(Note: I cannot claim to be a fan of Levon Helm's or The Band, in fact, I know very little about them. However I did write about him a while back for reasons, I hope, will be plain in the post. I thought it worth re-posting in light of the passing of Helm today. - Mike)
I'm sure most people with cable TV notice that there are all kinds of channels that broadcast programming of, shall we say, limited appeal. Some of them look like they were shot inside someone's house using lamps with the shades taken off for some really harsh lighting. And they look that way because it was shot inside someone's house using lamps with the shades taken off for some really harsh lighting.
For example, take this one program on Mediacom here in Springfield. It was shot in a nightclub and the focus of the program is the musical act that is performing there. More specifically, the subject seems to be this scraggly, old drummer with a gravelly voice who does all the lead singing. I watched it a for a few minutes and I thought, "Eh." They're probably some regional act that does all the hotspots in the college towns around here. And they probably drink up all their profits.
The things they show on TV.
And, it's interesting, in view of the discussion of popular music here at "The Porch" lately. Many of the acts that we admire would be old, gravelly and scraggly, like the drummer on this cable show. I heard a new Bob Seger song the other day and you can definitely hear some age in his voice.
Cousin Bob posted his list of favorite songs from 1973 and we've been having fun with it. He listed "Dancing In The Moonlight" by King Harvest and someone from that group was kind enough to reply and we got a kick out of that. Later, I posted in response and playfully asked Bob if his new friends, King Harvest, would explain how their name came about. Lo and behold! I got a reply from them! What generous and friendly people! It's an interesting story.
"In 1970 we made a last minute entry into a R&R contest in Paris, France. They asked for our band's name, which we had not yet decided on. On the stereo we had one of our favorite albums by The Band playing. The song was King Harvest Has Surely Come. So we gave them King Harvest as a name. As it turned out we won the contest and never changed the name. Two years later, still in Paris, we recorded Dancing in the Moonlight."
I think that is a cool story and it's a good band name. I think a lot of creativity is like this - it just happens, it's not forced.
So, in reading this reply, I had a thought. The record was by a group called The Band? That sort of rang a bell, so I did what any self-respecting person would do at this moment, I Googled. (I Google, therefore I am?)
I Googled "the band king harvest has come" and up came the typical Google page with lots links. At the top was a You Tube video of the song, so I clicked it and about 20 seconds later, I was floored.
The video opens with a shot of a cabin and the camera zooms in to look through the window. At about :20, I recognized someone. I recognized this bobbing head and the shrugging shoulders. I recognized the inelegant twisting neck so the singer could line up with a microphone.
It was the scraggly old drummer from the show on my local cable provider! Only he wasn't so old in this video! Amazing! You mean this guy on my local cable was SOMEBODY?
Quick! More Googling! I Googled The Band and got the Wikipedia page. (There is a sentence that would have been meaningless 10 years ago!) I saw a picture of The Band and their names. And I saw it! Levon Helm! He's the drummer for The Band and he's the drummer on my cable show! I remember seeing it when the credits rolled!
So, Levon Helm was the drummer for The Band and they recorded a song called King Harvest Has Come which inspired a nameless band in Paris to name themselves King Harvest and two years later they recorded "Dancing In The Moonlight" which my cousin listed as one of his favorite songs from 1973 on this blog and somebody from the band King Harvest replied to that and then I asked a question and they answered with a story about The Band and I looked it up and saw the drummer from my cable show was not a club guy but a real rock and roll pro, the drummer for The Band. Amazing.
Did I just win "Six Degrees of King Harvest"?
(Originally posted October, 2008)
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
One Saint Patrick's Day
Last year for St. Patrick’s, my wife, my son, my youngest daughter and I went to a place in Shawnee Kansas called Waxy O’Shea’s, for lunch and to listen to some great Irish music. Our son is home from Missouri State, so we decided since we each enjoyed the outing so much last year, we’d do that again. My wife couldn’t find a calendar on their website, so we weren’t sure what music, if any, would be there. We decided we’d drive over and check it out anyway. If there wasn’t live music, or if the lines were too long, we’d make the decision – stay and wait our turn for supper, or go elsewhere. At the last minute before we left home, my wife found an Applebee’s gift card and put it in her purse, just in case.
That turned out to be a good idea.
We drove into the parking lot and immediately saw the sign on the building:
SPACE AVAILABLE.
Now if I understand those letters right, in that order, it means, “Nobody Home, We’re Closed Now”. Our other clue was all the plywood on the windows…The Shawnee location of Waxy O’Shea’s was no more.
My wife had noticed an Applebee’s when we passed it earlier, so we went there and were well treated. No Irish music, though.
On our way back to Missouri, I’d listen from time to time to the conversation between my wife and daughter in the back seat. I don’t always quite hear what’s being said and I’m not sure what it was about, but one thing I heard sounded like “butterbean”.
Hmmm…that could be a fun name for a story character.
“Dear, you had a call while you were out, a Mister Butterbean.”
“Was it Charles Butterbean?”
“No…that doesn’t sound right.”
“Was it George, then?”
“Yes, that’s it, George Butterbean. He said you’d know what it was about.”
“Okay, I’ll call him back.”
George Butterbean is the founder of Butterbean and Associates, importers of all kinds of hard to find items of value. I could say many of the items were impossible to find, but I’d have to leave it at that. It would be wise if I said no more.
George had recently turned over the daily operation of the business to his son Charles. One thing I learned early was to never, and I mean never, call him Charlie. He really hates that, so it’s Charles or C. W.
I had a pretty good idea of what the call was about, and I had been expecting and dreading it. I couldn’t ignore the call (business is business, after all), and while I was glad it was George rather than Charles who called, I wasn’t at all sure I wanted to become involved.
Call it a premonition, if you must. I’ve really got to start paying attention to those…
That turned out to be a good idea.
We drove into the parking lot and immediately saw the sign on the building:
SPACE AVAILABLE.
Now if I understand those letters right, in that order, it means, “Nobody Home, We’re Closed Now”. Our other clue was all the plywood on the windows…The Shawnee location of Waxy O’Shea’s was no more.
My wife had noticed an Applebee’s when we passed it earlier, so we went there and were well treated. No Irish music, though.
On our way back to Missouri, I’d listen from time to time to the conversation between my wife and daughter in the back seat. I don’t always quite hear what’s being said and I’m not sure what it was about, but one thing I heard sounded like “butterbean”.
Hmmm…that could be a fun name for a story character.
“Dear, you had a call while you were out, a Mister Butterbean.”
“Was it Charles Butterbean?”
“No…that doesn’t sound right.”
“Was it George, then?”
“Yes, that’s it, George Butterbean. He said you’d know what it was about.”
“Okay, I’ll call him back.”
George Butterbean is the founder of Butterbean and Associates, importers of all kinds of hard to find items of value. I could say many of the items were impossible to find, but I’d have to leave it at that. It would be wise if I said no more.
George had recently turned over the daily operation of the business to his son Charles. One thing I learned early was to never, and I mean never, call him Charlie. He really hates that, so it’s Charles or C. W.
I had a pretty good idea of what the call was about, and I had been expecting and dreading it. I couldn’t ignore the call (business is business, after all), and while I was glad it was George rather than Charles who called, I wasn’t at all sure I wanted to become involved.
Call it a premonition, if you must. I’ve really got to start paying attention to those…
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Pet peeves
I was thinking about this subject recently, and it could be that you can learn something about a person by knowing what really annoys them. Now, I realize I might be “stepping on the toes” of some readers, but I decided this just might be blog worthy. So please take no offense if your mileage varies, as they say. At least I spared you my rant about planned obsolescence (for now). These aren’t ranked, just written down in the order I thought of them; and I'm sure this list isn't complete. Anyway, here's a few of...
Bob’s Pet Peeves
Having sleeves or pant legs turn inside out when I take them off.
I don’t know why this bugs me – and it doesn’t happen often - but I’ll go to great lengths and even risk a fall to shake my legs out of my pants when the pant legs start trying to turn inside out. It even bothers me a bit to find pants or jeans turned inside out like that in the laundry.
“Are you a dog person or a cat person”?
Hey, I’m friendly with other people’s cats, though I wouldn’t have one. I do like dogs, and I get it about the love and affection. But, I’m a bird person! I don’t like it that somehow our choices of pets seem to have been narrowed to only two.
I’ve had a total of six parakeets over the years. One could say just a few words and three were good talkers, but they all brought a whole lot of cheerfulness to the home. It seems that fewer people keep birds now than in years past, and it’s a shame. They’re missing out.
“Mother nature”.
Give me a break. If you’re an athiest, don’t personalize natural laws. If you’re a Christian, give glory to God and His works. There is no goddess.
“What’s your sign”?
I don’t hear this much anymore, but in the past when asked, my reply was “Don’t Even Think About Parking Here”. I’m a Christian, and I’ve studied and enjoyed astronomy. So don’t even get me started on that astrology nonsense. If you happen to find out when my birthday is, well you did, that’s all. If you want to make something of it, I’m not playing that game.
“The weatherman never gets the forecast right. Why, I shoveled three inches of partly cloudy this morning”!
They’re not always right, but weather forecasts are a whole lot more accurate now than they were 30 years ago. Give them some credit, okay?
Hats or caps with the label “one size fits all”.
What an immense, dastardly lie, they all cut off at about size 7-1/2 at most. I wish I had more hats to wear, but I need at least a 7-7/8 or size 8, and they’re very, very difficult to find.
Chocloate Easter bunnies, or cookies with cute faces on them.
Hey, just give me a plain cookie or a chocolate bar and spare me the twisted comments about “You bit his ears off first”.
Going to a pizza party where all the choices are some kind of “meat lovers” or “combo” or “supreme”.
You know the kind, with the flesh of several assorted beasts and every oddball vegetable under the sun (olives...shudder), including the latest variety of tongue searing pepper. (Also mushrooms...shudder.) Is it too much to ask that there be maybe one simple Canadian bacon or an even simpler cheese pizza? Apparently, sometimes, it is too much to ask.
By the way, what is a pepperoni anyway? Judging by its cross section, it’s some kind of round or tubular critter. I get this mental image of several cute little furry pepperoni, happily bounding through the meadow on a sunny spring day...while stealthy hunters approach with their clubs.
The poor little innocent things.
So readers...what are your pet peeves? Curious minds want to know.
Bob’s Pet Peeves
Having sleeves or pant legs turn inside out when I take them off.
I don’t know why this bugs me – and it doesn’t happen often - but I’ll go to great lengths and even risk a fall to shake my legs out of my pants when the pant legs start trying to turn inside out. It even bothers me a bit to find pants or jeans turned inside out like that in the laundry.
“Are you a dog person or a cat person”?
Hey, I’m friendly with other people’s cats, though I wouldn’t have one. I do like dogs, and I get it about the love and affection. But, I’m a bird person! I don’t like it that somehow our choices of pets seem to have been narrowed to only two.
I’ve had a total of six parakeets over the years. One could say just a few words and three were good talkers, but they all brought a whole lot of cheerfulness to the home. It seems that fewer people keep birds now than in years past, and it’s a shame. They’re missing out.
“Mother nature”.
Give me a break. If you’re an athiest, don’t personalize natural laws. If you’re a Christian, give glory to God and His works. There is no goddess.
“What’s your sign”?
I don’t hear this much anymore, but in the past when asked, my reply was “Don’t Even Think About Parking Here”. I’m a Christian, and I’ve studied and enjoyed astronomy. So don’t even get me started on that astrology nonsense. If you happen to find out when my birthday is, well you did, that’s all. If you want to make something of it, I’m not playing that game.
“The weatherman never gets the forecast right. Why, I shoveled three inches of partly cloudy this morning”!
They’re not always right, but weather forecasts are a whole lot more accurate now than they were 30 years ago. Give them some credit, okay?
Hats or caps with the label “one size fits all”.
What an immense, dastardly lie, they all cut off at about size 7-1/2 at most. I wish I had more hats to wear, but I need at least a 7-7/8 or size 8, and they’re very, very difficult to find.
Chocloate Easter bunnies, or cookies with cute faces on them.
Hey, just give me a plain cookie or a chocolate bar and spare me the twisted comments about “You bit his ears off first”.
Going to a pizza party where all the choices are some kind of “meat lovers” or “combo” or “supreme”.
You know the kind, with the flesh of several assorted beasts and every oddball vegetable under the sun (olives...shudder), including the latest variety of tongue searing pepper. (Also mushrooms...shudder.) Is it too much to ask that there be maybe one simple Canadian bacon or an even simpler cheese pizza? Apparently, sometimes, it is too much to ask.
By the way, what is a pepperoni anyway? Judging by its cross section, it’s some kind of round or tubular critter. I get this mental image of several cute little furry pepperoni, happily bounding through the meadow on a sunny spring day...while stealthy hunters approach with their clubs.
The poor little innocent things.
So readers...what are your pet peeves? Curious minds want to know.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
The Department of Old Things Found, part 4
Here's another one from the small spiral notebook I found recently. It's what I call the...
Little Electron Guys
Or, Life In the Circuitry, if you prefer.
I don't recall that I had a particular reason to draw the electron people in a teardrop shape, but it seemed to work. These guys are everywhere, as you can tell - there's a whole bunch of them looking out of the control room windows of the phonograph cartridge in the lower right.
If I remember right, my idea was to draw a series of these showing electrons at work in their world inside electronic circuits. Those of you with an electronics background can figure out which component I had in mind next to the guard with the gun, under the "Single File" sign.
Oh and for the record, I can tell from the notebook that I drew this in late 1978, or at the latest, maybe early 1979. So I wasn't inspired by "Tron", which didn't come out until 1982. I think it was just a random thought. What if electrons were people running through the circuitry?
I remember that I had fun sketching this.
P.S. and speaking of cartoonists, in honor of "Mad's maddest artist", Don Martin, I wish one and all a Happy National Gorilla-Suit Day!
Little Electron Guys
Or, Life In the Circuitry, if you prefer.
I don't recall that I had a particular reason to draw the electron people in a teardrop shape, but it seemed to work. These guys are everywhere, as you can tell - there's a whole bunch of them looking out of the control room windows of the phonograph cartridge in the lower right.
If I remember right, my idea was to draw a series of these showing electrons at work in their world inside electronic circuits. Those of you with an electronics background can figure out which component I had in mind next to the guard with the gun, under the "Single File" sign.
Oh and for the record, I can tell from the notebook that I drew this in late 1978, or at the latest, maybe early 1979. So I wasn't inspired by "Tron", which didn't come out until 1982. I think it was just a random thought. What if electrons were people running through the circuitry?
I remember that I had fun sketching this.
P.S. and speaking of cartoonists, in honor of "Mad's maddest artist", Don Martin, I wish one and all a Happy National Gorilla-Suit Day!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Department of Old Things Found, part 3
I've been going through a drawer, sorting out old papers I no longer need or want; so far I've thrown a fistful into the bag we have for paper recycling. I did come across a keeper, a small spiral notebook from the late 1970s.
See, back then when I'd get an idea for a cartoon I'd open my notebook, and quickly sketch what I had in mind. I guess I was more spontaneous than I am today...now I tend to worry the little details to death.
I think I need to somehow get back to my former way of creating things. Anyway, for your amusement, here's...
Halloween 1978!
See, back then when I'd get an idea for a cartoon I'd open my notebook, and quickly sketch what I had in mind. I guess I was more spontaneous than I am today...now I tend to worry the little details to death.
I think I need to somehow get back to my former way of creating things. Anyway, for your amusement, here's...
Halloween 1978!
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Once more for the old year
I don't want to wish my life away, but I have to be honest. I can't recall another year I've wanted to kick under the bus more than this past one.
Goodbye 2011...don't let the door hit you.
It's been a rough year around here, but let's talk of pleasant things instead. Right now, my family and I are really enjoying a visit with our eldest daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter from California. Certainly one of the highest points of the year, along with their earlier visit near Thanksgiving.
Other highlights...back in June, my wife, my sister and I drove to Ohio to visit some of my relatives. That was a really fun visit, we enjoyed seeing my aunt, uncle, and four guy cousins and their wives. Stories were told, pictures were taken, and dinners were eaten. The other thing that made this special was the time spent with my sister visiting, taking turns driving and listening to music.
I also got to do a couple of things I've always wanted to do. Our church had a fireworks tent this year, and I volunteered to work a shift. And in mid November, I helped a friend of the family wire up a professional looking Christmas light display...animated, computer controlled, and set to music. The works. The family and I drove over there a few days ago to watch and listen to the show. It turned out really nice.
So I ought to just leave it at that, count my blessings, and end with my wish for a healthy, prosperous, and Happy New Year. May 2012 be a better year for us all. It just about has to be (I didn't go into all the various losses here this year, so just trust me on that).
I did get to thinking about one other thing...what was new in my life in past years. Regular readers of Poppy's Front Porch know that I like to make lists. Anyway...
Some positive things the years have brought...
1957 - my family's big trip to Colorado
1959 - our move to a bigger house and my start of school
1964 - baptized and joined the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod
1966 - lit the candles at my sister's wedding and added a brother-in-law to my family
1967 - flew with my dad to Atlanta and back. Later, discovered the hobby of model rocketry.
1969 - watched the Apollo 11 moon landing on tv and started high school in the fall
1972 - graduated high school and went off to Central Methodist College
1975 - transferred to the University of Missouri (lost some credits, but hey...)
1977 - graduated with a BA degree and got my first (short lived) mapping job
1979 - became interested in genealogy and started working on the family tree
1982 - married my best friend, still my lovely young bride. Saw the ocean for the first time on our honeymoon to Florida.
1985 - our first daughter born
1986 - attended a National Association of Rocketry regional meet and started becoming active in the NAR
1988 - landed my longest mapping job (lasted 13 years)
1989 - our second daughter born
1991 - our son born
1995 - our third daughter born
2005 - our first daughter's wedding. Later, our first granddaughter born.
2009 - our family's big trip to Colorado, Utah (Zion NP), California (our daughter's house and Disneyland), the Grand Canyon, and back
2010 - our second granddaughter born
I could probably find a few stories in all that.
Goodbye 2011...don't let the door hit you.
It's been a rough year around here, but let's talk of pleasant things instead. Right now, my family and I are really enjoying a visit with our eldest daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter from California. Certainly one of the highest points of the year, along with their earlier visit near Thanksgiving.
Other highlights...back in June, my wife, my sister and I drove to Ohio to visit some of my relatives. That was a really fun visit, we enjoyed seeing my aunt, uncle, and four guy cousins and their wives. Stories were told, pictures were taken, and dinners were eaten. The other thing that made this special was the time spent with my sister visiting, taking turns driving and listening to music.
I also got to do a couple of things I've always wanted to do. Our church had a fireworks tent this year, and I volunteered to work a shift. And in mid November, I helped a friend of the family wire up a professional looking Christmas light display...animated, computer controlled, and set to music. The works. The family and I drove over there a few days ago to watch and listen to the show. It turned out really nice.
So I ought to just leave it at that, count my blessings, and end with my wish for a healthy, prosperous, and Happy New Year. May 2012 be a better year for us all. It just about has to be (I didn't go into all the various losses here this year, so just trust me on that).
I did get to thinking about one other thing...what was new in my life in past years. Regular readers of Poppy's Front Porch know that I like to make lists. Anyway...
Some positive things the years have brought...
1957 - my family's big trip to Colorado
1959 - our move to a bigger house and my start of school
1964 - baptized and joined the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod
1966 - lit the candles at my sister's wedding and added a brother-in-law to my family
1967 - flew with my dad to Atlanta and back. Later, discovered the hobby of model rocketry.
1969 - watched the Apollo 11 moon landing on tv and started high school in the fall
1972 - graduated high school and went off to Central Methodist College
1975 - transferred to the University of Missouri (lost some credits, but hey...)
1977 - graduated with a BA degree and got my first (short lived) mapping job
1979 - became interested in genealogy and started working on the family tree
1982 - married my best friend, still my lovely young bride. Saw the ocean for the first time on our honeymoon to Florida.
1985 - our first daughter born
1986 - attended a National Association of Rocketry regional meet and started becoming active in the NAR
1988 - landed my longest mapping job (lasted 13 years)
1989 - our second daughter born
1991 - our son born
1995 - our third daughter born
2005 - our first daughter's wedding. Later, our first granddaughter born.
2009 - our family's big trip to Colorado, Utah (Zion NP), California (our daughter's house and Disneyland), the Grand Canyon, and back
2010 - our second granddaughter born
I could probably find a few stories in all that.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Notes from the househusband, part 1: Consequences
Earlier today I was sorting clothing for the laundry. There was one item, I forget what it was exactly now, maybe a shirt or a woman’s top, but I noticed the care label and the admonition to use “only non-chlorine bleach”. Plainly stated in only four words, but I didn’t laugh and neither should you. It’s a serious business.
You might think you’ll get away with using the wrong bleach just this once, but I’m convinced otherwise. It’s better to be safe than sorry, so I’ll never use chlorine bleach on anything; because they have ways of finding out.
High tech ways.
They will come to your house some night, some cold night when you least expect it. They will break down your door and drag you from your warm comfortable home out into the cold. And all of your tears and your pleading for mercy will be to no avail.
Then they will begin to thump…
Eh what…there aren’t? You’re really sure about that? So they were pulling my leg about the bleach police?
Okay, well anyway don’t use the wrong bleach because there will be some kind of natural consequence. Your clothes will turn the wrong color or get a funny smell or something.
It would be bad, I’m telling you.
You might think you’ll get away with using the wrong bleach just this once, but I’m convinced otherwise. It’s better to be safe than sorry, so I’ll never use chlorine bleach on anything; because they have ways of finding out.
High tech ways.
They will come to your house some night, some cold night when you least expect it. They will break down your door and drag you from your warm comfortable home out into the cold. And all of your tears and your pleading for mercy will be to no avail.
Then they will begin to thump…
Eh what…there aren’t? You’re really sure about that? So they were pulling my leg about the bleach police?
Okay, well anyway don’t use the wrong bleach because there will be some kind of natural consequence. Your clothes will turn the wrong color or get a funny smell or something.
It would be bad, I’m telling you.
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