SIGNS OF FALL

Last year around this time, the BRD and her Beau Jack went to a Halloween party.  She had a single pumpkin outside her front door.  When they returned from the party they found the pumpkin smashed to smithereens, probably by some disappointed trick-or-treater.  Being the BRD, she just swept the detritus off into a garden area.  This year here's what those abandoned seeds have produced.

Meanwhile over at our house the Pampas grass is really flying its freak flag these days.

That plant has grown to 7 or 8 feet tall this year.

Yes, autumn is in the air.  Even if the temperature is still climbing to the upper 80's every day.

FLORIDA STRAW POLL

The results are in from the latest Republican Straw Poll, this time in Florida.  They are as follows:

Michelle Bachmann          1.5%
Jon Huntsman                   2.26%
Newt Gingrich                    8.4%
Ron Paul                             10%
Mitt Romney                        14%
Rick Perry                             15.43%

And the winner by better than 2 to 1 over Perry in second place was . . . . . .tadatadadah!

Herman Cain with 37.11%


All of which goes to prove that Republican voters in this year of the Tea Party are stone cold crazy!

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

There are some . . . like my long-time-ago colleague Tim . . . who say "I can't watch baseball . . it's too slow."

I could say I follow my team because I'm older and slower now.  But I don't think that's true since I've been following Major League Baseball since I was around six years old.  (And that's a long time ago!)  At any rate, last night was exciting to me as my Arizona Diamondbacks beat the reigning World Champion San Francisco Giants to clinch the National League West Division title for 2011.

I watched the game on television and then what seemed like close to an hour of the team celebrating on the field, in the locker room, back on the field and finally into a group jump into the swimming pool beyond the outfield.  It brought to my mind the fact that these guys are all just boys playing a game.  Sure there are million dollar salaries among them but when a big victory comes they all act like kids.  And it's fun to see.

So, they've reached one plateau.  Next are the playoffs and if they survive them it's on to the World Series.  Only a week or so ago the team celebrated the 10th year anniversary of their biggest win as a team so far.

Could they repeat this year?  Their great manager, Kirk Gibson, didn't predict that last night but he did have a great quote: "We're a damn good team!"  Well said, Kirk.  Here's hoping.

SIGNS OF THE TIMES

FEMALE JOCKEYS

I have a long time friend from my days in broadcasting who has gone on to a successful career in video production in (Hooray for..) Hollywood.  Her name is Linda Ellman.  I got an email from her today asking that I take a look at a new project she's got underway.  I'm going to print her email here and ask you to take a look at her project.  If you can, give her some financial support.  If not, just enjoy.  Here's her e-mail with a link to a video.

Hey,


I wanted to bring you up to date on JOCK, my "League of Their Own" documentary about the pioneer female jockeys who fought for the right to ride, 40 years ago. We've got a great beginning and a great ending for the film--centered around the first ever 'Lady Legend's Race' shot last year at Pimlico. -- Now we're traveling cross country shooting the historical interviews for the middle.


Either we need to interest a network in buying a one-off or in order to complete shooting, we need to raise money. I am hoping you can help us spread the word... We have launched a Kickstarter campaign. If you haven't heard of Kickstarter, here's how it works. Click on this link and watch the NEW VIDEO that explains the film.


JOCK VIDEO


Then make a pledge. Any amount helps. It's all or nothing. If we don't reach our goal, you're not charged. If we do, we can keep filming.


The right side of the Kickstarter page shows the pledge amounts and REWARDS. Wait...rewards, yes! Lots of cool gifts.


One of the film's friends sent an email to everybody in her contacts challenging them to match her pledge... The results were great! She raised more than $1,000 in one night. If 30 people would do that...we'd reach our goal.


This is going to be a great film about women and horse racing. Anything you can do to share this request with friends, family, co-workers--anybody in the horse world would be greatly appreciated.


Best,


~Linda


Linda Ellman
President
Ellman Entertainment
1040 N. Las Palmas Ave. Bldg 26
Hollywood, Ca. 90038

Phone: 323 860-8500


www.ellmanentertainment.com

HAVE A SEAT

The BRD took us and her Beau Jack to lunch yesterday at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, Casa Bonita.  The food is good but I think the highlight of any trip there is viewing the chairs.  They come from Guadalajara, where we used to live, and are carved and colorfully painted.

EGGS 'N' SAUSAGE 'N' . . .

Sunday morning weirdness from a master of it.



Now if that's not enough, take a look at Waits' press conference hyping his Glitter and Doom tour.  (Watch it to the end for the joke.)



Now for something a little different, one of my favorite songs from the man who wrote it, performed at a tribute to the late Johnny Cash.

I WONDER . . .

. . . if there's a vaccine for ignorance.

IN OTHER WORDS . . .

Am I appreciated?  Does anyone care?  Well do they?  Witness this message in an e-mail from my old buddy, Tom, who hosts Light Breezes from over in Cal-eye-for-nee-yay.

Post something. A day without Odball Observations is like a day without Anita Bryant---no, no, like a day without either sunshine or orange juice...probably sunshine since I rarely drink oj unless it has been fortified.


how do I know the eastern perimeter of cyber west is ok if I don't see it on OO?

So, taking old Tom's urging to heart, here I am.  What have I been thinking about lately?



Actually I haven't been thinking about that all that much but I do like the song.

It's been very rainy here this week with thundershowers nearly every day.  It sort of takes me back to when I lived in Phoenix.  After about two cloudy, rainy days in a row I'd be grumbling "doesn't the sun ever shine around here?"

(You may not want to read the next part if you're a conservative Republican.  Fair warning.)

I've been contemplating the wackiness going on in the Republican party this year.  Wide-eyed Michelle Bachman, feisty Rick Perry, the man with the weird ideas Ron Paul, a pizza man (?) Herman Cain, and the formerly perennial favorite that no one seems to like anymore Mitt Romney.  I mean, lord have mercy, what a crew!  Actually I guess I was unfair to Ron Paul.  They ALL seem to have a lot of crackpot ideas.  Jon Huntsman had seemed to be the most reasonable of the bunch up until that wild-ass Tea Party debate the other night when he said Perry's statements that Social Security might be unconstitutional sounded like treason to him.  Sheesh!  It's hard to figure out where to begin analyzing this crowd.  Analysis!  Maybe that's what they all need. 

Well, nuff said.  I'll bet even old Tom will start asking me to shut up again!

Front cover of today's New York Daily News.

AND THAT'S JAZZ!

Yes, gentle readers, I've been lazy again lately.  I guess you'll just have to get used to my absences.  I've been enjoying our cooler autumn weather.  But today's post will go from cool to red hot.

Let me explain.  I had never heard of Patricia Barber before this morning.  But I discovered her on my friend Dana's blog, Bug's Eve View.  I listened to the recording there and said "Wow!"  (I encourage you to visit her blog and listen to "Let It Rain", too.)  So then I went to You Tube and found Barber and her jazz quartet performing "Norwegian Wood".  Just give a listen.  Warning: it's 10 minutes long but the drum solo at the end is well worth the wait.  So, without further ado . . .

RAIN

Finally, after what seemed like a failed monsoon season, the rain came yesterday in short but recurring thunderstorms through the afternoon and early evening.  For my friends over in drought and fire ravaged Texas then here is the sight and sound of what you need.



So far today no rain but the temperature was just above 60 degrees when I got up this morning.  It feels wonderful.

PICANTE *

Asian Peppers

* Hotter than Hell

A FACE IN THE CLOUDS

Hmmmm.  I wonder what this means.



A MOVIE AND SOME MUSIC

I find less and less to write about in my sedentary life these days.  But I can make some recommendations.  First among these is a Danish movie I watched today - "In A Better World".  If I were a critic I would give it five stars.  It has already won the 2011 Oscar and Golden Globe awards for Best Foreign Language film.  And the actors are not only skillful but beautiful to look at.  If you haven't seen it . . do.

Now, off on a totally different track, here is one of my favorite singers performing with one of my favorite bands.  Van Morrison and the Chieftains with some Irish soul.

AND NOW. . .

. . . for something completely different.  I have my blogger friend, Tess, to thank for this.  She posted it on her Facebook page and after listening to it twice I had to share it with y'all.  By the way, that "y'all" is proper because the singer is a Texas girl named Janis Joplin.  This recording, with some studio crosstalk, is her first ever studio recording of "Me and Bobbie McGee".  Enjoy.

SEPTEMBER . . FINALLY

At last, it's here.  September.  But summer lingers on here with temperatures in the 90's daily.  But cooler weather can't be far beyond.  So in that spirit here are some talented musicians performing a song for the season, written by Kurt Weill although this video gives the credit to the famed Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt.

PHAROAH MARKS, MY PHUT!

Yesterday's puzzle picture has been solved.  The guesses were pretty much all of a kind.  Well except for Bobby's guess of a toilet roll holder (????)  And then Tom, who didn't have any idea at all.  But Steve and Dana the Bug were very close and Quilteddogs was right on the money.

Here's an expanded photo.

It's the bridge over Viewpoint that will eventually carry traffic on Highway 89-A.

Thanks for the guesses and congratulations to QD on her good eye.

THE PHAROAH'S MARK

Can anybody tell me what this is?  (Don't be fooled by the blog post's title.)

The winner will receive . . . . . my admiration!

BEAU JACK AND THE DIAMONDBACKS

Take him out to the ballgame.  Not.

(Photo courtesy of the BRD)

DOVELET

This morning I went out to check on baby dove.  He was sitting in his nest, all alone, apparently waiting for someone to bring him some food.  Late this afternoon, I went out again and found that he has left the nest and was securely perched on the gridwork next to it.  He didn't seem at all concerned about me.  At least I don't think he was, though his eyes look pretty big as he carefully watched me take photos of him.

At any rate, he seems to be growing fast and will probably test his wings in a day or so and that's the last I'll see of him.  So this is his graduation picture.  Vaya con dios, young dove.

WATER

Something different from Hurricane Irene.

BIRTH!

There has been an opening.  Sometime in the past couple of days that egg the dove couple had been sitting on in front of my home has hatched.  I discovered the new nestling this morning.

It's staying close to mother (or father) right now, especially through a rain shower this morning.  But judging by its size it will soon be leaving the nest and creating more hoo-huh-hoo-hoo racket in our nice quiet neighborhood.

A MUSICAL INTERLUDE

All right, enough about those damned doves for awhile.  Give a listen to one of the most brilliant talents around.  Esperanza Spalding.

DOVE UPDATE

I snapped a picture this morning but I can't tell whether this is mother or father.

Maybe some of my "dove experts" can tell me.

----------------------

Later: SWMBO wisely suggested I look on the Internet to answer some of my questions.  So I did.  And I learned this: Incubation takes two weeks.  Mom and Pop take turns on the nest, he usually in the morning and early afternoon, she in the afternoon and night.  Also: when one or the other is flushed from the nest, it will typically flop to the ground and flutter around as if it has a broken wing.  This is to lure the predator away from the nest.  That's exactly what happened when I took today's picture.  The camera makes a little beep when it takes a photo and that apparently frightened the bird, which exploded off the nest and then down to the ground about six feet away and began fluttering around on the ground, one wing sort of acting like it wasn't working well.  Horrified, I retreated to the house and when I checked later, the bird was back on its nest.  Fortunately the rowdy departure had not dislodged the egg(s).

DO DOVES CRY?

I have a small problem.  It's a dove mother.  Or mother dove.  It's in a tiny nest on the arbor in front of the house.  A week or so ago, I noticed a shattered egg on the tile.  I looked up and saw this rather raggedy nest.  And I saw a dove's tail end on top of it.  Uh-oh, says I.  They're breeding.  But it's been several days now and each time I pass under it I look up and there she sits.  She has reversed her position now so I'm looking right up into her face (?).  Her big dove eye stares back at me and never blinks.  Nor does she tremble or move even a millisec.  (Whatever that is.)  I had become concerned and asked SWMBO "do you suppose she's dead?"  I mean, she looks petrified.  But then she reversed her position so I know she's alive.  And that eye.  It haunts me.  It doesn't blink.  I wonder if doves CAN blink their eyes.  She doesn't seem to be afraid of me, though I stare at her from only a foot or so distance.  And she stays.  I mean, the temperature has been around 90 in the daytime and she's always on the damned nest!  I asked SWMBO tonight how long dove eggs take to hatch.  She said maybe as much as three weeks.  I said "But she doesn't ever seem to leave the nest.  What about food?  What about water?  I've even thought of somehow bringing her a tiny cup of water."  SWMBO laughed at me.  She said "she'll be okay, she probably leaves the nest to eat and drink . . (SOMEWHERE) . . in the early morning."

Well, we don't particularly like doves.  They cluster around and they're noisy with their "hoo-huh-hoo-hoo" sounds constantly.  But.  And it's a big but.  This is a mother dove.  So I'm stuck checking on her, worrying about her.  Gawd!  I feel so stupid.



If you're still reading, give some thought to my blogger buddy Joan, down in Charleston, South Carolina.  She seems to be right in the path of the new Hurricane Irene.  Tell her to keep her head down.

STUFF I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT

O.K.  Brace yourselves.  I'm finally gonna blog but I'm not sure where this is heading.  I may offend some, or all, of you.  But, what the hey, I'm old now so what do I care?

I'm watching the Iron Chef on the Food Channel.  I love this show.  But I think Morimoto might get beat tonight.  Wait.  Let's see.  Well, I'll be darned.  He won it again, in all categories.  But he cut his finger.  So it goes.

Libya.  The rebels (who don't want to be called rebels) apparently are winning a decisive battle in Tripoli tonight.  Two of Gadhafi's sons reportedly are in rebel hands.  Many, many residents have come out praising the turnover.  There is still shooting as I'm writing this and Colonel Gadhafi is still urging his supporters to continue fighting.  There is a BBC report that he is in Algeria but the daffy dude is unpredictable.

MY Arizona Diamondbacks have now lost five games in a row.  The Giants finally won today so they're only 1-1/2 games behind my guys.  We have a few more days out of town before the team returns home, which is usually much more friendly to them.

It is hotter than h--- here but, as I remind myself, it is only the third week of August.  It's Arizona.  It's supposed to be hot.  But we could use some of that monsoon rain that is slipping off to the east.

Speaking of which, another hurricane is heading toward Florida.  It may only be a tropical storm by the time it gets there but it may also gain strength.  No one can really tell, in spite of all the technical skill the weather forecasters now have.

We had a visit from a friend today who worked in television and radio for many years.  She, as she has told us on the last couple of visits, has become totally upset with "our" old t.v. channel in Phoenix.  She complains about their programs but mainly today about the use (or over-use) of the term "you guys" by the t.v. news reporters.  As in . . . reporter pitching back to the anchors "so that's it from here, guys . . ."  Never mind the fact that the anchors are a "guy" and a "gal".  She says everybody overuses that term and she hates it - "Can you imagine Walter Cronkhite ever saying that?"  Well, no, I can't.  But times change and so does language.

I have another friend who has been a lifelong liberal Democrat.  But he is just beside himself with the actions of President Obama in the past nearly three years.  But I say it's a different time and a different scene in Washington.  I think he's doing the best that he can and we need to just give him time to do what's best for the country.  My dad was a lifelong Republican.  But he always watched the presidential speeches on television because "he is our president."  In these times, people seem to forget that we have only one president and he represents all of us.

One other subject to rant about.  Education in the U.S.A.  I was shocked, as I can imagine many of you were, when I heard the news story about the teachers who cheated on their students' tests to pass them on.  One teacher said "what are we going to do when we have a student who comes to begin high school and they are reading at a third grade level."  Too often, students have been passed on and on and on without doing the work or learning ANYTHING.  I fear that we have a generation, perhaps two generations, of young people who are virtually illiterate, who have no job skills, no education.  They've been trained to pass "the test", not to know anything.  I can only wonder where this nation is going with all of these un- or under-educated children "taking over" for we older and dying people.  Where will it all end?  Is it Rome all over again?

O.K.  I think I'm through for now.  I'll get back to you.

LOOKING AROUND OUTSIDE

Let's see how observant you are today.  See anything?

O.K.  I'll make it easier for you.  How about now?

Oh, all right.  Let's get in nice and close.

You should now be able to see the tail end of a dove, nesting in the arbor in front of our house.  I don't know what she'd do if I turned on that string of Christmas lights beneath her.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the yard, these things have taken bloom.  From the number of buds, it looks like it will be a good year for them.


They're pretty but there's one problem.  I can't remember what the darned things are called.  Any help out there?

Update:  The flower is called "Rose of Sharon".  My thanks to the lady who planted it - the Beautiful Rich Daughter.

MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC!

O.K.  Here's a short introduction to music appreciation.  It came in an e-mail from a former colleague.


Music Styles




JAZZ


Five men on the same stage all playing different tunes.

 BLUES


Played exclusively by people who woke up this morning.

 WORLD MUSIC



A dozen different types of percussion all going at once.




OPERA


People singing when they should be talking.




RAP


People talking when they should be singing.




FOLK


Endless songs about shipwrecks in the 19th century.




BIG BAND


20 men who take turns to stand up plus a drummer.



HOUSE MUSIC


OK as long as it's not the house next door.

DOG(?) DAYS

So, people say "where's your blog?  Haven't seen a new post for awhile."

And the only response I can come up with is "It's the middle of August, I'm bored, and lazy.  It's the Dog Days."  Or as you might say in our neighborhood, the Cat Days.

ALL HAT - - NO CATTLE

I'll bet you thought this post was going to be about the presidential campaign announced today by Texas Governor Rick Perry, didn't you?

Sorry.  Fooled you again, just like the clouds over our part of Arizona.

Some promising clouds in the sky yesterday.  It's been mostly overcast much of the day today.  Rain?  Only a few drops.

LUCKY PEACH

For foodies: a new food magazine put together by New York chef David Chang of the famous restaurant Momofuku's.
 

I got my copy yesterday and have made a quick run-through of it.  It's about 175 pages with absolutely no advertisements!  If you can imagine an impromptu and alcohol-fueled conversation (rant) between Chang, Anthony Bourdain and Wylie Dufresne at Cafe de la Concha in San Sebastian, Spain, you may begin to understand the unvarnished language used throughout the magazine.  For example, one of several photos of paper-wrapped chopsticks scattered through the magazine - this one emblazoned with how-to-hold-them drawings with the heading "Would you f---ing learn how to do this already?"

There are a number of easy-to-follow recipes in there also but a warning - this entire issue is dedicated to one subject: ramen.  Not the type you get in packets from the grocery store but real hearty ramen.  Like the one pictured on the back cover.

Lucky Peach is slated as a quarterly.  This is the first issue.  You can get a closer look and even buy it or subscribe at the McSweeneys web page.

CAT UPDATE

Big surprise, huh?  Old Catalyst writing about cats again.  What can I say?  I lead a quiet life.  So anyway.  You may recall that the BRD added another kitten to her menagerie a couple of weeks ago.  She sent over a couple of pictures recently.

He seems to have run down in that picture.  Wrigley, too, seems to be exhausted from trying to keep up with the new cat who, so far, seems to have the name Taz, short for Tasmanian Devil.  He is an active little rascal, according to the BRD.

Even Lily seems surprised that little Taz finally has run down but she seems not too relaxed about the intimacy.

COMPUTER WOES

Sorry, friends.  I've been out of pocket for a couple of days with my computer in the "hospital".  Got it back about an hour ago along with a bill for around $85.  Turned out a piece of RAM had gone bad and needed to be replaced.

That after I mistakenly suspected a virus and purchased a $60 Norton protection plan.  Oh well, at least now I'm protected.

On another front, here's a photo taken at Chase Field Sunday during the Dodgers/Diamondbacks game.

I'm not sure what he was doing there but the D-backs did win, in spite of the blueness of this character's outfit.

BEAT L.A.! BEAT L.A.! BEAT L.A.!

My Arizona Diamondbacks had lost two in a row to the Los Angeles Dodgers so it was my duty to go down to Phoenix and take charge for the final game in the series.  Amid chants of Beat L.A.! echoing through the stands, the D-Backs took an early 2-0 lead on a home run into the swimming pool off the bat of Kelly Johnson.  But the Dodgers fought back and eventually had a 3-2 lead late in the game.  But the home team came through as Cody Ransom crushed another two-run home run late in the game and the Diamondbacks bullpen shut down the Dodgers over the last two innings.

Here's a shot of my buddy and host, Steve Torbeck, and I at the game.

The one bad thing about today?  107 degrees in Phoenix.  Thanks Diamondbacks for a domed stadium.

FRIDAY FUN

I am indebted to my friend Dawn, who lives in Newfoundland for tipping me to the subject of today's post.  By the way, check out Dawn's wonderful video of the incoming tide.

But, to today's post.  Watch and listen to Tim Hawkins.

LEADING UP TO A QUIET EVENING

Yes, I know.  I've been quiet again, especially here on my blog.  It's not due to any lingering pain from my angiogram.  In fact, I haven't had any.  Part of the reason for having the procedure was to see if opening up a couple of veins might eliminate the cramping I'd been having in my right calf.  And it seems that worked.  I made a trip to Sam's Club the other day, which as anyone who has ever been in one knows is about as big as a major league baseball park.  I walked briskly (or as briskly as I walk these days) and did not have a recurrence of the cramp.  But I told SWMBO afterward the real test will be when I go to a store and do a lot of slow walking, starting and stopping, and standing in one place for awhile.  Strangely, that seemed to bother me more than a brisk walk.  Well today was the day.  The first Wednesday of every month is what is known hereabouts as Old Farts' Day at a local supermarket.  Discounts galore and it draws hundreds, if not thousands, of what are politely called Senior Citizens.  We have avoided it frequently but the larder was low and SWMBO decided today would be a good day to load up and to test my leg.  There was no disappointment.  The store and the parking lot were both jam-packed.  I had to park some distance from the entrance, then go back out to find a spare shopping cart in the parking lot.  Then I was sent to the deli for a couple of items and stood waiting to be served for probably 20 minutes or more.  We got out of the store after something over an hour and all went well with my leg.  So that part of the mystery may be solved.

Now as to my Diamondbacks baseball team.  They had a very good 9-game road trip, winning six of the games, winning each series with San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco and finally catching the Giants again for first place last night.  Unfortunately today's final game was a bit different.  The team recently made a trade to acquire pitcher Jason Marquis because of his very good record of mastering the Giants.  He made his debut today and gave up 8 runs in 5 innings.  Oops!  So the Diamondbacks once again are one game behind the Giants.  And since it was an afternoon game, I'm looking forward to a quiet evening.