Swamp Music... 

I should be working on grades... Summer School I Semester ended today... the grades are sad... the effort even worse.  Anyway... I'm taking a break from working on those things... and my mind is wandering...

Monday looked like a downer...
Tuesday looked like rain...
A bad altitude...
And I knew I needed a change...

Highway 61... the blues highway... runs right smack dab through the Middle of Shoesville...   Tony Joe White always makes me thing of the swamp... of the bayou country... 

Just outside of Memphis...
Highway 61...
Sleepy little town down by the
Mississippi River

This is one of my more favorite Tony Joe White songs...

'Tunica Motel'

... and another one from Creedence Clearwater Revival...

'Born On The Bayou'

And I can remember the fourth of July,
Runnin' through the backwood, bare.
And I can still hear my old hound dog barkin',
Chasin' down a hoodoo there.
Chasin' down a hoodoo there.

Born On The Bayou

You know... for a bunch of guys from the Bay Area, they pulled that swamp thing off rather well...

Well... I feel a bit mellowed out now... I think I have my grading system in place...

I talked with Liam Larry last night... for someone who just endured what all he had, he sounds great... 

AND...

I would be VERY remiss if I didn't send BIRTHDAY wishes to Jaime over at Red Red Whine...   

  

Hmmmm... I think those candles seem about right!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Jaime!!!!!

~shoes~

Liam Larry, Revisited...

I have written about my buddy, Liam Larry...  he's a goof ball... I guess that's what makes us such good friends.

Death does weird things... he and I worked together, but he was friends with another colleague... and this other fellow up and died one day.  Liam Larry was lost... and he just kind of stumbled into my office one day...

'Shoes... let's go to lunch...'

I wasn't able to that day because of a lunch commitment with BoyShoes... the next day, Liam Larry came into my office...

'Shoes... let's go to lunch...'

... and I couldn't. I had a committee meeting that day... and he went into some kind of soliloquy about how I didn't like him... didn't want to be seen with him... etc etc etc...

I promised him that the next time he asked me to go to lunch, I would go. So the next day...

'Shoes... let's go to lunch...'

Okayokayokayokayokayokayokay, goddammit, let's go!!

... and we became friends.  And our lunch times together grew to include a cast of characters, depending on the day of the week...

Liam Larry can be such a trying soul... he can get on your last nerve... he can bug the fuck out of you...  and he has!!!

Not long after Liam Larry's above mentioned friend died, another colleague in our division died... and being the somewhat disrespectful sort of person that I am, I commented about how my Mom always talked about how people died in threes... and how I thought we needed to select the 3rd candidate ourselves... and perhaps save a more valuable colleague... you know, the sacrificial lamb sort of thing.

Then I got to thinking... you know what would be funny? Let's make a list of the three that are most likely to die...  Guess who was first on that list?? Yup... Liam Larry... Of course, how was I to know that the number 3 person on that list would actually die just within a few days!!! Sure made me look like a person of interest!!!

Anyhoo... I've posted about all of Liam Larry's health issues... THIS is one of them... but a search of 'Liam Larry' should find all of them...   

To make a long story short... Liam Larry needed surgery... he had a faulty valve in his heart... and what a family member of his described as 100% blockage on his left side...  Liam Larry had a pending date with Death...

Liam Larry had surgery yesterday... to replace the valve... and for the bypasses... I'm not a betting person, but had I been, I figured I would be spending this weekend at another funeral of another friend...  he just has no strength.

I got the best phone call last afternoon at about 6.30 PM ~Shoes~ time... that Liam had indeed survived his surgery, that he was in recovery, and that the doctors were of the opinion that he was going to be ok...

I had thought about writing about Liam Larry's pending surgery, but chose not to... because I didn't want to have to come back and write about another friend's funeral... I decided to wait and see what would transpire...

I got a phone call later last evening from his sister... that the doctor said he had only done a triple bypass... that Liam Larry needed another, but he just didn't want to chance it... but also that he thought given what he had been able to do, it wasn't necessary.  The doctor also told her that when he was talking to Liam just prior to surgery, that Liam told him that he had changed his mind, and didn't want the surgery afterall...  

Dumbass...

Of course, the truth is... people don't survive these surgeries... we take them for granted, given the great success rates that we hear about. Liam called me Saturday afternoon, and we talked... and at the end, he became emotional... I assured Liam that we would talk again when he was stronger...

I want Liam Larry to get better so I can get back to giving him all kinds of grief and assorted bullshit that he so deserves and expects from me...

After all... what are friends for?

~shoes~

"Happy Birthday, Dad..."

I was torn as to whether or not to write a Father's Day post about my Dad... since his birthday was going to be just a few days later, I decided to wait and write a birthday post...

June 23rd...

Today is my Dad's Birthday...

Grandmother Brown, Aunt Winnie, and Dad...

If Dad were still alive, I would have a great deal of difficulty imagining his age...

I know I have posted about having come along late in Mom and Dad's lives... and about how I have a sister old enough to be my Mom...

Dad has been gone 15 years... I still carry a great deal of guilt about how I treated him over some issues... I guess I will regret how I treated him until I die...  I hope he has forgiven me...

There's a lot going on now in my Life... according to feedjit, someone from my community is logging on and readying my blog... so I feel a little inhibited to write about some things now...

Mom and Dad had six children (two litters) and it appears that it is just a matter of time before the 'children' begin to die...

So it goes, huh?

I expressed myself rather well, I think, when I wrote about Dad Here back in February... 

There's a new set of stressors that have arisen... and I just don't feel that I can write about them now...

My hives have returned... 

A younger Dad...

It's been a long time, Dad... it is still difficult for me to think about you and Mom and not cry... you told me a few times that men aren't supposed to cry... well, I just can't help it...

I love you...

I miss you...

~shoes~

"A Black Shoes Post..."

"Friday Shiznits..."

Someone asked in a comment the other day about what a 'Black Shoes' post was...


A while back,  Magnolia over at Magnolia Thoughts was talking about a post I had written, and about how it was NOT very "work place friendly"... and how she had to be careful when opening one of my posts...  I do have to admit that I never really know if one of my posts is going to be thought-provoking, or one of those "WTF" kind of things... 

So I created the idea of using a 'Black Shoes' post for those that just may not be work place friendly... 


So here goes...


First, the winner of the 'Homer Simpson Look-A-Like' Contest...

So... what do you think?

Does she win?

What about this girl in this video?  This supposedly is a video she made to place on eHarmony... would you date someone this stable??

I hope that there are homes for people like this...

Or this take off of a man on a deserted island...

Surely the state of Virginia caught this...

Undoubtedly, this is a photo from the new Arnold Governator film, "Conan, The Later Years"...






And finally, a video that would most assuredly convince most people to stop drinking...

OK... it's got to be lunch time now...

I've wasted a perfectly good morning...

~shoes~

"A Black Shoes Post..."

"Go The Fuck To Sleep..."

This post doesn't require much introduction... it's all rather self-explanatory...

God KNOWS that if you have had kids, this is SO true!!

Thanks, Jules...

Now, Go the Fuck to sleep!!!

~shoes~

Atlanta  Rhythm Section

From time to time, I think about some of my favorite bands from 'Way Back'... I mentioned The Marshall Tucker Band in the last post...  This group from Atlanta Doraville, Georgia was another one of my favorite bands...

Do you remember the song, 'Spooky?'  ... by The Classics IV?

This is one of my mostest favoritest songs by ARS...... I love to turn the stereo WAY up... and if the speakers have great woofers, the bass just shakes the room...  There are some great solos in that song... octaves being played on a Fender Strat and pinch harmonics being played on a Gibson Les Paul... AUGH!!!

The Classics IV initially recorded this song... along with another... 'Stormy'...  and just broke up and went different ways... several members of The Classics IV started a new band... ARS... 

Like most Southern Rock Bands at that time, they had guitar  slingers all over the place... all very good... all very talented. 

'Lay down that backbeat...

Crank up your trusted Gibson... Son...'

... what great playing... and Hell, on a good day, I know a handful of chords...

Can you tell that I don't wanna go to class here in a few moments?

~shoes~

Hey... look what I got!

AutumnForest, over at Ghost Hunting Theories, thought enough of my chicken scratching attempts at writing to pass this Versatile Blogger award on to me...  I always believe it to be an honor when another blogger acknowledges what I try to do.  I feel that I am lucky when my writing keeps any kind of continuity... I guess I write much like how I speak, and having been in a class room for as long as I have, I am able to somewhat keep my thoughts linear and somewhat coherent...

I like AutumnForest's blog and find it greatly interesting... I have always had an interests in ghosts and the paranormal, and have written a time or two about some of the shows that are on television... please go read her blog; I think you will enjoy it...


Okay... I'm going to be better about following the guidelines this time than I was with the last award Bouncin' Barb saw fit to grant to me...


I am supposed to tell you seven things about myself...


Let's see...


# 1 I LOVE cowboy boots... I have recently bought several pairs of them, but I can't seem to find any as gaudy as I would love to have... I want some like those I had when I was a kid... with the fancy inlays and all of that stuff!!!   Kinda like these...

or even these...

The color seems about right...

# 2  In addition to the fascination with cowboy boots, I've also developed a similar thing with cowboy hats... much kinda like this one...

N0, that does NOT say 'Creampie'...

Or this one...

One of my favorite places to visit in Santa Fe is a cowboy hat shop... when you enter, you see two old barber chairs sitting to the right... and then just this magnificent display of hats!!!  The one that most caught my eye was similar to the one above, only it was constructed from what I believed to be felt... when I asked the price of the hat, I was told that it was $850...

$850!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?    

Yup...

The fellow then went about telling me that he seats you, takes all kinds of measurements from your head, and he actually makes the hats... and that they are made from beaver skin... He went on to tell me that the greatest function that a cowboy gets from the hat is to repel rain water... keep his head dry... In retrospect, I wish I had bought one of those... maybe I will the next time I head that way...

# 3   I LOVED The Marshall Tucker Band!!!!!!!!

'I don't want you to think...

That you're the first one...

To leave me out here on my own...

This ain't the first time...

This Ol' Cowboy...

Spent the night alone...'

They had one of the BEST guitar players of that era and he got very little of the credit he deserved...  Someone is still touring under the name of this band, but I'm not sure any original members are left.

~Mr. Toy Caldwell~

#4 I LOVE reading the history of and visiting battle fields of the Civil War... I have visited the battlefields at Vicksburg and at Shiloh... the horror... the terror... of what the soldiers in both armies faced at both locations are shocking. I would love to visit Gettysburg and Manassas.

'Ruggles' Battery'

Shiloh

As of April 6, 1862, this was the largest concentration of artillery power ever used in warfare... as many as 62 artillery pieces were used by the Confederate forces against the Union forces that were entrenched in a place known as 'The Hornet's Nest'...

Civil War Trivia Quiz:

A.  What famous Confederate General was offered the position of Commander of all Union armies prior to the outbreak of the Civil War?

B.  Why did he refuse the position??

In my opinion, both answers are very interesting!

#5 I'm becoming more and more of a care~taker for my oldest sister... and I'm OK with that...

#6  Recently, I had the exact same dream three nights in a row about my death... talk about an enlightenment...  something is speaking to me about my mortality, I'm thinking...

#7  The West is calling me again...

Now, I need to pass this forward to five bloggers...

(01)  Bluezy @  Bluesy's Virtual Dumpster Dive...  

(02)  That One Girl @ What Was I Saying Again?    

(03)  Yogurt @  Coffee Yogurt  

(04)  Leah @ Late Starter Chronicles   

(05)  Annie @ Quiet Commotion   

Thank you so much, AutumnForest!!!

~shoes~

"Sixty-Seven Years Ago This Morning..."

Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of 

The Allied Expeditionary Force!

You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months.  The eyes of the World are upon you.  The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.  In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.

Your task will not be an easy one.  Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely.

But this is the year, 1944!  Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41.  The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats in open battle, man-to-man.  Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground.  Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men.  The tide has turned!  The free men of the world are marching together to Victory!

I have full confidence in your courage and devotion to duty and skill in battle.  We will accept nothing less than full victory!

Good luck!  And let us beseech  the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Supreme Allied Commander

____________

Sixty-seven years ago this morning, June 6th, 1944, the Allied Forces landed in Normandy, France... to begin the liberation of France from  Nazi Germany, and to try to facilitate the end of WWII in Europe.

Most models that the Allied planners ran on the invasion indicated mortality rates as high as 90%...  Eisenhower had already written his letter of resignation from his role as Supreme Allied Commander, because there was no assurance  that the invasion would succeed.

May God Bless...

~shoes~
(repost from 06/06/2010)

The early 60's were not  great years in American history... contrary to current 'memory' of history, we had an unpopular president (John F. Kennedy) who, in 1962,  had stood up to, and held his own against Nikita Khruschev and the Soviet Union... 


The Doomsday Clock was about at close to MidNight as I guess it has ever been... The USSR was shipping missiles with nuclear warheads to Cuba, and Kennedy threatened reprisal if the missiles were delivered and installed.  Khruschev blinked, the vessels actually turned around, and the world breathed a bit easier.  


There was also the cluster-fucked 'Invasion of Pigs' fiasco in Cuba in 1961, which was aided by the CIA, and encouraged by the American government as a means of deposing Fidel Castro.


Add to this the strife associated with the Civil Rights Movement that was taking place...


Then on November 22, 1963, John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, and just days later, Lee Harvey Oswald, the alleged assassin of JFK, was shot and killed while being transported by authorities to a "safer" location...


Our country had been pulled and torn in about as many ways as it could have been...


So what does this have to do with The Beatles?


On February 9, 1964, this group of kids from England, appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time... and they seemed to take our focus away from the horrible things that had happened... and things that were going on... maybe they were a nice diversion... 


This was when I remember falling in love with guitars...  unlike many of today's performers, these guys had worked together for quite a few years, performing a great deal in Hamburg, Germany, before being 'discovered'...

The BeaTles about 1960

Pre-Ringo Days (Stu Sutcliffe and Pete Best)

And for me... music was never the same...


The footage added here is from the fourth appearance by The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1965... I was always in awe of how well they sounded live on TV... and their singing harmonies are STILL the best (for me, anyway)...  That first song, "I Feel Fine," during the guitar intro, they seem to just pop right into place... they knew their parts and timing... AUGH!!!




I am just blown away by this footage... two guitars, a bass, a drum set, and amps... no effects pedals like we all have today...  just great songs and great voices...  they just counted the songs off, one-two-three-four, and went with it...

I've always thought of them as a great example of  synergy... the right guys coming together at the right time...

Who would have guessed that they were already toward the end of playing together in Live settings... I think that is the importance of the Apple Studio Roof Top Sessions... in that they were playing together Live again...

This has already been a Life Time ago...

*sighs*

~shoes~