TUESDAY TRAVELS

I went to the throwback machine for these Tuesday's Travels.

First to Miami Beach, Florida.

The year was 1968 and the event was the Republican National Convention.

While the Republicans battled over who would be their candidate, Nelson Rockefeller or Richard Nixon, I attended meetings of the North Dakota delegation which I was covering and spent idle afternoons at my hotel's bar on the swimming pool deck overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

Not a bad gig.

And you can save your comments about the turtleneck and the Nehru jacket.

I've heard 'em all before and it was the style of the day.

I generally avoided the convention hall after the first day though I do remember standing at the base of the podium on the final day staring straight up at Nixon as he delivered his acceptance speech.

A couple of weeks later it was on to Chicago where protesters against the Vietnam War, poverty, Mayor Richard Daley and whatever cause turned the city into what they called "an armed camp".

These nicely-garbed young ladies were posing next to Michigan Avenue in front of the Conrad Hilton Hotel, which was de facto the convention hotel.

The Avenue did turn into an armed camp as the National Guard was called out to protect against riots.

In Grant Park, across the avenue from the Hilton, protesters were allowed to mass most of the time.

While they held rallies and made speeches and listened to music and waved their banners, all was peaceful.

When they tried to march to the hotel or the convention hall they were met by the Guard and the Chicago Police Department's "thin blue line".

I got a little too close while covering a confrontation one night and walked into a cloud of tear gas.

Some of the big names of the civil rights era were also at the convention, at one point driving a mule-driven wagon through the streets.

That's the activist priest, Father Michael Groppi of Milwaukee, and civil rights marcher Ralph Abernathy in the wagon.

Here was Abernathy and one of his colleagues, Andrew Young.

And who should appear in Grant Park one day but comedian and activist Dick Gregory.

Like this year's "Bernie" surge, there was a candidate favored by the youth, Senator Eugene "Clean Gene" McCarthy.

But like this year with Bernie Sanders, he went down to defeat as the convention nominated Vice-President Hubert Humphrey to be defeated by Nixon in November.

Chicago in '68 was a whole different scene from anything this boy from the plains of the Dakotas had ever witnessed.

Hmmm, I may not have to put up a Throwback Thursday post this week.

I think I just did.

THE ARTIST

The BRD (Beautiful Rich Daughter) at home doing what she does best - artistic creation.

Over the years she has worked in a multitude of areas, from painting to stained glass to ceramics with many stops along the way.

She has shown incredible talent in each field though the pressures of running her own dental laboratory have kept her artistic output at a low level.

Along the way she has always relied on a muse in the form of her "constant companions".

This feline, known as "Mister", had better not get too close.

He may get his nose painted.

Or tickled.

HOP, SKIP, DIP AND A SIP

FRIDAY FUNNIES

After last night's speech about America struggling with the apocalypse and the Orange Knight roaring to the rescue, I think we need a lot of humor today.

Let's get to it.

(Oops, sorry. heh-heh)

(Oh, darn it. I did it again. heh-heh.)

All right, Gentle Readers, maybe that daffy dozen will help you make it through a free weekend until the Democrats begin their free-for-all on Monday in Philadelphia.

Remember, there are only 109 days left until it's all over and always keep a silly grin on your face.

The next one is for those of you who are baking in record heat waves this weekend.

Here, kitty-kitty.

GOOD DAY AT BLACK ROCK

Well actually it wasn't Black Rock, it was Black Canyon City.

And actually it wasn't Black Canyon City per se but a sort of a "suburb" known as Rock Springs.

Wednesday in Rock Springs meant lunch at the famed Rock Springs Cafe, the home of myriad pies.

My dining companions were a couple of former colleagues at The Dozen . . . KPNX-TV Channel 12 in Phoenix.

Two legends in their own minds times, Steve Torbeck and Lew Ruggiero.

I worked with Steve as a young photographer from Tucson who arrived just a tad later than I did. He eventually worked his way into doing a feature called 12 Country where he wrote, photographed, produced and voiced stories from around Arizona.

As he once described it "a poor man's Charles Kuralt".

Lew came as an assignment editor but like Steve he took to the street becoming probably the best television reporter Phoenix had and has ever seen.

They're both long retired from The Dozen, as am I.

Come to think of it, I'm not sure why they even agreed to meet me for lunch.

But the sandwiches were great, as were the pies from this House of Pies (although Steve didn't have any) and the conversation was, as always, trenchant and acerbic.

Good time with old long-time friends.

WHAT AILS FOX?

The embattled CEO of Fox News, Roger Ailes, has been forced out of his job over sexual harassment charges.

Reportedly he'll leave at the end of this week.

BUT.

He apparently will be leaving with a 40 million dollar Golden Parachute, health care for life, security for another six months and an agreement from the Murdochs that they'll pay up if he loses the case Gretchen Carlson filed against him.

Plus he reportedly will continue to "assist" Fox News as a "consultant."

I wonder what this old Nixon hand has on the Murdoch family that would result in that kind of a payoff.

And Melania Trump's speech last night at the Republican convention contained several phrases that mirrored those delivered by Michelle Obama at the Democratic convention in 2008.

Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort said Hillary Clinton was responsible for bringing the plagiarism similarities to light.

She wasn't.

Former campaign chairman Corey Lewandowski said on the air of his new employer, CNN, that Manafort should resign.

Meantime Angie Holan, the editor of the Pulitzer Prize winning Politifact had this to say about some of last night's speeches at the GOP gathering:

We found inaccurate claims that Clinton supports the Trans

Pacific Partnership (Mostly False), that she is for open borders

(False) and that 350,000 people illegally cross the U.S. border

every year (False).  We also rated this blast from the past -- the

claim from the actor and convention speaker Antonio Sabato Jr.

that President Barack Obama is a Muslim. Pants on Fire!

One can only wonder, how long can this go on while the party's candidate for President refers to Mrs. Clinton as "a liar."

(And people wonder why I don't blog about politics.)

MONDAY, MONDAY

I had entertained the idea of not blogging today because of a lack of anything to blog about.

Not about police shootings, not about Donald Trump or the Republican convention, not about the various birds that have decided Monday is a perfect day for bathing outside my window.

But then Lori from Seattle came through with a page of links to humor, videos, pictures.

This is one of the stories:

A couple who work at the circus go to an adoption agency.
 
Social workers there raise doubts about their suitability as parents.
 
The couple produce photos of their 45 foot Class A Prevost coach, which is equipped with a beautiful nursery.
 
The social workers then are doubtful about the education that the child would receive.
 
"We've arranged for a full-time tutor who will teach the child all the usual subjects, plus French and Mandarin languages and computer skills."
 
Still, the social workers have doubts about raising a child in a circus environment.
 
"We have arranged for a nanny who is an expert in pediatric welfare and diet."
 
Finally, the social workers are satisfied.
 
The adoption agency asks, "What age child are you hoping to adopt?"
 
"It doesn't really matter, as long as he fits in the cannon"