Last Day of April

Is it really the last day of April? Tomorrow is May? Thank goodness. I don't usually count down the days this early. But I am this year. Mainly counting down the days my daughter has to spend in junior high. I mean, who likes junior high? I know I didn't.

Old Awards

Was in my son’s band hall Saturday for registration. I had to remind him that I won both these awards. He sighed and nodded his head. He’s heard the story before. 

The Sweet Life

Last night I watched La Dolce Vita for the first time in nearly thirty years. Such a devastating movie. The Steiner plot line crushed me. I’m still thinking about it 24 hours later. The dissolution of Marcello (played by Marcello Mastroianni), pictured above, is obviously the main story. He is such a tragic figure, losing his grip on any sort of meaning in life as he wanders the streets of Rome. Fellini is a fantastic director. This 1960 film feels as current as anything made today. I found a free version on YouTube, fully restored with good subtitling. A startling movie 64 years ago, still startling today. 

Floods!

We had a big storm roll in yesterday afternoon. Half the town flooded! Epic rains. We made it out safely. 

Final 20

Twenty school days left. 

I am beat. 

This has been the longest week in a long time.

I unironically say TGIF.

Confirmation

 

The Third Man

Watched The Third Man again last weekend. Such a great film. One of my favorites. Orson Welles’ big reveal is iconic. Carol Reed makes post-war Vienna look like a house of horrors. The sequence with the little kid following and pointing at Joseph Cotton as the killer is still creepy today. A true film noir classic. 

New Car

Got a new car this weekend. The family’s car. But if the boy chooses a college within reasonable driving distance it will be his  

 

4/19

 I will always remember Oklahoma City on this day. God Bless OKC.

The Nutmeg of Consolation

Just finished the 14th (out of 20) volume of the epic Aubrey-Maturin Series, The Nutmeg of Consolation. I have found so much joy in reading this series. I have enjoyed the series more and more as the years have gone on. I started in 2003 with intermittent gaps. So it's taken me twenty-one years to get through fourteen volumes and I'm not sure why I have taken so long. The books go quickly when I start. But there have been lapses of a couple of years before I acquired the next volume. Now days I try to search for the next couple of volumes at Half Price Books before I'm ready to start them.

But that's okay. Stretches it out longer. The series is one long continuous narrative and one novel leads right into the next. Such genius writing and planning. And who knows, when I get through them I'll probably be ready to retire, and I'll start the whole series again!

Peace!

 

Top Off

Took me five years but I finally got the top off the Jeep. I had to wait until my son was old enough to help me. 

Max Plays Bird

 

 

Discovered this album this week simply because it was playing on Sirius XM's Real Jazz channel. We were rolling to school when the music sounded nice and I made note of the album. The next day I had the chance to give it a listen and was impressed. 

It's an interesting album. No piano and two horn players, base and drums. First of all, any of the greats playing Bird is bound to be great. Secondly, Max Roach always had an eye for talent and was a great band leader. I've always dug Hank Mobley on tenor. In college I discovered Kenny Dorham and he became one of my understated favorites. His tone sounds very much like a flugel player on trumpet. A fantastic bopper. 

This is a very nice album.

Eclipse Day Playlist

 

Eclipse Music

 

I had created an Eclipse Playlist for the two hours or so we would be outside during the eclipse. But it was this song that was playing when the skies went dark and we witnessed totality. Seemed very appropriate and added to the moment. Moon River as sung by Morrissey.

More Eclipse Shots

Such a spectacular moment deserves another post! Some more shots of yesterdays total eclipse  

 

Eclipse Day!

Well, that was one of the coolest things I’ve ever experienced. Total eclipse. We were lucky to be in the path of totality. When it got completely dark the world grew silent for three or four minutes. It was a mystical and spiritual experience. 

 

New Believer!

 Friday the newest Believer came in. Three day weekend and an eclipse! 

Live on Radio

I have to admit I didn't re-up my MLB Radio Subscription last year. My subscription from the previous season ended at the end of April of 2023 and the Royals were so pathetic I decided not to fork over the money for another season of broadcasts. I'd still keep up with them online but wouldn't pay for such futility. I did make it to a couple of games, one in KC and one in Arlington. But last season was horrible.

Now it's 2024. Although the ownership still ticks me off with their desire to demolish Kauffman Stadium and build downtown (I'm glad the vote failed!) I did like seeing them invest some money in free agency and extending Bobby Witt, Jr. It was a refreshing change for the Kansas City Royals.

So Opening Day, I re-upped for the audio broadcasts. And I'm glad I did even though who knows how this season will turn out. Listening to Denny Matthews, now in his 56th year broadcasting Royals games, is comforting. Reminds me of my childhood. I don't often get to listen to entire games, but just 4 or 5 innings is a nice respite from the world.

And so far, the Royals starting pitching is looking pretty good! If we can get the bullpen going they might make some noise in the AL Central this year. That's all I want this year...some noise. Give the division a run. Make things interesting. 

Desert Stories

A few months ago I stumbled upon Desert Oracle Radio and have been busily going through their back podcast catalogue. I have a lot of eps to catch up on! The show's host and creator, Ken Layne, also publishes a quarterly field guide magazine to which I quickly subscribed. I thoroughly enjoyed the first issue I received and discovered that many of the earlier issues have been compiled into book form, Desert Oracle Volume One. Got that for my birthday and finished it last night. So enjoyable. Short little vignettes on desert weirdos, wildlife, UFO sightings, myths, history of the Mojave and much more. True escapism for someone like me stuck in the metropolitan madness of Dallas, Texas. Highly recommend the show, magazine and this book. Greatness.

Bewilderment

Richard Powers is a genius. Bewilderment is an astonishing and devastating read. I had to just sit still for awhile after finishing it. Spectacular. I identified with too much of it. It really hit home. 

Thoughts on the word "bewilderment." In this context, of course, the normal definition applies...confusion and surprise about what someone is experiencing. Discombobulation. But I also have to think of be-wild. Things returning to the wild maybe? Or being entranced with the wilds of nature and existence? All of these work with the context of this book. A compelling read.

McKinney Falls

While in Austin we went hiking in McKinney Falls State Park. We were surprised to find it within Austin itself. It is a beautiful park with great trails.

 

Space Age Truck

We were in a parking spot outside of a Starbucks in Georgetown, Texas when this thing pulled up next to us. One of Elon’s Cyber Trucks. I had never seen one in the wild. Very strange looking but they look better in person than in the online photos I had seen. Strangely enough we saw a different one about 10 minutes later. Two sightings in a few minutes. Must be popular in the Austin metro area.