Site of the Month

I've already alluded to my Site of the Month in an earlier post, but it's worth pointing out officially....and again.....and again......and again.

The Trump Golf Count

The site tells of all his golf trips, including the number of rounds he played, sometimes with whom. It says the start and end time of his rounds - some of which I just do not believe.  I just don't believe you can finish 18 holes in 3 hours and 15 minutes.  Maybe he only played the back nine.

TGC will also tell you which resort and club at which he played (though most of them are his own properties - shock!), and if he actually golfed (though they don't seem to know for sure all the time).

The best is the cost for each trip and the accumulated total cost to you and me. That's better than some of the weak graphs they have.

What they do not have is how he scored. THAT could be priceless, as for all the time that lard-ass spends on the course, it'd be great if he were shooting 115 all the time and not improving.  (Par for most golf courses is 72, btw.)

What they also need to do is compare it to the number of times Obama golfed side by side. I'm guessing you'd have a lot of blanks for Barack in a comparison next to BLOTUS* (I think I'm changing from SCROTUS).  Oh - you'd want Obamba's cost too......just for that comparison to the guy who said he'd be too busy to golf during his presidency.

I know none of this means a thing to the asshats who voted for him - and the things he said / promised. Still, it's important to systematically chip away at this troll of a man.....continually....until he topples over.

Anyway - come back often. I fear the numbers will continue to grow.




*Biggest Liar of the United States

My Music Monday

It seems acapella isn't just for Glee and the Pitch Perfect franchise.

Obvi, lots of music is vocal only. Gregorian chant comes to mind. Well, and Appalachian music, which has Scottish derivatives.

With a new disk of Appalachian music being released (or maybe it's out) Rosanne Cash has contributed two songs - one which was released on another compilation years ago.  Well, two vocals. The one song in question is centuries old.

Cash takes on "the Parting Glass", which has been done by just about anyone doing this type of music (my favourite being the Wailin' Jennys). I mean, according to Wikipedia, the song dates back somewhere between  1605-1770, which is quite a range.  1605 would be somewhere in Scotland. 1770 is the first known state-side sighting.

Cash is in great voice here, but I'm cynical enough to believe that Cash probably sang to music
 that was stripped away in post-production.  I mean, I'm hoping that is not the case, but - again - cynical.

Music does accompany the singer, but not for the first part of the song.  This is not a song that will be played anywhere, so in a way, it's great that someone is still putting out there and willing to back a release that could never possibly make back its investment.

Whether you like the music overall, or this song, the history is important in the evolution of popular music itself.

Under the Milky Way

You've read from time to time about my love of astronomy. My morning walks with Shep are great for me, as I get to look to the heavens and see the stars.  Granted, it's limited, as it is not an unobstructed view.  That an light pollution. Sodium lights every 100 feet or so....and that's just at my vantage point.

710 stumbled upon this video though. It was attached to an article saying that 80% of the planet (or was it just the U.S.?) cannot see the Milky Way due to light pollution.

I can't say I've ever really seen it. A time or two - be it in Mexico, Key West or such - on the beach at night. Or or in the Mojave.  That number of stars is quite impressive. And while I'm not afraid of the dark, there is something a little disconcerting about being on a deserted beach when it is pitch black.

The video below show light pollution levels from 10 to 1 and how it changes your view of the nighttime sky.  It's quite amazing and just fucking beautiful.......excuse my language.

We both agreed that this might be cooler than seeing the aurora borealis (not that we have......yet) and that perhaps we don't base a vacation around this per se, but if we have the chance, take an opportunity to see such a marvel.

I know my crappy iPhone 6 won't capture these photos........but I'm a 1000% sure that the iPhone X will. 





Song by: the Church

Grand Theft Autumn

Autumn has come to Shepville.

Our weekends are all about getting him out and about. I don't think there have been many days he hasn't been in a car.  The dog walker comes and picks him up - and then there is us and Saturday & Sunday outings.  He gets very very very excited for car rides.

I swear, he might not even care where we go, as long as he can just tag along. He's a good traveler.

Trees are a-turnin'.  710 and Shep walking to the beach. 

I'm not sure Lake Erie has ever been this clean.  Shep just walked in. He doesn't really swim (yet) but he likes to walk in the water. Or sit in it.  Weirdo. 

Roly-Poly Shep - you think. Except he's asleep.  Weirdo. 

Gotta have one of Soph. 

For all you worried about Shep going after her, she is fine. After that last one, she still was never more than three feet from him. She can take care of herself. 

Dinner time. 

He kept creeping closer and closer, until he was on the ottoman and then barking at me. And looking at the clock, it was his dinnertime to the minute.  Who needs the Atomic Clock? 

My fave shot of the week.....by far. 

Song by: Fall Out Boy

12 of 12

So I'm doing my 91st 12 of 12.

Normally it is 12 pictures taken on the 12th of the month. Since I only post once per day, you get my images the following day. All pictures taken with my iPhone. Click images to enlarge, if you choose.

Created by Chad Darnell and picked up from, what I can tell, any number of random bloggers who then link back to him and vice versa. Chad is no longer doing this, nor is successor coordinating the linking of other 12 of 12'ers anymore. Now it's just Erik and myself - that I know of.....as it's the only blog post he's still doing......for now.  

I still continue to do this, because of all my consistent post topics, I actually like this one the most.

05:12.  Morning dog walk. Cloudy, a little chilly - even at 57.  Degrees, that is, not years. 

5:30.  That moment you want to get a cat and dog pic - and suddenly the dog decides to attack the cat.  Poor Sophie. 

06:20. Slipping on my compression sleeve to help with elbow pain. 

06:30.  Takin' out the trash. 

06:53. Running my first morning report. 

09:40.  Baseball ring / cake decoration. 

As it turns out, it is the only baseball ring that Cleveland it going to see in 2017. 

11:12.  Fire drill. 

The flash or the warning light washed out part of the picture. 

17:10.   Alt  Ctrl  Del. 

Shutting down for the day. 

17:20.  Parking garage. 

Sing on right door:  Don't Use This Door. 

Door on left:  missing.....for about 8 months now. 

17:45.  Freedom. 

Shep giving me grief for not moving fast enough for our afternoon walk. 

18:35.  Oh Giant Eagle - you are a laugh riot!

....actually, it was not very good cake.  Scratch that - cake was fine, frosting was not. 

21:35.  Blogging. 

Just trying to put this post to rest. 

I Want Your Sex

I can't get very worked up over Harvey Weinstein and that whole situation. Who in their right mind didn't think (let alone, know) he was a pig. Just look at the guy.

Sure sure.......don't judge a man by his cover and all, but..........c'mon!

Honestly, I don't know how anyone forces oral sex ON you. I would have totally gotten it if Harvey coerced some would-be ingenue to go to her knees for him. But to force someone to take off their panties (assuming they had some one, of course) spread her legs and lay there while he went licking looking for fish tacos?

I guess it's how bad you want the job.

I even get Ashley Judd not speaking up at the time. I mean...........has she worked since that thing with Tommy Lee Jones chasing her?  The Female Fugitive.....or whatever it was called?  I totally get she could not squeal because she didn't know where her next meal was coming from.....and even if she did, chances are Wynonna was gonna scarf it down anyway.

Rose McGowen?  Has she worked since being Shannon Dougherty's (sp....clearly)'s replacement on some show about sister witches?  I mean, she sucked right.....just not in the way Harvey wanted her to. But his blocked sexual advances can't be all her problem not getting jobs.........there has to be a shred of talent, right?

What I have zero tolerance for is Angelina Jolie.  ...and not just because of two - count 'em two! - Lara Croft movies.

I get that the little people....the nobodies...didn't speak up about sexual harassment, but Jolie has...or had....some clout in Hollywood.  She is / was a frickin' ambassador to the UN who would happily inform the public on atrocities and sexual abuse of certain lands.

Just not La La Land.

She's part of the problem. Angie should and could have said something.........and she didn't. I guess it's only ok to speak up if it's female circumcision.

The same could be said for Gwenyth Paltrow, but............let's face it, she has less clout than Ashely Judd.  There. I said it.  Gwinnie was happy to take whatever Harvey dished out while he was buying her for an Oscar.  Now that there will never be a Shakespeare in Love II: Electric Boogaloo, (or probably any other movie that's not an Iron Man franchise) she can finally say something. Maybe she now has PHSD (the H is for Harvey), which is why she's a total fucking loon now.

I know a few news outlets are chastising the Clintons and Obamas for not making a statement.  ......about what?  So, Weinstein had fundraisers for them. Lots of scummy people have lots of fundraisers for lots of politicians. What kind of statement does one expect them to make? I'm guessing neither Hillary or Michelle were hit on by him. Are they supposed to have inside knowledge that he did do crap to women in the privacy of his office, hotel or hot tub? Until four days ago, the women hadn't said anything. Are the Obamas and Clintons supposed to return the money from previous campaign fundraisers?

Like Ailes and O'Reilly, old Harv is out of a job.....yet still rolling in cash. I'm sure he'll be fine....unlike some of the women he inflicted himself on.


And let us not forget Terry Crews, who also says he was harassed and groped by a Hollywood exec.

....but let's face it......he was asking for it.  Just look how he dresses.



Song by: George Michael

Record of the Month

I figured I'd do a monthly 'what I'm listening to' kind of thing. This could be viewed as a lame placeholder kind of post. And probably it is. But it's my blog! So there!

I think I have my album reviews / releases / purchases planned until the end of the year. One less thing that Blobby has to worry about.

Last month, the Killers released their disk, Wonderful Wonderful.   Or as Blobby got, Wonderful Wonderful (deluxe edition).  I swear, one day the 'deluxe' part will pay off.  All the deluxe version gets you is one additional song and two remixes of their first single, "the Man".

Hmphf !!

Pre-rerelease press for the album would have you believe it was a somewhat return to the band's debut, Hot Fuss.  It is, and it isn't.

Sure, there are classic Killer elements to the disk, but not as many as expected. They do branch out quite a bit too - mostly for the better.

With their initial single, "The Man" the song deviates enough from anything they've done before. Yes, it took me about 6-7 listens to become fully intrigued by it. I don't say this lightly, but it might be my favourite song of 2017 even if it seems to be sampled from a Kool & the Gang song of which I'm not familiar (which would be 99% of their material) and while sonically it is extremely, extremely busy, it still works....and well.

The second release was "Run for Cover" is what I would call the Hot Fuss Factor.  The pace, the melody, even most of the phrasing, though I do like it when in a place or two they start the chorus on an off-beat. The other Hot Fuss Factor moment is "Tyson vs Douglas".  The music is all Hot Fuss - which isn't a bad thing, and the vocals are sound like the same style as that debut. But really a song on boxing.....or a boxing match metaphor? For the record, Brandon Flowers was 9 when this fight happened.

Other traditional-like Killer tracks are "Life to Come".  "The Rut" sounds like a discarded track from one of Flowers' solo disks. It's not a must-listen song.

"Have All the Songs Been Written" is a nice slower number. It's nothing groundbreaking, though in my initial play, I'm all like, 'well, they sure are doing a decent imitation of Mark Knopfler's guitar work'......until I found out it was Knopfler himself.  Even 710 said, "sounds like Dire Straits". The Killers and Flowers have never been subtle or shy about using influences - if not outright sampling them (Springsteen, Bronski Beat, New Order....).

While I keep hearing that the band pays homage to Brian Eno with "Some Kind of Love", I get way way way more of a Shin's "So Now What" vibe.  It's nice, it's airy and ethereal, but if singles still existed, it would the b-side.

And I totally dig "The Calling".  It's got a great rhythm section and a good groove. Sure it has a bit too much of Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus" guitar work for my liking, but see two paragraphs above.  Yes, it's Flowers' contractually obligated one-song per disk about his growing up in a smaller Mormon town, complete with a Woody Harrelson narrated bible passage, but it actually really works.

The 'extra' tracks are one original and two remixes. "Money on Straight" is ok, but you can see why it's an additional and didn't make the standard cuts. Both of the remixes of "the Man" are ok. Maybe the Duke Dumont one is better, but I wouldn't be rushing to the dance floor for either one. I might for the original version.

The title track is what I think I might love most on this disk. I feel it is where the band stretches the most. It's different enough to be interesting and it moves along well. I think if more of their songs were a bit more adventurous it would have been an outstanding disk.

Overall, Wonderful Wonderful  was wonderful, but not wonderful wonderful. 

Bleed to Love Her

As you may or may not know, the sub-title of this blog is "stuff & nonsense".  ....and there's not enough of it.

Consider this an attempt to bring some of that back to the blog.

I am insisting you watch this......at least through the 4:45 mark.  Oh yes, the entire thing is over 10 minutes, but if you cannot afford that much time, stay through 4:45.

I'm begging you.  Please.




You have my friend Sal to thank for this.



Song by: Fleetwood Mac

My Music Monday

I've decided to make this month the 10th thing that comes up on my iTunes liberry.

I've landed on Maria McKee's "Breathe" from her first solo album.

It seems Ms. McKee has dropped of the artistic map. Her last website update is more than two years ago. Her last non-compilation or live album was in 2007.

Maybe it's apropos that her name came up this week. Her first hit with Lone Justice was a Tom Petty-penned song. She also did a solo recording of another of his songs, "Never Be You".   She was kind of the female Petty anyways.

You won't get a Petty vibe from "Breathe" though.  But you might like it.

Cooking with Blobby

My lord - I'm guessing it's been a while since I've done one of these. And it's not that I don't cook any longer, I just rarely cook anything new.

This is not for lacking the want - just the time. I need to get back on that horse and get out of the routine of the 7-8 things that are constant.

Technically today, there is no cooking. No stoves, no ranges, no microwaves. No heat - except for the red pepper flakes.

It was our block party Sunday. I needed an appetizer, side or dessert. It's one of these things you wish they'd say A-G, you bring dessert;  H-N you bring a side.....and so on.  So whenever I choose, let's say a dessert, then everyone brings them. And if I don't, then no one does.  Ya just can't win.

Truth be told, I'm never using this get together as one of my meals. I snack here and there on a tidbit, but it's about hanging out with neighbors and friends - and having some wine.  To be clear: usually the tidbits are chocolate chip cookies.

I went with appetizer. I went with something I hadn't quite made, but in the past made a variation of.

I went with Avocado, Spinach Artichoke Dip.  I made an avocado dip years ago, but no spinach or artichoke. This was easy.  10 minute prep time.....tops.

• Avocados - 2 (though I used three because they were small
• Frozen Spinach - 1 C  (honestly didn't measure it out. Used entire frozen pack, thawed, squeeze out as dry as I could. 
• Artichoke Hearts - 1 C.  I used about an ounce more to use them all up, which means, I had to use extra.....
• Cream Cheese - 4oz   I used about 5. 
• Garlic - 1 clove minced.  HAHAHAHAHA. Who the fuck has ever used on clove in their entire life. I used three smaller cloves. 
• Lemon - the juice of one. 
• Salt and Red Pepper Flakes to taste.    

Avocados have to be ripe. Cream Cheese needs to be room temp. Those are your only true takeaways. And the only thing from keeping you from making it at the exact tie you want. 

But here's how easy. 

In small food processor, ad avocados, lemon juice, cream cheese and garlic.

Blend until smooth.   See?

Put mixture into a bowl. Fold in chopped spinach and then artichokes. Add salt and red pepper flakes. Combine. 

Boom. Done. 

Well, after you put it in a dish. 

It was all ok. Tasted good, if not a slightly bland.  As always: maybe I should have used more red pepper flakes.  I served it with pita chips and people seemed to like.......so it wasn't store bought and people ate it. I call it a win. 

Buddy

A slight hodge podge, but it was the week Shep had.  I'm just his official recorder.

Meet up with best guy pal - Kooper.  

Kooper has been m.i.a. most of the summer. He hasn't wanted to walk much. Now that it's fall, we've seen him quite a bit. They're still best buds. 

Walk in the ravine. He don't swim, but he does love to stand in the water. 

The best I could get of Soph this week. She was being "challenging". 

The Duck. 

Always the duck.   The rest of the toys are over his shoulder in Petey's old bed. 

Suzanne, Oliver, Dan, Eleanore - on the Euclid Beach Rocket Car. 

They were skeptical about the photo op, but I talked 'em into it. 

Song by: Willie Nelson

Screaming Infideltiies

If you want to know how far we've fallen by way of our politicians, you need look no further than resident resigned in disgrace dirtbag Tim Murphy.

Yes, he urged his now extremely bitter side piece to abort their might-be baby. And yes, he drafted anti-abortion legislation.  So the word 'hypocrite' has come to mind......and to anyone who has a social media account.

“You have zero issue posting your pro-life stance all over the place when you had no issue asking me to abort our unborn child just last week when we thought that was one of the options,” said she.

But it gets better...........and not in that Dan Savage kind of way.

His response?  "I get what you say about my March for life messages. I've never written them. Staff does them. I read them and winced. I told staff don't write any more. I will."

The man doesn't stand by his slutty girlfriend (yes, she is not so innocent in all this. she boinked a married man.....and bitter enough that "somehow" these texts got "leaked" to the press), he doesn't even take credit for his vile rhetoric, which he so happily helped make into law.

No......no he claims he "winced" at the verbiage.

He's a fucking pussy all the way around.

What I love love love love love about this entire thing?  The media is happy to talk 'abortion', 'hypocrisy' et al, but they barely mention - 'adultery'.

It used to be that infidelity was the downfall of a politician. Now it's not even in the mix of being ashamed. Ask Rudy or Newt. It is almost that you can't have a political career without banging some broad. Let's qualify that:  if you're a GOP'er you can't have a career without an affair.

Now you really have to go the extra mile to be forced into resigning. This from a party whose "leader' is the biggest pig to women already. He is a guy who's done much worse than Tim Murphy, yet no one is forcing or even asking him to hang it up.

....and people want to talk about hypocrisy.


On a related note:  why wouldn't you want to abort his baby?  I mean, honey, did you look at the guy who was fucking you?  What were you gonna do if that kid came out looking like him?




Song by: Dashboard Confessional

America

Puerto Rico 
My heart's devotion 
Let it sink back in the ocean 
Always the hurricanes blowing 
Always the population growing 
And the money owing

Do you think that he took Sondheim's lyrics to heart.....and as reality?

Is there a bigger moron in the world than SCROTUS?

I've asked and answered that question many-a-time in this here blog. .....and as far as I can tell, that answer ain't changing anytime soon - - - if ever!

I know that technically the President doesn't have a publicist, but I'm thinking this guy should get one.......but then I remembered he used to pretend to be a publicist to tout brand Dump, so that would not really work.

But will no one save this man from himself?  (I think I've axed that question before too.)

That is kind of rhetorical when some of your senior staff thinks you're a "fucking moron".

Not only can they not save him, he doesn't want to be saved.

Really though?  Throwing paper towels residents of Puerto Rico?  I don't even think they were Bounty - the quicker picker-upper. That's gonna be a fuck of a lot of paper towels to soak up a category 5. ....and even if they did, now they have another problem on their hand.

The better part of his trip was the tried upon guilt trip - telling the resident that they really put a kink in the U.S. budget. Maybe I missed it (though I know I didn't), when he told Florida and Texas the same thing?  Oh that's right - - we had those super storms budgeted.     (eye roll emoji here)

What we didn't have budgeted were presidential golf trips.

$72 million buys a LOT of Brawny.  And had they gotten them on double coupon day, I think PR would have been set for life......or at least until the 2019 storm season.

All I can hope is the Puerto Ricans who came out to see him were there to jeer and not cheer. And maybe they'll remember his lack of inaction when it comes time to vote for him or any of his candidates.

Oh that's right - PR is a territory where residents can vote for president.  Yes, let's hope they remember, indeed.




Song by:  the cast of West Side Story

the Last DJ

I'm going on record that none of you (or most) would have thought I was a Tom Petty "fan". But in my own certain way I was......and going all the way back to the mid-70s with his first single "Breakdown".

Don't get me wrong, I never followed him so closely that I knew when his next disk was coming out, but I owned more than my fair share, but usually just enjoyed listening to him.

Petty wasn't the best guitarist. He wasn't a looker. And he was a little mush-mouthed at times with singing - yet it all worked. He surrounded himself with great musicians (I used to have a slight crush on drummer, Stan Lynch).

But Petty was more than a songwriter and musician. As far back as 1981 he was an advocate for the artists against the corporate record folks.

He refused to release Hard Promises when the label decided to up the price by $1. He found that unfair to the customer. The company eventually backed down. He'd go up against them at other times too.

Even one of his later released, the Last DJ, is blatant middle finger to Clear Channel, iHeart Radio and the like. Not so coincidental, his Sirius XM station - Tom Petty Radio - was one of those who actually deserved a singular station.  Jimmy Buffet?  oh fuck NO!  the Dead?  Nu-uh.  I question whether Springsteen or Elvis should. But I enjoy Petty's station, though I no longer know its fate, as he was its DJ.

Peter Bogdanovich actually made a Petty documentary a few years back - maybe a decade ago - that is FOUR HOURS long! The surprising thing isn't the length, the subject or that there was an acclaimed director (hey, he did What's Up Doc?). It's that it is actually excellent.

I don't think I have a favourite Petty song. I liked his collaboration with Stevie Nicks on "Insider". It was a song he wrote for her debut solo disk which she basically rejected for "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" (which was an unreleased Heartbreaker song with just Nicks' vocal added).  I like "Walls" from a Ed Burns movie, She's the One.

I remember sitting in CharBar during my freshman or sophomore year, playing "Change of Heart" on the jukebox a lot. I love "I Need to Know". But if I can only pick one for this post (not that there are any rules, being it is my blog!), I'll go with "A Woman In Love (It's Not Me)".

It is one of those songs that accentuate Petty's mush-mouthed singing, but it still works. The melody is good, the rhythm section is great ("hi Stan!!!. .....call me!).

I am truly sorry Petty is gone. The irony of the entire situation is that his final tour ended a week ago. He was stopping so he could be at home to watch his grandchild grow up.






Song by: Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Nothing Changes

Over a year ago, when I wrote about the massacre at Pulse, I mentioned that it was, and I quote....

 It kept coming back to: "the worst mass shooting in U.S. history".

THE worst.

....for now.


Even Bob reflected on that line in his comment at the time. 

Well, we've past the 'for now'. It took only 15.5 months, but we did it.  Hooray for us???

I don't have much to say that I haven't with Sandy Hook, or Pulse, or Louisiana or.......  you get the idea. 

I'll call it "terrorism". People will disagree with me. I know I'm right. But in this country you have to practice a certain religion or have a certain skin tone to call it that. A white guy mowing down 59 (as of this writing) + 527 injured (as of this writing) has yet to be called that.  "Mass shooting", yes. 

Articles - the few of which I've read - talk about the shooters 'troubled past'.  You never hear them saying that about Ahmed after he's strapped a bomb to himself in the local pizza parlour. Oddly, Ahmed rarely injures or kills 600 people at a time. 

Ahmed also rarely has an assault rifle.....sorry.....rifles...plural.....that are so easily accessible here in the US of A.  Thank you NRA. 

Oh, I could go on about the NRA....again. They are right. Assault rifles are great for hunting..............people! Lots and lots of people...and our well armed militias!

Becky pointed out to me: it was a country music festival, shouldn't any number of attendees been packing heat?  I countered with - well, the guy was 32 stories up and probably didn't see him. Then mentioned that they just couldn't shoot up at a building as you know they don't have any aim. They'd be killing folks on the 18th through 43rd floor as they just fired indiscriminately. 

She seemed to think that wouldn't be an issue with so many gun-owners. "Who would care?" she came back with.  She's right. 

They'd all get praise from the NRA as being the "good guys with a gun".......Mr & Mrs Sullivan in 2308 were just collateral damage for the right to own a firearm while they watched an episode of the Big Bang Theory before heading down to play Keno. 

But here is where I currently stand. I still believe the NRA is evil, and I still believe white guys shooting multiple anyones are actual terrorists. 

I have to say, for me, it's getting harder and harder to feel shock and awe at events like this. I'm finding I have a limited amount of energy to get my dander up about something that is now the new normal. 

This is a problem on multiple levels. Being desensitized is a real thing. To see such horror and things that are so vile that you just figure, "oh, that's the way it goes".  It is an attitude like that which is how we got November 8, 2016. 

It doesn't help when your thoughts are actualized by the New York Times. 

It's utterly disheartening......because it's true.  I truly believe that we as a nation are spinning our wheels on this -- and we're only like 42 years into seeing a scene like this over and over and over (though they are higher death tolls and in greater frequency). Yet, we have a do nothing system and I don't see that going anywhere in my lifetime.

Thoughts and prayers no longer cut it.....though they are still doled out in abundance in the press and social media.....and look where that's gotten any of these folks.

I expect Congress to use this distraction to pass some shitty healthcare law while everyone is talking about Las Vegas. That is how I think we as a country now operate.


Yes, this is a downer of a post. I get it. But it was a downer of a day. I'm not feeling sorry for myself - though I am feeling sorry for us as a nation.

Honestly, I'd love things to change, but I really don't know how that even works anymore.



Song by: the Moody Blues

My Music Monday

Here's what happens when you don't have a theme month: anarchy.

Ok.....maybe not that, but on a busy weekend that may or may not be topped off by a block party with an entire table of wine, well, sometimes focus isn't the best it could be.

This is why I implore the iTunes shuffle method for sometimes picking a My Music Monday selection. Where I pick the 10th song in a shuffle as my selection.

As you can see - or at least infer - I did not partake in so much wine that I could still count to ten. It's called being a functional alcoholic. sheeesh.

Actually, I'm fairly pleased with the selection. It could have just as easily landed on a Goo Goo Dolls song - and for the life, of me, I have no idea where those came from.  Honest.

As it is, you have got Death Cab for Cutie's "Soul Meets Body.

The few songs I own by the band, I really like, though I've never purposefully gone out and gotten a full album, even from the liberry. I've had it in rotation for years.

I've always dug the lyric: "In my head, there's a Greyhound station / Where I send my thoughts to far off destinations / So they may have a chance of finding a place where they're far more suited than here."

Sometimes the rotation works, some time it don't. I think it did ok this time.

1,000,000

I should celebrate this, but I'm calling 'bullshit' --to a degree.

Two days ago (or so), I passed the million mark for 'pageviews all time history'.

I'm just bitter because, of course, I want - nay, need! - more recognition. Or at least an accurate representation of it.

I. Must. Be. Validated.

(which happens to be the non-official credo of every single blogger ever. if they tell you different - they are lying!)

There are dozens of on-line threads on how Blogger's analytics are wrong, something I always suspected. So I don't just think it is my own paranoia.

My assertion is:  if you go to blobbysblog.com, I'm not 100% sure I get a 'pageview' credit. As when you get into the detail, it says which of the stories have been seen.  If you just go to the url, you can scroll down 10-15 stories per page.  But I don't get credit for that.

However, if you click on any of the hyperlinked stories, that is where the 'pageview' number is being tallied.  I'm 99% sure that people are just going to blobbysblog.com.

So, there is that. And there as that two years I had the blog over at Wordpress. Those reader numbers did not come back to Blogger when I returned.

I think I passed the millions mark a while ago.

If 1,000,000 was the true number, then I'm fucked. That means over the 14.5 years I've had this blog I'd get, on average, 5,747 views per month, or 191 per day (based on a 30 day month).  Granted, those early days were low low low in terms of readership. But for a while I was pulling in 800 per day. I think we are averaging about 200-300 now.

As any accountant could ask: 'what do you want the number to be?'.   It might not be reality, but you can always back your way into a certain digit.

Only 14+ years to get to 2,000,000.

I'm not sure I'm gonna make that.



Song by: Nine Inch Nails

Three Steps Down

It's the weekend.  You know what that means.

....it means the only reason you still tune into this blog.

Freed from his apartment, we waits for me to take him for his evening walk. 

Sophie and Shep

Shep and Kooper.  

They haven't seen each other for such a long time. They had such a blast. 

Sleepy Shep.  Sleep Blob too. 

Song by: Rosanne Cash

Thinking About You

You know, even as a fictional, extremely foul-mouthed, narcissistic, self-absorbed and wildly inappropriate president, Selina Meyer was still a better commander in chief than the one currently occupying 1600 Pennsylvania.

Like SCROTUS, she has a bumbling, inept press secretary. And a butt-load of advisers who give her nothing but bad advice for their own gain.

Unlike SCROTUS, Meyers has only been married once...and only one child from that marriage. She doesn't quite tramp around like you-know-who.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus couldn't be better for the role. I don't believe anyone else could have ever pulled that off. She deserves every Emmy, People's Choice and Golden Globe for which she's nominated.

Unlike SCROTUS - Louis-Dreyfus is a friend to the environment.......and the normal people.

The joke is, she might be almost as rich as Dump himself. With her father dying a few months back, Julia is now probably worth billions............with a 'b'. Not that she hasn't done fairly well on her own.

But with that money, you'd think one could get more like a SCROTUS........but not the tv kind.

Yesterday, JLD announced she had breast cancer. And while that is sad on any number of levels, it's how she announced it that makes all the difference between her fictional employment and the real thing.

Yes, in a time of a personal health crisis, Louis-Dreyfus doesn't think only about herself.

Granted, her character wouldn't have, but that is fiction. The problem is the real president doesn't think of others when it comes to health......or disaster.......or...........(fill in the blanks).

I take it back. If he got cancer, he'd think of others......and blame it on them. Crooked Hillary being the first. Obama being the second. And Comey being the third.  The list would go on and on.

Here's hoping JDL gets better, as there is no chance of recovery for Dump.




Song by: John Mellencamp

Nothing Man

I suppose if I gave a flying fuck about college basketball I could be all up in arms about Rick Pitino losing his job over some Adidas bribe thingy.........or something along those lines.

Wouldn't it be bigger news if collegiate sports didn't have monetary interference?

But I don't care.

Let's see.......Puerto Rico?  Nahh.  Everyone's got that covered.  Another blow to GOP healthcare? No, though it seems leadership waited two more days after everyone else knew it wouldn't pass before saying it was dead.

I could always expound upon the new Madea movie.....or Cher needing to do ads for the Gap. Times are hard, y'all.

I said I could.  I didn't say I would.

So it turns out I might have nothing to say today.  Well, I could have chosen any of those above topics, so I don't have nothing..........it is that I just don't care.

Truth is - I am tarred. So very tarred. Work has been ball-busting and at 11-12 hour days. I need to sleep more than I need to write.

I'm sure I'll be back with something clever and witty to say.



Song by: Bruce Springsteen

Song of the Patriot

The problem with Betty Bowers is anymore she doesn't really ride that fine line of Christian Conservative Woman and satirist.

There was a time that the religious right probably thought she was their advocate not knowing she was poking fun at them.

This last election and this presidency has changed all that. She pretty much calls them out, like in this new video. And she is spot-on, but I don't know it has the same subversiveness as it once did.

That said - the people of which she makes of fun wouldn't have gotten the subtlety. They kind of need a 2 x 4 to the head.........and for lots of reasons.





Song by: Johnny Cash & Marty Robbins

Grazed Knees

Oh for fuck's sake people - he's diverted your attention...........again.

And I mean, like all 330 million of you.....plus some Canadians.

Two fucking tweets and now we are like four days in of doing nothing but commenting about it, or commenting about the comments....or commenting about who or who did not kneel at the NFL games.

In the meantime - and in the West Wing - I'm just assuming evil is afoot and no one is watching.... again.

On the off chance that there isn't extra secret plotting, planning and scheming going on, my original post still pretty much stands.

Still there ain't a person not talking about it.  ....and of course by talking, I mean posting a lot of inane things on facebook and twitter.  I'm taking friends, "friends", sports figures, politicians, "celebrities" etc. Everyone has something to say.

The problem is, few have anything relevant to say......unlike, say, me!

The predictable right folks who trotted out veterans who thought it was horrible that they fought only to have the flag disrespected.  The predictable left trotted out veterans who said they served so that people could exercise their right to protest or express themselves. They cancel each other out in certain ways - though neither side is ever gonna buy the other's point of view.

The fireable offense is new.....and laughable.  Rape is fine (grab her by the pussy!). Attempted murder is fine. Domestic abuse is right on point. Dog fighting - awww....give the poor felon a second chance! Kneel instead of stand? Throw the bum out for life!

Yeah - that seems like a proportional response.

But logic and reason isn't really a thing now, so you just have to roll with the punches.....though I won't stop trying to bring some semblance of recent history to make someone scratch their head and kind of go, "ohhhhhhhh".

I'm just not wagering on it.

(Morty gets the credit for the title image. ....sending it to me, that is......not creating it.)


Song by: Snow Patrol