Kiri

With all the trendy names we see today (and names always follow trends), I am surprised that we have not seen Kiri used more, given the fact that its most famous holder is now Dame Kiri Te Kanawa.

Each in its own place

Some people blame on faith that which is merely bad judgment. Living by faith does not absolve us from using our common sense. However, there are situations in which faith must override even good judgment. Sometimes responsibility requires us to move forward when judgment warns against it.

Pappy's Army

Everyone year I load up everyone who wants to go and pay their tickets to go to a Little Rock Trojans basketball game. This year we had 23 people. Lots of fun  for me.

Scrapes and scabs

I have an elderly friend who always seems to have scabs on the top of his bald head. My shins seem to be my point of injury. Ouch!

Our great lie

These days it is almost impossible that the public will get the real facts about gambling. First of all, the government sponsors it to feed their insatiable appetite for more revenue, so they have no interest in telling the truth. Second of all, government is smart enough to attach it somehow to education or some other positive endeavor to mute the criticism of it, so those who benefit in that way from it are not likely to complain. The point is that they do not care - not one whit - about the ill effects of gambling as long as the money keeps rolling in. Oh, of course, they have their little disclaimers about seeking professional help if you are addicted to gambling - as if that absolved them of all responsibility in the matter.

Do you suppose it is any coincidence that the only state with legalized prostitution is also the state most linked to gambling?

We have prostituted ourselves for the sake of money, money, money.

It takes courage to stand for moral right

All of us have a little coward in us, I expect, but if we do not resolve to live in a moral, upright way (as the Bible defines it), we never will accomplish it. At least, we need to give it our best effort.

Humbug!

Facebook = clutter.

Jimmy the bad guy?

You may never have seen Jimmy Stewart as the bad guy in a movie, but he was in After the Thin Man.

Thin Man

William Powell and Myrna Loy had some of the best on-film chemistry ever in this series of detective films.

Being married to mean old women

sure is hard on old men. (Just kidding, honey! just kidding, honey! just kidding, honey!)

Sherlock's conflicting wishes

Sherlock Holmes' great task in life was to fight against crime, and so he wished it would not happen. Still, at times you find him lamenting the fact that there are no cases worthy of his talents. Wish they wouldn't; wish they would.

Two boats

Bold Venture and Scarlet Queen were two radio shows based around a boat or ship. Can you think of any others?

There are such men

It may come as a shock to some people, but there are people in this world who are utterly without scruples of any kind.

I have the basic personality

of an ill-tempered rock. This admittedly presents certain difficulties in life. One thing on the plus side, though, is that the friends I have a true friends. Their affection is not because of my sparkling demeanor.

Humility, like love

The Good Book says that charity covereth a multitude of sins. Humility has a similar quality.

Neighbourly

Despite his slow start this season, it is still very evident that Will Neighbour is the one guy we have to have clicking.

Bogie and the General

My younger son has really  been getting into Humphrey Bogart and Jimmy Stewart movies here lately.

Reporting on Thanksgiving

I did moderately well on not over-eating. Not entirely successful, but better than some years.

Penmanship

I just saw an article, "Is penmanship still a skill worth teaching?" I say it is, because it teaches discipline and self-respect. Everything cannot be measured by or sacrificed to technology.

Sir Thomas Nathaniel Edwards

If anyone can establish reliably that I am kin to Sir Thomas, I would be very grateful. I have seen a few indications to that effect, but nothing I could verify.

Nicest time of day

When I was a child, one of my father's voice students sang a song that had the line, "The morning is the nicest time of day." I think the author got that one right.

We were watching an old Jimmy Stewart western

and this question occurred to me: Did they have spell check on smoke signals?

The day after Thanksgiving

This is the day on which I insist on having NO schedule.

All Stations Call

Evidently, judging from Lord Peter Wimsey, the 1920's parallel to our modern All Points Bulletin was an All Stations Call.

Cartoons, but not for children

Some of the most-beloved cartoons could only be appreciated by adults. Have you ever listened to Popeye's muttering? Hilarious, and kids would never catch it. And few children would appreciate the subtleties of Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Not always as it appears

There sometimes is a difference between that which looks organized and that which is organized.

The Fiscal Cliff - why the big deal?

It just does for politicians what they ought to have done long ago. Maybe the thing the politicians are panicking about is that they will not get credit for it.

Classical music and film music

There has been some great film music that was turned into great classical music. Perhaps the most notable example is Alexander Nevsky by Prokofiev. I have often thought that a lot more movies could make use of some of the great classical themes.

Good line from a Lord Peter Wimsey novel

"Parker was one of those methodical, painstaking people whom the world could so ill spare." True assessment, if only regarding a fictitious character.

Better be careful what you post on a blog

because it immediately comes up in a Google search.

"I am a blogger"

That just has a bad sound to it, doesn't it? Sort of like some sort of an addiction.

Heroes

I suspect most people we think of as heroes would not be heroes to us if we knew them personally. People who stand up to close personal inspection are the  real heroes.

Oscar Peterson, about Art Tatum

"The greatest pianist I have ever heard - Classical or Jazz."

Even my grandson agrees

that the organ music on the Philo Vance radio show was hugely irritating.

Babies' rapid learning

One of the really pleasing things in life is observing the intense learning process of babies, and how rapidly they progress. And it is a good thing they do progress quickly, because they have a lot to learn. (Amazing the wisdom God displayed in the design of the universe, isn't it?)

Start spending

There is a point in our lives when we need to stop saving and start spending what we have been saving to the point. The problem is that we never know when that is because we do not know how much longer we will live - unless, of course, we have saved so much that it does not matter.

I can't read it

I have a book written in Old English, but I can't read it because I can't find and old Englishman to translate it. (That's a joke, son.)

Ceridwen

This is the middle name of my second daughter and her first daughter. It is Welsh name from a character in the novel, "How Green Was My Valley" (which is a real tear jerker, by the way). In that book there were three characters with the "wen" ending to their names: Ceridwen, Ceinwen and Bronwen - all thoroughly Welsh names. I have thought they were very pretty names.

Emotions

Emotions should never be our guide. To be steered by our feelings is to governed by that which is ever changing, and that is never safe. However, how sterile our lives would be without strong emotions. God made us that way, and a life without laughter and tears is a one-dimensional figure.

One of the best lines

"Be careful how you touch her, or she'll awaken; and sleep's the only freedom that she knows."

One of the lines from the popular song "Wildflower," by the band Skylark, from 1973.

Here is a link to the complete lyrics:
http://www.wildflowersong.com/lyrics.html

Here is the song as it was originally recorded. If I remember correctly, it got to #3 on the charts about the time Pam and I were married, and will always be the song I most associate with her. (It has no special significance to her, incidentally.) Listen to it, and notice the use of a harp in the orchestration, which is very unusual for popular tunes of that day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyKXW3ioY1Q

Will I be a glutton?

How much self-control will I exercise this weekend? Discipline is one of the most valuable natural attributes we can have. I enjoy eating, but I always feel much better when I keep it under control.

Hi Ho Silver

There was just nothing quite like the introduction to The Lone Ranger. Rossini had no idea he was contributing so much to American culture.

The Lone Ranger was the guest on the Bing Crosby show in January of 1948. They did a skit in which Bing played the sheriff, Creepalong Crosby, with his sidekick, Droopalong. It was hilarious. In one spot, Crosby asks Lone, "What's that piece of rope dangling in your hand there, Ranger?" He replies, "I've either found a lasso or lost a horse."

Keep it in mind

This sounds morbid, but all our healthcare decisions need to keep in mind the fact that we ARE going to die sometime.

Not even treachery

You may have heard the expression, "Old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill." I declare that some days I am not sure that even treachery will help us.

Fried caviar

Evidently there is such a thing. Hard to imagine. I guess you can eat anything if you fry it in hog lard.

Teach them to think

Once they reach a reasonable age, do not strive to do your children's thinking for them - or at least do as little as is feasible considering your responsibilities toward them to keep them safe both physically and morally. The more you can teach them how to think correctly, both as to correct principles and proper reasoning processes, the better off they will be. A man who can think, and who actually does, is increasingly rare in this electronic age. If you teach them to think, you will have done them a favor worth more than gold.

No glory at all

Any man who finds glory in war is an utter, absolute fool.

America needs a third party - badly

As long as there are no viable third parties in this country, a lot of people will be voting for candidates they do not support. It cannot be a good system when the only way a substantial portion of the populace feel they can vote is against candidates.

Virgil Goode of the Constitutution Party

Presidential candidate. According to the party website, the state where he did best was South Dakota, with 0.65% of the vote. Not enough to be a factor. This ought to have been a good year for third parties, but it was not. The fear of President Obama made a lot of people vote for Mr. Romney who had no real enthusiasm for him.

Old-fashioned is good.

Say it over and over and over again. It might not always be right, but it won't miss very often. This old world is headed in the wrong direction at a high rate of speed.

I plight thee my troth

"I plight thee my troth," meaning "I pledge thee my faithfulness." From the traditional wedding vows. Very poetically expressed, but it is not used much today. I wish it were. I wish even more that it were strictly observed.

General Stewart

No, not Gen. J. E. B. Stuart of Confederate fame, but Brig. Gen. Jimmy Stewart (actor) of the Air Force Reserve.

Briscoe as a preacher

Denver Pyle (Briscoe Darling on the Andy Griffith Show) was the preacher in the movie Shenandoah. Just hard to picture him as one when you know him as Briscoe.

Remembering better?

I would like to see a study on it, but I am going to guess that our minds naturally retain more of what we read in a physical book than what we read on a computer screen. The reasons are probably cultural and subliminal, but nonetheless real.

Frank Nelson and Jack Benny

If you want to see some really funny outtakes, search on Youtube for Jack Benny and Frank Nelson. Hilarious.

Jack Benny TV

The early Jack Benny television shows were hilarious. They are available in collections.

One of the funniest of the Fred Allen programs

Absolutely hilarious. He crowns Jack Benny "King for a Day."

LINK

Fred MacMurray

For whatever reason, I have just never cared for him as an actor. Nothing specific, but we just never "clicked" as actor and audience.

Charles Russell as Johnny Dollar

Except for the audition broadcast with Dick Powell, Russell was the first of the Johnny Dollar actors, and he was very good. He had a little comic twist to his delivery that made it enjoyable. It reminds you just a little bit of Powell as Richard Diamond.

The episode today was about the theft of a painting of Duke Somebody, or "Who Opened the Season on Canvas-backed Dukes?"

Didn't Sydney Greenstreet have a great laugh?

He was a great actor, both on radio and in the movies.

I really did not want to go to work today

I had a lot of other things that needed doing. On the other hand, since it is time and a half, maybe I will need the money more than I think. So . . . I guess I had better go to work.

Anyone want to buy a camel?

No, I don't have one. I was just curious.

I am not a workaholic.

I admit it, especially when the job is making boxes.

Stress

Handling stress is largely a state of mind, but that does not mean it is easy to do.

Opposition needed

Every political party needs an opposition party, no matter how wrong the opposition party may be. Because inevitably a party without opposition, no matter how right it may have been, will become very wrong. Human nature.

Confusion in the ranks

Well, actually among the leadership. The Republican Party is in disarray. Not a good thing. We need a strong opposition party.

Virtual?

Human nature is such that tangible is much more satisfying than virtual.

Everybody had blue blood

One result of Hollywood's insistence that all actresses cultivate the stereotyped Boston blue  blood accent is that most characters in radio and early television, no matter what their social standing, had that accent. Everyone had blue blood.

Larry Dobkin

Dobkin was a very busy radio actor. Like many of them, he had a distinctive voice, which lent itself to criminals or psycho characters. However, he also played comic roles, such as The Saint's taxi driver sidekick, Louie.

Another quip from Digger O'Dell

"The friendly undertaker."

The Undertakers and Embalmers Life Insurance Society only has one policy: we cover you completely.

Digger's writer

Whoever wrote the script for Digger O'Dell's part on The Life of Riley radio show was a comic genius.

Considerate or polite

It is not necessary to be polite: not everyone can learn all the rules of etiquette. But you do not have to know etiquette to be considerate of others. Chewing with your mouth closed is just treating others with consideration. The Golden Rule. Thinking about others before yourself.

Never a convenience

People who expect their lives to go on conveniently as usual after they have children are fools. Children are never a convenience - a blessing, yes, but not a convenience. If you have children you are just going to have a time when your time is not your own time.

Good company?

Here is a simple question all young people ought to ask themselves before they become seriously romantically involved with someone. Did I enjoy being in the company of this person before I was romantically attracted to him/her? In other words, would I like being around the other person regardless of any social attachment. Marriage is like a small room. If you do not genuinely enjoy the other person's company, then do not marry that individual, because you are going to be trapped in that small room with him, as long as you both shall live, for better or for worse. "Do I like him?" Forget love. You need to find out about "like" first.

I have a good wife

In fact, an excellent wife. And therefore my job is about 80% done.

Stick around to see if I am right

The Republicans have a problem. Wall Street and white Southern males cannot provide them a majority. Therefore, they are going to have to change something. Whatever changes, they likely will become less of a conservative party, especially on social issues. (This has been true for a good while, but many do not want to admit it.) That means that voters who vote principally upon moral issues will be even more disenfranchised than they are now, having no candidate to vote for, since we have no viable third party.

Nick Carter movies

My wife mentioned in passing tonight how much she enjoys the old Nick Carter detective movies, starring Walter Pigeon. There were three of them. WP made a very suave detective.

The best insurance

I have tried to teach my children their responsibility to care for their mother if I die first, and I feel sure they will do their duty. The best insurance policy I could have.

Radio - we lost one

A year or so ago one of the local AM radio stations dropped Lum and Abner after having carried their programs for a number of years. That was a disappointment, as I really liked it. I suppose they lost their sponsor.

HERE is more on Lum and Abner.

How many times does it take?

How many times does it take doing something wrong before we learn better? Perhaps never, if we do not want to learn better. Perhaps never, if we know of nothing better. As the Good Book says, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." Two prerequisites for happiness: knowledge and obedience. We need to know what is right, and we need to do what is right.

Postal blues

I hope the US Post Office does not go out of business. We need it, even with electronic media. However, they deserve to go out of business. That has to be one of the most poorly-run businesses around.

Gilbert the Boy Trapper

An All-American hero evidently found only on the Lum and Abner radio program. This book seems to have had a great impact upon the lives in that community, but we never are able to learn much about Gilbert himself.

How many children do you know

who could answer this question: "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?"

(The answer, of course, is, "The Shadow knows!")

One of my all-time favorite radio quotes

Fibber McGee: "Aw, they never pay any attention to those buzzers in hospitals, but shoot a shotgun into a bed pan and they'll come running every time!"

The need for quietness

We all need some degree of emotional and mental stimulation, but I refuse to believe that a person can be completely healthy without some degree of quietness and reflection in his life. True quietness.

Hurray! A third generation

My granddaughter just emailed me and asked me to burn some Fibber McGee and Molly radio programs for them to listen to at night. Great! Wonderful entertainment for the children. Much better than the trash they will see on television.

Eleventh month, eleventh day, eleventh hour

I wonder how many students today know what the means. At one time it was the end of the War to End War. And people actually thought that. It did not take long to show how wrong that idea was, but they thought it at the time. The carnage within a narrow strip of land running across Europe was horrible.

Old-fashioned

The further I go, the more convinced I am that the fashions of this world have nothing in them. Old-fashioned things are best. We have the advantage with them, because we can look back on them and discard that which was proven to be of no value. That which was of value has shown itself. Today our problem is that we are so enamored with technology that we do not even look up from it to think. Thinking is a lost art today. And if the human race does not use its minds, we sink towards the animals.

One way we have regressed

People used to seek entertainment through means that exercised their minds. Now, largely, we seek it through means that make it possible for us not to have to use our minds. I fail to see how this can be a positive trend.

A word of warning

Children's imaginations are so vivid and their understanding so limited that it behooves us to exercise the utmost care what we put before them. Allowing electronic media to "supervise" our children is a most dangerous practice.

Stars Over Hollywood

A nice series that included original scripts. Some very nice stories that did not have to be condensed like the "movies revised for radio" series did. (We went to sleep listening to this last night.)

Effective radio advertising

My grandson, Eli, was urging his mother to buy some Kellog's Corn Pops today because he had heard them advertised on an old Wild Bill Hickock radio show.

Speaking of Jimmy Stewart on radio

He had a great radio voice because it was so expressive.

Marry a good cook

As I have said many times, marry a girl who can cook. One of these days your won't be able to see well enough to tell what she looks like anyway - but you will still like to eat.

I would guess she did not know about Booneville

The female lead of The Man From Laramie talking to Jimmy Stewart: "I know all about Daniel Boone - how many children he had - the towns that were named after him." Do you think she had heard of Booneville, Arkansas? Of course, we do not know for sure that it was named for Daniel. Some accounts have it named for a soldier named Bonneville.

The beginning of natural wisdom

is being able accurately to assess the situation. If you do not know for a fact what the reality is, you cannot know what you ought to do.

Not even a poor excuse

"I was just obeying orders" is one of the sorriest excuses ever for doing something wrong.

When you hear the phrase, "Aw, shucks!"

Jimmy Stewart is who comes to mind.

Gen. Petraeus. I may be overly hard-nosed,

but I figure if a man will cheat on his wife he might also cheat on his country. A vow is a vow, whether it is to love until death us do part, or to uphold and defend the Constitution.

You'll never guess Jimmy Stewart's middle name

Maitland

Old Radio Shows and Homeschooling

My wife and I raised six children, homeschooling them for most of their school lives. We also raised them without television. One of the things parents constantly face who try to limit the influence of modern entertainment upon their children is how to give them some sort of wholesome entertainment that does not contain all the objectionable features of modern media. One of the main ways we provided this was through old radio shows.

There is a huge body of radio shows that are available today for free downloading. They ran from the 1930's into the early 1960's. A couple of the main ones are:
http://archive.org/details/oldtimeradio
http://www.otrrlibrary.org/index.html

The quality of the shows varies greatly, of course, but many of them are really well done and extremely entertaining. In fact, this is a entire body of largely-forgotten entertainment that was an integral part of our nation's history, especially in the Great Depression and World War II.

Two of the main advantages of radio shows are the information they give about the lifestyles of our fathers, particularly the World War II generation, and the fact that they engage the minds of the listeners to a much higher degree than visual media. The hearer must use the eye of his mind to picture what is happening.

Any time we took a trip, we played radio shows the whole way, and believe me, it made the journey much easier to have Fibber McGee or Johnny Dollar traveling with you. The kids were quiet, and the adults also were entertained. Miles go much quicker with old radio shows.

After the children left home, my wife and I have continued to collect radio shows. In fact, we always play one when we go to bed, and have found them to be an excellent "sleeping pill."

I have become a bona fide old radio show enthusiast. Parents who are trying to raise children with the values that our grandparents had (but sadly have disappeared) should investigate them as a major resource. I highly recommend them.

Lux Radio

The series of movie transcriptions for radio sponsored by Lux soap was one of the best programs on radio, and it ran a long time. When we were listening to them initially, that was one of the things that got us also collecting old movies.

Steak, not sizzle

One advantage that non-tech people like me have is that people know that whatever you have will be real, not virtual. If you enjoy this blog, it will be because of what is said, not because of how it is presented.

One last chance to study them

A friend of mine once said (and I agree with him) that there is a distinct line drawn across the society of the United States between those who remember and those who do not remember the Great Depression. Perhaps more than any other event in the lives of those let living, that great economic hole molded the characters and the thinking of an entire generation of people - and had a profound effect even further along than that.

Those who remember the Depression are now in their 80's, and the number of them still thinking clearly is diminishing at a rapid pace. To learn what they learned would be a tremendous benefit to us, and our window of opportunity is fast closing. If you know one of them, I counsel you to talk to him and "pick his brain" while you can.

Oh, my aching back!

Old men and chain saws ought not to be allowed on the same property.

One way radio had it

One place that radio had it over visual media is that the actors/actresses made it on talent, not on looks. Granted, that talent did not include that of facial expressions or movements, but at least it was talent. In the visual era, so may make it on looks alone, or at least largely looks.

They faded after radio

I wonder how many actors who were prominent in radio did not make it in TV and the movies, at least not nearly in as big a way.

Betty Lou Gerson was a very busy actress on radio. Her sultry voice made her a favorite as sophisticated characters. However, she was not a raving beauty, and while she was in a few movies, she never made it big there. The same for Bob Bailey, who was a heart-throb audibly as Johnny Dollar, but not visually - and so he never made it in films. The same for William Conrad, who starred in the long-running Gunsmoke radio show, but was not picked to be Matt Dillon on TV because he was short and stout. No doubt many more could be added.

The exceptions were the actors who were not leading men or ladies on radio, but who were character actors there and also on film. It did not matter so much what they looked like, so they just moved right over into the other media.

Provision for the body

We must make provision for the body. Meals have to be cooked, or we will have nothing to eat. We are told, however, not to make provision for the flesh, or for our sinful natures. That is a difficult task, as that nature always cries out to be supplied. We will be happier, however, if we let it starve.

Thorn

I just got a thorn point out of my finger which had been there for four days. I was glad to be rid of it. The apostle Paul never did get rid of his.

It keeps us humble

Looking at ourselves in the mirror first thing in the morning reminds us that we are not such great things after all.

What is done is done

We cannot change past conduct in our lives. What is done is done. Where possible (and it is not always possible) we can attempt to mitigate the effects of our misconduct, but we cannot change it. "Learning from our mistakes" is good, but it is a poor second-best to listening to our elders and learning from them and doing things right to start with. All the learning from our past conduct that we could do cannot remove scars.

If you cannot read this blog for the wisdom

it might contain, then read it just out of curiosity to see how stupid I really  can be.

Lt. Ybarra

Of all the many police officers who were regulars on radio detective shows, probably the most professional and no-nonsense was Lt. Ybarra on Philip Marlowe. Whereas many policemen were parodied on these shows, Ybarra was allowed to be the prototype of an efficient, honest policeman.

You can tell it is just party politics

when people have little use for a candidate during the primaries, but then suddenly he is THE MAN in the general election.

Opera - contrasts

Operas have some of the greatest music ever written, and some of the most boring - even in famous operas. But, of course, the boring parts provided opportunity for naps.

Maybe this is why it has no taste

1. When you get the table set, stop setting it, and sit down to eat.

2. When you get to the straightaway - sprint!

3. There is a point when there is enough food in your mouth. That is when you need to start chewing.

Sleep - I'll say it again

Take a Melatonin tablet, and listen to old radio shows when you go to bed, and you will be amazed how much easier you sleep.

Radio detectives and old movies

Any fan of radio show detectives also needs to be acquainted with the movies from the same period about the same characters. Frequently the actors were different, and thus characters changed somewhat; but it is interesting to make comparisons, pro and con.

A Case for Dr. Morelle

This is an interesting series about a doctor/detective. The lead character is played by Cecil Parker, whom you might remember as the suave villian on The Saint's Vacation (1941).

Small town distinction on radio

Mena and Mount Ida are two of only a few real-life truly small towns to be referenced in network radio shows. Lum and Abner, of course.

Want to sound hoity-toity?

Just don't sound your R's (or maybe I should say your Ah's). Radio actors affected that sound all the time.

Sunrises

Artists need to paint more sunrises and sunsets. Just had to beat as subject matter.

Crime and Peter Chambers

This was a well-done radio detective series. It had all the usual features - a police lieutenant who was a close friend of Chambers, a beautiful dame in each episode (who was either in distress or the criminal), and lots of hard-boiled action.

Rochester

Eddie "Rochester" Anderson had to have been one of the funniest characters on radio. He was hugely talented, and really was the star of the Jack Benny show from a comedy standpoint. Just a hilarious character.

If you want to get your blood stirred

on the way to work, just listen to a good recording of the final movement of Saint-Saens' Third Symphony (the "Organ").  It will make you want to join the army, confound the heathen and salute the flag.

I think I have commented before that brings back a lot of memories to me. While I was at Arkansas Tech, they got a transcription for symphonic band of that movement, and Dr. Rolland Shaw played the big pipe organ in the concert hall.

My dress code

My dress code is very simple. Approximately 30 minutes after we were married my wife informed me in no uncertain terms that I was not ever - under any circumstances - to buy clothing unless she was present to "guide" the selection. Her opinion was that whatever little taste I had was abominable. Alas, I am a sartorial slave.

I have to do better on my post topics

I try to get too cutesy and abbreviated, which does not indicate the content. (Imagine my using "cutesy" about myself!) All that, of course, assumes that there is anything worthy of the word "content" contained in these posts.

The Republicans' problem

Just looking at it objectively as someone who does not care one way or the other, the Republicans have a real public relations problem. No matter how they try to posture, they come across as a party of rude, obnoxious, self-serving men whose main concerns are to have their own way and get rich doing it. In other words, Rush Limbaugh has become the face of the party. They have lost the gentle eloquence of Ronald Reagan and have again become Wall Street with some Southern beer-drinking rudeness thrown in.

We are talking here, not about what they may or may not be, but about how they are perceived. They ought to have blown Mr. Obama out of the water, and instead ended up botching what should have been an easy win. There is a lot of work to be done, boys. You shot off ALL your toes in this one.

Mixtures of joys and sorrows

Happy that Mr. Romney was defeated. Sad indeed that it was Mr. Obama that defeated him.

They don't get it - but it is true

The Republicans will bemoan Mr. Obama's abuse of executive power for all extra-legislative things he does in the next four years; then they will forget all about it when their man gets into power and the Democrats will start the moaming. However, they will be right. The President of the U.S. has far too much power for unilateral action. That is one thing about our system that needs to be fixed - and quickly - but probably will not be fixed because the party in power does not want to fix it - at least as long as it is in power.

Easy does it

Old guys can get a good bit done if they are able to work at their own pace and take breaks when they need them.

This blog is not fancy, and pretty boring

But then I am not fancy, and pretty boring. I have often said that I have the personality of an ill-tempered rock.

Just take a deep breath, everyone

America has had bad Presidents before - quite frequently, in fact - almost constantly, in fact. And we have the advantage of a divided Congress.

Whatever we have is far better than we deserve, so just smile, thank God for His forbearance and mercy, and go about our business in a country that is STILL the safest, the most free and the most prosperous in the world.

Oh my aching back!

Chain saws and 59-year-old men do not go together. I am sure there are exceptions, but I am not one of them.

Pleasant evening

spent watching a basketball game, and then home to watch some old TV westerns with Jason.

Garner

Maverick was the first big break for actor James Garner. Almost immediately it made him a household name.

Grandchildren (for those not in a position to know)

My header says, "Grandfather of an increasing number." The number is up to 14 so far. By today's standards that seems like quite a few, but my parents have 22 grandchildren, and I was one of 32. Numbers going down as time goes by.

I actually know a man in Georgia whose father was one of 45 grandchildren, from three men, all of whom lived within a three-mile radius.

Solid gold

Good deacons are worth their weight in gold. More than gold, because their worth is spiritual, not material.

Maverick

The old Maverick TV series was really well done. Jason and I recommend it.

If you like this blog

tell your friends. Nothing special. As the header says, just random thoughts from a worn-out man who was no great shakes even when he was in his prime (which was a long time ago).

Hardshell political history 101

It may seem incredible to many young Primitive Baptists that so many of their forebears within the faith have an alliance to the Democratic Party. A quick summary of political history among our people may help explain it somewhat. Until recent years, Primitive Baptists (even since before the split) have been largely favorable toward the more liberal of the political parties as measured by economic philosophies. For example, they generally supported Jefferson against Hamilton, and Andrew Jackson against his opponents. In other words, they generally supported the candidates who favored the common people as opposed to those who favored the privileged classes.

Those who are under 50 years of age may not realize that it was only with the election of Ronald Reagan that the social conservatism and fiscal conservatism were united in the same party. With the exception of Grover Cleveland and Woodrow Wilson, the political landscape from the War Between the States until the Depression was controlled by the Republican Party, and the Republican Party was the Wall Street (Rockefeller) party. Business tycoons were not overly concerned with moral issues. Social conservatism was, until Reagan, found largely in the old-style Southern Democrats. There was a fairly abrupt change in that reality about the time of the Vietnam conflict, but it has taken a much longer time for many people to realize it.

Further, those who did not live through the Depression cannot possibly imagine what a devastating thing it was. Thousands of men would have been glad to have worked for 50 cents a day if they would have found such jobs. President Roosevelt's policies may not have been (and probably were not) good economics, but men whose families are starving are not overly concerned with the niceties of economic theory. Mr. Roosevelt gave them hope, and told them, in effect, "We are not going to let you starve." As a result, he had a huge amount of good will among the common people, some of whom are now found among the older generation of Old Baptists.

Manuel Labor today

That is one of my Mexican friends, of course. It is an inside joke. Years ago when I worked at the toy company in Booneville, one of the girls in our department typed up some procedures, one of which was how to handle "manuel invoices."

I apologize in advance

Is someone who buys votes bipolar?

(buy -poll - er. Get it?)

I am so proud!

My wife let me buy a new cell phone. I are now high-tech (or something).

When you marry a mean woman

you had better be light on your feet.

Old age and infirmity

They go together. You expect one with the other. It is sad, though, when the second comes before the first. May God have mercy on those.

Old

I'll let you in on a secret: the reason old men act old is because they feel old. The reason they feel old is because they are old.

Eat your hearts out!

all you wage slaves that are having to work today. I am enjoying flaky biscuits with Canadian bacon and eggs in the middle. And getting to look at a cute lady, to boot.

And when we finally get to retire

and have time to do all that stuff, our bodies are so worn out that we can't do a lot of them.

Speaking of leisurely coffee

It certainly will be fun to be at home, under foot, in the way - in other words, wall to wall husband.

Old writings

One great value of reading old writings (as opposed to more recent productions) is not that there may not be value in the recent writings, but that time has allowed the merit and demerit of old writings to settle out so that they are more readily evident today. With new writings we are perpetually mining. With old writings we already know where the gold is hidden.

Enjoying leisurely coffee with my wife at home

I certainly am looking forward to retirement!

How you say it

That which is not particularly noteworthy may be accounted wisdom if it is expressed in the right manner.

It's OK

I am married to a mean old woman, but fortunately her aim is not very good.




(I am, of course, speaking in jest.)

The bard got it right on this one.

"Sleep that knits up the ravell'd sleeve of care." Give a man a good night's sleep, and all his problems are a little smaller.

Minority

Standing for principle is rarely a difficult thing when one is in the majority. And when one is in the minority but is in the right, the majority will almost always try to make it appear that theirs is the holy course. And because the majority controls the pen or the press, they have an easy time winning the battle for popular opinion. However, truth never has counted on popular opinion for its veracity. "That which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God."

Here's a job for you blog/Facebook picture mavens

My granddaughter Lillie somewhat resembles actress Marsha Hunt, and my granddaughter Audrey, from certain angles, resembles the legendary Dorothy Lamour. Now find pictures of each of them that illustrate the resemblance.

Simple is best

The best way to make a real, lasting impact upon anyone's life is to live in a godly, upright way. As the apostle put it, "we should live sober, righteously and godly in his present world." Anyone who has the self-discipline to do that is capable of great things. Most people in whom the grace of God lies are able to understand and recognize that.

How about this cool weather!

Feels great!

How did they do it?

When someone was making dog noise sound effects on one of the old radio shows, how did the other actors keep a straight face? Maybe they didn't.

Old-fashioned

I know it is old-fashioned and reactionary, but I still try to write letters to our overseas servicemen. I may communicate electronically, also, but I think there is something very positive about a tangible letter. Just my opinion.

Connected

There may be cases in which it is true, but my experience and observation is that being more electronically "connected" does not result in more holiness, but usually just the opposite.

Yard salesmanship

You have never been to a yard sale until you have been to one where super-salesman Eli Wayne Jones is plying his trade.

Nice present

My grandsons gave me a present of a DVD of Boris and Natasha cartoons. Wonderful! Some of the cleverest cartoons ever made. Incidentally, the talented radio actor, William Conrad, was the narrator of the carton. He played Matt Dillon and many other roles on radio, and the detective Cannon on TV.

Too late

It is a pity that wisdom usually comes at such a late age that there is no energy left to support it.

Sounds and smells

My wife and daughter are in the kitchen this morning, arguing (discussing) about various points of whatever it is they are cooking. Nice sounds and nice smells. Home.

Childhood memories

When I was in early grade school, my father taught music in the school system and often he would have to stay after school to teach voice lessons. At the time his older brother lived about two blocks from the school house, and I would walk there to wait until Daddy got through. We did not have a television at that time, so it was great fun to be able to watch The Three Stooges at Uncle Garvin's house. I also remember watching Peter Gunn, the detective series. Interesting memories.

Fixing by formula

The average Primitive Baptist today gets to attend church several times more per year than the average member a hundred years ago. Yet all my experience and research indicate that the average member today is much more ignorant of the content of the Bible than his grandfathers. We came up with our nice, neat formula that meeting more often would produce better results - that greater quantity would produce better quality. If I am correct in my assumptions, once again the best calculations of men failed to produce what we aimed at.

Towels

One ability that women seem to acquire at a fairly early age is to wrap towels neatly around their heads.

Speaking of eternal things

We often use analogies from natural things to illustrate the spiritual. But to use the fads and fashions of the world in such a way seems to me to trivialize those things - things that ought to be most holy to us.

Too much laughing

There is far too much levity in our worship services, and I am as guilty as any. Way too much laughing going on - and it is not laughing for joy, but laughing at humor. Folks, we are in the Lord's presence!

My wife has chosen new carpet

for our bedroom. Now, only a complete fool of a man gets involved in that decision, as long as it is within the budget.

Young couples, remember

You can never have "too much" storage space.

Rocky Jordan and Capt. Sam Sabaaya

Jack Moyles as Rocky Jordan and Jay Novello as Capt. Sam Sabaaya played off each other exceptionally well in the Rocky Jordan radio show. Really well done and enjoyable program.

HERE is more about Jack Moyles.

Cost of cars

I saw a billboard today with a car costing over $31,000. It reminded me that that is more than what we paid for our house originally. Time have indeed changed. Of course, I think Mom and Dad paid about $8500 for theirs.

Leichtenstein

This is a principality bordering Switzerland and Austria. Its area is about 62 square miles. (That is about 7.9 miles square.) The current monarch is Hans-Adam II Fürst von und zu Liechtenstein.

valuable DNE notable

That which is valuable in life almost always is not that which is notable. That which garners the headlines is not  that which has the real merit in life. Those who do the truly important things rarely get noticed by the media.

Time

Old guys don't necessarily know more, but they have had time to come to grips with what they do not know.

Matches up

Conservative dress usually indicates a conservative philosophy. Not always, but usually.

Very bad, but not as bad

There is nothing to recommend being a sheep in wolf's clothing. That is a most reprehensible situation; but it is not as grievous as that of a wolf in sheep's clothing.

$ Gen

The only thing that keeps Dollar General from completely blowing Walmart out of the water is that they are too cheap to keep enough checkout clerks working. Penny wise and pound foolish. But it is typical of the short-sighted methods management many times adopts.

Which rule?

Management generally treats employees as they are required to by the law. But there is a higher law that says, "All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." It generally gets ignored.