Tuesday, December 31, 2013

P.J. O'ROURKE ON NEW YEAR'S EVE

“The proper behavior all through the
 holiday season is to be drunk.
This drunkenness culminates on
 New Year’s Eve, when you get so drunk you
 kiss the person you’re married to.”
(Happy New Year to one and all)

Friday, December 27, 2013

Friday, December 20, 2013

FRIDAY FUNNIES


HAPPY BIRTHDAY

To the crossword puzzle, 100 years old today, first printed in The New York World.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

GOING TO WIN THE MEGA MILLIONS LOTTERY?

 Your odds are better for these:

1. Being killed by an asteroid or comet
Odds: 1 in 250,000
Source: Tulane University

2. Dying from being struck by lightning
Odds: 1 in 3 million
Source: Harvard School of Public Health
The chances of being hit by lightning at all over an 80-year lifetime are 1 in 10,000, according to the National Weather Service.

3. Drowning — or other beach-related fatalities
Odds: 1 in 2 million
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History, based on U.S. beach injury statistics in 2000

4. Being attacked by a shark
Odds: 1 in 11.5 million
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History

5. Dying from a bee sting
Odds: 1 in 6.1 million
Source: Harvard School of Public Health

6. Dying in a plane crash
Odds: 1 in 11 million
Source: PBS' "Nova," based on data from the U.S. Department of Transportation

7. Having conjoined twins
Odds: 1 in 200,000
Source: University of Maryland Medical Center

8. Being killed using a right-handed product, if you're left-handed
Odds: 1 in 7 million
Source: Gizmodo

9. Hitting a hole-in-one on two consecutive, par-3 holes
Odds: 1 in 156 million
Source: U.S. Hole in One, which insures golf prizes for holes in one
Also of note, the chances of an amateur golfer making a single hole-in-one on a par-3 hole is about 1 in 12,500.

10. Hitting a deer while driving in Hawaii
Odds: 1 in 6,267
Source: State Farm, from a 2011 study on collisions between vehicles and deer, said to be least likely in the state of Hawaii.

Good, ahem, luck.

Monday, December 16, 2013

RIP: TOM LAUGHLIN


Tom Laughlin, the maverick actor and filmmaker best known for the "Billy Jack"  films, has died. He was 82.
 Laughlin died Thursday in Thousand Oaks, his family announced.
 Laughlin had been married to actress Delores Taylor since 1954 and also had several ill-fated runs for president. But he was best known for the "Billy Jack" films, which also starred Taylor. In 1967, he wrote and directed (under the pseudonym T.C. Frank) and starred in "The Born Losers," a motorcycle exploitation film that became a big box-office hit. It introduced the world to the part-Native American Vietnam veteran title character.

RIP: JOAN FONTAINE

At the age of 96 - survived by her older sister, Olivia DeHavilland! Starred in a number of Hitchcock movies, won an oscar for Suspicion.

RIP: PETER O'TOOLE

 At 81 years of age; best known for Lawrence of Arabia. Great movie, and a great actor.

RIP: RICHARD COUGHLAN

 Richard Coughlan September 2, 1947 - December 1, 2013
 Richard Coughlan was an English drummer who spent almost his entire career as the drummer for influential Canterbury scene prog rock band, Caravan.

Friday, December 13, 2013

Thursday, December 12, 2013

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

Today in 1970 :


The Doors played what would be their last ever 
live show with
Jim Morrison  when they played at the Warehouse
 in New Orleans. 
(And only $5)

Monday, December 09, 2013

THE ALL-HOLIDAY BUNNY

Pretty cool, eh? Found him in a second-hand shop and couldn't resist. I see Xmas, Easter, July 4th, Halloween; New Year, Valentine's Day, Thanksgiving, & St Patrick's Day. So we can leave him out all year round and be ready for anything (right now he's the Xmas Bunny).

Friday, December 06, 2013

DAVID MUSTAINE (MEGADEATH) ON BEER

“If you guys are going to be throwing beer bottles at us, at least make sure they’re full.”

FRIDAY FUNNIES


Thursday, December 05, 2013

BEER# 1100

Yes, 1100 (“Didn’t know there were that many kinds of pisswater” says the wife.)
And oddly enough, I didn’t find it in an expected place…
…found it at the Daytona Flea Market! On tap!!
Yup, was feeling thirsty trudging around the flea market last Friday (see previous post) and stopped at one of the food kiosks that are at the top of each up/down aisle. Most of them carry draft beer (actually Bud Light – so not really beer) but one of them carried in addition…

 Brewed right here in Florida (Melbourne) by Florida Beer Co. so you know it’s fresh. And quite refreshing after a warm day at a flea market.
Interestingly, the brewery used to be Indian River Brewing and made the line of Indian River Beers, plus the beers from the defunct Ybor Brewing in Tampa & Miami Brewing. So I guess they’ll keep the brand differentiation & add new beers as Florida Whatever. Don’t get to Melbourne often, but will have to make a point of it now.
So now, on to the next 100 beers…

Wednesday, December 04, 2013

MUSIC MUSIC MUSIC

A good day for music! Friday went to the Daytona Flea Market, try to go there every year after Thanksgiving.
And of course had to stop at Mark’s music booth, like I do every year – best place for hard to find CDs, though it’s just an 8 foot wide booth with a table.
So this year, I found (among other items) the Classic Rock All Stars live album – saw them a number of times in the early 90s, Mike Pinera (Blues Image & Iron Butterfly), Pete Rivera (Rare Earth), Jerry Corbetta (Sugarloaf), & Dennis Noda (Cannibal & the Headhunters) (RIP). Early on, the band also had Spencer Davis as second guitar, but he left to reform Spencer Davis Group I believe.

Also found a Country Joe (Gimme me an ‘F’…) solo CD, a 2 CD Cream bootleg (Detroit 1967), and 2 Widespread Panic CDs, great jam band. Also found a James Montgomery Band CD, used to see them as James Montgomery Blues Band in the early 1970s at the Shaboo Inn (RIP) in Willimantic CT. So that was a surprise!

 Also got a CD by some outfit called Black Sun Ensemble, never heard of them, but it is an interesting name, so you never know…I’ll listen to almost anything once.
And as an added bonus, there was another man selling CDs on the other side of the mall, so I picked up a few CDs there too.
Sometimes life is just too good!!! (and sometimes it’s better…)