pianogonzology: January 2015

Friday, January 30, 2015

Meet . . .

. . . the press . . .

Well the truth is finally revealed and my hypothosis proven correct. It's all about the show. Hang integrity and hang journalism. "Welcome back my friends . . . "

(from http://www.politicususa.com/2014/12/28/chuck-todd-defends-challenging-republican-lies-meet-press.html)
". . . Meet The Press host (Chuck Todd) said, “We all sit there, because we all know, the first time we bark (back at politicians and public figures who are blatantly lying on my show) is the last time that they do the show. You say something, and sometimes it is last time they will ever come on your show. There is that balance.” . . ."

Maybe Chuck Todd needs such a balance because Chuck Todd needs these people to be on his show. But in all honesty, do WE really need such a show?

What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html or at
http://www.ohomusic.com

OHO's "Ocean City Ditty," the CD single is now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/oho4
(and, if you're in town, at Trax On Wax on Frederick Rd. in Catonsville, MD) OHO is Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak. Please Visit http://www.ohomusic.com

My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music will be released April 7, 2014 Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak

(To Access all Ray Jozwiak - Gonzo Piano music you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/RayJozwiak)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Belisimo . . .

Comic Belisimo

Actions

Comic Belisimo

Jan 27th, 8:52pm

Looking forward to seeing you guys again. He stage is 8x8. 1 foot high. Adequate for comedy. I'm not sure if sure that's big enough.

OHO

Sent by Jay Graboski

Jan 27th, 9:05pm

Must everyone be on the stage or can 2 of us be on the floor?

Comic Belisimo

Jan 28th, 2:55pm

On the floor is fine.

OHO

Sent by Jay Graboski

Jan 28th, 5:42pm

Great. David can have the stage w/the PA system. We're VERY compact

Catch OHO at Belisimo's
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Comedy Night at Belisimo's @ Belisimo's
2900 Baltimore Boulevard, Finksburg, MD 21048 (United States) - Map
410-245-0507
Set: 7:30 PM
All Ages
Tickets: Call 410-245-0507

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Beware Of . . .

. . . facts according to the Press . . .

In their article about the bold fashion statement made by first lady Michelle Obama during the presidential stop in Saudi Arabia, the Washington Post said, ". . . In a country that demands women adhere to a strict dress code in public (face and hair covered, and long, flowing robes) . . ."
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2015/01/28/make-no-mistake-michelle-obama-just-made-a-bold-political-statement-in-saudi-arabia/)

But . . .

(http://wikitravel.org/en/Saudi_Arabia)
Women, be they local or foreign, are all required to wear an abaya, a long and loose black robe. While a headscarf is optional for non-Saudi females (particularly in Jeddah), one should at least be brought along in order to avoid possible harassment from locals and the religious police or to be used as a means of deflecting attention from potentially aggravating men.

. . . and after all, Michelle Obama is the first lady of the United States of America. Even the King knows better. . .

Call Them Out . . .

(from http://www.politicususa.com/2015/01/25/boehner-mcconnell-bomb-60-minutes-asked-gop-alternative-obamacare.html#ajaxed-comments)
". . . Speaker of the House John Boehner and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell delivered a disastrous appearance on 60 Minutes, the lowlight of which was their complete inability to discuss the Republican alternative to Obamacare. Speaker Boehner went on a dodge and weave filibuster when asked what the Republican alternative to Obamacare was, “Providing more access we could have done without taking control of the entire healthcare system. . . For those who don’t have access to affordable health insurance. Helping those at the bottom I think we’re all for it, but we don’t need Washington to ruin the greatest health delivery system that the world has ever known.”

Pelley kept hammering away . . ."

But obviously hammering is relative because how can any respected journalist allow the statement,
". . . ruin the greatest health delivery system that the world has ever known” slip by without calling them out??!!

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

It Depends . . .

You said our love would last forever
It depends on what you mean by forever
You said we'd always be together
It depends on what you mean by together
You said you'd always want me near
And if I'd ever leave
You'd welcome me back
It depends on what you mean
It depends on what you mean by that

You're not distracted by another
It depends on what you mean by distracted
You took a vow said you'd be faithful
It depends on what you think take a vow means
You told me never have a fear
You'd never leave no matter how the cards were stacked
It depends on what you mean
It depends on what you mean by that

I always hoped that you would be

Able to STOP

And turn around in your tracks

It depends on what you mean

It depends on what you mean by that

Clarity
(From Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak ©2014 Raymond M. Jozwiak coming to www.cdbaby.com and a plethora of other digital download sites IN APRIL)

Monday, January 26, 2015

Snow . . .

. . . a major inconvenience for populations of common latitude to ours . . .

(from http://nsidc.org/cryosphere/snow/index.html)
". . . Snow cover is a part of the cryosphere, which traces its origins to the Greek word kryos for frost. Snow is precipitation in the form of ice crystals. It originates in clouds when temperatures are below the freezing point (0 degrees Celsius, or 32 degrees Fahrenheit), when water vapor in the atmosphere condenses directly into ice without going through the liquid stage. Once an ice crystal has formed, it absorbs and freezes additional water vapor from the surrounding air, growing into a snow crystal or snow pellet, which then falls to Earth. . . "

. . . nor a delicacy when appearing in alternative colors . . .

Sunday, January 25, 2015

New Year . . .

. . . of performances . . .

. . . for me at Brewer's Alley . . .

Monday, January 26, 2015
Monday, February 23, 2015
Monday, March 23, 2015
Monday, April 20, 2015
Monday, May 25, 2015
Monday, June 22, 2015
Monday, July 20, 2015
Monday, August 24, 2015
Monday, September 21, 2015
Monday, October 19, 2015
Monday, November 23, 2015
Brewer's Alley Songwriters' Showcase, Monday @ Brewer's Alley Restaurant
124 North Market Street, Frederick, MD 21701 (United States) - Map
(301) 631-0089

Starting with January 26th-

Piano: Ray Jozwiak

Feature: ANDREW MCKNIGHT

3-Songs: Michelle Lockey

Kristin Rebecca

Doug Alan Wilcox

Poetry: John Holly & Rod Deacey

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Whistling Dixie . . .

. . . we are NOT

. . . Jay and Bill were hard at work tuning the saxophone track for Slough of Despond, enhancement of which was the raison d'etre for the gathering. As a damp, cold evening fell upon the small, neat Woodlawn neighborhood, a weather forecast for icy precipitation and a slight apprehension regarding its veracity were among my thoughts upon my arrival. David appeared shortly thereafter and the work (fun?)/fun (work?) continued. Some subtle and some not-so-subtle revisions, such as adding a whistling melody to the first verse, were administered as we plough through the slough towards completion. . .

. . . we may have arrived! Listen. . .

Slough of Despond
(by OHO, Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak with added whistling by Bill & David and new tweaks, pulls, pushes, drags, tunings and other edits at Bill Pratt's Bratt Studio January 23, 2015.)

Friday, January 23, 2015

Royal . . .

(from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdullah_of_Saudi_Arabia)
". . . On 16 February 2003, Parade magazine's David Wallechinsky rated King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah as the second worst dictators in the world. Most of this criticism stems from the fact that most of Saudi citizens live under a strict Wahhabist interpretation of Sharia law, which mandates the amputation of hands as a punishment for theft and floggings for crimes like drunkenness. Execution by public beheading is common for murder, rape, drug trafficking and witchcraft, and Abdullah's policies towards the rights of women have also been criticized. In a slight rebuff to accusations of human rights violations, Saudi inmates of Najran Province sent the King well-wishes from jail and wished him a speedy recovery.

King Abdullah has also been criticized for his policies on religious freedom and the Saudi government allegedly has arrested Shiite pilgrims on the Hajj. On 24 January 2007, Human Rights Watch sent an open letter to King Abdullah asking him to cease religious persecution of the Ahmadi faith in Saudi Arabia. Two letters were sent in November 2006 and February 2007 asking him to remove the travel ban on critics of the Saudi government. Human Rights Watch has not yet indicated whether they have received any response to these letters.

On 30 October 2007, during a state visit to the United Kingdom, King Abdullah was accused by protesters of being a "murderer" and a "torturer". Concerns were raised in the UK about the treatment of women and homosexuals by the Saudi kingdom and over alleged bribes involving arms deals between Saudi Arabia and the UK. . ."

Thursday, January 22, 2015

The Rules . . .

. . . for 'Rejection Therapy', a game (and therapeutic exercise) devised by Jason Comely to overcome his fear of rejection . . .

(from http://rejectiontherapy.com/rules/)
YOU MUST BE REJECTED BY ANOTHER PERSON AT LEAST ONCE, EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Please notice the wording of the rule. It doesn’t say you must attempt or try to be rejected. The rule is you MUST be rejected by another human being. In this game, rejection is success.

No other outcome will meet the requirement of Rejection Therapy.

To put yourself in a situation where rejection is likely, but to your surprise your request is granted, is not a successful outcome. Why? Because you weren’t rejected. You didn’t ask for enough.

There are a few stipulations as to what counts as a rejection, but the above rule is all you need to benefit from Rejection Therapy.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Spiritual Director . . .

. . . guru, creative leader, idea man and driving force of OHO . . .

. . . will appear . . .

Thursday, January 22, 2015
Jay Graboski (of OHO) with Special Guest Johnny Hofman @ Johnny's Pizza & Pub
5601 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, MD 21842 (United States) - Map
(410) 524-7499 Set: 5:30 PM
All Ages

Golden . . .

. . . badly needed . . .

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt)
When (Theodore) Roosevelt read [my(Jacob Riis, the muckraking Evening Sun newspaper journalist)] book (How the Other Half Lives), he came... No one ever helped as he did. For two years we were brothers in (New York City's crime-ridden) Mulberry Street. When he left I had seen its golden age... There is very little ease where Theodore Roosevelt leads, as we all of us found out. The lawbreaker found it out who predicted scornfully that he would "knuckle down to politics the way they all did," and lived to respect him, though he swore at him, as the one of them all who was stronger than pull... that was what made the age golden, that for the first time a moral purpose came into the street. In the light of it everything was transformed.