Paul Merrill
“Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’ ” by Journey.
If I went the rest of my life without hearing that tune again, I’d be very happy.
I actually do like one Journey song, Anytime. That was before they went to the pure pop phase, which is a bad move on any band’s part. I left top-40 radio behind when I hit about age 15.
Question for you: What song can you live without?
(Photo is from Wikimedia Commons. And if you liked this post, go here.)
Stevie Ray Vaughan had an album called “Texas Flood”. Last week Heather and I were down there for a staff retreat – and the song of the same name played non-stop in my head.
This was a rare moment when the rains had actually stopped enough to walk outside without getting soaked.
You may remember my post on labels. Well, my friend Lee is now collecting labels to create a work of art from. I’m also collecting for her.
If you would like to send me your labels, I’ll pass them on to Lee. I think I can convince her to let me post a picture of what she creates.
Just leave a comment. I can grab your email address from there, and I’ll send you my physical address. Or send me an email at phmerrill at g mail dot com.
I always found it interesting that in England, there is no fall. It’s just “autumn”.
So a couple of weeks ago, I could not resist taking a picture of this amazing contrast. The morning light was just perfect.
Colorado does not have as many red leaves in the autumn/fall as Maryland and Massachusetts (where I grew up). We specialize in yellows and golds here. So this was special.
If we were only to look at shadows, our perceptions of reality would be distorted.
This makes me think of what another Paul said.
Are you only looking at shadows today?
One of the random things I saved from my mom’s stuff was a notebook of art history notes from 1956. (She got an art history degree from the University of Texas, I think after my brother was born in 1957.)
I skimmed some of the notebook. It was fun to read her idealistic college-student perspective… just taking in what the professor said as “that must be true”. It was hard to imagine her sitting in class rapidly taking notes.
I contrasted that perspective to her later recollections of her professors’ teachings – she saw through the nonsense that some modern art is.
Takeaway: How can we retain a bit of idealism in our lives?
I admit. I’m a sucker for new products.
So Metromint was an easy one for me to try – I like mint, and I don’t like sugary drinks (very often). Plus, it was on sale for about a third off the list price.
Verdict? Good. Nice clean taste. The bottles said “-6 degrees” (Spearmint) and “-8 degrees” (Peppermint). That’s a bit confusing – are you supposed to chill them to that temperature for maximum enjoyment? (If you were, there would have to be some anti-freeze ingredient.)
Final verdict? Don’t buy. Why?
1. The bottled water problem of your having to dispose of or recycle the bottle and the environmental costs of transporting the water to your store. (Pipes do it cheaper – if you live in North America, anyhow.)
2. Try my much cheaper version here. Not as cool-looking, but it does taste good.
Every once in a while, I like to visit an open house at a place that is way beyond what we could ever afford. Why? It’s a small taste of what the upper echelons live like. It’s free. It’s fun.
This particular gated-community home is priced at $1,300,000. (Yes, that is similar to the gross domestic product of many small developing nations.)
But for once, I could see why someone might be willing to spend that much. The view from the master bedroom encompassed about 200 degrees of the front range mountains and downtown Denver. The home is positioned at the top of a very high point, so one can really see far.
Sad is that most people in the market to buy such a place would not be able to enjoy that view very often. Most would be tending to their cattle.
Have you ever tried to use a computer at an Office Depot (or Office Max, Best Buy or Staples)? They have them locked up with some marketing screen saver. Even if you can start to use it, most of the time they are not connected to the internet.
Go to an Apple Store. Aaahh! Any computer is ready for you to – well – actually use it. If you scout around the store, you will probably find a model that has your favorite program already loaded on. (Well, sorry to say – none will have Windows Movie Maker or Real Player loaded.)
Just more evidence that Apple means for humans to use their computers.
In fourth grade, I chose to play violin because I had a crush on a girl named Linda Cardone. She chose the violin as her instrument, so I did too. I thought I might get to sit next to her in orchestra.
My youngest sister chose violin, maybe because I had played. (Haven’t had the chance to ask her about that.) If that’s true, my fourth grade crush influenced the course of my sister’s life. She got a bachelor’s degree in viola performance and later a master’s degree in the same.
Thank you, Linda.
