Later on Mirth-filled Monday... I headed over to our local Stop & Shop where the store's bulletin board tried to "fire my imagination..." Most of it was... ...Except this one: Seeing this ad, I grabbed my pocket-sized search engine utility looking for "shrink RAP"...hoping to find a funny video of a psychiatrist doing a rap song. Nothing matching my inquiry...Ah! But AI served up this gem: WARNING: If you've just had surgery...DO NOT WATCH...as you might burst your stiches! Bill Murray as Rodney Dangerfield’s Psychiatrist (05:00) I stayed there laughing really hard at each quip. When I was able to regain my composure, I entered the store and pulled out my iPhone's electronic grocery list. The veggie aisle was my first stop where it "produced" more levity. "Organic green beans" At first glance there appeared to be 4 columns...Until I noticed that someone had mislabeled the 2 on the left: The text was written "sdrawkcab" - "backwards"...and the prices were almost DOUBLED... A customer about my age was walking by so, I decided to have a little fun. I pointed to the leftmost bag as shown below, and asked if he could reach it for me. Like shown below in these next 2 photos, his hand made contact with the mirror...and he started smiling... He seemed amiable, so I continued having fun by asking him if he remembered any popular films that had funny scenes with mirrors. He offered, "Abbott & Costello." I said that I thought it might have been the Marx Brothers. Survey says: The Mirror Scene - Duck Soup (7/10) Movie CLIP (1933) HD (03:17) Guess who's lurking in the medicine cabinet... 1974 Groucho Marx & Chuck McCann Right Guard TV commercial (00:25) Haagen-Daz Vanilla Bean Eileen put quantity "2" in the phone's app with a qualifier "is on sale." And since I had a store coupon for this product, my orders were to get "5." I was in luck, they were on a great sale...so my mission was to procure "5". I reached in and grabbed 2...BUT, then started gabbing with the "green beans" buddy I'd met in produce... ...and when I got back to my mission...someone else had stolen my “crème glacée" (rhyme it with “place”…but it’s French for “ice cream” and due to its accent grave in pronounced “glah say”… "There's a Grateful Dead song for every occasion..." ...so says friend Steve B. - a guy I surfed with, travelled to Callie and had the privilege of attending his backyard "school" on the care and maintenance of the sacred Volkswagen family of motor cars...and buses...Today's "mirrors" naturally segued into... "Takes the wheel when my eyes seein' DOUBLE..." "She's got everything delightful She's got everything I need Takes the wheel when I'm seeing double Pays my ticket when I speed" --"Sugar Magnolia" - Grateful Dead The Story of "Sugar Magnolia" by The Grateful Dead (05:38) #music #humor #StopAndShop #MickJagger #BillMurray #RodneyDangerfield #Eileen #GrouchoMarx #ChuckMcCann #GratefulDead #SimonAndGarfunkel #HaagenDaz #GreenBeans #AbbottAndCostello #MarxBrothers

"From the rising to the setting of the sun...the name of the Muse is to be praised..." Reveille... "I've "bean" in my mind...it's such a fine mind..." As I was waking, the following "grounds" were percolating in my brain... "...and the sign flashed out its warning...in the words that it was forming..." “Unless Maxwell fills the cup, they labour in vein who build it” --2 Caffeinations 3:16 “It's good to the last trumpet” “It’s the Smart choice!” ..."Because it's filtered through the cone of Silex." Coneheads 1993 Breakfast Scene Hd (01:55) What's brewing in space? SPACEBALLS Clip - "Mr. Coffee" (1987) Rick Moranis (06:36) "Good to the last trumpet...or crumpet...croissant...or bagel...or drop..." A word to the wise...before the Head Waiter/Maitre'd calls OUR numbers... Before the last trumpet... Friends don't let friends drink INSTANT! Instant Maxwell house coffee with Paul Lynde (01:20) Unless it's a dire emergency... When in Paris... Seems like a French vibe developed as I used "ma plume" ("pen") to follow the French bread crumbs...and Captain Renault as he "rounds up the usual suspects... Lord knows that's a "pain" in the ass... To raise a few more francs to supplement his police wages, Inspector Clouseau opened a chain of coffee stands that bear his moniker: Silex Piano... The Silex Piano is a musical instrument of the Lithophone family. It was created by Honoré Baudre, circa 1885 and was described in several contemporary publications. An 1875 article in The Times[2] refers to an instrument which its inventor, Honoré Baudre, had been exhibiting "during the last 20 years, principally in the Paris neighbourhood". It was reported to contain 28 flint stones, exactly as they had been quarried from the chalk. There was another performance of the "geological piano" on January 7, 1876[3] at the "Royal Polytechnic", with entry charged at one shilling. Source: Wikipedia Le Silex – Pianos Past and Present Reverie: Sounds of Silex Coffee Brewing Machine Sounds for Rest and Relaxation 10 Hours ASMR (10:01:44) Folger's" Believe it or not" A little while after rising, as I was getting ready for my kundalini yoga practice, I pulled up YouTube on our Roku and this was the first video... "Greetings, Pilgrim, your search has ended..." These apparent synchronicities are becoming a daily occurence...the YouTuber - "Melody for Memory" put an instrumental version of Paul & Art's as the first song on the video! I'm a believer...and now a Subscriber...!" Sound of Silence - You can listen to this music forever! Most Beautiful Orchestrated Melodies (1:47:55) Greetings, Pilgrim, your search has ended... 1950s coffee commercial, Yuban (01:00) Yuban coffee commercial early 90's (00:30) "Krafty" shenananigans: "Thou shalt not MISlabel" Judge Says Kraft Heinz’s Maxwell House, Yuban Coffee Settlement Is ‘Good to the Last Drop’ (July 15, 2021) --A $16 million Kraft Heinz Goods Co. settlement has received final approval from a Florida judge, ending claims the company overstated the amount of grounds in its Maxwell House and Yuban brands’ coffee containers. Care for another cup? As I've said in recent posts, this song find is yet another example of "Why I love my job"... Van Morrison - When The Saints Go Marching In 🎝 (06:02) Who's "Maxwell"? [Paul] McCartney's wife Linda said that he had become interested in avant-garde theatre and had immersed himself in the writings of the experimental French author Alfred Jarry. This influence is reflected in the story and tone of "Maxwell's Silver Hammer", and also explains how McCartney came across Jarry's word "pataphysical", which occurs in the lyrics.[10] In 1994, McCartney said that the song epitomises the downfalls of life, being "my analogy for when something goes wrong out of the blue, as it so often does, as I was beginning to find out at that time in my life. I wanted something symbolic of that, so to me it was some fictitious character called Maxwell with a silver hammer. I don't know why it was silver, it just sounded better than Maxwell's hammer."[5] Source: Wikipedia Is he related to the Marquis deSade? Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Maxwell's Silver Hammer [Steve Martin] (HD) (02:31) For more "Caffeinated Epiphanies" please visit my friend's blog: "Caffeinated Epiphanies" Caffeine-induced epiphanies and occasional literary musings What's brewing? Coming Attractions... ...stay tuned in for "Cup 2"...It's brewing now... #music #humor #coffee #caffeine #VanMorrison #Thalie #muse #mirth #MaryPhillips #CaffeinatedEpiphanies #KraftFoods #Yuban #Folgers #MaxwellHouse #GetSmart #DonAdams #PaulLynde #LouisArmstrong #Paris #Rome #Coneheads #Spaceballs #SteveMartin #SimonAndGarfunkel

According to my calculations, this is the anniversary of your arrival date... Happy Birthday Karen! (Funny Talking Dogs) (02:40) Here's the pick of my litter...selected especially for big sister - EMMA GRACE... Paw Patrol - Baha Men - Who Let The Dogs Out (02:58) Maybe you can get two...A onsie for Shannon and a 34-sie for you... To help you celebrate, I went to my license plate collection and retrieved some appropriate ones... Birthing room soundtrack "Mama Tried" is a popular Grateful Dead tune. Mickey Hart is one of their two drummers. He's "performed" for all ages - from birth to old-but-young-at-heart... At that end, he's collaborated for years with world famous neuroscientists like Dr. Adam Gazzaley to use music as medicine in ways that can help older folks with cognitive impairment issues. I've previously posted about this. In the next video, he describes how he created a sonic environment to welcome his son into our shared world. "'Music to Be Born By' is an album by percussionist Mickey Hart that is based on the fetal heartbeat of his son Taro Hart, who was born on January 13, 1983. The album was released in 1989 by Rykodisc, and was later reissued by Smithsonian Folkways as part of their Mickey Hart Collection." "At the time of the album's release, Taro Hart was credited as being 'the world's youngest recording artist.'" SOURCE: Wikipedia Mickey Hart - Music to Be Born By (00:48) MoMA..."Birth of the World" "Joan Miró: Birth of the World" | Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art And one in spirit of the Grateful Dead: "Birth of the World" is a piece of digital artwork by Marfffa Art which was uploaded on February 2nd, 2017. SOURCE #music #humor #birthday #Karen #MickeyHart #Taro #GratefulDead #PawPatrol #JoanMiro

We Can Work It Out Try to see it my way Do I have to keep on clucking till I can't go on? While you see it your way Run the risk of knowing that my life may soon be gone We can work it out We can work it out Try to see it my way Only my timer will tell if I am right or I am wrong While you see it your way, There's a chance that I might fall apart before too long We can work it out We can work it out Thanksgiving turkeys granted asylum at Witches Brew Meanwhile...among the carnivores... Birds of a feather...are supposed to stick together... Turnabout is FOWL play... Too Much Wild Turkey? Wasted...Can't find your way home? Walking around my West Hempstead neighborhood, I spotted this guy trying to escape from his fears about what happened to his friends and family in the past...and what's gonna happen to him in the future... Get OUT of the oven...and ONTO the wagon... Witches Brew has AA meetings every Thursday 11am -12 pm. They open an hour before the restaurant opens to provide a sober shelter from the storms of life... Come join us... Can't Find My Way Home-Bonnie Raitt / Lowell George (04:07) Eric Clapton - Steve Winwood (Can't find my way home) (05:01) Sadly, some haven't yet found the refuge... "There's a Grateful Dead song for EVERY occasion..." ...so says fellow Deadhead Steve B - the same guy that surfed with me and taught me, as he calls it - "to play with cars"...which became my CAReer path..."Thanks, Buddy!" Bottle of Ripple wine, sold in the 1960's-1970's. "Ripple" wine Ripple was a fortified wine produced by E & J Gallo Winery as a Low end fortified wine that was popular in the United States, particularly in the 1970s. Possessing a relatively low 11% ABV, it was originally marketed to "casual" drinkers.  Due to its low price, it had a reputation as a drink for alcoholics and the destitute. It was popular among young drinkers, both  underage and college age students. On Sanford and Son, Ripple was often referred to, as it was Fred Sanford's alcoholic beverage of choice, making Sanford an early spokesperson of the product. Fred: "CRIPPLE" - what ya get by mixing Cream Soda with Ripple... More "Fred's" here "Take my advice, you'd be better off SOBER..." ...and if you need help...reach out your hand... Grateful Dead-Ripple (04:12) Wharf Rats - Sober Deadheads Facebook "Sober Deadheads"??? No, it's not an oxymoron...It's a palindrome (A word, phrase, verse, or sentence that reads the same backward or forward)....like "Aoxomoxoa" OKAY, it's a holiday...2 Dead songs..."I'll get up and fly away..." This "Grate" anthem tells the story of the down-and-outer's that live amidst us but in the unseen byways...the fringes of our collective society... I have 2 main sources for "Dead" wisdom: AJ - a barista at Witches Brew and David Dodd - Research Associate, Music Dept., University of California Santa Cruz. Here's David's tale. The Annotated "Wharf Rat" "But I'll get back on my feet someday The good lord willing, if he says I may I know that the life I'm living's no good I'll get a new start, live the life I should I'll get up and fly away I'll get up and fly away" First performance: February 18, 1971, at the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, NY. "Wharf Rat" appeared in the first set, sandiwched between two segments of "Dark Star."  Other firsts in the show included "Bertha,"  "Greatest Story Ever Told," "Johnny B. Goode," "Loser," and "Playing in the Band." It remained in the repertoire thereafter. Additionally, the Wharf Rats are the name of a group of loosely-organized sober Deadheads, patterning themselves roughly on the Alcoholics Anonymous model of a twelve-step program to maintain sobriety in the often slippery atmosphere of a Grateful Dead concert. Their motto is "One show at a time." The Grateful Dead - Wharf Rat [Hartford ‘77](10:00) Let's give THANKS...and stay GRATEFUL... Paul Izak Freestyle Jam 'Give thanks" (07:55) Paul is a favorite tunesmith. Here's a piece of his bio: Birthing Yogarden Our trinity is yoga, gardening, and music. In 2010, we offered our first community gathering in Kailua, HI. Yogarden continues to grow like a tree, growing new limbs, new leaves, and new roots each year. SOURCE It's 24 hours...We can make it if we try...with a little...LOT of help from our friends...and a LOT of music & laughter... You Can't Gobble Me (01:19) This Turkey Will Survive - Happy Thanksgiving (01:25) In the making of this post... #music #humor #Thanksgiving #turkey #vegan #vegetarian #WitchesBrewCoffeeHouse #WharfRats #GratefulDead #Ripple #BonnieRaitt #LowellGeorge #EricClapton #SteveWinwood #CharlieBrown #AA #recovery #sober #AJ #DavidDodd #PaulIzak #YogaGarden #AmericanHumaneAssociation #WildTurkey

Barbara, Welcome to your 70’s… Why, it’s not the end of a decade…But, the first day of the rest of your life… Merrie Melodies & Looney Tunes - Opening themes (00:34) Let’s agree to minimize our time with “half-full” folks…Like Jim, in the Doors’ “The End”… And maximize our participation with purveyors of positivity…like these guys... And, in case WE don’t get their message, in the song, they repeat it multiple times… "Only the beginning..." Beginnings - Chicago - 1969 - Full Version (08:00) The above image reminded me of another favorite from this band...and I found it paired with another "TIMELY" one for today's celebration and every day's... Chicago - (1973) "Saturday in the Park" & "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" (05:31) ON THIS DAY IN 1953…Nov. 20... The aforementioned "capsule" was the warm security of your mother's belly...where ALL of your needs were met... Let's join Peabody and Sherman and take a trip in their Wayback Machine... The first aircraft to reach Mach 2 (04:21) Commencing countdown engines on…Leaving one decade for the next... YES! There’s still time to leave Earth and escape FROM the monkeys the Monkees - Theme Song (1966) (02:20) [Reader: Finding...being led to this next song is yet another example of WHY I LOVE MY RETIREMENT "JOB"...] "You'll wonder where the decades went...when you brush your years with REINVENT..." Apeman - The Kinks (Music Video) (03:48) Nostalgia Fans... Before... After... Pepsodent Toothpaste - Old Commercial with a jingle (01:10) If you're not yet ready for space travel...how about the bus...??? Nanny, a.k.a, "Julia Burns" - my grandmother (Mom's Mom) grew up in Brooklyn on Chauncey Street and knew "Mrs. Dennehy" - the person who cared for Jackie while his mother worked selling subway tokens... Source: Wikipedia As Joe the Bartender, Jackie used to talk with an unseen customer - "Mr. Dennehy: Joe the Bartender (Jackie Gleason) talks to Mr. Dennehy and then Crazy Guggenheim (Frank Fontaine) and "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now" - Facebook Check, please...Reality Check... As I’ve come to see LIFE…TIME is a mixture of Up's...Down's...and a lot of in-between's... Chambers Brothers - Time Has Come Today - Time Covers 1968-1970 Music for Space Travel through TIME... Elton John - Rocket Man (Official Music Video) (04:42) David Bowie – Space Oddity (Official Video ( 05:04) CLOSING SET...You were 11... First song gets us in a celebration mode...And the second...despite it's arrogant lyrics...reminds us that... "time is always on our side"... The Rolling Stones Live, 25/10/1964, Ed Sullivan Theatre, NY (06:26) Let us PLAYLIST (all songs) #music #humor #Barbara #time #MerrieMelodies #Chicago #PeabodyAndSherman #TheMonkees #TheKinks #Pepsodent #TimeMagazine #TheChambersBrothers #EltonJohn #DavidBowie #TheRollingStones #JackieGleason #Nanny #JuliaBurns #FrankFontaine #CrazyGuggenheim #MrDennehy #MrsDennehy

Barbara, I invited someone you like to help us and YOU celebrate YOUR life... YOUR special day...as you passage from one decade into the next... So, knowing how much you like him, I went looking for tunes. My searches led to the second video first. Scalping for more tickets, I found this first video that begins by telling a "TAIL" that I'm sure your daughter and caretaker of animals - Karen - will love...a "TAIL" about Billy's love for his animal fans... Emcee Howard Stern affectionately calls him "Saint Billy" as he likens him to Francis of Assisi..., and tells the gathered fans that Billy will donate all of the profits from this evening to this Long Island animal care organization: Howard Stern Happy Birthday Billy Joel (MSG - May 9, 2014) (06:06) Billy Joel - MSG May 9th Singing "Happy Birthday" plus "My Life" (06:03) After the show, let's get some Italian food... Considering the type of eatery for your celebration: Bacaro's in Massapequa Park, NY, the next tune seems to fit the bill... Billy Joel - Scenes from an Italian Restaurant (Official Music Video) (07:32) Have a Ball...and a meatball or two!!! Post-partum (party) add The food was delicious!!! Just adding this as levity... Alka Seltzer Commercial - Spicy Meatball (1969) (00:52) #music #humor #Barbara #Karen #BillyJoel #animals #HowardStern #MadisonSquareGarden #NorthShoreAnimalLeague #SaintFrancis #Bacaros #AlkaSeltzer

Dr. Allys, VMD, Along our paths, we are provided with times to pause…to reflect…to imagine…to dream… Birthdays can be what some call “liminal spaces”…places of transition…between what was and what will be… From yours truly...Major Tom... David Bowie – Space Oddity (Official Video) (05:04) "This is Ground Control to Doctor Allys You've really made the grade And the papers want to know whose pet treats you serve..." Readers: Among the other animals on life's Animal Farms, Dr. Allys took care of horses. Here's a little about her mission: Allys Maybank VMD, Natural Philosopher – I always loved science. As a child I had a chemistry lab in the basement. I made plaster molds of the paw prints I found in empty NYC lots. I entered every science fair. My father and I looked at the night sky with his father’s telescope. In college I leaned that science was natural philosophy. I learned numberless math. I learned that in the creation of the universe and evolution of the species nothing was ever lost. The single cell animal, the hydra, the fish, all of the phyla was still inside us; sometimes modified and called something else. I marveled at the retained embryological development of species as we went up the phyla. I broke the curve in embryology lab because I couldn’t marvel at it enough. I’ve done all kinds of medicine for all kinds of species. I learned that sometimes it is the latent unseen function of a retained evolutionary structure, or process, or response that is out of whack. And when that is the case our standard medical approaches are incomplete. [Source] Music for the inner journey…Like when our last friend has left the party and we’re sitting there alone with our thoughts… Here's Brian Wilson's ode from the female perspective... Carly Simon - In My Room (02:38) Within you without you - The Beatles (LYRICS/LETRA) [Original] (05:04) For further liminal space exploration… Between Two Worlds - Center for Action and Contemplation Liminal Space - Center for Action and Contemplation How Taming the Mind is Like Riding a Horse [Opening paragraph] In traditional descriptions, meditation is likened to training a horse. The sensations, impulses, and reactions in our bodies are like the untamed instincts of an animal, and when we take our seat in practice, we learn how to ride this energy with skill. As good equestrians know, the best way to ride a horse is not trying to control it with fear, force or frustration, but by confidently offering a partnership. We listen and respond to the horse’s needs for reassurance, guidance and gentleness, as well as recognizing its intuitive connection to the earth and environment. Based on what the horse tells us, we adjust our journey as needed, not losing sight of our intended destination. In this way, rider and horse can travel in harmony, each taking charge according to its strengths. There...and Back Again... Whenever you're ready, come back to NOW...the only place there ever is... The Traveling Wilburys - End Of The Line (Official Video) (03:25) Encore We've come full circle from our opening image... Wild Horses The Rolling Stones-subtitulado Español (05:54) Like your practice of alternative medicine for animals, here's an alternative take on this tune...including alternative forms of "horse" power... These next lyrics remind us to how alone time can help us remember who we are... "Horsepower" even includes an English sports model... A Horse With No Name - America (Lyrics) (04:13) Behind The Song: America, “Horse With No Name” - American Songwriter [from the opening paragraph] It’s one of the most famously mysterious songs ever to become a hit. It’s got enigma baked into it, which may be part of its lasting magic. Like Lennon’s “Norwegian Wood,” and other great though cryptic songs, it doesn’t fill in the entire picture, leaving it instead up to the listener to do that on their own. Horse Sense This creature lives on a pasture in nearby Garden City. The artist crafted the town's symbol - a pineapple - on the creature's forehead...It's in the same place as a human's pineal gland...A.K.A. "the third eye"...the seat of wisdom... #music #humor #Zen #liminal #birthday #DavidBowie #horses #GeorgeHarrison #TheHobbit #TheTravelingWilburys #CarlySimon #DavidCrosby #JimmyWebb #RollingStones #America #GardenCity #PinealGland

I consider Franciscan Father Richard Rohr my most influential guide to the spiritual journey. In the mid-1970's, I was led to him after Timothy Leary's sidekick at Harvard - Richard Alpert, in his transformed state as Ram Dass, in his classic "Be Here Now," introduced me for the first time to a loving version of what many people refer to as "G-d". In the ensuing decades, Fr. Richard has helped widen my vision to see "G-d" in so many more places than when I first set out on the journey. My role in this post is to provide some bread crumbs that might nourish someone's interest in learning more... Oh...It was his book on addiction: "Breathing Underwater" that led me to the rooms of the 12 Steps. I've mentioned this in several posts. John Michael Talbot - Peace Prayer of St Francis (02:40) St. Francis: A Message for Our Times (10/4/20 to 10/10/20) An Unexpected Francis An Invitation to Cosmic Community A Cosmic Mutuality The Gift of a Simple Life The Soft Prophecy of Francis St. Francis: A Message for Our Times: Weekly Summary Beyond the Birdbath Beyond the Birdbath: The Feast of St. Francis of Assisi - Sisters of Mercy [from the opening paragraphs] When considering the offer to write this blog, it dawned on me how little I knew about Saint Francis: a wild youth, disowning his father and his inheritance, conversing with a wolf and surrounded by birds. There had to be more than sentimental stories to have such a Franciscan legacy and a popularity among the people. And so began my homework! St. Bonaventure described Francis as “searching for God and finding him in all the broken places of humanity.” For Francis, holiness required an active engagement with the poorest of persons and attention to all of creation. He desired to live in close proximity to those excluded from society, but no one—rich or poor, saint or sinner—was excluded from his care. Francis is the saint of “universal fraternity,” the brother of all. He did not believe in hierarchy or any type of superiority. His brothers vowed obedience, not to Francis, but to the Gospel way of life. Francis saw Christ in everything and everyone. All people, all creatures and all creation deserved respect because all reflected the God who made them. Our modern tendency to see humans as the center of creation would not please Francis. His Canticle of the Creatures makes clear the importance of all of creation—humans too, but not exclusively: “I am who I am in the eyes of God, nothing more and nothing less.” Beyond the 'birdbath industrial complex' is the radical St. Francis of Assisi - Earthbeat [from the opening paragraph] Last week, in an effort to continue commemorating and drawing attention to the "Season of Creation," I tweeted the following remark: "Humans are called to care for our Sister Mother Earth, not because she was created for our sole use and domination, but because we as a species have uniquely sinned in abusing her and her other inhabitants. For our ecological sins, Lord Have Mercy! #SeasonOfCreation." [another segment] A few years back, while delivering a homily at a Los Angles Religious Education Congress liturgy with the theme of "care of the earth," I coined a phrase to explain the origins and perpetuation of this popular vision of St. Francis as a harmless romantic who loved animals: the "birdbath industrial complex." By "birdbath industrial complex," I mean all those diffuse factors and judgments that go into keeping St. Francis a caricature of the profoundly insightful theological vision he articulated in his "Canticle of the Creatures" and throughout his entire life. Anytime we reduce the saint to a medieval petting-zoo mascot or state simply that he "loved animals" without regard for the radical truth about God and creation he intended, we are contributing to and operating according to the logic of the "birdbath industrial complex." St. Francis called all creatures — and not merely those nonhuman animals we classify as sentient, but rocks and trees alike — his sisters and brothers because, in a real sense, they are. Saint Francis the Mystic Francis of Assisi, nature’s mystic - Sr. Ilia Delio/The Washington Post [from the opening paragraph] Francis of Assisi was a simple man from a merchant class family who knew the world of business and rejected an economy of money because it divided people into classes. His father was a cloth merchant and owned a shop in Assisi where Francis worked for some time. He was not only familiar with the daily business of buying and trading cloth but he came into contact with many different types of people--farmers, craftsmen, artists, bakers--people who worked with their hands and valued the material things of the earth. After being wounded in battle, he had a spiritual conversion and began to pray in broken down churches. Simplicity Simple Man - Lynyrd Skynyrd - Lyrics HD (05:50) JUDY COLLINS - "Simple Gifts" 1963 (01:36) Related Post about Francis All Saints Day: "Hey, tOM, what's your religion?" "I'm a FRANCISCAN!" #music #SaintFrancis #RichardRohr #TimothyLeary #RichardAlpert #RamDass #JohnMichaelTalbot #SistersOfMercy #SisterIliaDelio #LynyrdSkynyrd #JudyCollins

At several of NYC's annual "Procession of the Ghouls" - at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine - I've dressed as Saint Francis of Assisi. My contribution to bringing some playful positivity to a church full of demons. See link at bottom of post for my 2023 adventures at this "holy" version of "Animal House"... Also, at the bottom - the place preferred by Francis - you'll find a link to a new post about this man and the friar who introduced me to him: Richard Rohr. Here I am at the Cathedral with Bishop "Mitered Joe Young"... Bob Dylan, Man Gave Names To All The Animals, 1980 (05:52) And Steve gave SHAPES to all the animals... The Muppet Show: Steve Martin (01:53) At The Zoo, Simon & Garfunkel (02:17) If the lion can lay down with the lamb...let us lay our "Burdon's" down too and celebrate the city on the hill named after the saint for today: FRANCISCO... "Feel all right On a warm San Franciscan night The children are cool They don't raise fools It's an American dream Includes Indians too" Eric Burdon & The Animals : San Franciscan Nights (Live 1967) (03:50) SEQUE: The Animals - Gratefully Dead Eric Burdon and The Animals - Gratefully Dead (04:00) [from the description] The still astounding Gratefully Dead remains one of the jewels in the Animals' acid rock crown. Burdon was hanging out with the likes of Ron 'Pigpen' McKernan from the Grateful Dead at the time, and the connection is likely the inspiration behind the song's title, although the track itself is more aggressive than anything the Dead ever committed to vinyl. Comic Interlude... From the Old Testament Book of A T at Sea...We cover you rain...or*** ***see Terms and Conditions Carnivore Cruises... Speaking of predators...watch out for these modern day throwbacks... Continuing the Reptilian Vibe... Pigpen "Dewing" the lead... Grateful Dead - Alligator 1968-01-22 (15:00) Let's "Dew" it again...I love this next classic arcade photo machine capture...Let the good times roll....I liked these next two "oldies" from the family album...just posting the pics. PETA...PETER...Veterinarians Animal Crackers Now Freed From Cage On Box (00:26) Grateful Dead - Black Peter (Live at Farm Aid 1987) (5:07) Wharf Rats: SOBER Deadheads (Yup! You read it right!) Facebook Page To find them at shows look for their YELLOW BALLOONS: “Who Are the Wharf Rats? – Enjoying Concerts and Music Without The Drugs - SoberNation Grateful Dead - Wharf Rat (Louisville, KY 7/6/90) (Official Live Video) (11:48) Get on your Marx, Get set...GO... The Marx Brothers play bridge - Animal Crackers (1930) 720p HD (05:13) Into the Woods... Oh Grey Warden - The Menagerie (04:33) Follow the Rabbit... White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane (On Smothers Brothers) (03:14) NEXT: Video clips from "Alice in Wonderland"(1903) by Cecil Hepworth & Percy Stow, with May Clark as Alice. White Rabbit (Rare Version by Instant Flight) (02:44) Animal House CAUTION: Practice YOGA...before attempting TOGA... Shout-Otis Day & The NIghts (Animal House Scene) (03:01) 2023 Procession of the Ghouls Cosmic Charlie Brown & the GRATEfull Pumpkin Related Post on Francis St. Francis: A Message for our Times...Beyond the birdbath images #music #humor #animals #SaintFrancisOfAssisi #BobDylan #SteveMartin #EricBurdun #TheAnimals #SimonAndGarfunkel #TheMuppetShow #NoahsArk #Pigpen #PETA #WharfRats #sober #recovery #AA #MarxBrothers #TheMenagerie #AliceInWonderland #JeffersonAirplane #InstantFlight #SmothersBrothers #FarmAid #AnimalHouse #ProcessionOfTheGhouls

In a few minutes, I'm heading over to our local Whole Foods store in Garden City for some fun. Seems, they're having a Halloween costume party where employees can compete for the best-in-class outfit. I'm gonna wear my getup I assembled for last Friday's "Procession of the Ghouls" at NYC's Cathedral of St. John the Divine (Devient)...see down further for pics. EVERYTHING'S better filled with bacon and cheese... Start: Middle Step: Final Step: FULL RECIPE: Deep fried bacon cheese and beer dog Here's a guy with a pair...actually 2 pair... In some posts, I have an epiphany moment...when I realize "This is why I do this stuff!" Well, here's today's: The Story Behind "I Wish I Were an Oscar Mayer Weiner" Song (04:04) Lest, we go too far afield...and off our trajectory...of eating healthfully... Interstellar - Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night Scene 1080p HD (01:12) "America's Deadliest Missile" Time Essay: The Decline and Fill of the American Hot Dog By Stefan Kanfer Monday, Oct. 02, 1972 To whet your appetite for healthy food - like you'll find at Whole Foods and other holistic purveyors...read this opening paragraph from the above article: FRANKFURTER can be found just below Frankenstein in the dictionary. It can also be found immediately beneath contempt in Ralph Nader's vast lexicon of villains. To Nader, the ABM and the smart bomb are scarcely more lethal than a chain of processed sausages. Hot dogs, insists the consumer advocate, are "among America's deadliest missiles." New York City's Consumer Affairs Commissioner Bess Myerson agrees: "After I found out what was in hot dogs, I stopped eating them." This people's entrée, this frank companion of alfresco meals and ball games—can it really be a finger-shaped monster? So it appears. Close up of my signage With management's permission, I cruised the store and when spotting people that appeared to be mostly present (as opposed to in-the-store-but-already-thinking-about-their-next-stop...), I engaged them with banter like this....Got many smiles: "Hi! If you'd like to live as long as me, eat more HOLE foods..." "Make America GRATE again...Vote for Jerry in 24..." We become what we eat... The store has a food therapy area where we can get a mental health check up...to see which food road we're on... And a meditation garden to help us find the right path to health and wellness... "We who are on the road must have a code that we can live by..." Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Teach Your Children (Official Music Video) (02:54) Halloween 2023 Cosmic Charlie Brown & the GRATEfull Pumpkin #music #humor #WholeFoods #CharlieBrown #GratefulDead #JerryGarcia #OscarMayar #RalphNader #BessMyerson #GratefulPumpkin #Crosby #Stills #Nash #Young

Sheeet! You’re another year older!!! Silver me timbers...that's 3/4's of a century!!! But make no bones about it…Weir all glad all over to welcome you 😎 Heeeer’s Bobby and his pack to welcome you…HOOOOWL ya doin'??? And if anybody makes fun of your advanced age, let this guy know…and hell (he’ll) deal with them… It’s not a laughing matter… Some final thoughts…brushstrokes... Mike, I love the Bizarro comics. She looks like she's driving a V Dub. Mike, Didn't you once tell me that after you repainted your V-Dub (Readers, see next section)...you got stopped by a cop and he said something about how the color on your registration ("white") didn't match the car he was looking at...Would you mind finishing the story?... BEACH BREAK Readers: Back when we were younger...so much younger than today...Many of the crew and even my family had VW's...Beetles, Buses, Karmann Ghias...and Mike had a white Beetle Convertible on which he painted the complete logo for the Endless Summer movie and album cover art...FYI - I discovered my career choice "playing with cars" as friend and fellow surfer Steve B used to call it. BTW - Steve got me started turning wrenches...THANKS, BUDDY! Sadly, there are no photographs of Mike's Masterpiece...so, let's imagine together what it might have looked like...Here are the ingredients for your mental art class...the above image painted on the driver's side of a vehicle like this: Oh! Here's some more inspiration for your art class...a movie trailer...and some music...music from THEN...and from NOW... The Endless Summer Movie Trailer(1966) (01:55) Endless Summer Song - The Sandals (1966) Summer 2023... Alan Walker & Zak Abel - Endless Summer (Official Music Video) 2023 (03:16) Here's my attempt to duplicate...Hey, no criticism, please...Remember, I majored in SHOP... For my surfer friends...YES, there will be perfect waves in heaven...but why wait... Endless Summer "Cape St. Francis" (04:26) BACK TO MIKE'S BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION POST... Meet the Artist First, let's stopover at his online studio...His home page displays moving images...Check out the "Slick" one that just greeted me...a reminder to say "Grace" before meals...being thankful for what we have... Mike Cummo Art Website My prayer for you is that you stay… Rod Stewart - Forever Young (Official Video) (03:24) CODA These came to me after my morning centering prayer meditation… My Back Pages (Bob Dylan, Roger McGuinn, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Eric Clapton & George Harrison) (04:42) tOM #music #humor #MikeC #birthday #art #Halloween #BobWeir #JackNicholson #EndlessSummer #surfing #JamesJoyce #RodStewart #BobDylan #RogerMcGuinn #TomPetty #NeilYoung #EricClapton #GeorgeHarrison #AlanWalker #ZakAbel #TheSandals

I’m Amazed-but-not-Surprised Department As I mentioned in Jews in Space - 1, finding articles like this next one is becoming a new phenomenon in my writing….it's where I begin with a humorous take on a topic and it then leads me…leads us…to a serious handling of this topic... Here's my starting point for this space adventure... Jews in Space: Jewish Museum Milwaukee highlights space race contributions (2022) (03:06) --features accomplishments of astronauts, both male and female; actors and actresses like Leonard Nimoy; scientists like Carl Sagan, filmmakers like Mel Brooks; authors and more... Prompted by his mention in the previous article, this next story provides a peek at Hugo Gernsback. Isaac Asimov has termed Gernsback the “father of science fiction,” without whose work he says his own career could never have taken off. Ray Bradbury has stated that “Gernsback made us fall in love with the future.” Fifty Years Later, Remembering Sci-Fi Pioneer Hugo Gernsback - Smithsonian Magazine (2017) --He creatively combined two of his passions: scientific inquiry and storytelling into a successful career. "Owing to their historical import, many of Gernsback's publications are now preserved at the Smithsonian Libraries on microfiche and in print, 50 years after his death on August 19, 1967." The inaugural issue of Gernsback's Amazing Stories magazine. Young readers—in several cases the sci-fi writers of the future—could expect an exciting blend of adventure and technology in every fresh installment. Telemedicine Predicted in 1925 - Smithsonian Magazine --much of what he predicted has already come into existence in some form A doctor's diagnosis "by radio" on the cover of the February, 1925 issue of Science and Invention magazine The man of 1975 signs important documents by videophone (1925) Here's a 2018 piece on "Jews in Space" 'Jews in Space' Exhibit Traces Jewish Culture Across the Cosmos - Yahoo.com [from the article] NEW YORK — A new exhibit at New York's Center for Jewish History chronicles the ties between Jewish culture and exploration of the cosmos, and includes some incredible artifacts from the history of astronomy and space exploration. "Jews In Space" officially debuted at the center on Monday, Feb. 26, in partnership with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. Walk through the exhibit hall and you'll find rare 18th and 19th century rabbinic tomes on astronomy in Hebrew, German and Yiddish, as well as a dreidel, a Torah pointer, a traveling menorah and other religious artifacts that traveled into space with the first Jewish American astronaut, Jeffrey Hoffman. The exhibit also features mementos from other Jewish space travelers, memorabilia from science fiction, and a detailed timeline of Jewish accomplishments in astronomy and spaceflight. "After some research, it became apparent that there was a fair amount of material in the realms of traditional texts, science fiction, pop culture, science and actual space programs,: Portnoy said. "[Melanie and I] both love Mel Brooks, so the title became 'Jews in Space,' which was taken from a parody trailer that appears at the end of 'History of the World, Part I.'" Also from this article...How cool is this? Three of my favorite memories all wrapped up in one image: Star Trek...Mad Magazine...and Avis Rent-a-Car's motto (my career job): I poked around in Online Space and found this: Seems Alfred E is a Deadhead...so's Spock... May the Schwartz be with Us... Jews in Space (Mel Brooks) (01:01) Others in this Series Jews in Space -1: Humorists Jews in Space -3: Musicians...Living and DEAD...Journey into INNER Healing Spaces #music #humor #MelBrooks #StarWars #StarTrek #JewishMuseumMilwaukee #MadMagazine #AvisRentACar #HugoGernsback #SmithsonianMagazine