"Wouldn't time be out to charm you"

Tempus fugit .... I have been a week beneath the surface and now have risen for a breath of air before diving again. When past becomes present and present becomes past, it means, for all practical purposes, time has stopped. At least, that would be my interpretation. I think it has, for me .... time stopped for me, that is to say. The question would seem to be whether to accept that premise or hope to discover a way to restart time -- which might not even be possible. Can you understand the dilemma and see the smile on my lips ?? Some of you, I think, can. (Sorry, I like to write in a figurative manner, and, sometimes, I get carried away.) Moving right along, have you figured out the location in the photographs? I doubt it. Maybe, I will bring "she" here when the world is more tranquil once again and if I am able to reclaim my spirit -- and, most importantly, if I am able to find a path to "she" through the maze. (There I am, "going figurative" on you again !!) As for the music: Don Dokken was a great singer and his band one of the best of the rock era. "Alone Again" seems to be emblematic of this "incarnation" of my life. Guns N' Roses was among the absolute greatest bands of the era, and "November Rain" the magnum opus of Axl Rose. See you in another week or two ....

When the present becomes the past

 

 

I am busy running a few errands .... here, there and everywhere .... old habits die hard .... so do I .... be back sooner or later .... I think .... as for the music, the first song is for and from the past, thinking about "she" who gave it to me and how it affected me then .... the second series is for the splendor of the art and the talent of guitarists now and forever .... have you ever thought how guns, girls and guitars all begin with the letter "g"? Never mind .... I am teasing .... sort of ....

When the past becomes the present

Once again, we have a bit of a mysterious photograph. It was taken a few decades ago and, no, I am not among those shown on it. It does, though, compose a few sentences of my life, include a small part of my experiences, form an element of my memory. I was still a teenager when this photograph was taken. You almost certainly have not seen it elsewhere and, most probably, will not see it again elsewhere -- unless, of course, someone steals it from this post. The question is, why is this photograph here now? The answer is because the events which have been occurring in the Ukraine in recent weeks -- especially this week -- have been on my mind. Being an "involved student of history," I have been thinking about the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s, Africa and Cuba and Bolivia during the 1950s and the 1960s, the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s -- need I mention more? Most of the time, it seems to me, "freedom fighters" and "terrorists" and "mercenaries" are difficult to distinguish from one another by anyone other than by themselves. As George Santayana wrote and others often paraphrase: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." I like to think I have learned a few things since I was a teenager. Unfortunately, for humanity, too many fail to gain in wisdom no matter what age they reach.

A question: How would he/did he proceed?

"It depended on whose influence he was feeling most keenly. He was remarkably sympathetic, picking things up from the air, it seemed. A movie would stimulate him, and he'd draw on images from it. Something would happen in the news that set him off, he'd learn a new name, it would buzz around in his head until he found a way to use it. A painting could do it, and he was an inveterate museumgoer. He was a stimulus junkie, needed provocation to work."

The music

A friend introduced me to the music of Nick Neblo a few days ago. Some of it is magical. All of it is neat. It speaks for itself.

Sort of just another July 10

Once upon a time never comes again;

I believe that (sort of);
And, never again probably would be for the best ....

Tony Bennett must be about one hundred years old, but he keeps on recording this song every year or two. I am a bit surprised there are no contemporary versions of it beyond his, but, maybe, I did not search long enough or hard enough. It is a beautiful song -- this rendition an old one sung not by Bennett, but by Jack Jones -- with words and feelings and emotions most adults should understand. (If they do not understand, I feel sorry for them.) Just as yesterday's song was about freedom, which is an implication of divorce, today's song is about love, which, for some if not most, is a path toward marriage. Anyway, you guessed it. Today is the anniversary of the marriage that yesterday was the anniversary for the divorce thereof .... does that make sense? Married July 10, divorce finalized July 9 a few years later, to make the length of the marriage a precise, exact number of years. Add to that, a prior marriage which also began and ended in July. As I have noted previously, remarkable. And, as I have said a few times in the past, if there is a third marriage, my superstitious nature wants it to be in July, too. If so, then we shall see whether or not "once upon a time" ever comes again. It will not arrive this July, that much is certain .... so ends this journey into nostalgia ....

Sort of just another July 9

The world is a blur;

Life is a whirlwind;

There is no logic, no reason, no purpose .... or is there ??

The mood of July: A song celebrating the voice of Valery Kipelov and the guitar of Victor Smolski. This particular song -- "I am Free" -- would have been appropriate for Independence Day in the United States of America and, in a sense, fits in well with the concept of divorce -- which is one of the allegorical symbols for which the month of July intersects with the history of Fram. Today is the anniversary of one divorce. This is the second or third time this song from this concert has appeared on my blog, and I have the band on CD and DVD .... love 'em. Long live rock and roll, no matter which country it emerges from .... someday ....

.... [continued tomorrow] ....

"I am free, no matter what rules surround me"

It might not be a work of photographic art or even a snapshot worth saving, but it portrays what I witnessed and it is what my Blackberry recorded as I sat in my backyard sipping Benedictine just after nightfall last year on the Fourth of July -- on Independence Day. It was a pleasant way to spend an evening, hearing and seeing fireworks dominating an otherwise quiet neighborhood while thinking about life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in the United States of America. My assumption is that tonight will be much the same for me. Since this year, once again, I will be toasting independence and freedom by myself, and since the Wild West, perhaps, is among the paramount symbols of Americana, I am including a "cowboy rendition" of "Unchained Melody" as a musical offering. By the way, the title of this post came from the words of Robert Heinlein, one of my favorite writers of science fiction novels and short stories. Those words are carved into my psyche. To complete the Heinlein thought/quote: "I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do."

"Maybe we'll be each other's friend, before we say goodbye ...."

One for the money ....
Two for the show ....
Three to get ready ....
Four to .... I said, four to .... four?

Where are you, four ??

So, I have been away from the blogs for a day shy of three weeks. Neither I nor the rest of the world seems to have changed significantly during that time. A few have died, a few have been born. Greed and cruelty still exist as, fortunately, so do altruism and goodness. I am fond of Ecclesiastes, and as that ancient preacher wrote: "The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun."

Nope. Sure is not ....

I frequently mention that the photograph/illustration, the written words and the music I use in a post usually have some manner of connection or association. In this instance, they represent minor changes for me since my last post:

I purchased three more pistols, two of them among the three Glocks shown here. The third Glock present is a trusted and proven companion of mine. Are they not beautiful? Well, efficient, anyway. Most modern firearms have little beauty associated with them. To my eyes, at least. Modern guns are designed for functionality and sex appeal, the latter being a bit ridiculous .... again, to my eyes, at least.

As for "four to go," that is for another day, another story, another post .... another race, if you recognize the metaphor and the origin of that phrase.

As for the music, an "old friend" of mine sent me a link to the song, "Bang, Bang." My friend wrote that listening to this song caused her to think of me .... hmmmm .... I am not certain, but, listening to the closing lines, she may have been sending me sort of an invitation. I am not sure who first recorded the piece, but it seems to me Cher made it famous once upon a time. By coincidence, between the last post and this one, I went to a concert, the first in a long, long while. You guessed it, the one, the only, Cher. I had not seen her perform since I was in the Marine Corps in California.

I am not sure how to explain "Breezy’s Song" beyond its sheer beauty and its touch of magic. If I ever had been aware of the film from which this piece originated, I had forgotten it. I came across the film midway through it on television a few days ago, and watched the last segments of it. While I enjoy the film work of William Holden, Kay Lenz and Clint Eastwood, it was the song which overpowered me and I sort of fell in love with it. I even used the last line of the lyrics as a title for this post.

The two songs actually are very similar, although the sound of them is very different.

So, now. The photograph/illustration and the music are explained through the written words, although I am not sure there is any rhyme, reason or logic for this blend. Are there more words to add? I wrote that I would return to the blogs in July. July has arrived, as have I, so I suppose I should say, "Welcome, and greetings, July." July, for me, is the month of two marriages and two divorces (How is it possible for the stars to have been aligned to have created such an absolute absurdity?); the month of my baptism to combat; the month of one birth.

And, I could say that I think being away from the blogs about three weeks has been good for me. It has been a period of escapism for the most part and, I think, it has nudged me closer to making a few decisions.