 But, on the upside, tonight marks a full week of doing this, keeping a written record of something. I haven't pulled this off since I moved to Algiers Point. So that's something.

Saturday, June 22, 2019

Saturday, June 22, 2019

 Slept until 2:30 p.m. today. Otis woke me up about 6 a.m. & I let him out. Momma had some early errands to run, so I just went back to sleep. Again, actually slept some last night & used that infernal machine like I was supposed to, & I feel like I could sleep for hours. I don't know what's wrong with me, if anything.

 I've been fascinated, lately, with the whole Gram Parsons-Roger McGuinn-Chris Hillman Byrds-Flying Burrito Brothers thing lately. I'm not exactly sure why. Never been that crazy about Parson or into the Byrds, but something about it all is appealing to me right now. Parsons' voice is still too thin & weak to do what he's trying to do, & apart from his two solo albums - which feature Emmylou Harris & what would become Elvis' TCB Band backing him up - he just sounds awful. I did come across him doing Tom Paxton's "The Last Thing On My Mind", though, & he sounded pretty good on Greenwich Village-style folk stuff. And if I had the pick, the best thing I've heard of the whole bunch was the post-Parsons Last Of The Red Hot Burritos live album Hillman did with Rick Roberts.


Friday, June 21, 2019

Friday, June 21, 2019

 I dreamed of Baltimore this morning. I dreamed I was trying to go back to school & was having money troubles. I went to the campus & attended some of the classes, fell in love with the place & tried to talk to someone who might could help me out with scholarships or loans. He told me he couldn't do anything, to be better prepared in my next life, & I left defeated. I woke up thinking, "I've never even been to Baltimore."

 Slept all day again today & still in a furiously bad mood. Couldn't tell you why on either. Slept more or less last night & used the damn machine, but I still woke up feeling like going right back to bed. My cousin's wife & his two kids visited, so we played a bit, but I was so happy when they left. I don't know.

ADDED 10:28 P.M.


Thursday, June 20, 2019

Thursday, June 20, 2019

 Slept pretty much all day again today. Made a trip to Tupelo to see the Therapist, but it wasn't all that interesting a visit. I don't feel like talking to anyone & nothing much happened in the past two weeks, so I just didn't have much new to say. We went over some old stuff & she's thumbs up about this little en devour, but that's about it.

 In a foul a mood. Couldn't tell you exactly why, but there it is. Slept okay last night, except the storm woke me up. The only reason I woke up this evening is because Otis came from outside to jump on the bed, perform his ablutions & then jump right back off to go to sleep in his box. It's the thought that counts, I suppose.

 And that's about that.

Wednesday, June 19, 2019

Wednesday, June 19, 2019.

 Happy Juneteenth.

 I slept most of the day. I don't know why. I didn't stay up late, but as soon as breakfast was put away, I went back & slept until almost 3 p.m. After going to the gym, I slept until almost 7:30 p.m. I'll probably call it an early night, as well.

 I feel awful & I don't understand why. I did fall asleep reading last night & neglected to use my CPAP, & as a new wrinkle, my throat is sore. Sort of. It's like that feeling after you wake up from a commode-hugging drunk & threw up a couple times before you crashed. I didn't throw up, however, I just feel awful.

 I also dreamed about moving home again. I keep having these. They've almost replaced "going back to work" as the go-to cause of misery & stress post-nap. Always about the same, too: me trying to pack, getting told I have a day to move, a bunch of people want to party whether I want to or not, & my brother's always an asshole. Who knows.

 Anyhow, weird today. Almost a crash after the rather pleasant weekend I had with Momma out of town. I don't know. I'm tired.

Monday, June 17, 2019

Monday, June 17, 2019

 Momma called this morning while I was still asleep. She's staying another day to drive her cousin home 'cause it's on the way. So, I've another day to myself. Hot damn. Might make that pizza tonight, might not.

 I must admit the obvious, though. Splendid Isolation kicks ass. The last time I was in this good a mood was the last month I spent in my place in Jefferson. I like being alone. I prefer having minimal to no human contact if at all possible. I have no interest in sex anymore, so any sort of romantic contact simply does not appeal. I prefer to be alone, if just so I don't bother anyone else.

 This is not exactly healthy, though, I'm thinking. Whenever I get the chance to talk to someone worth talking to, I babble like a madman out in the noonday sun. Furthermore, I don't have any interest in interacting with the rest of society, I have nothing invested in the future, & any ideology I espouse or policy I champion it's because I've decided to do otherwise is being a shit ass.

 Now, my therapist will ask, "Why isn't it a good thing?" And I'll say, "I can't put my finger on it, I just know it feels off." Well, that's what therapists are good for, making me ask or even be aware of that question. In any event, it's not a workable situation currently & I don't know really how I'd get from here to there.

 I'd definitely leave the South, though. I don't think it's irredeemable, per say, but I don't think I'm the guy to pull it off. But this shit is just ridiculous. Like the absolute worst-case scenarios dreamt up by the wackiest moonbat happens almost immediately, & the universe doesn't just reset itself out of shame.

 Probably somewhere in northern California or south Oregon, or somewhere out in New Mexico, I liked those places & weed's legal. I'd be one of those guys in a trailer way off the road. Those places have lousy WiFi, though, I'm told, & out here in straight Mississippi, it's bad enough but at least it exists.

Sunday, June 16, 2019

"Fly Me To The Moon" by Frank Sinatra, featuring Count Basie & His Orchestra.

"Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong" - Randy Newman, from his first live album.















 In a nutshell.

Sunday, June 16, 2019

 I've got the house to myself for at least 24 hours. Momma's gone to the funeral, mainly because she wants to visit with some kinfolk we got down there. In particular, she's going to see my aunt & cousins. She was married to Daddy's older half-brother, though they'd divorced by the time I'd come along. The cousins - two female, one male - are all about 15 years older than me & doted on Daddy before he got married. Apparently, between the Marines & Momma, Daddy was a bit of a mess.

 We saw more of them when I was younger, though we lived 4 hours away & you could never bet on how bad Daddy would get when he got around his brothers & George Dickle. For some reason he never said & none of us have been able to ascertain, Daddy didn't seem to want to have much to do with his people once he got sick & sober. We saw my grandfather - one of the sweetest human beings that walked this uncaring world - a couple three times before he died in 2005. Both my uncles had passed by then. Daddy didn't even go to one's funeral. Neither did that uncle's two middle-aged daughters.

 We reconnected with the aunt & two of the cousins when we buried Daddy a couple years ago, & Momma's always felt a little bad we weren't a tenth as connected them as we did with her people. Had we all stayed in Jackson, though, things would be different, I imagine. And whatever reasons Daddy had for why he was were his.

 Today's Father's Day. Call your Daddy if it's something you can do.

Saturday, June 15, 2019

Hank Snow "I've Been Everywhere"





 From some show, probably in 1962 or so. He was a little feller, wasn't he?

Roger Miller was the best, man.





"You Can't Do Me This Way (And Get By With It) from the 1965 album The One & Only.

The Ballad Of Roger Miller





"The Ballad Of Roger Miller" by Homer & Jethro, from the album Somthin' Stupid.

The Illiberal Right Throws a Tantrum

 Good piece by Adam Sewer in The Atlantic. Do check it out.

Saturday, June 15, 2019

 The cool weather's over & it's broke 90. It's supposed to stay pretty hot for the next week when it's not coming a thunderstorm. It was nice while it lasted, but I still say this is going to be a fierce summer overall.

 My cousin's wife's mom died. I didn't know her & I barely know the wife, though I am very fond of her, but the cousin is sort of a black sheep in the family. I won't go into details because it's none of your damn business, but put it this way: my brother says this cousin's the living example of the lack of a good role model. He had his problems, most of which he's worked through (with his wife's help 'cause she's great) & his only problem now is he tends to get drunk & garrulous, failing to recognize when other people are tired of hearing his opinions on how the world works.

 But there's a lot of us that fail to do thus. God knows I'm prone.

Friday, June 14, 2019

Friday, June 14, 2019

 I swear, if you're on Twitter & you have a blue check mark but all your bio mentions is your spouse or your kids or something inconsequential like that, your check mark should be taken away. Your verified, give me a reason to pay you any attention. No one gives a damn if you're married or have kids, that's seriously the least interesting thing about anyone.

 In a foul mood today, couldn't tell you why. Might be the week's black cloud has just weighed on me so much that it's pissed me off. Haven't played any games for like a week, though I did finish Mars The Avenger. It wasn't bad. I'm fascinated by life in the Imperial Roman era & it's a pretty neat little murder mystery beyond all that.

Thursday, June 13, 2019

Thursday, June 13, 2019

 I've had "Carl Perkins' Cadillac" by the Drive-By Truckers stuck in my head all day. It's a good tune. Years ago - coincidentally, about the time the Truckers put out their Southern Rock Opera - my brother joked about writing a rock opera called The Ballad Of Thumper Deal, based around the post-Elvis guitar pickers that were found throughout the South in the '60s & '70 who mixed blues & country, & went mostly ignored in the wake of Beatlemania & the British Invasion & psychedelic rock & what all. Guys like Tommy Tucker & Jumpin' Gene Simmons & Jerry Jaye

 I'm still kicking around the idea of doing something with that concept. Maybe period mysteries set in some smallish state-line town in Mississippi, something like Corinth, but probably made up a la Yoknaphatpha County. Maybe bring in the Dixie Mafia from the Buford Pusser lore. It might all be too heavy for me, but I could probably slide on some of the historical aspects, especially if I invent the town. I still wouldn't mind doing some sort of backwoods Lovecraft thing, but I don't think the two should meet. Just an idea.

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

 After going to gym & before supper, I took a little nap. I wasn't a good nap, it was one of those ones where I kept drifting in & out of sleep. Anyhow, every time I drifted back into sleep, I dreamt I was playing Elite: Dangerous & trying to get past a certain level. It was E:D, but it sounded & was set-up like a Wing Commander game. Every time, I'd get a little closer to the goal but never quite reach it. Then I'd wake up in that drifting, not-quite-awake way, drift back off & start all over again. Why it's odd because E:D & WC are entirely different.

 Look, I said it wasn't always going to be interesting. I'm a little better today. Slept better last night, not quite as defeated today. Still carrying it around, but it's not quite as heavy, I suppose. Worst part is I just have nothing to get excited about.

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

 I wound up sleeping most of the day, but that's okay since I couldn't sleep last night. The trip really through a monkey wrench into my attempts at getting a decent night's sleep. Plus, the recent onslaught of suffocating depression isn't helping much. It's that "sodden blanket" kind where I'm not depressed or even grouchy, just tired of living & all the effort that goes into staying alive.

 Didn't go to the gym today. I woke up around 2:30 like I usually do, but after rolling over & waiting till I felt up to it, it was almost 5 p.m. & just too late. I probably still could, but I just don't feel like it. I don't feel like much of anything, that's the problem.

Monday, June 10, 2019

Monday, June 10, 2019

 This is something new. Travel stimulates me, so I did a little writing during my recent wandering. Now, however, I find myself stuck. So, to take the bull by the horn & write anyway. I figure 500 words a day can be done & if it’s dull, it’s dull. 

 So here I am at the gym, doing the walking machine. I usually stay on the machines, as all I’m doing is trying to keep active. Plus, it’s dark & cool, so most of the time I can read & listen to music in peace & quiet. I really don’t ask for much more than that. 

Sunday, June 9, 2019

"One Hundred Years From Now" - The Byrds





From the 1968 album "Sweetheart Of The Rodeo". This is the McGuinn-Hillmen-Kelly-Parsons version of the band that lasted about this album.

Thursday, June 6, 2019

Dr. John (Nov. 20, 1941 - June 6, 2019)

 Dr. John passed away today. The family announced it in a tweet that he died of a heart attack.

 I don't recall when I became a fan - & I was a fan - but I imagine when I saw him do "Such A Night" on The Last Waltz. Between my brother & myself, we got into his Atlantic era hits, his latter-day role as an ambassador for New Orleans to NPR listeners, then back to his beginning as the hippest hougan, the Night Tripper. Through him, I found Professor Longhair, The Meters & Earl King, the whole host of New Orleans rhythm-&-blues-&-rock-&-roll.

 I saw him live a couple times, both solo & with a full band, & it was always good. Not long before I moved to New Orleans, I read his autobiography Under A Hoodoo Moon, & for the longest time, was my entire conception of what New Orleans was, the town & her people, along with Confederacy Of Dunces and some more scholarly readings on New Orleans voodoo, hoodoo, root doctor past & present. To be honest, part of the reason I moved there was because of those two books, the town's root doctor strain, & Dr. John. Even after living there for nine years, his music still, for me, encapsulates what all of New Orleans - her people, her music, her history, her eccentricities, her charms - means when I try to think of why I want to move back there.

 I met him once. He was my co-worker's friend & AA sponsor. New Orleans is like that. Nothing special, we interacted for all of 10 minutes, chatted about New Orleans & music, & this was long, long after I'd quit even caring about writing about music again. He was a real sweet cat & I dug his songs. Saltue

Ernest Tubb - "Drivin' Nails in my Coffin"

Wednesday, June 5, 2019

"Oh, Come, Angel Band" by the Hee Haw Gospel Quartet





"Oh, Come, Angel Band" by the Hee Haw Gospel Quartet, featuring Kenny Price, Grandpa Jones, Roy Clark & Buck Owens.


"There'll Be A Hot Time In The Old Town Tonight" by Lavern Baker



"There'll Be A Hot Time In The Old Town Tonight", from 1958's Lavern Baker Sings Bessie Smith", Atlantic Records.

"Shine On Harvest Moon" by Leon Redbone



"Shine On Harvest Moon" by Leon Redbone, from the old TNN show "Nashville Now", sometime in the '80s.

Sunday, June 2, 2019

"Me And Billy The Kid"



"Me And Billy The Kid", by Marty Stuart from the album "Hillbilly Rock", 1989

"Catch A Man On The Rise"





"Catch a Man On The Rise", by the Sir Douglas Quintet, from the album "1+1+1=4", 1968