Thinkable Thoughts

"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

- Albert Einstein,
genius (1879-1955)

Dancing in the Dark

I try to stay away from gossip. It tends to be bad, but I understand it's a part of human nature. We love our celebrities, & with celebrity comes gossip! I'm sure most of you are aware of the stories all over the media about my fellow New Jersian, Bruce Springsteen, allegedly having an affair with a woman he met at a fitness club in South Jersey near his home.

I met him many years ago when my band played a gig where he made a surprise appearance. Out of all the musical celebrities I've had the pleasure of meeting, he was the most down to earth & humble. Unfortunately this is not the first time Springsteen has faced such allegations. Apparently it all began when the woman's husband filed for divorce naming Springsteen as the main reason. Who knows if it's true or not. I'm very curious to see how it all plays out.

I try my best not to judge- glass houses & all that...

Go Susan Go!

She's matronly & not particularly attractive. Never been married, nor had a love life- no, I'm not talking about me, besides I'm a guy!  ;-)   & she's bordering on frumpy. Her name is Susan Boyle. A 47-year-old from England. You may have read about her. She's all over the media, You Tube, etc.

She recently appeared on British televisions Britain's Got Talent, a version of American Idol from across the pond. It's conceived & produced by Simon Cowell (boo-hiss!) of AI fame. His co-judges are Piers Morgan & Amanda Holden, whom I know nothing about. I don't watch much TV, & will admit to not being a fan of AI, or shows of that ilk. I've been reading about Ms. Boyle & had to see for myself what all the hoopla was about.

Via You Tube, ( I apologize for no link- I'm lame) I watched the above describe woman walk bravely on stage to the sounds of laughter from the audience. She spoke briefly with Simon, then began to sing "I dreamed a dream" from Les Miserables. A very beautiful song. As soon as Ms. Boyle began to sing, there came an audible gasp from the audience. She had obviously been blessed with a beautiful voice by God. The audience sat silently transfixed as they watched- I did as well.

Tears began to slowly stream down my face. Cowell sat there with his head in his hands, eyes wide. Holden's eyes welled up, & Morgan was beaming. Morgan said, "Everyone was laughing at you- no one's laughing at you now." The audience was on it's feet, as was Holden & Morgan. Cowell remained seated, (big surprise) but impressed. She received 3 "yeses", which apparently rarely occurs.

Score another win for the underdogs! I hope you win Susan- show 'em all!

Thinkable Thoughts

"History would be an excellent thing if only it were true."

-Leo Tolstoy
Russian author (1828-1910)

I wholeheartedly concur Mr.T!

Hippity-Hop

Holy rolling stones! Tomorrow's the BIG day. Happy Easter to one & all! If you don't celebrate, then I wish you a Happy Kiester! In honor of the holiday, I'm posting a "themed" WEIRD but is it TRUE?!- dedicated to Zetz.

A Croatian farmer is doing a booming Easter business in naturally laid green eggs.

Stipa Gregacevic was astonished when his prize hen, Fata, began laying the colored eggs at his farm in Forkusevci. "I can't really explain why it happens," he said. "Some say it might be because we put red pepper in the hen food."

I think Mr.G. should check with Dr. Seuss's estate before he advertises his green eggs. Speaking of eggs, I have to go lay some. I wonder what color they'll be.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

When you're weary, feeling small
When tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all
I'm on your side when times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

When you're down and out
When you're on the street
When evening falls so hard
I will comfort you
I'll take your part
When darkness comes
And pain is all around
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

Like a bridge over troubled water

I will lay me down

Sail on silver girl
Sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way
See how they shine
If you need a friend
I'm sailing right behind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind

-Paul Simon
(Simon & Garfunkel)

A classic song, & IMHO one of the most beautiful
songs ever written. This song occasionally makes me cry.

Are You Bein' Good?

Despite what your practising, amateur, or professional beliefs may be, I wish you all, but not some of you, a good, if not great Friday!

OK, how 'bought pretty good? Even kinda good is more than acceptable.

I took the day off so it's been pretty kinda sorta OK for me.

"The Getaway Short"

A while back I had mentioned conceptualizing a short video for our police department. One of our officers was attempting to obtain a grant which would hopefully result in our acquiring one of those ATV quad thing-a-mabober doohickies (that we DON'T even need!). The officer had a few lame ideas for the video, but basically wasn't prepared on the day of the actual shoot.

About one hour before the filmmaker arrived, I gave the officer a how about this-this- & this. Of course she liked my idea because- HEY, it's me, & her ideas as previously mentioned were L-A-M-E! :^)

I heard it had been recently posted to You Tube, so I checked it out just prior to writing this post. I think it came out pretty good. When I first saw it, the latter half with the crappy music had not been added so I wasn't even aware It had been tacked on until just now. At least the cool part was my idea & well shot "gorilla style" by a guy named Rubin, & with almost no prep time.

So I'm watching the end credits roll when something like "conceptualized by Officer Nicole Stivale" appears, followed shortly by some special thanks or some sort to me? W-H-A-T?! That really burns my britches! I realize in the big scheme of things it's just a little vid that very few will see, but it's the "give credit where credit is due" thing. It's the priciple of it! I know I probably seem like a little baby, but where does that little girlie get off stealin' my thunder.

It's about honor people & I've been dissed! I'm callin' my lawyer in Hollywood! This is unacceptable! I'm callin' you out Officer Stivale! Bad cop- NO donuts! Off with her head!
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

OK, I feel a little better now......or do I?

Potentially BIG News!

This could be potentially good, or potentially very bad!

As it's April 1st & a day for fools & all of their foolishness, I'll hold off with the details as some of you may gasp in disbelief & I do not wish to be the boy who cried Wolfe!

Thinkable (Foolish) Thoughts

"Who's more foolish? The fool or the fool who follows him?"
- Obi-Wan Kenobi
Star Wars episode IV- A New Hope
(1977)
Long before MOST of you were born! ;-)
And yes, I'm a geek & I'm proud!

Extra added surprise bonus
-Song of the day-
"The Fool on the Hill"- The Beatles

Oh, by the way, have a silly April Fools Day!

Blogger Support

If you'd be so kind, PLEASE check out a new blog named "Unparalleled Journey". It's still in it's fragile birthing stages so be gentle. It's being produced by a new follower of Flast, Erin. She's a mysterious young lady from NJ. Let all us seasoned veterans of Blogger welcome her with the encouragement only we Blogger elitists can truly provide.

Something Stinks 'Round Here!

Do you know those ads in magazines for Cologne & perfume, the one's with the flap you peel away to get a whiff of the product? Do you actually peel the flap allowing the scent to become airborne, enveloping you in all it's chemical glory, or do you fight the temptation & urge because you're extremely sensitive to smells & odors & fear a nasty bumpy itchy hive outbreak?

The other day I came across one of those ads in a men's mag that I found myself accidentally reading when it fell off the rack into my hands- nice catch by the way! I wanted to know what the dude in the ad might smell like. He smelled nice, but please don't take that in the wrong context.

I sadly couldn't look like Mr. Adonis, but perhaps I could smell like him. I considered the magical possibility that this scent mixed with my own bewitching pheromones, in an alchemy of manliness, would cause any woman that crossed my path to be overcome with yearnings undiscovered. Suddenly Blinded to my actual looks, causing me (in their eyes) to transform into the GQ/Details man of their dreams!

Being the quintessential Virgo male, I drove around for days with the smelly papyrus ad keeping me company in the passenger seat. It wasn't until someone mentioned that my car smelled like a New Orleans whorehouse, that I should throw it away &/or man up & actually purchase a bottle of the concoction. Fifty dollars later, I had the ca-log-nee in my possession & I was spritzing up a storm. Unfortunately I think I liked it more when it was on the paper.

AH-CHOO! Suddenly I feel itchy ALL over!

No Myth

So, she says it's time she goes
But wanted to be sure I know
She hopes we can be friends
I think, yeah, I guess we can say I
But didn't think to ask her why
She blocked her eyes & drew the curtains
With knots I've got yet to untie

*CHORUS*
What if I were romeo in black jeans
What if I was Heathcliff, it's no myth
Maybe she's just looking for
Someone to dance with

See, it was just too soon to tell
And looking for some parallel
Can be an endless game
We said goodbye before hello
My secrets she will never know
And if I dig a hole to China
I'll catch the first junk to Soho

*Repeat CHORUS*

Sometime from now you'll bow to
pressure
Some things in life you cannot
measure by degrees
I'm between the poles & the
Equator
Don't send no private investigator to
Find me please
'Less he speaks Chinese
And can dance like Astaire overseas

*Repeat CHORUS*

-Michael Penn 1989-
(Yes, brother of THAT Penn!)

A GREAT timeless song I NEVER tire of.

Megan's Dilemma

Maureen Kanka helped to enact & pass "Megan's Law" (1996), which was named after her 7-year-old daughter who was raped & killed by a twice-convicted sex offender living nearby. Now authorities in Pennsylvania are threatening to prosecute three teenage girls after it was discovered they had very risque
images of them on a cell phone.

An Indiana boy currently faces obscenity charges for sending naked photos of himself to female friends & classmates. And last week in Passaic County (NJ) authorities accused a 14-year-old girl of distributing child pornography when she posted naked photos of herself on HER MySpace page.

Megan's law was enacted to protect minors from sexual predators with stiffer penalties & a requirement to be registered as a sex offender. I'm not so sure it was enacted to protect minors from THEMSELVES! Sure what they did was foolish & stupid, but should they be formally charged- especially with a law that's supposed to keep them safe?

If they are going to be punished it should be by the kid's parents or guardians. Of course they'll have to endure the embarrassment & shame among their peers, friends, & family as well.

Although I must admit, sadly some of them probably don't even care who sees the photos. It's probably best to look outside the law, & take a good look at their home environment. Whose to say who's to blame. It's rarely just one thing. I'd start by taking a good look at the parents.

How does this make you feel? What do you think? Please share your comments with FLAST.

There Goes The Neighborhood!

I reside (cemetery notwithstanding) in what people call an affluent town. Sure there's plenty of snobs here, but some decent people as well. There are many middle-class homes in surreal suburbia, & If you walk just a few steps your suddenly surrounded by mansions, also known as "McMansions". That description tends to annoy me, not because I don't live in one, but because it's just a stupid silly catch phrase that I didn't coin- I mean whose gonna eat a big house anyway?! That's just stupid.

We have a relatively low crime rate, but that's 'cause I'm on the job! Most crimes that occur here are burglaries, thefts, & assaults, as well as (sadly) many domestic violence situations. We've had a few murders in my 25 years as Johnny Law, but we are most well known for the List murders in 1971. A man named John List shot & killed his mother, wife, & three children. He was on the lam for many years before being captured while under a new identity. His capture came about via the TV show, America's Most Wanted.

Aside from law & order, my little burg is known for being the birthplace of Charles Addams- famous cartoonist & creator of The Addams Family. If you recall the TV show ED from years ago about the bowling alley lawyer, that was shot here with my town substituting for the fictional town of Stuckeyville Ohio, but I've got to reel this baby in as I've gotten waaaay off topic!

Taking the long way around, (as I oft times do) this post was originally intended to be about how in the last few months we've had an armed car jacking right around the corner from my digs, & just the other day a house across the street from mine was burgled (allegedly) by a well greased operation known in several states as "The James Bond Gang". I don't know what's happening to the fantasy bubble that is my town. Perhaps there's been in escalation in crime due to the economy. They speculate that the recent rise in bank robberies is due to our current economic climate.

Living approximately 35 to 40 minutes outside NYC has never seemed to be a problem before. Actually the city's big enough that I don't think crimes gonna head west to the nooks & crannies of this place. I hope this is not the beginning of a trend or crime wave. If it is I may have to move to Cleveland. Wait, that'd (is that a word?) be MUCH worse!

WEIRD but is it TRUE?!

A man who had robbed a Connecticut bank wreaked his car during his getaway & then took the bus & a taxi home, only to find his roommate dead from an apparent suicide, police said. David Maksimik was busted after he called 911 to get help for his pal. The cops who responded to the scene found the money he allegedly stole.

And you thought YOU were havin' a bad day!

Thinkable Thoughts

"Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling."

-Margaret Lee Runbeck, American author
(1905-1956)

Illogical Pretzel

9am Saturday morning- 2nd yoga class.

YOGA-MUUUCH-MORE-DIFFICULT-&-PAAAINFUL-THAN-FIIIRST-THOUGHT!!!!!!!!!!!

BIGger Heads Prevail!

I took my friend & her daughter out for dinner a few nights ago to celebrate her daughters birthday- 12th, I think.

There were quite a few discussions that evening, but there was one in particular that stood out & touched my soul to it's very foundation. The conversation was between myself ("C") & my friends daughter ("T"). Although I can't recall the conversation verbatim, I will to the best of my humble ability, attempt to accurately paraphrase. Please try to follow along.

The topic of conversation (brought up by "T") Began with John Travolta for whatever reason.

"T"- You (meaning me) look a little like John Travolta, but with less hair.
"C"- Really? Thanks, I guess.
"T"- I saw a picture of him recently & his head was bigger than I remember it being when he was in the movie Grease.
"C"- Did you know that he was from New Jersey, like many other famous people.
"T"- Like who?
"C"- Well let's see.....There's me for starters.
"T"- *Blank stare*
"C"- OK, there's quite a few. Wanna hear 'em all.
"T"- *Blank stare continued* Yeah, I guess.
"C"- I'll tell you the one's I know. Tom Cruise, me, Danny DeVeto, me, Jack Nicholson, me, Bruce Springsteen, me, BonJovi, me, Meryl Streep, me, Anne Hathaway......
"T"- looking around the restaurant with a bored blank stare.
"T"- You still haven't told me why his head got so big.
"C"- Well I'm not sure. Old age I guess? What I mean is, I think as you get older gravity expands your head a bit, not to mention stuff that used to be tighter tends to droop a bit.
"T"- Like you?
"C"- So, what else do you wanna talk about? Oh look, here comes the cake...sigh.

Matchless Dot Com

I'd like to share a somewhat recent (very) humbling experience I had.

Occasionally I'll peruse (OK, cyber-stalk) some of the better known Internet dating sites to see whats out there, although I'd NEVER admit to actually having ever been a member-EVER! I'd certainly never stoop that low.

While harmlessly perusing out of sheer boredom, I came across a somewhat fetching lass- waaaay out of my price range. She mentioned in her profile that she wasn't a member, but if you were clever enough you could find the clues to an email contact off the site. Using my well honed detective skills, I quickly figured it out & promptly (I didn't say desperately) em'd her. I kinda felt like a (somewhat) older Indiana Jones sans the buffness. I am however truly buff in my head. Does it count that I recently buffed my shoes? How 'bout I buff your car?

Getting back to the topic at hand, I contacted her & she was impressed! We were off to a good start. We exchanged several flirty & clever emails, & It seemed to be going rather well. I was charmin' the pants off 'er- um, figuratively speaking of course! I knew it was comin' so I wasn't surprised when she hit me up for a pic or two. It was the old, you've seen mine, now show me yours type situation.

I mild panic overtook me. A misty sweat left a thin glistening sheen on my forehead. Pic? pic?, do I even have one? Should I find some hot dude on the Internet & send some pics of him to her. I can always charm her later with sympathy tactics of my reconstructive surgery that went terribly awry when the plastic surgeon went into cardiac arrest whilst midway through the delicate surgery! Yea, dats da ticket!

Well, no it's not, is it? As much as it pains me to say, HONESTY is the ticket that should be punched by the conductor. I mean, where can a relationship go that begins with a lie- a lie for craps sake! Sadly I'm not particularly photogenic, & feel I make a MUCH better impression in person when I can blind you with all of my amazing glory!- Can I hear an amen people?!

Long story short- I dug up some (what I thought were) acceptable pics & cautiously sent them off to her & waited & waited & waited & waited & waited......well, you get the point.

Please don't weep for me. I cried enough for all of us, as well as those I don't even know. I know she'll eventually call- I just know it!