Energy

My aunt used to say that energy begets energy. So true. Mine has about gone along with any stamina I used to have. It takes me so much longer to do anything physical than it used to, and I have to rest much more often. OK, back to what you were doing. I just needed to complain a bit!

Oh, the Irony!

The only member of the rock group ZZ Top that did not have a beard was named Frank. His last name, of course, was Beard.

Molly Ivins

Here are some quotes from my favorite columnist Molly Ivins. I plan to post some periodically.

• I am not anti-gun. I'm pro-knife. Consider the merits of the knife. In the first place, you have to catch up with someone in order to stab him. A general substitution of knives for guns would promote physical fitness. We'd turn into a whole nation of great runners. Plus, knives don't ricochet. And people are seldom killed while cleaning their knives.

• In the real world, there are only two ways to deal with corporate misbehavior: One is through government regulation and the other is by taking them to court. What has happened over 20 years of free-market proselytizing is that we have dangerously weakened both forms of restraint, first through the craze for "deregulation" and second through endless rounds of "tort reform," all of which have the effect of cutting off citizens' access to the courts. By legally bribing politicians with campaign contributions, the corporations have bought themselves immunity from lawsuits on many levels.

• It's like, duh. Just when you thought there wasn't a dime's worth of difference between the two parties, the Republicans go and prove you're wrong.

• It is possible to read the history of this country as one long struggle to extend the liberties established in our Constitution to everyone in America.

• One function of the income gap is that the people at the top of the heap have a hard time even seeing those at the bottom. They practically need a telescope. The pharaohs of ancient Egypt probably didn't waste a lot of time thinking about the people who built their pyramids, either. OK, so it's not that bad yet -- but it's getting that bad.

Willie Cut His Hair!!

Another Casualty of the Flood

A MESSAGE FROM THE MUSICIANS HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM

First and foremost, the Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum would like to extend our sincerest concern and condolences for the loss of life and property experienced by so many of our fellow Tennesseans from the recent floods. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected by this tragic event.

Although there is no way to compare our loss to what others are experiencing, we would like to inform those interested about our current situation.

As a result of the city’s decision to have us vacate the museum property in February 2010, through eminent domain, the museum was forced by Third Circuit Court Judge Barbara Haynes to remove everything including all exhibits with 7 days notice prior to the building being torn down. Many of our artifacts were temporarily stored in the longtime revered performance and storage space of SoundCheck in Nashville. Unfortunately, SoundCheck was yet another casualty of the floods and in turn so many treasured musical pieces including ours were affected.

Thank you to all of those who have emailed and called asking how they can assist. If anyone wishes to make financial contributions to The Musicians Hall of Fame to assist in instrument restoration and flood recovery please make checks to The Musicians Hall of Fame P.O. Box 23655, Nashville, TN 37202.

The Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum has remained in continued dialogue, when requested, with city representatives, about seeking an amicable solution to finding a new home for the Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum in Nashville, but to no avail at this point in time.

Check out our website later this week for a filmed tour of The Musicians Hall of Fame Museum just prior to demolition.

The Musicians Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony & Awards Show has been pushed back to Spring 2011 due to our current situation concerning our relocation with the city of Nashville compounded with the additional uncertainty of our flood-damaged artifacts.

The MHOF Awards Show has become a wonderful tradition and spectacular opportunity to honor those musicians who have made the music that plays as the soundtrack of our lives. Today’s musicians are in the studios creating and carrying on the tradition that future generations will also revere and look back on as the soundtrack to this chapter in our cities history, with the knowledge that we will rise again and continue to move forward with the spirit that makes Nashville a special place to be.

Record label executive and philanthropist, Mike Curb, has provided office space for the Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum, due to the temporary museum closure by eminent domain.

The Musicians Hall of Fame is conducting day to day operations in our new offices that are located in the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Business building at 34 Music Square East (formally CBS Records Nashville building. Home of CBS Studio A and the famous CBS Studio B better known as the Quonset Hut which was the first studio built on Music Row.)

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Mike Curb and Don Cusic for their generosity and support as well as all of those who have provided their support during this time of change. We encourage you to keep in touch with us as we begin planning one of the most spectacular music shows you'll ever see for Spring 2011!

Posted by Jimmy Carter Nashville

For Other Language Lovers

Nutwood Beth posted this on Facebook, and I like it so much I'm posting it here. Click to see it better. I tried to find an image of the bigger tree in that box but found so many other maps and trees that I got distracted. Imagine that!



Explanation HERE which gives the majority of language spoken. For example, English is the blue one.

DWTS 10 - Final Results

Just as I expected, Nicole won. She should have since she was the best celebrity dancer they've had on the show. Unfortunately, on the other end of the spectrum, we had to endure not only having to watch Kate Gosselin attempt to dance, but she also talked. I cannot stand her. She whines, complains, bitches, blames others for everything, and should never have been on TV. I don't know why she ever got this attention and wish she would go away. She can't even walk gracefully.

It was so much fun to see Niecy Nash again! She's so much fun! I wish Erin and Maks had come in second instead of Evan. I liked him at first but then he became smarmy to me. It was a good season, and I enjoyed it.

DWTS 10 - Week 10

The Finals! The judges' choice and freestyle are featured tonight.

Erin & Maks - Bruno made the rounds helping Erin with her samba. She loosened up and really danced! There's no doubt that Nicole will and should win, but I hope Erin comes in second. This was fun and had good moves. Len commented on how much she'd improved. Bruno raved. Carrie Ann said it was fantastic. It was!
Samba Scores - 10/10/9 = 29
Maks took a risk and had Mandy Moore come over and help them. No, not the pop singer, the choreographer who's been on So You Think You Can Dance. They danced a contemporary interpretative dance she choreographed. I liked it, and the judges were mixed.
Freestyle Scores - 9/8/9 = 26
Total = 55

Evan & Anna - Len advised Evan to pay attention to his partner instead of focusing entirely on his performance. Guess that comes from singles skating all these years. Their Viennese waltz was elegant and classy. Sometimes Evan looks as if he's skating when he's dancing. The judges praised them but weren't enthusiastic.
Viennese Waltz scores - 10/9/9 = 28
Evan adamantly disagreed with Anna about their freestyle dance. First time I've seen them like this. He went to the rink and left Anna in tears. Anna brought choreographer Bobby Newberry in to help them. Their freestyle was an energetic and fun jive. Not as risky as the dance Erin and Maks did.
Freestyle Scores - 8/8/8 = 24
Total =52

Nicole & Derek - Carrie Ann, the lift police, said their dance mesmerized her until at the very end there was a lift. I didn't see it that way. He picked her up and walked off the dance floor, but it wasn't what I'd call a lift that she usually complains about. Len said Nicole seemed to lack confidence but that the dance was great. Bruno went nuts about how erotic and beautiful the dance was, which is what the rumba is all about. And they danced to "Lady in Red" which is a sexy song! Wow! Steamy!
Rumba Scores - 9/9/10 = 28
Their freestyle dance was a lively combination of several dance moves which they did really well as usual. Derek fumbled once and said during rehearsal he was going to do lifts he'd never tried before. Their dance wasn't as risky as the one Erin and Maks did. Nicole is such a talented dancer that it's so enjoyable watching her.
Freestyle Scores - 9/9/9 = 27
Total = 55

Erin and Maks dancing their freestyle ...

Tweets

MMFlint

Republicans in Gulf (red) states spend yrs attacking fed govt regs & letting oil co do what they want. Now they demand fed govt save them?


ebertchicago

Where's the TeePee rage against BeePee?


ebertchicago

Q for Texas SchoolBookers: If you prefer "constitutional republic" to "democratic republic," does that mean nobody votes? http://j.mp/avjw7p

Free At Last!!

No more jury duty this month!! It's over! I'm so glad!

Exidor!

In the Mork and Mindy series, the capital city of Mork’s home planet, Ork, was Kork.

Nano Nano! Shazbot!

Anderson Cooper's Commencement Address at Tulane

Here is a link to the transcript. It's worth the time to read it.

Here is the video of the speech.

Excerpt -

How many liberal arts majors are here? I feel your pain. All the engineers here are smiling. I too was a liberal arts major.. so like you I have no actual skill. I majored in political science, I graduated in 1989, and I’d focused almost entirely on the Soviet Union and communism.. so when the Berlin wall fell I was, well, I was screwed. I mean I know it wasn’t about me, and I was happy.. for them.. but personally it was a blow.

I know many of you graduating today are worried about the economy, about your job prospects. I wish I could tell you not too, but of course you should be concerned. The one thing I can tell you however, is that this has happened before, and we have recovered. The currents of history only move in one direction- and that’s forward.

When I graduated there were hiring freezes at most TV news networks. I tried for months to get an entry-level job at ABC news, answering phones, xeroxing, whatever, but I couldn’t get hired. At the time it was crushing. But in retrospect, not getting that entry-level job, was the best thing that could have happened to me.

After months of waiting, I decided if no one would give me a chance as a reporter, I should take a chance. If no one would give me an opportunity, I would have to make my own opportunity.

I wanted to be a war correspondent, so I decided to just start going to wars. As you can imagine, my mom was thrilled about the plan. I had a friend make a fake press pass for me on a mac, and I borrowed a home video camera… and I snuck into Burma and hooked up with some students fighting the Burmese government… then I moved onto Somalia in the early days of the famine and fighting there.

I figured if I went places that were dangerous, I wouldn’t have as much competition, and because I was willing to sleep on the roofs of buildings, and live on just a few dollars a day, I was able to charge very little for my stories. As ridiculous as it sounds, my plan worked, and after two years on my own shooting stories in war zones, I was hired by ABC news as a correspondent. I was the youngest correspondent they had hired in many years. Had I gotten the entry-level job I’d wanted, I would have never become a network correspondent so quickly, I probably would never have even become one at all. The things which seem like heartbreaking setbacks, sometimes turn out to be lucky breaks.

While I don’t remember commencement, I do remember my senior year of college feeling paralyzed, because I thought I had to figure out my future all at once. Pick a career, start down a path I’d be on for the rest of my life. I now know it doesn’t work that way. Everyone I know who is successful, and by successful I mean happy in their professional or personal life, every successful person I know could never have predicted when they graduated from college where they’d actually end up.

I’m not saying you should take it easy and just see what happens. You need to outwork everyone around you. You need to arrive early, stay late, you need to make yourself indispensable - you should also probably get rid of those facebook photos of you passed out on bourbon street.

But as you consider what to do now, you shouldn’t necessarily feel that your next step is the most important one you’ll ever take. It’s not. You will go down many paths that go nowhere. Especially you English majors. You will try things on and realize they don’t fit. And that’s how it should be. Learning what you don’t want to do, is the next best thing to figuring out what you do want to do.

My father died when I was ten, but he loved New Orleans. His family moved here from Mississippi during world war two because there were jobs here. He used to bring me here all the time, and I remember him saying to me that New Orleans is a city of memory. I didn’t understand it at the time, but I do now.

In New York, where I live, they tear down the old, and build gleaming, gaudy monuments to the new. But New Orleans doesn’t try to erase its past. The Ritz Carlton hotel, used to be a department store, and the old name is still carved in the building’s façade. My grandmother used to sell ladies hats there. If you drive down Rampart you’ll pass a school, the Frederick Douglas academy.. but if you look closely you’ll see carved above the front door, the old name of the school: Frances T. Nicholls. That’s where my dad went to high school. It was segregated in those days, and Francis T. Nicholls was a confederate soldier, a governor of the state, a staunch defender of the old order. Any other city, would have chiseled his name off the building, but New Orleans does not rewrite history. Even that which is painful is not erased. A new layer is simply added upon the old. Walking the streets it’s like reading the rings on a tree.

During this graduation season, On Point has been playing excerpts from notable commencement addresses. So far, we’ve heard from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, former Vice President Al Gore, actress Meryl Streep, and CNN host Anderson Cooper. Below are videos of, or links to, all five that we’ve played so far, beginning with the most recent.
HERE

Could Be!

JohnLarroquette

'Maybe this world is another planet's hell.' -Aldous Huxley

I Fell but I Got Back Up

I fell yesterday after not having jury duty. There were three potential jury trials, but two were settled and the defendant didn't show up which is a whole other charge. They said they'd take care of him. Anyway, I was talking to my former student/sequestered roommate outside the courthouse on the way to my car. She wanted me to meet her boyfriend who drove her there. I turned around to go and tripped over these dumb decorative things they added to the Square several years ago. Mother and I have never understood why they did it because cars have to avoid them and people obviously trip over them. They're taller than the height of a speed bump about like a curb with flowers planted inside. I tried to grab the truck to brace myself from the fall but that didn't work. I landed on my left knee and elbow and apparently my right hand. It seems to go in slow motion when you fall. Have you noticed that? My knee has an abrasion on it and my elbow is all bruise and I'm a little sore. I need to pay more attention. I guess my bones aren't too bad since nothing was broken, thank goodness.

When I fell out of TPAC after seeing Jersey Boys, I fell on my right knee and arm and scared Tina to death. I told her this might balance things out. She said it's not all about balance. That fall hurt more than this one did. Maybe I did catch myself on the truck some even though that didn't stop the fall. I can't remember that part because it all happens so fast even though it feels like slow motion.

If you look carefully in these photos, you can see those obstructions. Charlotte is composed of one square around the old courthouse that's used for general sessions court and a few other things. The new courthouse isn't pictured in these. Yes, it's a very small town and where I'm from. My mother and other relatives still live there. These photos show some of the buildings on the Square.

The "new" courthouse, bank, election commission office, and other office building are on the right of this part and can't be seen in the photo. The thing I tripped on wasn't as tall as this one and is off the bottom of this photo unseen.

See how that one juts out in the way of cars? No reason to be out there like that but isn't as noticeable when cars are parked all along there. See those iron things sticking up from the wall around the old courthouse? They were used to hitch horses to. Those two building are old, too.

Charlotte has the oldest courthouse in the state that is still used.

Plame

There's a movie out by the same title about Valerie Plame based on her book Fair Game. I have that book and it's filled with black marks where the CIA censored the manuscript. They published it with all that. So if the movie is careful about information, that's probably the reason even though a lot that they censored came out in articles, according to the introduction to the book. Here's an article about the movie. Naomi Watts and Sean Penn star in it.

Mental Snippets

So far this week I haven't had to sit in judgment on anyone in court, and I'm glad. I was right that jury duty used to last a week and that was it for several years. When or why they changed this I don't know. Being on a jury for DUI's or other crimes we can resolve fairly quickly is fine, but I don't know how people stand being sequestered for weeks and months cut off from everyone and everything except the other jurors and that trial. Horrible! Anyway, I have to go in tomorrow. Maybe I won't be chosen or perhaps it will be another DUI like we had Friday.

Lost - go figure. I'll be glad when it's resolved, and they let us know what it's been about. David, could you let me know that site you mentioned before that has recaps and commentaries?

Excellent casting on Glee for Idina Menzel and Rachel! I hoped that's how that would go!

I love the e-trade baby! Those commercials are hilarious!

I've been thinking about how we're like hermit crabs. We move into houses others lived in while others move into the places we leave behind. And on it goes.

DWTS 10 - Results

Well, Chad is gone now. The final three are Erin, Evan, and Nicole. Who will win? Yeah, OK, Nicole. Who will come in second?

DWTS 10 - Week 9

It's the semi-finals! Four couples are still dancing. Tonight each couple performs a ballroom and Latin dance.

Erin & Maks - Viennese Waltz - pretty, elegant, and smooth. Erin danced very well and has improved so much. Praise from the judges.
Paso Doble - I liked their paso. It wasn't as passionately intense as some but was entertaining
Scores: 9/9/9 = 27 and 10/9/10 = 29
Total: 56

Nicole & Derek - Argentine Tango - Derek hurt his neck again, but you couldn't tell when he danced. Oh wow! That was precise, beautiful, and intense! And she looks so good, too! Bruno was over the top even more than he usually is. She moved Carrie Ann to tears, and got high praise from Len!
Cha-Cha - Lively, energetic, and fun! Wow!
Scores: 10/10/10 = 30 and 10/9/10 = 29
Total: 59

Chad & Cheryl - Waltz -They danced it smoothly and elegantly. Good job! Chad is the only semi-finalist with no dance experience, and he's doing really well.
Samba - Chad had a rough life but focused on a way out and made it. His dedication and hard work paid off, and he paid attention to Cheryl's teaching and can dance! Great moves during the samba which were even more obvious after he took off his shirt! What a body!
Scores: 9/9/9 = 27 and 8/8/9 = 25
Total: 52

Evan and Anna - Foxtrot - Evan dances technically so well but doesn't seem to have much personality. At first I thought he was very polite, which he is, but now he seems boring. He was more fun tonight and let go some but I'm over him. He said he is shy, so maybe that's it.
Paso Doble - Well, he did danced this paso with intensity and passion (yes, actually). Good grief, I think he kissed Anna on the lips there at the end of it. If he didn't, it really looked that way. No lipstick on him, so maybe it was illusion. Powerful dance! The judges were effusive.
Scores: 10/9/10 = 29 and 10/10/10 = 30
Total: 59

When You're Strange

The most visited cemetery in the world is the Cimetibre du Pere Lachaise in Paris. Established in 1805, the lush grounds contain the tombs of more than 1 million people. The most visited tomb, however, is that of the Doors’ lead singer, Jim Morrison, who died of a drug overdose in France in 1971.


"Death makes angels of us all and gives us wings where we had shoulders smooth as ravens claws."

Benefit for Middle TN Flood

TheRyman

Phone lines to donate for the Music City Keep On Playin' benefit are open NOW. 1-877-768-6274. Show starts at 7pm Central and again at 10pm Central.

It's on GAC if you get that channel.