The computer giveth and the computer taketh away and then the damned thing giveth again. This weekend, my computer took away my Monday post as I was working on it. Then for no reason I can discern, it decided to give it back to me at 10:00 am this (Tuesday) morning. So, with a little bit of tweaking, here's yesterday's post today.
Openers: The Mighty ScreeWee (TM) Empire (TM) is poised to attack Earth!
Our battleships have been destroyed in a sneak raid!
Nothing can stand between Earth and the terrible vengeance of the Scree (TM)!
But there is one starship left...and out of the mists of time comes one warrior, one fighter who is the last Hope of Civilization!
YOU!
YOU are the savior of Civilization. You are all that stands between your world and Certain Oblivion. You are the Last Hope.
Only You Can Save Mankind! (TM)
Action-packed with New Features! Just like the Real Thing! Full-Color Sound and Salm-Vector (TM) Graphics!
Suitable for IBM PC, Atari, Amiga, Pineapple, Amstrad, Nintendo. Actual game shots taken from a version you haven't bought.
Copyright 1992 Gobi systems, 17834 W. Agharta Drive, Shambala, Tibet. All rights Reserved. All company names and product names are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective companies.
The names ScreeWee, Empire, and Mankind are trademarks of Gobi Softare, 1992.
-- Only You Can Save Mankind by Terry Pratchett (Book One of The Johnny Maxwell Trilogy, 1992.
"To look at him you'd think Johnny Maxwell is just an ordinary 12-year-old. but the weird stuff keeps happening to him. Of course, you could blame these Trying Times -- his parents are in the middle of an acrimonious divorce -- but really, the kinds of things we're talking about aren't part of a normal kid's routine. I mean what would you do if...the aliens in your favorite video game surrendered instead of shooting back! /at first Johnny and his friends think it's part of the programming, but this scenario isn't in the manual..Then Johnny starts having incredible lifelike dreams...where he's at the controls of a starfighter and the alien fleet, hanging in space before him, is waiting for him to lead them safely home. As hard as it is trying to save Mankind from the Galactic Hordes, it's even harder trying to save the Galactic Hordes from Mankind. But hey, it's only a game, isn't it?"
The Johnny Maxwell Trilogy (with concluding books Johnny and the Dead [1993] and Johnny and the Bomb [1996]) was Pratchett's second Young Adult series and it one worthy of the creator of Discworld and the co-writer of Good Omens. My copy has a large Science Fiction Book Club poster by Jim Burns, which is pretty cool.
Incoming:
- Clifton Adams, Outlaw's Son. Western. "He was young and hard and dangerous and he had learned it all from the most notorious badman who ever rode the border -- his father, Nate Blaine. He was young Jeff Blaine, greased lightning with a gun or a card, on the road to hell -- and looking for a shortcut!" Adams wrote over fifty novels, mainly westerns, and was a two-time Sur Award winner. This book was originally published as Gambling Man in 1955, and was the basis for the 1957 film Outlaw's Son; strangely, my copy of the book gives the copyright date as 1957, and not 1955 (it also gives no mention of the previous title).
- Todhunter Ballard. Three westerns: Badland Buccaneer. "To an outlaw like Joel Kelly, a fat payroll would be irresistible. so the railroad detectives baited their ambush carefully. Sacks bulging with gold were loaded on the train. Then the news was 'leaked' so Kelly would hear it. But, in addition to the bullion, armed agents disguised as passengers were planted in the cars. This time, Joel Kelly -- the West's most notorious buccaneer -- would be cut down in a murderous crossfire of singing bullets. But Kelly knew exactly what the detectives had planned..." Also, High Desert: A Western Duo. Contain one short story and a novel. "Drifter's Choice" (from Lariat Story Magazine, July 1948): "Wade Pierce has no particular ambition and a reputation for irresponsibility. No one is more surprised than Pierce when he learns he has inherited his dead uncle's controlling interest in a small bank. When he is confronted by Sam Leavitt, who tries to force him to sell out, Pierce becomes stubborn. but he is not a gunman and he isn't prepared to commit murder.' High Desert was written in the Thirties but evidently not published (at least under that title) until 2004. "Maria Mulrooney is held a virtual prisoner in a convent while her uncle controls the vast holdings that belonged to her father. Maria sees an offer of marriage from rancher Dan Halliday as an opportunity. Under her father's will, if she marries she has the right to assume ownership of her inheritance. Halliday sees an opportunity to get ahead. Maria and Dan are both tough and determined, but is it enough?" And, Tough in the Saddle. "Boyd Reynolds rode into town after three years of wandering, happy at the thought of seeing his ranch again -- and Ellen Petrie. But the town had changed -- drastically. Fear rode his former friends and neighbors, for Jud Laws and his hired killers had taken over, ruthlessly annexing ranches to his already enormous holdings, stealing cattle, and getting a stranglehold on the law. Anyone who balked was either killed or run out of town. And Ellen? Even now she was Jud's property, basking in reflected glory of the violent man's power. It was a bittersweet homecoming. Gone were his ranch, his woman, and maybe his right to live -- unless he could gather the last few strugglers remaining in town with guts enough to ride against a determined man backed by forty gunslingers!" Ballard, who also wrote as W. T. Ballard, among other names, is another Spur Award winner. As you may tell from his name, he was the cousin of famous mystery writer Rex Todhunter Stout,
- Frank Bonham, Devil's Graze: Western Stories. Collection of seven stories, originally published from 1942 to 1950, edited by Bill Pronzini. the eighth collection of short stories published in five Star Western. " 'Brides for Oregon' concerns the adventures and hardships encountered by mustanger Hugh Lamerick when he undertakes the dual tasks of driving a herd of horses and leading a wagon train of 'strong, courageous young women willing to have a go at settling the West' from Fort Laramie, Wyoming, to Portland, Oregon. Dramatic clashes between individuals and armies during the bloody struggle between Mexico and the States for possession of Texas is the strong stuff of 'Captain Satan.' 'Devil's Graze' and 'Longhorns Are Tough' display Bonham's sure hand with the rangeland yarn. 'Hop Yard Widow' is distinguished for its highly unusual background of Oregon hop fields and for the equally unusual love triangle. The pitfalls of modern-day logging in the rugged Sierra Nevada of northern California form the basis for 'The Long Fall.' Marshall Gus Hobbs, who will hang anyone for a fee except an innocent man, is at his relentless best in 'Hangin' Hobbs's Hemp Stampede.' a rousing tale of gold, greed, and gunsmoke." (Gus Hobbes was a short-lived Bonham character in just three stories.) Bonham wrote 48 novels, both westerns and young adult books, and may be best known for the YA Durango Street, an ALA Notable Book.
- James Lee Burke, Half of Paradise. Burke's first novel. "Meet Avery Broussard, the last in a line of once-substantial land owners whose weakness for alcohol lands him in prison; J. P. Winfield, a dirt-poor singer who makes it to the top of hillbilly music only to be destroyed by drug addiction; and Toussaint Boudreaux, a black longshoreman who is set up for a crime he didn't commit. How the three men struggle to escape the bondage that links them makes for a tale of atmosphere and suspense that is pure vintage Burke." Constant readers of Burke's Holland family books may recognize the use of Avery Broussard's name in two of Hackberry holland's grandchildren: Wendell Avery Holland and Aaron Holland Broussard.
- Michael Connelly, The Harry Bosch Novels, Volume 2. Omnibus of three books. The Last Coyote. " LAPD homicide detective Harry Bosch is suspended from the force for attacking his commanding officer. Unable to remain idle, he investigates the long-unsolved murder of a Hollywood prostitute,, his mother." Trunk Music. "Bosch return to the force to investigate the murder of a movie producer with Mafia ties. Up against both the LAPD's organized rime unit and the mob, Bosch follows the money trail to Las Vegas, where the case turns personal." Angel's Flight. "The murder of a prominent attorney who made his career suing the police for racism and brutality lands Bosch's friends and associates on the list of suspects -- and he must work closely with longtime enemies suspicious of his maverick ways in order to investigate them." Few people do this sort of thing better than Connelly but, for some reason, I have only read a few books in the series.
- Mark Dery, Born to Be Posthumous: The Eccentric Life and Mysterious Genius of Edward Gorey. biography. "From The Gashleycrumb Tinies to The Doubtful Guest, Edward Gorey's wickedly funny, deliciously sinister little books have influenced our culture in countless ways, from Tim Burton's movies to Lemony Snickett's A Series of Unfortunate Events. Some call him the grandfather of Goth (which would have given him the fantods). Just who was this man, who lived with six cats, owned more than 20,000 books, roomed with the poet Frank O'Hara at Harvard, and like to traipse around in floor-length fur coats, clanking bracelets, and an Edwardian beard? An eccentric, a solitary, yes -- but who was the real Edward Gory behind the Oscar Wildean pose? He published over a hundred books and illustrated works by Samuel Beckett, T. S. Eliot, Edward Lear, John Updike, Charles Dickens, Muriel Spark, Bram Stoker, and John Bellairs (most notably The House with a Clock in Its Walls), among others. At the same time, he was a deeply complicated and secretive man, a reclusive master whose art reflected his obsessions with the disquieting, the darkly amusing, and...other things." I am a big Edward Gorey fan because I have refined tastes.
- Stephen Fry, Making History. Comic novel with a science fictional edge (an alternative time line in which Hitler never existed). "Michael Young is convinced his brilliant history thesis will win him a doctorate, a pleasant academic post, a sensible academic publisher and his beloved girlfriend Jane. A historian, however, should know better than to imagine that he can predict the future. Lou Zuckerman is an aging physicist obsessed with the darkest period in human history, utterly driven by his fanatical hatred of one man. A lover's childish revenge and the breaking of a rotten cheap clasp cause the two men to meet in a blizzard of swirling pages. Pages of history. When they come together, nothing -- past, present or future -- will ever be the same again." I admire some people because of their intellect, some because because of their wit, and some because of their humanity; Stephen Fry hits all three marks.
- Dorothy K. Haynes, The Weird Tales of Dorothy K. Haynes. Collection. "The fabric of Dorothy K. Haynes's weird fiction is truly the stuff of nightmares, where horrors cruel and mundane are interwoven with threads of dark fairy folklore, orphanage miseries, twisted witchcraft, and uncanny timeslips to deliver heady supernatural thrills. In this new collection, Haynes expert Craig Lamont present the essential classics of her strange storytelling alongside rarities from obscure anthologies and magazines -- and five stories exhumed from the family archive which have never been published before. With appendices featuring an illustrated letter by Mervyn Peake and typescript images, this volume knits the irresistible pull of Haynes's unique brand of the uncanny with a rare opportunity to discover new material from one of the great masters of Scottish horror."
- Robert Holdstock, The Hollowing. Fantasy, the fourth of seven books in the Mythago Wood series. "Young Alex Bradley has been missing for months in Ryhope Wood, a place where treasured dreams and hidden nightmares are given life by the power that is the heart and soul of the woods. Yet when his body is found on the edge of the forest, Alex's father refuses to believe his son is dead. And so he begins a search into the forest that sends him journeying from the ancient North American plains to a castle in the Middle Ages to the age of Greek legends and beyond. Always he seeks the one path that will lead him to the son who waits, desperately longing to be found. But the force that gives life to Ryhope Wood guards all its 'possessions' jealously, and even a father's love and determination may not prove stronger than a magic that has become as warped and twisted as the wood itself..."
- David H. Keller, M.D., The Threat of the Robot: and Other Nightmarish Futures. Science fiction collection with nine stories, several easily available elsewhere. "Travel to nine dystopian tomorrows, where current trends threaten the existence of mankind. - A time when robots threaten to throw millions of workers into unemployment - A world where everyone lives 24 hours a day in individual automobiles - A program that selectively breeds office workers for maximum efficiency - An academic rivalry between two universities that ends in mass murder - A city so crowded that people make their homes in never-landing airplanes - A more totalitarian society than 1984 or BRAVE NEW WORLD." Keller was an early Science fiction pioneer; these stories were first published from 1928 to 1935.
- Erin E. MacDonald, Ed McBain/Evan Hunter: A Literary Companion. Non-fiction, Book 3 in the McFarland Companions to Mystery Fiction series. "One of the most prolific crime writers of the last century, Evan /hunter published more than 120 novels from 1952 to 2005 under a variety of pseudonyms. He also wrote several teleplays and screenplays, including Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds, and the 1954 novel The Blackboard Jungle. When the Mystery Writers of America named Hunter a Grand Master, he gave the designation to his alter ego, Ed McBain, best known for his long running police procedural series about the detectives of the 87th Precinct. This comprehensive companion provides detailed information about all of Evan Hunter's/Ed McBain's works, characters, and recurring themes. From police detective and crime stories to dramatic novels and films, this reference celebrates the vast body of literature of this versatile writer." I don't believe this book covers the 80 or so soft-core novels he supposedly wrote in the 60s as "Dean Hudson" (Late i his career Hunter denied writing them, protesting perhaps a bit too much (a la Dean Koontz); his editor says the Hunter wrote a number of them and had his writing students write the others. who knows?) I've been a fan of hunter's writing since high school and, with the possible/probable exception of many of the "Dean Hudson" novels, have read every book he had published under his many pseudonyms.
- Warren B. Murphy & Frank Stevens, Atlantic City. Mainstream crime novel. "Atlantic City was a dying facade of a once fashionable seaside resort...until someone had the bright idea of turning it into an East Coast Las Vegas. Suddenly, the musty old boardwalk town erupted into a multi-million-dollar monopoly game! Powerful conglomerates and gambling mobs moved in to fight for control. Ruthless manipulating quickly turned into bombings, beatings, and murder! This explosively perceptive novel tells the story of what happens when on old-line family, the Devlins, decide to battle big money and the Mafia to hold ono their valuable little piece of real estate, Not even one of the world's richest men can break the Devlin line...nor high-powered political/financial pressure, nor mob violence and killing. The gutsy Devlins have pride and honor, and will not be bought, beaten, raped, or destroyed. Not as long as there's one Devlin alive to spit in the eye of the intruders!" Murphy, of course, is the co-creator of the Destroyer series, as well as books in the Trace, Digger, Grandmaster, and Legacy series.
- Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, two books in the Pendergast series. The Book of the Dead, #7 in the series. "An FBI agent, rotting away in a high security prison for a murder he did not commit...His brilliant, psychotic brother, about to commit a horrific crime...A young woman with an extraordinary past, on the verge of a violent breakdown...An ancient Egyptian Tomb with an enigmatic curse, about to be unveiled at a celebrity-studded New York gala..." And, Blue Labyrinth, #14 in the series, "A long-buried family secret has come back to haunt Spcial Agent Aloysius Pendergast. It begins with murder. One of Perdergast's most implacable, most feared enemies is found on his doorstep, dead. Pendergast has no idea who is responsible for the killing, or why the body was brought to his home. The mystery has all the hallmarks of the perfect crime, save for an enigmatic clue: a piece of turquoise lodged in the stomach of the deceased. The gem leads Perdergast to an abandoned mine on the shore of California's Salton Sea, which in turn propels him on a journey of discovery deep into his own family's sinister past. But Pendergast learns there is more at work than a ghastly episode of family history: he is being stalked by a subtle killer bent on vengeance over an ancient transgression. And he soon becomes caught in a wickedly clever plot, which leaves him stricken in mind and body, and propels him toward a reckoning beyond anything he could ever have imagined..." There are currently 22 novels in this best-selling series, plus four novels in n off-shoot series. Preston and Child also collaborated on the Gideon Crew series of thrillers, as well as on four stand-alone novels.
- M. Rickert (the "M" stands for Mary), Lucky Girl: How I Became a Horror Writer. Horror novella, subtitled "A Krampus Story." "Ro, a struggling writer, knows all to well the pain and solitude that holiday festivities can awaken. When she meets four people at the local diner -- all of them strangers and as lonely as Ro is -- she invited them to an impromptu Christmas dinner. And when that party seems in danger of an early end, she suggests they each tell a ghost story. One that's seasonally appropriate. But Ro will come to learn that the horrors hidden in a Christmas tale -- or one's past -- can never be tamed once unleashed."
- "James Rollins" (Jim Czajkowski), two novels in the Sigma Force series. The Demon Crown, the 13th book in the series. "Off the coast of Brazil, a team of scientists discover an island where all life have been eradicated by a species beyond imagination. Before they can report their discovery, a mysterious agency attacks the group, killing them all save one: an expert on venomous creatures, Professor Ken Matsui. This inexplicable threat traces back to a terrifying century-old secret buried beneath the National Mall., a cache of bones preserved in amber that was hidden by a cabal of scientists -- led by Alexander Graham Bell -- to protect humankind. The object also holds an astonishing promise for the future: the very secret of life after death. Now an ancient horror -- dormant in the marrow of these preserved bones -- is free once more, nursed and developed into a weapon of incalculable strength and malignancy, ready to wreak havoc on an unsuspecting world. Commander Grayson Pierce will be forced to make an impossible choice. To eradicate this extinction-level threat and expose those involved, he will have to join forces with Sigma's greatest enemy -- the newly resurrected Guild -- even if it means sacrificing one of his won." And, The Last Odyssey, the 15th book in the series. 'For eons, the city of Troy -- whose legendary fall was detailed in Homer's Iliad -- was believed to be myth, until archaeologists in==in the nineteenth century uncovered its ancient walls buried beneath the sands. It Troy was real, how much of Homer's twin tales of gods and monsters. curses and miracles -- the Iliad and the Odyssey -- could also be true and awaiting discovery? In the frozen tundra of Greenland, a group of modern-day researchers stumble on a shocking find: a medieval ship buried half a mile below the ice. the ship's hold contains a collection of artifacts -- tools of war -- dating back to the Bronze Age. inside the captain's cabin is a clockwork gold map with an intricate silver astrolabe embedded in it. Once activated, the moving map traces the path of Odysseus's famous ship as it sailed away from Troy. but the route detours as the map opens to reveal a fiery river leading to a hidden realm underground the Mediterranean Sea -- the subterranean world of Tartarus, the Greek name for Hell. When word of Tartarus spreads, the phantasmagoric horrors found in Homer's tale are far too real -- and whoever possesses them can use their power to control the future of humanity. Now, to protect a tyrant from igniting a global war, Sigma Force must cross the very gates of Hell." There is quite a market for books in which ancient evils and secrets come back to bite mankind in the rear end. Thus far, there are eighteen books in the Sigma Force series, plus one stand-alone offshoot. The author also writes as James Clemens.
- Robert J. Sawyer, Quantum Night. Science fiction novel. "Experimental psychologist Jim Marchuk has developed a flawless technique for identifying the previously undetectable psychopaths lurking everywhere in society. But while being cross-examined in court about his breakthrough, Jim is shocked to discover that he has lost memories of six months of his life almost twenty years ago -- a dark time during which he himself committed heinous acts. Jim is reunited with Kayla Huron, his forgotten girlfriend from his lost period and now a quantum physicist who has made a stunning discovery about the nature of human consciousness. As a rising tide of violence and hate sweeps across the globe, the psychologist and the physicist combine forces in a race against time to see if they can do the impossible -- change human nature -- before the entire world descends into darkness." This one won the 2017 Aurora Award for Best Novel -- English
- Julia Spencer-Fleming, A Fountain Filled with Blood. Mystery novel, the second in a series featuring Clare Fergusson (a retired helicopter pilot turned Episcopal priest) and police chief Russ Van Alstyne. Nestled in the heart of the Adirondacks. Miller's Kill, New York. is about as safe as it gets. That's why Episcopal minister Clare Fergusson is shocked when the July Fourth weekend brings a rash of vicious assaults to the scenic town. Even Claire's good friend, police chief Russ Van Alstyne, is shaken by the brutality of the crimes -- especially when it appears that the victims were chosen because they were gay. But when a third assault on an out-of-town developer ends in murder, Clare and Russ wonder if the recent crime wave is connected to the victim's controversial plan to open an upscale spa in Miller's Kill. But not all things in the tiny town are what t
- hey seem and soon, Clare and Rus are left to fight their unspoken attraction to one another, even as they uncover a labyrinthine conspiracy that threatens to turn deadly for them both..."
Lacy Oatmeal Cookies: I'm always searching for something tasty to leave with you on this blog, and today happens to be National Lacy Oatmeal Cookie Day! so here's a recipe for you to try:
https://grannysinthekitchen.com/oatmeal-lace-cookies/
As much as love tasty and delicate oatmeal lace cookies, which go so well with a decent cup of coffee or a cold glass of milk, I admit to having a prefern4 for warn oatmeal raisin cookies. My daughter makes the very best oatmeal raisin cookies in the world, but because I don't want to spoil you, here's a recipe that's almost as good as hers (you really don't need to add the walnuts):
https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/soft-chewy-oatmeal-raisin-cookies/
Disheveled Joseph: If cookies are not your thing (although they should be!), today is also National Sloppy Joe Day. Wearing a bib is optional.
https://damndelicious.net/2023/09/08/homemade-sloppy-joes/
Fiery Jacques: Today is the 711th anniversary of the death of Jacques de Molay, the 23rd and last Grand Master of the Knights Templar. The Knights Templar (Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon) was a French military order of the Catholic faith, formed in 118 to defend Christian pilgrims on their way to Jeruselam. Its headquarters were on the Temple Mount. It was one of the wealthiest and most popular military orders of its time. When I say wealthy, I mean wealthy. Some 90% of its members were noncombatants; these were men skilled in finance and who managed a large economic infrastructure within Christendom; their financial innovations formed an early sort of banking. With money comes power, and power can be viewed as a threat to other institutions. As time went on, the Templars were unable to hold onto many of their gains in the Holy Land, and popular support for the order diminished. This provided an opportunity for King Philip of France, who was deeply in debt to the Templars (Philip also distrusted the secret initiation ceremonies of the order). Philip, anxious to gain control of the Templars' vast wealth, pressured Pope Clement V to have Templars in France arrest, questioned under torture into making false confessions, and some burned at the stake. nder further pressure, Clement disbanded the order in 1312. De Molay had been named Grand Master in 1292; the previous Grand Master had died and there were no other serious contestants for the position. De Molay's goal was to reform the order and to adjust it in light of the declining Crusades. De Molay was one of many were were tortured into false confessions. When De Molay retracted his confession, Philip had him burned in front of Notre-Dame de Paris. The sudden ending of the /knights Templar and the execution of its last Grand Master allowed de Molay to be turned into a legendary figure.
There is a legend that de Molay cursed Philip and all his descendants from the burning pyre. He most likely did not, but when has truth stopped a good legend? Within a year both Philip and Clement were dead. Over the next fourteen years, the direct descendent of Philip's Capitan crown died in rapid succession -- the three sons and a grandson of Philip IV. By 1328 the House of Caput had collapsed.
The name de Molay and that of the Knights Templar live on in modern-day Freemasonry. When Freemasonry began some 400 years after the death of de Molay, they adopted many myths about their order and claimed various historic persons and events as part of their heritage. One such ha to do with the Temple of Solomon, which the Knights Templar had used as a repository for secret wisdom and magical powers, which de Molay had handed down to his successor (forget that he did not have one), and that over the centuries Freemasonry had benefited from these as their direct heirs.
Freemasonry today is a worldwide charitable and philanthropic fraternal order. Today's Knights Templar is a subset of Freemasonry, one which began in Ireland, perhaps as early as 1780. Unlike the rest of Freemasonry, which requires simply that one profess a belief in a Supreme Being, to belong to the Knights Templar, one must not only be a freemason but one must also profess a belief in a Christian religion. Freemasonry sponsors the Order of DeMolay, a youth group for boys aged 12 to 21; the group was founded in Kansas City in 1919 by Frank S. Land, a freemason. (A similar group for girls is called Rainbow Girls. And the distaff side of modern freemasonry is the Order of the Eastern Star.)
Happy Birthday, Charley Pride: Pride (1934-2020) began his career as a professional baseball player in the Negro League, pitching for the Memphis Red Sox; he was also on the Boise Yankees, Louisville Clippers, the Birmingham Black Barons, and the Missoula Timberjacks. while with the semipro Eastern Helena Smelterites the team manager paid him $10 to sing for fifteen minutes before each game, a gimmick that worked to increase attendance.
Country music stars Red Sovine and Red Foley both urged Pride to go professional, and in 1965 he was offed a record contract with RCA Records. Between 1969 and 1975, he was RCA's top-selling artist, besting both Elvis Presley and John Denver. Between 1966 and 1987 he had 52 top-10 hits on the country chart, with 30 of them reaching #1.
"Kiss an Angel Good Mornin'"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rouSFhnQapE
"All I Have to Offer You (Is Me)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQNqNbwAXqU
"One Day at a Time"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f15hFxNDqV0
"Is Anyone Goin' to San Antone?"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzISbZtRYHU
"Hope You're Feelin' Me (Like I'm Feelin' You)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlD01k4hYbw
"Crystal Chandeliers"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrqyEqJuO20
"Just for the Love of It"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPL12yGs3bE
"I'm So Afraid of Losing You Again"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5q1tCbYDCxw
"I Don't Think She's in Love anymore"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zbet41k1YJo
"Mountain of love"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAP0JuaLqJQ
Another Birthday Boy: Edgar Cayce (1877-1945), American clairvoyant and mystic. Sorry, Edgar, I'm not a believer.
Edgar Cayce
Seems pretty spacey.
Florida Man:
- No matter what the situation, there's a Florida Man available to keep everything in hand. Take, for instance, James Terrill Williams, a 30-year-old Florida Man who was arrested for masturbating at a Fort St. Lucie Social Security office while filing a claim for disability. According to the intake worker, the strings on his sweat pants started "flying in the air," and when she look over, everything was in full view. At the time, Williams was out on bail from the Port St. Lucie county jail. No longer. Williams made a basic error by performing the act at Window 4, and, as everyone knows, what happens at Window 4 does not always stay at Window 4.
- In a you-can't-arrest-me-officer-it-was-just-a-mistake situation, 33-year-old Florida Man Kyle Hill was arrested for causing a St. Petersburg automobile crash that killed 28-year-old Arislenni Blanco-Medina. But it wasn't his fault, you see. Hill had gotten into a heated argument with his ex-girlfriend and threatened to kill her, but she drove off in a friend's car. (Alcohol and rage were both reportedly heavily involved in what happened next.) Hill hopped into his own car and attempted to track her down. He spotted a Honda that resembled the one she had been driving -- although it was the wrong color -- and assumed it was her. While chasing the car, he called his ex-girlfriend, reportedly saying, "I'm going to kill you, your friend, and myself." He forced the car he was chasing off the road and into a concrete pole, instantly killing Blanco-Medina and critically injuring her boyfriend, Norbelis Figuerado-Campos. both completely innocent victims. So you see, it was just one of those Florida Man mistakes...
- Three Florida Men, including Phillip (yes, there are two "l"s) Johnson, 21, residence not given, entered the Drams nightclub in Tampa, all wearing black clothing and ski masks, and with rifles and handguns, demanding money. Johnson then shot an employee ion the face. The condition of the victim was not known. To commit this crime, the three had to drive across the state, from Brevard County to Tampa.
- Florida Man Grant Amato, who is currently serving a life sentence for murdering his family, has been implicated in a plot to hire a hitman to kill a Las Vegas reality television star. According to Las Vegas police, Amato and Victoria Goodwin were plotting the murder of Goodwin's husband Aaron Goodman, who has a role on the reality show Ghost Adventures. Amato and Victoria Goodman claim to be in love and Goodman supposedly set aside $11,515 (a strange amount, IMHO) to hire a hitman to kill her husband. Victoria Goodman and Amato began their relationship after she viewed him on a true crime documentary, and began writing him. Amato had been convicted in 2019 for killing his parents and older brother; the crimes were featured in a 3-part television documentary that aired in 2024. Corrections officers seized Amato's phone and found the incriminating text messages. In a self-congratulatory press release, the Florida Department of Corrections praised the work of the correction officials and "the leadership pf Secretary Ricky Dixon."
- Florida Man Rico Gardner, 45. was originally arrested last November for transporting for prostitution and deriving support from prostitution during an undercover sting. But as the investigation continued, Hillsborough uncovered "disturbing" details that Gardner had trafficked a victim. The victim, who had been forced to have sex by Gardner, who controlled all of the money she earned, threatened her with physical violence, and would not allow her to eat or sleep., was recued by Sheriff's officers and is now receiving services from the support organization Selah Freedom. Hillsboro Country Sheriff Chad Chronister commended the victim for her "remarkable bravery."
- The Dangers of Doing It Yourself Dept.: Two people returning home in Deltona on March 7 found a grisly sight before them: a SUV sitting on top of a dead man. The unnamed Florida Corpse, whose age was given as 40, had evidently been trying to repair the SUV when it fell on him.
Good News:
- Big Brothers/Big Sisters returns to New Orleans after 20 years. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/big-brothers-big-sisters-returns-to-new-orleans-after-20-years-being-closed-by-hurricane-katrina/
- Have a concussion? Ibuprofen may help. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/over-the-counter-ibuprofen-can-speed-up-recovery-from-concussion-by-20pt/
- 4-year-old rats out his mother https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/little-boy-calls-911-after-mom-ate-his-ice-cream-mommy-is-being-bad-but-cops-solve-the-case/
- A new part of the immune system is discovered. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/scientists-discover-new-part-of-the-immune-system/
- Bus driver rescues "Pajama Day." https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/bus-driver-saves-the-day-after-seeing-a-boy-crying-when-he-forgot-pjs-on-pajama-day/
- Citrus fruit consumption may help against depression. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/citrus-fruit-consumption-helps-protect-against-depression-via-gut-microbiome-study/
- Private financing for nature surges. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/private-financing-for-nature-surges-to-over-102-billion/
- Actor Steve Carell is a nice guy. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/steve-carell-tells-students-affected-by-wildfires-that-prom-tickets-are-paid-for/
Yesterday's Poem:
St. Patrick's Day Poem
It's manny-an manny a year gone by.
From over the wather a hailing.
A sprig of a bye, wid a clear blue sky
I came to this country, a sailing.
My heart bate within wid a rollicking tune,
On my breast was a shamrock adorning.
When I first touched the ground, sure the bands all around
Played St. Patrick's glad day in the morning.
Good luck to the ship that brought me across,
An' here in God's country was landed,
For never a time, without dollar or dime
Have I found myself here empty-handed.
I've a snug little home that shelters us all,
Where no landlord's face is a warning.
An' I hail with delight when day follows night,
St. Patrick's glad day in the morning.
My heart often wanders back to the old sod.
An' the dear one behind me a-leaving --,
But while other above, I should This land I love
Sure, it's not to go back I'm a grieving.
I love the free air, in this blessed land where
I can look back on royalty scorning,
An. as the bands play, I can welcome the day
St. Patrick's glad day in the morning.
-- C. C. Hassler
