Entertainment & Style

Tony was one of the most sane and thoughtful persons I've ever met. He left us too soon... I am going to think as he would have as to how we confront and end the current madness; it has to be possible, it has to be!

For some odd reason this came up on my "for you" list; now watching half-way through season 3 I'm so seeing the new/current American/World experience... That reminds me of my fav David Bowie tune... "I'm Afraid of Americans" (featuring another of my favs,Trent Resnor, "Hurt" - David Bowie and Trent Reznor)... Miss you so very much, David Bowie; thank you for the magical music!  

On the eve of February 3, 1959 – “A long, long time ago, I still remember how that music used to make me smile… but something struck me deep inside the day the music died.” Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson Jr. were killed in a plane crash on that cold winter day. And though a part of music died with them, one of the redeeming, saving graces of music is that it lives on long after bands break up and artists pass on. Their music, if meaningful and special, is timeless and forever. And even if we know longer listen, the songs often live on in our minds and hearts. I find it simply amazing that I didn’t tackle the word music until this past month. Sometimes you can’t see the forest for the trees. A blog of music about music, if you will, or of songs with the word music in the title, seems only natural. There’s no emotion that music can’t address. I believe it’s what draws us to music over and over again. And think of those songs that immediately bring

National Groundhog Day  [Feb 2, 2024] The results are in! It's going to be...an 'Early Spring(?)' 'Glad tidings on this Groundhog Day. An early spring is on the way,' a proclamation was read out at Gobbler's Knob, elating a crowd of thousands of people who had weathered dark and cold to see the famous rodent. [source: NPR.org] 'Punxsutawney Phil' cast his prediction this early am, at Gobbler's Knob, PA, surrounded by tons of woodchuck fans. Phil did not see his shadow, thus it's predicted to be an early spring. Keep in mind Phil's prediction record accuracy is only at/about 40%-30%, which means we may actually have 6 more weeks of winter. 'He's a groundhog, not a meteorologist.' [source: CBS News] [source: Facebook] All in all, Phil is one chill dude. How much wood could a woodchuck chuckIf a woodchuck could chuck wood?As much wood as a woodchuck could chuck,If a woodchuck could chuck wood.  NATIONAL GROUNDHOG DAY[source: National Day Calend

I hope y'all have a chance to watch FireAidLA ... Joni Mitchell just gave an awesome performance; I feel so motivated having seen her again after all these years!

Each year on January 16th, people across the nation recognize National Nothing Day. The observance was created as a day to provide Americans with one National Day when they can just sit without celebrating, observing or honoring anything. [source: National Day Calendar] HOW TO OBSERVE NATIONAL NOTHING DAY[source: National Day Calendar] When asked, "What are your plans, today?" your response should definitely be, "Nothing." What else would your answer be on a day like today? Now that we think about it, "Nothing" works well as an answer when recognizing the day. Q: What's for supper?A: Nothing Q: What are you reading?A. Nothing. (Even though you're clearly reading something.) And, on and on and on! So, you see, celebrating nothing really is something.  😉 

Houseplants? They're my special friends. I have a zillion of them (mostly spider and cacti). And, a room dedicated to only them, a room known as a... 'Sunroom.' It's like a jungle sometimes. Erhm... One of the best ways to enhance a space is by adding house plants. The busy holidays cause many of us to neglect some of our regular routines, including houseplant care. National Houseplant Appreciation Day on January 10th serves as a reminder to give your houseplants a little extra attention to keep them thriving. NATIONAL HOUSEPLANT APPRECIATION DAY | January 10th - National Day Calendar[source: YouTube] Houseplant Benefits:[source: National Day Calendar.com] 🌿  Boost productivity - Some studies have shown that indoor plants may improve productivity and performance in the workplace and in school.🌿  Reduce anxiety - Caring for plants provides therapeutic benefits. Similar to outdoor gardening, indoor gardening may help to ease the symptom

Another year has gone by and the list of thosewho passed is sadly pretty long. Here’s what Ifound out. Feel free to add anyone I missed.RIP in that crowded rocker heaven 😢🎶 David SoulJames Kottak, ScorpionsMary Weiss, Shangri-LasMelanieAston Barrett, WailersToby KeithDonald Kinsey, WailersHenry Fambrough, SpinnersVitalij Kuprij, Trans-Siberian OrchestraJim Beard, Steely DanSteve LawrenceEric CarmenDick Allix, Vanity FareChris Cross, UltravoxGerry Conway, Jethro TullMichael Ward, WallflowersCJ Snare, FirehouseClarence “Frogman” HenryArthur Tavares, TavaresRusty Gaurhier, New riders of the purple sageDickey Betts, Allman Bros.Jack Green, T Rex, RainbowMike Pinder, Moody BluesDuane EddyRichard Tandy, ELOJohn Barbara, drummer (Turtles, C,S,N&Y, and others)Dennis Thompson, MC5Randy Fuller, Bobby Fuller FourCharlie Colin, TrainJon Wysocki, StaindDoug Ingle, Iron ButterflyTom Fowler, Mothers of InventionJoe Egan, Stealers WheelJoe Bonsall, Oak Ridge BoysJerry Miller, Moby Grap

Dry Winters, anyone? It's electrifyingly shocking! 🗲 It may be a little shocking, but National Static Electricity Day is on January 9th. The observance explores static electricity and even how we may cause it. (and prevent it! 😉 ) (see below) HOW TO OBSERVE STATIC ELECTRICITY DAYLearn how static electricity affects us. Explore the ways you come into contact with static electricity and how you create it, too. Run an experiment and share your results. Use #StaticElectricityDay to post on social media. [source: National Day Calendar.com] NATIONAL STATIC ELECTRICITY DAY | January 9th - National Day Calendar[source: YouTube] Some 'Static Electricity' 411 Fun Stuff: 🗲  Static electricity [source: WIKI]🗲  The science of static electricity - Anuradha Bhagwat [source: YouTube]🗲  How to Make Static Electricity [source: WikiHow] Not a Fan of Static Electricity(?): 🗲  How to Remove Static Electricity  [

Hello,  I'm new here and jumping right in because I'm so excited about finding a community of people online over the age of 30 for freaking sake.  I'm involved in another forum, which I do enjoy as it is centered around a shared interest, but there are literally about four, four people in my age group.  (I'm 57)Anyway, on that forum we play some interactive word games that are easy and fun, "keep-you-involved" icebreakers.One of them is to state in one word how you are feeling that particular day - what kind of day you're having.  Like, I might say, "unmoored," or whatever, etc. and others respond with their own single words. Or, there is a similar game wherein a person uses a meme or image to describe their feelings that day.Also, there is the one everybody knows that starts with one word and each person adds a word at a time, creating a story.And, there are the synonym / antonym games, which are pretty self-explantory.  There can be two; each using only

In honor of New Year’s Day, the beginning of a new year, I thought I’d share a playlist offering new beginnings. Wikipedia relates “the first of January represents the fresh start of a new year after a period of remembrance of the passing year.” On those years we’d rather forget, with luck and effort we may use the new year as an opportunity to begin again. Modern tradition encourages New Years resolutions, whereupon reflecting on our failings and shortcomings of the previous year, we commit to making changes usually with a goal of self-improvement and greater achievement in hopes of having a better upcoming year. Whatever our needs, goals, hopes, and dreams, it seemed that some of the lyrics of begin and beginning songs might offer us some encouragement and support in our efforts, not to mention be enjoyable songs to listen to, with offerings from Emerson, Lake & Palmer, The Moody Blues, Genesis, Chicago, David Bowie, Billy Joel, Colbie Caillat, Ingrid Michaelson, Taylor Swif

[source: National Day Calendar]Nearly the entire world recognizes New Year's Day on January 1st. It's also one of the most celebrated holidays of the year. Celebrations will begin in the Pacific Ocean with Samoa celebrating the New Year before the rest of the world. The latest stroke of midnight will occur in the middle of the Pacific Ocean near Baker Island, which is halfway between Hawaii and Australia. WAYS TO CELEBRATE NEW YEAR'S DAY 🎉  Kiss at midnight the one person you hope to keep kissing the rest of the year.🎉  Making noise, either in the form of fireworks, ringing bells, horns, blasting, or pistol shots are traditional around the world.🎉  In Holland, they toast to the new year with spiced wine, wassail in England, or champagne in the United States.🎉  Resolutions are not a modern tradition. The Babylonians made commitments to return borrowed objects and to pay old debts. 🍕🎇🍾❸ ❷ ❶ 🕛 ⩇⩇:⩇⩇ 🥂҉ | 🎆✧2025✧🎆 | ٩(^ᗜ^ )و ´- Happy New Y

This guy is amazing. Chris Barker has created and posted these incredible montages of celebrities who've died over the years, in the style of 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band's' album cover, since 2016. Here's his former X (formerly Twitter) handle: https://twitter.com/christhebarker - Not active/Not updated.You can find Chris these days on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/christhebarker.bsky.social.  Also, here's an interview with Chris Barker, from 2016, when it all began: https://soundcloud.com/the-pixel-factor/chris-barker-5-live [source: The Pixel Factor/SoundCloud] 'I know it’s a very sad topic, it’s a very strange hobby and I really don’t know how I’ve ended up as this weird custodian of international grief, but people do really seem to like it so I’m kind of stuck with it now!' Barker says. [source: billboard.com] https://bsky.app/profile/christhebarker.bsky.social/post/3lenigkarg227#sgtpepper2024 v5  😔  cc: Rock N' Rol

The world's authority on color has spoken: Pantone's 2025 'Color of the Year' is...'Mocha Mousse' For 2025, the Pantone Color Institute selects PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse, a warming, brown hue imbued with richness. It nurtures us with its suggestion of the delectable qualities of chocolate and coffee, answering our desire for comfort. With its sophisticated, earthy elegance, PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse can stand alone or serve as a versatile foundation, enhancing a wide range of palettes and applications—from minimalist to richly detailed designs—across all color-focused industries. 'Simple and Comforting: A Soft, Warming Brown.' [[Pantone]]  Thoughtful IndulgenceHarmonious ComfortFeelings of Contentment Pantone selected this color for its evocative nature and warmth. It's described as:  A nurturing color that suggests the qualities of chocolate and coffee A flavorful brown shade that envelopes us with its sensorial warmthA

 Let the festivities begin! ⁷₍⁽՚ᵕ՝⁾₎₇ Post your most favorite Christmas-related tunes, in title or lyrically. I will begin with: The Moonglows - Hey Santa Claus  _________________________________________________________'Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas, Happy Holidays, and all that jazz.' 🎷🎶

National Kazoo Day on January 28th recognizes nearly 200 years of kazoo music in the United States. The day also encourages playing and learning about the kazoo. Kazoos are plastic or metal tubes with a wax membrane contained in a single hole. When the kazoo is sang or spoken into, the wax membrane vibrates, altering the voice into a nasally, vibrating sound. Although the pitch of the kazoo can be changed simply by changing the pitch of one’s voice, partially covering the membrane can introduce a kazooist to a wide range of noises. HOW TO OBSERVE NATIONAL KAZOO DAY 🔗[source: National Day Calendar] ✨  Play a song on the kazoo.✨  Start a kazoo band.✨  Make your own kazoo.✨  Learn about how a kazoo works.✨  Teach someone to play the kazoo.✨  Create a video of you playing a kazoo. Some Kazoo History: 🎵  Kazoo [WIKI] How To: 🎵  Play The Kazoo  [WikiHow]Some Fu

  'And, we'll have another can of cheer. Play ball!'

'Tis the season! Might as well track Santa and see what shenanigans he's up to. Santa's sleigh, radar's on! Let's see if he's a punctual present-pusher or a tardy toy-tosser.          (- ‿◦ ) Let the countdown begin!  ⏲ 🎅  Google Santa Tracker🎅  Google Santa Tracker 2024 | LIVESTREAM  [YouTube]🎅  Google Santa Tracker  [WIKI]  🎅  NORAD Tracks Santa🎅  NORAD Tracks Santa  [WIKI]  Let's count how many times Santa goes down the chimney! 

The tradition of Festivus begins with the airing of grievances.  💪🏻  Feats of Strength🙌🏻  Festivus Miracle😤  Airing of Grievances┃ Festivus Pole FESTIVUS Each year on December 23rd, Festivus commemorates a holiday episode of the television comedy, Seinfeld. In 1997, the popular television comedy brought Festivus to the masses when Frank Costanza (played by Jerry Stiller) explains he invented the holiday in response to the commercialism of Christmas. Its slogan is "A Festivus for the rest of us." HOW TO OBSERVE FESTIVUS Festivus traditions derived from the television episode and the original creator have been combined over the years. Adorn an aluminum Festivus pole to be displayed in the home. In the O'Keefe household, there was no pole. Instead, a clock was placed in a bag and nailed to the wall.Serve a traditional dinner in the evening. During dinner, allow the Airing of Grievances. Each person takes turns describin

On December 25, 1954 Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” entered the Billboard Pop chart for the 11th time. His rendition has sold over 100 million copies word wide. It was the largest selling single in music history until it was surpassed by Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind 1997” tribute to Princess Diana. On this day in 1995, actor, singer, and TV host Dean Martin died. On the same day in 2008 actress, singer and cabaret star Eartha Kitt died. In addition to being the first “Catwoman” opposite Adam West, she is perhaps best known for the Christmas song “Santa Baby.” And on December 25, 2016 we lost George Michael. First catapulted to fame with Wham, he then experienced significant solo success, including songs like “I Want Your Sex” and “Faith,” the latter the theme for today’s blog, songs with the word “Faith” in the title. From Billy Joel keeping the faith, John Hiatt having a little faith, Eric Clapton running on faith, and Sting losing his faith, there are some great songs

[3rd Friday in December] What is an  Underdog, anyway? [WIKI] National Underdog Day recognizes that America loves its underdogs. Each year on the third Friday in December, we cheer on the teams and individuals who are statistically expected to lose in competition. In sporting events, people tend to rally around the person or team that is not favored to win. An underdog is a person or team in competition most likely expected to lose. This expectation can be based on statistical data, opinion or overall standings. When the underdog wins, we call it an upset. The first recorded uses of the term occurred in the second half of the nineteenth century; its initial meaning was "the beaten dog in a fight." Also known as a Cinderella story, the underdog has long piqued Americans' interest. Whether in a sporting event, business, education or arts, when success is a long shot and a struggle as well, Americans root and cheer for the underdog. We also lov

I recently went to see *Wicked* at the cinema. Having never seen the Broadway show, and having not grown up hearing the music, all the songs were new to me. I found it extremely hard to understand the lyrics, and I found my enjoyment diminished by not being able to understand how the singing was responding to the ongoing narrative. This caused me to wonder, WHY can't cinemas project closed captions on the screen, like is normally done for foreign films or like one can chose to do privately at home. I consider this a basic matter of ACCESSIBILITY to make the movie more enjoyable for a broader audience, and more users would be helped than annoyed. (BTW, I'm suggesting captions for all movies, not just musicals.) I mean, EVERYBODY is accustomed to closed captions these days: they're on in my barber shop, at my car repair shop, in the doctor's waiting room, etc. My grandchildren have them on ALL the time on YouTube and Spotify (to see song lyrics), so this issue might be something that Sen

Spoiler (Highlight to read)Public Service Announcement: Ear worms are contagious. You've been warned. Please proceed with caution. teehee 〈′๑ᴗ๑‵〉Public Service Announcement: Ear worms are contagious. You've been warned. Please proceed with caution. teehee 〈′๑ᴗ๑‵〉Ever been in some mind loop of a certain song, one that just repeats in your mind, over and over again? Well, you can post it here (this may be also therapeutic, too). No judge. 😉  I will begin, with a wormy rascal:The Beatles - Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da [life goes on, brah!] (For two weeks, while hand-washing dishes, ⬆️ this song ⬆️ just ran through my mind, like the water that came from the faucet. It was actually a bit invasive, so much so, I became nearly insane (j/k). I think songs that get conjured up in ones' mind, and are on repeat in your brain-o, are indicative to something important. And, so it seems, I have no choice but to listen to the worm sing.)  

Songs about the universe, planets, aliens, or traveling to outer space. Venus and Mars-Paul McCartney and Wings.

  Two turkeys almost walked into a bar.