Thoughts
321 Quote Challenge: Creative Writing
I have been tagged by Kristian for a quote challenge. Here are the rules, passed down from Rory:
[1] Thank the Selector (Thanks, Kristian!)
[2] Post two quotes for the dedicated “Topic of the Day” (there is no deadline, actually)
[3] Select three bloggers to take part
[4] Re-blog responses
Alrighty, then…two quotes regarding creative writing:
“I think you have to learn for yourself how to write. I’m slightly mystified by creative writing courses, God love them, because I can’t understand how you can explain a process that I find so baffling.” ~ Kate Atkinson
“I seem most instinctively to believe in the human value of creative writing, whether in the form of verse or fiction, as a mode of truth-telling, self-expression and homage to the twin miracles of creation and consciousness.” ~ John Updike
My three bloggers:
*Sigh* I got nothing. Everyone I follow is involved in one challenge or another, already. Oh, well…
Shutterbug Saturday: Tribute Pictures 3.0
This is Part Three of the five-part series showcasing my former supervisor W. H. Patton’s photography. The original post is here. Last Saturday’s post is here.
The above picture (on a phone) or the picture to the left (on a PC) is from the Texas Lone Star Wind Farm just outside of Abilene (northeast) and Clyde (northwest). On one of my visits to his ranch in Clyde, he took me out to this wind farm installation. Those wind turbines make the weirdest noises.
I wish I had remembered MY camera.
Round Three below.
Wild turkey in his backyard, 04-07-2008
30-Day Song Challenge: Day Eight
A song about drugs or alcohol…
From the 1981 Paradise Theatre album, I give you Snowblind by Styx. If anyone followed Styx and their concept-album-oriented story telling, Paradise Theatre is where the dystopian thugs broke up the concert (as recalled by Kilroy in prison). This was also the same time that bands were being accused of having Satanic messages backmasked into the recordings. James Young (JY), in live concerts, always makes sure that everyone knows that Snowblind is anti-cocaine…not pro-Satan.
30-Day Song Challenge: Day Seven
A song to drive to…
This is definitely a song to drive to. Back when I had my 5-speed manual, 1985 Toyota Celica Coupe and, then, my 5-speed manual, 1991 Eagle Talon with the racing stripe and dual, overhead cam (both cars coveted for street racing and drifting these days), this song always made me drive fast(er).
“I’ve been drivin’ all night, my hand’s wet on the wheel…
It’s half past four and I’m shifting gears…”
30-Day Song Challenge: Six Day Bundle
Fellow blogger Britchy at Bitchin’ In The Kitchen challenged all of her readers to join in. I could not resist this fun as I am a music nut. That being expressed, I sit on day six so, this first post is a catch-up. Tomorrow, I will join the normal festivities for day seven.
So, without further ado…here we go.
Day One
A song with color in the title.
Oh, my, my, my…this immediately popped into my head. This was released in 1983…my junior year of high school.
Little Red Corvette
*************
Day Two
A song with a number in the title.
Black Lab appeared on the Alternative Rock scene in 1997 with their début album release Your Body Above Me. This song is particularly haunting to me and I could listen to Paul Durham sing all day long.
Ten Million Years
*************
Day Three
A song that reminds you of summer.
Dear Lord…the summer of 1984, the year I graduated. Myrtle Beach, alcohol & Prince. This was released ahead of the album Purple Rain‘s release and the movie of the same name. Have mercy… As a side note, Wendy in the background playing guitar in stockings and high-top tennis shoes is just bad ass.
When Doves Cry
*************
Day Four
A song that reminds you of someone you’d rather forget.
I love this song but, the person that it reminds me of…I wish I could rip them out of my head.
Set Fire to the Rain
*************
Day Five
A song that needs to be played loud.
Oh, yeah…also played extensively at the beach for graduation…the louder, the better. We wore out a cassette tape.
Fantasy
*************
Day Six
A song that makes you want to dance.
Honestly, this one is hard…too many to choose from. I will go with…
Say It Right
Thanks, Kristian for rolling the ball to Britchy. ~Vic
Shutterbug Saturday: Tribute Pictures
Texas State Capitol Building
I lived and worked in Texas for nearly a decade. I was fortunate enough to snag a Texas State job for the majority of the time I was there. The gentleman that interviewed and hired me was, as it turns out, my immediate Supervisor. He was one of the best bosses I ever had (his replacement after retirement was just as terrific). He did his job and he let me do mine. We sometimes rode the bus together, to and from work (downtown Austin).
I grew to love this man. He was a lanky 6′ 6″ and spoke fluent Spanish with a Texan accent. He had to have heart valve surgery a decade before I met him and, when you got close to him, he ticked like a clock. He owned a ranch just outside of Abilene in a small town called Clyde. He was a cattleman, a businessman, a photographer, a writer, an artist, a musician, a pilot, interviewed two U.S. Presidents and, was good friends with Mac Davis, Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. He graduated Texas Tech with a Journalism degree, loved the Red Raiders and served in the U.S. Army Reserves:
“I protected Fort Leonard Wood, MO, from all enemies, foreign and domestic, during the Cuban missile crisis” ~ W. H. Patton
He lived all over the U.S. and Mexico. He moved to the Austin area in 1997 and I met him in 2002. He always had a story to tell and had a wicked sense of humor. He was one hell of a cook and drank like a fish. I am thankful that I met him and am a better person for it. He passed away in 2012, five days after his 73rd birthday. I’d like to share some of his work, as he shared it with me.
From the 1960s, his son fishing.
From the 1960s, he managed to capture the image of a Barn Owl in an abandoned house.
From the 1960s, local geese.
From the 1960s, Kodiak bear.
From the 1960s, a wood duck.
From his backyard, 04-08-2008
Flashback Friday: 26 Questions+
Two months ago, on Friday, September 14, fellow blogger Bottomless Coffee 007 requested I answer the following 26 questions. I got busy and I forgot all about it (Sorry, Coffee). Here we go…
[1.] Who are you named after?
The first name is for the second longest reigning British Monarch. My second name came from my paternal-paternal great-grandmother…and my father misspelled it! My last name is English-Welsh.
[2.] Do you like your handwriting?
Sometimes.
[3.] What’s your favorite lunchmeat?
I don’t eat that stuff. I’ve watched it being made.
[4.] Longest relationship?
That depends…
♡ The longest is my dad.
♡ Friend? A girl I met in nursery school. Still friends after 49 years. Graduated HS together. My dad dated her mom when they were in HS, together. Oh, the parties and boyfriends…
♡ Significant other? My Vietnam vet. We met 26 years ago but, were otherwise ‘engaged’. We have been a permanently-attached-at-the-hip pair for 7 1/2 years.
[5.] Do you still have your tonsils?
Yep.
[6.] Would you bungee jump?
Never.
[7.] Do you untie your shoes when you take them off?
If they have laces, yes…most of the time. I have a tall pair of boots that have laces & a zipper. I just use the zipper. Lacing those things are a pain in the ass.
[8.] Favorite ice cream?
I don’t eat ice cream. I like Italian sorbeto or frozen coconut milk with chocolate & peanut butter.
[9.] What’s the first thing you notice about people?
Stature, demeanor and gait…then the clothes.
[10.] Football or baseball?
I loathe professional sports but, local, AAA/AA baseball is really fun to go to.
[11.] What color pants are you wearing?
Dark olive-green.
[12.] Last thing you ate?
Cereal.
[13.] If you are a crayon, what color are you?
Cornflower blue. That was always my favorite crayon in the big box.
[14.] Favorite smell?
Burning white sage.
[15.] Who is the last person you spoke to on the phone?
My buddy, Ray.
[16.] Hair color?
Very dark brown.
[17.] Eye Color?
Hazel.
[18.] Favorite food to eat?
Organic dark chocolate with mint.
[19.] Scary movie or happy ending?
I prefer science fiction, action, suspense or a thought-provoking drama.
[20.] Last movie you watched?
At a movie theatre, Darkest Hour. There is a reason why Gary Oldman won an Academy Award for Best Actor. He becomes Churchill. I have been following Oldman ever since Dracula.
[21.] Favorite holiday?
Halloween. BOO.
[22.] Beer or wine?
Between those two, wine. But, I’d rather have a Margarita with Anejo tequila or a Flying Grasshopper with aged, single-barrel rum.
[23.] Favorite day of the week?
They are all the same to me.
[24.] Three favorite bloggers you want to learn about?
I already know quite a bit about my three fave bloggers.
[25.] The additional info you didn’t know you wanted?
I drive a gun-metal gray 2008 Nissan Frontier 4 x 4 with suicide doors.
[26.] When’s the last time you got on the scale?
At my chiro’s office on Wednesday.
[Bonus Question (that’s more than 26…)] Who’s your favorite superhero?
That is tough. I have so many. I am a Marvel geek for sure. On the screen, I like what Chris Evans has done with Captain America and I like what Hugh Jackman did with Wolverine, even if he was a foot too tall. In the comics, Jean Grey (originally Marvel Girl, 1963)…all day, everyday.
Shutterbug Saturday: Halloween Local
Neighbors with humor… All pictures are my personal collection. ~Vic
They decorate every year. Last year was better than this year.
10-13-2017
11-04-2017
10-06-2018
10-13-2018
10-18-2018
10-24-2018
10-24-2018
10-24-2018
10-20-2017
10-06-2018
10-06-2018
Same house a year ago.
Hunter’s Moon 2018
The leaves are falling. The deer have grown fat for the winter. Hunters can move more easily over cleared fields, spotting the smaller animals. Also known as the Blood Moon or Sanguine Moon, Native Americans named the moon for the hunt and the storing of meat for the winter. Traditionally, it was a feasting day in Western Europe and among many tribes. From Moon Giant:
Contrary to popular belief, the Hunter’s Moon isn’t actually bigger or brighter than usual. It simply rises earlier, soon after sunset, which would give hunters plenty of bright moonlight to hunt by during the early evenings. To Neo-Pagans, however, the Hunter’s Moon is known by a far more morbid name – the Blood Moon.
Humans through the ages have always found autumn’s full moons to be creepy and not without good reason. There’s a reason why English folks in the Middle Ages called October’s full moon the Blood Moon and it’s the exact same reason why even Halloween imagery today often features a large, low-hanging moon with an eerie reddish glow. The Hunter’s Moon rises early in the evening, which means that you are more likely to see it near the horizon. When you observe the moon while it’s near the horizon, it gives off the illusion of being bigger while it’s in fact the same size. In addition, observing the moon at the horizon makes it look redder. This is because you’re seeing it through a thicker atmosphere, which scatters more blue light and lets more red light pass through to reach your eyes.
Scientific explanations aside, the Hunter’s Moon or Blood Moon still holds an undeniable aura of mystique and power. As October’s full moon occurs right before Samhain, the Gaelic mid-autumn festival that has evolved into Halloween today, Neo-Pagans consider the month of the Blood Moon to be a special time denoting the change of seasons and, a prime opportunity to contact dead loved ones, given the thinning of the veil between the physical world and the spiritual world. Precious stones such as amethyst are used to ward off evil and, sacred flowers like chrysanthemum are used when working with spirits, such as in rituals to commune with long-dead ancestors.
Despite the Blood Moon’s spooky associations, it rarely actually happens on Samhain or Halloween night itself. The next time you’ll get to see the full moon on Halloween is 2020, and if you miss that, you’ll have to wait 15 years to see it in 2035. Sometimes, October’s full moon even happens early enough in the month that it becomes the Harvest Moon, which is defined as the full moon that’s closest to the fall equinox. In Chinese culture, the Harvest Moon is celebrated during the Mid-Autumn Festival, where people gather to celebrate by eating mooncakes. There is also a harvest festival in India that celebrates October’s full moon called Sharad Purnima. Devotees fast all day before offering delicacies to the Moon God under the moonlight.
In contrast to the day-long fast of India’s moonlight festival, the Hunter’s Moon was a very important feast day in Europe as well as for many Native American tribes. Appropriately, the Ponca tribe’s name for the Hunter’s Moon is “the moon when they store food in caches”. Taking advantage of the fact that the fields have been reaped, hunters would capture foxes and other small animals who come out to graze on the fallen grains as well as hunt down deer in the moonlight. They would butcher their prey and preserve their meat. Blood Moon is an excellent name for this month’s full moon, given that it was a final, bloody harvesting of meat before the winter months.
Sadly, the tradition of feasting during the Hunter’s Moon was lost around the year 1700, but its spirit still lives on in historical reenactments like the Feast of the Hunter’s Moon, or even the feast of candy enjoyed by trick-or-treaters everywhere on Halloween.
This Hunter’s Moon reached 100% illumination at 12:45pm EDT.
Howl for me…
~Victoria
Shutterbug Saturday: The Wall That Heals
Yesterday, my friend Ray and I went to see The Wall That Heals. It came to Wake Forest, NC, over the weekend, sponsored by the Wake Forest Purple Heart Foundation and held at the E. Carroll Joyner Park.
In a previous post, I talked about nearly being an Army brat. I also could have potentially been fatherless as 2nd Lieutenants had short life spans in Vietnam, but…that was not my fate…nor, the fate of my father.
I do not personally know anyone that died in Vietnam. I have no names to scratch for my own memories but, my partner, my ‘significant other’ knew many that perished as he was in country 1967-1968 with the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 74 (PDF) at Camp Haskins-South, Red Beach, Da Nang . There will be a future post on him.
~Never Forget~
Movie Monday: The Way We Were 1973
Ok, folks. I am shifting things a bit. What used to be Flick Friday is now Movie Monday! *applause*applause* All blogs change and evolve…and, we’re off…
Forty-five years ago, today, the #1 movie at the box office was The Way We Were, a film described as a romantic drama. It’s drama alright. Directed by Sydney Pollack, it is a period piece based upon a novel by Arthur Laurents. He wrote about his college days at Cornell University and his experience with HCUA, which ultimately led to Hollywood Blacklisting. I’m not going to comment any further on the details as it is a little too close to the political nonsense of today.
That being said, Marvin Hamlisch won two Oscars for Best Original Score and Best Original Song.
Shutterbug Saturday: Loving Fall
The leaves, the leaves are falling…
A pathway in our local Riverwalk.
Local pink Mums.
One of many resting benches along the Riverwalk.
Lovely lavender Mums.
One of several Riverwalk bridges.
I spent my day running errands, enjoying walking the Riverwalk and getting my beloved Mum collection. When I walked out of the house at Noon, the temperature was 72°. I love this time of year. I just wish the mosquitoes would go away, already. ~Victoria
Flick Friday: Night of the Living Dead 1968
Fifty years ago, today, the #1 movie at the box office was Night of the Living Dead, starring Judith O’Dea (her best known role), Duane Jones (his best known role), Karl Hardman (one of the producers of the film), Marilyn Eastman (business partner of Karl Hardman and, make-up and prop artist of the film), Judith Ridley (Karl Hardman & Marilyn Eastman’s receptionist and, eventually, producer Russell Streiner‘s wife), Ronald ‘Keith Wayne‘ Hartman (the only role he ever had) and Kyra Schon (the zombie kid and Karl Hardman’s daughter). The Zombie Family that plays together, stays together, I guess.
It was directed, edited and co-written (with John Russo) by George A. Romero, considered to be the ‘Father of the Zombie Film’. He was also known for The Crazies, Monkey Shines, directed Creepshow and, created and executive-produced the television show Tales from the Darkside.
Duane Jones is, now, an actual character in The Walking Dead graphic novel/comic.
The original movie is slated to be re-released this month in certain cinemas on the 24th & 25th in celebration of its 50th anniversary. It’s a shame that George Romero passed away in July of last year:
www.nightofthelivingdead.com
Wayback Wednesday: The Revenue Act of 1913
buzzle.com
In 1913, The Revenue Act or the Underwood Act or the Underwood Tariff or the Underwood Tariff Act or the Underwood-Simmons Act or, simply, the Tariff Act (Federal Income Tax) was signed into law (re-imposed) by President Woodrow Wilson after the ratification of the Sixteenth Amendment. It was sponsored/introduced by House Majority Leader Oscar Underwood from Alabama.
The very first personal income tax was signed into law in 1861 by Abraham Lincoln as a way to fund the Civil War. It was largely ineffective and, was, originally, a flat rate tax before being repealed and replaced with the Revenue Act of 1862, converting the flat rate into a progressive rate. This act ended in 1866.
When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the income tax provision of the Wilson-Gorman Tariff Act of 1894 via Pollock vs Farmers’ Loan & Trust in 1895, that opened the door for the Sixteenth Amendment 18 years later, affirming that “…the Constitution did not deny Congress the power to impose a tax on real and personal property“… Yay for us.
Other things from October 3…
1922…Rebecca Ann Latimer Felton of Georgia is the 1st woman in the U.S. Senate, if only for one day.
1929…The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes changes its name to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
1945…Elvis Presley has his first public appearance at the age of 10. He was dressed as a cowboy, stood on a chair and sang “Old Shep” at the Mississippi–Alabama Fair and Dairy Show.
1955…Captain Kangaroo and The Mickey Mouse Club both premier on CBS and ABC, respectively.
1990…At midnight on this day, the flag of West Germany was raised over Brandenburg Gate, signifying the reunification of Germany.
National One-Hit Wonder Day
September 25 has six celebrations and one ‘fourth Tuesday in September’ day. With today being Tune Tuesday, I couldn’t pass this up. Today, we honor National One-Hit Wonder Day. And, curiously, the folks at National Day Calender have no idea when this particular celebration was created.
Do you have a favorite one-hit wonder? I have several. But, for today, I will jump back ten years from my previous Tune Tuesday post. I’m a large fan of surfing music, so here is one from 1963.
Pipeline by The Chantays peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1963.
Also celebrated today:
National Lobster Day (Yum!)
National Comic Book Day
National Tune Up Day
National Research Administrator Day (That’s a mouthful.)
Math Story Telling Day (Who knew math needed stories…)
National Voter Registration Day (Fourth Tuesday in September)
Cheers and enjoy! ~Vic
Cosmic-Observation 