I became insane with long intervals of horrible sanity.
Edgar Allen Poe

The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all.
- H. L. Mencken

Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so
-Bertrand Russell

What I have been telling you, from alpha to omega, what is the one great thing the sigil taught me — that everything in life is miraculous. For the sigil taught me that it rests within the power of each of us to awaken at will from a dragging nightmare of life made up of unimportant tasks and tedious useless little habits, to see life as it really is, and to rejoice in its exquisite wonderfulness. If the sigil were proved to be the top of a tomato-can, it would not alter that big fact, nor my fixed faith. No Harrowby, the common names we call things by do not matter — except to show how very dull we are ...
-James Branch Cabell

February 25, 2017 - 12:38 p.m.

The Cocksure Lads are Nashtastic

Yesterday was not a good mental health day. I did not do a challenging thing. I didn't go out for much needed shopping. I did not go out and enjoy the beautiful weather. Related to this I didn't meditate. I need to remember that I've had many good days and I can do these things. I'm sharing my pep talk with you.

There were good things too. The Mets played their first preseason game. It wasn't televised but I listened to the first five innings on the radio. I'm not much on listening to preseason baseball. The results are meaningless. It's not a harbinger of what's going to happen in the season. I will watch on TV to see how the new players look. It's always fun watching the prospects who will not make the team this year but with some luck will be fixtures on the team in the future. The one I want to see name is shortstop Amed Rosario. He's the team's best position player prospect in ages.

Last night I saw a film I've been anticipating for years, The Cocksure Lads Movie. I even donated to the crowd funding. The Cocksure Lads were the creation of Murray Foster and Mike Ford of Moxy Früvous. It was a real band with a fictional backstory; Murray and Mike were Dusty Fosterboard and Reg Topping. The conceit was that they were a British Invasion band making a comeback and touring Canada. The songs were new but sounded like classic Britpop with some added silliness. It is the same genre as The Rutles. Here is their fictional bio, Cocksure Lads Bio on Maple Music. When they had their first gig at Hugh's Room in Toronto a herd of Früheads converged on the City. Carey, Neal, Paul, Steve, Lori, made it a joint vacation. You can read about our adventures starting here, Shopping Toronto. The story of the concert is the next entry.

The band and album were the springboard to the movie. It was the brainchild of Murray, he wrote, produced, and directed it. He did not star in it. I did not know that till the movie started. I expected it to be the story used at the concerts and albums. It wasn't. Gone was the British Invasion, the cinematic Cocksure Lads are a contemporary British band on the brink of success and starting on their career making tour of America, well Canada. Dusty, Reg, Derek, and Blake are still there but now they are young men. I was expecting something like The Rutles which was something like A Hard Day's Night. It wasn't. The first scene was but then things changed. The band had a fight, they broke up, each had adventures with women. That's all going on around the real story, Dusty and Reg getting back I touch with music not stardom. There was plenty of silliness to leaven things. You could tell almost the same story in a very dark vein. That would be considered a "serious" film. This is just as serious, nobody said you can't be serious and have fun at the same time. If you are a fan of Moxy Früvous and Great Big Sea, there are Easter Eggs for you. The subtlest and therefore my favorite is in the record store. I'm not giving any of them away.

The final payoff was in the closing credits. People who gave more money than me to the crowd funding were thanked. As a well-connected member of the Frühead community I knew many of them. If you want to watch the film, it's available on Amazon Prime.

Tonight, I'm off to Common Ground Coffeehouse to see Cheryl Wheeler, Honor Finnegan is opening. This is the second Common Ground in a row featuring Honor. It's been way too long since I've seen Cheryl. She is at the very top of my "how the hell don't I know them personally" list. We'll see if that ends tonight. I am of course doing the merch and anything else that Carter needs of me.

Carter tipped me off to who is playing next season. I can't tell you but I can say that he described it as "Gordon-centric or Nashtastic." I like Nashtastic. That's going to be the name of my band. Graham better not read this and steal it from me. Jory, feel free to use it, you're family.

I have eliminated some long-running quirks in my writing. I wonder if anyone will notice. It's much harder to notice something missing than adding something new. Adieu Mes Doux Lecteurs.


I signed the Pro-Truth Pledge:
please hold me accountable.





Memories: Not that Horrid Song - May 29, 2018
Wise Madness is Now In Session - May 28, 2018
The NFL and the First Amendment - May 27, 2018
On The Road Again - May 26, 2018
Oliver the Three-Eyed Crow - May 25, 2018



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Horvendile February 25, 2017
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