Tip-Off Thursday

Stuck

Painting by József Rippl-Rónai (1891)

Today's entry is going to be a bit on the thin side, content-wise.

My ongoing illness continues to sap my energy, kill my desire
to eat, and make even the simplest tasks laborious and painful.


As usual, medication is fighting a losing battle against these symptoms, which won't end until the disease has actually run its course. We're in Day Seven since the onset
of serious symptoms, so I am hopeful the end will come soon.

As for the concomitant depression I've been battling over the same time frame, now that a week has passed it has become clear to me that the blunder which plunged me into this particular pit cannot be undone. That realization would be cause for despair even if I were in perfect health. Since I am not...

"Come on, now, it can't be as bad as all that."

It is every bit as bad as all that...you have no idea...

Zero for Two

"Sometimes you zot, sometimes you get zotted."

The NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament begins in earnest today, but there was some college basketball played last night. My rooting interests didn't fare well.






Providence, the only Catholic institution playing Wednesday night (both the CBI and the CIT fly beneath my radar), did not become the twelfth Catholic school in the NCAA Tournament field of 64, losing 75-71 to USC in their First Four match-up even though they held a 17-point lead in the second half.

And as for my wingman's beloved UC Irvine Anteaters, they lost to Illinois State 85-71 in opening round of the NIT.

"One and done. Bummer."

Disappointing, I know...but they had a winning record, won their league's regular-season championship outright, and made it to the post-season...that's a pretty good season by any reckoning...

Namesake

A pair of world travelers

On March 16, 1521 the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan reached the island of Homonhon. In doing so, Magellan and his crew became the first Europeans known to have reached the Philippines.




The only reason that historical tidbit rates a mention here is because it reminds me that my hero Joe Bonamassa is playing his 1959 Gibson Les Paul guitar named "Magellan" on his current tour, the first time it has gone on the road with him since 2014. The famous "burst" got its name from the fact that it has traveled all over the world with Joe.

The guitar sounds great, and while I have heard it on numerous recordings I'm glad
I finally got to see it live on stage in Des Moines last Thursday night.

Pro Tip: The Proper Stance is Key

From the classic comic strip Peanuts, by the late Charles M. Schulz, sorely missed...

Until Next Time...

In this space yesterday I mentioned that the HBO TV series Rome was one of my summer binge-watching favorites. Another favorite is the FX network series Justified, which is a strong contender for my favorite TV show of all time.

Fanboy poster hanging in my bedroom

One of the show's sublime pleasures was
its use of music, which deftly blended scoring by Steve Porcaro with an eclectic mix of country, blues, rock, and bluegrass tunes suited to particular episodes.

The Emmy-nominated opening theme, "Long Hard Times To Come," set the musical tone for the show. It was performed by Gangstagrass, an offbeat but compelling combination of the hip-hop and bluegrass genres. I also loved the song's lyrics.

Other than its theme, the song most closely associated with the show was the elegiac "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive." This song was played at the end of every season finale episode except for Season 3.



The producers used recordings by Brad Paisley (Seasons 1 and 2), Dave Alvin
(Season 4), the Ruby Friedman Orchestra (Season 5), and the song's own composer Darrell Scott (Season 6, the series finale).

Although I enjoy all of those versions, for me the rendition that comes closest to capturing the song's spirit is one recorded by country music artist Patty Loveless for her 2001 Mountain Soul album. The song's lyrics are a reflection on how we live our lives trapped by our circumstances and life choices, a theme which is much on my mind at the moment. Patty's bluegrass-inflected version does a fine job of conveying that sense of mournful resignation...

Today's send-off was never actually used on the show, but it easily could have been. Enjoy...

Ides of March 2017

Did I Not Ask Nicely Enough?

Yesterday's section on my health status bore the subtle heading
"Just Shoot Me Now," and the past 24 hours have not shaken my view that that might be my best hope.

Yesterday I tried adding some
new (and supposedly more potent) medicines to the mix, with barely noticeable effect on my symptoms.


I know that these kinds of illnesses typically take awhile to run their course, but that doesn't make me any less miserable.

As for the emotional turmoil resulting from my own stupidity and thoughtlessness last Thursday, it remains ongoing and is showing every sign of being irremediable. If I'm right about that, I honestly don't know what I'll do...

"You're really starting to worry me, you know?"

Care to trade places? Yeah, didn't think so...

Videte Idibus Martiis

The famed Tusculum Bust

On March 15, 44 BC Gaius Julius Caesar was stabbed to death in the Theatre of Pompey by a group of conspirators famously led by Caesar's good friend Marcus Junius Brutus.

Caesar's death is one of the best-known and most frequently portrayed stories from antiquity. It was the basis for Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, which I taught many times in my career. That play served as the basis for the classic film Julius Caesar, which was released a few months after my birth in 1953 and was nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture.

Caesar's story was also the inspiration for the Emmy Award-winning HBO TV series Rome, one of my all-time favorites and a staple of my annual summer binge-watching rotation.

"After which I get to listen to weeks of Titus Pullo quotes."

Pullo was my favorite character on the show, so I make no apologies for that...

Eleven and Counting

The number of Catholic institutions playing in the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament increased by one as Mount St. Mary's just did squeak past New Orleans 67-66 yesterday in one of the so-called First Four games.



They join No. 1 seed Villanova (whom they will play next in the Round of 64), No. 1 seed Gonzaga, No. 5 seed Notre Dame, No. 6 seed Creighton, No. 7 seed St. Mary's College, No. 7 seed Dayton, No. 9 seed Seton Hall, No. 10 seed Marquette, No. 11 seed Xavier, and No. 14 seed Iona. If Providence beats USC in another of the First Four games tonight, they will make the field of 64 as a No. 11 seed, which would make it
an even dozen Catholic schools for me to root for in addition to No. 5 seed Iowa State. There are no Catholic institutions in the 32-team field for the NIT.

Play in the NCAA Tournament begins tomorrow, while the NIT began last night...

"And my team plays...?"

Yes, yes...they play their 1st round NIT game on the road this evening, and that's all I'm saying...I've probably already jinxed them just by answering your question...

Gotta Love Baseball Players

To celebrate Pi Day yesterday, members of the Colorado Rockies baseball team lined up before their Cactus League game so that their jersey numbers, read left to right, represented the first 30 digits of pi.

That's just goddamned cool, even if the Rockies are a !@#$% National League team...

It's Dark Horse and Cinderella Time, Bay-bee!

From the pen of Henry Payne, whose editorial cartoons you should read often, as I do.

Until Next Time...

On March 15, 1947 Ryland Peter Cooder was born in Los Angeles. He would grow up in nearby Santa Monica, where he graduated high school. He learned to play guitar at age three, and by the time he was 20 he was playing professionally, although his hoped-for success with an established touring band eluded him.

Instead, Ry Cooder forged an impressive career as a studio guitarist, composer, and producer. He has worked with some of the biggest names in popular music, including The Rolling Stones, Neil Young, and the legendary Irish band The Chieftains, a favorite of mine for much of my life.

Cooder also began composing film scores in the 1980s, to considerable acclaim. His soundtracks for Paris, Texas and Crossroads are among my favorites. Cooder's work has won him half a dozen Grammy Awards and a spot on Rolling Stone magazine's  
100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time list.

In December 1970 he released his eponymous debut album, which didn't crack the Billboard 200 Albums chart or produce a hit single (it would be nearly a decade before Cooder's label would even try releasing any of his songs as singles). Cooder's brilliant guitar playing shines, though.

As one might expect from an album released so early in a blues artist's career, there was only one original song included. The rest of the album consisted of covers of songs by other artists, some well-known, some relatively obscure.

The best of those covers, in my opinion, was Ry's instrumental version of the classic Blind Willie Johnson song "Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground," a mournful slide guitar tour de force. Johnson's original 1927 recording of the song was one of only 27 selections included on the Voyager Golden Record launched with the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 space probes in 1977.

Ry himself described Johnson's song as "The most soulful, transcendent piece in all American music." Johnson's own raw original was selected for inclusion in the National Recording Registry curated by the Library of Congress in 2010, and whenever I am at particularly low ebb emotionally, as I am today, the song speaks to my pain.

Today's send-off is the original album track, from Ry's YouTube channel. Enjoy...

A Slice of Pi

Just Shoot Me Now

Even when I can sleep, it doesn't help much

Today's blog is going to be a bit thinner content-wise than usual,
as the combination of illness and emotional turmoil which currently afflicts me is seriously impairing my ability to focus and get anything useful done.

The medicine I'm taking is only partially effective, and there are timing issues with taking it. I have no appetite, and my sleep has been fitful, diminishing its effectiveness.


It isn't helping that the weather has remained cold and miserable since Thursday
(it is 22 degrees and windy as I type these words). Things are supposed to warm up
a bit in a couple of days, but the National Weather Service has been wrong a lot lately, and the way I feel today Thursday seems like forever away. Perhaps my suffering, like the decimal representation of pi, will have no end...

"If you're going to croak, can you at least let me outside first?"

I'll try my best...Heaven forbid you should learn how to operate a doorknob yourself...

Trouper

Joe says 'good night' at Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland

My blues guitar hero Joe Bonamassa is still battling what is now believed to be a case
of bronchitis, but he's certainly more able to function than I am at the moment.

Last night's show in Kansas City, which
I was forced to miss, was by all accounts
a great performance...

Pi in the Face

Design courtesy of the cool cats at Snorgtees

One of the things I miss the most about teaching is being at school on a "special" day for kids that aren't necessarily the most athletic or popular. Pi Day was one such day.

Some people would argue that the ultimate Pi Day was two years ago (3.14.15), but that's just the sort 

of controversy which I try to avoid whenever possible.

I gave up dessert for Lent, but even if I hadn't I wouldn't want this...

"I know, right?"

And how ironic is it that Pi Day also happens to be Albert Einstein's birthday?

"That's ironic to like to 12th power of the square root of..."

Just shut your pipe..

It's a Communication Jungle Out There

From the delightfully off-kilter webcomic xkcd, by Randall Munroe, which you should read every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Until Next Time...

Several of the selections in my "Tearjerkers" iTunes playlist are instrumentals, since certain pieces of music can move me to tears even without lyrics. This is because I have used the music in one of my play productions (I usually get emotional when recalling those memories), or because it is from a motion picture or TV program which used it in an especially sad scene.

Original 2005 "one sheet" poster

An example of the latter is composer
David Newman's score for Joss Whedon's 2005 film Serenity. Based on the TV series Firefly, to which I was introduced by my late best friend Matt, this movie is one of the rare ones which I never get tired of watching. It ranks highly on my all-time list, and even spent some time at the top
of that list.

I have used a few tracks from Newman's evocative score in my play productions, and I'm currently using today's featured selection for my profile page on a social networking site to which I belong.

The film functions as a sort of prequel and sequel to the TV series (which won't make sense until you've seen both). One of the more remarkable aspects of Serenity is that not one but two of the major Firefly characters die.

Both of those packed an emotional punch, but the death of Shepherd Book hit me especially hard, since he was the character with whom I most closely identified. Even though I know it is entirely a work of fiction, even now I can't watch the character's death scene without tears. (Ron Glass, the actor who played the character, passed away himself last November 25.)

Today's send-off is Newman's underscore for that moment, from his YouTube channel. Enjoy...

Frosty Monday

Blown Opportunity

It is difficult to say what is making me more miserable today: Whatever illness(es) are ravaging my body in a way I haven't experienced (at least not this extent) since I left teaching, or screwing up a rare opportunity to visit with my best friend Skip this past weekend in Kansas City.

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception

One of the highlights of meeting Skip in KC is always Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. It is a very beautiful church, which is to be expected since it is the seat of the diocese and therefore is also the bishop's home church.

Skip has attended Mass with me there on two previous occasions when he has flown in to visit from his home in Pennsylvania.

Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland

The highlight of this particular trip was going to be taking Skip to see my guitar hero Joe Bonamassa tonight at the Midland, including a pre-show opportunity to meet Joe.

After seeing Joe myself in Des Moines last Thursday, there was one aspect of his current touring line-up and set list I really regret not getting to share with Skip...

"If you're going to screw up, might as well screw up royally, am I right?"

I'm sick, but not so sick I won't tie your snout in a knot, wise guy...

On Top of Everything Else

View from my porch at 8:10 AM CDT, temperature 21 degrees

As if I didn't have enough problems to deal with right now, Mother Nature has decided to give us some really nasty February weather in mid-March.

Perfect.

"Sticking your nose in frozen ground to eat is no fun, for sure."

I'll have to take your word for it, old friend...

Change of Pace

Ordinarily when I'm in the mood for a nice gin and tonic with lime, or a Tom Collins, or even the occasional martini, my gin of choice is Bombay Sapphire, with Boodles a very close second.

I do try other brands like Aviation and Brokers from time
to time, but I don't really drink enough gin to justify a lot of experimentation. Better to mostly stick with gins I already know I like.

That said, given my current mental and physical state,
I'm thinking of giving a new player an audition...

Made You Look, Though

From the Jeff MacNelly-created comic strip Shoe, now being produced by Gary Brookins and Jeff's widow Susie.

Until Next Time...

The songs in my "Tearjerkers" iTunes playlist are there mostly to provide me with what my pal Aristotle called catharsis, which they typically do by reminding me
of specific people or moments in my life which bring on tears. A small handful of the songs are there to serve as a reminder not to give in too fully to the darkness whose siren song is characteristic of depression.

One of those songs is "Everybody Hurts," released as a single on April 15, 1993 by my faves R.E.M. from their multi-platinum-selling 1992 album Automatic for the People. The song's simple message, sung beautifully by Michael Stipe, never fails to move me.

"Everybody Hurts" is one of the rare songs that is in that playlist twice. The second instantiation is a gorgeous cover version by Irish band The Corrs, another long-time favorite of mine. (I have a thing for female Irish singers.)

On October 5, 1999 The Corrs appeared on the popular cable TV show MTV Unplugged, and gave
a memorable performance that showcased their musicianship and gorgeous vocals. The performance was released on both CD and DVD.

One of the unexpected highlights for me when I watched the show was their heartfelt rendition of "Everybody Hurts." I'm not a huge fan of other groups doing covers
of R.E.M. songs, but The Corrs version is as beautiful and moving in its own way as the original.

Today's send-off is their hauntingly lovely performance of the song, from the DVD
of the original MTV broadcast. Enjoy...

Selection Sunday 2017

Sick Unto...?

Some guys have all the luck...

Men have a reputation for being
big, whining babies when they get sick. Personally, I always considered that canard to be unadulterated female propaganda, but I'll admit
I have no experience with having
to take care of sick guys.

In any case, in addition to the fever, chills, headache, aching muscles, lack of energy and appetite, and assorted other symptoms which began manifesting Thursday night and kicked into overdrive Friday morning, I have my usual depressive tendencies to cope with as well.

That ain't easy under normal circumstances, but when you hit me with physical and emotional crises at the same time...well, that is a recipe for your basic "the living will envy the dead" situation...

"You can't check out now! Who would take care of me?"

Don't know, but you're cute and cuddly, so I'm sure you'll be just fine...

Springing Forward

What could be better for a person who's sick and depressed than being deprived of an extra hour of sleep?

I might be at death's door, but I can still spot a pointless government idea when I see one...

Cyc'd

My planned trip to Kansas City this weekend got canceled, contributing to my misery, but thousands of Iowa State basketball fans made the trip, and had a great time, too.

The Cyclones won three games, including an exciting 80-74 win over West Virginia in the Big XII Tournament championship game.


It is the Cyclones' third Big XII Tournament championship in the past four seasons. Fans are hopeful that this one will spur the team to a better showing in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

The only drama left for Selection Sunday is how high the Cyclones will be seeded, and where they'll play in the first round. In addition to Iowa State, I'll be rooting for all
of the Catholic institutions in the field, including defending national champion and No. 2-ranked Villanova, No. 4 Gonzaga, No. 19 St. Mary's, and No. 22 Notre Dame. The current projection shows another eight Catholic institutions making the field also.

"So, will my team be dancing?"

I'm afraid not, old friend...UC Irvine won the Big West Conference regular-season championship, but lost in the finals of the conference tournament...they will be playing in the NIT, though, and that's nice reward for a fine season...

Filling Out Your Bracket

From the wry comic strip FoxTrot, by Bill Amend, which you should read every Sunday, as I do.

Until Next Time...

As I have mentioned in this space on many occasions, I am a big fan of the current practice by producers of TV dramas to use popular music in addition to traditional scoring. I have discovered a number of musical artists this way, and every so often
I also get to hear a song from an artist I've followed for a long time.

The circumstances of my life have made me an emotional pushover for dramas featuring bittersweet romantic story lines. When I'm feeling blue, as I am at the moment, I also like to wallow just a bit by listening to sad songs. Those two tendencies collided yesterday, as I watched a rerun of the NCIS Season 11 premiere episode, "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot," which featured a song by a longtime favorite of mine.

Enya Patricia Brennan, who goes professionally by just her first name, is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose music has been enchanting me for more than 30 years. I'm not alone, as she is one of Ireland's most popular recording artists, having sold more than 80 million records and won four Grammy Awards.

The most recent of those was for her album Amarantine, which was certified platinum by RIAA within
a month of its release and peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200.

The album's song "If I Could Be Where You Are" plays at the episode's conclusion,
as one of the main characters, separated for some time from his true love, wonders where she is. Enya's haunting voice and heartfelt lyrics hit me like a sledgehammer
as I watched the scene unfold. It had had quite an impact on me when I saw it the first time on September 24, 2013, and it slammed me again for a related reason last night.

Today's send-off is the original album track paired with an evocative video that captures my current mood quite well. Enjoy...

Best-Laid Plans, Etc.

'Tis the Season

So, after walking five blocks in bitter wind and cold Thursday night to get to the Des Moines
Civic Center from the closest parking I could find, then mingling in a small, warm, confined environment with around 2,000 Joe Bonamassa fans, then walking back to my car in a wind chill of around 15 degrees, I was pushing my luck...




It appears that I may have pushed it too far, as by the time I went to bed last night
I had a fever, muscle aches and weakness, and assorted other health issues that may
or may not be the actual flu.

There may also be some connection between the way I feel and the way my Thursday ended and my Friday began, but all I know for sure is that I'm still sick as a dog this morning. Flu or no flu, it's a miserable feeling...

"What about the road trip to Kansas City?"

Canceled...sorry about that, old friend...

A Sure Sign of Spring

Never mind groundhogs, or sightings of robins or squirrels. The surest sign that winter is almost over is when local retailers begin having clearance sales
on snowshovels, rock salt, windshield scrapers, and other necessities for dealing with midwestern weather during the winter months.

My local Hy-Vee is basically selling its remaining inventory at cost, judging by what I saw on my last visit...

Foolish Optimism

From the incisive pen of Michael Ramirez, whose editorial cartoons you should read often, as I do.

Until Next Time...

All of my life I have struggled to deal with separation and loss, and I haven't gotten
any better at it with age. It doesn't help when movies or TV shows I watch for escapism incorporate such themes into their storylines. The Season 7 finale of Criminal Minds, one of my favorite shows, did just that when dealing with the departure of my favorite character from the show.

"Run" was originally broadcast on May 6, 2012. Although it was kind of a downer to watch, it did introduce me to a piece of music that I quickly purchased and added to my "Tearjerkers" playlist on iTunes.

Singer-songwriter Lily Kershaw released Midnight In the Garden, her debut album, in the fall of 2013, to good reviews. Well before that, though, her music had come to the attention of the producers of Criminal Minds, who selected an as-yet unreleased song from her album to help them send off a beloved character from the show.

"As It Seems" was the song used at the conclusion of "Run," and I liked it enough that I used it as the curtain call music for my last play production at Atlantic.

The song's lyrics tied in with that play's theme, but also with the fact that everyone knew it was my final AHS production. It was "curtain call" music in more ways than one, and even all these years later still moves me to tears.

Today's send-off is a "lyric video" version of Kershaw's song. Most of the time I'm not a fan of such productions, but I think this one is pretty well done. Enjoy...

Black(ish) Friday

Thank Tessa It's Friday!

"I've been very patient, but you know it's time, right?"

The Show Must Go On

Signage outside Des Moines Civic Center last night

My hero Joe Bonamassa's current U.S. tour hit a snag recently when he had to reschedule two shows due to what he's been describing
as a sinus infection. The next show after those cancellations was Des Moines, so I was very happy he felt well enough to play last night...

The view from my seat moments before showtime

I'm not good enough with my smartphone camera to take good pictures in low-light conditions, but I had an excellent seat...

"Fourth-row center, baby! Woo!"

...Seat A53, which of course I was delighted to share with my trusty wingman...

...in a nice bit of irony, the first time I saw Joe at the Civic Center on May 3, 2012 my seat was A54...

...and despite being under the weather (which was pretty obvious to me sitting as close as I was), he put on a most satisfying show, and not long afterward posted this photo of the show's conclusion...I'm visible in this image, but you would need my help
to find me...


For reasons that aren't really blog material, I was up very late last night, and part of how I processed that turmoil was writing a review of the show, which you find here if you're interested...the time stamp on that post ought to be a hint as to how much I was struggling...

"You did have a pretty rough day that didn't end well, but today is a new day!"

And this morning things got much, much worse, so what's your point again?

Big XII Tournament

Aside from the wonderful concert, yesterday was pretty ugly for me, and this morning...well, you know what they say about "it could be worse"? That's my day today...

The only ray of sunshine was seeing that the hated Kansas Jayhawks lost to TCU in the opening round of the Big XII Men's basketball tournament, a defeat which will certainly cost them their No. 1 ranking and possibly a No. 1 seed in March Madness.

Although I no longer root for Missouri, the former fan in me can't help mentioning that Mizzou won their first game in the SEC tournament, something their old Border War
rivals couldn't accomplish.

"Hey, what about my team?"

You know I'm a jinx, so don't even try to trick  me into answering...

What Hell Will Be Like When I Get There

From the indispensable comic strip Dilbert, by Scott Adams, which you should read every day, as I do.

Until Next Time...

Last night was my eighth time seeing my hero Joe Bonamassa perform. His set lists and band configurations have varied from show to show, but regardless of who is playing with him and what songs he performs, he always gives it everything he has.

For the most part, I enjoy hearing Joe perform his own original material rather than covers, but at the past two shows I've attended he has chosen Leon Russell's 1970 song "Hummingbird" as his encore. Joe began playing live as part of his "Three Kings" tribute tour set list.

That's because not long after Russell released the original, Joe's mentor B.B. King recorded it for his famous electric blues landmark Indianola Mississippi Seeds, which for 30 years was King's highest-charting album on the Billboard 200, peaking at No. 26. King himself has called this his best album from an artistic standpoint.

"Hummingbird" was released as the album's lead single, and made both the Billboard Hot 100 and Rhythm & Blues charts.


I really enjoyed the version I heard in Omaha last May, but last night's version added singers Jade MacRae and Juanita Tippins to the mix, and they were awe-inspiring. They gave me chills, and before the song concluded their beautiful singing had brought me to tears as well. One of my peak experiences from the any of the Bonamassa shows I have attended.

The song's lyrics hit me pretty hard last night, and after the morning I've had are now are even more poignant...

Today's send-off is Joe's fiery performance of the song filmed at his Greek Theatre "Three Kings" show in 2015, from his YouTube channel. Enjoy...