Hey there, Cadillac Man

There was a green light for just a minute yesterday and I've been hoping to see another but will probably fade relatively soon.

I'm most interested in your thoughts on things since you're always clear on what and why.


I suspect this trip may not be so interesting with politics backed-off quite a bit but there may be a measure of that in the historical accuracy of "The Patriot" since we know Gibson got a tad flamboyant with the true history of Longshanks and Wallace / Queen Isabella in "Braveheart."


Rats ... I was going to follow that with a cute video of a baby hippo at the Cincinnati Zoo but Safari choked on it.

There isn't any why baby hippos ... it's the Hippo Zen.


There's a bit of a perturbation in the genealogical vibe since, well, there is a family tree but I ain't on it.


The current circumstance of a potential impeachment may have some mileage since I don't believe it's going to happen for multiple reasons, one of which is Senatorial process.

There's also the concept of Sedition since if I'm known as anything then likely that one sticks and it hasn't even been an hour since the last yokel called me a Russian.  However, I did talk (i.e.write) with my arch-conservative friend and it wasn't a combative discussion but rather ended with agreement.


Maybe Russia Today has some mileage since that's not much available and I'm not much interested in hearing of a free press when that's suppressed.  I've never seen anything I regarded as even close to sedition published by RT although I can't speak much for their video since I don't often watch video pundits because it's always much slower to listen than to read and reading probably gives better comprehension.


Maybe there's some interest in Israel / Occupied Territories, etc.


I don't see any lights so I'll be heading for the sofa just now.  That should be good for some hours and I have no idea for this crazy Sundowner schedule since it's upside-down because that's when Sundowners usually start wandering.  In my case, I wander to the sofa.

What's Hot on the Blog 6/2

Entry	Pageviews
"The Patriot" | Good to the Closing Chord Jun 2, 2017	23
Racism is Supporting Obama Even When He is Wrong Jun 23, 2013	23
How Exactly Does Water Get to Homes - #Science Jun 2, 2017	21
By Charter, the Mission of NASA is Peaceful Jun 1, 2017	20
"Set the Beast Free" #Poetry #Marijuana #Ganja Jun 2, 2017	20
A Hit and a Miss on the ML EL Jun 2, 2017	20
The Flooded Streets had Flooded Words Jun 2, 2017	19
There Was One Thing Accomplished in the Video Jun 2, 2017	19
Growin' Boobies Might Have Been a Bit Much After J... Jun 2, 2017	18
Colonel Abuthnot with Poetic Reading of Latest Poe... Jun 1, 2017	18

The Patriot - there is zero negativity about the movie and I find tremendous inspiration but possibly not for the same reason as others

Racism - this one does keep coming back and it's good people asking but not so encouraging that it's necessary

How Exactly - the science doesn't go into the mechanism for delivering water but rather it asks people how much they know it and the result may be surprising

By Charter - NASA also flies in peace

Set the Beast Free - it's something of a protest against the association of the ganja with opiates when the two have nothing to do with one another.  I was surprised how many liked that so some people do get it.  (poem)

A Hit - searching for the ML EL gets down to details and definitely is moving toward a finish

The Flooded - ludicrous how easily Fort Worth floods and it's doing it again today (surprise, surprise)

There Was - a not so obvious accomplishment from these last few bare-face videos

Growin' Boobies - there is zero porno in this but hopefully there's comedy (zero boobie examples)

Colonel Abuthnot - that was the first of the video poetic readings and it hit a bump but not so terribly awful although the poem could have been better although I don't reject anything in it

We Hear a Lot about Strong Women and Susan Sarandon is Steel

When Susan Sarandon posted this, I sent a reply back:

Replying to @SusanSarandon

I only lag a few years behind you and my visage ain't so much but, dayum, do you look good and a lot because of what you believe.

The Perfect Politics of the Duchy of Grand Fenwick

There we see the perfect political answer for any question at all since that bird doesn't even need a maybe since everything is covered already.  This is better than the Texas Side-Step since since this birds steps both ways at the same time.

The Rockhouse submits, therefore, this is the perfect political system in which the people go from not being sure what the politician said to having no idea whatsoever.

Their solution is ideal since it eliminates all form of political debate, possibly one of the most tiresome aspect of the news or general conversation anywhere, for that matter.


The Duchy of Grand Fenwick is highly skilled in the art of war ... when the art is declaring war against America and then losing.

Relax, it's funny.  You may notice a bit of a resemblance to Peter Sellers in multiple chraracters.

"Readings in a Cheap Yellow Fedora" | Colonel Abuthnot Jones | #Poetry #Video

It's a little dim for the short intro but then there's more light and it would be a shame to miss the glory of the cheap yellow Fedora.  I wore it to the market earlier and I don't know if the hat gets people smiling more or there's more smiling from me so others smile more and that makes no difference whatsoever since the Cheap Yellow Fedora works.

The poem is about the Traveler but it doesn't start out that way.

On the post-prod viewings, I started thinking maybe it sounds like it alludes to religion but that wasn't my purpose although neither it is a problem if it is perceived that way.

Peace


Note:  I've already written about the true nature of the Colonel so you'll know if you have followed this.

"But then you Met the Traveler" #Poetry

We do so love that Twitterpong
since for anything you say
some asshole jumps up to his feet
"You're wrong, you're quite insane!"
So the pong goes back and forth
since that's the way it plays
but the result is nothing changes;
it's just the latest craze

But then you met the Traveler
and you have met him once before
so you likely know without asking
just what he is going to say,
"Don't you go through that ugly door
there's nothing good behind it
if you really need to find the thing
you will need to walk this way."

The Traveler isn't selling things
and your will is always your own
but his advice has always served you well
so you ask, "Where are you going?"
He smiles and looks so quizzically,
"Son, don't you already know?"
Then he started walking
since he did know where to go

But he turned to wave to the Traveler
and could not see him behind
He was tempted to go back for him
but then the thought reminds,
"He said the path is always forward
since there's nothing for you behind
That thing you have been seeking
is yet for you to find."

- Colonel Abuthnot Jones

"Little Umbrellas" | Frank Zappa | #Music

Zappa Jam by ZW & Malice Laugh / Link to Facebook

"Little Umbrellas" is a song by Frank Zappa from the album Hot Rats, released in 1969.

Video montage was created by J. Henderson. 

Credits:

- Portraits of New York (www.RBLFILMS.com)
- TURF FEINZ RIP RichD Dancing in the Rain Oakland Street YAK
- LES TWINS Times Cop in NYC YAK FILMS
- The City Exposed The Trumpet Kid - Gabriel Angelo
- K. Sparks - Abstract Jazz

- YouTube

Is this Painting Upside-Down | Query from the Artist, Jeffrey Lipsky | #abstractart #contemporaryart

Unknown by Jeffrey Lipsky (Facebook link)


He's another Indie artist so the Rockhouse loves him but he calls me Uncle Alan and, hey, that's highly cool.  Contact him in Facebook to suggest the orientation or for purchase of his work.


I wrote back to him about asking to publish it and told him at the same time I shouldn't worry about orientation too much since I believe Mondrian holds the record for one of his pieces standing upside-down in a major gallery for (I think) six months or more.

I did not answer on whether it should be this way or that way and I took the first one presented.  Perhaps you will disagree and he invites your idea(s) in Facebook.


For this one I'm seeing a fish painted by an aboriginal Australian while Mr Lipsky uses all the colors the aboriginal people may have dreamed of having.  There may be a second fish just under the first one but beyond that it gets highly interpretive and the passion of it is immediately impressive.  The painting practically explodes.

There are such dynamics in the piece it is practically explosive and yet it seems there is GIVE painted in small letters.  That takes us to all-out virtual to pull the pieces together and that one shall stand as a challenge to the interested art student of which I am not ... I just know what I like, passion and expressiveness.


Contact him in Facebook, Jeffrey Lipsky, to discover more about his work.


There's the love, mates, since the Regulars know I loathe using Facebook but I go there anyway since there's some cool stuff to find although Facebook did find a way to make things more of a pain in the ass since a reply to anything automatically converts to an invitation to chat ... wtf?  Why was that necessary.

Hopefully you see from this example, it's worth the hassle to see more of his work.

People Freaked About the Boobies | Relax as it's Funny, Hopefully

It's joke.  I tell you it's a joke, son - Foghorn Leghorn

The joke is that it's real and the boobie effect comes from medicine and, ooh, I just can't wait.  (Ithaka:  Growin' Boobies Might Have Been a Bit Much After Joining Code Pink)

Male boobies. Now ain't that a thing - Foghorn Leghorn


Unknown why they flipped over that one since we see an obvious demand for yer under boob, side boob, and upper boob photographs and possibly my failing is I didn't provide anything of that nature plus, wtf, they're stuck on a man.


There's no need to reiterate the bit since I thought it was kind of funny.


Or maybe funny is when an abstract artist explodes.

We were there for that tragic moment and the next moment his artistic gizzards were all over the place (sob).  Then those gizzards caught fire but it made great artistic theater.

It's the same if a mime explodes.  I know you'll be weeping about that.  Unless I miss my guess, that would add another reason to go to the park beyond feeding the ducks.

Oh, George, look ... an exploding mime!  Get the camera!

A Hit and a Miss on the ML EL

There was a visit to MetroPCS to determine the viability of an iPhone 3 on their network.

That was a strike since the 1,2,3 versions of iPhone were apparently exclusively CDMA but Apple jiggled things and some iPhones 4 and above support CDMA for AT&T, etc while others support GSM for Verizon, etc.  MetroPCS only supports GSM so that means only an iPhone rigged for Verizon and others will work.

Then I thought, hmm, that iPhone 3 had an excellent price used on Amazon so how about the iPhone 4.

That was another strike since they go for $100 to $120 for a Verizon / GSM phone.  That deal sucks and check out the next.

The iPhone 5s does appear to be the device since that's $150 from MetroPCS and I didn't see a better price else.

That one I consider a hit although I'm not in love with the price.


However, an iPhone 5s will connect to this system easily and I already know everything is compatible since I used iPhones for years.  The iPhone 5s is also smaller than the others which makes for convenience since I have no interest in using the phone as a computer when I already have one and there's no chance I'll be playing Pokemon or any other computer game on it.


Now it's looking real since I'll get one more travel check from going to Dallas yesterday and this looks like it will all come together on payday in a few weeks.


There are three who need the number, ML, CM, and Yevette.  The ML EL will work in either direction to be sure any of the others is still in the game.  That way there won't ever be any mystery about things for any of us.

The solution is more expensive than I like but it's also the most solid solution in view since I know with no doubt that phone will get it done.

The ongoing cost after purchase is $30 flat and it may be possible to break that down a tad since Yevette's phone which she hates goes through the same outfit and it may be possible to redo her deal as a twofer and cut it for both of us.


It's definitely going to happen but always slower than anyone wants.  Nevertheless, it comes.

How Exactly Does Water Get to Homes - #Science

This figure shows an idealized version of a 'magic' water system drawn by many subjects.
Credit: Indiana University


Now there's a novel schematic.

New Indiana University research shows many Americans don't know how clean water gets to their homes and especially what happens after wastewater is flushed away, knowledge that is vital in confronting challenges including droughts and failing infrastructure that can lead to contamination.

The researchers asked about 500 university students to draw diagrams illustrating how water reaches the sink and how it is returned to the natural environment. Twenty-nine percent of the participants didn't draw a water treatment plant and 64 percent did not draw a wastewater treatment plan.

Science Daily:  How exactly does water get to homes?


The researchers didn't go from there to explain how the water system works since the point is many people don't know and the recommendation from that is obvious but the interested student can follow the original link.


From my own guesswork, water comes from a river or a reservoir and goes up to a treatment plant then goes to some complex system of piping, often old, to get to the distribution points in homes, offices, factories, etc.

It seems there must be a bypass to blow off clean water back to the source if too much pressure builds.

The output stage seems it must push grey or black water out through a parallel system of wastewater pipes from which they're delivered to a treatment plant and returned to the source.

It seems there must be grey water which can be purified and made clean again but there's also black water into which maybe a factory has pumped some chemical poisons.  By law, I believe that's illegal and the factory needs to manage that black water in some safe manner but we hear when there's been a failure at which time the intakes shut down on a river until the upstream pollution from that release has passed.  If you have lived in Cincinnati then you have experienced that multiple times and it seems typically from Pittsburgh which is upstream.


The system of complex piping which distributes the water is not well-understood by the Rockhouse but we do know a great deal of it is dangerously old with Flint, MI, being only one example of it.  There's no need for citations since there are multiple references to excessive levels of lead in the water in different cities.

That comes back to the Law of Evolutionary Potential since it's faster, easier, and cheaper to build a new city with new infrastructure but that's also practically impossible.  The alternative is to replace the existing infrastructure but it's too difficult and expensive plus it's hidden so people really don't know until it breaks.

The article may give some light to why it's permitted to stall in such a way since the research shows relatively few people have much awareness of how it works.

Family, Conformity, and the Illusion of Gravity

The Rockhouse has been abandoned by the family but it's their choice to vote for murder.  I've never conformed to their pressure to do that in the past and I will not do it now.  Previously it was Republican-driven but the Democrats do it too now since none of them have rejected bombing the fuck out of Syria or wherever else they like.

My position is clear and it will not change.  There is peace or there is nothing and there's only one time in America fighting ever brought peace; that was in the Revolution.  Fighting with the South didn't bring peace since they kept all the monuments and still fight at every opportunity.  They fight to keep the monuments (shrug).

Of course it breaks my heart since love never changes but they'e shown no affection for years and it makes no sense to pine.

None of this is about victims but it's quite a bit about being swayed by the state.


It's all part of the reason for the Rockhouse since that pounding to conform has come from all sides, all my life, and that my family does it too now isn't even really that surprising.  That pressure to conform came from school, the workplace, billboards, bumper stickers, and it's hammered everywhere ... even those insulting car dealerships on the way to VA.

Maybe the money is that good but I never noticed that when I had it.  I found quite a bit of amusement but nothing much was real.  How about if I try bungee jumping to discover how much compression and blood pressure my brain can take.  Pfft


None of them understood "The Illusion of Gravity" but it doesn't seem such a difficult thing.  When you create illusions and try to assign weight to them, you're either an atomic physicist or you're living in a fantasy land.

Note:  that CD is no longer available.

That they didn't understand isn't surprising since hardly anyone else did either.


Some guy in "Purple Rain:"  your music makes sense only to yourself."

Well, I tell you what, mate.  It only needs to make sense to me and it's a privilege for me if anyone else sees it.  My music isn't that difficult; the words make people choke.


The Magic Land likes poetry and that's all the reason I need but I can't promise lovely flowers since it's a seething world I see but when the flowers are blooming, no-one is more pleased than I.

Note:  except for that damn corpse flower since there's another one in-play just now and, yes, I guess they really stink.  Have a ball and try all the rides at Disneyland.


Writing of the world is the first level of reaction since it's a plain and simple story but only counts as poetry because it may rhyme.  The next level above that is to use symbols but they say the same damn thing only a bit more poetically.  Sometimes the next one after that is writing parables and those have been some of the best-received.

I need to be careful about writing to please since the only one I really need to please is me ... but ... that isn't true if I publish it since I know if it's too weird people won't understand.  It would be patronizing to do that deliberately but that's not my aim and reflects incompetence in me rather than purpose.


Something I need to write and maybe most of all is of the limitless love one finds when life is absolutely fucked.  I've tried to show that previously but I don't think so many got it or maybe it was perceived as illusion.

Writing to order is difficult since I hardly ever do.  I see something and it clicks so I start writing, in some ways to discover how it comes out or at least may.

The difficulty is in setting aside the selfishness of a world gone quite insane since it may need that bite for reality ... or not.


There's no poem in the situation with my family and, actually, in some ways I hope they never have to understand since maybe the only way one can is when your life falls apart and you discover what's left.

It seems the ones who do understand are mostly completely-fucked too and it would be one hell of a thing if that's a requirement and maybe that's the parable in writing of that happening to someone.  The Traveler needs to come back since we have seen him before.

This time I'll let it percolate for a while and then see what comes.