The barista and I chatted when I ‘ordered’. Ordering wasn’t needed; my order was known and delivered before I reached the counter.
During our chat, it was somehow revealed that the barista was 20 years old. Then it came out that her father was three years older than her when he became a father (she was the oldest), and she couldn’t imagine that. She was nowhere ready to be a parent, herself.
I, meanwhile, did the math, and made that her father was probably about 43 years old. Meaning, he wasn’t born when the Stones song I listened to on the car radio on the way to the coffee shop was released (“Wild Horses”, 1970). Curious, I asked her if she knew who the Stones were. Yes, she said. She knew them because Dad was a fan. His older brother had introduced him to them after their parents introduced the Stones to the older brother. All this made me think that her grandparents were probably just a few years older than me.
And all of this is so right and fine, and amusing.
Mood: coffeebitious: a hopeful state of mind fed by coffee consumption
Thursday, February 29, 2024, has touched down. The month ends tomorrow, leaving just ten months of 2024 remaining.
I let Papi out at 6:06 this morning, the usual time that he begins crying to leave us. There was enough light that I let him out, suspecting he’d be returning in 20 minutes. Yes, at 6:30, I answered his call to come back in. I noticed it’d been raining and went by Alexa* to inquire about the temperature.
“It’s 44 degrees in Ashland,” she answered. “Today’s high is 44 degrees.”
Oh.
That’s all Fahrenheit, though she didn’t mention it. An hour later, letting Papi back in again, I discovered snowflakes big as silver dollars falling and accumulating. I checked with Alexa about the temp: 34, she told me.
It snowed for an hour more. The northern mountains and ridges were covered down to 3000 feet while the southern view had sparse snow sprinkled over the dark conifers. Now, about 11 AM, a smattering of snow remains but it’s dwindling. The temperature is back up to 41 F. No sun has broken through the sky’s uniformly off-gray cover, but the clouds are thin enough that the sun is almost breaking through. Light rain keeps windshield wipers busy.
Now to the asterisk. Current days, I find myself consulting five different weather sources, including Alexa. I have a home system that seems moderately accurate, but I constantly seek verification of its accuracy. Southern Oregon University has a weather station set up that I also check. A mile away and fifteen hundred feet lower, it’s not good for my location but it features a nice set of historic data for comparisons. A friend has set up a Wunderground station for his house, but he’s on a higher elevation and almost two miles away. Surrounded by trees, living on a mountain’s northern side, his weather varies from mine, but it’s nice to note what another part of town is experiencing. The other two are online offered by browsers and are usually fed by Weather.com. They’re not as accurate for me but they have nice forecast trend models which present some idea of what the weather will be beyond today.
Dreams swarmed my mind last night. At the final dream’s end, I found “I Remember You” filling the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks). Written in 1941, I know the song well because I heard it often by different performers while navigating my teens in the 1960s. The song has been covered a lot. Most did it as a torch song. Even the Beatles did it. But the version I best knew was sung by a woman to an up-tempo arrangement. I cannot find that version and don’t know who it was singing it. Nor does Mom know.
That let The Neurons down some, but as I was searching, I came across other interesting songs. One was “I Remember You” by Skid Row, a 1989 power ballad not anything like “I Remember You” with Johhny Mercer’s lyrics. I remember hearing Skid Row’s song on the radio as I drove around to and from work and all that. While searching, I also slid sideways into “Remember (Walking in the Sand)”. The Neurons dished both the Shangri-Las and Aerosmith versions into the MMMS. More interesting to me was Lena Horne singing a song written in 1933, “Stormy Weather”. I knew that song well, too, and her voice and style mesmerized me. So that’s today’s theme music. Although several videos exist of her giving tremendous performances in her youth and middle age, I went with one when she was 80. BTW, it sounds like the guitarist supporting her might have been George Benson. Seems like his style.
Stay strong, lean forward, be positive, and vote, yeah? I’ll do the same, as best as I can. Coffee helps, and I have had a cup so I raring to go. Have a good one. Here’s the music. Cheers
It’s the next to last day of February – Wednesday, 2/28/24. Sunshine came through when I went through the house opening the blinds. The furnace was running. Alexa told me it was 30 F out and the high today would be 57 F. Snow collected like dcorators had spray painted the mountains’ shadowy green firs and pines. A few minutes later, clouds had supplanted the sunshine and the trees had lost their lacy white clothing. This is Ashlandia weather. It’s Oregon weather.
Winter storm warnings are out. Rain is coming. Colder temperatures. Snow, depending on your elevation, but the weather people claim we’ll probably get snow on the valley floof. Certainly folks located at 2,000 feet, like our place, will see some.
The house floofs are unconcerned. Tucker has sacked himself in front of the office space heater that my wife uses to fry herself. Papi, being young, is in washing and wandering around. He just peeked in around the door to see what I was doing, gave his belly a few tongues lashes, and left. Guess I was boring to him.
On Tucker’s part, he’s on meds to get his hyperactive thyroid under control. Dental surgery is planned for him at the end of March. He suffers from stomatitis gingivitis. He’d already lost two of his fangs; I found a third one on the bedroom carpet this week. Only one remains. My poor buddy.
I have Linkin Park’s song “In the End” in my morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks). The Neurons were inspired to play it for me after reading that the song is RIAA Diamond Certified. Released in 2001, they’ve now sold over 10,000,000 copies. Well done, gang. I enjoy the song, about trying hard, time, and how life is affected by your effort.
A word on Sen. Mitch McConnell stepping down from his GOP leadership position. One, about damn time. Two, yes, well he is 82. Three, he’s leaving behind a rich legacy of obstruction and hypocrisy, and can claim some ownership of the mess the GOP has become under his leadership. History will have a sharp tongue about him.
Stay positive, be strong. Lean forward. Vote. And have a coffee. I am. Here’s the music. Cheers
‘Brrr’ cold covers Tuesday morning’s description. It’s February 27, 2024. Feb 31 is just around the corner (not really). Spring is too, in theory, but winter is saying, put me in, coach. 30 F when I slunk out of bed, our temperature eventually chugged up to the mid-forties but it didn’t feel warm. Even comfortably furred floofies said no thank you to the scattered clouds and tepid sunshine owning the morning. Returning to the inside, they situated themselves in comfortable warm places, said good night to daylight, and went to sleep.
My wife and I went running around this morning. A late morning breakfast at the excellent Sweet Beet Station in Talent, Oregon, and then over to Quality Paperbacks, where we picked up another half dozen books, because the waiting to read pile can never be too big. Then to a few stores for a couple items, and here I am, starting my writing day in the mid-afternoon.
The floofs inspired The Neurons’ song choice this morning. As they clamored for their morning meal, I told them to take it easy, I’d be with them in a minute, but some things were needed to be done ahead of time. These things TBDone including mixing up Tucker’s medical slurry. While I was doing that, West and Petty’s electrified guitars lit up the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks).
In truth, I think the song was lurking beneath my mind’s covers, waiting for a chance to leap up. After all, Petty sings about an “American girl raised on promises.” This is an era of promise and denial in America IMO. Like, yes, being told that women have equal rights under the Constitution only to have those rights stripped away by a right wing trying to force its religion on the rest of us. I’m talking about abortion, of course and the Dobbs decision overruling women’s right to take care of themselves in favor of something growing inside them. It may be 2024, but the logic of 1984 is gaining strength. Take Texas, for example.
Sorry, politics just keep bubbling up in my thinking. I’ll try to keep it contained.
BTW, “American Girl” was the last song Tom Petty performed in concert before he passed away.
Stay positive, be strong, lean forward, and vote, please. Here’s the music. Cheers
Rain is bashing Monday’s windows in Ashlandia, where the beer is above average. Today is the 26th of Feb, 2024. We closing in on March. Winter has begun an offensive to take back its season in our area. Today’s high was 42 F, reached about an hour ago. Now it’s 40 and is expected to drop to 29 F. A winter storm advisory or watch or something is in effect until tomorrow. The cats are dissatisfied with this state of play. Both wanted out. Tucker returned shortly. Papi is matloafing out there under the patio’s protection, staring at the rain with slitted eyes. Either he’s drifting to sleep or he’s sending stinging eye messages to nature to stop this now.
Looking out, my wife proclaims, “It definitely looks like it wants to snow.”
Found myself with “How to Save A Life” by The Fray from 2006 in the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks). The Neurons aren’t owning up to why the song is being played. I don’t recall the last time I heard the song but the adult contemporary rock tune seems to stay popular with FM radio station and can also be heard time to time on streaming radio and satellite venues. Not a bad song but it sounds quit a bit like their other big hit, “Over My Head”. “How to Save A Life” has been used a number of times on television shows, so we’ll always have repeats to hear it again. Nothing wrong with that.
Papi is back in. The temp has dropped to 36 F. Rain fails. Stay positive, be strong, lean forward, vote. I’m also drinking coffee, so I have that going for me. Here’s the music, and here we go.
Welcome to Sunday, February 25, 2024, where the sun is above average in Ashlandia. Spring seems to be cementing its hold as our current season. 55% chance of snow in our area in the next 7 days. 47 F now we’re heading for the same region for a high as yesterday, about 65 F. I’m sipping coffee and assessing the sky. Faded blue around the horizons, clues point to clouds creeping around the valley’s protective mountains and ridges. There’s no precipitation anticipated for today.
The cats are lovin’ it. Tucked into a loaf, Tucker has taken up the living room catbird seat. I raised the blind and sunshine is dumping on him, and he has a sweet backyard view. Papi, of course, being the rugged floof he is, is out on on the sunwashed back patio, braving the clear sky and sunshine as he grooms.
We spent yesterday running around on a staycation. No writing for me and little computer time. No errands were run; we just explored and buzzed around they valley. Sadly, we found two of our favorite used bookstores have been lost to history. A third, Bookmarks, has moved closer, making it more accessible. That’s four used bookstores gone to the area since we’ve lived here. We still have two new bookstores and two used ones. I wonder if someone will open another. Lot of vacant business locations available for rent.
Speaking of that, we went to the Rogue Valley Mall. Haven’t been there since last summer. We’re not really mall people. Fascinating to in and see what’s gone. Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Victoria’s Secret. We didn’t know what were in other places. Looked like seven or eight empty spaces. Wasn’t overly busy for a Saturday. We’re of the belief that most people prefer shopping online these days. Escape traffic and crowds.
Today’s music is Beyonce’s country song, “Texas Hold ‘Em” (2024). By topping one of Billboard’s country and western charts, Beyonce became the first black woman in history to have a #1 country song. I was interested in it because I heard it briefly during the Super Bowl, and then my wife played it for me again. The Neurons were wrestling with what they thought of it and kept it in the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks), strangely, alongside George Benson and “On Broadway”. I find the videos unusual. One just has a gun on a church firing. I watched for something else to happen but it didn’t. The other showed people dancing; it was mostly their legs and feet. The video also shared Beyonce modeling different outfits. I’ve included both of these videos.
Then there’s also a visualization. I’ve included it so we may keep up with pop trends.
Of course, it being Beyonce, a black woman, the bouncy upbeat song has found controversy. One Oklahoma radio station refused to play it with the excuse that they’re a country station and don’t play Beyonce. They added that this song also had to chart higher before they would play it. Also, ahem, and this is a big ahem, they weren’t aware that it was country. So, you know, they fully vetted the song before responding.
Stay strong, be positive lean forward, and vote. I’ve had coffee, thanks. Off to write now. Be good, y’all. Here’s the music. Cheers
Sunshine began early on this Saturday, hunting out the cracks between the blind slats and dispatching the dark. I raised the blinds to enjoy the full performance, comforted by warmth and light as the sun worked is way over the mountains and trees and through my southern windows, eventally engulfing the eastern views, too.
55 F now, it’s 02242024 today. No clouds darken our blue skies. Views to the mountains are clear as day… Today’s high is s’posed to be 62 F. Yesterday we saw 65 F, so I think something over 62 might be possible. Hard to say, though. The weather is fickle as a young floof. And snow is on the way next week. We won’t hold our breath but we will keep a weather eye out.
Today’s music comes by way of Jill Dennison’s choice. She had Stevie Wonder performing “Superstition” on Tom Jones’ TV show. I thought of Stevie Ray Vaughn’s cover of “Superstition” with Double Trouble. Naturally Les Neurons cranked it up in the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks), almost overcoming a song already in the MMMS. But then someone else commented on Jill’s site, mentioning Stevie Ray. That sold the song’s place as today’s theme music.
Hope you have fine weather for what you’re doing today. Be strong, stay positive, keep leaning forward, and vote when you can. Here’s the music. Coffee has already found its home in my body.
Hello, my fellow voyagers. (Pause: made me think of an old series, “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea”. No, that’s not where we’re going, fingers crossed, knock wood. But do you remember the Irwin Allen series?)
Today is Friday, 02232024. Outside bubbles with spring-like sunshine under a clear blue sky and a gentle, friendly wind. Things are blooming and green is showing up. Snow? Sadly, no snow in our area. 57 F now, that’s what was called out as the high, so we may see warmer late afternoon temperatures.
Think the floofs are happy? You betcha. This warm stuff has Papi galloping around like a youngster. Tucker watches the other, plotting moves by the look in his eyes, but instead, he faces the sun and washes his gleaming white and black fur in the sunshine.
Read a lot of news and politics this morning but I’ve decided to veer away from those things for the day. The Neurons are feeding the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks) with The Replacements and their ripping song, “Can’t Hardly Wait”. Good driving beat to the song.
First, it was triggered by an episode of The Bear a couple weeks ago, taking me back to 1987, when I first heard it. During that period, I was stationed in South Carolina but heading to Egypt for six weeks of some fun in the sand. The Neurons returned it to me by a single line, “I’ll be home when I’m sleeping,” itself triggered from a dream trilogy.
The Egyptian experience was definitely memorable. Besides visiting the Pyramids and Sphinx, and meeting many lovely citizens of that nation, there was the experience of solar cooking our MREs on the tops of tents and coping with duststorms and scorpions. Best, I think, though, was the daily shower experience. Lining up across the desert as the sun rose found us shivering. We’d file into the shower tent so many at a time, strip down, and stand around a pole with six shower heads. Then hot water on for three minutes to wet down. Another minute off for soaping up, and then another minute to rinse off. Then dry and dress and walk back across the dusty, sandy desert to stow your gear and head to the chow tent for some freshly reconstituted powdered eggs.
Later in the day, the bombing runs would begin with various fighter and bombers coming in low and fast to pretend they’re attacking our camp. A little noisy, yes.
Stay positive, remain strong, lean forward, and vote, and I’ll do the same. But first, coffee! Here’s the music. Seize the day, my friends. Cheers
While it’s Thursday, February 22, 2024, the weather has twisted toward spring here in Ashlandia in southern Oregon. Winds be blowing with a wintry taste but sunshine blinds the eyes and blue sky mixes it up with piecemeal white and gray clouds. None of the clouds are large but they can be something if they unite and stay together.
It’s 54 F now after mid 30s as our overnight lows, and will tweak a few more degrees north of the current temp. The cats are not happy with the situation. “It’s the wind,” they complain. “Too much damn wind for our whiskers.”
The house painting is done and the bill is paid. $7650. Looks fab, though, and we’re happy with it, so I guess it’s worth it.
The Neurons have infiltrated the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks) with some Rush flavored prog rock, aka progressive rock or prock. Today’s song is “New World Man” from 1982. I can’t find the roots of its presence in the MMMS, only that sometime while I was in the kitchen after feeding the floof boys, that song was in my head as I prepped my brekkie. It’s a song I know from a military co-worker on Okinawa. Rush music was a big staple of his listening hoard. He considered them severely underrated and unappreciated.
Stay positive, be strong, lean forward, and vote. That’s all we ask of you; is that so much? I hope not. Coffee has been served and sampled. Here we go, into the winds of a new day. And here’s the music. Cheers
Hey guys, here we are, on Wednesday, 02212024. Or 21022024. Or 20240221. All are right, depending on your region, or maybe your profession.
Sprinter has popped back into Ashlandia. Dollops of gray clouds drop rain that glisten with sunshine. Everything is blooming. Snow? What is this thing called snow? Describe it for me, please. Amendment: that was snark. There’s some snow on the mountains shadowing our valley.
It’s 46 F now, and we’re projected to progress to 57 F before the sun pulls the shades on the day and the weather unplugs the warmth. 36 F will be our low tonight. Not bad.
I’m into GOP politics today. Trump’s changing stories about the classified documents he wouldn’t give up keeps me laughing. There were no classified documents because he declassified them, he said at first. Oh, wait, the FBI planted it there.No, no, I didn’t have to turn it over he’s saying now, and we were talking about turning them over when the FBI raided Mar-a-largo. Which, if we follow his thinking, means there were classified documents which he hadn’t turned over, so he lied from the start. And it was protected better than Biden’s classified documents, which is irrelevant, and shows again, that there were classified materials which he didn’t turn over. Doesn’t matter how protected he claims the classified documents were. The point is, he wasn’t supposed to have them, was supposed to return them, tried to hide them, and continually lied about them.
His continuing spin is worthy of a soap opera. “As the Trump Turns” or “General Bullshit”, we can call his shitshow. Who in their right mind will believe these shifting sands of explanations?
Well, I wrote, ‘in their right mind’. That eliminates many GOP members, politicians, and supporters. Take for instance, the state of play with electing and retaining a speaker. The maniac arm of the MAGA GOP make it a point of contention to turn down any bill or measure that might be actual governing, and then forced Speaker McCarthy out after he so desperately pursued the office. Now Mike Johnson has taken over and faces the same demonic situation. Then these fine representatives blamed everyone else for the mayhem they keep causing.
For example, look at the immigration issue. The GOP and their supporters are supposedly up in arms about that problem. GOP state governors are declaring that President Biden and the Democrats aren’t doing enough, even as GOP governors illegally block the Federal government from taking action. Meanwhile, back on Capitol Hill, a bi-partisan bill was created only to have the Speaker and the maniacs withdraw support on orders from Dear Leader, Donald Trump. All but Trump supporters see through this play. Trump and the spineless GOP don’t want an effective answer for the immigration issue and the southern border at this time. Yet one of the maniacs, Marjorie Taylor Green, predictably steps up to complain nothing is being done even after she voted to do nothing.
Their hypocrisy is breathtaking but not surprising. The Trump GOP thrives on selling fear on the issue to their supporters. If a bill is passed, that makes President Biden and the Democrats look effective. The GOP can’t do that! That’s about the single issue they can depend on at this point to keep supporters in line because they’ve fucked themselves with complete abortion bans and the persecution of women for daring to try to make decisions about their own bodies. Now they’re fucking themselves over supporting NATO and the Ukraine. They’re abandoning everything the United States became after WWII.
If you didn’t understand it before, understand it now. The Trump GOP is not progressive. Throwbacks to the Nazi Germany era, the Trump GOP is willing to support a dictator on the basis of no other position but to stay in power. They fear everyone but whites. They even attack powerful women — say a young singer like Taylor Swift, to name one of many women they’ve attacked under Trump — and are eager to shut everyone down except white men, especially wealthy white men. They love themselves wealthy white men and bend over to fuck themselves if they can help wealthy white men. That wealthy white men will save the world is the foundation of their trickledown theory of government.
We shouldn’t be surprised. White ‘Christians’ are one of the GOP’s largest sects. They’ve been afraid of Jews since before WWII and have been eager to undermine democracy in order to stop the Jews. All this is fed by baseless conspiracies. The GOP, as it’s evolved, has depended more and more upon unfounded conspiracy theories to garner support. Are we witnessing its zenith as they support the baseless lies — proven in US courts — that Donald Trump had the election stolen from him, and that they government is actually being run by a shadow government? What happens in the elections of 2024 will reveal much about the GOP and the foundations of democratic republic known as the United States.
With all this happening, The Neurons started singing, “Don’t mess with a MAGA man,” this morning. Up popped the Eurythmics with “Missionary Man” (1986) in the morning mental music stream (Trademark coming in two weeks). It’s an ironic use by The Neurons as they chuckle at the GOP white christians and evangelicals declare that the serial sinner, liar, and adulterer known as Donald J. Trump, a very wealthy man who hoards his wealth and hates any and all who dare criticize him, threatening violence at every turn, is God’s chosen to lead the United States. I need to ask, lead the United States into what? At any rate, to return to the song, GOP politicians at every level eagerly support the MAGA man and dare the rest of us to mess with him.
Stay positive, be strong, lean forward, and please vote. Here’s the music. Coffee guzzling has commenced. On to other writing. Cheers
Michael Seidel, writer 