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Wednesday, March 09, 2011

"Life`s not about waiting for the storms to pass..."

"It`s about learning to dance in the rain."

"Let's all be careful out there!"

Monday, March 07, 2011

Kilauea - March, 2011

This image is NOT some artist's concept of an alien world:
Kilauea   
To see (and read) more
"Let's all be careful out there!"

Wednesday, March 02, 2011

RELIGION:

The greatest joke ever played on mankind.




"Let's all be careful out there!"

Tuesday, March 01, 2011

Ancient Chinese Proverb:

"There is no smaller package than a man wrapped up in himself."

Charlie Sheen: (I am) "tired of pretending I'm not a total, bitchin' rock star from Mars."

"Let's all be careful out there!"

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Zeitgeist


"Let's all be careful out there!"

Monday, February 14, 2011

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!


"Let's all be careful out there!"

Saturday, February 05, 2011

Life Lessons

GOOD DECISIONS
come from
EXPERIENCE



EXPERIENCE
comes from
BAD DECISIONS

"Let's all be careful out there!"

Friday, February 04, 2011

And now for something completely different....

A man boarded a plane at Sydney airport and took his seat.  As he settled in he noticed a very beautiful woman boarding the aircraft.

He realized she was heading straight towards his seat and "bingo!" she took the seat right beside him.

Eager to strike up a conversation, he blurted out: "Business trip or holiday?"

She turned, smiled enchantingly, and said "Business.  I`m going to the Annual Nymphomaniac Convention in the United States."

The man swallowed hard.  Here was the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen sitting next to him and she was going to a meeting for nymphomaniacs!

Struggling to maintain his composure he calmly asked "What`s your business role at this convention?"

"Lecturer," she responded.  "I use my experience to debunk some of the popular myths about sexuality."

"Really?" he smiled.  "What myths are those?"

"Well," she explained, "one popular myth is that African-American men are the most well-endowed when, in fact, it`s the Native American who is most likely to possess that trait. Another popular myth is that French men are the best lovers, when actually it is the men of Greek descent.  We have also found that the best potential lovers in all categories are the Irish."

Suddenly the woman became uncomfortable and blushed. "I`m sorry," she said, "I really shouldn`t be discussing this with you, I don`t even know your name!"

"Tonto," the man said.  "Tonto Papadopoulos, but all my friends call me 'Paddy'."





BTW - "Tonto" is a Spanish word, NOT Native American, and it means IDIOT.
 
"Let's all be careful out there!"

Thursday, February 03, 2011

"The envelope please."

 "And the winner is..."

If you follow this sort of thing, then you are aware that the nominations for this year's Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences awards have been announced:

The nominees for the Best Picture "Oscar"  are:
All of these films (plus more than 2,000 others) are available for viewing at the HOME THEATER CENTER.  Just click on a title above to view the movie.

I have seen all 10 of these excellent movies.  All deserve their entry onto the ballot.  But I believe that True Grit should win for "Best Picture" and that Jeff Bridges should win the award for "Best Actor in a Leading Role."  He absolutely nailed the re-imaging of the character of "Rooster" Cogburn.  Not better than John Wayne's nor that much different.  Just a different "feel".  A different "air".  A different "texture."  Hailee Steinfeld's rendition of the Mattie Ross character is well worthy of her nomination for the "Best Actress in a Leading Role" statuette.  Matt Damon far out shown Glenn Campbell as "La Bouef".

So, that's my "2-cents worth" on the "Oscars."  What's yours?



"Let's all be careful out there!"True Grit

Saturday, January 22, 2011

SURFING "JAWS" IS DANGEROUS...

NOW TRY IT AT NIGHT:



Complete story
HERE


"Let's all be careful out there!"

Friday, January 14, 2011

THE MILKY WAY GALAXY

OVER Mt. LASSEN, CALIFORNIA


"Let's all be careful out there!"

PARADISE

BURIED
Azeka Place - Makai

This image is looking southwest, from (what I remember as) the Long's Center, across south Kihei Road  This is about 24 hours after the rains diminished.  All of Hawai'i was hit by two huge Kona storms this week.  Highways were closed and the town of Kihei was virtually isolated.  South Kihei Road was buried under about 3'-4' of water flowing at approx. 20mph.

From what I have read and seen, this was even worse than the huge storms of 2007 and 2005.

The Kihei side of Maui is basically a desert.  Typically less than 10" of rain per year.  This time around, there was so much precipitation that the west slopes of Haleakala actually had waterfalls.  During the 15 years I lived on Maui, there had never been waterfalls on the west side of the mountain.

Obviously, this in no way compares in magnitude to the floods in Australia or Brazil.

Looking East from south Kihei Road towards FoodLand.  The "Triangle" is off-camera, right.

"Let's all be careful out there!"

Friday, January 07, 2011

Wandering Through the Forgotten Pathways of My Memories

Getting the tickets for the Kingston Trio concert started me searching for the songs of my youth.  Peter Paul and Mary, The Mamas and Papas, Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, etc. Then I hit upon the Carpenters.  Karen, who considered herself to be "a drummer who sang" (and acknowledged as a great drummer by Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich, among others) had a vocal range of three octaves but usually sang in contralto.  In my opinion, the most beautiful voice of the 20th Century.  Their hit song We've Only Just Begun was originally the musical background for a Crocker Bank TV/radio ad campaign.  Richard heard it and decided it was a perfect tune for his sister.  BOY! Was he ever right!
Here are two video captures recorded a few years apart.  I hope you enjoy them...



My wife and I were headed into the LA basin when the news came over the radio about her death in 1983.  We both softly wept.
"Let's all be careful out there!"

Wednesday, January 05, 2011

KINGSTON TRIO

In 1957 The Kingston Trio emerged from San Francisco's North Beach club scene to take the country by storm, bringing the rich tradition of American folk music into the mainstream for the first time. During the late 50s & early 60s, the Trio enjoyed unprecedented record sales and worldwide fame, while influencing the musical tastes of a generation.

Through changing times, the Trio has played on, remaining popular for a simple reason... great songs that sound as good today as the first time you heard them. And fifty-three years after Tom Dooley shot to the top of the charts, the Trio is still on the road thirty weeks a year, bringing back all the great memories and making new ones.

Talk about excited!

At 8:00 PM this Saturday I am going to attend the Kingston Trio concert at the Gallo Center for the Arts, here in Modesto, CA.

For those of you too young to remember them, here are some videos from YouTube. (click to see the entire list of Kingston Trio videos)
There are no images on the first video, just the lyrics of their most popular song: "Tom Dooley"









"Let's all be careful out there!"

Andromeda

Click HERE for more info
"Let's all be careful out there!"

Monday, January 03, 2011

Friday, December 31, 2010

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

1-JANUARY-2011