The Mystery Of Poetry

     

Tucson Weather Today

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At The Writer's Almanac there appeared a poem and a short bio of Robert Pinsky. I did not understand the poem and I do not agree with a quote of Pinsky's published therein.

Here is the quote:

He said: "I think that if an audience for any art is having a good time, they are willing to suspend the need for comprehension for a while -- that's part of the pleasure. [...] And if it doesn't sound good, it is boring even if we understand it. That's the trouble with a lot of boring art: you understand the stupid cop show, or the tedious sitcom gag, too soon and too completely. Same for the stupid middlebrow poem."

LINK

If anyone can explain either the poem, the quote, or both of them to me it would be appreciated.

If not, well... that's all right.



Politics!

Please excuse me for using such a detestable, distasteful, foul, frightful, ghastly, gross, gruesome, hateful, hideous, horrid, horrific, icky, loathsome, lousy, macabre, monstrous, nasty, nauseating, obnoxious, odious, offensive, outrageous, repellent, repugnant, revolting, rotten, scandalous, scuzzy, shameless, shocking, sleazy, stinking, vile, vulgar, yucky excuse for a word.

I believe it was Aristotle who said, "Democracy is when the indigent, and not the men of property, are the rulers." Well, that's the kind of thing I heard time and time again when I was growing up in rural Indiana; I heard, over and over again with only slight variations... "What we gotta do is git them dad-blamed lawyers and college perfessers out o' the guv'ment."

Even though I have said (written) before that I am going to start ignoring (stop watching) the TV and Internet National News about the disgusting machinations of government, I am now saying (writing) it again.

Watching the Sunday morning train wreck that is called 'the news' is the first thing I am going to address. Viewing them is a habit, and I have always heard that the best way to get rid of a bad habit is to replace it with another habit... a better habit. So, instead of sitting in my easy chair in front of the television set staring and cussing at the heavily made-up goons doing their best to persuade me that they are not lying to me, I intend to instead sit before my keyboard and write, write, write.

What's so bad about that?


Oh yes, by the way, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is being accused of government corruption, by members of his own party:

...one of the most notable additions to the 35-page bill was a $2.1 billion increase in funding for a dam under construction on the Kentucky-Illinois border, which just happens to be the home turf of Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). It has raised the alarm bells of conservatives, who have long complained about Republicans who spend heavily on their home states. One group, the Senate Conservatives Fund, immediately christened the dam project the “Kentucky Kickback.”

Read more

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Did You Know . . .?

 The Main Library at Indiana University sinks over an inch every year  because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the  weight of all the books that would occupy the building.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

On this day, October 21 in 1959, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed an executive order transferring the brilliant rocket designer Wernher von Braun and his team from the U.S. Army to the newly created National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Von Braun, the mastermind of the U.S. space program, had developed the V-2 rocket for Nazi Germany during World War II.

At Huntsville, Alabama von Braun oversaw construction of the large Saturn launch vehicles that kept the United States abreast of Soviet space achievements in the early and mid 1960s. In the late 1960s, von Braun's genius came to the fore in the space race, and the Soviets failed in their efforts to build intricate booster rockets of the type that put the first U.S. astronauts into a lunar orbit in 1968. Von Braun's Saturn rockets eventually took 27 Americans to the moon, 12 who walked on the lunar surface. Von Braun retired from NASA in 1972 and died five years later.

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WORD FOR TODAY

machination
noun
1. The act of plotting.
2. A crafty scheme or cunning design for the accomplishment of a sinister end.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

Carrie Frances Fisher

(born October 21, 1956)

Carrie Fisher is an American actress, novelist, screenwriter, and performance artist. She is best known for her portrayal of Princess Leia in the original Star Wars trilogy. She is also known for her bestselling novel Postcards from the Edge and screenplay for a film of the same name, as well as her autobiographical one-woman play, Wishful Drinking, and the non-fiction book she based on it.

Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu

(born October 21, 1949)

Benjamin Netanyahu is an Israeli politician and the current Prime Minister of Israel. He also currently serves as a member of the Knesset, the Chairman of the Likud party, Foreign Affairs Minister and Minister of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs.

Joyce Randolph

(born October 21, 1924)

Joyce Randolph is an American actress, best known for playing Trixie Norton on The Honeymooners.

Will Estes

(born October 21, 1978)

Will Estes (born William Estes Nipper) is an American actor best known for his role as JJ Pryor, on the NBC drama American Dreams. In 2010, he joined the cast of Tom Selleck's CBS police drama Blue Bloods. In the series, he plays Jameson "Jamie" Reagan, a New York Police Department officer and the younger son of the police commissioner, played by Selleck.

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Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you were a member of Congress; but I repeat myself.
--Mark Twain

NASA TV

This Is Who I Am

   

Some Lives by Guest Blogger

     

Some Lives Goes On

(The aquarium arrived as expected on Friday and it's astounding, but I have a more important piece to write.)

Even when we feel like it most assuredly won't, life continues. The sun rises and sets, the seasons change, the cat box needs to be emptied, and bills must be paid.

With Tracker's death, I felt empty. The day to day doings felt useless. Who cares if the phone bill gets paid? What use in eating dinner? Yet habits and duty called, and those things continued to be done.

With every task came its associated thoughts. Dinner brought memories of the care with which we'd not fed Tracker table scraps at his young age (both for learning not to beg, and for his growing body's health). Shutting things down for the night brought a quick reminder to "put the dog out." Working on our still-evolving house brought memories of Tracker's comical and pathetic howling outside the back door during that last painting party.

So many good and painful memories, attacking me at every turn. Tracker's daintiness when eating, his good-natured acceptance of being handled, his hearty nose-thrust when teasing you with a toy. His race to the printer stand whenever the printer was turned on (how did he know?), his tendency to jump in the shower before you could, his stoic obsession to the duty of harassing the cat at every opportunity. His way of being a ham when it counted, and his excellent beginnings in obedience class.

Though I tried not to, I often found my thoughts returning to his last hours. Why and how did he get out of the backyard? The dog he was staying with was still there, the gates shut. Did he climb the fence or was he let out? I could envision either one happening -- he suddenly learns he can get over a six-foot fence (Shelties do it all the time in agility trials) or someone thinks they can get into the yard so they open the gate. Out comes Tracker, all wiggles as he wags his tail at his rescuer. Then comes Bob, all snarls and teeth. The gate is slammed shut, leaving one dog in and one dog out.

Why did he travel? Where did he think he was going?

Tracker didn't know about cars.

By the time we got the call and were out looking for him, his body had already been picked up by Animal Control. By the time I asked God to watch over him, he was already gone.

When we made the decision to put Sindar to sleep, we were braced for the absence of a dog. Even ready for it, it was hard. The silences and the emptiness of the house were strange, unfamiliar things. We agonized over the decision, and we agonized over whether to get another dog. It took us a couple of months to decide to get Tracker. When we did, we geared ourselves mentally for another twelve to eighteen years of having a dog around.

Suddenly that was gone. Vanished, in the blink of a driver's eye, the squeal of brakes. What happened to my twelve to eighteen years? Cheated, I felt. Robbed. And I began to think of getting another dog. Not as a replacement, as someone told me so profoundly, but as a distraction.

When I remembered to put the dog out, there would actually be a dog to put out. When I saw the "nuclear cow" that was Tracker's favorite toy, there would be another dog around to whom it belonged.

I think I talked Harry into it, since I don't think he was quite ready. Still, he's very patient with me and we began to search for another dog.

Enter Tyler.

We saw and decided against a puppy in our town. At six and a half weeks old, it was very cute, but we felt that was too young for the little guy to be sold and while the house was immaculate, the yard the pups were in was dirty and the mom smelled like crap. Literally.

I looked online for Sheltie breeders and found one that sounded hopeful. She had a pup who was almost five months old. A beautiful pup, she said. So we drove to her place, about two and a half hours away.

Tyler, the "five months old Tuesday" pup, is short. Since we'd been used to tall and lanky, he looked very short. But he immediately came to both of us and demanded to be petted. Tracker never really liked petting. Tyler's markings are different. He has a lot more white in the collar area, and less on his face. He's also a lot stockier than we're used to.

We spent some time getting to know Tyler in his environment. He was alert, attentive, playful, and very, very determined that if there was an unoccupied hand, it should be +petting him. We took Tyler home with us.

We have, however, changed his name. "Tyler" wasn't something we were too keen on, but if he'd answered to it, we might have kept it. Repeated usages elicited no response. Even using "Ty-Ty" which was the affectionate version, didn't get an answer. Not even so much as a cocked ear.

What to call him?

We were warned: Tyler gets carsick. Okay, we can deal with that.

Well, yes, in the two and a half hour drive home, Tyler got sick. A lot. (Since then, we've found his limit is about 15 minutes.) We stopped twice to pick up paper towels. Poor Harry had to drive the entire time (I had intended to share the chore) because he'd rather do that than catch vomit. (I don't blame him.)

Tyler's new name? Bounty... after the yards and yards of paper towels we used.

Bounty

Today, Bounty is an energetic, bouncy baby boy. He hasn't been in a car since Tuesday (when he was five months old). He pretty much ignores the cat (who also ignores him) and he's learning to negotiate walking/ running/jumping on newly refinished hardwood floors.

He doesn't react at all when the printer is turned on, and he doesn't race us to the shower. He doesn't understand the commands "heel," "sit," "stay," "floor," or "mine."

He does understand "no," so it's just a matter of learning which parts of the house are "no" and which aren't. And growing up enough to jump up on to the bed.

He's a lover, and an explorer. And he's got the most endearing habit of coming up into your lap and collapsing sideways against you, as if to say, "Here I am. Pet me."

Some people say it's too soon. They're wrong.

We haven't stopped grieving for Tracker. We've simply started loving Bounty, too.


Copyright 2013 Michelle Hakala
http://www.winebird.com/

Era Of Mobile Devices

    
Tucson Weather Today

 

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According to Forrester Research, 50% of all mobile phones in use in the U.S. are smartphones with this number expected to reach 75% by 2016.

The total number of U.S. smartphone users is believed to have topped 100 million early in 2012. There are over 500,000 apps in the Apple App Store. Over one million apps are downloaded every 49 minutes.

Scientific studies have shown how using technology can elicit the same kind of euphoric response in the brain that you might see in a drug addict. That’s a lot of connected people doing a lot of stuff on their phones and getting a lot of satisfaction from it.

I do not own a smartphone. I do not own a dumb mobile phone. Here is a startling fact: I don't own any kind of mobile phone. And I don't plan to ever own one.

It's not that I have anything against a mobile device. Before I retired, back when I was still gainfully employed and 'on-call' 24/7, I was a perpetual slave, at any time day or night, to the summons of both a company beeper and a company owned cellular telephone.

But now I have no need for such intrusive appurtenances, and I have no wish to allow such annoyances to once again own me.

A technophobe I most definitely am not. I do own a hard-wired home phone. I paid $1.25 for the handset two years ago, and I pay about $15 each month to CenturyLink for providing telephone service (bundled with extra Internet access fees.) And I own a modern computer, which allows me all the Internet access I need... or want.

Besides, I rarely go anywhere.

I'm not an excessively mobile person.

Nor am I a 'social' person, but I am subscribed to Facebook. I don't know why. Most of my Facebook 'friends' consist of family members or close acquaintances, people whose activities I have an interest in hearing about. I read Facebook postings but seldom contribute.

I also belong to the perplexing Twitter group. But I am considering signing off from it.

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Did You Know . . .?

When opossums are playing 'possum, they are not "playing." They actually pass out from sheer terror.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

On October 19, 1982, the automaker John Z. DeLorean is arrested and charged with conspiracy to obtain and distribute 55 pounds of cocaine. DeLorean was acquitted of the drug charges in August 1984, but his legal woes were only beginning. He soon went on trial for fraud and over the next two decades was forced to pay millions of dollars to creditors and lawyers. Nevertheless, DeLorean occupies an important place in automotive history: Thanks to its starring role in the 1985 film "Back to the Future," his gull-wing sports car is one of the most famous cars in the world.

DeLorean was already mired in legal problems by the time director Steven Spielberg chose a DMC–12 to serve as Marty McFly's time machine in "Back to the Future." Spielberg had originally planned to use an old refrigerator instead of a car, but had changed his mind at the last minute.

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WORD FOR TODAY
smartphone
noun
a cellular phone that is able to perform many of the functions of a computer, typically having a relatively large screen and an operating system capable of running general-purpose applications.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

John Arthur Lithgow
(born October 19, 1945)

John Lithgow is an American character actor, musician, and author. Lithgow has been involved with a wide range of media projects, including stage, television, film, and radio. He also has written and published several books of poetry and children's literature. He appeared in the films The World According to Garp (1982) and Terms of Endearment (1983).

Lithgow is well known for his roles as the Reverend Shaw Moore in Footloose, Dick Solomon on the NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun, the voice of Lord Farquaad in Shrek, and Arthur Mitchell on Showtime's Dexter.

Divine
(Oct 19, 1945 – Mar 7, 1988)

Divine (born Harris Glenn Milstead) was an American actor, singer and drag queen. Associated with independent filmmaker John Waters, he was a character actor, usually performing female roles in cinematic and theatrical appearances, and adopted a female drag persona for his music career; People magazine described him as the "Drag Queen of the Century".

Evander Holyfield
(born October 19, 1962)

Evander Holyfield is a retired American professional boxer. He is a former Undisputed World Champion in both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions, earning him the nickname "The Real Deal." After winning the bronze medal in the Light Heavyweight division at the 1984 Summer Olympics, he debuted as a professional at the age of 21.

LaWanda Page
(Oct 19, 1920 - Sept 14, 2002)

LaWanda Page born Alberta Peal, was an American actress and comedienne best known for her role as Aunt Esther in the 1970s TV sitcom Sanford and Son. She later reprised the role in Sanford Arms and Sanford.

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"Smartphones are tools which fools fiddle with when they are around people that they don’t have the courage, or, the intellect, to converse with."
--Mokokoma Mokhonoana

This Is Who I Am

    

A Cold Morning In Tucson

    

Tucson Weather Today

 

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It was difficult to read the thermometer on the wall out on the pool deck this morning when I took Eva out for her early morning run and necessities call, but I think it was indicating 40 degrees (F.)

Although this low temperature did not seem to bother Eva at all, it spurred me to hurry her along and get us back inside.

Now I am comfortably seated in front of the keyboard, but find I have nothing noteworthy to report here in the blog.

I was planning to write about my opinion of celebrities, and celebrity in general. But then I realized I know very little about the subject.

Oh well . . .


I heard a TV news person announce that this weekend is a good time to go out, look up in the sky, and see tons of shooting stars -- and I wondered when the term 'shooting stars' will die its deserved death and the proper term, meteors will be used. But I realize that many people (mainly Christians) still believe the phenomenon to actually be 'stars' falling to Earth.

There is to be a full moon at the time, which will affect the meteor sightings.

Wouldn't you know it.

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Did You Know . . .?

The airplane Buddy Holly died in was the "American Pie." (Thus the name of the Don McLean song.)

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WORD FOR TODAY

luminary [LOO-mih-nahr-ee]
noun
1. An object, such as a celestial body, that gives light.
2. A person who is an inspiration to others.
3. A person who has achieved eminence in a specific field.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

Michael Keller Ditka
(born October 18, 1939)

Mike Ditka is a former American football NFL player, television commentator, and coach. Ditka coached the Chicago Bears for 11 years and New Orleans Saints for three years. Ditka and Tom Flores are the only two people to win an NFL title as a player, an assistant coach, and a head coach. Ditka is also the only individual in modern NFL history to win a championship with the same team as a player and a head coach. Ditka was the only person to participate in both of the last two Chicago Bears' championships, as a player in 1963 and as head coach in 1985.

Erin Marie Moran
(born October 18, 1960)

Erin Moran is an American actress, best known for the role of Joanie Cunningham on Happy Days and its spin-off Joanie Loves Chachi.

Lee Harvey Oswald
(Oct 18, 1939 - Nov 24, 1963)

Lee Harvey Oswald was, according to four government investigations, the sniper who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963.

Dawn Elberta Wells
(born October 18, 1938)

Dawn Wells is an American actress best known for her role as Mary Ann Summers on the CBS sitcom, Gilligan's Island, during its run from 1964 until 1967.

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A celebrity is one who is known to many persons he is glad he doesn't know.
--Lord Byron

This Is Who I Am
    

Movies, Etc.

    

Tucson Weather Today

 

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I watched a movie starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson... Lost In Translation.

The film revolves around an aging actor named Bob Harris (Murray) and a recent college graduate named Charlotte (Johansson) who develop a rapport after a chance meeting in a Tokyo hotel. The movie explores themes of loneliness, insomnia, existential ennui, and culture shock against the backdrop of a modern Japanese city.

What the hell?

Scarlett Johansson

 

 

Wikipedia says Lost in Translation was a major critical success and was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Bill Murray, and Best Director for Sofia Coppola.

The film was also a commercial success, grossing almost $120 million from a budget of only $4 million.

I thought it was boring and meaningless.

I an glad there are so many other movie viewers who are more sensitive and more perceptive than I. It makes the world a more interesting place in which to live.


Last night I watched, for about the third time, Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday.

Good movie.

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Did You Know . . .?

There are coffee flavored PEZ.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

On this day, October 17 in 1989, the deadliest earthquake to hit the San Francisco area since 1906 struck at 5:04 p.m. and lasted for 15 seconds. The quake measured 7.1 on the Richter scale, and its aftermath was witnessed on live television by millions of people watching the third game of the World Series of baseball between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics, held at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The tremor hit moments before the start of the game, and sportscasters were soon performing the duties of news anchors as they reported on the resulting pandemonium in the stadium. The earthquake killed a total of 63 people, while more than 3,000 others were injured and more than 100,000 buildings were damaged.

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WORD FOR TODAY

corollary
noun
1.  an immediate consequence or easily drawn conclusion.
2.  a natural consequence or result.
3.  Mathematics a proposition that is incidentally proved in proving another proposition.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

Irene Ryan
(October 17, 1902 - April 26, 1973)

Irene Ryan was an American actress, one of the few entertainers who found success in vaudeville, radio, film, television and Broadway. Ryan is most widely known for her portrayal of "Granny" on the long-running TV series The Beverly Hillbillies (1962–1971)

Mae Carol Jemison
(born October 17, 1956)

Mae Jamison is an American physician and NASA astronaut. She became the first black woman to travel in space when she went into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on September 12, 1992.

George Robert Wendt III
(born October 17, 1948)

George Wendt is an American actor, best known for the role of Norm Peterson on the television show Cheers.

Margaret Ruth "Margot" Kidder
(born October 17, 1948)

Margot Kidder is a Canadian-American actress. She appeared in a wide range of films during the 1970s and 1980s such as Sisters, Black Christmas, The Great Waldo Pepper, The Amityville Horror, and Heartaches. She is best known for her role as Lois Lane in four Superman movies opposite Christopher Reeve, beginning with Superman in 1978.

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A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work.
--Colin Powell

This Is Who I Am

    

A Personal Opinion Rant

    

Tucson Weather Today

 

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The night before last night, when I laid aside the book I was re-reading (The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie) just before I fell asleep, I had a thought that I figured would make a good subject for the next day's blog entry The thought was: Alcohol is an addictive toxic substance that should be avoided at all times, used neither in moderation nor as a social prop, but severely self-restricted -- in other words, never used for any reason or purpose.

Beer, wine, and hard liquor were just as toxic when I used it copiously back during my teenage years in the 1950s, but of course I didn't know that at the time. As I said, I was a teenager, which meant that I knew everything and everyone who disagreed with me was stupid.

Yes, that was my final thought before falling asleep the night before last. But the next morning I didn't remember it until late in the afternoon, and I had already published my entry for the day.

Now I am trying to write about it. But, as always, I'm having difficulty focusing on the subject, which is that alcohol is BAD, and never good, no matter how it is portrayed by the advertising media.

Alcohol usage is BAD.

IT'S ALWAYS BAD.

 

 

Don't drink and drive.

Don't drink and not drive.

Don't drink.

Never, never, never.

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Did You Know . . .?

The only 15 letter word that can be spelled without repeating a  letter is uncopyrightable.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

On this day, October 16 in 1991 George Jo Hennard drove his truck through a window in Luby’s Cafeteria in Kileen, Texas, and then opened fire on a lunch crowd of over 100 people, killing 23 and injuring 20 more. Hennard then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide.

The rampage at the Central Texas restaurant began at approximately 12:45 p.m. and lasted about 15 minutes. Witnesses reported that the 35-year-old gunman moved methodically through the large crowd, shooting people randomly and reloading his weapon several times.

Another outcome of the Luby’s massacre was that in 1995 the Texas legislature passed a law allowing residents with gun permits to carry concealed weapons.

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WORD FOR TODAY

ethyl alcohol
noun
1. a colorless, volatile, flammable liquid, C2H5OH, produced by yeast fermentation of carbohydrates or, synthetically, by hydration of ethylene: used chiefly as a solvent and in beverages and medicines.
2. an intoxicating liquor containing this liquid.

Alcoholic beverages have been consumed by humans since the Neolithic era; the earliest evidence of alcohol was discovered in Jiahu, dating from 7000–6600 BCE. The production and consumption of alcohol occurs in most cultures of the world, from hunter-gatherer peoples to nation-states.

Alcohol has been found outside the Solar System. It can be found in low densities in star and planetary-system-forming regions of space.

Note: Just imagine drunken extraterrestrial aliens.

Good God! That could be an idea for an interesting Science Fiction story.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

Suzanne Somers
(born October 16, 1946)

Suzanne Somers is an American actress, author, singer and businesswoman, known for her television roles as Chrissy Snow on Three's Company and as Carol Lambert on Step by Step.

Timothy Francis "Tim" Robbins
(born October 16, 1958)

Tim Robbins is an American actor, screenwriter, director, producer, activist and musician. He is known for his roles as Nuke in Bull Durham, Jacob Singer in Jacob's Ladder, Griffin Mill in The Player, Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption, and as Dave Boyle in Mystic River.

Kellie Noelle Martin
(born October 16, 1975)

Kellie Martin is an American television actress who is known for her roles as Rebecca "Becca" Thatcher in Life Goes On, Christy Huddleston in Christy, Lucy Knight on ER, and Samantha Kinsey in Mystery Woman.

Pamela Bach
(born October 16, 1963)

Pamela Bach (also known as Pamela Bach-Hasselhoff) is an American actress. Like her ex-husband, David Hasselhoff, Bach receives more attention in Europe than she does in America. She has appeared in the films: Appointment with Fear, Nudity Required, Route 66, More than Puppy Love, and Castle Rock.

She has appeared in the TV shows: Baywatch, The Young and the Restless, Sirens, Viper, and Celebrity Big Brother.

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An American monkey, after getting drunk on brandy, would never touch it again, and thus is much wiser than most men.
--Charles Darwin

This Is Who I Am

    

10-15-13

    

Tucson Weather Today

 

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Eva came into my bedroom and woke me up way too early this morning. It's still dark outside but she has camped in front of the back door, waiting for me to take her out. I doubt if she has to do her business and just wants to run around and around and around the pool. That dog has so much energy.

 

Oh well, it's more pleasant to sit out there at the patio table on the pool deck drinking coffee and listening to the radio while she circumnavigates the pool in the nippy autumn morning air than to merely think and to listlessly compose endless drivel.

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This Is Who I Am