I’ll be honest, I don’t remember exactly how I came across this book. It may have been a freebie from Amazon Prime… Anyhow, I had never read anything from Mr. Johnson in the past, so I had no idea what to expect. It was a Kindle read, which is not my preferred method, but I’m glad I picked this one!
The story is convoluted to say the least. It bounces back between a great number of characters, some minor some major but everyone has a piece of the action.
The main character, who goes by many names, has been around a long, long time. Without giving away the story, I can’t really say too much, but I will say the “man of legend” has seen more than anyone can imagine and has had a hand in many things that have shaped the modern era.
He’s being pursued by the Catholic church, a highly ambitious investigative reporter and an old, long lost friend simultaneously, which leads to quite the thrill ride.
The book is a nice mash up of spy novel, historic novel, supernatural and religious imagery and just straight up suspense.
All in all, it was a good yarn. Is it gonna displace anything currently in my Top 10? No, not at all. But I’m glad I read it, it was certainly entertaining and it kept me coming back for more. Nothing worse than a book you have to force yourself to finish!
April 17th marks 100 days since my first post on this new blog. It’s hard to believe it’s already been 3+ months!
I had low expectations for readership, as I don’t have any social media “presence” (or accounts for that matter!) and I only let a few people know I was doing this. But regardless, this was just something I wanted to do, a small outlet for chronicling my life, sharing some things I enjoy and yes, blowing off steam from time to time.
Unlike my last two blogs, I’m actually having fun with this one and have been pleasantly surprised at the “traffic” I’ve drummed up thus far.
I recognize that I’m not exactly a “writer”, nor do I hold any impressive credentials that make me worth listening to. Nevertheless, I appreciate the fact that so many folks have stopped by for a read. I hope my efforts have put a smile on your face, or turned you on to some new music or books, or just gave you a little kernel of something worthwhile to think about.
As of this morning, I’ve put up 55 posts and my site has received 158 visitors and 271 page views! I’ve got a handful of followers and some have even left a few comments! Sure, this is peanuts compared to establishing blogs, but these numbers exceeded my expectations, by a long shot!
So, a big, BIG thank you, to each and every one of you that have stopped by. I truly appreciate you sharing some of your precious time here at my hangout.
With Spring and Summer right around the corner, I expect a lot of good stuff to share with y’all, so I hope to see you back here from time to time!
I’m a firm believer in the old adage “you get what you pay for”. Now, this isn’t ALWAYS true, but in my experience, it is the case more often than not.
Since I grew up “lower middle class” and spent the bulk of my adulthood in the ranks of the “working poor”, I’ve always been cognizant of every dollar that leaves my wallet. But at the same time, somehow I ended up with expensive taste and a predisposition toward high end goods. And by “high end” I do not mean “designer labels” or “luxury”, I am far more impressed with quality of materials, construction and yes, design. Esthetics matter, to me at least.
I learned at a young age that my meager dollars went a lot further by buying everything I could used. Pretty much everything of value I had as a kid and young adult, was “pre-owned”. (I still laugh at that term, sometime in the 90’s, the genuis marketing folks decided “pre-owned” didn’t have the same preconceptions as “used”. Semantics. Silliness. But I digress… ) All my bikes and sports gear and musical instruments were used before I got them. My first few cars were hand-me-downs or used. And you know what? All of that stuff worked just as well as it would have if I’d paid double and bought new. The thing is, if new were my only option, I would have had to simply do without.
I also spent time, as a young adult, living on my own starting at 19, shopping the discount stores, flea markets and other such “cheap” routes. This is the time in my life where I learned the difference between inexpensive and “cheap”. No matter how good it looks at first, no matter what kind of great deal you scored, “cheap” is not worth the cost, no matter how little it is.
For example, I used to buy socks at the flea market. There was a vendor there that sold new socks at something like $20 for a dozen pair. Screaming deal, right? On the face of it, sure. But by the 3rd wash, they had elastic popping and were getting thin. Within a few months they would be unbearable. It was like wearing sandpaper in your shoes, really terribly uncomfortable. And when you work on your feet 8-10 hours a day, uncomfortable feet turn into painful feet, which is positively miserable.
Another example is sunglasses. I used to buy whatever cheap sunglasses I saw that I liked and inevitably they would either get a scratched lens or the frame would break. I have absurdly sensitive eyes and wear sunglasses virtually year round, whenever I’m outside. I’m practically blind without them in daylight. So as a consequence I was buying maybe half a dozen pairs of sunglasses a year.
Now those two examples are both things that have plentiful options in every conceivable price range but are also things that I use every. single. day.
When online shopping became a thing, I found some inexpensive wool socks that cost a little over double the amount of the flea market socks, and it’s like the light bulb above my head burst into light! Yes, I paid double but they lasted a year – 4X the longevity of the cheap socks. And the remained pretty comfortable that whole time, which literally improved my quality of life, spending so much time on my feet.
Too many people just look at the price tag. Others only care about what other people will think. Me? I ask, how long will it last, how comfortable will it be and do I like the way it looks? Let’s face it, no matter how good the deal and how good the product – if you think it’s ugly, you aren’t going to wear it, so every penny you did spend is wasted.
With things going completely sideways here in the US, and inflation slapping you in the face at every turn, it’s more important than ever to start getting frugal, if you aren’t already.
Clothing, tools, cookware, shoes and such are things that have nearly unlimited options in price-range, but the markets are flooded with cheap garbage. Be wary of anything that appears to be too good a deal, chances are there is a reason why something is being sold at a deep discount.
And while it does appear to be true that “they don’t make ’em like they used to”, quality is still out there, you just need to wade through a lot more garbage before you find it.
And I know it’s now trendy to shop for clothes at Goodwill and Salvation Army stores (hipster nonsense), but there are still good deals to be found there on things like books and CDs, housewares and things of that nature. Is it overpriced versus a few decades ago? Absolutely it is, but its still a better deal than off Amazon or from your typical retail outlet.
With the cost of living shooting for the stars and wages stagnating at best, every dollar saved is a good thing.
Be smart. Consider more than the price tag. Your wallet will thank you later!
Lately I’ve been getting some traction in the quest to play with a band again, so I’ve been digging up a lot of “oldies” to listen to and prepare for auditions and such. These trips down memory lane brought up lots of recollections of past bands and gigs, and then out of the blue a song came on the radio that I hadn’t heard in a very long time… ( yes, I do still listen to the radio from time to time!)
This song was the VERY FIRST song I ever learned to play on a drumset!
Now, I was only 5 years old when this album was released, and while I started learning drum rudiments at 7, I didn’t get my first kit until I was maybe 10. So this tune was already a “classic” when I was figuring it out.
For the life of me, I could not learn the bass drum part and then by chance one afternoon I was hanging out with a friend of mine – Mike B. – at his house and he had a much older brother that was a drummer (with an amazing Ludwig kit, that put my jalopy kit to shame!). The brother was cool enough to let me sit down at his kit and he spent about half an hour teaching me that drum part.
After that day, everything just kinda clicked and I was off to the races. 4 years later I was starting my first band. Nearly 4 years after that, and a few bands later, I played my first gig at a nightclub I wasn’t even old enough to legally be in.
Forty-plus years later, hundreds of songs later,I STILL remember the first song I learned like it was yesterday.
It was pure serendipity. That afternoon in the finished attic space on Shady Lane in San Jose at that shiny Ludwig kit changed my life. Mike’s brother, who was close to twice my age, (and I’d never met before!) gave me a gift I could never repay.
It just goes to show, you never know what that small moment of kindness you show someone will lead to. I could never repay Mike’s brother, but I hope in my own ways I’ve paid it foreword, helping others along their path.
I’d had a really good year in ’21, making it down to work out 4 to 5 times a week, then slacked off around Christmas…then caught the Plague…then caught the flu…then went on vacation. Next thing you know, four months have passed and most of my gains are gone. <sigh>
Planet Fitness, I can’t say I missed you, but I’m glad to be back. See you again real soon!
Once upon a time, America was a truly special, unique place and Americans (for the most part) were as bold and forward thinking as they were generous and caring.
Art imitates life back in the day…
Sure, there were some ugly things in the past in this country, nobody with two brain cells to rub together is debating that fact. But that was in NO WAY unique to the USA. The world for the bulk of history has been a cruel, brutal place. That goes for the US, as much as it does for every other country and continent for all of recorded history. We were not special in that regard, not even slightly.
No, what made it special was that you could speak your mind without fear of persecution. You could go to whatever Church your soul guided you to, or not go at all. We had unalienable rights and were FREE to pursue YOUR happiness. Basically, the Government was restricted from pushing you around. This is individual freedom.
All of this is great stuff, right? Makes sense from a human perspective, that we should be able to live our lives AS WE SEE FIT, so long as we’re not infringing on others. Simple. Effective.
Then, of course, as always happens with mere humans “holding power”, they can’t help themselves but to try to attain even MORE power. This again, plagues all of recorded history, worldwide. It’s no surprise, it is to be expected.
What IS surprising, to me at least, is how the population today seems to be not only OK with what is essentially a hostile takeover of our country by government and their cronies in business, they seem to be celebrating it and chastising anyone that doesn’t want to get with their program
It’s bad enough when the Hollyweirdos and the sportsball morons weigh in on things they know nothing about, but now everyone with a smartphone and a twitter account thinks they know what is better for me than I do.
Their opinions are also good for compost piles.
What happened to our bold, proud populace to turn them into nanny-state cheerleaders? Why don’t they understand that any power to compell ME to do something against my will/wishes/conscience, can ALSO be used against THEM to compell actions they themselves are against? Those that would abuse their power generally aren’t too picky about who they wield it against.
These are certainly not new concepts, and there have been a lot of words spilled on the topic over the last few years (which is probably why it’s on my mind now) but I have yet to see any reasoning that makes sense.
There is a lot of blather about this being the result of the public ed. system. I don’t buy that. It MAY have contributed to it, especially at Universities in the last decade, but a lot of the lemmings out there went through their schooling back when schools actually taught and weren’t the so-called “indoctrination centers” they are considered by many to be these day.
While I find social media kinda gross, I don’t think that’s the cause of it either. Yes, it has certainly exacerbated some problems, but there is a certain equilibrium within social media. While I don’t engage in the “big names” like FB and IG and Twitter, I do occasionally comment on YouTube and on other blogs, so I’d consider that “social media” too. And I’ve both learned AND laughed from those outlets, so I cannot condemn social media as a whole. Though generally speaking I do believe it does more harm than good.
Is it that we’ve gone from being “the great melting pot” of society to self-segregating along racial/political lines? It seems everyone is fighting for /their/ interests, which coincidentally also happen to be the “only path to justice”, so you know, they are fighting only for altruistic, selfless goals…it’s everybody ELSE that’s wrong!
In my humble opinion, I believe a combination of factors brought us here. First, fear. And it’s a biggie. Fear of the unknown. Fear of disease/death. Fear of the Police. Fear of the thugs “protesting” by burning city blocks to the ground. Fear of your business closing or your job disappearing. Fear of a government that has proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that they do not care about their constituents, and in some cases look at their populace as the enemy. And this is all on top of the usual fears most people deal with on the day-to-day, like paying the rent/mortgage, buying groceries and keeping the house warm, in this era of crazy inflation, etc.
Second, I believe a lot of people are experiencing a profound sense of hopelessness/helplessness. And no, they AREN’T the same thing. These feelings come from fear. See above.
And third, we are completely oversaturated with “data” and “content”, but everything we see and hear has gone through some sort of spin cycle to make sure the “right narrative” is being pushed. Therefore, most of us feel like we’re being lied to, all day, every day. That insecure feeling of not knowing what’s going on helps cement that hopeless/helpless feeling.
This may sound like full on tin-foil hat, looney speak but I think that fear and hopelessness is what our “leaders” are counting on. If We the People aren’t afraid of some “threat” or there isn’t a “crisis” to be concerned with, then of what use is the Gov’t?
To be perfectly honest, I think a lot of our “problems” come from the fact that things in the US have been too good, too easy, for too long. We’ve gone soft. Way too soft. I don’t mean that as an insult, truly. I’m in the same boat. We’re too focused on how many likes we get on a post, or getting our hands on the latest iPhone. Worried that /our/ team/contestant/politician won’t win. Worries about our own personal “optics”… But nobody really seems to be concerned with getting along, being neighborly or being responsible and preparing for hard times.
We’re long overdue for a big Sping Cleaning. We need to find purpose in ourselves beyond consuming. And if we’re to survive as a nation, it’s time to start pushing back and reminding the powers-that-be that WE put them there to represent US. If they aren’t up to the job, we’ll find someone who is.
And as an aside, and I haven’t the slightest idea how this can happen, but I believe a good start is to remove full-time job status from Congress. I think is should be run like the National Guard – one weekend a month, with a month-long session every summer. If those people had to work for a living like the rest of us, we’d be in a better condition. Part B of this idea is that all members of congress are paid the median salary of their district, period. If nothing else it would give them incentive to raise the standards of living for the people they represent, not just their donors. But here I go again, off on a tangent…
In conclusion, I guess what I’m saying is it’s time to change perspective on Government. They are NOT our saviors, they are OUR EMPLOYEES. Clearly they are working overtime to get you to forget that all important fact.
Take care of yourself and those important to you, and remember that when you need them most, the Government will leave you hanging, if not make things worse for you. They are not your friends; you are nothing more than a taxable asset (and hopefully a vote) to them. That is all they see you as. The number one goal of Government is CONTROL. Over you, your finances, your health, your future well-being. That is not their job. Remember that with freedom comes responsibility, but at least when free you can determine your own course.
That is what it’s all about!
I realize this was me just thinking “out loud”, I wish I actually had solutions to the crazy mess we find ourselves living in. Nonetheless, thanks for reading!
After a short break on drumming due to *life getting in the way, I’m getting back into the groove (no pun intended) ‘cuz I have an audition coming up next week. More on that later, maybe.
Anyhow, when I practice by myself, I typically pull up one of two playlists on Spotify that I curated specifically to drum to, pop the in-ear monitors on and let ‘er rip.
I’ve got some studio time this weekend to practice prior to the audition and decided it’s time for a new playlist for inspiration.
The band I’m going to play with is a cover band doing old-school R&B, funk, disco…you know, the typical wedding reception band. So in anticipation of that vibe, today’s Flashback Friday is the Reminiscing edition, going back to the tunes I was hearing as a kid on the ol’ AM transistor radio. Enjoy!
To be perfectly honest, as a drummer these are not exactly exciting songs. But strictly as a fan of music, you cannot deny the appeal, and longevity of the old-school groove!
Have a great weekend everybody! And thanks for stopping by!
Anyone that truly knows me, knows I’m a fiend for wool.
It all started back in the 1980s with a hand-me-down Pendelton wool overshirt. I don’t know how old it was when I got it, but that shirt accompanied me on countless camping trips, surf outings and ski weekends. Not to mention many a cold day when I was working in the trades and spending my time in frigid shops and unfinished buildings. I actually held onto that shirt until late last year, when it finally went to the Goodwill. It’s still perfectly serviceable, but I’m a lot bigger now than I was when I got it, so it really didn’t work as an OVERshirt for me anymore. For over roughly 35 YEARS that shirt served me well.
Since that first Pendleton, I’ve been an unabashed fan of anything and everything wool. Shirts, suits, coats, sweaters, socks, hats, gloves, blankets and now…boxer shorts! What?!?!
Enter WOOLX. I found them by chance, during last Christmas’ shopping season.
I was intrigued to say the least at the idea of wool boxers, but skeptical. Especially when I saw the price. But, throwing caution to the wind, I decided to purchase a single pair of boxers.
All I can say upon initial receipt of the garment, is that I was even more skeptical. The material was thinner than any wool product I’d ever seen, and the texture was extremely smooth. Frankly, it didn’t “feel” like wool.
So, I put them through the wash (yes, they are machine washable!) and took them for a test drive for a full day at work. My impression after the first day of wear? AWESOME!! Seriously, the most comfortable boxers I’ve ever worn, by far. Nothing else has even come close.
After my first order, they sent me a discount code for my next order, so I got 2 more right away. Then I got another one.
Now, I’m completely spoiled and ONLY want to wear WOOLX boxers! Before my trip, I tried to order 2 more but sadly (though not surprisingly) they were sold out.
Last night I discovered that they had them back in stock, so I pulled the trigger on two more. Huzzah!!
Cheers to Wool!!!
Now to be perfectly honest, I feel the cost of these is outrageous. But the company has a good habit of sending out discount codes, so if you’re patient you can get a “deal” on them, though even then they are mighty pricey.
Frankly it’s too early to tell, but I’m HOPING that I get the same results from these that I have with my other wool products. In other words, that the high cost of the initial purchase is mitigated by the garment’s longevity. Only time will tell, but regardless I think the comfort factor cannot be underestimated. My ONLY “problem” with them is that they have the brand name woven into the waistband. I understand that pretty much EVERYONE does this now, which I despise, so I’m not holding it against them, but if I had my wish, they would lose the logo and make them a solid color.
And for what it’s worth, I was so impressed with my boxers, I bought two pair of wool leggings for the Mrs. from WOOLX, and she loves them as much as I love the boxer shorts.
My suggestion for everyone is to mentally prepare yourself for sticker shock, then head over to woolx.com and pick something out to try. Aside from the beloved boxers and leggings, they’ve got shirts and outerwear and other odds and ends as well. I’m pretty confident you’ll be glad you did.
And just to we’re clear, I am in NO WAY WHATSOEVER affiliated with WOOLX. I have received NO free goods, nor any other compensation for this review. I’m simply a super-fan of their products!
What a handsome devil!
OK, I guess that pretty much sums it up. WOOLX makes expensive but AWESOME stuff. I’ll be a customer for a long, long time if they keep up the great work and the high quality.
Full disclosure, I am a HUGE fan of Christopher Moore. In fact, I’d say he’s one of two of my all-time favorite authors. I’ve read about a dozen of his previous novels, and while some are better than others, I’ve enjoyed each and every one of them. A lot.
Noir was published in 2019, and I’ve had it sitting on my shelf almost since then. (I went through a phase where I just couldn’t seem to read fiction…I think the Plague messed with my mind too much and I couldn’t ever “let go of reality” enough to engage in fiction, but I digress.)
I took Noir with me on our recent getaway, and I’m glad I did! When I laughed out loud on the plane, roughly two paragraphs into the PROLOGUE, I knew I was in for a treat.
It is a difficult story to describe, taking place in San Francisco, circa 1947… You’ve got waitresses and bartenders, a deadly Black Mamba snake, G-men, “Moonmen”, generals, gangsters, a crooked cop, some crazy SF Chinatown adventures, and a trip to the infamous Bohemian Grove. And then some, with a splash of razzmatazz!
True to form, Moore’s tale is wildly outlandish, action packed and positively hilarious. I laughed so much reading this book, I knew I couldn’t read it before bed without waking the Mrs.!
If you like fiction, LOVE to laugh, and don’t object to non-politically correct language, I can recommend this book with the highest regard. If you don’t love to laugh, what’s wrong with you?
But seriously, Christopher Moore is a lunatic in the best possible way with an amazing imagination and a terrific way with words. Get this book, or frankly just about anything else written by him, and buckle in – its always a great ride with Mr. Moore!
Christopher Moore; the man, the myth, the lunatic!
The Boring Old Man 