I have loved The Moody Blues since I was 14 years old. I went to many shows throughout my life, although I did not see them with Mike Pinder. I got used to him not being there anymore like everyone else, but it was really a blow when Ray Thomas left. I guess it had to happen sooner or later. The Moody Blues must really love to go on tour, so they got a replacement named Norda Mullen. She’s actually from Mississippi. She fills in all of … Continue reading →
Daniel Pearl recognized the ability of music to bridge differences among people. In the spirit of Pearl’s love of music and commitment to dialogue, the Daniel Pearl Foundation (formed by his family) launched the first Daniel Pearl World Music Days on October 10, 2002, which would have been Pearl’s 39th birthday. World Music Days is an international network of concerts using the power of music to reaffirm our commitment to tolerance and humanity. It is an “awareness raiser,” not a fundraiser. There is no financial … Continue reading →
The Starry Night, 1889 by Vincent Van Gogh Oil on Canvas At the Museum of Modern Art, located in New York City, there is a special exhibit going on about Vincent Van Gogh entitled, “Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night”. If you follow the link below, you will expericence a tour. Some of the paintings have audio clips if you wish to hear some of the history behind them. Click on the following link: Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night See you … Continue reading →
Piedra de Sol’ (Sunstone) is a poem by Octavio Paz, written in 1957. It was praised as a “magnificent” example of surrealist poetry in the presentation speech of his Nobel Prize. It has been translated into English by Eliot Weinberger, this translation was published in 1987 as part of the collection The Collected Poems of Octavio Paz, 1957-1987. In 1991 this translation was joined with the original poem in a single volume published by New Directions Books (New York). This edition also featured illustrations of … Continue reading →
Introduction: The Crucifixion,” an epic tragedy supposedly inspired by the lives of Jesus Christ, John F. Kennedy, and Dylan that still stands as one of the most relevant, poetic, inventive, and defiantly ahead-of-its-time pieces of music from the entire 1960s decade. To say the track is “apocalyptic” is to put it mildly: lyrically Phil Ochs manages to perfectly illustrate (even through the most surreal and chaotic imagery) the perverted desire of humanity to have someone be simultaneously hero and scapegoat. Crucifixion by Phil Ochs And the … Continue reading →
Has anyone ever had a physically bad reaction soon after going to a Chinese restaurant ? I did last night, but my friends were not as effected as I was. At about 6:30pm, I went out last night to a very well known Zagat rated Chinese restaurant in my area with two other couples and their kids. We all ordered an assortment of appetizers and entrees that we all shared. I remember the teenage daughter of one of my friends remarking later that she felt dizzy after … Continue reading →
Electric Light Orchestra, also known as ELO, were a rock group from Birmingham, England who released eleven studio albums between 1971–1986 and another album in 2001. ELO (the brainchild of Roy Wood) were formed to accommodate Roy’s burning desire to create pop songs with heavily classical overtones. The band’s direction for most of their existence was by Jeff Lynne who, after the band’s debut record, wrote all of the group’s original compositions and produced every album. For the band’s fourth album, Eldorado, A Symphony, a … Continue reading →
My friend, Heidi, posted this poem, “Only Breath” by Jalaluddin Rumi for Poetry Wednesday many months ago. I was very moved and inspired by it, and I would like to repost it and dedicate it to the Poetry Wednesday group. Jalal-ud-din Rumi is the most popular poet in North America. Nearly every poetically minded person who is anyone quotes him. However, he is not an American. Furthermore, he did not know anything about America when he was alive. He was born Mawlana Jalal-ud-din Mohammed on 30 September, 1207, 285 … Continue reading →
Hi everyone, I’m back ! I’ve been on a week-long vacation with my family to sunny Florida to hang out, soak up some sun, and see my mom who is still doing very well. My mom, still living by herself, cleans her whole apartment, goes to her hair salon appointments, dental appointments, shops for summer outfits at the mall. Why is all this amazing ? Because she will be 91 this coming March. Even as she approaches 91, she continues to live as much of an independent life … Continue reading →
Sans Souci and Laurita Photographed by their father Birthday Doll By Sans Souci from her upcoming book, “The Cerebral Jukebox” I might have been twelve, soyou were six and under my care;mom worked.She brought home the groceries after a dayat the Dictaphone machine and the ninety words per minutetypewriter,stepped out of her high heels, returning to five feet tall.She handed me five dollars and told meto take you to buy a birthday present.OK, Ma, I think I dutifully answered.She must have been tired, really tired, … Continue reading →
