This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme

My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2025 the theme is a random assemblage of things that are on my mind--or that just pop into my mind. Whatever! Let's just say I'll be "Tossing It Out" for your entertainment or however it is you perceive these things.

Monday, September 2, 2013

Too Much Work on Labor Day

English: A McDonald's Big Mac hamburger, as bo...
English: A McDonald's Big Mac hamburger, as bought in the United States. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
   
     Since it's Labor Day I'm going to limit my work here and keep things short.  Seems unlikely for me since I often tend to ramble on and create more work for myself with long involved posts about big topics. And when I work to create long posts then my readers have to work more to read them.  Then if they are going to leave a decent comment they have work at thinking about the topic and writing the comment.  Yes--work, work, work!

          Wouldn't it seem more appropriate to call Labor Day "Laborers' Day"?   After all the day is in honor of the workers and not the work they do.  Actually Labor Day used to be mostly a union celebration with parades and speeches that touted unionism.   Now unions are less of a big deal to most of us.  Kind of a necessary evil if that's what is required in our workplace.  As long as the dues are taken out of our paychecks, the union doesn't care about individual workers that much and the workers would rather just have a day when they don't have to work and can go to the beach or do something fun.   Or maybe work around the house.  Oh, that's a load of fun isn't it.  Taking a day off from work in order to work.

         Perhaps unemployed and retired people like myself shouldn't be entitled to celebrate Labor Day.  Then again who's celebrating?  Not me.  On my current meager income I can't afford to do much celebrating.  I'll probably be here at home doing the same puttering about that I usually do.  Yippee!  That's my celebration.

         Now the fast food workers want $15 an hour.  Well, the unions want them to get it at least.  I'm sure the fast food workers would like $15 an hour, but I seriously doubt they organized themselves to demonstrate for a pay raise.  That was union shenanigans and union shills were mostly who was on the picket lines.  Fast food workers were mostly too busy just trying to make a buck so they could scrape by another day.

         I'd love to see them all make $15 an hour, but I don't want to pay $10 for a stupid Big Mac either.  There's economics at play here, but that's a topic for another day and another long post.  Or maybe even a series of posts.  Oh, those posts will probably come eventually, but not today.  That's too much work for a day that celebrates work.

         Besides, who's really reading many blog posts today.  Other than me of course.  Most people are probably having cook-outs, sitting in cool darkened movie theaters, or getting a cultural education at art museums.  Yeah, I'm sure those art museums are absolutely bustling.

         I'm going to cut this blog post short.  I know it's not really all that short, but it could have been a lot longer, believe me.  If you are a regular reader here I'm sure you do believe me.  But yes, I'm going to cut the post short because I'm tired and this is a lot of work.   Too much work on a day in honor of work.  Maybe I'll go take a nap because I'm tired.  First though maybe I'll go to McDonald's to get something to eat while Big Macs and fries are still relatively cheap enough for me to afford them.

          Then I'll go home and take a nap.  I'll dream about making $15 an hour at McDonald's.  I wonder if workers there get free food?  $15 an hour, free hamburgers, and Obamacare sounds almost like a Utopian socialistic dream.  Who could ask for more?  Well, the union of course, but I'm not going there today.

        What do you like to do on Labor Day?   Are you in a union?   Have you ever worked in a fast food establishment?   Would you pay $10 for a Big Mac?   Do you pay $5  for a coffee at Starbucks?

       
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Friday, August 30, 2013

Battle of the Bands: I'm Jumping in the Song River for Round 3

And Now for the Friday Night Fights
   
         This is round three of the Battle of the Bands.  I missed rounds one and two but when I saw this going on I just had to dive in--I love this music stuff as you regular readers may be aware.  If you're wondering what I'm even talking about you can check my original announcement or you can go directly to the source at Faraway Series and Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends.   In fact you need to go to those sites to see who the other contenders doing battle are.  Then you vote your opinion.  Don't forget there are prizes at stake.

Here's the Deal

        Let me explain more about this.  On (or around) the first and fifteenth of each month we who are participating will post our selected match-ups.   In the comments readers will vote for their favorite versions of each song.  Be sure to give us your reason for voting on the selection you have chosen.  Then on (or about) the 7th and 21st of each month we who have participated in the BOTB posts will announce the vote tally and tell you our own personal choices.   Easy enough, right?

        Why should you vote?  Here's Stephen T McCarthy's explanation: Every 4 months there will be a new compact disc winner. In other words, ‘Battle Of The Bands’ #1 was posted on August 1, 2013, so at the end of November, one of you lucky voters is going to win a CD that includes one of the songs we’ve featured in our ‘Battle Of The Bands’ installments (you get to choose, and it doesn’t matter if the song won or lost its battle – if you like it, it’s YOURS!)

        Stephen at Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends is monitoring the contest so be sure to vote at his site. And Faraway Eyes at Faraway Series put together this whole extravaganza so be sure to visit her site as well. 

          So on with my part of the show!   Here are my contenders:

Neil Young "Down by the River" (1969)

         This classic song is from prolific songwriter/music artist Neil Young's  second album.   In his sophomore solo effort Young was backed by Crazy Horse, a band made up of most of the members of Los Angeles based group The Rockets.  I probably don't have to say much about the artist or the song since most of you are probably familiar with both.

         Take a listen...




McKendree Spring "Down by the River" (1972)

        McKendree Spring appeared on the music scene in 1969, but I didn't pick up on them until they had released their third album in 1972.   When I noted that they were covering one of my favorite songs by Neil Young and had a violin player in their line up, I decided that this was an album that I had to own.  I was not disappointed.  Their albums frequently include cover versions.

         Lamentably, the third album is the only McKendree Spring album I've ever owned and the only one that I'm familiar with.  Since Amazon and other internet purveyors were not around yet, finding the Spring albums was not always easy.  Back then I rarely ordered albums in record stores and music buying was mostly an impulse thing for me.  If I had seen other Spring albums at times when I had the money on hand, I would have probably picked them up.

        This group is still together and has a few recent recordings.  They apparently still play on occasion.  You can find more about them at the McKendree Spring website.

         Here's their version...





Now It's Your Turn

        Please vote for your favorite version in my comment section.  Then go to the blogs of Stephen and Faraway Eyes  to vote for their contenders.   Your votes will be kept on record for the final tally.

         You may win a CD!

          If  you want to join in and post your own battle we welcome you to do so.  Let us know in the comment section that you are adding your own match ups.   It's not a blogfest officially, but it's kind of like one.  If you're joining us then be sure to link to the three blogs that are in the contest (mine, Faraway Eyes, and Stephen T McCarthy) so readers will know what's going on and join in on the contest.  I've already heard that Alex J Cavanaugh is doing a battle on his site.

          Don't forget to come back on September 7th (or the case of Tossing It Out Friday September 6th) to see which version readers preferred and why I chose my personal favorite.

           Which version do you prefer?   Why do you prefer this version?   Had you previously heard of McKendree Spring?


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Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Ask Arlee: 30 questions about music


       Here's a fun thing that I found at Mitch Mitchell's I'm Just Sharing...,  You may even want to do this one at your own blog since it's an entertaining good time.  Mitch says that for him "it started with this guy Lamarr Wilson who mentioned that he saw a Tumblr post of someone (he mentions the guy but didn’t link to it) who had 30 questions on music and that he wanted to answer some of them for his video post. He tackled 10 of them, doing a bit of performing for each of them as well.  There's also a video of a lady named Tomeka Haywood who did a video response to Lamarr’s video."

        In my list I've included links to the songs.  Click on the song title if you want to hear the song.  Of course it would probably take a couple hours to listen to them all, but you didn't have anything else to do did you?  If you do your own list, be sure to let me know so I can come to check it out.

        Music Asks:   

1: A song you like with a color in the title  "Green Eyed Lady" by Sugarloaf


2: A song you like with a number in the title "99 1/2 (Won't Do)"  CCR version is my favorite.


3: A song that reminds you of summertime  "Summer in the City"  Lovin' Spoonful


4: A song that reminds you of someone you would rather forget about  There's no one in my life history that I want to forget about, but there are people who have left me with negative feelings.  A song that I might relate to this is "Hold Me Now" by the Thompson Twins


5: A song that needs to be played LOUD  Anything by Led Zeppelin.   I'll go with "Dancing Days"


6: A song that makes you want to dance  You'll probably never find me doing it, but I love those big choreographed productions of Michael Jackson's "Thriller".   There must be hundreds of these flash mob videos on YouTube.  I've linked to one that was done by a dance academy in New Orleans.


7: A song to drive to   "Radar Love" by Golden Earring


8: A song about drugs or alcohol  "Pills Blues"  The Rockets (the group that later became Neil Young's back-up group Crazy Horse). 


9: A song that makes you happy  "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys


10: A song that makes you sad  "When I Fall in Love" The version I've linked to is the wistful rendition done by Nat King Cole.  It's a beautiful romantic song, but it makes me kind of sad.  The expectations we have about love are often idealized and don't turn out like we dreamed about in another time.


11: A song that you never get tired of   I'm a big fan of Neil Young's music.  I've yet to tire of hearing "Cinnamon Girl".  


12: A song from your preteen years    "The Wayward Wind" by Gogi Grant.  


13: One of your favorite 80’s songs   Parachute Club - "Sexual Intelligence" (1985)


14: A song that you would love played at your wedding  "A Rover Reformed/A Fine Companion"  Traditional  English fiddle tunes.  Actually this was played as the processional entrance of the bride and wedding party at my second marriage.  It was played by two of my friends on guitar accompanying me on the fiddle.  The clip is not us playing, but it sounds very much how we sounded.  Yes, I played at my own wedding.


15: A song that is a cover by another artist  Before I understood who Bob Dylan was I started hearing his songs covered by other artists.  I especially liked Johnny Cash's version of "It Ain't Me Babe".   Be sure to see the announcement at the end of this post about The Battle of the Bands!


16: One of your favorite classical songs  "Je Crois Entendre Encore" by Georges Bizet from his opera "The Pearl Fishers".   In the clip I've linked to the song is beautifully performed by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour.  This gives me chills every time I hear it.


17: A song that you would sing a duet with on karaoke   Not sure this would happen again, but actually I did sing "Rocky Top" with my sisters at a party once.  Sometimes strange things happen.  The clip I've included is by the bluegrass group The Osborne Brothers who had a hit with the song back in the 60's.


18: A song from the year that you were born (1951) "Tennessee Waltz"  Patti Page.  I was born in Ohio, but after settling in East Tennessee during my high school years I've always considered that state my home.  I still do even though I currently live in Los Angeles.

19: A song that makes you think about life  "In My Life" by The Beatles.


20: A song that has many meanings to you  "Como Te Extraño Mi Amor"  I guess I'd have to look up the lyrics to recall exactly what they mean, but the song itself represents a period of transition, a span of changing outlook, and a recording I enjoy hearing.


21: A favorite song with a person’s name in the title   "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" by Crosby, Still, and Nash. 


22: A song that moves you forward  "You'll Never Walk Alone" from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel, performed in this clip by the 60's group Gerry and the Pacemakers.


23: A song that you think everybody should listen to  "What About the Bond?"  by Bruce Cockburn should especially be listened to by anyone contemplating marriage or divorce.


24: A song by a band you wish were still together    The New York Rock and Roll Ensemble was an eclectic band that had infinite possibilities.  They combined mostly rock and classical but had the potential for creating so much more.  They were musicians of high caliber.   Here's a clip of them performing "Gravedigger".  


25: A song by an artist no longer living   Jim Morrison of the Doors performing Kurt Weill's "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)"


26: A song that makes you want to fall in love  "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green.  Wow!  How cool could a song be?   


27: A song that breaks your heart   "Cry Me a River" Julie London (or anyone except Joe Cocker who makes me cry for other reasons).


28: A song by an artist with a voice that you love   Greg X Volz singing Aerosmith's "Dream On"


29: A song that you remember from your childhood  "The Face from Outer Space"  Jeff Barry  --I used to love silly novelty songs.  I still remember seeing this performed on some TV variety show.


30: A song that reminds you of yourself  "On The Road Again"  Willie Nelson.  Yeah, I can relate to this song for sure.
  
And now it's your turn if you'd like to play along...

        Be sure to visit this coming Friday as I participate in the Battle of the Bands.  For more information and additional links see my Battle of the Bands post.

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