Happy to Live at This Time in History

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I’m happy to live this time in history.  When somebody tells me they’d like to live in some past era, say  after watching a romantic movie with castles, aristocrats, and beautiful clothing, I tell  them they’re nuts.  Ditto for Paris in the 1930s.  I am just now recovering from a bout of diverticulitis.  I wouldn’t wish this malady on my worst enemy.  It’s antibiotics that are helping me escape from it.  We didn’t have these meds back when Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Breton and Tzara were creating art and literature back then. Ditto for visiting the dentist, which used to be pretty frightening.  No wonder people preferred just letting their teeth fall out rather than visiting the dentists.  No Hollywood smiles back then.  And  god forbid having to have an operation. Read More →

Jamie Ousley: “Shenandoah” from cd Sea of Voices

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I meant to publish this a long time ago.  Jamie is an outstanding bass player who I think teaches in Florida.  On this recent album he does a duet on the classic American song “Shenandoah” with a Japanese singer named Nanami Morakawa that will stop you dead in your tracks.  He does an arco bass solo and she vocalises over it.  His tone is big and his intonation is spot-on.  There are also some straight ahead songs.  Highly recommended. To comment, click Read More →

TESLA S: A PARADIGM SHIFT IN AUTOMOBILE DESIGN

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A friend of mine told me he was picking up a the new Tesla sedan today, the S model no less.  Then I saw another one parked in the underground parking in my building this morning.  It is a sleek beauty.  I read about Jay’s Leno checking it out with the Tesla’s chief designer:

http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/cars/tesla/2012-tesla-model-s/index.shtml#item=263630

Today I was lucky to go for a ride in the new one.  It is one gorgeous car, the trim, door handles, the interior design is ultramodern and everything has been thought out…from a clean sheet of paper.    It is a paradigm of auto design.

I got a love of cars from my Dad, who had a few beauties:  Ferrari 250 GT, 275 GTB, 308 GT, 300 SL Gullwing, Maserati 3500 GT, as well as some Park Ward and Mulliner Rolls and Bentleys.  I am a car nut and I’ve had a Jaguar XK 150S, a Citroën DS 19, and a few Porsches, mostly purchased used.   I poured a ton of money on the Jag but wound up giving it away for $1000 in 1971.  Now it’s worth a bundle.  Oh well.    I’ll bet that in experiencing this amazing new vehicle and studying its parameters,  other designers are scratching their heads and planning to come up with their own all-electric designs. Read More →

Philippine Birth Control Bill Passes

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It’s common knowledge that the Philippines have long been dominated by foreign powers. The Spanish, then the Americans, then the dictators the U.S. propped up (Ferdinand Marcos and his ridiculous first lady Imelda, who squandered tens if not hundreds of thousand dollars on shoe blitzes in New York City). America did this because we needed our big military bases back in the Vietnam days.

Then there was Cardinal Sin (couldn’t have made that one up) who told his vast flock that God wanted them to make as many babies as possible. Every time I saw images of children picking through landfills I thought of him.

And now, despite the Catholic Bishops’ conference warning that “contraception corrupts the soul”, the Philippine Congress approved contraceptive legislation that would make birth control available to all in the Philippines. Read More →