Blue Tsunami

Days like this are rare. I try not to take them for granted. Last night the nation, the State of Texas and millions of people repudiated the racism, bigotry, misogyny and cruelty of the current administration. 

The polls under-estimated the Democrat's chances. Virtually all statewide races in Texas went blue. And most of these races were not even close. This was a blowout of epic proportions. Staggering and surreal. The people proved that even half a billion dollars spent by the world's only trillionaire can't defeat the power of the people's vote.  

Last night went far better than even what I could imagine. I expected Talarico to win. But Hinojosa for governor is just as wonderful. Abbott has done great harm to our public education systems in Texas. Maybe there's hope for our schools. Dems also knocked out that troll Dan Patrick as Lt. Governor. AG, Texas Railroad Commissioner, comptroller etc... It almost all went Democratic. Even the Texas State House could fall into the control of the Democrats once all the ballots are tabulated. This state has been a one-party state since I moved here thirty years ago. And in one startling night, it changed blue. 

I'm not saying everything will be roses and rainbows from here on out. Those who lost will be even more determined to lash out. But for now, the direction of this state and this nation has changed in a more hopeful, compassionate and thoughtful direction. Day by day, step by step evil can be defeated.

We still have a raving madman in the White House. A desperate criminal is dangerous. The next two years could be bumpy. No telling what a deranged fool might do once they've been stripped of their support base. 

But for now, I will enjoy this day.  

The Day

 Election Day. Let's see if a Blue Tsunami really happens. We have been disappointed before. Let's hope this year is different. 

Shirt

 I can only wear this shirt once a year. 

Company

 Sometimes I have company when I get ready in the mornings. 

Liars and Hoaxes

A quote by Salman Rushdie that I find especially powerful, especially considering the trials he has faced in the name of speaking the truth...

"We can sing the truth and name the liars, we can join in solidarity with our fellows on the front lines and magnify their voices by adding our own to them." 

I intend to do all of this in this post.

As a public educator in the State of Texas it's important for me to let you know that not one student has ever been told by a school employee in any school to undergo transition surgery. The Governor of Texas is intentionally mis-leading you. The only incidents where this was claimed were revealed in a Texas Court of Law to be hoaxes perpetrated by political activists of a political action committee that supports Governor Greg Abbott.

School employees cannot even provide Tylenol or cough drops without written parental permission and a phone call home, much less engage in a complicated and expensive procedure to alter the gender of a student. This week I had to sign permission simply for my daughter to visit a pumpkin patch with a school organization. 

This is a deliberate and malicious attempt to undermine our public schools. As someone who has served as a public school teacher for twenty-eight years I find these preposterous lies offensive and patently stupid.  

Pegasus

 

Always like seeing The Pegasus atop The Magnolia Hotel in downtown Dallas. 

Soul

Found this 1976 issue of Rubber Soul at Black Cat Records. I had been looking for an original for awhile but you have to get lucky or be willing to shell out more than I'm willing. This is close enough for me. It is exactly the same as the 1965 pressing. Capitol Records used to change up some of the tracks for the North American releases, a practice unheard of today. The British version has the superior opener of "Drive My Car," one of the best album openers you can ever find. The North American version opens with "I Saw a Face." Not bad but not quite as good either. The US version also cut "Nowhere Man," "What Goes On" and "If I Needed Someone." The US versions adds "It's Only Love" to the track list. 

Capitol wanted to cash in on the folk-rock trend that was popular in the United States in 1965 so the American version sounds more subdued. The UK version is more upbeat. I actually prefer the British line up which I can stream any time. My CD version, bought years ago, follows the original UK track listing. So I was a bit caught off guard when I first played the record as I was so used to the British version. 

 

Black Cat

This past weekend we visited Black Cat Comic Books and Records south of downtown Dallas for the first time. Black Cat had been on my radar for quite some time but I'm rarely in The Cedars area. I believe it may have the best selection and prices for any small to mid-size store in Dallas that I've seen. We came away with five records, all reasonably priced. Much lower prices than the other record shops I usually frequent. Even my wife came away with two albums. Great shop. 

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Opening Bell

Hung out at Opening Bell Coffee this past weekend for an hour or so. Nice coffee shop located in The South Side at Lamar  

 

Train

One of the Holy Grails: 1957's Blue Train by John Coltrane. I own this on cassette, compact disc and finally now on vinyl. Original pressings are out of my price range but whenever I came across this record at record stores it was always some overseas pressing where the copyright had expired. I never could find an actual Blue Note edition. A few years ago Blue Note Records released a new remastered version as part of their Tone Poet reissues of classic Blue Note recordings. I found this one at Guestroom Records in Norman, Oklahoma. 

I first heard this album on cassette on a bus my freshman year of college. Despite already being a fan and playing jazz since I was 10 I had shockingly never heard John Coltrane play. As soon as the first track played my life was changed. This was an earth shattering record for me. Rightly or wrongly it became the definition for me what jazz should sound like. In 1991 I couldn't believe I hadn't heard this before and lamented what I had been missing in my musical experience up until that point. Most of the time I'll still stream it from my phone, but for special moments, the record will spin like life intended.