songbird's crazy world

Another month gone, and summer coming to a close.  Labor Day is just a week away.  One more baseball game, one more barbecue, and then we move towards autumn. Notice I didn't say into autumn.   September is sort of a transitional month, isn't it?  At  least around here.  Summer is over, but it's still warm and sunny.  The weather doesn't really change until October, it's just our social calendars that have moved into the next phase. I'm not quite ready for fall.  I still want to hold on to summer.  I guess September gives me a chance to hold on to a piece of summer for just awhile longer.

I may need to correct something I said in yesterday's blog. I really don't remember it, but Drew says he and I saw The Monkees at Jones Beach in 1986. That was the 20th anniversary tour, and all four members of the band performed. I do remember seeing Davy, Mickey and Peter. And then, later, seeing Mickey, Peter and Mike. I don't remember the Jones Beach show. Last night, of course, was just Mickey and Peter. The first half of the show was all about The Monkees, they sang hits while video of the old TV show played. One of the best clips from the show -- Mike pretending to be an inept folk singer, totally wrecking "A Different Drum", a song made popular by Linda Ronstadt. Inside joke -- Mike wrote that song. But the second half ...showed off their talents in a different way. Alternate arrangements of Monkees songs. An interesting, jazzy version of "Sugar, Sugar", a song which they turned down before it was recorded by The Archies. A folk ...

It was 1966, and a new sitcom was on TV.  It was about four young men, musicians in a struggling rock band.  Slapstick comedy mixed with groovy clothes and, most importantly, the music.  The four young men in this TV-created band were supposed to be an American response to the Beatles.  And did I mention that one of them even had a British accent? Everyone knew Mickey Dolenz, Davy Jones, Mike Nesmith and Peter Tork. The shows were fun, the music stands the test of time; after all, some of the best songwriters of the day wrote  Monkees hits -- Boyce and Hart, Carol King, Neil Diamond all contributed material.  Tork wrote for the band, and  Nesmith turned out to be a prolific songwriter as well. The Monkees exceeded their TV origins to become one of the most popular bands of the era.  The band broke up in 1971, but the band revived when MTV ran a marathon of the shows in 1986.   The format of the TV shows ultimately led to the...

Think I found what I want to make for next week's barbecue. Ingredients                         1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed                                           1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed                         1 (15 ounce) can green beans, drained and rinsed ...

In Manhattan today. Can't imagine why this song comes to mind.

So...a moral/ethical dilemma for debate. This morning I watched two truly shocking, horrible, frightening videos.  You've probably seen the news reports of the two journalists shot and killed on the air in Virginia this morning. The reporter is in the middle of an interview about tourism in the area when shots ring out. You hear screams, and after the camera falls to the ground, you see a brief glimpse of the shooter. Then the video cuts to the studio, where the anchor ha s a shocked look on her face. You may or may not have seen the second video. The shooter posted it to his social media accounts, and although his accounts have been shut down, the video continues to circulate in various forums. It has not, to my knowledge, been shown by any news agency. He shot the video as he stalked the two victims, you can see the gun, you can see the reporter being shot. It's chilling. So the question for debate. Should either of these videos be broadcast on the news? S...

So my father spent four days in the hospital. Not fun. And then, when I came home the other night, my daughter told me that my mother was in the ER. There's a single step leading from the driveway to the front porch. She lost her balance while trying to step up to the porch, and took a bad fall. Landed on her left arm. Hurt herself so badly that she's wearing a lot of bandages and a sling. At least the ER doctor didn't feel the need to admit her. The "joys" of octogenarian parents. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad