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Praetorium Honoris

Saturday, July 29, 2017

Plumbing the Depths

(Source)
It's been a good week. Got a lot done at work, put out some quality blog posts, but I'm tired, really tired. On the way to work Friday morning, the mist was on the water, the sun was coming through the clouds and it looked to be a very nice day.

Which it was.

But...

Sometimes I get wound up over the oddest things. Really wound up. I know that being tired has a lot to do with it, but still and all, some things just piss me off. It's tough when it's something done by a friend, in all innocence. No harm was meant, no foul intended, but there it is, I don't like that. Damn it.

A line was crossed, I said nothing. It wasn't my place but there it is. Give me a day or two and I'll be all better. But Friday night I was pissed. So, I kicked back and listened to some music.

One tune was mentioned by a buddy over on koobecaF, another buddy posted a version of it in the comments. Two brilliant musicians playing an old favorite. This tune saw me through some sad times and some good times, back in the day.



Yeah, there's been times that I couldn't find my way home, but the mist has lifted, I'm in a safe harbor, calm waters, sandy bottom. Good times as I savor the tail end of existence. I'm kinda hoping it's a long tail, but if not? Ainsi soit-il, I've had a good run. A lot of folks didn't get this far...

Yup, a bit down as I write this, but the music helps. Here's another favorite...



Knew a lady, back in the day, who had that problem.

She won, "Jolene" lost. Big time.

Big careful out there...

Badge of Clan MacBain
Fuirich air ais, tha sinn a 'bìdeadh!

(Source)



Yeah, some days it's just like that...



22 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. No, this was an earlier Congreve, Will "the Quill" Congreve, the playwright.

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  2. A lot of stuff about music is just waay over my head.

    https://youtu.be/6-0TzlNQaNc

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    1. Though I have long "fiddled" with guitars, I had no idea of all that stuff. Interesting and I'm almost sure that the audience can't tell the difference. Though the guitarist most certainly can. I've played some rather expensive guitars and some really cheap guitars, the difference in ease of play and sound is like night and day.

      My favorite is the Fender Stratocaster, a vert sweet guitar. The cheapest runs around $600 up to $3000, depending on a number of things. A lot of musical stuff is also way over my head. I just know what I like.

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  3. Music indeed. Here is one of my favorites. While he is not known for his vocals, I like his rendition of this song. Afterwards, he puts it high gear shows what he is known for---

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEWH2Sc39FI

    Here's how I discovered him. I was on station in (the former) West Germany in the mid-70's. At that time, the "all volunteer" Army was just getting on it's feet. Safe to say they had pretty much scraped the bottom of the barrel for enough bodies in the beginning. This lead to two circumstances that converged--

    1) On the night before they were to ETS home, some genius decided to express his feelings by spray painting "FTA" (not Future Training Association) on some of the post buildings.

    2) Well before your ETS date, you had the opportunity to pack up all your stuff for "hold" baggage, as in the hold of a ship, which would be shipped to your home free of charge. When it came time to get on the plane, whatever you couldn't fit in your baggage was either shipped or stayed. I just shook my head at the number of dummies that said they didn't get the memo, through a hissy fit at the last minute, then just pitched their stuff in a dumpster.

    So, on the "FTA" night, my buddy had post guard, which our maintenance company shared with two artillery battalions. The guard mount got orders to search all the dumpsters on post for cans of spray paint. I don't recall if any paint cans were found, but my buddy did find a duffle bag FULL of record albums. He heaved it in the guard jeep and made a bee line back to our barracks. It had everybody from Tony Bennett to Barbara Streisand to the Rolling Stones, and, Leo Kottke. And, that's my story.

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    1. Kottke is excellent, it's been a while since I've heard his stuff, and I thank you for the link.

      Ah yes, the mid-70s, interesting times indeed in the military. Vietnam over, the new all-volunteer stuff taking off. While many believe the Air Force was the crème de la crème as it had always been "all volunteer" we did have a few folks who were there because they didn't want to get drafted and wind up carrying an M-16 through the paddy fields of SE Asia (well, the Air Force has ever been a "smart" bunch). Most of those were gone by the time I came in. We did have a few who joined up to avoid the draft, discovered they liked it, and stuck around.

      Always amazed me the stuff some troops left behind when they PCSed. But a duffel full of LPs? That's gold!

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    2. RHT447:

      Thank you for introducing me to Leo Kottke, I don't believe that I ever knew about him before. He picks real purddy, doundet he.

      Paul

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    3. Have always enjoyed his humor too.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2KoIWEAdaM

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    4. Yes, when you have to do your own tuning ( unlike Lindsey Buckingham ), you need some patter to keep the natives from growing restless.

      PLQ

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  4. Enjoyed listening to each song over a couple cups of coffee this morning, so thanks for the nice start to the day. Sorry for ticking you off though. I had no intention, but I will try to be less careless in the future.

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    1. Wasn't you man. I mean we only have the finest tuna in this establishment.

      :)

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    2. By the way, got out to see Dunkirk last night and it was even better than described. Really enjoyed the way the tale was told- Sea, Air, Land. Didn't initially realize it was the same air battle told from different points of view, but once I did, the tale got even better for me.

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    3. A lot of folks were put off by that. Like you, I loved it.

      Too many folks were expecting something like Saving Private Ryan or perhaps a documentary on what happened in May 1940. I liked it for the "you are there" aspect. That film worked for me on so many levels. I'm really glad that you enjoyed it too.

      Apparently this veteran agreed with the "you are there" aspect.

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    4. Perhaps we should start calling him "Charlie."

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  5. It's great how music can help get us through to the other side.

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  6. Thanks for the music videos, although you nearly lost me for several hours of watching/listening to my collection of them. I can watch someone pick a guitar all day/night ( and have ). The only musical instruments which I can play are the radio and phonograph/tape player/CD player/computer. But I love watching someone else play. Music does indeed make our world a better place in which to live.

    Paul L. Quandt

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  7. Liked the Winwood. I not only can't find my way home, but I can't find my way to pay the bar tab!

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Just be polite... that's all I ask. (For Buck)
Can't be nice, go somewhere else...

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