(from We Were Eight Years In Power by Ta-Nehisi Coates)
". . . And so the most powerful country in the world has handed over all of its affairs - the prosperity of an entire economy, the security of some 300 million citizens, the purity of its water, the viability of its air, the safety of its food, the future of its vast system of education, the soundness of its national highways, airways, and railways, the apocalyptic potential of its nuclear arsenal - to a carnival barker who introduced the phrase "grab 'em by the pussy" into the national lexicon. It is as if the white tribe united in demonstration to say, "If a black man can be president, then any white man - no matter how fallen - can be president." And in that perverse way the democratic dreams of Jefferson and Jackson were fulfilled. . . "
(from https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/trump-s-north-korea-meeting-was-good-photo-op-don-ncna1025841)
". . . Is this enough to really change the tide of history on the Korean Peninsula? . . . Like a CEO trying to close a deal, Trump reached across the table to shake Kim’s hands and looked directly and deeply into his eyes. But Kim did not reciprocate in kind. . . The answer became clearer as the two men sat next to each other, taking questions from the press. Trump talked about how the leaders’ relationship can achieve great things. Like a CEO trying to close a deal, Trump reached across the table to shake Kim’s hands and looked directly and deeply into his eyes. But Kim did not reciprocate in kind, glancing at Trump, but then averting his gaze, looking away, smiling and nodding to the cameras. . ."
Other Ray Jozwiak Offerings
(To Access all Ray Jozwiak - Gonzo Piano music you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/RayJozwiak)
Shouts in the street
I hear them as I'm walking home
Shoes on my feet
Touch down and take off as I roam
Dreams lifted up
So many pies in the sky
U-flying-o's
I duck them as they fly on by
Tomorrow takes care of itself
Today has its trial and its call
Janus he waits at your door
Rising or breaking his fall
You've got your "Time"
And secrets that love has betrayed
The long yellow line down your spine
That your feeling has frayed
Take my hand we may see
Everything we mean to be
When we meet again
Should it be under blanket of night?
All that remains
Is the matter of choice in disguise
Take my hand we may see
Everything we mean to be
Am I with you or you with me?
We have our time then take our leave
Deep in the heart
Where paradox finds its resolve
Long bodies live
They've learned how to bend to absolve
Now desire is the tie
That holds us fast to life
For the sweetness of the honey
Risk the peril of the hive
Now I'm running through your veins
In exchange I know your pain
All the lies have run aground
And to this earth I'm bound
. . . of a quality manual when I should be getting some rest. The visions include no sugarplums but do have a lot of copying and pasting, the bureaucracy fighting nobly to prevent substantial sleep. Flowers bloom and birds sing as the refuse trucks whine in the dawn and my fitful nap continues. But better things lie ahead with good friends and family in nice places where foamy waves lap at the sandy coast and blue skies meet the aqua expanse in my (nearer than I think) future . . . and music. . .
Things imagined
Things desired
Youth's imagination
From so countless
Directions fired
But life is truly
Not one taken lightly
So gravity inevitably
Exercises its option
Sometimes not so slighly
And dreams
Although good
Must be relegated
Back further in the queue
Relinquishing where it formerly stood
As the end fast approaching
Wants to now get acquainted
and the years have provided
Many lessons to mull
Seems that life is quite good
When you're proud of your choices
But the brain can't help ponder
Each leap and each lull
My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills
(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)
. . . How should I interpret a dream I had, in which my son owned a small, reptile (Cayman, Alligator, Crocodile?) which was not eating and had seemed to develop a particularity pugnacious disposition. Naturally I was attempting to assist when the creature escaped its enclosure. I was able to physically subdue it with little injury. Shortly my son returned to the scene with a live bird in his possession in hopes that poultry would whet the monster’s appetite. I thought it a better idea to place the prey into the habitat followed by the resident himself which we proceeded to undertake. When I placed the lizard into the tank with the bird, the latter quickly and instinctively snapped at the aggressor and to my astonishment bit off the alligators head entirely. I was mortified. Not due to any particular affinity for the reptile but because my idea directly contributed, if not actually caused, the death of my son’s new pet.
My son, incidentally, comforted me and took the entire episode magnanimously which, although this was a dream, is quite in keeping with his actual personality.
So am I to glean from this nocturnal video:
a. never place the bird in the cage before the lizard?
b. be forgiving always?
c. cut back on cheeseburgers with onions and mushrooms and sweet-potato fries before going to sleep?
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)
For some reason, this office seemed very unbusiness-like with its four-person table set-up that appeared to be designed more for eating than for working. And the people in this office seemed to be there for eating and social intercourse, and maybe they were, because amid some barely discernible chatter I detected such activities. But then an awareness enveloped me that this was a commercial enterprise of some sort from which I apparently earned my living, and from my quarter of one of the many tables, I decided that I required a respite from the demands of the task I was performing at the time, and that I would take a little break. In what was, to me at the time, apparently normal protocol, I, on my wheeled, office chair, began simply 'zooming' around the room visiting, or greeting (if you will) people at the other tables quite indiscriminately and to their obvious surprise. From the reactions on multiple faces, it was as if I possessed a certain admirable audacity or charismatic self-confidence in my decision to undertake this unorthodox action.
And then, as is quite common in dreams, on the return trip to my workstation, I was suddenly and inexplicably traveling, on my wheeled office chair, down a major and relatively busy city thoroughfare. As the cars and trucks bullied their way to and from their destinations and origins, I was hurling into this vehicular miasma in the wrong direction. To my right, on the sidewalk of Fairmount Avenue, I saw three adolescent boys riding bicycles in the direction opposite to my own and couldn't help noticing that the boy in the middle was, quite happily as evidenced by his care-free, self-absorbed smile, riding a bicycle that appeared, albeit illogically, to be upside-down.
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)
My latest solo release, '2014' of original, instrumental piano music, can be downloaded digitally at:
(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)
(from http://www.dreammoods.com/dreamdictionary/)
Symbols are the language of dreams. A symbol can invoke a feeling or an idea and often has a much more profound and deeper meaning than any one word can convey. At the same time, these symbols can leave you confused and wondering what that dream was all about.
Acquiring the ability to interpret your dreams is a powerful tool. In analyzing your dreams, you can learn about your deep secrets and hidden feelings. Remember that no one is a better expert at interpreting your dreams than yourself.
To guide you with your dreams interpretations, we have interpreted over 5800 keywords and symbols and over 20000 different meanings in our ever expanding dream dictionary. These meanings are in no way, the final say in what YOUR dream means, but hopefully it will inspire you to explore and offer a suggestive starting point for understanding your own dreams. There is no "one dream interpretation fits all."
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)
My latest solo release, '2014', can be digitally downloaded at:
(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak4)
I know. I've misquoted the line from Field of Dreams but purposely so. The members of Oho frequently discuss art, inspiration and commitment in music. And considering the potential to exploit the business aspects pertaining to your music provided by the current technology, it has become even easier to market your music all by yourself. So should you decide that you have a musical statement to make and that your talent is sufficient to do that, why simply make a recording and stop at that? You really have to put that recording in front of every possible set of ears that you can. That is, of course, unless you really don't need to have your statement heard by too many people. . .
(from http://www.madeforsuccess.com/articles/personal-growth/achievement/seven-steps-to-achieving-your-dream-2/)
1. Dream it
Everything begins in the heart and mind. Every great achievement began in the mind of one person. They dared to dream, to believe that it was possible. Take some time to allow yourself to ask “What if?” Think big. Don’t let negative thinking discourage you. You want to be a “dreamer.” Dream of the possibilities for yourself, your family, and for others. If you had a dream that you let grow cold, re-ignite the dream! Fan the flames. Life is to short to let it go. (Also, check out my article “Dare to Dream Again,” Which has been read by close to a million people in the last 4 months alone. You can see it at the website.)
2. Believe it
Yes, your dream needs to be big. It needs to be something that is seemingly beyond your capabilities. But it also must be believable. You must be able to say that if certain things take place, if others help, if you work hard enough, though it is a big dream, it can still be done. Good example: A person with no college education can dream that he will build a 50 million-dollar a year company. That is big, but believable. Bad example: That a 90 year-old woman with arthritis will someday run a marathon in under 3 hours. It is big alright, but also impossible. She should instead focus on building a 50 million-dollar a year business! And she better get a move on!
3. See it
The great achievers have a habit. They “see” things. They picture themselves walking around their CEO office in their new 25 million-dollar corporate headquarters, even while they are sitting on a folding chair in their garage “headquarters.” Great free-throw shooters in the NBA picture the ball going through the basket. PGA golfers picture the ball going straight down the fairway. World-class speakers picture themselves speaking with energy and emotion. All of this grooms the mind to control the body to carry out the dream.
4. Tell it
One reason many dreams never go anywhere is because the dreamer keeps it all to himself. It is a quiet dream that only lives inside of his mind. The one who wants to achieve their dream must tell that dream to many people. One reason: As we continually say it, we begin to believe it more and more. If we are talking about it then it must be possible. Another reason: It holds us accountable. When we have told others, it spurs us on to actually do it so we don’t look foolish.
5. Plan it
Every dream must take the form of a plan. The old saying that you “get what you plan for” is so true. Your dream won’t just happen. You need to sit down, on a regular basis, and plan out your strategy for achieving the dream. Think through all of the details. Break the whole plan down into small, workable parts. Then set a time frame for accomplishing each task on your “dream plan.”
6. Work it
Boy, wouldn’t life be grand if we could quit before this one! Unfortunately the successful are usually the hardest workers. While the rest of the world is sitting on their couch watching re-runs of Gilligan’s Island, achievers are working on their goal – achieving their dream. I have an equation that I work with: Your short-term tasks, multiplied by time, equal your long-term accomplishments. If you work on it each day, eventually you will achieve your dream. War and Peace was written, in longhand, page by page.
7. Enjoy it
When you have reached your goal and you are living your dream, be sure to enjoy it. In fact, enjoy the trip too. Give yourself some rewards along the way. Give yourself a huge reward when you get there. Help others enjoy it. Be gracious and generous. Use your dream to better others. Then go back to number 1. And dream a little bigger this time!
As a TV-watching kid, I loved commercials. At least SOME commercials. Remember "I can't believe I ate the whole thing. . . You ate it Ralph!"? Not so much as a 'hardly-watch-any-TV' adult. In these days of cable television, Netflix and bluerays, not only do commercials turn me off, I refuse to even watch conventional, network (or local for that matter) television.
Do I want a medal? (Or just a chest on which to pin it?) Naw! Just musing about how popular entertainment and I, myself have changed.
As I write, commercial AM radio (yes Virginia, there STILL is an AM radio) is chattering in the background. One commercial, in particular, annoys me. It's one for the newest casino in the area and runs no risk of enticing me to patronize them at all. The the appeal to the base desire for attention, not to mention an easy fortune procured by gambling, is a fascinating psychological ploy.
"Everywhere you look there’s endless excitement and the kind of thrills you just don’t find anywhere else; like over 1,000 Vegas-style slot machines, the hottest Table Games around, dining that always gets two forks up and the kind of red carpet service you would expect in Hollywood."
I've been to Hollywood. Believe me, I am not the kind of person that gets 'red carpet service' let alone 'cheap, throw-rug' service in Hollywood. Just the regular-Joe-schmuck service that I (and most other regular people) get anywhere else.
It's good to dream. It's certainly good to possess a certain self-esteem. But don't confuse dreaming or self-esteem with crass commercialism. I think the lesson here is, quite simply and obviously, 'don't think that you won't lose money gambling just because you're pretending that you're a movie star.'
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