Quotable: G.K. Chesterton
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G.K. Chesterton
“It is terrible to contemplate how few politicians are hanged.”
G.K. Chesteron
In Case The House Burns Down
/I ran across a really cool website: theburninghouse.com
It offers this challenge:
If your house was burning, what would you take with you? It's a conflict between what's practical, valuable and sentimental. What you would take reflects your interests, background and priorities. Think of it as an interview condensed into one question.
I'll admit this was a lot harder than I thought it would be. The first things that came to mind I quickly realized didn't fit the challenge. They were things that I could replace--things like:
I had to remind myself that this was not about what would you gather up and take if the apocalypse was impending; as if I would worry about dragging a bag full of stuff into the ruination. But wait; maybe I could use some of that stuff to barter my way in to the bunker of some delusional doomsday prepper. Let's be real--I don't really know anyone that would want to share their pork 'n' beans with me for eternity.
So, in the interest of the burning house challenge, here's my list:
My Burning House / End of the World As We Know It Kit
- Little elf doll. I bartered this little guy away from a French-speaking hippie in Montreal, Canada in 1967. I was there playing drums with a tour band (not running from the draft). The hippy was wearing the elf on a piece of leather lace around his neck.
- The little green apple is actually a USB drive containing the files of all The Beatles recordings and album art. An unbelievable collection--a gift from my Amazing Missus.
- My Grado Headphones.
- My bookplate stamp.
- A camera.
- My passport in case I need to travel abroad to escape from the fray.
- A snack. I learned from my mom that you never go into the unknown without a snack.
- The complete collection of Karlee & Harper photo books--priceless.
- Drumsticks and pad.
- My Bible. It is drama, mystery, and poetry all in one beautiful book.
- A few journals. I don't journal like I used to. A few years ago someone broke into my vehicle and stole a bag containing my laptop and some journals I had written and highly valued. Jerks!
- A few items with sentimental back stories.
- A book of Mother Goose nursery rhymes. You've got to remember innocence in the midst of all-hell-breaking-loose.
How about your list?
Come on, share it. I won't judge you... Oh, okay, in the interest of end-times honesty, I will probably judge you. See why nobody would want me in their bunker?
POPS on Pop
/Three things shook my foundation a bit. I was reading an article in the October 14, 2013, issue of The New Yorker entitled, "The Doctor Is In" by John Seabrook.
Normally you would assume that a 60s-something guy being shaken a bit by an article about the doctor being in, it must have something to do with prostate cancer or the like. Not so.
If you don't know who these people are this post is probably going to be off-putting to you.
Foundation shaker #1: The New Yorker has been one of my main reads for years. Recently they rolled out a design tweak. Normally I'm all for an aesthetic reinvention, but this is The New Yorker! WTH? (what the heck). But here's what really worries me: this article seems to suggest the magazine has decided they need to attract a younger, hipper audience. Don't they know that young hipsters don't read anything longer than 140 characters, including hashtags and take pictures of themselves.
Pops Picks
[Oh BTW (by the way), if you'll follow About POPS on Twitter, Pops will send you a very cool, white pearl guitar pick with the About POPS brand on it. www.twitter.com/AboutPOPS.] How's that for shameless, hypocritical self-promotion?
Here's the opening paragraph of The New Yorker story:
Unlike Dr. Dre, that other faux-medical badass beatmaker, Dr. Luke is a white guy. He lives in Los Angeles now, but he talks like the New York City hustler he once was. He “vibes” well, an invaluable skill in the song-making trade, where the writer needs to connect with the artist as soon as she walks in the room. Dr. Luke is slight of build and dresses in T-shirts and beltless jeans that hang low on his backside, exposing colorful briefs. His blue-green eyes droop at the outer corners, giving his face at rest a melancholy cast.
Is this really The New Yorker? Word for word.
Foundation shaker #2: Remember when "jeans that hang low on the backside" were so cartoonish that it made for a hilarious Saturday Night Live skit that still stands today as a classic. I did a little research to get the facts straight. It starred Gilda Radner as Lisa Loopner, Bill Murray as her boyfriend Todd DiLaMuca and Dan Aykroyd as the refrigerator repairman. The skit was called "Nerds & The Norge" and aired October 7, 1978.
The jist of the skit was Todd and Lisa having great laughs at the expense of the repairman kneeling into the old refrigerator exposing his crack. Back then it was funny, today it apparently "vibes well."
Yes I realize I'm sounding like an old geezer. But hang in there.
Oh, by the way, the musical guests on SNL on the night of this great skit: The Rolling Stones.
Here's the bridge:
"Dr. Luke" began his pro career as the lead guitarist in the SNL house band. Since then he has gone on to produce and co-write songs for Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne, Pink, Britney Spears. Notice a theme?
Foundation Shaker #3: Again from The New Yorker article:
Lukasz Gottwald—his given name—has co-written or co-produced more than thirty Top Ten singles since 2004, a run to rank with the greatest hitmakers in pop-music history: Phil Spector, the Beatles, Michael Jackson. At forty, he’s still going strong: last week’s No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, Miley Cyrus’s “Wrecking Ball,” and the previous No. 1, Katy Perry’s “Roar,” are both Dr. Luke songs.
I'm sure Dr. Luke is creative and intensely talented. Not questioning that. But I wonder if even the good Dr. himself is comfortable with his tunes, sung by airy, auto-tuned, diva-ettes really ranks with the "greatest hitmakers in pop-music? After all it was the author of the piece that made that distinction and not the Dr. himself. And maybe all the author is saying is that simply by the numbers of Top Ten singles he compares.
Surely he is not comparing this discography to the final musical contribution of The Beatles and Michael Jackson!?
Yes, again I'm aware all of this makes me sound like an old geezer. Sometimes the truth hurts. Oh, and by the way, because I do so want to "vibe well", today's choice of drawers are not briefs, they're boxers; but they are very colorful, and the only way you're likely to see them is if you invite me over to work on your fridge.
Take Me Out To The Ballgame
/Although my favorite place to see a major league baseball game live is a Cub's game at Wrigley, my favorite team is the St. Louis Cardinals--been that way for many years.
This is one team loyalty I share with my Dad. When it comes to the NFL we can't agree, my Dad's favorite team is the Dallas Cowboys; my favorite NFL team is whichever team is playing the Dallas Cowboys. It has nothing to do with disrespect for my Dad. It just that I'm the kind of guy who doesn't like the idea of any team assuming I'm a fan because they refer to themselves as "America's Team" and I happen to be an American.
But back to the Cardinals. Once again they are making their way to yet another World Series. My loyalty to the Cards is stitched into the fabric of who I am, sort of like Weber's Root Beer and hot dogs at Coney Islander (both long-time Tulsa icons).
Some of my favorite childhood memories are going to Tulsa Oilers baseball games with my Dad. Tulsa was a farm team for the Cardinals, so it was natural for any kid who loved the Oilers to also love the Cards. Oilers and Cardinals games were always carried on the radio in Tulsa and I spent hours listening to games.
Al McNeilance, aka: Mr. Peepers
As a huge bonus for a baseball loving kid, my Dad was close friends with one of the Oilers pitchers, a guy named Al McNeilance, nicknamed "Mr. Peepers" for the little glasses he wore. Al was from Buffalo, New York. He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers and somehow ended up in the Cardinals system and pitching for the Oilers in Tulsa. He was a great guy with a huge smile and personality. He was the leader of a boys club at the church we attended. When his baseball career ended, Al and his family stayed in Tulsa.
Of course as a kid growing up in the 50s and 60s, I was a huge Mickey Mantle fan. How can you not idolize one of the all-time greats, particularly when he's from Oklahoma like you are. Add in Roger Maris (who also played in Tulsa) and Yogi Berra, and the Yankees earned my respect and attention. But it was then and still is to this day the St. Louis Cardinals that I want to see hoist the big trophy, which they have done eleven times, more than any other National League team. The American League Yankees of course have won the most pennants: twenty-seven.
Oh, FYI, the Cardinals and the Yankees have met in the World Series five times. The Cards have won three of the five.
How about you? Click the comment box and drop a name, tell about your brush with greatness or vote for your favorite team.
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks...