Showing posts with label creative. Show all posts
Showing posts with label creative. Show all posts

Sunday, November 27, 2022

Odd Or Humorous? . . .

 

 (from Doctor Faustus by Thomas Mann)
". . . Science, however, cannot get along without reason; and to want to make a science out of a sense of the infinite and the eternal mysteries is to compel two spheres fundamentally foreign to each other to come together in a way that is in my eyes most unhappy and productive only of embarrassment. . . Pietism, by virtue of its overemotional nature, would indeed make a sharp division between piety and science, and assert that no movement, no change in the scientific picture, can have any influence on faith that was a delusion, for theology has at all times, willy-nilly let itself be determined by the scientific currents of the epoch . . . "


The World's A Funny Place

- Richard & The Lionhearts



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Saturday, November 26, 2022

The Folk . . .

 

 (from Doctor Faustus by Thomas Mann)". . . you need only tell a crowd they are 'the folk' to stir them up to all sorts of reactionary evil. What all has not happened before our eyes -  in the name of 'the folk,' though it could never have happened in the name of God or humanity or the law!  But it is the fact that actually the folk remain the folk, at least in a certain stratum of its being, the archaic; and people from Little Brassfitter's Alley and round about, people who voted the Social-Democratic ticket at the polls, are at the same time capable of seeing something demonic in the poverty of a little old woman who cannot afford a lodging above ground. They will clutch their children to them when she approaches, to save them from the evil eye. And if such an old should should have to burn again today, by no means an impossible prospect, were even a few things different, 'the folk' would stand and gape behind the barriers erected by the Mayor, but they would probably not rebel. . ."


 


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Friday, November 25, 2022

With You . . .

 


The song posted here is the same one posted recently, only this version is five-part a vocal cappella, recorded 'pre-digital,' ('pre-digitally?') for me anyway, on a four-track, cassette recorder. The lyrics, once again purposely trite and predictable, simply adding to its charm, are here in case you'd like to add a sixth voice - yours.

I’ve never been one to follow trends.
I won’t be with the crowd 
When they round the bend.
But I’ll be here until the very end
‘Cause, where it’s at is here with you
Fancy parties leave me cold and drained,
Discos, crowds and posturing in vain
Only feed some silly appetite unnamed.
Where it’s at is here with you.
I don’t want to see the moon,
Fly to Paris, May or June.
I just want a one-way fare
To anyplace where you’ll be there.
I don’t need gold or precious things,
Fancy clothes or even diamond rings.
I just want the thrill that being with you brings.
‘Cause, where it’s at is here with you.
For fame or power, I have no desire.
I don’t crave acceptance, or to be admired.
I’m just happy sitting with you by the fire.
Where it’s at is here with you.


Here With You

- Ray Jozwiak
 



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Thursday, November 24, 2022

Thanks . . .


. . . for only part of the story 


". . . following the bloody Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863. Back then, Americans were desperately in need of unity and inspiration. Hence, the myth of the first Thanksgiving was born to inspire and unite. . . the Wampanoag people of the Eastern coast of the Americas noticed unfamiliar people in their homelands. These unfamiliar people were English pilgrims, coming to a new land which they dubbed “America,” in order to settle and create a new life. . . The Wampanoag were initially uneasy with the settlers, but they eventually engaged in a shaky relationship of commerce and exchange. Also, in observing that the pilgrims nearly died from a harsh winter, the Wampanoag stepped in to help. . . The Wampanoag chief, Massasoit, eventually entered into agreements with the pilgrims, and, on behalf of the Wampanoag Nation, decided to be allies while each nation coexisted in the same space together. At one time, the Wampanoag and pilgrims shared in a meal of wildfowl, deer, and shellfish. . . . After Massasoit’s death, the Wampanoag nation became weakened as a result of disease contracted from the English. It wasn’t long before the pilgrims began tormenting surrounding tribes, burning entire villages to the ground, while indigenous men, women, and children lie sleeping. . .  the Wampanoag began to distrust the pilgrims. The pilgrims soon demanded that the Wampanoag submit to them, and give up all their weapons. . . . Shortly after, the pilgrims and Wampanoag were at war, and in the end, the pilgrims rose victorious. At the close of the war, the Wampanoag were nearly decimated, and the son of Chief Massasoit, Metacom, was killed by the pilgrims . . . A day of Thanksgiving was declared . . . As indigenous nations throughout America were continually betrayed by European settlers, killed by disease, germ warfare, hunted for bounties, sent overseas as slaves, and ultimately pushed out of their homelands and onto prison camps (now commonly known as reservations), few survived the depressing conditions. As a result of centuries of historical trauma, indigenous nations today have staggering rates of depression, mental health disparities, suicide, and deaths due to alcohol and drugs. . . glossing over the very real consequences of colonialism, the mythical version of Thanksgiving creates a fairytale of land theft, betrayal, brutality, and genocide, virtually functioning to erase the very real and traumatic experiences of entire indigenous nations. This phenomena of whitewashing and outright erasure of indigenous history, in many instances, is not only inhumane and oppressive to the indigenous people, but it is also unfair to all Americans who stand to learn from rich and equally tragic history. . . leveling out of myth creates space for new conversations and lessons of unity, and deeper understandings of what it truly means to be a good human being, and that is something to be thankful for. . ."


The Truth

- Handsome Boy Modeling School



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Wednesday, November 23, 2022

Knowledge . . .

(from https://www.commondreams.org/views/2022/11/16/note-apology-nations-younger-generations-we-failed-you)
". . . perhaps the most important of the reasons Millennials and Zoomers are so badly screwed these days are the various changes in our tax code that began in the 1980s. . . Reagan dropped the top income tax rate on the morbidly rich from 74% down to 27%, and cut corporate tax rates from 50% to functionally nothing. . . America's richest millennial, Mark Zuckerberg, owns fully 2 percent or 1/50th of ALL the wealth of ALL millennials in the country. . . The average billionaire pays an income tax rate of under 3%, and the majority of our nation's largest corporations not only pay nothing in annual income taxes but most have so gamed the system that they get money back. . . And where does that money come from?  It's taken out of the taxes the government collected from you and me. . . This 42-year-long process, with Reagan's original massive tax cuts amplified by trillions more in tax cuts for the morbidly rich from the Republican George W. Bush and Donald Trump administrations, has produced a $50 trillion transfer of real wealth from the middle class to the top 1%. . ."


I Know

- Finoa Apple



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Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Performance . . .


 Two members of OHO (Jay & Ray) perform Jay's composition 'Where Words Do Not Reach' at Harvest Tide Steakhouse in Bethany Beach in November 2022. 



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Monday, November 21, 2022

Beyond . . .

 

I don’t ask much,
Living my life the way that I want.
I stay in touch with what goes on out there.
I’ve seen trouble. I’ve seen heartache.
But my time here
Has been long enough to
Instill certain qualities. 
Seems the more that I witness,
All the more that I wish
I could hear what you’re saying.
We’re all better than this.
Let’s identify exactly what we miss.
Beyond perilous moors
The brave sea glitters.
Better lies ahead.
Whether or not 
We realize the years flow upstream.
Things that we’ve got aren’t always what they seem.
Your and my faiths are so different.
Each is placed in 
Antipodal reference 
So painful to reconcile.
If we stop trying,
What can we do?
What’s in the future
For me and you?
There’s both right and wrong but only reality prevails.





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Sunday, November 20, 2022

Unique . . .

 


Revisiting the song Unique from 2018's GAZEBO by OHO. Much work, many iterations, beautiful French horn (Thanks Bruce!), superb engineering, then (late in the game) a lead vocal switch from Lisa to Jay and lush harmonies (including Lisa) by Bill Pratt.  Good things are definitely worth waiting for.





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Saturday, November 19, 2022

Gotta Have 'Em . . .

 

“Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.” 
— Muhammad Ali

“Don’t make friends who are comfortable to be with. Make friends who will force you to lever yourself up.” 
— Thomas J. Watson

“The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.” — Elisabeth Foley

“Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.” 
— Anais Nin

“Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose.” 
— Tennessee Williams

“They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” 
— Carl W. Buechner

“Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you; spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.” 
— Amy Poehler


Friends

- Buzzy Linhart



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Friday, November 18, 2022

Variation . . .

 


abnormality alteration change deviation discrepancy disparity divergence diversity fluctuation innovation modification mutation shift variety aberration adaptation bend break contradistinction contrast curve deflection departure digression displacement dissimilarity dissimilitude distinction diversification exception inequality novelty swerve turn departure unconformity

Variations on 'Broken.'  

'Broken' is cut#1 on the album GRAINS 

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Thursday, November 17, 2022

Enough? . . .

 


". . . When The Washington Post Fact Checker team first started cataloguing President Donald Trump’s false or misleading claims, we recorded 492 suspect claims in the first 100 days of his presidency. On Nov. 2 alone, the day before the 2020 vote, Trump made 503 false or misleading claims as he barnstormed across the country in a desperate effort to win reelection. . . This astonishing jump in falsehoods is the story of Trump’s tumultuous reign. By the end of his term, Trump had accumulated 30,573 untruths during his presidency — averaging about 21 erroneous claims a day. . . What is especially striking is how the tsunami of untruths kept rising the longer he served as president and became increasingly unmoored from the truth. . ."


What Is Truth?

- Johnny Cash



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Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Here . . .

 

I’ve never been one to follow trends.
I won’t be with the crowd 
When they round the bend.
But I’ll be here until the very end
‘Cause, where it’s at is here with you.
Fancy parties leave me cold and drained,
Discos, crowds and posturing in vain
Only feed some silly appetite unnamed.
Where it’s at is here with you.
I don’t want to see the moon,
Fly to Paris, May or June.
I just want a one-way fare
To anyplace where you’ll be there.
I don’t need gold or precious things,
Fancy clothes or even diamond rings.
I just want the thrill that being with you brings.
‘Cause, where it’s at is here with you.
For fame or power, I have no desire.
I don’t crave acceptance, or to be admired.
I’m just happy sitting with you by the fire.
Where it’s at is here with you.



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Tuesday, November 15, 2022

More Reflecting . . .


On the surface calm, collected.
Charming, smiling, ready wit.
Quite engaging, as expected.
Likeable, I must admit.
In confidence, I could detect
Appreciation seeping slightly 
From behind a tacit grin.
Agreeable, I found his person.
Determined, he was bound to win.
But with time, or certain people,
Different shades he did reveal
And sometimes certain circumstances
Made his empathy concealed. 
Time eventually separated
Paths we took; our fate, I guess.
The residue of mixed perceptions
Of his good and bad were left.
Ambivalence was what remained
In my memory; how he impressed.
But neither malice nor ill-will 
Did cross my mind, did I entertain.
And yesterday some bad news reached me.
Circumstances are very dire.
The awfulness of twist of fate
Has sparked a sympathetic fire.





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Monday, November 14, 2022

Stories . . .

. . . church, videos & music 

Learning the ropes of a new video camera, a long time ago, in a place now long gone, I made this video. It appears that I'm reading music, but I am not. I just sat down and started playing. I hear some church in there.  Seems some things are just in you to stay.  I named this little improvisation, for You Tube purposes, Mighty Alrighty. Brings to mind a song I wrote about 'the church of music,' but that's another story.
 
 

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Sunday, November 13, 2022

Slower . . .

 


In all your haste, do you ever try
To take the time to stop and see the scenery?
There's move beauty around than you could ever imagine.
And it isn't all purely visual.
You say you haven't done it?
You haven't even tried?
You must slow it all down
And take a Slowride . . . 




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Saturday, November 12, 2022

Fortunately . . .

 . . . cooler heads prevailed


(from https://news.stanford.edu/2022/11/10/takeaways-2022-midterms-relief-surprise/)
While votes from the U.S. midterm elections are still being counted and the full results of various state races are not entirely certain, what is clear is Americans did not succumb to paranoia or violence as feared, say Stanford researchers. . . According to some scholars, the election felt almost like a return to normalcy: The most vocal election deniers lost, candidates running on extreme platforms failed to resonate with voters . . . fell reasonably within the margins of error. In an election where democracy was on the ballot, it proved to be one that was largely free, fair, and trustworthy.


Where Do We Go From Here?
- Chicago



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Friday, November 11, 2022

Creativity . . .


 . . . cannot be contained. 
Free, creative, uninhibited expression from OHO . . . 

OHO (duo- Jay & Ray) appear at Harvest Tide Steakhouse, Bethany Beach, DE tonight at 5:00PM.
98 Garfield Pkwy 2nd Floor, Bethany Beach, DE 19930, (302) 581-0448, https://harvesttidebethany.com



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Thursday, November 10, 2022

Distraction . . .

 . . . but a 'good' distraction.

This wonderful song appears on Black & White Then Back from way back in 2013, by permission of the talented Doug Alan Wilcox. I met Doug through associations with theBaltimore Songwriters Association, Songwriters' Association of Washington and the Brewer's Alley Songwriters' Showcase. After performing with Doug at the Frederick Coffee company (2012?) I fell in love with this song. So I promptly added it to the list for my forthcoming (at the time) album. A live (at home) performance of the tune is posted here.




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