The anonymity of the internet means many things to different people, or different things to many people. For professional reasons, and not because I'm advocating the overthrow of the government, I prefer to maintain my privacy. If anyone wanted to challenge something I've written in person, I'd be open to that, provided there were safeguards in place.
Still, I think the few souls that actually follow me are entitled to learn something about me, even if what I have to disclose is either silly or insignificant. Some of what I'll post below I may even have let slip in other blogposts. So be it.
-- I am not affiliated with any political party. I am a Marxist: I'd never join a club that would have me as a member.
-- If I weren't an attorney, my dream job would be the head coach of the U.S. men's Olympic basketball team. For life.
-- If I weren't practicing in this particular field of the law, I'd love to be an intellectual property or constitutional law attorney.
-- I have a unicorn hair. You'd have to see it to understand. My hairline is about an inch beyond where this one hair continues to grow in the upper middle of my forehead. It's weird.
-- I prefer mountains to beaches. My perfect beach is secluded, down below high ground.
-- One time in Chicago, on the lakefront, I was able to ride my bike up to 36 mph.
-- I own two Hoberman spheres. I don't know why, but they fascinate me.
-- Karen would tell you otherwise, but I can't do laundry. I mean, I try, but it's always done wrong. She says it's because I don't want to do it. I say all the different settings and requirements for different clothing confuses the stuffing out of me.
-- Los Angeles holds no appeal for me. Las Vegas holds even less appeal for me.
-- I enjoy Irish bulls. And chiasmus.
-- As I've gotten older, it's gotten worse, but my handwriting is almost effeminate.
-- I can't think of a Pink Floyd song that I like.
-- Country pork ribs are my favorite ribs.
-- If it weren't for Bupkes, I'd have a game of Axis & Allies set up in the basement. He'd view it as an invitation to play with pieces.
-- I prefer unsweetened tea. Sweet tea is disgusting. Peach or lemon iced tea isn't bad, though.
-- I don't like to use blue ink pens, and I prefer fine nibs to medium nibs on fountain pens.
-- I don't like much candy beyond chocolate, and even then, I'm not much into frou-frou chocolate.
-- If I could, I'd wear my hair really short.
-- The season I'm least fond of is summer.
-- Twenty-five more days....
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Friday, April 28, 2017
Friday, April 21, 2017
Random Thoughts -- Political Division
I went non-political first, so here are my random political thoughts:
-- Someone must be paying Susan Rice a ton of money for being such a public liar. I mean, this women is shameless when it comes to touting the party line. But she's so accomplished, so practiced. If I knew that what I was spewing was pure hogwash, I'd be smirking. This woman's a sphinx. So she is either the most clueless person in the world, the best-paid liar we've seen or such a dedicated party member that dead and buried Soviets are standing in their graves and applauding her.
-- I hate that the Republicans used the nuclear option to get Justice Gorsuch on the SCOTUS bench. He's eminently qualified, and I think the Democrats did the country a disservice by opposing the nomination of such an accomplished jurist by trying to paint him as an unrelenting ideologue.
-- By the same token, I think Republicans blew it by not putting Merrick Garland up for consideration during that last year of the Obama administration. Judge Garland is already sixty-four-years-old. Had he been approved by the Senate, he might have lasted ten years on the bench, fifteen at most. To hardcore conservatives, that was completely unacceptable. The trouble with that is thinking is that Judge Garland had already issued an opinion against the Obama administration. He was far from a leftist ideologue.
-- One last note on this SCOTUS stuff: The Democrats really blew it. By pushing the Republicans to go nuclear, that ensured a conservative court -- barring another Earl Warren conversion -- for the next fifty years, probably; well, at least forty. With Justice Gorsuch on the bench and the likely retirements of Justices Thomas, Breyer and Bader Ginsberg, if President Trump gets to nominate their replacements the conservatives would outnumber their liberal counterparts at least six to three. Sure, justices cross over sometimes, but just looking at the lineup, the Democrats will rue the day they pushed their luck.
-- People need to remember that the First Amendment does not protect all speech. For example, one cannot shout Fire in a crowded theater due to the potential injuries a panic might cause. Likewise, suggesting that the White House be bombed by ISIS or having pictures showing the President beheaded go beyond the pale for me. Like him or not, he's our President. Caricatures of him are tolerable, but those calls for his death or dismemberment are seditious and should be prosecuted. If nothing else, it would reinstill the notion that there are time, place and manner restrictions to the First Amendment. Irresponsible journalists and academics who believe otherwise need a lesson in Constitutional Law.
-- I'm not fan of Ann Coulter, but kudos to her for not rescheduling her speaking engagement date at UC -- Berkeley. Officials wanted her to move it to a week when students were off. She refused. No matter how you color it, that was an attempt to chill free speech by removing her audience.
-- So Gayle King, an anchor with the CBS This Morning Show, goes vacationing with her best friend Oprah Winfrey and the Obamas. Yet, we're supposed to believe in an impartial fourth estate?
-- And Bill O'Reilly is out at Fox. Good. I couldn't stand him. Is Tucker Carlson the heir apparent? And who woulda thunk that a mere four months into the Trump administration, both Megyn Kelly and Bill O'Reilly would be out at Fox?
-- I understand what Antifa means, I think, but what exactly is it that it's fighting?
-- Are people that seriously affected by Donald Trump's election that they're depressed? I want to know what exactly he's actually done that's depressed them so personally.
-- When the Patriots visited the White House, several players declined the invitation in protest over the President's policies. This was noted solemnly by the MSM, presumably to show the inherent patriotism in the players' stances. When President Obama was in the White House, several players on championship teams also refused the invitation. If their absence was mentioned at all, it was seen as disrespectful. Hypocrisy, much?
-- Keep an eye on Nikki Haley and Joni Ernst. Anyone looking for a viable female POTUS candidate should check them out.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
-- Someone must be paying Susan Rice a ton of money for being such a public liar. I mean, this women is shameless when it comes to touting the party line. But she's so accomplished, so practiced. If I knew that what I was spewing was pure hogwash, I'd be smirking. This woman's a sphinx. So she is either the most clueless person in the world, the best-paid liar we've seen or such a dedicated party member that dead and buried Soviets are standing in their graves and applauding her.
-- I hate that the Republicans used the nuclear option to get Justice Gorsuch on the SCOTUS bench. He's eminently qualified, and I think the Democrats did the country a disservice by opposing the nomination of such an accomplished jurist by trying to paint him as an unrelenting ideologue.
-- By the same token, I think Republicans blew it by not putting Merrick Garland up for consideration during that last year of the Obama administration. Judge Garland is already sixty-four-years-old. Had he been approved by the Senate, he might have lasted ten years on the bench, fifteen at most. To hardcore conservatives, that was completely unacceptable. The trouble with that is thinking is that Judge Garland had already issued an opinion against the Obama administration. He was far from a leftist ideologue.
-- One last note on this SCOTUS stuff: The Democrats really blew it. By pushing the Republicans to go nuclear, that ensured a conservative court -- barring another Earl Warren conversion -- for the next fifty years, probably; well, at least forty. With Justice Gorsuch on the bench and the likely retirements of Justices Thomas, Breyer and Bader Ginsberg, if President Trump gets to nominate their replacements the conservatives would outnumber their liberal counterparts at least six to three. Sure, justices cross over sometimes, but just looking at the lineup, the Democrats will rue the day they pushed their luck.
-- People need to remember that the First Amendment does not protect all speech. For example, one cannot shout Fire in a crowded theater due to the potential injuries a panic might cause. Likewise, suggesting that the White House be bombed by ISIS or having pictures showing the President beheaded go beyond the pale for me. Like him or not, he's our President. Caricatures of him are tolerable, but those calls for his death or dismemberment are seditious and should be prosecuted. If nothing else, it would reinstill the notion that there are time, place and manner restrictions to the First Amendment. Irresponsible journalists and academics who believe otherwise need a lesson in Constitutional Law.
-- I'm not fan of Ann Coulter, but kudos to her for not rescheduling her speaking engagement date at UC -- Berkeley. Officials wanted her to move it to a week when students were off. She refused. No matter how you color it, that was an attempt to chill free speech by removing her audience.
-- So Gayle King, an anchor with the CBS This Morning Show, goes vacationing with her best friend Oprah Winfrey and the Obamas. Yet, we're supposed to believe in an impartial fourth estate?
-- And Bill O'Reilly is out at Fox. Good. I couldn't stand him. Is Tucker Carlson the heir apparent? And who woulda thunk that a mere four months into the Trump administration, both Megyn Kelly and Bill O'Reilly would be out at Fox?
-- I understand what Antifa means, I think, but what exactly is it that it's fighting?
-- Are people that seriously affected by Donald Trump's election that they're depressed? I want to know what exactly he's actually done that's depressed them so personally.
-- When the Patriots visited the White House, several players declined the invitation in protest over the President's policies. This was noted solemnly by the MSM, presumably to show the inherent patriotism in the players' stances. When President Obama was in the White House, several players on championship teams also refused the invitation. If their absence was mentioned at all, it was seen as disrespectful. Hypocrisy, much?
-- Keep an eye on Nikki Haley and Joni Ernst. Anyone looking for a viable female POTUS candidate should check them out.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Wednesday, April 19, 2017
Thank You For Your Service
Recently, there's been a spate of blogposts about how veterans are weary of people stopping them in public and thanking them for their service. As someone who does this regularly -- albeit as discreetly as possible -- I found this hard to believe.
This is going to sound bad, but I'm a military history junkie. I know war is horrible. I've read stories that would curl or straighten people's hair, depending. I've watched the snuff videos that ISIS puts out not because I'm entertained or because I have some morbid sense of adventure. I watch them to remind myself not only of the lengths man's inhumanity to man will go, but also to know my enemy. So when it comes to a background in conflict, although I never served and only once stepped foot on a U.S. military base -- Torrejon outside of Madrid, January 1, 1985; it's a long story -- because of my reading habits I am more informed that the typical civilian who isn't a professor of history.
So when I read the blogposts complaining about people approaching and thanking vets for their service, I was taken aback. I could understand if people were making a spectacle out of it, embarrassing not only the veteran but themselves with an ostentatious display of false patriotism and gratitude. But when I do this, I do this discreetly: I lean in, offer my hand and thank the veteran for his service (in truth, I think I've only been able to identify one female veteran, but it's not for want of looking. They, for some reason, don't wear the garb that readily identifies them as veterans as much as their male counterparts do). If I can tell by the hat or the shirt in which war they fought, I'll ask them where they were stationed. Because I read as much military history as I do, I follow up with a question about their assignment with some intelligence. I'm not doing this to make myself feel important or better; I want the veteran to feel appreciated, knowingly so.
One time, I was in local Speedway when I saw two young servicemen in the store. I discreetly approached the manager, told him to quietly tell the men that someone had paid their tab, and then took care of it when they'd left. I didn't make any fanfare about it (it didn't amount to much, unsurprisingly) and left the store without anyone but the manager and the cashier knowing about it.
I haven't seen other people thanking vets much. Perhaps they do it and I don't notice it. But when I do it, I do it quietly and without drawing any attention to myself. Oftentimes they're done via drive-by in an aisle or a doorway, where I reach out my hand and thank the veteran for his service. I can only remember one time when a veteran seemed less than appreciative of my gesture. But that was in Ohio, so what should I expect?
I don't know what motivations other people have when they express their gratitude to veterans, so I make no comment about that other than to say that I'm sure most people are sincere, and others just feel some weird obligation without really having any sentiment behind it.
The other day I was coming out of Wal-Mart and ran into a Marine Vietnam veteran. I offered my hand and thanked him for his service, then asked him where he'd served. He told me he was based up in Danang near the DMZ. He mentioned having rotated to Khe Sahn, so I asked him if he was there during the siege. The siege of Khe Sahn was an infamous Marine battle in which General William Westmoreland used the Marines stationed on a hilltop as bait to draw North Vietnamese forces close so they could be killed with artillery and aerial bombing. For as effective a strategy as that may have been in theory, for the Marines being used as bait it was a nightmare. I've never been west of Kansas City, but because of my reading I know about the siege of Khe Sahn. And this is what sets me apart from many people who thank veterans.
So I took the opportunity to ask Walt from P. what he thought about these blogposts.
"I can spot someone a mile away," he said. "If they're phony, I know it."
I would like to think that most veterans are this discerning. Perhaps some are just tired of being accosted by strangers in public. But I remember the time when servicemen returning from Vietnam were spit upon, harassed verbally and physically and generally treated like pariahs in our society. I think it's a small thing to thank someone for their service, especially those who served overseas.
No matter what bloggers are saying, I'm not stopping. It's a small thing to do. And if one or two of them don't like it, they're free to tell me so.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
This is going to sound bad, but I'm a military history junkie. I know war is horrible. I've read stories that would curl or straighten people's hair, depending. I've watched the snuff videos that ISIS puts out not because I'm entertained or because I have some morbid sense of adventure. I watch them to remind myself not only of the lengths man's inhumanity to man will go, but also to know my enemy. So when it comes to a background in conflict, although I never served and only once stepped foot on a U.S. military base -- Torrejon outside of Madrid, January 1, 1985; it's a long story -- because of my reading habits I am more informed that the typical civilian who isn't a professor of history.
So when I read the blogposts complaining about people approaching and thanking vets for their service, I was taken aback. I could understand if people were making a spectacle out of it, embarrassing not only the veteran but themselves with an ostentatious display of false patriotism and gratitude. But when I do this, I do this discreetly: I lean in, offer my hand and thank the veteran for his service (in truth, I think I've only been able to identify one female veteran, but it's not for want of looking. They, for some reason, don't wear the garb that readily identifies them as veterans as much as their male counterparts do). If I can tell by the hat or the shirt in which war they fought, I'll ask them where they were stationed. Because I read as much military history as I do, I follow up with a question about their assignment with some intelligence. I'm not doing this to make myself feel important or better; I want the veteran to feel appreciated, knowingly so.
One time, I was in local Speedway when I saw two young servicemen in the store. I discreetly approached the manager, told him to quietly tell the men that someone had paid their tab, and then took care of it when they'd left. I didn't make any fanfare about it (it didn't amount to much, unsurprisingly) and left the store without anyone but the manager and the cashier knowing about it.
I haven't seen other people thanking vets much. Perhaps they do it and I don't notice it. But when I do it, I do it quietly and without drawing any attention to myself. Oftentimes they're done via drive-by in an aisle or a doorway, where I reach out my hand and thank the veteran for his service. I can only remember one time when a veteran seemed less than appreciative of my gesture. But that was in Ohio, so what should I expect?
I don't know what motivations other people have when they express their gratitude to veterans, so I make no comment about that other than to say that I'm sure most people are sincere, and others just feel some weird obligation without really having any sentiment behind it.
The other day I was coming out of Wal-Mart and ran into a Marine Vietnam veteran. I offered my hand and thanked him for his service, then asked him where he'd served. He told me he was based up in Danang near the DMZ. He mentioned having rotated to Khe Sahn, so I asked him if he was there during the siege. The siege of Khe Sahn was an infamous Marine battle in which General William Westmoreland used the Marines stationed on a hilltop as bait to draw North Vietnamese forces close so they could be killed with artillery and aerial bombing. For as effective a strategy as that may have been in theory, for the Marines being used as bait it was a nightmare. I've never been west of Kansas City, but because of my reading I know about the siege of Khe Sahn. And this is what sets me apart from many people who thank veterans.
So I took the opportunity to ask Walt from P. what he thought about these blogposts.
"I can spot someone a mile away," he said. "If they're phony, I know it."
I would like to think that most veterans are this discerning. Perhaps some are just tired of being accosted by strangers in public. But I remember the time when servicemen returning from Vietnam were spit upon, harassed verbally and physically and generally treated like pariahs in our society. I think it's a small thing to thank someone for their service, especially those who served overseas.
No matter what bloggers are saying, I'm not stopping. It's a small thing to do. And if one or two of them don't like it, they're free to tell me so.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Monday, April 17, 2017
Random Thoughts -- Non-political Division
I haven't been sleeping, really. I've just been busy -- very busy. But that doesn't mean I haven't been thinking.
Here, then, are some random, non-political thoughts I've been pondering:
-- Have you ever been driving down the expressway and gotten into the left, or fast, lane, because there's a slow-moving truck in the right lane, and find yourself behind a string of cars because some dingus doesn't realize or care that he should be moving along and pass the truck before moving over to the slow lane where he belongs? I find myself swearing at the driver in the lead car and gesturing in hopeless frustration because someone's too clueless to move over to the slow lane.
-- Not all keyboards are created equal. Trust me.
-- Without a doubt, the best fast-food hamburger is made by Culver's.
-- Why would anyone dare to swim or surf in waters that are known to be shark-infested? And if one were to dare fate, what goes through his mind while the shark is munching on his body part?
-- This radio station that I've found plays all the music I went through high school and college listening to: Aerosmith, The Cars, Chicago, The Doobie Brothers, The Eagles, Heart, The Steve Miller Band, Foreigner, ZZ Top, Boston, Billy Joel...every once in awhile a song will come on that evokes memories of four decades ago. It's like a cold beer. If I haven't tasted one in awhile, the taste and scent of the beer takes me back to when Jeff, Jim, Evan and I drove around (illegally) drinking and killing time before that weekend's party. People will wonder how we survived, but the truth of the matter is we were ahead of our time: The driver never drank, and then the next night, one other guy drove and abstained while the driver of the night before drank with the other two.
-- I'm forever amused by the talking heads of network and local news. How they can turn on the pathos is amazing. We have this one woman who does the traffic in the morning who must have negotiated a heck of a deal with the station: Weekday mornings she does the traffic and at night they air specials she's done with local law enforcement who tracks down the area's most wanted and dangerous criminals. Make no mistake: This woman has about a twelve for her body and about a seven for her face, but she acts like a coquette while delivering the traffic updates. Then when she delivers her Most Wanted reports, she casts a stern look at the camera with her hair pulled back in a pony tail as she glares at the camera from behind her bulletproof vest. Seriously?
-- When eateries tout something as being grilled or cooked to perfection, just what is perfection? On a similar tack, why must I eat my beef medium raw? I can't stand how chewy medium raw is.
-- In that same vein, it cracks me up how certain reporters have go-to moves in every on-air report. A fellow bimbo of the station mentioned in the paragraph above always turns and gestures to the location in front of which she's reporting. For example, if she's talking about a daring rescue at some burning building that happened overnight, the producers will have trotted her out in the station van so she can report from the scene, and as she talks to the camera, she says something along the lines of, "And firefighters conducted a daring rescue here," and she turns and gestures at the remains of the once-burning building, a la Carol Merrill, as if we wondered why she was standing in front of a burnt-out building. Ridiculous.
-- Speaking of ridiculous, how is it that The Bachelor or The Bachelorette are still on television?
-- If last year was the year of musicians' deaths -- and it was -- this year is turning into the year of the actors' deaths. I can't remember all of the luminaries who have passed, but there have been quite a few.
-- What's up with all the Chicago-centric shows? NBC seems to have cornered the market on Chicago flavoring: Chicago Fire, Chicago Justice, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med. Trust me, folks: It's not that exciting.
-- I'm not half-bad at using the grill, but I think it's time to become better at it.
-- I've misplaced the cord to my electric razor and I can't find it. This is troubling. Karen has about thirty pairs of reading glasses and can never find one. That'...unbelievable.
-- When we grew up, there were no ads for Viagra or Cialis. I'm typing this as I listen to an ad on the radio for Noxitril, which the flack says the porn industry calls Viagra on steroids. I don't know what's worse: That it's being advertised or that I don't even blink as I hear it.
-- Thirty-six days, people, thirty-six days...
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Here, then, are some random, non-political thoughts I've been pondering:
-- Have you ever been driving down the expressway and gotten into the left, or fast, lane, because there's a slow-moving truck in the right lane, and find yourself behind a string of cars because some dingus doesn't realize or care that he should be moving along and pass the truck before moving over to the slow lane where he belongs? I find myself swearing at the driver in the lead car and gesturing in hopeless frustration because someone's too clueless to move over to the slow lane.
-- Not all keyboards are created equal. Trust me.
-- Without a doubt, the best fast-food hamburger is made by Culver's.
-- Why would anyone dare to swim or surf in waters that are known to be shark-infested? And if one were to dare fate, what goes through his mind while the shark is munching on his body part?
-- This radio station that I've found plays all the music I went through high school and college listening to: Aerosmith, The Cars, Chicago, The Doobie Brothers, The Eagles, Heart, The Steve Miller Band, Foreigner, ZZ Top, Boston, Billy Joel...every once in awhile a song will come on that evokes memories of four decades ago. It's like a cold beer. If I haven't tasted one in awhile, the taste and scent of the beer takes me back to when Jeff, Jim, Evan and I drove around (illegally) drinking and killing time before that weekend's party. People will wonder how we survived, but the truth of the matter is we were ahead of our time: The driver never drank, and then the next night, one other guy drove and abstained while the driver of the night before drank with the other two.
-- I'm forever amused by the talking heads of network and local news. How they can turn on the pathos is amazing. We have this one woman who does the traffic in the morning who must have negotiated a heck of a deal with the station: Weekday mornings she does the traffic and at night they air specials she's done with local law enforcement who tracks down the area's most wanted and dangerous criminals. Make no mistake: This woman has about a twelve for her body and about a seven for her face, but she acts like a coquette while delivering the traffic updates. Then when she delivers her Most Wanted reports, she casts a stern look at the camera with her hair pulled back in a pony tail as she glares at the camera from behind her bulletproof vest. Seriously?
-- When eateries tout something as being grilled or cooked to perfection, just what is perfection? On a similar tack, why must I eat my beef medium raw? I can't stand how chewy medium raw is.
-- In that same vein, it cracks me up how certain reporters have go-to moves in every on-air report. A fellow bimbo of the station mentioned in the paragraph above always turns and gestures to the location in front of which she's reporting. For example, if she's talking about a daring rescue at some burning building that happened overnight, the producers will have trotted her out in the station van so she can report from the scene, and as she talks to the camera, she says something along the lines of, "And firefighters conducted a daring rescue here," and she turns and gestures at the remains of the once-burning building, a la Carol Merrill, as if we wondered why she was standing in front of a burnt-out building. Ridiculous.
-- Speaking of ridiculous, how is it that The Bachelor or The Bachelorette are still on television?
-- If last year was the year of musicians' deaths -- and it was -- this year is turning into the year of the actors' deaths. I can't remember all of the luminaries who have passed, but there have been quite a few.
-- What's up with all the Chicago-centric shows? NBC seems to have cornered the market on Chicago flavoring: Chicago Fire, Chicago Justice, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med. Trust me, folks: It's not that exciting.
-- I'm not half-bad at using the grill, but I think it's time to become better at it.
-- I've misplaced the cord to my electric razor and I can't find it. This is troubling. Karen has about thirty pairs of reading glasses and can never find one. That'...unbelievable.
-- When we grew up, there were no ads for Viagra or Cialis. I'm typing this as I listen to an ad on the radio for Noxitril, which the flack says the porn industry calls Viagra on steroids. I don't know what's worse: That it's being advertised or that I don't even blink as I hear it.
-- Thirty-six days, people, thirty-six days...
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Wednesday, April 5, 2017
Rock Voices
Finally, I've found a radio station that I enjoy. When we moved to this state, I gravitated naturally to the sports talk stations, but the more I listened to them, the more I grew to dislike them, both for being overly parochial and for being insanely immature. It was like listening with frat brothers who had never grown up.
Since my car's as old as it is, I don't have Sirius radio. Karen tried to get some attachment that would allow it, but given that my car is a 2004 Volvo XC 90, satellite radio isn't compatible somehow. That leaves me to whims of local radio. Finally, after nearly four years, I found a classic rock station here that lets me listen to bands that I grew up listening to: Aerosmith, the Steve Miller Band, Fleetwood Mac, Heart, Chicago, the Eagles and others. Interestingly, I get to learn some of the lyrics to songs I only absentmindedly listened to growing up.
One thing this station does is repeat a lot of the same songs over a two-week period. Were it any other music, I might be annoyed. But since I really like this music, I enjoy it.
The Who gets played a lot (and thankfully Pink Floyd does not). I kept hearing You Better You Bet and noticed just how much Roger Daltrey gets into the lyrics. Now, I'm not opposed to listening to Mr. Daltrey; I think he has a fine rock voice. His work on this song is phenomenal. It sells the song. But I wonder whether I'd want him singing Christmas carols.
There are other rockers out there who fit into the same category. Chief among them is Janis Joplin. She sounds like a cat being tortured on a tin roof. But her voice makes the song Me and Bobby McGee. I can't imagine anyone doing it better. In the same vein is Melissa Etheridge. I would not buy an album of standards from her, but I'd listen to Come to My Window gladly. It's another perfect rock voice.
Geddy Lee soars as Rush's lead vocalist. Were he singing anything else it would be horrible, probably. Same with David Lee Roth. His is a rock voice; his forays into other genres like country did not end well.
Can anyone imagine Axl Rose singing a Christmas carol? Not me. But Welcome to the Jungle would be less if it were sung by any other artist. It sounds weird calling him and the rest of these singers artists, but in truth, they are, even if they don't sound like conventional vocalists, because what they do is art. It just so happens that in this format, I appreciate their art.
Although I'm older, I can appreciate art in various forms. Growing up, we had to listen to classical music, or show tunes, or Herb Alpert. Even though it was the Sixties, we weren't exposed to The Beatles, the Stones, the Doors or any of the counterculture artists because our parents were still stuck in the Fifties -- and not the Fifties that involved Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley. I still appreciate classical music (although I'm no fan of opera) and there are Broadway tunes I like. In fact, about the only genres I don't like are opera, gansta rap, reggae and perhaps some other stuff, but I like most mainstream genres.
I've just come to appreciate that there are voices that belong in one category or another. Not everyone can sing like Carrie Underwood or Faith Hill and do justice to both Christmas carols as well as country music. Listening to Josh Groban try to sing a heavy metal song might well prove embarrassing. But for every multitalented singer there's an Axl Rose, a Geddy Lee or a Janis Joplin who can bang out a tune that just sound right.
Thanks, Roger Daltrey.
There's no question who you are.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Since my car's as old as it is, I don't have Sirius radio. Karen tried to get some attachment that would allow it, but given that my car is a 2004 Volvo XC 90, satellite radio isn't compatible somehow. That leaves me to whims of local radio. Finally, after nearly four years, I found a classic rock station here that lets me listen to bands that I grew up listening to: Aerosmith, the Steve Miller Band, Fleetwood Mac, Heart, Chicago, the Eagles and others. Interestingly, I get to learn some of the lyrics to songs I only absentmindedly listened to growing up.
One thing this station does is repeat a lot of the same songs over a two-week period. Were it any other music, I might be annoyed. But since I really like this music, I enjoy it.
The Who gets played a lot (and thankfully Pink Floyd does not). I kept hearing You Better You Bet and noticed just how much Roger Daltrey gets into the lyrics. Now, I'm not opposed to listening to Mr. Daltrey; I think he has a fine rock voice. His work on this song is phenomenal. It sells the song. But I wonder whether I'd want him singing Christmas carols.
There are other rockers out there who fit into the same category. Chief among them is Janis Joplin. She sounds like a cat being tortured on a tin roof. But her voice makes the song Me and Bobby McGee. I can't imagine anyone doing it better. In the same vein is Melissa Etheridge. I would not buy an album of standards from her, but I'd listen to Come to My Window gladly. It's another perfect rock voice.
Geddy Lee soars as Rush's lead vocalist. Were he singing anything else it would be horrible, probably. Same with David Lee Roth. His is a rock voice; his forays into other genres like country did not end well.
Can anyone imagine Axl Rose singing a Christmas carol? Not me. But Welcome to the Jungle would be less if it were sung by any other artist. It sounds weird calling him and the rest of these singers artists, but in truth, they are, even if they don't sound like conventional vocalists, because what they do is art. It just so happens that in this format, I appreciate their art.
Although I'm older, I can appreciate art in various forms. Growing up, we had to listen to classical music, or show tunes, or Herb Alpert. Even though it was the Sixties, we weren't exposed to The Beatles, the Stones, the Doors or any of the counterculture artists because our parents were still stuck in the Fifties -- and not the Fifties that involved Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley. I still appreciate classical music (although I'm no fan of opera) and there are Broadway tunes I like. In fact, about the only genres I don't like are opera, gansta rap, reggae and perhaps some other stuff, but I like most mainstream genres.
I've just come to appreciate that there are voices that belong in one category or another. Not everyone can sing like Carrie Underwood or Faith Hill and do justice to both Christmas carols as well as country music. Listening to Josh Groban try to sing a heavy metal song might well prove embarrassing. But for every multitalented singer there's an Axl Rose, a Geddy Lee or a Janis Joplin who can bang out a tune that just sound right.
Thanks, Roger Daltrey.
There's no question who you are.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Friday, March 24, 2017
Reward and Loyalty Programs
Who doesn't like free stuff? I know I do. Yet, it's not that easy to come by. Or at least it wasn't. That was before retailers instituted what are known variously as Reward or Loyalty Programs. I am an avid user of such programs.
My attraction to R&L programs probably started in the 90's. An avid reader of military history, the forlorn Military History Book Club used to have a come-on that allowed you to buy four books for a penny each (unless otherwise noted; the exceptions were never anything I wanted) and shipping and handling, with no obligation to buy another book. I signed up, bought a bargain book or two, and then quit the club. Remarkably, a few months later, the MHBC wanted me back...for the same deal. I mean, they'd send basically the same offer as the first one, with only the language we want you back being the difference, so I signed up again. I would find the four most expensive books that I could get for a penny each -- all books that interested me -- pay the shipping and handling and then quit the club. It was like a combination of Groundhog Day and Christmas Day. This went on for a few years. I think all told I got over $1,000.00 worth of books (retail) for around $100.00 shipping and handling (plus the penny a book, of course).
As if this weren't bad enough, the venerable Book of the Month Club followed suit. So of course, never one to pass up a bargain, I signed up with BOMC...and quit...and signed up...and quit...and signed up...it was ridiculous.
Eventually, the clubs hired someone with functioning grey matter and the terms of membership were changed. No longer was there no obligation to buy a book at club prices; I haven't been a member of either club since.
So that's how I ended up getting hooked on R&L programs.
Nowadays, there are as many R&L programs as there are businesses. But not all R&L programs were created equal. Nay, I tell you. Some are downright frustrating.
Take Outback, for example. Great food, horrible R&L program. What's wrong with it? I wish I could tell you. I can't even explain it, much less benefit from it. Some programs are so chintzy that you have to spend $150.00 to get a $5.00 coupon. That's neither a Reward Program nor a Loyalty Program. That's a Tuppence Program or a Fool Program, because there's not much offered for being so stupid.
Sometimes, the programs can be really frustrating. For example, the closest Culver's was in a town about ten miles from our house, so I signed up for it and put that as my frequent Culver's. No sooner had I joined that R&L program but one opened in our home town less than a mile from our house. I called corporate, explained the problem and was assured that my hometown Culver's was now my primary sport. So the next time I got an offer for a free custard it was good only at the Culver's ten miles from my house. Luckily, I don't like custard enough to complain about it.
Chili's has a decent R&L program. The only problem is that they keep moving the goalposts. Karen and I dined there one night and saw that we had 300-odd points on our way to a free meal at 420 points. When next we returned, it was 520 points we needed. We complained to the manager, whose hands were tied (he was sympathetic). So the last couple of times we've been there we wanted to check on the Ziosk what our points balance was, only to see that we couldn't see what our balance it. I still don't know what it is.
Red Robin became frustrating because I changed my email. I doubt most people think about changing the email with which they signed up for R&L programs. I know I didn't. So a year later, when I thought about it, I couldn't remember it...and RR acted like I was asking for the nuclear launch codes when I wanted to get into my R&L profile. Believe me, I don't like endless French fries that much.
Some, though, are exceptionally run. Speedway's is so easy. Not only do I have to use my rewards card (because I can punch in a code instead) but they give free stuff away all the time. Each seventh drink is free. Right now I can earn 7,000 points if I use my card to purchase something ten times before the end of the month. Why would I want that? Because I can reduce my price per gallon at their pumps by twenty-five cents with 4250 points. That's not a bad savings on a long trip.
All told, I probably have around fifty rewards cards. My wayward brother and his even more senseless fiancée bought me a Blackhawks wallet (a wallet with an Indian head on it) as if I'd ever be caught dead using it. Since I didn't have a use for it, I decided to store all my rewards cards in it (because some programs still require the cards for benefits) and the thing is almost two inches thick. I know, it's a little sick, but I just think of all the free stuff I get by using the stupid things.
R&L programs continue to evolve, getting easier to use and offering bigger benefits. I'll keep doing it even after I qualify for the senior discount (I wonder if I can stack senior discounts with R&L programs...). It's like a game to me, almost, although sometimes it drives Karen nuts.
I'm sure once she reads this she'll curse the guys who came up with the overly generous membership offers at MHBC and BOMC. O' well.
But I do wonder where they've gone...
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
My attraction to R&L programs probably started in the 90's. An avid reader of military history, the forlorn Military History Book Club used to have a come-on that allowed you to buy four books for a penny each (unless otherwise noted; the exceptions were never anything I wanted) and shipping and handling, with no obligation to buy another book. I signed up, bought a bargain book or two, and then quit the club. Remarkably, a few months later, the MHBC wanted me back...for the same deal. I mean, they'd send basically the same offer as the first one, with only the language we want you back being the difference, so I signed up again. I would find the four most expensive books that I could get for a penny each -- all books that interested me -- pay the shipping and handling and then quit the club. It was like a combination of Groundhog Day and Christmas Day. This went on for a few years. I think all told I got over $1,000.00 worth of books (retail) for around $100.00 shipping and handling (plus the penny a book, of course).
As if this weren't bad enough, the venerable Book of the Month Club followed suit. So of course, never one to pass up a bargain, I signed up with BOMC...and quit...and signed up...and quit...and signed up...it was ridiculous.
Eventually, the clubs hired someone with functioning grey matter and the terms of membership were changed. No longer was there no obligation to buy a book at club prices; I haven't been a member of either club since.
So that's how I ended up getting hooked on R&L programs.
Nowadays, there are as many R&L programs as there are businesses. But not all R&L programs were created equal. Nay, I tell you. Some are downright frustrating.
Take Outback, for example. Great food, horrible R&L program. What's wrong with it? I wish I could tell you. I can't even explain it, much less benefit from it. Some programs are so chintzy that you have to spend $150.00 to get a $5.00 coupon. That's neither a Reward Program nor a Loyalty Program. That's a Tuppence Program or a Fool Program, because there's not much offered for being so stupid.
Sometimes, the programs can be really frustrating. For example, the closest Culver's was in a town about ten miles from our house, so I signed up for it and put that as my frequent Culver's. No sooner had I joined that R&L program but one opened in our home town less than a mile from our house. I called corporate, explained the problem and was assured that my hometown Culver's was now my primary sport. So the next time I got an offer for a free custard it was good only at the Culver's ten miles from my house. Luckily, I don't like custard enough to complain about it.
Chili's has a decent R&L program. The only problem is that they keep moving the goalposts. Karen and I dined there one night and saw that we had 300-odd points on our way to a free meal at 420 points. When next we returned, it was 520 points we needed. We complained to the manager, whose hands were tied (he was sympathetic). So the last couple of times we've been there we wanted to check on the Ziosk what our points balance was, only to see that we couldn't see what our balance it. I still don't know what it is.
Red Robin became frustrating because I changed my email. I doubt most people think about changing the email with which they signed up for R&L programs. I know I didn't. So a year later, when I thought about it, I couldn't remember it...and RR acted like I was asking for the nuclear launch codes when I wanted to get into my R&L profile. Believe me, I don't like endless French fries that much.
Some, though, are exceptionally run. Speedway's is so easy. Not only do I have to use my rewards card (because I can punch in a code instead) but they give free stuff away all the time. Each seventh drink is free. Right now I can earn 7,000 points if I use my card to purchase something ten times before the end of the month. Why would I want that? Because I can reduce my price per gallon at their pumps by twenty-five cents with 4250 points. That's not a bad savings on a long trip.
All told, I probably have around fifty rewards cards. My wayward brother and his even more senseless fiancée bought me a Blackhawks wallet (a wallet with an Indian head on it) as if I'd ever be caught dead using it. Since I didn't have a use for it, I decided to store all my rewards cards in it (because some programs still require the cards for benefits) and the thing is almost two inches thick. I know, it's a little sick, but I just think of all the free stuff I get by using the stupid things.
R&L programs continue to evolve, getting easier to use and offering bigger benefits. I'll keep doing it even after I qualify for the senior discount (I wonder if I can stack senior discounts with R&L programs...). It's like a game to me, almost, although sometimes it drives Karen nuts.
I'm sure once she reads this she'll curse the guys who came up with the overly generous membership offers at MHBC and BOMC. O' well.
But I do wonder where they've gone...
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Friday, March 3, 2017
Surgery
My absence from this blog was due to the first real surgery I've had in my life. Sure, I had a double hernia replaced when I was a month old, but how many of us remember anything from that time in our lives? I can't remember much from before I was five-years-old, although Karen remembers things from an earlier age, perhaps three-years-old. Girls, as they say, do develop faster than boys.
While I was home recuperating from this first adult surgery, I was pretty bored in between the therapy sessions designed to rehabilitate my hip. Sleep was a difficulty for the first two weeks, contrary to what some would think. Between having to be attached to a device designed to prevent blood clots from reoccurring and to ice my surgical scar and the pain of not being able to sleep comfortably on my side as is my wont, it was pretty miserable. Just recently I've begun to sleep through the night -- five weeks after the surgery.
Add to that having to use a walker, which then became a cane, and one can imagine the fun. The best part about it is that I get to do this again come May.
Despite the relative difficulties which, by the by, were far worse for Karen than for me -- I'm not the world's easiest patient simply because I don't like the thought of others having to do things for me -- I was able to take notice of some things during my recovery:
-- I love war movies. I own plenty of them. They never get old. But there are only so many war movies I can watch over a two week period. I watched the following movies during my recovery at home: Lone Survivor, Zero Dark Thirty, Sahara, We Were Soldiers, Band of Brothers, Zulu, Platoon, Gettysburg, and a few more I can't remember. I would have watched The Pacific as well if I hadn't misplaced it.
-- Carrying plates of food or glasses of beverages is possible with a walker or a cane if one practices.
-- Likewise, putting on pants or socks even with surgically repaired legs is possible is one is careful.
-- I've noticed I have a unique problem with food. No, I've actually lost weight over the past month, not gained it. But once when I went to the freezer for the ice pack for my hip, I noticed a package of sausages I'd bought before my surgery. They're still good -- Karen wouldn't eat them, but she wouldn't eat them if they were freshly made -- but for some odd reason, I'll buy food I want to eat and put it away, as if for a rainy day. We're not in wartime conditions, nor is food being rationed, so there's no logical reason not to eat it. It's as if I'm storing nuts away for the winter that never gets here. The sausages are on my menu for the weekend.
-- A few years ago, someone circulated one of those games that people with too much time on their hands devise: Thirty corporate logos that we all see everyday -- name them. Well, I've come up with a twist on this game: After sitting home watching endless hours of television, I've noticed the pharmaceutical industry could be used for the same purpose: We've seen all these drugs advertised -- Xarelto, Movantix, Osphena, Humira, Lyrica, Viagra, Eliquis, Xeljanz, Celebrex, Restasis -- but how many of can remember what the drugs are designed to treat? Unless one is taking the drug, it's unlikely someone can name with accuracy what each of these drugs is used to treat. What's more, there seem to be new drugs every week! A far more difficult test would be to list the potential side-effects accurately.
-- Having the love and support of a person whom one cherishes is humbling. Listening to Karen take over the chores while I sat on my keister, helpless, was beyond frustrating. In fact, the memory of it saddens me to my core. At the same time, I realize just how fortunate I am to have her. I think about so many people who don't have someone who, thoughtfully and selflessly, would do for them what Karen did for me. In some ways, I had two surgeries, one actual -- my hip -- and one virtual -- my heart. Everyone should be as lucky as I am.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
While I was home recuperating from this first adult surgery, I was pretty bored in between the therapy sessions designed to rehabilitate my hip. Sleep was a difficulty for the first two weeks, contrary to what some would think. Between having to be attached to a device designed to prevent blood clots from reoccurring and to ice my surgical scar and the pain of not being able to sleep comfortably on my side as is my wont, it was pretty miserable. Just recently I've begun to sleep through the night -- five weeks after the surgery.
Add to that having to use a walker, which then became a cane, and one can imagine the fun. The best part about it is that I get to do this again come May.
Despite the relative difficulties which, by the by, were far worse for Karen than for me -- I'm not the world's easiest patient simply because I don't like the thought of others having to do things for me -- I was able to take notice of some things during my recovery:
-- I love war movies. I own plenty of them. They never get old. But there are only so many war movies I can watch over a two week period. I watched the following movies during my recovery at home: Lone Survivor, Zero Dark Thirty, Sahara, We Were Soldiers, Band of Brothers, Zulu, Platoon, Gettysburg, and a few more I can't remember. I would have watched The Pacific as well if I hadn't misplaced it.
-- Carrying plates of food or glasses of beverages is possible with a walker or a cane if one practices.
-- Likewise, putting on pants or socks even with surgically repaired legs is possible is one is careful.
-- I've noticed I have a unique problem with food. No, I've actually lost weight over the past month, not gained it. But once when I went to the freezer for the ice pack for my hip, I noticed a package of sausages I'd bought before my surgery. They're still good -- Karen wouldn't eat them, but she wouldn't eat them if they were freshly made -- but for some odd reason, I'll buy food I want to eat and put it away, as if for a rainy day. We're not in wartime conditions, nor is food being rationed, so there's no logical reason not to eat it. It's as if I'm storing nuts away for the winter that never gets here. The sausages are on my menu for the weekend.
-- A few years ago, someone circulated one of those games that people with too much time on their hands devise: Thirty corporate logos that we all see everyday -- name them. Well, I've come up with a twist on this game: After sitting home watching endless hours of television, I've noticed the pharmaceutical industry could be used for the same purpose: We've seen all these drugs advertised -- Xarelto, Movantix, Osphena, Humira, Lyrica, Viagra, Eliquis, Xeljanz, Celebrex, Restasis -- but how many of can remember what the drugs are designed to treat? Unless one is taking the drug, it's unlikely someone can name with accuracy what each of these drugs is used to treat. What's more, there seem to be new drugs every week! A far more difficult test would be to list the potential side-effects accurately.
-- Having the love and support of a person whom one cherishes is humbling. Listening to Karen take over the chores while I sat on my keister, helpless, was beyond frustrating. In fact, the memory of it saddens me to my core. At the same time, I realize just how fortunate I am to have her. I think about so many people who don't have someone who, thoughtfully and selflessly, would do for them what Karen did for me. In some ways, I had two surgeries, one actual -- my hip -- and one virtual -- my heart. Everyone should be as lucky as I am.
(c) 2017 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)