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January 30, 2022
Spotify removes Neil Young
    Neil Young


When I was in the Navy my best friend was a big fan of Neil Young.

He has a very long history as a musician and Jerry was a guitar afficinado — therefore Neil Young was a favorite in his long list of frequented performers.

Well Jerry's dead now and Neil has turned into this namby pamby crybaby gonna take his toys and go home.

He issued an ultimatum to Spotify this week saying that he or Joe Rogan was going to have to leave Spotify.

He went further to flaunt his ignorance by accusing Rogan of COVID misinformation.

All of this because he interviewed an infectious disease specialist who opposes COVID-19 vaccines for children.

Spotify took the high road and stated how it regrets having to remove Neil Young's music from their platform.

Maybe he's fried his brain because he certainly doesn't present all that lucid a visage anymore ... not that he was ever pretty.

The moral of the story is that your politics don't always mix well with your career.

So much for that respect I once garnered for Neil Young.

He and that other woke bullshitter Schwarzenegger can both haul ass for parts unknown.

Boo!

Joe Rogan Experience Podcast Logo
Tags: health, people, endings
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January 29, 2022
My daddy's birthday 2022
Mom and Dad Easter 2001    

I lost my dad December 4, 2001 at 8:00 pm to a multitude of disease problems which were the direct result of his life long relationship with tobacco.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Bronchitis
Bronchopleural Fistula
Emphysema
Pneumonia
Empyema Thoracis
Cor Pulmonale

While I cannot blame healthcare providers for his choices in life, I was left with the feeling that some of those directly responsible for his care could have really given a rip about him and this has left me reticent to interact with health care professionals as a group to this day.

Be all of this as it may I have missed my daddy even though we had a troubled relationship of our own — but in the end I only wanted what was best for him and he really did have a hard painful ending trying to stay with us.

Sometimes there are far worse situations than end of life.

So each year when his birthday comes around I say a little prayer and thank God for him and thank him for being there for me and that's about all I can do anymore.

I am 66 years old and to this day I sometimes cry over his passing and the way it all went down.

As far as I am concerned there should have been more "care" in that terminal care he received.

Apparently it was simply expecting too much.
 

Tags: health, people, endings
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January 28, 2022
Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrates with no survivors
Challenger STS-51-L crew

I remember what I was doing on this day in 1986. I was sitting before the television watching coverage of mission STS-51-L of the space shuttle program aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger which disintegrated due to structural failure some 73 seconds after liftoff in a large explosion and none of the seven astronauts on board survived.

The mission ran for 1 minute 13 seconds prior to the disaster.

Within the calendar Apollo1 and STS-51-L are quite proximal. However, the Challenger disaster and Apollo 1 fire are quite remote from the standpoint of actual time indices.

The Challenger disaster was a shocking moment for me personally. Likely the fact that I viewed the event on live television added to the impact. Some of the discovery process undertaken in trying to ascertain the cause and effects of this tragedy were in their own light disturbing as well with accusations of 'convenient memory' and to this day I think the mission should have gone down in warmer weather.

I think the "O rings" said to be the fundamental failure might have fared better.

The doomed flight was the 25th mission of the United States Space Shuttle program and was intended to carry out routine transportation for Earth-to-orbit crew and cargo. It was the implementation of the first Teacher in Space Project. It was also scheduled as the final flight of Space Shuttle Challenger.

Commander    Francis R Scobee
Pilot     Michael J Smith
Mission Specialist 1    Ellison S Onizuka
Mission Specialist 2    Judith A Resnik
Mission Specialist 3    Ronald E McNair
Payload Specialist 1    Gregory B Jarvis
Payload Specialist 2    S Christa McAuliffe

I recall thinking how badly things must be turning out as the officials quickly led the parents of Christa McAuliffe from the grandstands where they had assembled to watch the lift off. Her father in particular tore at my heartstrings as he walked away. Even then I had a soft spot for daddies and mamas.

Such went the Satellite deployment, Christa McAuliffe the first teacher in space, Ron McNair who was one of the sharpest intellects with whom I have ever interacted, not to forget Judy Resnick who was a engineering marvel qualified in multiple disciplines ... INCLUDING my own; and all seven souls will — like the crew of Apollo 1 — go down in history as heroes of the United States and NASA.

Rest in peace.

Challenger STS-51-L patch
Tags: technology, people, endings
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January 27, 2022
Apollo 1 Fire of 1967
Apollo1 Grissom White Chaffee

On this day in 1967 a fire aboard the Apollo 1 Command Module killed astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger B Chaffee during a launch rehearsal.

I was 12 and this was one of those sobering childhood memories I've kept with me all these years.

I had nightmares of Gus Grissom screaming in pain after learning of the injuries imparted to the astronauts due to the conflagration contained within that technology in which they were rehearsing for their upcoming mission.

Sometimes our careers require everything we are for keeps.

Such was the fate of Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger B Chaffee, heroes of the United States and NASA.

Rest in peace.
Apollo 1 mission patch
Tags: technology, people, endings
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January 26, 2022
The Clinton and Lewinsky scandal of 1998
    You can tell when a democrat is lying because their lips move

On this day in 1998, democrat, liar, and President William Jefferson Clinton went on national television and denied having "sexual relations" with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky to whom he referred as "that woman".

WHell, the situation escalated.

The Executive staff thought they would intimidate and threaten the young woman who proved more than the establishment could bear with her blue dress and goodly stain of DNA evidence consisting of presidential man chowder.

I remember Chris Rock defending his homeboy on his television special saying how he only "lied about sex" and who doesn't lie about sex?

So thus the President had to eat those words and recant on yet another broadcast.
 

quagmire coming clean    
I did gigoogity that girl.
I geschmoigiddied her geflavaty with my googus, and I am sorry.


Quagmire comes clean on boinking Loretta


Not that I blame him for trying to escape all the fugliness imparted by Hillary upon their relationship, eh Webster Hubbell?

Luckily he was simply in keeping with the fact that you can tell when a democrat is lying because their lips move.

Not too much can be said for Ms Lewinsky either — the actively pursuing television publicity with "exclusive rights" seeking slut.

Too bad ... if Oprah can't have all of it she doesn't want any of it.

So the Clintons became left with two choices, Jeffrey Epstein's French fries or pizza.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: sex, politics, people
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January 25, 2022
Reflecting on loss and matters of the heart
broken heart    

I have experienced a lot of personal loss lately.

Normally it all rolls off like water on a duck's back — but I'm afraid some of it has hit too close to home to ignore that emotional suffering I feel when something or someone to which I have a strong or long standing attachment is taken away.

Yeah some of it was losing an old Navy buddy, other parts an entertainer I once enjoyed and a even musician for whom I had great respect but ...

The loss of my auntie added to the mix has given it all a feeling of emotional shattering and stupendous forfeiture of that which I once felt was mine.

It's all had me pretty sad of late and I'm not the focus of the loss by a long shot.

Trying to help others through the loss likewise seems pretty remote.

Something about feeling wounded and vulnerable doesn't promote a viable advisory capacity regarding matters of the heart.

The perceived helplessness of the human condition is at once frustrating and overwhelming.

The transient nature of loss and grief somehow pale in the presence of what I know.

Yeah, I can handle it though it feels overwhelming and I try to cut myself some slack. The ups and downs are mostly downs of late and I understand that this is the way it goes sometimes. The intrinsic meaning is not there for me aside from recognizing the cycle of life and that which I have experienced will only repeat over time.

All I can do is hang in there.
 

Tags: people, endings, things
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January 24, 2022
My Aunt was laid to rest
    Auntie Laura

My Auntie Laura was laid to rest on Sunday.

I recall my last visit with her and the pain and suffering so evident on her face and in her voice. She appeared the picture of human misery. My mother cried to see her agony but ever optimistic she was still was hoping things might turn around.

I remember the call from Jenny telling us she had died that Saturday evening around 6 pm. I couldn't bear to tell my mother so I let my cousin speak to her then tried to console her as best I could as I watched the grief overtake her.

We attended the visitation on Friday evening at 3 pm and the turnout was far more than I expected. Actually, I didn't know what to expect.

I grieved too for my Uncle who was as always — stoic — visiting with attendees there and going it alone after all these years.

It all was reminiscent of the sad poem Lament by Edna St Vincent Millay I studied in literature in Mrs Robinson's class at Horace O'Bryant Junior High as a child.

Her funeral service was held at the church she attended for as along as I can remember. She was returned to the earth shortly thereafter at a cemetery close to her home in that locale she frequented during her life time with military honors.

While it is so very sad to note that all she was is lost to us left here upon the earth at least we know she no longer suffers so profoundly from the inadequate care she received from a nurse practitioner in whom she instilled her trust.

A seamstress, master gardener who could grow anything, gourmet cook, baker extraordinare, talented artist, keeper of records and details, and handler of infinite minutia that always made a difference — she will be missed by me and all the others who love her and now have only our memories to sustain us.

It is a difficult matter to lose someone who has always been there for you over the ensuing years — someone who gave of themself and their many talents unconditionally. Someone who loved you and for whom you returned that love.

It's a very sad time in our family. Rest in peace Auntie Laura.
 

Laura Johnstone Holladay
August 9, 1934 - January 15, 2022

 

I love you still

 

Tags: people, endings
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January 23, 2022
Louie Anderson RIP
    Louie Anderson

One of my favorite entertainers over the years was Louie Anderson.

He was born Louis Perry Anderson on March 24, 1953.

I could relate to his weight problem, his observations from a fat man's perspective, and somewhat cynical deadpan schtick, and his over all self-effacing nice guy persona.

His was a repertoire very unique characters on the large and small screens and there was so much to like in his interactions with his public that I always had time to listen to what he had to say.

Some of his material was very subtle and even that lent it self to hilarious impact in both those roles he portrayed and his stand-up performances.

He passed January 21, 2022 at age 68 in Las Vegas from large B-cell lymphoma which is a non-Hodgkins form of the disease.

It was only recently announced that he was ill.

He was one to tour regularly with his stand-up act and his presence and wit as a stand-up comedian will be missed.

Rest in peace.
 

Tags: people, endings
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January 23, 2022
Meat Loaf RIP
Michael Lee Aday Meatloaf    

 


Michael Lee Aday was born Marvin Lee Aday September 27, 1947 and was one of my earliest declarations of fandom.

Meat Loaf, as he was known sold the Bat out of Hell franchise of albums among others and I was always up to a few sets of his theatrical rock extravaganza over the years.

His career was not so steady as his popularity with me personally. He did the European circuit and gained popularity with the brits as well.

He appeared in film, television, and stage sometimes as cameo sometimes as main character sometimes as a musical attraction therein.

My interest in him was his strong vocal presence and there were riffs of his I carried with me for a great while in my life.

Meat Loaf passed this earthly existence on January 20, 2022 at the age of 74 in the presence of his wife, Deborah, daughters Pearl and Amanda, and close friends.

Rest in peace.


See also:

Remembering Meat Loaf
 

 

Tags: people, endings
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January 22, 2022
Ted Kaczynski the Unabomber put away for life
Once upon a time I was a gruff ruffian crass and unfeeling about most things. I could call you down and stomp you relentlessly as long as it humored me and nowadays I suppose I could still browbeat someone into submission but it's simply not where I am anymore.

In all that hubub I never sought to actually hurt people and really and truly it would not have been worth that much to me in the context of who I was and that comportment I was required by work to project.

I reached a point where I simply avoid confrontational interaction anymore as a function of that unsocial loner I suppose I've always been.

Others take a different tack when dissenting with others.

Ted Kaczynski    
Theodore John Kaczynski who was born May 22, 1942. He was also known as the Unabomber and is a former math professor turned American domestic terrorist.

He killed three people and injured 22 in 16 separate attacks between 1979 and 1995.

He was apprehended April 3, 1996 and was sentenced to four terms of life in prison without parole.

I was 41 years old and teaching at a local technical college thinking how curious it was for a logic and rules oriented mind would find the concept of mechanized murder a suitable past time.

I suppose common sense gets lost sometimes in that maze of high order thinking skills which sometime assumes control of us subconsciously.
Key to his capture was his alleged 'manifesto' which had a style of writing with "linguistic idiosyncrasies" which led investigators to him.

The U.S. government seized Kaczynski's deep woods "off the grid" cabin and placed it on display at the Newseum in Washington, DC until late 2019 then later transferred it to a nearby FBI museum.

I have wondered in the scrutiny of events while alone collecting his "complex analysis" thoughts if he thought it was all worth it.

Tags: technology
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January 21, 2022
USS Nautilus is launched in 1954
Navy curiosa has always followed me from duty station to duty station. First, they were the duty stations of my late father. Later they were my own duty stations. Regardless, I always pick up various items of information along the way. Ultimately, I became quite knowledgable on ships and armaments back in the day.

Now we have entire new classes of vessels and capabilities and my nephew whom I used chase around the house in diapers is now a chief petty officer of the line. Suffice it to say I am as much a relic as the AN/SPG 55-B radar I use to maintain and operate on the USS MacDonough back in the old days of my own enlistment.
uss nautilus SSN 571 outer hull

On this day in 1954 the United States launched our first operational nuclear-powered submarine. Named the USS Nautilus (SSN-571) it was launched in Groton, Connecticut by Mrs Mamie Eisenhower who was the First Lady of the United States at that time. It was built by General Dynamics as a Tang-class submarine for the US Navy in 1952 and was in commission from 1954 through 1980.
uss nautilus SSN 571 inner hull

She was first submarine to complete a submerged transit of the North Pole on August 3rd 1958.

Nautilus was decommissioned in 1980 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1982.

Tags: technology
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January 20, 2022
Biggest Mistake in US History
    snowflake
On this day in 2021 the Biden and Harris debacle began.

Never in the history of The Republic has the reins of the nation been placed in to more incompetent hands.

Biden with his monetization of public office in the finest Clinton democrat tradition and never ending stream of logistical and tactical mistakes and failures and Harris with her hateful rude demeanor and inability to take charge of anything substantial has lead the nation down the primrose path of inflation and a loss of prestige on the international stage we may never regain.

So ...

The failed 46th President of the United States of America and his doofus rude crude and socially unacceptable vice president continue unabashedly touting their foundering at everything relevant in an executive branch.

The democrats might have rethought stealing the election for a 78 year old imbecile who soils his pants during state engagements with the pope and farts on Camilla Parker Bowles (of ALL people) ... who likely brings it up in conversation at every opportunity.

The first female Vice President of the United States could at least have been a halfway likable person with ability and manners and not this boorish inconsderate mean spirited unskilled politcally irrelevant trollup.

Tags: politics
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January 19, 2022
First Compatible Virus in 1986
cbrain virus    
My career has been based on the "compatible" computer. This is what began as the intel cpu "IBM PC" compatible machine which originally ran on MS-DOS in 640K of RAM and has evolved over the years dragging me kicking and screaming into the information age where I abandoned my childhood career dreams and pursued technology without looking back.

From the totally frivolous efforts file we remember the first virus let loose on the compatible PC world back in 1986.

It was a boot sector infector called ©Brain by the Farooq Alvi Brothers in Lahore, Pakistan, reportedly to combat the unauthorized copying of the software they distributed.

The first iteration was released on January 19, 1986 and was pretty doggone mild as far as such cyber attacks go.

ALSO it should be stated that the brothers explained profusely that this effort was not an exploit and the payload even reported their name, address, three phone numbers, and a message explaining the mess.

Welcome to the Dungeon © 1986 Basit & Amjads (pvt). BRAIN COMPUTER SERVICES 730 NIZAM BLOCK ALLAMA IQBAL TOWN LAHORE-PAKISTAN PHONE: 430791,443248,280530. Beware of this VIRUS.... Contact us for vaccination...
The program was designed to track a heart monitoring program for the IBM PC as well as pirated copies of the distrubution media.

It kind of went overboard and I'm glad I escaped it entirely.

Since this humble beginning we have experienced much more devastating exploits written by those who would harm the world for personal gain.

Tags: technology, places, people
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January 18, 2022
Answering Machine Syndrome
    panasonic dect cordless phone
When I get a call on my home phone I answer by stating my name and usually get a pause ...

The person on the other end invariably says they thought they were talking to an answering machine.

I am evaluating my present response habits in an effort to ascertain if they are indeed as inadequate as they appear in retrospect.

Maybe the simple addition of 'hello' up front is in order. In my pursuit of efficiency perhaps the humanity needs a little work.

I'm not one of those people who will actively engage in much in the way of theatrics, conventions, platitudes — drivel, etc on the telephone ...

So I don't really understand why the issue associated with my answering of the phone by stating my name should be confusing.

It gives me pause to think so many believe they're not engaging me when I answer the phone.

The phone conversation shouldn't be so high maintenance.

Tags: technology, people
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