Dr. A and I are in Texas to visit my favorite cousin. She was the one who took us in after Katrina and the Federal Flood in 2005. She’s seriously ill so this may be the last time we’ll see … Continue reading Saturday Odds & Sods: Texas Twister
It was a rough Carnival season. That’s why it’s the subject of my latest column for the Bayou Brief. It has fewer jokes than usual but it was a deadly serious season. Let’s close on a lighter with the original … Continue reading Bayou Brief: The Cursed Carnival?
Yeah, I know, Paul Drake’s namesake was the detective, not him. He does, however, investigate everything and everyone that enters our house. Here’s PD and a sign Dr. A made for a friend in the Nyx parade. Continue reading Friday Catblogging: The Case Of The Shamus & The Sign
…of the kind of person who epitomizes the DJT — and now GOP — approach to government, short-lister-for-getting-cast-as Nosferatu-if-there’s-ever-a-remake and until recently Washington’s least eligible bachelor, Stephen Miller One afternoon in November, a half-dozen government officials sat at a conference table in the White House, waiting for the arrival of Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to Donald Trump. Miller had summoned officials from the Departments of Homeland Security, State, and Justice to discuss a new Administration policy initiative: a series of agreements with the governments of Central America that would force asylum seekers to apply for protection in that region instead of … Continue reading And Another Reminder…
Bruce Graeme was of one several pen names used by Graham Montague Jeffries. He was best known for the Blackshirt series for which he used the name Richard Verill. None of those covers has the impact of this 1955 book. … Continue reading Pulp Fiction Thursday: So Sharp The Razor
Because of some real-life stuff happening, ie real life is happening all the time right now and I’m doing my best with it, I can’t commit to weekly threads about this show but YOU SHOULD ALL BE WATCHING PICARD:
What I loved about Picard’s immediate embrace of Dahj was that it speaks to everything Picard was in the television show: a generous soul with a sixth sense for when someone is telling the truth, no matter how outlandish. And after his trip to Starfleet archives, he very tenderly tells Dahj the truth: She isn’t human. Picard’s archival materials are a treasure trove for Trekkies: the Captain Picard Day sign and the model of the Stargazer, for starters.
To Picard, Dahj is every bit as deserving of empathy as Data was.
“If you are who I think you are, you are dear to me in ways that you can’t understand,” Picard tells her. “I will never leave you.”
I grew up on Next Gen but even before that I had an Authority Thing and an Older Man Thing and a Mentor/Student Thing and so Captain Picard pushed all the buttons. Teenage me would have thrown myself at him while he chivalrously drove me home and told me to concentrate on my homework. (Part of the appeal of crushes like that is that you know they would never.)
And you have to remember there was nothing GOOD on TV back then. Watch the Drumhead episode, the Borg storyline, the “Family” ep I still can’t re-watch without being completely destroyed, and yes, right now AMC and HBO give us that kind of depth and character development and goddamn Shakespearean glory every single week but back then? Imagine seeing this when all you’d seen was Growing Pains:
There was nothing like that, holy shit. The language blew my tiny baby-writer mind. My body was ready for Star Trek: Picard, is what I’m saying, and I still wasn’t ready.
HERE BE SPOILERS FOR EVERYTHING UP TO TOMORROW.
Anders Osborne meets Herman Leonard. Continue reading Album Cover Art Wednesday: Ash Wednesday Blues
Carol Marin says we in media do a terrible job educating readers about our differences, including editorial versus news. That we “take for granted that people understand our differences… It’s on us to explain our differences.” — Melissa Sanchez (@msanchezMIA) February 23, 2020 I WENT TO THIS PANEL IN 2009 AND IT SUCKED THEN TOO. There is a coordinated campaign to get people to distrust the press, it is being run by one political party for that party’s supporters’ express financial benefit through one major cable news network, this has been true for 30 years, but surely if we explain … Continue reading Stooooooooooop
https://twitter.com/darrendcarroll/status/1230895575199035392 I have been screaming about this since I last worked in newspapers, and lest you think that’s me exaggerating, here’s 200FUCKING6. It wasn’t the internet. It never was the internet. All the internet did is make it impossible to hide the stupidity and greed anymore. Back when papers were drowning in money they could spend it on dumb shit and pay off sexual harassers and hand out consultant contracts to their idiot buddies and nobody would even notice. Now, well, the margins are still good but they’re not THAT good. Look at those margins, though. THIRTY PERCENT. Do you … Continue reading Finally, We Are Talking About Money for Journalism
I’m deep in the Carnival bubble, which is a wondrous albeit crowded place to be. We’ve had big company and small company. It’s been fun but as always I’ll be glad when it’s over. I’m so pooped that I’m repeating last week’s featured image.
There was a parade-related accident at the corner where I’ve been watching parades for the last 20 years. A parade-goer was run over by a float in the Nyx parade near the corner of Magazine and Valence. It was fatal, alas. I’ll have more about that and other Carnival related issues in next week’s 13th Ward Rambler column for the Bayou Brief.
This week’s theme song was written by Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, and Levon Helm for The Band’s 1971 Cahoots album. The horns were arranged by New Orleans’ own Allen Toussaint.
We have three versions of Life Is A Carnival for your listening pleasure: the studio original, a 1995 teevee appearance by The Band, and a cover by Norah Jones, which is new to me
Lest you think I’ve strayed too far from New Orleans Carnival music, here’s Our Mac:
I try not to spend too much time peering around corners looking for spy boys, skeletons, or baby dolls. If you understood that sentence, you know enough about Carnival, New Orleans style to jump to the break without crash landing.
Jalaiah Harmon exists: Though Jalaiah is very much a suburban kid herself — she lives in a picturesque home on a quiet street outside of Atlanta — she is part of the young, cutting-edge dance community online that more mainstream influencers co-opt. The Renegade dance followed this exact path. On Sept. 25, 2019, Jalaiah came home from school and asked a friend she had met through Instagram, Kaliyah Davis, 12, if she wanted to create a post together. Jalaiah listened to the beats in the song “Lottery” by the Atlanta rapper K-Camp and then choreographed a difficult sequence to its chorus, … Continue reading Not Everything Sucks
The title is, of course, ironic because Paul Drake has none. He’s charming until he tries to steal your dinner. That’s one reason he needs to wear a bell: Continue reading Friday Catblogging: Table Manners
OK, people – stepping up to the plate here while Adrastos recovers mentally from the horrible event that brought the Mardi Gras parade to a premature end…. I now present – THE SHORTEST THREAD IN THE HISTORY OF FREE REPUBLIC! Finally – FINALLY – they found some health care fraud. Former Michigan Health Care Consultant Pleads Guilty to Fraud and Tax Evasion Used Faked Credentials to Obtain More than $1.4 Million, and Did Not Pay Taxes justice.gov ^ | February 18, 2020 | DOJ Posted on 2/19/2020, 11:33:27 AM by ransomnote A former health care consultant pleaded guilty today to … Continue reading Today on Tommy T’s Obsession with the Freeperati – Shorter and Sweeter edition
So, am still far, far away from the USA, which means I wasn’t around for last night’s debate or DJTs festival of pardons on, I guess, Tuesday… but in what I hope doesn’t become something that bores people to tears, I’ll repeat last week’s mantra: Anyone but Trump… And yeah that even includes, gag, Mike Bloomberg, though god knows I hope it doesn’t come to that. Trump this week was a preview of Trump, The Second Term. Just like how super storms these days are a preview of the new normal after global warming. Imagine this week’s Trump…every week. I … Continue reading Begging Pardon
It’s time for our third annual Muses Thursday PFT post. Why am I repeating myself? Half the city is coming to our house later today. That’s why. Here we go again: I know what you’re thinking: when in pulp fiction … Continue reading Pulp Fiction Thursday: The Case Of The Shoplifter’s Shoe
Pardon me boy, is that the Impeached Insult Comedian. Continue reading Disbar Barr/The Pardon Bender
Just Another Band From Milwaukee. Continue reading Album Cover Art Wednesday: Violent Femmes
I’ve been seeing this make the rounds of the mommy Facebookers and thinking it sounded bullshit: Among both children and adults, there is little evidence that human trafficking is a widespread phenomenon in need of universal public awareness. In 2018, the National Human Trafficking Hotline received 10,949 reports of human trafficking, but these figures are based exclusively on anonymous calls and are not verified in any way. The hotline’s director, Caroline Diemar, said that many calls are simply vague suspicions — there’s a massage parlor on my street; I saw a suspicious family at the mall — that may reflect public … Continue reading Human Trafficking Panics
Roger Angell is still with us: In 1962, Shawn decided that The New Yorker needed more sports pieces, and, knowing that I was a fan, asked if I wanted to go down to Florida and write something about spring training. I was surprised he even knew there was such a thing. I’d never been to spring training, so I said yes, thank you, and went down to the White Sox camp, in Sarasota, where I found the little wooden stadium jammed with elderly fans watching the young stars. Later stops at larger parks in St. Petersburg and Tampa confirmed this peaceable view … Continue reading Not Everything Sucks
I started using the image of Harold Lloyd hanging from a clock in Safety Last during the 2018 campaign. It captured my worries and concern for that election, which turned out well. The 2020 election is feeling even more fraught … Continue reading U Is For Unpredictable
All right, look. Bloomberg, a rich racist asshole, would obviously be terrible. Everyone is still mad at Bernie from 2016 and other stuff, he is 467 years old and a second heart attack waiting to happen. Pete is … who the fuck is Pete, fuck Pete. Fuck South Bend and Notre Dame and every Republican in Indiana. And yet. Any of the three of them, and a sentient bag of dogshit besides, would likely sacrifice fewer of our children on the altars of endless gun violence, war with Iran, asylum and immigration bans, and cuts to food stamps. Which is … Continue reading Your Mike B Feelings, Internet
I’m exhausted from the lead up to and the aftermath of this year’s Krewe du Vieux parade. There were a series of mishaps and missteps that made it stressful for me. The political news hasn’t improved my mood either. I’m trying to get in the Carnival spirit by posting the 1939 poster seen above. Additionally, we have company tomorrow so it’s time to straighten up and fly right.
This week’s theme song was written in 1943 by Nat King Cole and Irving Mills and is based on a folk tale involving a buzzard and a signifying monkey. I am not making this up.
Straighten Up and Fly Right was the biggest hit the King Cole Trio ever had. We have three versions for your listening pleasure: the original, Diana Krall, and an instrumental by the Skatalites:
Now that we’ve straightened up, let’s fly right to the jump.
Continue reading “Saturday Odds & Sods: Straighten Up and Fly Right”
I don’t usually take requests but this one came from Our Scout Prime. It wasn’t actually a request but a question posed via twitter DM: “You see parallels between Biden and Muskie?” I do indeed. They were both ratfucked by … Continue reading Biden/Muskie
Paul Drake remains a solo artist. I’m still not ready to get another cat. Our longtime vet’s staff mishandled everything about what turned out to be her last visit. He is no longer our vet but they keep sending us … Continue reading Friday Throwback Catblogging: Still Missing Della
Happy Birthday, Peter Gabriel. Continue reading Peter Gabriel & Me
So, am fortunate to be traveling/taking a break from, well, everything up to and including the Northern Hemisphere. But while out of the loop, I’m not entirely disconnected. I did see, though, some hand wringing from the usual suspects. Democrats in disarray. Is Bernie too far left? Well, to repeat what Adrastos said below, the house is on fire. The enemy is the guy pictured above. If Sanders wins the nomination, I’ll vote for him. Same with Buttigieg. Same with Amy Klobuchar, Elizabeth Warren, or even Joe Biden if either of the latter two gains any traction (and as an … Continue reading A Modest Reminder
We have side-by-side covers of a 1956 sci-fi tome by Jerry Sohl. The second cover is from an Australian edition of the book. Continue reading Pulp Fiction Thursday: The Mars Monopoly
Vengeance thy name is President* Pennywise. Continue reading Still There’ll Be More
Adrastos on the New Hampshire primay. Continue reading Taken For Granite
Despite their Dickensian name, I’ve never connected with Uriah Heep’s music. The cover of this 1972 album is by Roger Dean who is best known for his work with Yes. What’s not to like about that? Here’s the title track: Continue reading Album Cover Art Wednesday: The Magician’s Birthday