What time is it? What day is it? I have no idea.

It is exactly some- thing o'clock. Yes, I'm sure!

Of all the changes in our lives these past months-- self isolation, working and/or schooling at home, virtual this and virtual that, wearing a mask (You are, aren't you?), changing world--I really don't always know what day it is by date or name and often lose concept of time.

Those skills are leaving us because time itself is lost. We do seek comfort recalling what used to be and being reminded of what we still have.

For comfort, we look to the Arts. The arts are timeless and offer keys to our salvation. Paintings, like 'Melting Watch' by Salvador Dali, shows the vagueness of time itself.

We only have to look at Norman
Rockwell's "Happy Birthday Miss Jones" to reminisce and wonder when, if ever, something like this will happen again.

(God bless our teachers!)

We know that the world is a very strange and different place now, we see it and feel it in Hieronymus Bosh's work, 'The Garden of Earthly Delights." (showing one of three panels which is enough to show 'very strange and different.' in this expansive and graphic work made small on purpose.

Seeing Rock- well's vaccin- ating doctor, we take comfort in the realization that we too may soon have a 'get out of jail' card up our sleeve... but not real, real soon. (A shot in the arm though, right?) When we have that, it is anyone's guess as to how long it will take for all those who desire, to be vaccinated, ("a-one and a-two and a doodly doodly do...) and will that be enough?

Meanwhile, much is also happening on medical treatments that could lessen the effects and provide a covid-19 recipe for recovery. The catch is, you have to get it in the first place.

Will you be in line to aggressively fight this monster?


As reality sets in, we must take comfort where we find it. For many, that is a warm cup of soup on a cold day... or a cold cup of soup on a warm day, though that does sound less appealing, but bear with me so I can use Andy Warhol's "Campbell's Tomato Soup" art which is valued at $11.7 million... no cheapskate me.

Finally, we seek comfort that our President is "cognitively there" when we need him... and he assured us that he is. Repeating for us what he just said is Sarah Cooper.

We have nothing to fear but fear itself. God help us!

We have bats in our belfry! Lucky us.

As crazy as that may seem, we ARE NOT crazy (Oh, you want proof?) but we do have bats.


Backstory: Upon retirement a while back, we moved to our forever home (we hope) on a lakefront in North Carolina. When friends would visit, they marveled that we seemed to have no mosquitos, which we don't, thanks to a multitude of bats.

Bats are curious creatures to say the least. As fable has it, Count Dracula could morph into a bat and bite unsuspecting persons causing them to become zombies. Having seen lots of bats close-up and never, to my recollection, seeing a zombie in human or mosquito form, I figure those bats must be eating the mosquitos.

Bats are the only flying mammals, capable of true and sustained flight. They are nocturnal and incredibly adept at devouring mosquitos. In Austin, Texas, a popular tourist attraction is the home of 1.5 million Mexican free-tail bats under the Congress Avenue Bridge. At about dusk, as crowds watch, the bats venture out en-mass on their nightly quest for mosquitos, often ranging as far as 25 miles before returning home by dawn. It is an enormously interesting and beautiful sight.

Bats leaving from under the bridge on their evening search for food

Back to my story: So this morning, about 5:15, as my wife and I sat on our second story deck with a wakeup cup of coffee, we had our own bat show.  In the pre-dawn light we were treated to the dark shadows of hundreds of acroBATic creatures flying circus-like routes of loops, dives and swoops toward us as if for our entertainment, sometimes encroaching three to four feet into our space, for 45 minutes or so.

Bats leaving from beneath the bridge

While bats are not blind, they have a refined 'radar-like" sense that lets them fly with tremendous agility at great speed, avoiding obstacles, each other and us as they hone in mid-flight on mosquito after mosquito.

Then, at the sound of a bird's call, they just disappeared, figuring perhaps it might be a good time to go hang upside down for the day.

Isn't nature spectacular in every way?
 

How bad was Jefferson? Maybe not a bad as we think, but it is a nuanced path for sure.

Thomas Jefferson

"History is written by the victors," said Winston Churchill, on how the story is told.

Our history has one of our 'founding fathers' and writer of The Declaration of Independence  as a slave owner.

So do the statues stay or go?

My last blog post on Hamilton, the musical,
 asked how a man who wrote "... all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights,  that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness... " could also be a slave holder?

Was Jefferson 'two-faced' or is there a little more to be understood? Continuing, Jefferson wrote the clause that seemed to mandate the eventual abolition of slaves:  "... That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles."

Here is a most interesting elaboration on how Jefferson might have 'pulled it off, ' byDon Tortorice, a former attorney and professor of the Law School of the College of William and Mary as it appeared in The Pilot, a newspaper in Pinehurst, NC. just last week. It seems to put the opposing elements of Jefferson's story in a modifying light.

Should Slave Owner Jefferson Be a Hero?

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." Those are the transcendent words that begin the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson. But was he a true American Hero? Does he deserve the major monument building created in his honor and superbly visible to all as they cross the Potomac into Washington, D.C.?

Let us consider some facts that can be assembled about the man. He owned more that 600 people over the course of his life and profited directly from the institution of slavery. It is also contended, with convincing evidence, that he fathered a number of children with one of those slaves. 

Just stopping here, we might conclude that he was no hero, but just another enslaving despot who should have the historical cloak of heroism snatched from his back. But if we look closer--if we look broadly with an eye that is not only critical but discerning and circumspect--a singular conclusion becomes more difficult.

At the time of the American Revolution, Jefferson was actively involved in legislation that he hoped would result in slavery’s abolition. In a draft of the Virginia Constitution (actually the second draft he submitted on June 13, 1776) he would have prohibited the importation of enslaved Africans.

Then again, on June 18, 1779, he proposed an ordinance that would ban slavery in the Northwest territories. Admittedly, in a sea of complacency, he always maintained that the decision to emancipate slaves would have to be part of a democratic process.

Abolition would be stymied until slave owners consented to free their human property together, in a large-scale, orchestrated act of emancipation. To Jefferson, it was contrary to the principles of the American Revolution for the federal government to enact abolition by forcing planters to free their slaves. He knew that realistically, it would never happen.

But in a preserved letter to Thomas Cooper on Sept. 10, 1814, he continued to describe slavery as a "moral depravity" and a "hideous blot," and in another to William Short on Sept. 8, 1823, he voiced  the opinion that slavery presented the greatest threat to the survival of the American nation.

Jefferson consistently espoused the opinion that slavery was contrary to the laws of nature, views that were radically liberal in a world of Southern states where slave labor was the norm and reality was that slavery was becoming more economically entrenched. The slave population in Virginia skyrocketed from 292,627 in 1790 to 469,757 in 1830.

Jefferson had hoped that the slave trade would weaken, and slavery would come to an end. Instead, slavery became more widespread--and profitable. In an attempt to erode Virginians' support for slavery, he discouraged the cultivation of crops heavily dependent on slave labor, specifically tobacco and encouraged the introduction of crops that needed less field labor, such as wheat, sugar, maples, short-grained rice, olive trees and wine grapes. But by the 1800s, Virginia's most valuable economic asset was neither crops nor land but slave labor.

Jefferson's belief in the necessity of ending slavery never changed. From the mid-1770s until his death, he advocated the same plan of emancipation. First, the trans-Atlantic slave trade would be abolished. Second, slaveowners would "improve' slavery's most violent features, by bettering--Jefferson used the term 'ameliorating'--living conditions and moderating physical punishment. Third, all born into slavery after a certain date would be declared free, followed by total abolition. 

Like others of his day, he supported the removal of newly freed slaves to the lands of their origin. However, the unintended effect of his plan was that the goal of 'improving' slavery, as a step toward ending it, was used as an argument for its perpetuation. Pro-slavery advocates after Jefferson's death argued that if slavery could be 'improved," abolition was unnecessary.

Jefferson had written that maintaining slavery was like holding "a wolf by the ear. We can neither hold him, nor safely let him go." He was concerned that his cherished federal union, the world's first democratic experiment, would be destroyed by slavery.

To emancipate all slaves, immediately, on American soil, Jefferson feared, could result in a large--scale race conflict that could be as brutal and deadly as the slave revolt in Haiti in 1791. But he also believed that to keep slaves in bondage, with part of America in favor of abolition and part of America in favor of perpetuating slavery, could only result in a civil war. It did, and the result was more young America deaths that any other war we have ever fought.

Our forefathers should have listened to him--early on--from the beginning. He was right. I submit that his monuments should stand."

Disgracefully, total slave population in America was estimated at 6 million-plus. So it was slave owner Jefferson who foresaw and laid the legal groundwork for their ultimate freedom from slavery. How twisted is that? 

My name is Hamilton... Alexander Hamilton.

It's been 5 1/2 years since Hamilton debuted on Broadway and the world is still agog over it's magnificence. 

It was a happy chance for those of us who haven't seen--or couldn't afford to see--the stage play, now to view it in film format on Disney +  (Disney Plus). It was released just weeks ago, before it's planned release a few year later, as a covid-19 'treat' to take our minds off these really difficult times. Thank you!

The filming was during Hamilton's original run with Lin-Manuel Miranda who conceived and wrote

Lin-Manueal Miranda

the whole thing, and the entire first cast, so what you see is what those paying thousands of dollars a ticket saw... except better. With multiple cameras and sound mics, we saw close-ups and critical dramatic angles that those in the theater couldn't see or hear as well.

But really, the theater has all the personal drama and crowd effect, so maybe it's a draw. Yeah, there is a lot to say about 'in-person' and being a part of theater history. But that doesn't diminish the awe of seeing and appreciating it in any format.

Here is what happened as this play came into being:

The score for the show is all hip-hop, the genre that, like it's second cousin, rap  had found musical footing across the world... except for those "not getting it." (read older or heard of hearing.) Hamilton seemed to change all of that as the lyrics were fresh and historically relevant, just the way we were taught in school, but better.

The way it is performed is upbeat and familiar. The music 'caught on' and was embraced by the young in age and spirit. In fact, those in middle school and older fell in love with it. All of my grandchildren knew every word of every song and they sang them over and over, performed them for friends and family and learned history as it had never been taught before.

The Hamilton cast album quickly sold more than 450,000 copies since its release, more than any other since Jersey Boys years earlier. Those who couldn't or didn't want to listen to hip-hop before Hamilton came to realize what a wonderful genre it was for this show. It raise our spirits. We 'got it!'

Music has always had that power. Before there was the written word, it was music in one form or another that carried tales, legends and history forward. Music has retention in ways words spoken and written do not.

The trick of Hamilton and hip-hop is how rhyming is made to work for any story told. It is not by rhyming 'moon' and 'spoon' or 'love' and 'dove.' That would be far too limiting.

The Wall Street Journal  gave a really interesting and simple rhyming synopsis on Hamilton:

There are perfect end rhymes:   A staple of song and poetry is perfect rhyme. In a perfect rhyme, the vowel sounds and consonant endings of two words are identical, as with the words “squalor” and “scholar” in the opening song.

There are internal rhymes:  The “squalor” and “scholar” rhymes land at the end of lines. But this pair also rhymes with syllables in the middle of lines, such as “impoverished.”

There are imperfect rhymes:  Most of the rhymes in this verse are imperfect—the matching sounds are not identical. For example, “Scotsman” and “dropped in” aren't perfect rhymes, but they partially rhyme because they share similar vowel sounds and consonant endings.

And when hip-hop works best--as in Hamilton--different rhyme schemes, well written phrases with the right emphasis and pacing within the framework of an ingenious scrip make for what works. And my, how it works.

A couple of historical notes:

Remember when Lin-Manuel Miranda tried out his first song for Hamilton in 2009 at the White House for President Obama and family? He tepidly told The President that he was going 'off-script' with a new idea for a play about Hamilton. He received a few polite laughs as if he was kidding, then debuted what was to become the opening number of the play, to the great satisfaction of those present. Six years later, no one was politely laughing because they were too busy applauding.

Hamilton, the play, is a credible historic depiction of actual happenings, however, the real people did not hip-hop and dance like in the play. But the story performed is historically close.

That being said, Thomas Jefferson, who was the primary writer of  The Declaration of Independence, was a slave holder. This was odd in that The Declaration he wrote states "... all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights,  that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness... " I guess Jefferson meant eventually.

Jefferson was a masterful writer but his character, according to Smithsonian Magazine, lagged somewhat behind. He did write further, continuing in The Declaration of Independence, "... That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles."

Technically we did that, though we are still far from done in more meaningful ways and must continue the journey to completion. As our Constitution mandates we do! 

Perhaps the best reflective counter-balancing to slave ownership is that Hamilton is the creation of Lin-Manuel Miranda of Puerto Rican descent and mixed parentage, along with the participation of some of his close collaborators. The original cast, though not by intent, is predominately people of diversity in the various roles including Hamilton, Washington and Jefferson himself, reflective of America then and as it always has been, whether acknowledged or not.

Washington was also a slave owner but at his death, he ordered all to be free.

How can I see Hamilton? It is only streaming on Disney + (Disney Plus) and available for about $7.50 (tax included) which is the fee for one month on that premium channel. Your subscription will continue unless you cancel, which you can do without penalty. You will not be able to see it if your first month is a free trial. You have to commit to at least that first month. And who knows, maybe you and your kids will love what is offered. One tip: turn on the captions when watching. It will help catch every word.

It you 'are into it' as so many are, you may want to get the ultimate book on the words and making of the stage show, scene by scene, and so many other photos and insights on the trials and tribulations of the birth of this spectacle, from original thoughts to the final product. It is "Hamilton: The Revolution" written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter. I forget the cost but it is worth it if you love this play and want to know more as so many have.

PS: King George III kind of steals the show.

Is this who we are? It really seems like it.

Only movies can visualize a most complete story from every perspective over any time span. That's why some are really great. And while many are fiction or fictionalized, the story is only bound by the worthiness of the product and the talent and imagination that goes into its production.

Sometimes the message is not good and/or not well done. Those efforts are often called 'turkeys.' And sometimes the message feels 'spot-on.' Those are called "award-worthy."

This one, "The War of the Roses," from 1989 proved itself 'award-worthy' in every category and it sadly felt like this is us. Even its title and basic sense of foolishness came from the real Wars of the Roses civil war battles between 1455 and 1487 for control of the throne of England.

The movie and its stars were nominated for a British Academy Film award, the Berlin International Film Festival Golden Bear and three Golden Globe Awards. After 40 years, it's Rotten Tomato score is 85,  and it was a box office success.

So if you haven't seen the movie, or forgot, here's a rather long and well done synopsis from Wikipedia with thanks:

"Lawyer Gavin d'Amato is in his office discussing a divorce case with a taciturn client. Noticing the man's determination to divorce his wife, Gavin decides to tell him the story of one of his clients, a personal friend of his.

Eighteen years earlier, Oliver Rose, a student at Harvard Law School, meets Barbara at an auction on Nantucket, where they bid on the same antique. Oliver chats Barbara up and they become friends. When Barbara misses her ferry home, the two end up spending the night together. Eventually, the two marry and have two children and settle in Washington D.C.Over the years, the Roses grow richer, and Barbara finds an old mansion whose owner has recently died, and purchases it. However, cracks seem to be forming in the family, such as the children being overweight due to Barbara spoiling them with treats. As Oliver becomes a successful partner in his law firm, Barbara, who was a doting and loving wife early in the marriage, appears to grow restless in her life with Oliver, and begins to dislike him immensely.

Oliver, for his part, cannot understand what he has done to earn Barbara's contempt, oblivious to his controlling, self-centered, indifferent and generally dismissive behavior toward her. When Oliver believes he is suffering a heart attack the day after an argument, Barbara does not show any remorse or concern for his well-being, and ultimately admits that she no longer loves him and wants a divorce. Oliver accepts, but tension arises between the two during a meeting with Barbara's lawyer when Barbara makes it clear that she wants the house and everything in it, even using Oliver's final love note to her (which he had written in the hospital) as leverage against him in their legal battle. Oliver hires Gavin on a retainer as his legal counsel. Barbara initially throws Oliver out of the house, but he moves back in after discovering a legal loophole that allows him to stay while the outcome of the divorce is pending. As a result, Barbara immediately begins plotting to remove Oliver herself, even going as far as trying to seduce Gavin into siding with her instead.

In an effort to compromise, Oliver offers his wife a considerable sum of cash in exchange for the house, but Barbara still refuses to settle. Realizing that his client is in a no-win situation, Gavin advises Oliver to end the conflict by leaving Barbara with the house and starting a new life for himself. Oliver responds by firing Gavin and decides to take matters into his own hands.

At this point, Oliver and Barbara begin spiting and humiliating each other in every way possible, even in front of friends and potential business clients. Both begin destroying the house furnishings; the stove, furniture, Staffordshire ornaments, and dishware. In addition, Oliver accidentally runs over Barbara's cat in the driveway. When Barbara finds out, she retaliates by trapping Oliver inside his private sauna, where he nearly succumbs to heatstroke and dehydration.

While the children are away at college, Oliver eventually calms down and attempts to make peace with Barbara over an elegant dinner, but finally reaches his breaking point when Barbara serves him a paté which she implies was made from his dog (which turns out to be a bluff). Oliver physically attacks Barbara, who flees into the attic. Oliver boards up the house to prevent Barbara from escaping, while Barbara loosens the chandelier to drop on Oliver. When their German housekeeper Susan pays them an unexpected visit during the night, she senses something is terribly wrong and discreetly contacts Gavin for help. By the time Gavin arrives, Oliver and Barbara's quarrel has culminated in the two hanging dangerously from the insecure chandelier. During this time, Oliver admits to Barbara that despite their hardships, he always loved her, but Barbara does not respond. Before Gavin can come inside with a ladder, the chandelier's support cable fails, leaving only the electrical wiring to the fuse box supporting the couple and the chandelier. Despite Oliver's conviction that each wire can hold 'at least two hundred pounds', the wire eventually fails as well, sending Oliver, Barbara, and the chandelier crashing violently to the floor. In his final breaths, Oliver reaches out to touch Barbara's shoulder, but Barbara uses her last ounce of strength to push his hand away, firmly asserting her hatred for him even in death.

Finishing his story, Gavin presents his client with two options: either proceed with the divorce and face a horrific bloodbath in court, or go home to his wife to settle their differences properly. The client chooses the latter, and Gavin, satisfied, packs up his office to go home to his own family."

Is there a moral and/or a take-away? Of course. This movie features a basic lack of morality, kindness, warmth, respect, love, common sense and, as they say in commercials, "more, much more."

"The War of the Roses" is called a black comedy because it is dark and it's characters look ridiculous to any observer as how small and inhuman, evil, lying, cheating and non-compassionate, revenge-seeking and hateful to the extreme that they are.

And if you think that this is pointed politically at one of us or another, you are taking it wrong. That is on us all from time to time, and we are ridiculous.

It was Abraham Lincoln who perhaps said it best in his "house divided" speech when he accepted the Illinois Republican nomination for Senate in 1858 and those words ring just as true today, or more so, as ever.

Want to see the movie? It is a great watch and available on Amazon Prime.

My career in spying: a personal confession and tale of then vs. now

That's me, the brains of the outfit
with the head spier, my sister

It may be hard to believe but these two seemingly innocent youngsters are spies. I should know. That's me and my sister and I think it's about time we came clean. Sure, we look innocent enough but in our youth we ran a spy ring.

This photo, as I recall, was when "the mob" was trying to fit us with cement overshoes and take us 'to sleep with the fishes,' but my sister had to go to the bathroom and couldn't stand still, so the concrete didn't set. The plot was foiled and we lived to spy another day.

Yes, there's a backstory and since the statute of limitations has expired, I can spill the beans.

Telephone (not smart)

It was a time before television, the internet, social media and Pong. Even telephones had a handle which was connected to the phone which was connected to the wall by a short cord. It looked and worked so different that you would't know how to use it if you had to. And it would kill you to know that if you weren't home to answer the phone, there were no message machines and you would never know who called you.

We did have a radio, that was all. We listened to the radio on Saturday mornings and heard "Commander Cody of Space Patrol" and "Let's Pretend" with Smiling Ed McConnell and Froggie, the gremlin. "The Lone Ranger" with his faithful sidekick, Tonto, was on during the week sometime. Comic books we our social media. Yeah, 'the olden days.'

It was a peaceful time when kids played outside from morning to night. There was nothing to keep us in except having to clean the table after we ate or pick up our toys. Yep, our world didn't have a screen or buttons or smart phones. All we had was the sun and moon and about four square block of neighborhood that was our domaine.

In the summer time when school was out and on weekends year round, we lived outside from after breakfast to time for supper. We knew when supper was because mom would open the front door of our house and yell "JERRY! MARILYN! SUPPER!" as loud as she could. And in our neighborhood, every kid who heard the call repeated it so that we were sure to get the message even if we were out of ear-shout. And after supper as it was getting dark, we begged to go outside again and play 'Hide and Seek."

Now about the spy business:

Getting a very large cardboard box was how we got into "the spy business." Mom and dad had to buy a new sink and in those days, it came as a single unit with cabinets and a top that stretched about 8 feet long x 4 feet high and 3 feed wide. After the sink unit was unpackaged, we grabbed the box to build a clubhouse in our tiny backyard. We cut a door and a few windows, found a small table that fit and "viola!", it was a clubhouse. It was the center of our world for a time and it became whatever we chose it to be.

We got 'our gang of the moment' together, me and my sister, Sally and Carol, Dick and Patsy. Then we did what kids will do,,, deciding how we would use our new clubhouse. After we ate all the candy we could and just sat around, we organized clubs, elected officers and did whatever the current club was formed to do.

We had The ABC Club to find everything we could to spell out the alphabet: A is for apple, B is for butterfly, etc.

Then we formed the Good Health Club which included taking our temperature with a stolen thermometer from one of our medicine cabinets and playing doctor (the good kind, not anything bad) and seeing who could run the fastest, jump the highest, etc.

And then we formed the notorious Spy Ring Club where we would spy on anyone who needed spying. Here are our official notes:

As you may have read, The Rules are very specific and demanding, in Roman numerals no less:

I.   You must have a hobby

II.  You have to obey the President and Vice President

III. You must not be a tattle tale.

The officers (we always elected officers by vote and when all the votes came out tied because everyone voted for themselves, we went by age.) That's why Sally was always President, I was always Vice President, Carol was always Treasurer (Important because dues were a nickel or dime if we had it), Marilyn was Secretary (to take notes, of course) and Patsy was head spyer (sic).

We always hid our written notes and findings in a coffee can which we buried so years later whoever found them would have a valued record of our findings.

Our mission was written elsewhere and is no doubt still buried someplace where no one recalls. But someday, like the Dead Sea Scrolls, it will be found and revealed to the masses. I however, being Vice President, determined with The President, how we would operate:

• The head spyer (sic) would hide out where she could see whoever enters or leaves Frasco Brothers Groceries (my grandpa and uncle's store) on the corner and make note of comings and goings. (We knew almost everyone and where they lived).
• It was very important not to be seen so our surveillance was always behind trees or bushes. And if spotted, we had to run away. 
• We would then send another spyer (sic) to determine if he/she had groceries to carry and needed help to get home, which we would supply.
• And if it was a stranger to us, all would follow to determine if they actually lived in our neighborhood or perhaps were just there to rob or kill someone.
• To check for anything that seemed out of place and report it to the President or Vice President, enter it in our log and then go out to run and play as primary school kids do.
• And most important, we charged ourselves to "Please do not get this paper dirty."

After we all got bored, which didn't take long, that club would be forgotten until the next time we needed something important to do and a new club would be formed.

So you got us! Don't bother calling the cops because they can't touch us now. Ha ha.

Author's note: It really was a simpler time to be a kid.