New Story

Over on the right, the link for "Quiet Tales" is my other website for fiction and other artistic outlets.

I've been toying with an idea for a 'universe' where I can set stories, and I posted a short and as-yet-untitled introductory tale. Give it a look and leave feedback. Good, bad or indifferent, it's always welcomed.

Thanks.

Highly Recommended

Veil War. Us vs. Them, taken to the extreme. New chapters each Thursday. Up twinkles.

One Thousand Ships

It's a goofy little song, but my toe taps each time I hear it.

La-di-dah-di-dah.

Theoretical Physics Can Be Funny...

From a book on Quantum Physics that Richard, a co-worker, is reading:

“[T]he other forces of the Standard Model are not as well explored nor as easily visualized as electromagnetism. You will have to be satisfied with assertions in the following paragraphs supported only by suggestive ideas that almost certainly are not entirely wrong”.

Freakin' Brilliant

Seen in the comments about the new fee Bank of America is charging to use it's debit cards (aka the Durbin Fee):

Dick Durbin Before Durbin Dicks You

Randomness from Left Field

Remember the song, "Oh Babe, What Would You Say" by Hurricane Smith? He was a one hit wonder to most of us, but quite well known and respected in the music industry.

Besides his hit song*, Hurricane (aka Norman) was a recording engineer and later producer for all of the Beatles albums up to Rubber Soul. Later he produced the early Pink Floyd albums, amongst others.



Now you have something to ponder while that song plays over and over in your head.

* which was written for another artist but the producer liked the demo so much they released it as is.

It's Harder Than This, Rebecca

Then again, maybe it isn't.

Wisdom

I'm surprised more folks don't keep hogs for pets. Hogs are just dogs wrapped in bacon. -- Spokes (fellow member of a backpacking forum)

During my temporary hiatus, I'd remind everyone about my other blog: Quiet Tales. Think of it as me expressing my creative side when I haven't forgotten my meds.

Fooling Myself

Yeah, it's culture time here at Rocket Jones, and today I'm pleased to pass along a couple catchy tunes. Today's theme? Relationships.

Got the first from daughter Rachael (blogless). The second from Ace of Spades HQ. Enjoy.

Words, Level of Wisdom to be Determined

A co-worker had an absolutely horrible day yesterday. As I left for the day I reminded her,

"It's not worth heading to the roof unless you're carrying a sniper scope."

Touched, in a Good Way

While stationed in North Dakota with the Air Force, I spent a long, cold winter reading massive amounts of poetry by Byron, Keats and Shelley. I'd never been exposed to poetry to any extent and decided that it was high time that I correct the situation. I made it through to the end, but discovered that I'm not much of a poetry person.

That's not to say that I don't occasionally get into some, but it's not a steady diet.

Recently I've been reading Sappho, One Hundred Lyrics. A couple of nearly complete pieces and a handful of fragments are all that are left of her work, and yet, for two and a half millenia she has been considered one of the greatest (if not the greatest) poets of all time.

"Sappho who broke off a fragment of her soul
for us to guess at." -- E.E. Browning

The book contains all that remains of her impossibly perfect words, along with a welcome bit of context and history. There were probably nine volumes of her work all told, along with various other types of works.

"Love's priestess, mad with pain and joy of song,
Song's priestess, mad with joy and pain of love." -- H.T. Wharton

I am smitten.

Heart of mine, if all the altars
Of the ages stood before me,
Not one pure enough nor sacred
Could I find to lay this white, white
Rose of love upon.

I would build a fragrant temple
To thee, in the dark green forest,
Of red cedar and fine sandal,
And there love thee with sweet service
All my whole life long. -- Sappho

We used to play a silly game, imagining a time machine and what ifs. Were it to become reality, I know exactly what I would do.

Waxing Lyrical

We hate to see her go, but love to watch her leave.

Trace Adkins - Honky Tonk Badonkadonk