GRRRRRR - It's Friday And---

It's Friday, I haven't had my coffee yet and I'm really struggling to think of enough disparate, far-flung oddities to highlight for my usual Friday Follies, GRRRRRRRRRRRRR! But, I'll try anyway, so bear with me.


1) More Than A Bad Commute: First off, I want to extend my heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the families who lost loved ones in a tragic bridge collapse that took place in the Minneapolis/St Paul MN area this week. I hope, if nothing else, this serves as a much needed wake-up call to states, cities and towns everywhere to stop screwing around and pay a lot more attention to the condition of of your infrastructures, don't wait for a tragedy to happen before you do the right thing.

2) What's Wrong With This Picture?: PLENTY, believe me! This has actually become a far more common sight than we as Americans are willing to fess up to. Gadget obsessed sorts we are, we've let the convenience of wireless gadgets somehow become an intrusive prying-eye monster. Worse yet, we've done ourselves and our families a HUGE disservice on a societal level by CONSTANTLY bringing work home with us. Last year, I read an article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution about the invasivenes of the office and gadgets in the home, and it truly disturbed me! Personally, I think it's a crime and a tragedy that a married couple cannot even enjoy making love without being constantly "on-call" and wearing those stupid "Blue-Tooth" earpieces that make you look like you've just been assimilated by The Borg. It gets me ticked off enough that I will NEVER EVER use one of these infernal things! You've gotta draw a line somewhere! That boundary for me is sacred and God help the fool that crosses it!

Even more so, we've gotten to a point that even when people are supposedly "on vacation", they still remain shackled to the office, which is a VERY unhealthy thing to put it mildly. OK folks, pay attention, listen carefully, a vacation is supposed to be a time of rest, fun, relaxation and GETTING AWAY FROM THE OFFICE/JOB, NOT DRAGGING IT WITH YOU!! This on-call mentality (outside of the medical profession, certain government positions and emergency/first-responders) has gotten completely out of control! Call me old-school if you want, but dang it, unless it's a screaming life or death emergency, WORK DOES NOT COME HOME WITH ME, PERIOD!, EVER! For me to remain a sane, healthy balanced individual, I MUST have an inviolate boundary between my work and personal life. More Americans used to have this mindset but with the advent of global instantaneous communication and all the attending gadgets, we've lost our way, allowed that boundary to be repeatedly violated at our own shame and peril. Not only does all work and no play make Jack a dull boy, it could turn Jack into a raving nutcase. Sadly, this is one of the consequences of rampant greed and the Yuppie movement's mentality of "extreme success at ANY cost". The toll exacted on families, children and spouses is hardly worth it.

HERE is an article on how to prep oneself to get away from the office and actually have a vacation.

3) Ron Paul's Longshot Presidential Campaign: I have to take my hat off to one Ron Paul, a lawmaker from southeast Texas (a former Ob/Gyn doctor and Air Force flight surgeon) who is mad as hell and isn't going to take it anymore. Running on a basically Libertarian platform of small government (he'd LOVE to do away with the Dept. of Education, the IRS and the equally useless Energy Department for starters, which I wholeheartedly support, and why don't we get rid of Homeland Security before these bastards REALLY start acting like Gestapo/KGB wannabes), reduced foreign intervention and lower taxes. He's also running on the Republican ticket only for the fact that it allows him access to funding and resources he wouldn't be able to get at otherwise. But make no mistake, on many issues he differs very sharply with the Republi-Crats, opposing the Iraq War and in the grand scheme, vigorously championing the letter and spirit of the US Constitution and the rule of law, fiscal responsibility and respect for individual liberty , things the Republicans AND Democrats both have failed miserably at, let's face it. I may not agree with him on absolutely EVERY position (he opposes the death penalty, which I am VERY heavily in favor of restoring, and I don;t agree with his opposition to military appropriations, simply for the fact we need to rebuild our military after Slick Willie pretty much emasculated it), but all told, I find MUCH about Ron Paul's platform to recommend for itself, and HELL YEAH, I'd vote for him, he far outshines the wimpy mediocre Republican offerings and the sugar coated Socialism of the Democrats.


Ron Paul's Website: http://www.ronpaul2008.com/


A recent AP Article

4) What's Old Is Cool Again: Talk about ironic and being the LAST thing I ever expected to develop a taste for! Somewhere along the way, I have developed a liking for some of what used to be known as "Easy Listening" or "Lounge Music" in some circles. YES, that stuff that some of our parents wined, dined and danced to in the 50's and 60's. Whod've thought it!!??? Well anyway, I've somehow been captivated by the exotica of Martin Denny (famous for bringing together jungle sounds, erotic melodies and the sounds of other lands), the quirky stereo experiments of one Juan Esquivel, the oddly compatible jazz/vocal chorus stylings of Dave Pell , and of course, being a huge fan of the Hammond organ, folks like Lenny Dee, John Buzon , the exotic Korla Pandit and Ethel Smith scratch that itch in the lounge world. The variations and strains are a whole universe unto themselves. Of course, I'm not going to like EVERYTHING in this realm (between the extreme sappiness of Ferrante' and Teischer and the odious supermarket corniness of The Ray Conniff Singers) but by and large, the Exotica/Lounge/Easy Listening universe has yielded some very interesting treasures, among some of my other favorites are film music by Lalo Schifrin and Quincy Jones, and the whole Crime Jazz realm with people like Stanley Wilson, Leith Stephens and more.

To find out more if you're curious, try out this informative website: http://www.spaceagepop.com/

I also take my hat off to one Cassie and her local Atlanta show Martinis Con Queso on Saturday mornings broadcasting from GA State University's station WRAS. She posts here notes and playlists every week RIGHT HERE. Good fun indeed, so light up that Tiki Torch and grab your favorite cocktail.

And that's about it for right now folks, hopefully next week will yield far more results!

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!