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Useless Things Need Love Too

Useless Things Need Love Too

Monthly Archives: October 2016

Thunder Inside or: Silently Quaking

31 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

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caffeine, Coffee, The BCPF

Salutations™!!

Over the last few years, I’d say the last 6 or 7, I’ve grown less tolerant of caffeine. Not that I’m annoyed with it, but that my body may be. Unless I’ve been walking already, or finding another way of dispelling energy, it totally rocks me from the inside out. It makes me quake uncontrollably and it makes me nervous. Now, other than being slightly flushed, nocaffeinegarciniacambogiayou’d not know that I was about to explode internally as I don’t display the shaking, other than sometimes in my hands.

On Friday, I had the worst reaction that I’ve ever had from caffeine. I was at one of my favorite coffee places and ordered a decaf iced Americano (basically watered down coffee). There was a lot going on and I know the barista, so conversations happened and things got hectic. I had the drink as I sat around with my pals having a lot of conversations about nothing. I told one of my friends, about halfway through, that I didn’t think it was decaf. It wasn’t.

My whole day was shot. I felt, literally, like I was going to explode from the inside. I couldn’t concentrate; at times I couldn’t breathe. I tried to do some work and I just couldn’t. I went to eat with a few members of my family, to get some protein in me to try to counter the effects. I drank water. Nothing. The BCPF and I went to eat dinner that night and had a few alcoholic drinks. The whole time The BCPF said that I sounded like a cassette tape being fast forwarded when I talked. Chattering nonstop, I went on and on and on. The alcohol (a depressant) helped a little bit.

The coffee was at 9am. I finally got to where I felt settled down around 10:30-11pm that night. That was awful. We were supposed to go to the “curtain call event” for the Piedmont Opera’s Tosca that we skipped because it was starting to make me sick to my stomach. It wore me out as it was like I was active, yet I wasn’t other than pacing. I was tired and ready for sleep around 10pm and I don’t ever go to sleep that early. I didn’t go to sleep, I fought it until I felt like I had settled down. As I said, 10:30-11pm or so that night, it finally passed.

The point is, caffeine is no joke. There are those that really, really need it (or think they do) and there are people that really do not need it. I am in the latter school. I will make sure they absolutely know, from now on, that I cannot have any of it. Baristas, please make sure it’s the right stuff when you serve the customers. I don’t blame the barista for this, it was an honest mistake. Perhaps the wrong stuff was in the wrong place, I don’t know. Whatever the case, it cost me the day. I was just glad it was over. So, yeah, drink up, however you need to, or don’t need to. Oh! And, Happy Halloween, if you’re into that.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Caffeine. The gateway drug.” – Eddie Vedder

Silent Sunday or: Quiet Time

30 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Food, Silent Sunday

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DiLisio's, Piedmont Opera, Tosca

Salutations™!!

Kind of a quiet weekend up to now. We’re heading to Tosca from Piedmont Opera and then a special wine dinner at DiLisio’s. That’s all for now…

dilisios-vrt-040715

Tony and Maria DiLisio

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I love food, all types of food. I love Korean food, Japanese, Italian, French. In Australia, we don’t have a distinctive Australian food, so we have food from everywhere all around the world. We’re very multicultural, so we grew up with lots of different types of food.” – Hugh Jackman

The Wrecking Crew or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

29 Saturday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Movie Review

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a/perture Cinema, Batman, Bill Pitman, Bing Crosby, Bonanza, Dr. John, Frank Sinatra, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, Glen Campbell, Green Acres, IMDb, Leon Russell, Netflix, Phil Spector, Plas Johnson, Steve Douglas, The Beach Boys, The Byrds, The Less Desirables, The Wrecking Crew, Tommy Tedesco

Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, The Wrecking Crew (2008) starring members of the famous group of LA session musicians of the same name.

Per IMDb: “A celebration of the musical work of a group of session musicians known as “The Wrecking Crew”, a band that provided back-up instrumentals to such legendary recording artists as Frank Sinatra, The Beach Boys and Bing Crosby.”wrecking-crew-dvd-cover

Tommy Tedesco is a name you’ve probably never heard unless you’re one to read the inner sleeve of vinyl records from the late sixties, on. Even then, the name may have not been seen or known. But, you’d know him with your ears, even if you’re not born of that time; I wasn’t born until 1970. You can listen to theme songs for Bonanza, Green Acres or Batman (just to name a few) and instantly say, “well, yeah, I know that.”

Tedesco was a guitarist that was part of a group of session musicians in Los Angeles that were called “The Wrecking Crew” or sometimes they were known as “the Clique Band” or “First Call Band” or even “Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound Orchestra.” It wasn’t a dedicated lineup, it was a group or pool of musicians that producers could pull from to piece together for a session. This group also included names like Glen Campbell (yes, Mr. Rhinestone Cowboy, himself) and Bill Pitman, the world-famous bassists Carol Kaye and Ray Pohlman, drummers Hal Blaine and Joe Porcaro (whose three sons would go on to form the band Toto, also from studio musicians), pianists Leon Russell and Mac Rebennack (also known as Dr. John), horn players like Plas Johnson and Steve Douglas and countless more. That list isn’t even close to complete.

What did these players play? Well, a very truncated list would include: “Da Doo Ron Ron (When He Walked Me Home),” “Surf City,” “I Get Around,” “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” “Mr. Tambourine Man,” “California Dreamin’,” “I Got You Babe,” “Good Vibrations,” “Monday Monday,” “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’,” “The Beat Goes On,” “Mrs. Robinson,” “The Boxer,” “Bridge over Troubled Water,” “Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu,” “The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia,” “Rhinestone Cowboy” and “Love Will Keep Us Together.” But, that’s not all, Plas Johnson is the sax player in the Pink Panther Theme, Carol Kaye plays in so many pieces that your head would spin to know what they were.

As I said, there were little credits on the albums, usually. That was for several reasons, one it would confuse the snot out of the general public seeing that many credits on so many different artists’ albums. On top of that, the musicians that were actually in these bands (like Beach Boys, Byrds, Gary Lewis and the Playboys) didn’t want the public to know they weren’t actually playing on the records. So, they’d just not put who played what, band or not, on the credits. These people were also the musicians for The Monkees. Soon, the advent of true self-contained bands who really did play their own instruments led to the phasing out of the Wrecking Crew and other studio session musicians. When studio musicians were or are needed in the mid-to-late 70s and so on, they had younger, hipper, more rock and roll or pop-infused musicians to take their place.

The Wrecking Crew, many of which are now in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, are and will forever be ingrained in the intricate history of popular music. Nothing can or will ever change that. Many have passed on, including Tommy Tedesco. Remember him? The reason I brought him up was because his son, Denny, is the producer and director of this documentary called, The Wrecking Crew.

Denny follows the careers and history of many of the studio musicians in this little society. He talks of the rise and fall, the good times, the sessions, the artists they’ve played with and plenty of other aspects of the group. Very interesting, especially when you find out the things they played on and how much what we know of 50s and 60s music is really their doing.

Tommy went on to do a lot with television and film as well. Titles like: The French Connection, The Godfather, Jaws, The Deer Hunter, Columbo, The Deep, Dallas, Caddyshack, Batman, Cocoon, Cheers, Dirty Dancing, Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, Starsky & Hutch and his guitar is what you hear playing in the intro of what I have said is my #1 television show of all time, M*A*S*H. He passed away in 1997 at the age of 65.

I thought the film was highly entertaining and I’m a big fan of “behind the scenes” documentaries. Also, being a musician, I love finding who played on what for albums and popular songs. One of the highlights when I research the Rolling Stone Top 500 albums is who played on what. I have a better understanding of who those people are, now. I really enjoyed watching this. There is no Rotten Tomatoes rating but IMDb has it at 7.7 stars out of 10. It’s available on Netflix, which is where I watched it. I rate it 4.5 out of 5. Have you seen it? What did you think? What would you like to read/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“”You leave the house at seven o’clock in the morning, and you’re at Universal at nine till noon; now you’re at Capitol Records at one, you just got time to get there, then you got a jingle at four, then we’re on a date with somebody at eight, then the Beach Boys at midnight, and you do that five days a week … jeez, man, you get burned out.” – Bill Pitman, guitarist

A Man Needs a Maid or: Very Superstitious (RS Part 42)

28 Friday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Music Review, Uncategorized

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Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, Dusty Springfield, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Johnny Cash, Neil Young, Pink Floyd, Stevie Wonder, The Clash, The Man Who Walked the Town

Salutations™!!

The last segment of the Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums of All-Time was fantastic and I’m hoping this one will be, too. I’m not going to waste time talking about it, let’s delve, shall we?

#90 – Talking Book by Stevie Wonder. One thing that I have always loved about Stevie, 1talkingbookother than he’s just awesomely funky-n-groovy? That on many of his albums and tracks, he plays most of the instruments himself. Lots of clavinets happening on this album and other great keyboard spots. He plays the drums, synth basses, a bit of everything. That and guest spots from Ray Parker, Jr., Jeff Beck, Deneice Williams, “Buzz” Feiten make this album even more spectacular. Stevie’s use of melody and orchestration fills the cracks and holes (not in quality, just covers the speakers) with aural splendor. The ultra-powerful and urgent, “Superstition” is there and offset by the sweetness of “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” and “You and I” and “You’ve Got It Bad Girl.” There’s range and spread on this album and that’s a great thing. Groove and shuffle, intensity and tenderness, bits of it all. I dug this album and thought it was well composed.

#89 – Dusty in Memphis by Dusty Springfield. Dusty Springfield has such a smooth, silky and sultry voice. It’s standard soul and R&B that breathes sexy life into some serious Carole King and Jerry Goffin music. The couple co-wrote four of the tunes. Randy Newman wrote two. Other writing credits belong to Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Eddie Hinton, Donnie Fritts, Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, Michel Legrand, Burt Bacharach, Hal David, John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins, the latter two co-wrote what was probably her signature song, “Son of a Preacher Man.” That song is one of the sexiest ever, in my opinion and holy smokes! Tony Cogbill is a heck of a bass player. He’s all over the place and that is a good thing! My favorite songs are, of course, “…Preacher…,” “Don’t Forget About Me,” “The Windmills of Your Mind” which reminds me of something from a James Bond film, sexy and dark. I love the gospel-like choir on “No Easy Way Down,” too. 1johnny_cash_at_folsom_prisonThere’s so much power in her music and in these songs it’s easy to get lost in them. This is a fantastic album. I DUG it!

#88 – At Folsom Prison by Johnny Cash. Johnny seems to have fun at this show as do the audience members. He messes up a few times and doesn’t let that stop him or slow him down. He entertains and they love it. Cash speaks to the “less desirables,” the down trodden, the working man and common folk; he always did. Energy unleashed, this is rock and roll goodness that’s honest and genuine; at least in the delivery. He’s not afraid to chuckle at things happening in the audience or at himself. He brings June Carter up to do a few songs with him and she sings backup on out. Now, I had to piece this together as I wanted to hear the original track listing as that’s what I’m listening to on this. There was a bunch of other songs that got rid of so I could keep the original in tact. I may go back and listen to the others soon, as I’m sure they’re worth it. I really liked the album. Dug.

#87 – The Wall by Pink Floyd. My favorite Pink Floyd album. For one, because I’m a sucker for concept albums, even if I don’t get the story the first time around. Another, and more importantly, I’d say, is that it was the first Pink Floyd I ever heard. Yes, we chalk it up as 1thewallyet another check on the “I’m from West Virginia and my parents listened to country music” tally of life. Neither of those, by the way are knocks nor mock on the facts. We didn’t have radio stations that played Pink Floyd, or anything like that until around 1981 or 1982. Ma Mère listened to gospel or older pop stuffs like Leslie Gore or folksy stuff like Peter, Paul & Mary. Ma Père listened to country. Tears-in-beer country. Plus, none of my friends listened to Pink Floyd, so I had no exposure, at all. I do remember walking into a record store on Main Street in Welch, WV, looking for KISS’ Unmasked (1980) album and seeing a cardboard cutout of the album cover and Gerald Scarfe posters that were associated with the album. I moved to WSNC, as I’ve said countless times, in 1986 and there was a reissue of “Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2” around 1987-88 or so and I bought it on 45. I had just started listening to the local classic rock station and got more familiar with some other Floyd songs. I decided, sometime later, to buy The Wall, but it was in or after 1990 because I didn’t buy my first CD player until December 27, 1989. I did have Delicate Sound of Thunder on cassette (it was released two days after my 18th birthday) and heard three of the songs that way. Anywhat! All that to say, I love the album and with the exception of a song or so (can we say “Bring the Boys Back Home?”). My faves are (all three) “Another Brick in the Wall,” “Goodbye Blue Sky,” “Young Lust,” “Hey You,” “Comfortably Numb” and “Run Like Hell.” I love the album.

1bornintheusa#86 – Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen. I think this is the first time in a bit, if not the entire list, that I have two albums in a row that I actually own. It may have happened. But, I’m pretty positive that it is the first time that I own two in a row on vinyl. Sadly, I didn’t have time to listen to this on vinyl at home. I’ll try to do a vinyl listen soon, if I have something that is available on it. That’s something that I’ve not done since I’ve started this countdown. It’ll be fun. When I first heard the first single, “Dancing in the Dark,” believe it or not, that was the first time I heard of Bruce Springsteen. Yeah, yeah, I know, but it really was. Chalk it up to my total immersion into KISS and just breaking out of the mold. And, here’s the other thing, I hated it, every bit of it. I don’t know that I heard “Cover Me” (the second single until much later. If I did, I probably turned it off or went out to play or something. I’ve mostly come around to who I used to call Spruce Bedspring over the years. Most of that with the help of my friend Beth who is the biggest Springsteen fan I have ever met or even ever heard of. To me, though, at the time, the title track and to some extent “Dancing…” sounds like he’s just yelling the whole time. I just wanted to shout back “just shut up!” Now, fast forward to now. I don’t know how I feel about “Darlington County” but the rest of the album (if you take into account I like more laid-back and alternative versions of the title track) is fantastic. Of course, my favorite tune (since I asked for it and did it at the VSS Springsteen show) is “I’m on Fire.” It’s a sultry little number. I loved the video, too. “My Hometown” and “Glory Days” are also faves of mine. There are some throwaways, at least to me, such as “Working on the Highway” and the aforementioned “Darlington County.” “Downbound Train” and “I’m Goin’ Down” make up for both of those, though. There were seven singles released on this album. While none of the songs are virtuosity tunes or even particularly intrinsic or complex, that’s not what this album was about it, I don’t think. It was just putting out a good album. This is that. Great even. I really dug it.

#85 – Lady Soul by Aretha Franklin. It’s like being in church, at least what I feel a southern African American church would sound like to be in. It’s almost like heaven (purposely not capitalized) was singing down on its people the whole time you listened to this. There’s some hefty love ambition and ooey-gooeiness, too. That’s good stuff. Now, my question is why does this deserve to be higher than say, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, Modern Sounds in Country & Western Music, Giant Steps, The Bends, At Last! or Stand!? I thought this was a good album, great even, but it’s not better than those. I hear some iconic songs but they’re not so iconic to beat the stuff from those other albums. Top 500? Yes, Top 100? Not to me and just my opinion. Great stuff on this includes: “Chain of Fools,” “People Get Ready,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and “Groovin'” even though there’s not a bad song on the album. And, she co-wrote a couple of the tunes, at that. I dug it.

#84 – I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You by Aretha Franklin. Yep, two in a row from the “queen of soul.” Like Lady Soul and I’m figuring a lot of her stuff, she co-wrote some of the tunes on this album, including “Dr. Feelgood (Love is Serious Business) and no, not the Mötley Crüe version. The song that I figure is most associated with Miss Franklin, “Respect” is on this album, as is “I Never Loved a Man (the Way I Love You)” which I don’t think I ever knew the title of the song, but was well aware of it. It’s in a lot of movies and commercials. One thing I find with her, especially on this album, is how even at this age (she was 24 when she recorded this), she goes between a mighty young thing to sounding like she sounds now at the age of 74. The example of this is “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man.” I like Aretha, I really do. I think she truly is the queen of soul. However, her status and accolades notwithstanding, I just don’t get how this album, like the one before it on 1axisboldaslovethis countdown are any better than most of the albums that were in the top 200-100? Does it deserve to be on this list, absolutely and I dig it, but I still don’t think it’s Top 100 material. Not a knock on the album, I just think some stuff is better. Dug.

#83 – Axis: Bold as Love by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Um… “EXP” was a bit trippy. “Spanish Castle Magic” is heavy and is awesome. “Wait Until Tomorrow” is a fun little ride. I especially like “Little Wing.” I think the bell was a nicely added touch. In “If 6 Was 9” I believe I’m getting a bit of rebellion. Rebellion against the establishment. “White collared conservative flashing down the street. Pointing their plastic finger at me. They’re hoping soon my kind will drop and die. But, I’m gonna wave my freak flag high, high.
Wave on, wave on.” Speak it brother. I really think, though it was more about pushing individualism, not conforming to the status quo. That’s what I get anyway. I find that while some of it is in there, this album is missing a lot of the “Jimi Flair” that I expect with Hendrix albums. That does not mean that there aren’t great songs on the album. It’s just not what I expected. I’ve never been a fan of Hendrix, but was expecting a bit more from it. Now, I like this and think there’s great tunes happening on here. I liked it better than I thought I would. I just think it sounds like they were doing exactly what they set out to do: put something out because they were contractually obligated to do so. I think it was rushed and even though there’s some innovative things on here, it still sounds a bit rushed and the feel fabricated. Still, it was a Hendrix album that I liked. Dug.

#82 – Harvest by Neil Young. Yep. It’s Neil Young. Brilliant songwriter, horrible voice. The orchestrations and instrumentation on this album is out of sight. This was the immediate result after Young left Crosby Stills & Nash. He went country. “A Man Needs a Maid” is the first true bit of genius I get from this album. The first two tunes, “Out on the Weekend” and the title track are fine but “…Maid” is a fantastic song. I could (and did, listen to that a few times). “Heart of Gold” is Neil Young, to me. Crunchy, yet meaty. I like that tune. “Old Man” reminds me of something that CSN would have done but actually sing it better. Not taking away from Young, here. I’m just thinking it could have been done by CSN. There’s more of the fantastic orchestration (performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, by the way) on “There’s a World.” If he had made an album full of stuff like this and “…Maid,” I’d have been searching the world over for the vinyl version. “Alabama” is the precursor (along with “Southern Man” from After the Gold Rush) to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s response in “Sweet Home Alabama.” Even though I don’t really hear the disparaging remarks in the song. I read the lyrics and it seemed there was truth, but I guess no one likes to be told they’re ugly (I know it was more than that, it’s metaphorical). “The Needle and the Damage Done” is a classic, sad and beautiful song, recorded live in January of 1971. All in all, this album is a good one, it’s a good jump from his days in CSN and a good direction for him. I like about 8 of the 10 songs. Good work, Mr. Young. I dug it!

#81 – The Clash by The Clash. This is the UK version of the album. The Clash have a way to make their angst sound fun. There’s 14 songs on this album and I don’t really care anything about any of them. “White Riot” is pretty good, but the rest of it was background as I wrote for The Man Who Walked the Town. It’s just not my bag. I will say, though, that I like The Clash tons more than The Ramones. I will never get that, at all. I really liked The Clash in their later years. The more poppy stuff was, to me, much better than this. Not saying it is bad, just saying it does nothing for me. But, as I said, even through the politics and angst, they have a weird poppy feel and is that reggae I hear in there? A little. Not a bad album, just nothing I care about. Meh.

I got through this segment pretty fast. Still wondering about those Aretha records being this high on the chart, but they are landmark ones for her. Great start of this round and it gradually got me less enthusiastic by the end, but, there’s not a bad album on this segment. Again, we must be in the top 90 with this. Can’t wait to see what the next segment brings.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Sometimes it’s like someone took a knife, baby, edgy and dull and cut a six inch valley
through the middle of my soul.” – “I’m on Fire” (Springsteen)

Hidden Harmony or: Va, Tosca!

27 Thursday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It, Podcasting

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Giacomo Puccini, Jake Gardner, Jill Gardner, Piedmont Opera, The Less Desirables, Tosca, UNCSA

Salutations™!!

A fiery, jealous opera diva. A depraved government official. A tortured artist. Jealous lovers. Murder.

To see intrigue like this just go to the Stevens Center of the UNCSA on October 28th, 30thtosca-1 and November 1st when Piedmont Opera presents Giacomo Puccini’s masterpiece, Tosca, the 39th season’s opener. “It’s on everyone’s lips.”

The Less Desirables had the two leads, Jill (Floria Tosca) and Jake (Baron Scarpia) Gardner on the show and we had a fantastic time with them, both. Jill and Jake are larger-than-life personalities, with booming voices that sound of silk… and that’s just when they talk. Jill and Jake are highly sought after, the world over for their abilities and talent. And who gets them? We do! The Piedmont Opera does. Winston-Salem. The Triad. And, I believe we all can’t wait to see and hear this.

You can get more info or purchase tickets by visiting Piedmont Opera website. You can also call 336.725.7101.

Oktoberfest (again) or: The Less Desirables Beer of the Week

26 Wednesday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Beer

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BeerAdvocate, Carolina Brewing Company, City Beverage, RateBeer, Sam Adams, The Less Desirables, Untappd

Salutations™!!

City Beverage, the Official Beer Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents Oktoberfest by Carolina Brewing Company, The Less Desirables Beer of the Week.unnamed

The Oktoberfest Train rolls on (still). I told ya, the Oktoberfest style is quickly becoming a fave of mine and so here we are again. Now, I am hit or miss with Carolina Brewing Company, but here’s hoping that they pull this one off. It should be good. I mean, I even like the Sam Adams Oktoberfest, so…

BeerAdvocate rates it at 85 (Very Good) with no Bros. Score. Untappd has it at 3.53 caps out of 5. RateBeer has it at 56 Overall and 89 in Style. The beer is 5.6%ABV. Have you tried it? What did you think? If you haven’t or just have a hankering for more, you should get on down to City Bev and tell them this is the beer of the week. If you do, you’ll get 5% off your order. Listen to hear what Caitlin, Danielle, Bob and I think of it!

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“All it takes is a liver and a dream!” – Carolina Brewing Company Oktoberfest carton

It’s Only Humor or: Why Not?

25 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Blogging, Life as We Know It, Video

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Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Jim Henson, Muppets, Piero Umiliani

Salutations™!!

I’ve written a couple other blog posts today so I decided to exercise my creative license and repost a video I saw. I’m not posting this as a knock or an endorsement for either candidate, I just found it funny. I loved the Muppets so it’s an homage. Also, I’m not mocking Trump anymore than anyone else, just, again, I found this funny in actual humor, not in malice. That’s all. It’s a shame one has to even put a disclaimer as such on here. Just let humor be, peeps. Let it be.

Have a great evening, see you tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Mahna mahna.” – The Muppets (Umiliani)

Piggybacking the Walk or: Stretching is Virtue

24 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Blogging

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Atelier on Trade, Hoots Roller Bar, Mary's Gourmet Diner, Old Salem, Omega Sports, Stretching, The Man Who Walked the Town, Vote

Salutations™!!

The BCPF and I walked on Saturday, we eventually got 10k but not by 10a. And, as I stated in this blog post from The Man Who Walked the Town, you gotta stretch. I made that mistake. I still hurt, now. We voted early on Saturday, too. Almost two hours in line, but it was worth it. Read more about it HERE. And, don’t forget my sponsors, Omega Sports, Mary’s Gourmet Diner, Atelier on Trade and Hoot’s Roller Bar and Beer Company.

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Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Stretching was a major part of my preparation.” – Edwin Moses

Silent Sunday or: Meh…

23 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

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Fantasy Football

Salutations™!!

My fantasy football team is sucking like an industrial strength Hoover, right now. I am still

nfl-fantasy-football-440

slated to win, but why? It’s not looking good. What happens next week? My team is just wonky. Oh well.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I don’t play fantasy baseball anymore now because it’s too much work, and I feel like I have to hold myself up to such a high standard. I’m pretty serious about my fantasy football, though.” – Nate Silver

Three Kings or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

22 Saturday Oct 2016

Posted by TGBII in Uncategorized

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a/perture Cinema, AFI, Amazon Prime, DVD.com, George Clooney, Hulu, Ice Cube, IMDb, Mark Wahlberg, Netflix, Rotten Tomatoes, Spike Jonze, The Less Desirables, Three Kings, WSNC

Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Three Kings (1999) starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Spike Jonze and Ice Cube.

Per IMDb: “In the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War, 4 soldiers set out to steal gold that was stolen from Kuwait, but they discover people who desperately need their help.”

When SFC Barlow (Wahlberg) and PFC Vig (Jonze) find a map in an Iraqi soldier’s buttocks, they, along with Chief Elgin (Ice Cube) and Major Gates (Clooney) embark on an unsanctioned, illegal and dangerous mission to steal from Saddam Hussein’s stash of gold, that he stole from Kuwait. After a bit of work, they find the gold but also find more than they bargained for in a group of Iraqi rebels that are being pushed around, tortured and

Three_Kings_(film)_poster_art.jpg

©Warner Bros.

killed by Saddam’s army. An errant exchange of gunfire leads to a mini war between the Americans and the factions of Saddam’s army. There’s a hunt, chase, destruction and apprehension. One of the main four is captured and the others, after paying the Iraqi rebels to help locate him, must attempt to rescue him. Do they find him? Do they die trying? You’ll have to watch to find out.

The first thing that stands out to me is, yes, it was 1999, but I believe that the US Army has a better tracking system than to just lose four soldiers, weapons and a humvee. Yes, it was supposed to be early, they grab what they are after and then back to camp. How were they going to get the gold out of the country? What would they have done with the gold? Who would buy it? There was a lot of weird ‘what ifs’ going on in this film. Now, all that being said and if I can put my suspension of disbelief to work, it was actually a good film.

It wasn’t what I expected. I thought it was just a war film. That’s okay but I don’t care anything about any wars that formulate, start and happen in my lifetime. The latest war I want to watch a film about is Vietnam, and even then, war films aren’t my thing. This, however, is more of a black comedy than a war film. Let’s call it a action-packed black dramedy. Yes, let’s. The acting was good. I know that George Clooney gets a bad rap sometimes, as does Mark Walhberg, but these guys can act, it’s just usually in some crap roles. Ice Cube is actually a good dramatic actor, too. His comedies are usually good if they’re not pointed at families; Friday anyone? Otherwise you’re stuck with Barbershop and Are We There Yet? This was my first experience with Spike Jonze that I know of. He’s not bad. A tad hick-ish, but not bad.

This was one of the 400 nominees for AFI‘s 100 Years… 100 Movies, the 2007 edition. As of this writing, I now have two more to go to complete the list of 400. It may be finished by the time this airs on the podcast. Rotten Tomatoes has it rated at 94% Fresh with an Audience Score of 77%, which is actually a large gap. IMDb has it at 7.1 stars out of 10. It’s not available on Hulu, Netflix or even DVD.com but it is available for rent on Amazon Prime, which is where I watched it. It used to be on Netflix streaming but it was removed some time ago. As I said, I thought it was a pretty good film and I’ll rate it 4 out of 5 stars. Have you seen it? Do you agree with me? What would you like to see/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Kaboom! Y’all see that cow’s head shoot up? It’s like a cartoon! It’s f*ckin’ crazy!” – Conrad Vig

 

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