JESUS: NOT THE REASON

For the season. I find those signs that claim he is very annoying.
Nothing in the Bible specifies a date when Christ was born; go ahead, I dare you
to find anything that specifies a date. Christmas as a holiday was morphed from the
Roman holiday of Saturnalia; a time when businesses closed, parties held, and gifts were exchanged in the name of the Roman god. The early Christians used the timing of
Saturnalia (mid-December) to their own ends to win over the heathens.
Interestingly, here in the U.S, many major religious denominations; Presbyterians,
Baptists, Quakers, Methodists, & Congregationalists ignored or actively
discouraged Christmas as a holiday until the late 1800s. Most schools & businesses
remained open, Congress met in session, and some churches closed on Christmas day
to keep worshippers from commemorating it. In colonial New England the celebrating
the holiday was actually made illegal, punishable by a fine.
So may all the 'religious' people get off their high horses...

...Let's put the X back in Xmas...

LAST 6 BOOKS READ

1) Dark Star Safari by Paul Theroux: An overland trip from Cairo to Capetown as
Paul stops at some places he'd taught at in the 60s/70s(?). A fascinating look
at Africa on a human level, person to person.
2) Merlin's Godson by H Warner Munn: Merlin and the last Roman legionnaires
leave Britain and come to the new world. No classic, but an interesting read.
3) Ash Wednesday by Chet Williams: Blue ghosts come to one town in
Pennsylvania. What do the townspeople do? Apparently not much of
anything. Not really a 'horror' novel in the usual sense of the word, more
of a psychological look at the townspeople's reactions to the ghosts.
4) The Black Ice by Michael Connelly: Det. Harry Bosch encounters the
latest drugs from Mexico. Well-written and interesting. I think this is the 2nd
Harry Bosch story I've read, enjoyed them both.
5) A Cannibal In Manhattan by Tama Janowitz: Well, this was an odd one.
Yes, there is a cannibal. No, he doesn't eat anyone - at least not on purpose.
The book is more of a social satire by seeing how we live as seen through the
eyes of the cannibal; who is not uneducated, just naive. But the real strange
part is the photos that are in the book. Not taken for the book, but real photos,
some from decades ago, that illustrate the novel.
6) The Cook by Harry Kressing: An old book (1965) about a cook, and the
two families he interacts with. Can't really tell you much, because then it would
give away the whole plot line. Suffice it to say "YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK"
Look for it somewhere, bound to find a copy in a used book store somewhere.

RIP: IKE TURNER

 At the age of 76. Though much maligned for his abuse of Tina,

the man was a early part of R&R history. 

Remember, Ike & TinaTurner wasn't

all Tina...

Well, Ike, join that big band in

the sky...or perhaps the bigger

band down below.

2ND AMENDMENT STRIKES AGAIN

 So once again the NRA has blood on it's hands.

Another wack-job with a gun gets to kill innocent

people to protect the NRA's 2nd Amendment rights.

Boy, will we ever wake up and decide we're not

going to be invaded by the British, or even the Canadians,

and therefore don't really need an armed militia to

protect our homes? Especially a militia that's not

actually part of the government or an organized branch

of the government?

 

And while we're on the subject of stupid - what the

hell is wrong with the killer's landlady? He shows

her the gun the night before, but she doesn't do

anything because she thinks he's not the violent type,

even thought he'd lost his job & his girlfriend.

What is she, stoned or stupid? She should be arrested

as an accomplice, as should the president of the NRA!

 

And as for hunters; how about bowhunting and single

shot muzzle loading black powder rifles? Just to put

a little more sport back into hunting...I mean it is

supposed to be a sport, isn't it?

 

If you disagree, please don't shoot me, I'm much too young

to die; though I'm too old to die young...

 

LAST 6 BOOKS READ

1) Houston,Houston, Do You Read? by James Tiptree Jr: Interesting tale,
actually a novella, about astronauts who go through a time warp and
find a future of no men.
2) Souls by Joanna Russ: Vikings plunder an abbey; but the abbess
is an alien.
3) Kipling's Works Vol.II by Rudyard Kipling: Contains 'The Phantom Rickshaw'
and other tales of life in Colonial India. Interesting stuff, including
some ghost stories, and also the story 'The Man Who Would Be King', later
made into the movie with Michael Caine & Sean Connery.
4) A Case Of Lone Star by Kinky Freidman: Kinky goes after the 'Hank
Williams Killer' in his latest adventure in NYC. Enjoyable mystery
with a touch of humor.
5) University by Bentley Little: More demented stuff from one of the better
horror writers. What if the University you went to was evil...not
the people, the buildings themselves?
6) The Thieves Of Heaven by Richard Doetsch: Reformed thief steals the Keys
of St Peter in order to save his wife. Interesting twist on the whole DaVinci
Code genre.

ILLEGAL ALIENS

 The real troublwe with illegal aliens...

...is the unregistered UFOs they fly around in...

YOU DO THE MATH

 Okay, now - this is for real...

 

"L.B.,22 Machinist (Name initialed for privacy)

-L.B. died 11/26/07 from Hypoventilation Syndrome.

Survived by his wife D.W., 1 son, 1 stepson,

3 daughters, 10 grandchildren & 8

great-grandchildren."

 

Well, that's what it says in the paper anyhow.

Never ceases to amaze me how poor a job a

paper(this one in particular) can do at proofreading.

And I don't even read the whole paper, just glance

throught it now and then. And they say they're 'A

New York Times Company'.

 

Well, if I was the NYT, I'd sure make

them take that off their trucks!!

 

 

 

 

 

STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES (AGAIN)

 So they're releasing the early seasons of 'Sesame Street' on dvd.

These go back aways, my daughter used to watch them when

she was little. So what's stupid?

 Apparently, they're being released with a parental

warning label BECAUSE:

 

Snuffleupagus was an imaginary friend...

Cookie Monster ate unhealthy...

And Oscar the Grouch was too grouchy...(duh!)

 

 How stupid is that, my daughter never once wondered

why Snuffleupagus wasn't hanging out in our yard.

 Most of us eat unhealthy...and that probably has more

to do with fast food restaurants than Sesame Street...

 And stupid crap like parental warning on old children's

dvds make me grouchy!!

 

(Of course my wife says I'm like that anyway...)

ROAD SIGNS TO WATCH FOR

DANGER: SNAKES CHASING CARS

















WATCH FOR MAN WITH FLAG FOR HAND
















DANGER: MAN AHEAD BUILDING HILLS IN ROAD



















AND MY PERSONAL FAVORITE:
BEWARE: ZOMBIE LEGS WALKING AHEAD

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIMI

 At least if he were still alive. Jimi would have

been 65 this year, which brings up the question -

would he still be a musical innovator if he were alive now?

Would he be in secluded retirement or playing oldies

tours? Would he have been able to get back on track

musically and keep up a long-running career a la

Eric Clapton (but with better music)?

 You know, Are You Experienced? was the first

stereo album I bought, way back when. Didn't even

have a stereo, (the original stereo albums had to

be played on the proper system or the record would

get fucked up) so I had to play it on my parents stereo,

which was best when they weren't home so I could turn it up

LOUD...

 Yeah, that was some incredible music, still enjoy

listening to it.

Thanks Jimi for making my teenage years and beyond

just that much better...