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

January 19, 2015 - 11:12 a.m.

Make Your Fear Disappear

I'm sitting here in a lot of pain. My shoulder has an ice pack on it. I have trouble seeing what I'm writing. But I cannot disappoint My Gentle Readers. … Who am I fooling. I'm writing because I have a need to write. It's who I am. Blogito ergo sum.

I spent much of yesterday in the distant land of Williamsburg. A simple map says that’s part of Brooklyn but the subway system disagrees. You can't get there from here. I first went to Heather's house. Yes I do that a lot. I'm basically Kramer. I walk in the door, grab some food, sit down on her futon and watch TV. How do I get away with that? Simple, I'm cute. But I'm writing about commuting. It's actually pretty easy to get there by bus. I can take the B46 from two blocks from my house to a two from hers. But there are options. Some don't make it all the way to her house and I have to switch to subway. Some local and take forever and some are limited. Is it worth it to wait for the limited? Thanks to the NY Transit website I can actually see what busses are coming. I was able to leave my house and see there was a limited on the way. When the local came first I didn't get on it. My bus passed it in no time.

We watched on Netflix yesterday and I introduced Heather to the glories of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We watched the first episode, Welcome to the Hellmouth and the second, The Harvest. I had to leave midway thorugh the second but I'm pretty sure I got Heather hooked.

Williamsburg doesn't even have easy transit connections with itself. From Heather's house I went to the newThe Living Room for the first time. It's in Williamsburg. Google maps said it would take 19 minutes to walk it and 15 by bus so of course I walked. I wish Williamsburg was easier to navigate.

I made the trip to see SONiA aka SONiA disappear fear aka disappear fear. I love SONiA like a sister and I love her music but she's difficult to name. I first so disappear, which was then SONiA and her sister Cindy back in 1991 when they opened for I think Renaissance, it could have been Annie Haslam solo. God know how many times I've seen her since then. Well if he existed he'd know. Let's just say it's a lot. And that shows how good SONiA is. I keep coming back from more.

What kind of music does SONiA make? Good music of course. Her spirit is as folk as Pete Seeger or Joan Baez. Some of her songs are too. But she's never felt constrained by genre. There's always blues, rock, soul, and latin music in there. She sings in four languages, English, Hebrew, Arabic, and Spanish. Nobody I know is better at writing a political song without ever becoming overly earnest. They are not political speeches. I'm going to resist quoting Me Too this time. I always write about it when I see her as it is simply one of my favorite songs by anyone and gets the politics exactly right. Damn OK I'm going to quote it. The song is about the daughter of a Vietnam veteran who was reviled when he returned from the war, telling him that she's gay. Before she can say anything he says;

Everybody's gotta war.

It's not about oil.
It's not about guns.
It's not about rainbows.
It's about daughters and sons.

If you believe in tomorrow,
Then I have taught you well
'cause if you don’t believe in yourself
Then life's a living hell.

I pretty much always want to hug SONiA.

Of course she doesn't just or even mainly do politics. She rocks out, she sings love songs. She's funny. She makes me feel good.

She did a song that I heard her do the very first time I saw her, Love Insurance. Back then it was sung by Cindy. I love the premise. When you get in a relationship but people put money in an account. The one that walks out of the relationship leaves the money behind. It's a great idea.

I got there in the middle of Greg Trooper's set. sat down next to SONiA who was sitting up front with her wife Terry. I was able to give SONiA a sitting down hug but not Terry. After the show Terry, who also manages SONiA went onstage to clear her gear. I went up and said, "You don't think you're going to get away without hugging me do you?" She turned around with a big smile and said, "I was just thinking that I didn't hug you yet." Great minds think alike.

It was late when the show ended and it's hard for me to get home from there so of course I stayed and hung out. I met a few of their friends and got a lot more hugs. That was so worth it. And it wasn't that hard to get home. It only took about 45 minutes. The annoying part is that I had to walk back almost to Heather's house. It took 17 minutes to just get to the bus stop. But thanks to Google Maps and the MTA bus times website I planned it so I only waited about 3 minutes for the bus which was a limited and breezed on home.

Oh I should show you pictures.

This was my first time in the new Living Room. I like the space but the seemed to have taken the lighting design and color scheme from Rockwood. The walls are black and the room so dar. The stage is better than the old one but I miss the old look. I actually stumbled on my way out as I couldn't see where I was walking. But the important thing I that the sound was good and it's a great place to watch a show.

Do you see the guitar pick stuck to the guitar in the last photo? She puts it there with spit. It's a great trick. She licks the pick then just slaps it on and it stays there.

Before I went out I talked to Katrina for a bit … two hours. She keep telling me that I have to take baby steps. I'm getting impatient. she said; "you have two options, give up or be patient." I told her I have a third option, "Bitch to her." That's the option I chose. Hey it's only fair. I do the same for her. And no I am not explaining what any of that is about.

NOOO I almost posted this without a very important part. Today is Martin Luther King Day. That's one of the holidays that I don’t' look upon as a day off and an exuse for sales. I celebrate it with the intended purpose, I think about Dr. King and what he accomplished. Every year I listen or read something by him and ask you to do the same. This year I chose a long one, "Letter from a Birmingham Jail." It's King's response to clergyman asking him to take things slower. There is so much in here that I relevant to today. Please read it. It will make you a better person. If everone read it, it will make it a better world. I'll just link to it, Letter from a Birmingham Jail.


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 January 19, 2015
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