Month: August 2017

Lesson Learned

He’d discovered a small stone in his sandal during his evening walk. He tried dislodging it through contortions that involved kicking. He knew he could remove the sandal and get rid of the stone. He didn’t do that. Instead, as the stone inflicted a more painful moment on a toe, he complained, “Is there anything worse than a stone in your shoe?”

“Maybe,” he replied to himself. “A hair in your soup?”

“That’s not worse.”

“Okay. A shot in the head. Getting stabbed in the heart.”

“I get your point.”

“Acid thrown on your face. Your throat slit. Being set on fire.”

“That’s enough.”

“Starving to death. Dying of thirst. Suffocating. Drowning.”

“Enough!”

He fell silent. That would teach him to talk to himself.

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Felinenists

Felinenists (Catfinition): Cats who believe and forward the proposition that cats are equal to humans, and deserve the same rights, privileges, food, and places to sleep and eat.

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Life Poetry

Moving singing walking dancing choking sleeping eating

Thinking breathing hearing feeling seeing

We hunt the rhythm and listen for the chords

Trying to do the things that need done

To keep what we need

Get what we want

And strive for what we hope for

Kisses go unfelt

Words fade unspoken

Skin is left untouched

And dreams wither

But we go on

Because there’s too much time left to stop

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Today’s Theme Music

Like later, in “Where’s the beef,” I missed out on what was going on with this song, because I was living elsewhere in the world. Contact with American pop culture was intermittent in those days.

I really first heard of it was when I visited Mom after returning to America. My younger sisters lived with her. They loved this song, “My Sharona.” I’d heard little of it, or the Knack. When I mentioned that to them, they replied, “I’m getting a little sick of it. It’s being played all the time.”

This was nineteen seventy-nine, the middle of the disco reign. “My Sharona” was nothing like disco of the time. It reminded me of the early Brit invasion stuff, like “Bang the Gong,” in structure, but with less textures.

The song never really caught fire with me. I was immune to its spell. But – there’s always a but, isn’t there? “Welcome to Heaven.” “I’m made it to Heaven?” “Yes, but, it’s not what you think.” Or, “I love you, but — ”

Yeah. Fear the “but.”

But, I awoke with a variation of “My Sharona” in my head. Here’s Weird Al Yankovic with his parody song, “My Bologna.” It was all in nineteen seventy-nine, when nobody needed to remind the POTUS not to look at the sun without proper eye-protection.

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Feline Rhapsody

Inspired by cats and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” by Queen (and sung to that melody, with the instrumentals). We pick it up about a third of the way in.

I’m just a ginger silhouetto of a cat.

Scalaboosh, scalaboosh, can we give him some kibble?

Thunderbolt and lightning,

His claws are very frightening to me.

Galileo. Galileo.

Galileo. Galileo.

His name’s not Galileo,

Is it Magnifico-ooo-oooo?

Oh, no, no, no, no, NO!

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I’m just a ginger cat, nobody loves me,

He’s just a ginger cat, from a ginger litter,

Let him sleep on the bed tonight.

 

Easy come, easy go,

Let me go back out.

You just came in,

We will not let you out.

Let me out.

We will not let you out.

Let me out.

We will not let you out.

Let me out.

Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, NO!

 

Oh, Mama Mia, Mama Mia,

Mama Mia, can I keep this cat?

You can’t keep this cat because it’ll be more work for me,

For ME,

For MEEEE!

 

So you think you can lock me inside?

So you think I won’t run around and cry?

Oh, human,

You can’t do this to me, human.

I just gotta get out,

Just gotta get right

Outta here.

 

Nothing really matters,

Anyone can see,

Nothing really matters,

I’m just a feline that you must…

Pleeease.

 

Sorry, Queen.

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Today’s Theme Music

Today, Monday, August twenty-first, is the great eclipse day. People in Oregon, where I reside, are almost all beside themselves with anticipation. Today’s theme music is naturally related to the eclipse.

Numerous songs about the eclipse exist. I was drawn to “Eclipse,” by Pink Floyd, from their “Dark Side of the Moon” album. It’s a life-long favorite album, well, since I was seventeen, when it came out. The final words speak to me:

All that you touch
All that you see
All that you taste
All you feel
All that you love
All that you hate
All you distrust
All you save
All that you give
All that you deal
All that you buy
Beg, borrow or steal
All you create
All you destroy
All that you do
All that you say
All that you eat
And everyone you meet
All that you slight
And everyone you fight
All that is now
All that is gone
All that’s to come
And everything under the sun is in tune
But the sun is eclipsed by the moon

It’s a beautiful way of expressing that everything is connected while capturing the irony, everything is in tune, but the moon is eclipsing the sun, so…what has happened?

But then, awakening and looking out into the backyard, where sunshine first appears, I thought, here comes the sun, and wondered how many people at different times of this day have stood, watching the sky, and will say or think, “Here comes the sun.” With those thoughts, it became my choice for today’s music.

“Here Comes the Sun,” the Beatles, nineteen sixty-nine. It’s really appropriate for post-eclipse singing.

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