courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Sorry, but the golden rings from yesterday tapped me out. I'm going to have to go back to giving you birds. You'll probably get sick of poultry dinners, though, so I'm going to think about the OTHER reason people keep birds. For their eggs.
So, my true loves, I give to you Six Geese a-Laying! And boy, they're laying all over the place! So, goose-egg omelettes for days! HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Friday, December 31, 2010
12 Days 2010: 5th Day
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Ok, my true loves. Still no response. Perhaps the birds aren't doing it for ya. What usually works when gifting is concerned. Flowers? Chocolate? AH! Jewelry!
So, My true loves, I give you today FIVE GOLDEN RINGS! One for each of your fingers so you can go around looking like a Pimp, or Elton John, or Liberace, or a wannabe rapper.
Of course, in the interest of full disclosure, (After all, all true love is built on a foundation of trust) I am using the regulations of advertising. You'll notice that I did not say Gold Rings, but rather, goldEN rings. This is because legally, I can't call them Gold, since... well... they're not. They ARE merely goldish plated. But they LOOK gold, and feel gold, and you can tell all your friends that they ARE gold, but really, they're not 24 karats, they're more like 4.
Still, I got you Five of them! That should compensate for the lack of value, replacing quality with quantity. Now, you may ask why didn't I just get you one real gold ring? Hey, I'm going along with the song, here.
Ok, my true loves. Still no response. Perhaps the birds aren't doing it for ya. What usually works when gifting is concerned. Flowers? Chocolate? AH! Jewelry!
So, My true loves, I give you today FIVE GOLDEN RINGS! One for each of your fingers so you can go around looking like a Pimp, or Elton John, or Liberace, or a wannabe rapper.
Of course, in the interest of full disclosure, (After all, all true love is built on a foundation of trust) I am using the regulations of advertising. You'll notice that I did not say Gold Rings, but rather, goldEN rings. This is because legally, I can't call them Gold, since... well... they're not. They ARE merely goldish plated. But they LOOK gold, and feel gold, and you can tell all your friends that they ARE gold, but really, they're not 24 karats, they're more like 4.
Still, I got you Five of them! That should compensate for the lack of value, replacing quality with quantity. Now, you may ask why didn't I just get you one real gold ring? Hey, I'm going along with the song, here.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
12 days 2010: 4th day
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Seeing as how I have gotten no response to the multitude of avian gifts, I can only assume, my true loves, that you are somehow dissatisfied. I can't imagine why, I mean who wouldn't want 3 French Hens, 2 Turtle Doves and a Partridge in a Pear Tree? At most, you have a zoo containing a multitude of birds; At least, you have had three wonderful poultry dinners.
Perhaps it's because you prefer birds that sing. Or at least who have an interesting call. So I went all over town auditioning. And I've narrowed the field down to the four best. The Blue-breasted Whipporwhil which goes, "Ca-CAW! Ca-CAW!;" The Yellow-crested Canary Buzzard which goes, "Walla-WOOP, walla-WOOP!;" and The Green-tailed Pigeons which goes, "Bah-WOP, Bah-WOP!;" and the Barry Carl Finch which goes, "BOW- Oooo-WOP, Ooh-way-ooh-way-Oooh-WOP!"
I was going to choose between them, but it turns out, put them all together and they perform a killer a cappella arrangement of "Kiss The Girl." So, I give them all to you... Four Calling Birds. Direct from their getting voted off of the Sing-Off... (all the best groups got voted off first, you know) ... to your back yard, where they will serenade you to sleep every night. And if they get annoying, four more nights of poultry dinners. Roasted Barry Carl Finch with Barbecue sauce is DE-licious.
Seeing as how I have gotten no response to the multitude of avian gifts, I can only assume, my true loves, that you are somehow dissatisfied. I can't imagine why, I mean who wouldn't want 3 French Hens, 2 Turtle Doves and a Partridge in a Pear Tree? At most, you have a zoo containing a multitude of birds; At least, you have had three wonderful poultry dinners.
Perhaps it's because you prefer birds that sing. Or at least who have an interesting call. So I went all over town auditioning. And I've narrowed the field down to the four best. The Blue-breasted Whipporwhil which goes, "Ca-CAW! Ca-CAW!;" The Yellow-crested Canary Buzzard which goes, "Walla-WOOP, walla-WOOP!;" and The Green-tailed Pigeons which goes, "Bah-WOP, Bah-WOP!;" and the Barry Carl Finch which goes, "BOW- Oooo-WOP, Ooh-way-ooh-way-Oooh-WOP!"
I was going to choose between them, but it turns out, put them all together and they perform a killer a cappella arrangement of "Kiss The Girl." So, I give them all to you... Four Calling Birds. Direct from their getting voted off of the Sing-Off... (all the best groups got voted off first, you know) ... to your back yard, where they will serenade you to sleep every night. And if they get annoying, four more nights of poultry dinners. Roasted Barry Carl Finch with Barbecue sauce is DE-licious.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
12 Days 2010: 3rd day
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
I was hoping, my true loves, that I'd be able to find some imported hens from France. But to no avail. So, I booked the Concorde, flew over to France, bought me some hens, then brought them back. Flying back at Mach 2 really freaked the hens out. They were all like, "Wow, we're the fastest hens on earth! No Chicken can fly as fast as we can!" Truth be told, no chicken can fly at all, but that's neither here nor there.
So, I got 'em. And I give them to you today, on the third day of Christmas: Three French Hens. I'm letting you know that they're French, so that you appreciate the trouble I went through to get them for you. Otherwise, I just got you some chickens.
Now, even though they're MUCH easier to cook than Partridges or Turtle Doves, I encourage you to NOT cook these hens. Instead, build yourself a coop, and enjoy days and months of eggs. You may need a rooster, but I'm not going back to France, so you're on your own.
Or, if you would rather cook the hens, I recommend spatchcocking them. I just like the sound of it. It's a funny word. Spatchcock! Or wait a few days, until you get the rooster and enjoy some Coq Au Vin.
I was hoping, my true loves, that I'd be able to find some imported hens from France. But to no avail. So, I booked the Concorde, flew over to France, bought me some hens, then brought them back. Flying back at Mach 2 really freaked the hens out. They were all like, "Wow, we're the fastest hens on earth! No Chicken can fly as fast as we can!" Truth be told, no chicken can fly at all, but that's neither here nor there.
So, I got 'em. And I give them to you today, on the third day of Christmas: Three French Hens. I'm letting you know that they're French, so that you appreciate the trouble I went through to get them for you. Otherwise, I just got you some chickens.
Now, even though they're MUCH easier to cook than Partridges or Turtle Doves, I encourage you to NOT cook these hens. Instead, build yourself a coop, and enjoy days and months of eggs. You may need a rooster, but I'm not going back to France, so you're on your own.
Or, if you would rather cook the hens, I recommend spatchcocking them. I just like the sound of it. It's a funny word. Spatchcock! Or wait a few days, until you get the rooster and enjoy some Coq Au Vin.
Monday, December 27, 2010
12 Days 2010: 2nd Day
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Sorry this is so late, my true loves. I was out looking for Turtle Doves. At first I thought they were a crossbreed of Turtles and Doves. So, I was looking in Reptile stores. I thought, "Cool! A Turtle that can fly! Either that or a dove with a protective covering that can retract its head when it's scared." Boy, was I wrong.
Finally, I hit a bird store, and the dude there set me right. So, here we go. On this, the second day of Christmas, I give to you Two Turtle Doves!
Now, I got you two females. Two males would have been too agressive and would have killed each other. A Male and a female, well, you know... let's just say we'd have a lot more than 2, wouldn't we? So, two female turtle doves, and unless one spontaneously changes gender like in Jurassic Park, you should be fine.
And if you're not in the mood for a pet, I understand that they are delicious with an Orange Glaze.
Sorry this is so late, my true loves. I was out looking for Turtle Doves. At first I thought they were a crossbreed of Turtles and Doves. So, I was looking in Reptile stores. I thought, "Cool! A Turtle that can fly! Either that or a dove with a protective covering that can retract its head when it's scared." Boy, was I wrong.
Finally, I hit a bird store, and the dude there set me right. So, here we go. On this, the second day of Christmas, I give to you Two Turtle Doves!
Now, I got you two females. Two males would have been too agressive and would have killed each other. A Male and a female, well, you know... let's just say we'd have a lot more than 2, wouldn't we? So, two female turtle doves, and unless one spontaneously changes gender like in Jurassic Park, you should be fine.
And if you're not in the mood for a pet, I understand that they are delicious with an Orange Glaze.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
12 Days of Christmas 2010 - Day 1
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Greetings, my true loves, it's that time of year again. Contrary to popular belief, Christmas isn't over. Yesterday was the BEGINNING of the real Christmas season, the actual 12 days of Christmas. It's my personal tradition to send out, via the interwebs, a gentle, humorous and creative reminder in the form of this series of blogs.
This tradition started as a mass e-mail to all my friends, but in the era of social networking, it has evolved into this. This year, I'm going "classic," bringing back the original concept of the e-mails that started it all.
So, this being the First Day of Christmas, and as tradition dictates, I hereby send you all a wonderfully exotic Patridge in a Pear Tree. I went down to the local nursery and acquired the tiniest saplings of pear tree, guaranteed to produce fruit when planted in good nutrient rich soil. I then went to J and B's Exotic Pets and purchased a delightful pet partridge. I placed said partridge in said pear tree and boxed it up and shipped it to you, my true loves.
I'd recommend planting the tree immediately, before the partridge has a chance to eat the pears. As for what to do with the partridge, a cage would be in order, but I believe partridges prefer to be free range, so clip its wings and let it roam around a pen in the yard. Or, better yet, kill it, pluck it, and fry it up with a pear-based dipping sauce.
Greetings, my true loves, it's that time of year again. Contrary to popular belief, Christmas isn't over. Yesterday was the BEGINNING of the real Christmas season, the actual 12 days of Christmas. It's my personal tradition to send out, via the interwebs, a gentle, humorous and creative reminder in the form of this series of blogs.
This tradition started as a mass e-mail to all my friends, but in the era of social networking, it has evolved into this. This year, I'm going "classic," bringing back the original concept of the e-mails that started it all.
So, this being the First Day of Christmas, and as tradition dictates, I hereby send you all a wonderfully exotic Patridge in a Pear Tree. I went down to the local nursery and acquired the tiniest saplings of pear tree, guaranteed to produce fruit when planted in good nutrient rich soil. I then went to J and B's Exotic Pets and purchased a delightful pet partridge. I placed said partridge in said pear tree and boxed it up and shipped it to you, my true loves.
I'd recommend planting the tree immediately, before the partridge has a chance to eat the pears. As for what to do with the partridge, a cage would be in order, but I believe partridges prefer to be free range, so clip its wings and let it roam around a pen in the yard. Or, better yet, kill it, pluck it, and fry it up with a pear-based dipping sauce.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
My Favorite Things - NOT a CHRISTMAS SONG!
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com
I love Christmas Music. It's probably my favorite part of the season. I play Christmas music while decorating the tree, while wrapping presents, and it is a MUST while shopping. I'm also very particular about my music. It must be good, it must have the right message behind the holiday stories, and most of all - and I don't think it's too much to ask - it must actually BE a Christmas song.
It's a serious pet peeve of mine. I'm not even talking about songs like Sleigh Ride and Jingle Bells, which are technically about winter, not Christmas. I mean songs like "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg. Not a Christmas Song. It's about getting drunk in your car with your ex-girlfriend. "Silver and Gold;" not a Christmas Song. It's about getting rich. It mentions a Christmas Tree, but that's about it. But the worst offender by far... is "My Favorite Things."
It's not about Christmas, not from a Christmas Special or Movie, in fact, it has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas. The only possible connection could be that this is a list of My Favorite Things, so therefore, here's what I want for Christmas. First of all, Greedy! Second of all, even if that were true, the list itself is ridiculous as a Christmas List, bordering on sick and twisted. Let's go down it, shall we?
Raindrops on Roses - Roses are fine, but the list specifically asks for the raindrops. Even if we got them wet, they will certainly evaporate by the time the day happens. We could put the roses in the box, but then the condensation would be on the box, and not on the roses.
Whiskers on Kittens - again, do we want the whiskers, or the kittens. Since they must be ON the kittens, I'd assume both. Pets are usually a tricky gift to wrap. And why go through the trouble of getting the whole kitten just for the whiskers? Silly, really.
Bright Copper Kettles and Warm Woolen Mittens - OK, this we can do. Nice gifts. I like them.
Brown Paper Packages tied up with strings. - You're allowed to tell me what you want me to get. You are NOT allowed to tell me how to wrap them. You know what usually comes in brown paper packages? And are we good enough friends to warrant that type of gift?
Now we get weird.
Cream Colored Ponies - OK, this is extravagant. Where are you going to keep a pony in your apartment, really? Oh, sorry, not A pony, but PONIES? I'd be lucky to find just one. And I can't guarantee that they'll all be cream colored.
Crisp Apple Strudel - Food is always a nice gift. But between now and Christmas, the Strudel may not be crisp anymore. I know, I'll get a frozen Strudel and you can bake it on Christmas day.
Doorbells and Sleigh Bells - Lots of bells, there. It's going to be noisy. And you don't really need more than one doorbell. Unless you are getting one for the BACK door also.
Schnitzel with Noodles - Taking food stuff to the limit. If I make you Schnitzel with Noodles, and then put it in a box, then bring it to your house and put it under your tree, it's going to be a mess. Haven't you ever delivered a pizza? Things shift in transit, you know.
Silver White Winters that Melt into Springs - Ask any weather man. I can NOT predict the weather, let alone guarantee that this winter will be Silver White, and that it will melt into spring. And again, the plural! I'd need to guarantee that every year from now on? Forget it.
Girls in White Dresses with Blue Satin Sashes - Really? This sounds like you're ordering a girl. And you want her dressed a certain way. Are you having a party? I'll need to call some people, and set this all up. I'm not really sure this is legal. Are you sure?
Snowflakes That Stay on My Nose and Eyelashes - Fine, I'll throw a snowball at your face.
Wild Geese that Fly With the Moon on Their Wings - All right: A) You want the Geese to fly, so we can't clip their wings. So how am I supposed to catch these things to get them too you? B) You specify that you want WILD geese. I'm going to get pecked, flapped and shat upon in the process. Those Wild Geese can be nasty. C) the moon on their wings is up to you. You'll have to hold on to them, and keep them and feed them until a nice moonlit night to let them fly with the moon on their wings. and D) why am I going to get you something that's just going to fly away anyway? You want this, YOU risk your life in a wild goose pond and get it yourself, you demanding biyotch!
I love Christmas Music. It's probably my favorite part of the season. I play Christmas music while decorating the tree, while wrapping presents, and it is a MUST while shopping. I'm also very particular about my music. It must be good, it must have the right message behind the holiday stories, and most of all - and I don't think it's too much to ask - it must actually BE a Christmas song.
It's a serious pet peeve of mine. I'm not even talking about songs like Sleigh Ride and Jingle Bells, which are technically about winter, not Christmas. I mean songs like "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg. Not a Christmas Song. It's about getting drunk in your car with your ex-girlfriend. "Silver and Gold;" not a Christmas Song. It's about getting rich. It mentions a Christmas Tree, but that's about it. But the worst offender by far... is "My Favorite Things."
It's not about Christmas, not from a Christmas Special or Movie, in fact, it has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas. The only possible connection could be that this is a list of My Favorite Things, so therefore, here's what I want for Christmas. First of all, Greedy! Second of all, even if that were true, the list itself is ridiculous as a Christmas List, bordering on sick and twisted. Let's go down it, shall we?
Raindrops on Roses - Roses are fine, but the list specifically asks for the raindrops. Even if we got them wet, they will certainly evaporate by the time the day happens. We could put the roses in the box, but then the condensation would be on the box, and not on the roses.
Whiskers on Kittens - again, do we want the whiskers, or the kittens. Since they must be ON the kittens, I'd assume both. Pets are usually a tricky gift to wrap. And why go through the trouble of getting the whole kitten just for the whiskers? Silly, really.
Bright Copper Kettles and Warm Woolen Mittens - OK, this we can do. Nice gifts. I like them.
Brown Paper Packages tied up with strings. - You're allowed to tell me what you want me to get. You are NOT allowed to tell me how to wrap them. You know what usually comes in brown paper packages? And are we good enough friends to warrant that type of gift?
Now we get weird.
Cream Colored Ponies - OK, this is extravagant. Where are you going to keep a pony in your apartment, really? Oh, sorry, not A pony, but PONIES? I'd be lucky to find just one. And I can't guarantee that they'll all be cream colored.
Crisp Apple Strudel - Food is always a nice gift. But between now and Christmas, the Strudel may not be crisp anymore. I know, I'll get a frozen Strudel and you can bake it on Christmas day.
Doorbells and Sleigh Bells - Lots of bells, there. It's going to be noisy. And you don't really need more than one doorbell. Unless you are getting one for the BACK door also.
Schnitzel with Noodles - Taking food stuff to the limit. If I make you Schnitzel with Noodles, and then put it in a box, then bring it to your house and put it under your tree, it's going to be a mess. Haven't you ever delivered a pizza? Things shift in transit, you know.
Silver White Winters that Melt into Springs - Ask any weather man. I can NOT predict the weather, let alone guarantee that this winter will be Silver White, and that it will melt into spring. And again, the plural! I'd need to guarantee that every year from now on? Forget it.
Girls in White Dresses with Blue Satin Sashes - Really? This sounds like you're ordering a girl. And you want her dressed a certain way. Are you having a party? I'll need to call some people, and set this all up. I'm not really sure this is legal. Are you sure?
Snowflakes That Stay on My Nose and Eyelashes - Fine, I'll throw a snowball at your face.
Wild Geese that Fly With the Moon on Their Wings - All right: A) You want the Geese to fly, so we can't clip their wings. So how am I supposed to catch these things to get them too you? B) You specify that you want WILD geese. I'm going to get pecked, flapped and shat upon in the process. Those Wild Geese can be nasty. C) the moon on their wings is up to you. You'll have to hold on to them, and keep them and feed them until a nice moonlit night to let them fly with the moon on their wings. and D) why am I going to get you something that's just going to fly away anyway? You want this, YOU risk your life in a wild goose pond and get it yourself, you demanding biyotch!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Favorite Music of 2010 - Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Yale Whiffenpoofs, the Persuasions, The King's Singers, Rockapella... They're all great, and important to the history of a cappella music. Ranked right up there with all of them are the Beach Boys; and they don't often get credit for being one of the great a cappella groups of the 20th century. Probably because they're so well known for their surf music, it's easy to forget the huge leap forward they helped to make in the progression of vocal harmony. And it had EVERYTHING to do with one man... Brian Wilson. The man was, and still is, a musical genius; blending traditional barbershop harmony with doo-wop in a combination that in the 1960s was unlike any sound on earth.
So, when I saw that his new album was called, "Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin" and that it was being put out by Disney Records, I knew one thing: whether or not this is a complete cheesefest will depend on Wilson. Has he still got it? The first track, an a cappella rendition of a theme from Rhapsody in Blue, in that signature Beach Boys harmony, quelled my concerns immediately. The album then went on to become everything you'd expect from such a combination. Great songs by Gershwin given the Brian Wilson treatment. And this is "Pet Sounds" Wilson, not "Surfin' USA" Wilson.
The decision to either give each song a traditional jazz interpretation, such as with "Summertime;" or a kinda of Beach Boys retro rock feel, such as with "I Got Rhythm;" clearly was determined by the needs of the song, and not from Wilson's ego. A feature is a little mini-medley of songs from Porgy and Bess, and as awkward as it is to hear Brian Wilson sing "I Loves You Porgy," the arrangement is amazing, and flows into a Harmonica driven "I Got Plenty of Nuttin'," and the outstanding rendition of "Ain't Necessarily So." He even gets to recreate two seldom heard Gershwin songs, "The Like in I Love You," and "Nothing But Love."
"BWRG" should be a standard in everybody's library, right alongside Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper.
Yale Whiffenpoofs, the Persuasions, The King's Singers, Rockapella... They're all great, and important to the history of a cappella music. Ranked right up there with all of them are the Beach Boys; and they don't often get credit for being one of the great a cappella groups of the 20th century. Probably because they're so well known for their surf music, it's easy to forget the huge leap forward they helped to make in the progression of vocal harmony. And it had EVERYTHING to do with one man... Brian Wilson. The man was, and still is, a musical genius; blending traditional barbershop harmony with doo-wop in a combination that in the 1960s was unlike any sound on earth.
So, when I saw that his new album was called, "Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin" and that it was being put out by Disney Records, I knew one thing: whether or not this is a complete cheesefest will depend on Wilson. Has he still got it? The first track, an a cappella rendition of a theme from Rhapsody in Blue, in that signature Beach Boys harmony, quelled my concerns immediately. The album then went on to become everything you'd expect from such a combination. Great songs by Gershwin given the Brian Wilson treatment. And this is "Pet Sounds" Wilson, not "Surfin' USA" Wilson.
The decision to either give each song a traditional jazz interpretation, such as with "Summertime;" or a kinda of Beach Boys retro rock feel, such as with "I Got Rhythm;" clearly was determined by the needs of the song, and not from Wilson's ego. A feature is a little mini-medley of songs from Porgy and Bess, and as awkward as it is to hear Brian Wilson sing "I Loves You Porgy," the arrangement is amazing, and flows into a Harmonica driven "I Got Plenty of Nuttin'," and the outstanding rendition of "Ain't Necessarily So." He even gets to recreate two seldom heard Gershwin songs, "The Like in I Love You," and "Nothing But Love."
"BWRG" should be a standard in everybody's library, right alongside Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Favorite Music of 2010: Stryper - Murder By Pride
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
(Again, technically 2009, but I discovered it this year, and it made an impact.)
1 Corinthians 13:11 reads, "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me." This passage describes Stryper's career perfectly.
When they started out, they were "that Christian Metal band." It was almost a gimmick that got them attention. On their earliest albums, "Soldiers Under Command," "Yellow and Black Attack," and "To Hell With the Devil," their songs were very basic simple praise songs. "God is good. He is Lord. Worship Him." Just like when teaching a child about religion, you don't get too philosophical or deep. You just keep it basic. When they started getting hits with "To Hell..." and "In God We Trust," Stryper pretty much stayed with the same basic formula, straying from their message for an occasional love song like "Honestly," or "All of Me."
Then came "Against The Law." A fitting title, because it's basically their only secular album. The title, the new look for the band - blue and black stripes instead of yellow and black, - and songs about women two-timing them, and picking them up after a gig (they insist "I'm Not That Kind of Guy") made some fans think that they had abandoned their beliefs. The truth is that they were just stretching their songwriting chops. Not being limited to Christian themes freed them to write other kinds of rock songs; BETTER ones. "Against the Law" is probably their best album. Sadly, it didn't sell very well, and they soon broke up. Lead singer Michael Sweet recorded some solo albums and the other band members formed other groups.
They reunited a couple of years ago, or at least Sweet and guitarist Oz Fox did. They recorded two more albums including 2009's "Murder By Pride." I stumbled upon it when I had a hankering for some melodic pop metal, and the band I thought of that was just what I was looking for was Stryper. Problem was, I put "Stryper" into Pandora, and got a channel of Metal Christian bands; not all of whom were good, and not all of whom were in the same genre. So, I went to Napster, and downloaded all the albums I listened to in my youth, as well as "Murder By Pride," curious as to how their new stuff would sound. Sometimes Metal bands from the 80s do not age well. Stryper DID.
The "stretching" that they did on "Against The Law" is now being applied to their Christian music. But although they're back to their roots, their sound and subjects have matured. No longer trite "Praise God" music, but rather music about genuine redemption, the need for forgiveness, and the comfort God gives. No more "He is God- Obey him or Die!!!!" Now, they're singing about the nature of heaven, honest pledges of faith, and more sophisticated philosophical messages. Michael Sweet's voice is still awesome, the choral harmonies are still effective, (especially on their cover of Boston's "Peace of Mind") and the melodies are more interesting, (old Stryper stuck to Half notes, and basic anthems), the guitar work is better, and the lyrics more complex (albeit slightly). Check out the title track, "I Believe," and "Everything." Best three tracks on the album.
A new Stryper album is due this year, and I can't wait. Christian or not, It's a great freakin' album.
(Again, technically 2009, but I discovered it this year, and it made an impact.)
1 Corinthians 13:11 reads, "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me." This passage describes Stryper's career perfectly.
When they started out, they were "that Christian Metal band." It was almost a gimmick that got them attention. On their earliest albums, "Soldiers Under Command," "Yellow and Black Attack," and "To Hell With the Devil," their songs were very basic simple praise songs. "God is good. He is Lord. Worship Him." Just like when teaching a child about religion, you don't get too philosophical or deep. You just keep it basic. When they started getting hits with "To Hell..." and "In God We Trust," Stryper pretty much stayed with the same basic formula, straying from their message for an occasional love song like "Honestly," or "All of Me."
Then came "Against The Law." A fitting title, because it's basically their only secular album. The title, the new look for the band - blue and black stripes instead of yellow and black, - and songs about women two-timing them, and picking them up after a gig (they insist "I'm Not That Kind of Guy") made some fans think that they had abandoned their beliefs. The truth is that they were just stretching their songwriting chops. Not being limited to Christian themes freed them to write other kinds of rock songs; BETTER ones. "Against the Law" is probably their best album. Sadly, it didn't sell very well, and they soon broke up. Lead singer Michael Sweet recorded some solo albums and the other band members formed other groups.
They reunited a couple of years ago, or at least Sweet and guitarist Oz Fox did. They recorded two more albums including 2009's "Murder By Pride." I stumbled upon it when I had a hankering for some melodic pop metal, and the band I thought of that was just what I was looking for was Stryper. Problem was, I put "Stryper" into Pandora, and got a channel of Metal Christian bands; not all of whom were good, and not all of whom were in the same genre. So, I went to Napster, and downloaded all the albums I listened to in my youth, as well as "Murder By Pride," curious as to how their new stuff would sound. Sometimes Metal bands from the 80s do not age well. Stryper DID.
The "stretching" that they did on "Against The Law" is now being applied to their Christian music. But although they're back to their roots, their sound and subjects have matured. No longer trite "Praise God" music, but rather music about genuine redemption, the need for forgiveness, and the comfort God gives. No more "He is God- Obey him or Die!!!!" Now, they're singing about the nature of heaven, honest pledges of faith, and more sophisticated philosophical messages. Michael Sweet's voice is still awesome, the choral harmonies are still effective, (especially on their cover of Boston's "Peace of Mind") and the melodies are more interesting, (old Stryper stuck to Half notes, and basic anthems), the guitar work is better, and the lyrics more complex (albeit slightly). Check out the title track, "I Believe," and "Everything." Best three tracks on the album.
A new Stryper album is due this year, and I can't wait. Christian or not, It's a great freakin' album.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
My Favorite Music of 2010: Them Crooked Vultures
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com
It's December. Time for Holidays, and the year in review. One of the goals of this blog was to chronicle the events of the year. So, it's fitting that this final month will be dedicated to looking back.
I blog entirely too much about politics, and should blog more about music. So, I figured I'm going to train myself by reviewing my favorite Albums of the previous year.
Now, I'm a Napster user, and as much as I like to think of myself as a connoisseur of music, I actually haven't heard that much, but what I DID download this year, I'm going to comment on, hoping that readers who didn't give this stuff a chance would give it a listen.
If you know of music that I should check out, PLEASE comment to me!
The first goes, technically, back to last year, but the end of last year. It's the self titled album by super group Them Crooked Vultures. I'd have completely ignored this group had it not been for a fortunate SNL performance, which caused me to go, "Hey, that's the guy from Queens of the Stone Age! (Joshua Homme) And look, Dave Grohl, ON DRUMS! And who's that old guy on bass?" Turns out it's John Paul Jones. Yeah, THAT John Paul Jones... from Led Zeppelin.
What I love about the album is that it's original without being... how shall I say this... BAD.
So many bands strive to so something different. Unique. A break from the same old pop music. And in doing so, come up with an entirely new sound, that sounds horrible. In their quest for uniqueness, they forget that there's a reason nobody tried to do that before.
Now, two groups that are exceptional at exploring new sounds are Queens of the Stone Age, and way back when, Led Zeppelin. Even Nirvana, when Dave Grohl played drums were unique and exploratory in their songwriting. So put them together, and you are guaranteed to have never heard anything like this before. But in a good way.
What the music industry needs are more musicians taking THIS approach to exploring, and less of the crap that IS out there.
"Them Crooked Vultures" is great for Rock and Roll Palate Cleansing. To stimulate senses after having them been dulled by hearing a lot of classic rock. Instead of hearing the Stones for the 20th time today, pop in this album to wake up your creative sensibilities.
It's December. Time for Holidays, and the year in review. One of the goals of this blog was to chronicle the events of the year. So, it's fitting that this final month will be dedicated to looking back.
I blog entirely too much about politics, and should blog more about music. So, I figured I'm going to train myself by reviewing my favorite Albums of the previous year.
Now, I'm a Napster user, and as much as I like to think of myself as a connoisseur of music, I actually haven't heard that much, but what I DID download this year, I'm going to comment on, hoping that readers who didn't give this stuff a chance would give it a listen.
If you know of music that I should check out, PLEASE comment to me!
The first goes, technically, back to last year, but the end of last year. It's the self titled album by super group Them Crooked Vultures. I'd have completely ignored this group had it not been for a fortunate SNL performance, which caused me to go, "Hey, that's the guy from Queens of the Stone Age! (Joshua Homme) And look, Dave Grohl, ON DRUMS! And who's that old guy on bass?" Turns out it's John Paul Jones. Yeah, THAT John Paul Jones... from Led Zeppelin.
What I love about the album is that it's original without being... how shall I say this... BAD.
So many bands strive to so something different. Unique. A break from the same old pop music. And in doing so, come up with an entirely new sound, that sounds horrible. In their quest for uniqueness, they forget that there's a reason nobody tried to do that before.
Now, two groups that are exceptional at exploring new sounds are Queens of the Stone Age, and way back when, Led Zeppelin. Even Nirvana, when Dave Grohl played drums were unique and exploratory in their songwriting. So put them together, and you are guaranteed to have never heard anything like this before. But in a good way.
What the music industry needs are more musicians taking THIS approach to exploring, and less of the crap that IS out there.
"Them Crooked Vultures" is great for Rock and Roll Palate Cleansing. To stimulate senses after having them been dulled by hearing a lot of classic rock. Instead of hearing the Stones for the 20th time today, pop in this album to wake up your creative sensibilities.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Thanksgiving
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
My heart's first passion is Music. But since man cannot live on bread alone, or music for that matter, I have developed a new passion over the past 12 years or so, cooking. I love to cook. When I was a kid, and my mother went back to work, I'd come home to a bunch of ingredients and instructions on how to get dinner started. That's how I first learned to cook. That and my father's example.
To this day, people who don't really know me well, believe that I, being male, should not be able to cook. That's one of the worst stereotypes of the world. If you envision the person who cooks in your family, you imagine your mother, or Grandma - a woman; but if you envision a chef or someone who cooks professionally, you tend to imagine a male. Even my first job, at Roy Rogers restaurant, the men were on the line, and the women worked the register. I wonder how many people are discouraged from properly feeding their family or a career in the food industry because of this stereotype.
My real passion for cooking began when I discovered the Food Network. It was at my house in Roscoe, where we didn't have cable, but rather had a satellite service. Up there, I was introduced to many new channels including HA! which became Comedy Central, and the aforementioned Food Network. Once we got it on Cablevision, I was hooked, easily logging in 20 hours a week watching. (And yes, I actually logged in.)
I didn't realize it until later, but I was being programmed, but in a good way. The Food Network chefs always insist on the best ingredients, and never buy what they can make. Ketchup? Tomato puree, vinegar and spices. Packaged Crescent rolls? Not if I have flour and butter! Through their example I started trying new recipes and techniques, and basically re-taught myself to cook. When I had my big cholesterol scare a few years ago, what saved me was cooking my own meals with good ingredients that were lower in bad fat and cholesterol.
Ever since, I'm the cook of the house. My wife cooks also, but my biggest joy is coming home and feeding my family. Which brings me to Thursday - THANKSGIVING.
Usually, we go to either my aunt's house or my wife's cousin's house for turkey day; depending on whose parents we choose to spend the day with. Two years ago, it was my parent's year, but they went upstate for the weekend to spend Thanksgiving with my uncle. Rather than tip the scales towards one family or the other, we decided to cook dinner for ourselves that year. I LOVED IT!!! I made a bunch of sides. Crammed with hours of Food Network's Thanksgiving episodes. Nearly memorized the big turkey episode of Good Eats. Finally, I was ready. I cooked the meal, brining the turkey and everything. IT WAS AWESOME.
Well, this year, we're doing it again, but not because of a scheduling conflict, but to try and pass the torch to our house being the place for this holiday. VERY EXCITED! I have the menu all planned:
Tuesday: t-minus 2 days - Prep for Twice-Baked Potatoes. Bake the taters, then cut the tops off, and scoop out the insides, whip with butter and ricotta and seasonings. Then restuff, and refrigerate for Thursday when the second baking will commence. Also: Precook the Green-bean casserole, Alton Brown's recipe with real mushrooms and onions, not soup and French's
Wednesday: Day before: In a cooler in the bathtub, defrost the turkey under running water from 2pm-10pm. Then use the cooler to brine the turkey overnight starting at midnight. Meanwhile - Pre-do the Sweet Potatoes. The Todd Wilbur recipe for Boston Market Sweet Potato Casserole. Roast the sweets, then mix together, and make the crumble. Wrap and store for the next day. Also, Mr. Wilbur's recipe for Starbucks' Pumpkin Cheese Muffins.
THE BIG DAY! - Parade, Dog Show, then Miracle on 34th Street and It's a Wonderful Life. My patented Thanksgiving day mix on the radio. Meanwhile, DO THE TURKEY THE WAY THE TURKEY SHOULD BE DONE! Sorry, got excited there. Make some gravy afterwards. Reheat the sides, and begin the Lemon Meringue pie. Serve HOT and Fresh to everyone's rejoicing. I'm salivating as we speak.
May the Lord make us truly thankful and happy, and merry and bright. And let the COOKING BEGIN!!!!!!!!
My heart's first passion is Music. But since man cannot live on bread alone, or music for that matter, I have developed a new passion over the past 12 years or so, cooking. I love to cook. When I was a kid, and my mother went back to work, I'd come home to a bunch of ingredients and instructions on how to get dinner started. That's how I first learned to cook. That and my father's example.
To this day, people who don't really know me well, believe that I, being male, should not be able to cook. That's one of the worst stereotypes of the world. If you envision the person who cooks in your family, you imagine your mother, or Grandma - a woman; but if you envision a chef or someone who cooks professionally, you tend to imagine a male. Even my first job, at Roy Rogers restaurant, the men were on the line, and the women worked the register. I wonder how many people are discouraged from properly feeding their family or a career in the food industry because of this stereotype.
My real passion for cooking began when I discovered the Food Network. It was at my house in Roscoe, where we didn't have cable, but rather had a satellite service. Up there, I was introduced to many new channels including HA! which became Comedy Central, and the aforementioned Food Network. Once we got it on Cablevision, I was hooked, easily logging in 20 hours a week watching. (And yes, I actually logged in.)
I didn't realize it until later, but I was being programmed, but in a good way. The Food Network chefs always insist on the best ingredients, and never buy what they can make. Ketchup? Tomato puree, vinegar and spices. Packaged Crescent rolls? Not if I have flour and butter! Through their example I started trying new recipes and techniques, and basically re-taught myself to cook. When I had my big cholesterol scare a few years ago, what saved me was cooking my own meals with good ingredients that were lower in bad fat and cholesterol.
Ever since, I'm the cook of the house. My wife cooks also, but my biggest joy is coming home and feeding my family. Which brings me to Thursday - THANKSGIVING.
Usually, we go to either my aunt's house or my wife's cousin's house for turkey day; depending on whose parents we choose to spend the day with. Two years ago, it was my parent's year, but they went upstate for the weekend to spend Thanksgiving with my uncle. Rather than tip the scales towards one family or the other, we decided to cook dinner for ourselves that year. I LOVED IT!!! I made a bunch of sides. Crammed with hours of Food Network's Thanksgiving episodes. Nearly memorized the big turkey episode of Good Eats. Finally, I was ready. I cooked the meal, brining the turkey and everything. IT WAS AWESOME.
Well, this year, we're doing it again, but not because of a scheduling conflict, but to try and pass the torch to our house being the place for this holiday. VERY EXCITED! I have the menu all planned:
Tuesday: t-minus 2 days - Prep for Twice-Baked Potatoes. Bake the taters, then cut the tops off, and scoop out the insides, whip with butter and ricotta and seasonings. Then restuff, and refrigerate for Thursday when the second baking will commence. Also: Precook the Green-bean casserole, Alton Brown's recipe with real mushrooms and onions, not soup and French's
Wednesday: Day before: In a cooler in the bathtub, defrost the turkey under running water from 2pm-10pm. Then use the cooler to brine the turkey overnight starting at midnight. Meanwhile - Pre-do the Sweet Potatoes. The Todd Wilbur recipe for Boston Market Sweet Potato Casserole. Roast the sweets, then mix together, and make the crumble. Wrap and store for the next day. Also, Mr. Wilbur's recipe for Starbucks' Pumpkin Cheese Muffins.
THE BIG DAY! - Parade, Dog Show, then Miracle on 34th Street and It's a Wonderful Life. My patented Thanksgiving day mix on the radio. Meanwhile, DO THE TURKEY THE WAY THE TURKEY SHOULD BE DONE! Sorry, got excited there. Make some gravy afterwards. Reheat the sides, and begin the Lemon Meringue pie. Serve HOT and Fresh to everyone's rejoicing. I'm salivating as we speak.
May the Lord make us truly thankful and happy, and merry and bright. And let the COOKING BEGIN!!!!!!!!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Thoughts from the Mid-term election.
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
My election day goals were met. No Crazy Racist Tea Partiers won. New York stayed, for the most part, Democrat. And I got a real sense that the smart people were voting along with the idiots, and I think we outnumbered them. So, the Dems lost the house. And the Senate is a very fair 50/50... split. I'm pleased. America, you have pleased me.
I INSIST on calling the new speaker of the house John Boner. In what language is B-O-E-H pronounced BAY? No language.
Point of fact, Democrats currently have 52 Senate seats. A month ago, they had 59. They lost 7. AND the Vice President's in charge of it.
With 239 Republican Representatives, they still don't have the 2/3 majority needed to overturn a veto. So, They don't have the power to tell the president his shoe's untied. Let's say they DO vote to overturn the healthcare bill. Passes in the House; doesn't pass the Senate; it doesn't happen. If they were to give LSD to some of the Democrats in the senate, who in turn vote for it, and it DOES pass the Senate; the President vetoes, and they lack the votes needed to overturn the veto. So, the only power they've really gained is the ability to obstruct the Democratic agenda.
I mention this because I sometimes listen to Republican pundits, and they seem to think that they get to have their way now. Hannity even called out the President and gave him some advice: do whatever the Republicans want. Rush Limbaugh scoffed at the labeling of the Republican party as the "Party of No," as if that's not what's happening. If the GOP really want to prove this label as being malarkey, then they need to stop blocking every Democrat bill presented. They need to debate more, and filibuster less. They need to work with the president, not the other way around.
I'm actually excited about the balance of power since Tuesday. Democrats leading the Executive Branch, Republicans for the House, and a near 50/50 split in the Senate. This hypothetically means that the bills that DO become law will be fair and balanced compromises. Just as it should be.
I'll give it a month or so, and let the GOP revel in the fact that it now controls 1/6 or the government. Then they can get back to business. Meanwhile, I'll continue to blog, and hope I reach someone, and spark a dialogue.
My election day goals were met. No Crazy Racist Tea Partiers won. New York stayed, for the most part, Democrat. And I got a real sense that the smart people were voting along with the idiots, and I think we outnumbered them. So, the Dems lost the house. And the Senate is a very fair 50/50... split. I'm pleased. America, you have pleased me.
I INSIST on calling the new speaker of the house John Boner. In what language is B-O-E-H pronounced BAY? No language.
Point of fact, Democrats currently have 52 Senate seats. A month ago, they had 59. They lost 7. AND the Vice President's in charge of it.
With 239 Republican Representatives, they still don't have the 2/3 majority needed to overturn a veto. So, They don't have the power to tell the president his shoe's untied. Let's say they DO vote to overturn the healthcare bill. Passes in the House; doesn't pass the Senate; it doesn't happen. If they were to give LSD to some of the Democrats in the senate, who in turn vote for it, and it DOES pass the Senate; the President vetoes, and they lack the votes needed to overturn the veto. So, the only power they've really gained is the ability to obstruct the Democratic agenda.
I mention this because I sometimes listen to Republican pundits, and they seem to think that they get to have their way now. Hannity even called out the President and gave him some advice: do whatever the Republicans want. Rush Limbaugh scoffed at the labeling of the Republican party as the "Party of No," as if that's not what's happening. If the GOP really want to prove this label as being malarkey, then they need to stop blocking every Democrat bill presented. They need to debate more, and filibuster less. They need to work with the president, not the other way around.
I'm actually excited about the balance of power since Tuesday. Democrats leading the Executive Branch, Republicans for the House, and a near 50/50 split in the Senate. This hypothetically means that the bills that DO become law will be fair and balanced compromises. Just as it should be.
I'll give it a month or so, and let the GOP revel in the fact that it now controls 1/6 or the government. Then they can get back to business. Meanwhile, I'll continue to blog, and hope I reach someone, and spark a dialogue.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Free Market Free Speech
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
So, Juan Williams, a reporter for NPR, was recently fired. See, earlier, he was a guest on the O'Reilly Factor, and in a discussion about terrorism, and mosques, and such; he said, "I mean, look, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they're identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."
Fox immediately jumped on it declaring this a free-speech issue. Fox News has a tendency to do this often. Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck often talk about how they lose sponsors because of their opinions expressed on the air, and how that's a violation of free speech. Remember Dr. Laura and Sarah Palin saying that Dr. Laura resigned because she is not free to express her views? It wasn't because virtually everyone got pissed when she said the N-word 23 times, was it?
I think the mistake here is a lack of true understanding of the first amendment. The above people and others seem to believe that free speech means that you can say anything you want without consequence. And that isn't true. The first amendment says that Congress shall make no LAW infringing the freedom of speech. In other words, the government cannot punish you for what you say. If Juan Williams or Dr. Laura had been arrested for what they said, then THAT would be a violation of their freedom of speech.
Freedom of speech works best when it works like the free market. For example, Don Imus has the right to call the Rutgers Women's Basketball team a bunch of "nappy-headed hoes." Imus' sponsors have the right to be offended by this and pull their advertising from the show. Al Sharpton has a right to complain about this to the people Imus works for, and promise that he and his organization will not be listening to the network or supporting the sponsors who advertise on the station. He also has the right to say that to the sponsors, who also, in an attempt to continue having a business, have the right to pull advertising from the show. CBS, who used to employ Imus, has a right to try and get these sponsors back by suspending Imus for a period of a few months. I have the right to not like CBS for caving to politics in this way, and Imus has the right to feel unfairly judged.
Nazis have a right to march and spread their hatespeech through my neighborhood, and I, in turn, have a right to call them assholes as they pass. As soon as someone throws a punch, THEN someone has violated the law, and they're wrong.
When everyone excercises their own freedom of speech, the real idiots start to emerge, and we can all make an informed choice about who we chose to listen to, follow, believe and support.
The holiday season is coming soon, so I'm sure we'll hear about the guy who was fired from Wal-mart for greeting customers with "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays." Wal-mart has the right to set its own standards of behavior of its staff. If it's store policy that you help customers find the bathroom, and you instead send them to women's wear, well, then they can fire you. If it's store policy that you greet customers with the all-inclusive "Happy Holidays" and you defiantly insist on "Merry Christmas," well, then you're defying store policy, and they have the right to fire you. Is this rule just? Probably not. But they have the right to do it, and if you don't like it you have the right to say so, and boycott the store.
In every scenario, the things we say have consequences. When you have freedom of speech, you run the risk of offending someone with your speech. If you are not prepared for the consequences of such an offence, then watch what you say. We often hear this rule as "Don't yell 'fire' in a crowded theatre." Because if you do, you may start a riot which will hurt people. By the way, if there IS a fire in a crowded theatre, then, please, yell "Fire!" Then you can justify your words and live with the consequences.
NPR has the right to fire Juan Williams for whatever reason they want. Maybe his words were evidence that he's not that bright, and being NPR, they want to uphold the standard of intelligence in their staff, and that's why he was fired. Fox has a right to hire Williams and tout him around to every news show on the network praising his bravery and heroism. And I have the right to think that's stupid, and to continue NOT watching Fox News. What a wonderful country!
So, Juan Williams, a reporter for NPR, was recently fired. See, earlier, he was a guest on the O'Reilly Factor, and in a discussion about terrorism, and mosques, and such; he said, "I mean, look, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they're identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."
Fox immediately jumped on it declaring this a free-speech issue. Fox News has a tendency to do this often. Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck often talk about how they lose sponsors because of their opinions expressed on the air, and how that's a violation of free speech. Remember Dr. Laura and Sarah Palin saying that Dr. Laura resigned because she is not free to express her views? It wasn't because virtually everyone got pissed when she said the N-word 23 times, was it?
I think the mistake here is a lack of true understanding of the first amendment. The above people and others seem to believe that free speech means that you can say anything you want without consequence. And that isn't true. The first amendment says that Congress shall make no LAW infringing the freedom of speech. In other words, the government cannot punish you for what you say. If Juan Williams or Dr. Laura had been arrested for what they said, then THAT would be a violation of their freedom of speech.
Freedom of speech works best when it works like the free market. For example, Don Imus has the right to call the Rutgers Women's Basketball team a bunch of "nappy-headed hoes." Imus' sponsors have the right to be offended by this and pull their advertising from the show. Al Sharpton has a right to complain about this to the people Imus works for, and promise that he and his organization will not be listening to the network or supporting the sponsors who advertise on the station. He also has the right to say that to the sponsors, who also, in an attempt to continue having a business, have the right to pull advertising from the show. CBS, who used to employ Imus, has a right to try and get these sponsors back by suspending Imus for a period of a few months. I have the right to not like CBS for caving to politics in this way, and Imus has the right to feel unfairly judged.
Nazis have a right to march and spread their hatespeech through my neighborhood, and I, in turn, have a right to call them assholes as they pass. As soon as someone throws a punch, THEN someone has violated the law, and they're wrong.
When everyone excercises their own freedom of speech, the real idiots start to emerge, and we can all make an informed choice about who we chose to listen to, follow, believe and support.
The holiday season is coming soon, so I'm sure we'll hear about the guy who was fired from Wal-mart for greeting customers with "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays." Wal-mart has the right to set its own standards of behavior of its staff. If it's store policy that you help customers find the bathroom, and you instead send them to women's wear, well, then they can fire you. If it's store policy that you greet customers with the all-inclusive "Happy Holidays" and you defiantly insist on "Merry Christmas," well, then you're defying store policy, and they have the right to fire you. Is this rule just? Probably not. But they have the right to do it, and if you don't like it you have the right to say so, and boycott the store.
In every scenario, the things we say have consequences. When you have freedom of speech, you run the risk of offending someone with your speech. If you are not prepared for the consequences of such an offence, then watch what you say. We often hear this rule as "Don't yell 'fire' in a crowded theatre." Because if you do, you may start a riot which will hurt people. By the way, if there IS a fire in a crowded theatre, then, please, yell "Fire!" Then you can justify your words and live with the consequences.
NPR has the right to fire Juan Williams for whatever reason they want. Maybe his words were evidence that he's not that bright, and being NPR, they want to uphold the standard of intelligence in their staff, and that's why he was fired. Fox has a right to hire Williams and tout him around to every news show on the network praising his bravery and heroism. And I have the right to think that's stupid, and to continue NOT watching Fox News. What a wonderful country!
Monday, October 18, 2010
The Gay Robot and politics.
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
I typically address these blogs towards people on the opposing side of an issue, in a futile attempt to try and sway them to my way of thinking. Today I'd like to address those who are ON my side of Gay Issues. We tend to approach these kinds of political and social issues without empathy for how the other side views the issue. So, I'd like to clarify.
Nick Swardson has a character on his new sketch comedy show, (which sucks, by the way,) called the Gay Robot. I was first introduced to this character on an Adam Sandler Album, "Shhh, Don't Tell."
The Gay Robot, being a computer, is a whiz at remembering sports stats, and calculating things. He hangs out with a clearly heterosexual group of guys who watch football. They love the Robot because he's an endless source of information. While hanging out, the Gay Robot, will subtly yet explicitly come onto the guys, asking them to engage in sex with him. "Oh, yeah, the Giants have been losing a lot of games this season, but their quarterback still has a 5-0 record, so they can still win. Can I suck your dick?" The guys are cool and politely remind the Gay Robot that they are straight and they don't want to. Throughout the skit, the Gay Robot continues to try several approaches to getting some love, even trying to manipulate them. "Guys, seriously, I run on Semen. Without it I could die."
This is how many conservatives and people who oppose Gay Rights view homosexuals. They believe... REALLY BELIEVE... that they can't control themselves and think of nothing but sex, and are constantly trying to "convert" straight people. Now, anyone who has actually MET a gay person knows that this could not be further from the truth. Why would anyone waste their time trying to pick up someone who has absolutely no interest in them? Not because they just "need to get to know you better," but because they are not even attracted to your gender. Does rape, misconduct or harassment ever happen? Sure, probably, but it is not the norm. The gay community is probably as offended by this stereotype as I was when my Sex Ed teacher in college called rape a "distinctly male behavior." To these conservatives, Gays are sexual deviants who want to victimize straight men.
The Three BIG gay issues this year are Gay Marriage, Repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell, and most recently the relentless bullying of gay youth.
Gay Marriage is NOT, I Repeat, NOT a sanctity of marriage issue. The Vatican handles matters of sanctity, the Presbytery, the Synagogue, the Ground Zero Mosque, but NOT the government. The Governor of your state, or your Senators do not have jurisdiction over the sanctity of shit! It's about the LEGALITY of marriage, and giving gay couples the 1500 individual LEGAL rights and privileges that come along with a marriage licence. Plain and simple, those who oppose gay marriage want to deny a minority group the basic rights and privileges afforded to the rest of us. Why? Because it would legitimize what gay people do; which, in their mind, is molest straight men into becoming gay.
The two big arguments supporting Don't Ask, Don't Tell are thus: 1) Gay men can't control themselves and will try to engage in activity with their fellow soldiers. See Above. If the other soldiers aren't gay, then no, they won't. Besides, isn't engaging in sexual misconduct ALREADY against the rules of the military? Well, isn't it? 2) They suggest that once the troops discover a person's gayness, they will give that person what Aaron Sorkin called a "Code Red." Don't Ask, Don't Tell is supposed to protect them. If you ever hear a conservative, republican, or tea-bagger say this, do me a favor: assume that they have no respect for our troops; because they clearly don't believe that they are disciplined enough to control themselves around someone that they hate. It's also assumed by these people that our Soldiers are inherently prejudiced and of such low character that they will not be able to resist bullying a gay soldier. They also presumably believe that a gay man, fully trained by the United States Military, is unable to handle himself in such a situation. Bitch, Please!
Bullying in ANY form is unacceptable, of course. I was a victim of bullying. I was a nerd, a musician, and a weakling. Other kids felt powerless, so they belittled me to make themselves feel better. Boys who are effeminate, tomboyish girls; they also make easy targets for bullies. Add to this the contempt that some parents have towards gays, which rubs off on the kids, and you've got viciousness that feels justified. Seriously, it's to the point where my students are afraid to sing "Don we now our Gay Apparel" in Deck the Hall. And worse, the victims hear the anti-gay rhetoric, and they feel as if the bullies are right. They need the support of us. They need their role models to stop incorrectly labeling them as deviants.
I can't solve all these problems, but I can make sure I don't vote for people who are prejudiced. I am starting to center my political views around just one ideal: Vote for Smart People. And if any candidate is on the other side of this issue, I consider them too stupid to serve in government.
I typically address these blogs towards people on the opposing side of an issue, in a futile attempt to try and sway them to my way of thinking. Today I'd like to address those who are ON my side of Gay Issues. We tend to approach these kinds of political and social issues without empathy for how the other side views the issue. So, I'd like to clarify.
Nick Swardson has a character on his new sketch comedy show, (which sucks, by the way,) called the Gay Robot. I was first introduced to this character on an Adam Sandler Album, "Shhh, Don't Tell."
The Gay Robot, being a computer, is a whiz at remembering sports stats, and calculating things. He hangs out with a clearly heterosexual group of guys who watch football. They love the Robot because he's an endless source of information. While hanging out, the Gay Robot, will subtly yet explicitly come onto the guys, asking them to engage in sex with him. "Oh, yeah, the Giants have been losing a lot of games this season, but their quarterback still has a 5-0 record, so they can still win. Can I suck your dick?" The guys are cool and politely remind the Gay Robot that they are straight and they don't want to. Throughout the skit, the Gay Robot continues to try several approaches to getting some love, even trying to manipulate them. "Guys, seriously, I run on Semen. Without it I could die."
This is how many conservatives and people who oppose Gay Rights view homosexuals. They believe... REALLY BELIEVE... that they can't control themselves and think of nothing but sex, and are constantly trying to "convert" straight people. Now, anyone who has actually MET a gay person knows that this could not be further from the truth. Why would anyone waste their time trying to pick up someone who has absolutely no interest in them? Not because they just "need to get to know you better," but because they are not even attracted to your gender. Does rape, misconduct or harassment ever happen? Sure, probably, but it is not the norm. The gay community is probably as offended by this stereotype as I was when my Sex Ed teacher in college called rape a "distinctly male behavior." To these conservatives, Gays are sexual deviants who want to victimize straight men.
The Three BIG gay issues this year are Gay Marriage, Repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell, and most recently the relentless bullying of gay youth.
Gay Marriage is NOT, I Repeat, NOT a sanctity of marriage issue. The Vatican handles matters of sanctity, the Presbytery, the Synagogue, the Ground Zero Mosque, but NOT the government. The Governor of your state, or your Senators do not have jurisdiction over the sanctity of shit! It's about the LEGALITY of marriage, and giving gay couples the 1500 individual LEGAL rights and privileges that come along with a marriage licence. Plain and simple, those who oppose gay marriage want to deny a minority group the basic rights and privileges afforded to the rest of us. Why? Because it would legitimize what gay people do; which, in their mind, is molest straight men into becoming gay.
The two big arguments supporting Don't Ask, Don't Tell are thus: 1) Gay men can't control themselves and will try to engage in activity with their fellow soldiers. See Above. If the other soldiers aren't gay, then no, they won't. Besides, isn't engaging in sexual misconduct ALREADY against the rules of the military? Well, isn't it? 2) They suggest that once the troops discover a person's gayness, they will give that person what Aaron Sorkin called a "Code Red." Don't Ask, Don't Tell is supposed to protect them. If you ever hear a conservative, republican, or tea-bagger say this, do me a favor: assume that they have no respect for our troops; because they clearly don't believe that they are disciplined enough to control themselves around someone that they hate. It's also assumed by these people that our Soldiers are inherently prejudiced and of such low character that they will not be able to resist bullying a gay soldier. They also presumably believe that a gay man, fully trained by the United States Military, is unable to handle himself in such a situation. Bitch, Please!
Bullying in ANY form is unacceptable, of course. I was a victim of bullying. I was a nerd, a musician, and a weakling. Other kids felt powerless, so they belittled me to make themselves feel better. Boys who are effeminate, tomboyish girls; they also make easy targets for bullies. Add to this the contempt that some parents have towards gays, which rubs off on the kids, and you've got viciousness that feels justified. Seriously, it's to the point where my students are afraid to sing "Don we now our Gay Apparel" in Deck the Hall. And worse, the victims hear the anti-gay rhetoric, and they feel as if the bullies are right. They need the support of us. They need their role models to stop incorrectly labeling them as deviants.
I can't solve all these problems, but I can make sure I don't vote for people who are prejudiced. I am starting to center my political views around just one ideal: Vote for Smart People. And if any candidate is on the other side of this issue, I consider them too stupid to serve in government.
Friday, October 8, 2010
30 issues in 30 days.
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
On WNYC, New York's Public Radio station, Brian Lehrer is doing a feature called "30 issues in 30 days." Every day leading up to Election Day, he discusses with his guests a different issue facing this campaign, many of which are suggested by listeners. Today was issue #10: immigration. As I listened, I had a surge of indignant opinion, and conceived the strangest project ever imagined: I will attempt to formulate my own opinion about these 30 issues, and blog about them all.
Now, why on earth would I want to do this? And don't I have anything better to do? Well to answer the last question first, yes, I do. And yet, to answer the first: A) In an earlier blog entry, I insisted that smart voters should get out and vote intelligently and in a well informed manner. I'd be a hypocrite is I didn't do so myself as well; 2) I like to bring a unique political view to the debate, and in the process, reinforce that political view. Here's the problem.
As I started to write my opinions on the Immigration issue... I felt it. The IQ leaving my body. The Anger welling up. I was becoming political. I hate the feeling of being political.
As I finished my third paragraph, I found that I had already outlined the entire Pro- and Anti-immigration points of view. Now, what significant difference am I making if I'm simply re-iterating the debate that's being fed to us over the media over and over again. I wanted to bring a unique point of view; not merely regurgitate what's already out there. That's what they want. By "They" I mean those in political power. They don't want to actually solve the problem. They want us discussing the problem; perhaps to generate some misdirected hatred; and to sway us towards NOT thinking about the issue; and, instead, voting the way they tell us to. And as they said in the third Reich, "If you repeat a lie often enough it becomes perceived as the truth."
So, no, I'm not going to blog about all 30 issues. If something comes up that I feel I can present a unique perspective on, then I will. Otherwise, I'll focus on more important things, like my job, my family, my music, and my life.
For the Record, though.... The only difference between an illegal immigrant and a legal one is that the legal ones told the government that they're here. I believe that they should be allowed to register and become citizens or legal immigrants. If it were not for immigration, none of our ancestors would be here, and neither would we. There was opposition to Irish, Italian, and other immigrants back then, too. And it was based in prejudice back then, also.
On WNYC, New York's Public Radio station, Brian Lehrer is doing a feature called "30 issues in 30 days." Every day leading up to Election Day, he discusses with his guests a different issue facing this campaign, many of which are suggested by listeners. Today was issue #10: immigration. As I listened, I had a surge of indignant opinion, and conceived the strangest project ever imagined: I will attempt to formulate my own opinion about these 30 issues, and blog about them all.
Now, why on earth would I want to do this? And don't I have anything better to do? Well to answer the last question first, yes, I do. And yet, to answer the first: A) In an earlier blog entry, I insisted that smart voters should get out and vote intelligently and in a well informed manner. I'd be a hypocrite is I didn't do so myself as well; 2) I like to bring a unique political view to the debate, and in the process, reinforce that political view. Here's the problem.
As I started to write my opinions on the Immigration issue... I felt it. The IQ leaving my body. The Anger welling up. I was becoming political. I hate the feeling of being political.
As I finished my third paragraph, I found that I had already outlined the entire Pro- and Anti-immigration points of view. Now, what significant difference am I making if I'm simply re-iterating the debate that's being fed to us over the media over and over again. I wanted to bring a unique point of view; not merely regurgitate what's already out there. That's what they want. By "They" I mean those in political power. They don't want to actually solve the problem. They want us discussing the problem; perhaps to generate some misdirected hatred; and to sway us towards NOT thinking about the issue; and, instead, voting the way they tell us to. And as they said in the third Reich, "If you repeat a lie often enough it becomes perceived as the truth."
So, no, I'm not going to blog about all 30 issues. If something comes up that I feel I can present a unique perspective on, then I will. Otherwise, I'll focus on more important things, like my job, my family, my music, and my life.
For the Record, though.... The only difference between an illegal immigrant and a legal one is that the legal ones told the government that they're here. I believe that they should be allowed to register and become citizens or legal immigrants. If it were not for immigration, none of our ancestors would be here, and neither would we. There was opposition to Irish, Italian, and other immigrants back then, too. And it was based in prejudice back then, also.
Monday, September 27, 2010
What I'm NOT watching
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
I've told you about my favorites from the new TV season, and gee, it's a lot.
The following new shows, in my opinion, are not worth my time. I'm just covering the new season, none of the returning series.
Lone Star. What the F? He's married, and living a double life, and playing both sides of the ZZZZZZzzzz. Good news... I can watch Mike and Molly now. See how that is.
Mike and Molly. The two leads are likable, and the sidekick is funny. But Molly's family is just over the top irritating. I mean if Swoosie Kurtz is bad, you know you got a stinker. I'm upset. This had potential to be a very sweet comedy.
Chase: I know... I was looking forward to it, too. But it looked as if it would be a different kind of show. Action packed, energetic... nope! Cops, sorry, Federal Marshalls, hunting down a criminal. Procedural. Boring. Call it Law and Order.
Raising Hope, Running Wilde. A good sitcom has a simple premise. Son moves in with a fowl-mouthed father. Five friends hang out at a bar and discuss dating. Six friends hang out at a coffee shop and discuss dating. Both of these Fox shows have longwinded, contrived, elaborate premises. Raising Hope, for example, is about a white trash guy who meets an ex-con woman while she is fleeing from a crazy boyfriend, only to later realize that she's crazy and violent and then she leaves the baby for his white trash, dysfunctional family to take care of, except they are terrible people who could potentially kill the child at any given moment... and on and on.
Detriot 1-8-7 - Procedural. Cop shows depend on you caring about the characters. I don't care about these characters. Simply my opinion.
Better With You - liked it better when it was called "Til Death." And I hated "Til Death." Apparently, the humor comes from the fact that as a relationship goes on and on, you start hating your spouse. It's a COMEDY!
Outsourced - Here's the basis of humor for this show: India sucks. India has no clue about America. That's funny.
Blue Bloods - Pretty good, but nothing unique enough to draw me in. I'm not saying it's a bad show, I'm saying I'm just not into it.
I've told you about my favorites from the new TV season, and gee, it's a lot.
The following new shows, in my opinion, are not worth my time. I'm just covering the new season, none of the returning series.
Lone Star. What the F? He's married, and living a double life, and playing both sides of the ZZZZZZzzzz. Good news... I can watch Mike and Molly now. See how that is.
Mike and Molly. The two leads are likable, and the sidekick is funny. But Molly's family is just over the top irritating. I mean if Swoosie Kurtz is bad, you know you got a stinker. I'm upset. This had potential to be a very sweet comedy.
Chase: I know... I was looking forward to it, too. But it looked as if it would be a different kind of show. Action packed, energetic... nope! Cops, sorry, Federal Marshalls, hunting down a criminal. Procedural. Boring. Call it Law and Order.
Raising Hope, Running Wilde. A good sitcom has a simple premise. Son moves in with a fowl-mouthed father. Five friends hang out at a bar and discuss dating. Six friends hang out at a coffee shop and discuss dating. Both of these Fox shows have longwinded, contrived, elaborate premises. Raising Hope, for example, is about a white trash guy who meets an ex-con woman while she is fleeing from a crazy boyfriend, only to later realize that she's crazy and violent and then she leaves the baby for his white trash, dysfunctional family to take care of, except they are terrible people who could potentially kill the child at any given moment... and on and on.
Detriot 1-8-7 - Procedural. Cop shows depend on you caring about the characters. I don't care about these characters. Simply my opinion.
Better With You - liked it better when it was called "Til Death." And I hated "Til Death." Apparently, the humor comes from the fact that as a relationship goes on and on, you start hating your spouse. It's a COMEDY!
Outsourced - Here's the basis of humor for this show: India sucks. India has no clue about America. That's funny.
Blue Bloods - Pretty good, but nothing unique enough to draw me in. I'm not saying it's a bad show, I'm saying I'm just not into it.
Friday, September 24, 2010
What I'm watching
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
My friend Joe got me hooked. He's a huge TV fan. Ask anyone. He knows the insider info about what's coming back next season, what got cancelled and why, which producer won the biggest foot contest they had backstage at the Emmys... EVERYTHING! I was exposed to his deadly obsession when he would regularly come over to my house, or me to his to watch 24. We then got to talking about virtually every other show, and I made it a point to go out and watch the shows I didn't know. As a result, when the new TV season starts, I start planning my weeknights.
This week was the week everything is premiering, and I'm DVRing everything, watching the first episode. If it doesn't hook me right away, it's gone. I forever believe it to suck. But then there are some that are given a few weeks to prove themselves (like Glee, and The Good Guys,) and some that downright offend me, (like Glee and Big Bang Theory.) As a result, this week, I have some new obsessions and some returning faves.
Sunday: Boardwalk Empire. Absolutely outstanding. Period appropriate. Gangster, but a different kind of gangster. Plus it's about the prohibition era, which fascinates me. I mean a radical movement uses political tactics to make a ridiculous amendment to the constitution that infringes on individual freedoms. I mean, how crazy is that?
Monday: The emptiness I felt losing Lost and 24 has now been filled by The Event. I started just thinking, "OK, terrorist hijacking, assassinating the president... seen it all before..." then the ending, which I shall not spoil, flips everything around!!!! If you miss Lost, SEE The Event. Yeah, the promos are annoying. Get over it!
Also, Hawaii Five-O. I'm giving this a few weeks. The premise is a good one, it's entertaining, and the characters really drive the procedural plot. Plus Grace Park is hot. I'll give it a shot.
Wednesday: Undercovers. I originally thought that this was just another spy show. I think the key to any procedural is the writing and the characters. This couple has a nice rapport, and J.J.Abrams dialogue to make this rise above typical spy shows. The question is, when J.J. lets go of the reins, will the show continue to be cool?
Thursday: $#!^ My Dad Says. Again, was not expecting this to be good. But it is. The Opening credits told me why: David Kohan and Matt Mutchnick. The producers responsible for Will and Grace and others. It's well written, and hysterically acted. And it's realistic. The actors aren't mugging for the camera, or overacting a stereotypical character, they're just playing the moment. Most of all, 6 words: William Shatner, Will Sasso, Nicole Sullivan.
* Law Shows: The asterisk is because a few new shows, all of them courtroom dramas, are toss ups. I'm giving them a chance, but I'm concerned that they won't go anywhere. The Good Wife is an exception because the cases aren't the focus of the show, they are simply what Alicia Florick does at work. Sometimes she's the lead council, sometimes she's assisting, or even staying out of it. It's the characters and the back story of Alicia dealing with the embarassment of her husband's infidelity that drives the show. Outlaw has a similar back story, a Supreme Court Justice, sick of the politics of his position, trying cases to make up for lost karma. The Defenders is... um... set in Vegas? ...has Jim Belushi and Jerry O'Connell? Not so much. I'm going to try Outlaw and the Defenders for a few more weeks. I hope they don't lose me.
What I DO like is The Whole Truth. I had an idea a few days ago, that law shows are always showing lawyers on the right side of a case. Prosecuting the guilty, or defending the innocent. I thought it might be interesting to have a show about someone defending someone they know to be guilty. I thought it wouldn't work, because viewers don't want to see the "hero" of a show on the wrong side. The Whole Truth shows a trial case from BOTH sides, prosecution AND defense. It's interesting because through the prep for the trial, we, the viewer, don't know who's right. It's cool. I love writing for television.
Returning Champions: Chuck, House, and How I Met Your Mother. Sadly, I can't DVR three things at once, so I need to watch "Mother" on the Computer. But Chuck is a great guilty pleasure. It's well shot, and has a great energy. Plus, they throw in references to Tron and other Nerd movies, so what's not to love? And if you need me to tell you why House is so good, well then, it's time for that lobotomy.
I'm also getting BACK into Community after a half a year of angrily boycotting NBC. But since I watched Jimmy Fallon religiously during that time, the boycott really made no sense. Also, The Middle is a favorite new comedy. It is also, in my humble opinion, the only ABC Wednesday night comedy worth a damn. I don't care if it won an Emmy, Modern Family is over the top stereotypes gone wild, and Cougartown is Courtney Cox falling a lot. The Middle, not only has a great Scrubs-like comedy style, keeping it grounded in reality while also being zanily out there; but Heck, I'll say it: it has a heart. (Get it, Heck? As in the last name of the family?... never mind.) Every parent has felt that their family is exactly like the Hecks at one time or another.
CSI : Las Vegas. The original. Miami and New York are like Crystal Pepsi, and Pepsi twist.
Medium - NBC's loss is CBS's gain. HA HA!
Human Target - A million times better than the Rick Springfield version from the 90s. I think it's cool that DC is not trolling out all the big names. They're peppering the franchises of the big names, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman; with some of the lesser known, but awesome comics, Jonah Hex, Red, Human Target. Seriously, check it out, it's good!
Next Blog post.... What I'm NOT watching and WHY!!!!
My friend Joe got me hooked. He's a huge TV fan. Ask anyone. He knows the insider info about what's coming back next season, what got cancelled and why, which producer won the biggest foot contest they had backstage at the Emmys... EVERYTHING! I was exposed to his deadly obsession when he would regularly come over to my house, or me to his to watch 24. We then got to talking about virtually every other show, and I made it a point to go out and watch the shows I didn't know. As a result, when the new TV season starts, I start planning my weeknights.
This week was the week everything is premiering, and I'm DVRing everything, watching the first episode. If it doesn't hook me right away, it's gone. I forever believe it to suck. But then there are some that are given a few weeks to prove themselves (like Glee, and The Good Guys,) and some that downright offend me, (like Glee and Big Bang Theory.) As a result, this week, I have some new obsessions and some returning faves.
Sunday: Boardwalk Empire. Absolutely outstanding. Period appropriate. Gangster, but a different kind of gangster. Plus it's about the prohibition era, which fascinates me. I mean a radical movement uses political tactics to make a ridiculous amendment to the constitution that infringes on individual freedoms. I mean, how crazy is that?
Monday: The emptiness I felt losing Lost and 24 has now been filled by The Event. I started just thinking, "OK, terrorist hijacking, assassinating the president... seen it all before..." then the ending, which I shall not spoil, flips everything around!!!! If you miss Lost, SEE The Event. Yeah, the promos are annoying. Get over it!
Also, Hawaii Five-O. I'm giving this a few weeks. The premise is a good one, it's entertaining, and the characters really drive the procedural plot. Plus Grace Park is hot. I'll give it a shot.
Wednesday: Undercovers. I originally thought that this was just another spy show. I think the key to any procedural is the writing and the characters. This couple has a nice rapport, and J.J.Abrams dialogue to make this rise above typical spy shows. The question is, when J.J. lets go of the reins, will the show continue to be cool?
Thursday: $#!^ My Dad Says. Again, was not expecting this to be good. But it is. The Opening credits told me why: David Kohan and Matt Mutchnick. The producers responsible for Will and Grace and others. It's well written, and hysterically acted. And it's realistic. The actors aren't mugging for the camera, or overacting a stereotypical character, they're just playing the moment. Most of all, 6 words: William Shatner, Will Sasso, Nicole Sullivan.
* Law Shows: The asterisk is because a few new shows, all of them courtroom dramas, are toss ups. I'm giving them a chance, but I'm concerned that they won't go anywhere. The Good Wife is an exception because the cases aren't the focus of the show, they are simply what Alicia Florick does at work. Sometimes she's the lead council, sometimes she's assisting, or even staying out of it. It's the characters and the back story of Alicia dealing with the embarassment of her husband's infidelity that drives the show. Outlaw has a similar back story, a Supreme Court Justice, sick of the politics of his position, trying cases to make up for lost karma. The Defenders is... um... set in Vegas? ...has Jim Belushi and Jerry O'Connell? Not so much. I'm going to try Outlaw and the Defenders for a few more weeks. I hope they don't lose me.
What I DO like is The Whole Truth. I had an idea a few days ago, that law shows are always showing lawyers on the right side of a case. Prosecuting the guilty, or defending the innocent. I thought it might be interesting to have a show about someone defending someone they know to be guilty. I thought it wouldn't work, because viewers don't want to see the "hero" of a show on the wrong side. The Whole Truth shows a trial case from BOTH sides, prosecution AND defense. It's interesting because through the prep for the trial, we, the viewer, don't know who's right. It's cool. I love writing for television.
Returning Champions: Chuck, House, and How I Met Your Mother. Sadly, I can't DVR three things at once, so I need to watch "Mother" on the Computer. But Chuck is a great guilty pleasure. It's well shot, and has a great energy. Plus, they throw in references to Tron and other Nerd movies, so what's not to love? And if you need me to tell you why House is so good, well then, it's time for that lobotomy.
I'm also getting BACK into Community after a half a year of angrily boycotting NBC. But since I watched Jimmy Fallon religiously during that time, the boycott really made no sense. Also, The Middle is a favorite new comedy. It is also, in my humble opinion, the only ABC Wednesday night comedy worth a damn. I don't care if it won an Emmy, Modern Family is over the top stereotypes gone wild, and Cougartown is Courtney Cox falling a lot. The Middle, not only has a great Scrubs-like comedy style, keeping it grounded in reality while also being zanily out there; but Heck, I'll say it: it has a heart. (Get it, Heck? As in the last name of the family?... never mind.) Every parent has felt that their family is exactly like the Hecks at one time or another.
CSI : Las Vegas. The original. Miami and New York are like Crystal Pepsi, and Pepsi twist.
Medium - NBC's loss is CBS's gain. HA HA!
Human Target - A million times better than the Rick Springfield version from the 90s. I think it's cool that DC is not trolling out all the big names. They're peppering the franchises of the big names, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman; with some of the lesser known, but awesome comics, Jonah Hex, Red, Human Target. Seriously, check it out, it's good!
Next Blog post.... What I'm NOT watching and WHY!!!!
Monday, September 20, 2010
For the love of God, Smart people... VOTE!
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
So... a teacher walks into his classroom one day, and announces to the class that they can either take their unit test or take the day off and watch a video. "By a show of hands, who would like to watch the video?" he says. Now, the students are not really paying attention, or are really apathetic. They obviously want to take the day off, but maybe they believe that this obviousness will prevail without their contribution. This goes without saying, so I don't need to say it. As a result, of the 30 people in the class, nobody raises their hand. Nobody votes for the video option.
The teacher then says, "OK, who would like to take the 2-period long, no break, largely essay, surprise test?" And three students in the back of the room start waving both arms in the air, yelling, "ME! ME! OH, ME!" Two are nerds that nobody likes and one was being sarcastic. The class has just voted 3-0 to take the test over relaxation.
The recent primary elections reminded me of this example that I often say to my students to remind them of the responsibility of every citizen to get out and vote. I'm a little scared. I'm scared because the Tea Partiers are, apparently, a force to be reckoned with. Because the Republican nomination in at least two states went to Teabagger candidates. In Delaware, it's Christine O'Donnell for senate, who thinks that masturbating is the same as infidelity, and is not entirely convinced that condoms stop the spread of AIDS. And in my state, New York, we have Carl Paladino running for Governor, who insulted New York City by calling them elitist snobs. I can tell you from living in upstate New York for 4 years, that as far as anyone up there is concerned, Long Island is the same as New York City, therefore he was also alienating my island home. Here's what scares me.... they could BOTH possibly win.
And I'll say it. If we are assuming that these candidates have the unconditional support of the Tea Party; that teabaggers believe that THESE candidates are going to save us from Obama, and make everything right again; then teabaggers are freakin' idiots! And anyone who ISN'T a card carrying teabagger, but goes along with or takes seriously what they have to say, is a complete moron.
But here's the thing, they're voting. And they're voting for dumb people. And I don't believe that it's because the dummies are a majority of America. I believe that it's because the smart people just didn't vote. Maybe it's because it was the Republican primary, or maybe smart people have lives and couldn't get to the polls.
But here's what I'm saying. If you are smart; if you are well informed; if you have a grip on reality; if you have enough of a brain to mentally override propaganda and popular political trends; then you MUST vote in November. New York, Long Island, you have to respond to a candidate insulting you by saying, "F*&% you, you just lost my vote, a$%hole!" Delaware, you have to stand up and state in a calm, yet firm, intelligent voice, "Um, Ms. O'Donnell, I masturbate WITH my spouse, and we're both fine with it, and condoms DO stop the spread of AIDS. Try reading a book sometime."
I, too, once thought we need to send a non-politician to Washington to help shake up politics. But, what I meant was: send a smart, competent non-politician who has a freaking clue about what's going on on this planet. If these candidates win, here's what will happen. First, Fox news will celebrate it as a turn around in the country, even though it's just those couple of states, and morons will believe it, because, hey, it was on television. Second, Ms. O'Donnell will go to Washington and then realize that she has no clue how to do this job. But, also realizing that admitting that will publicly humiliate her and her party, she'll employ the magical art of getting away with not doing your job that we call Politics, and will convince her moron supporters that not only did she DO a good job, but that she should get another term.
So, please... smart people in Delaware, and New York, and everywhere in the USA... PLEASE inform yourself over the next month or so, and make time to get out and vote for the truly best candidate for the office. Whether it be Governor, or School Board President. Stop the insanity, and send the right message. Make it really hard for Fox News to spin this positively towards their side.
By the way, if you do your research, inform yourself, and still think that Paladino is the right choice for NY Governor, then by all means; vote your conscience. Consider, though, that voting for a businessman for governor, or someone with no career or usable job skills for senator, is kinda like hiring a garbage man to be a chef in your 5-star restaurant. Sure, he can do the job, but should Chateau La Mer be serving grilled cheese every night?
So... a teacher walks into his classroom one day, and announces to the class that they can either take their unit test or take the day off and watch a video. "By a show of hands, who would like to watch the video?" he says. Now, the students are not really paying attention, or are really apathetic. They obviously want to take the day off, but maybe they believe that this obviousness will prevail without their contribution. This goes without saying, so I don't need to say it. As a result, of the 30 people in the class, nobody raises their hand. Nobody votes for the video option.
The teacher then says, "OK, who would like to take the 2-period long, no break, largely essay, surprise test?" And three students in the back of the room start waving both arms in the air, yelling, "ME! ME! OH, ME!" Two are nerds that nobody likes and one was being sarcastic. The class has just voted 3-0 to take the test over relaxation.
The recent primary elections reminded me of this example that I often say to my students to remind them of the responsibility of every citizen to get out and vote. I'm a little scared. I'm scared because the Tea Partiers are, apparently, a force to be reckoned with. Because the Republican nomination in at least two states went to Teabagger candidates. In Delaware, it's Christine O'Donnell for senate, who thinks that masturbating is the same as infidelity, and is not entirely convinced that condoms stop the spread of AIDS. And in my state, New York, we have Carl Paladino running for Governor, who insulted New York City by calling them elitist snobs. I can tell you from living in upstate New York for 4 years, that as far as anyone up there is concerned, Long Island is the same as New York City, therefore he was also alienating my island home. Here's what scares me.... they could BOTH possibly win.
And I'll say it. If we are assuming that these candidates have the unconditional support of the Tea Party; that teabaggers believe that THESE candidates are going to save us from Obama, and make everything right again; then teabaggers are freakin' idiots! And anyone who ISN'T a card carrying teabagger, but goes along with or takes seriously what they have to say, is a complete moron.
But here's the thing, they're voting. And they're voting for dumb people. And I don't believe that it's because the dummies are a majority of America. I believe that it's because the smart people just didn't vote. Maybe it's because it was the Republican primary, or maybe smart people have lives and couldn't get to the polls.
But here's what I'm saying. If you are smart; if you are well informed; if you have a grip on reality; if you have enough of a brain to mentally override propaganda and popular political trends; then you MUST vote in November. New York, Long Island, you have to respond to a candidate insulting you by saying, "F*&% you, you just lost my vote, a$%hole!" Delaware, you have to stand up and state in a calm, yet firm, intelligent voice, "Um, Ms. O'Donnell, I masturbate WITH my spouse, and we're both fine with it, and condoms DO stop the spread of AIDS. Try reading a book sometime."
I, too, once thought we need to send a non-politician to Washington to help shake up politics. But, what I meant was: send a smart, competent non-politician who has a freaking clue about what's going on on this planet. If these candidates win, here's what will happen. First, Fox news will celebrate it as a turn around in the country, even though it's just those couple of states, and morons will believe it, because, hey, it was on television. Second, Ms. O'Donnell will go to Washington and then realize that she has no clue how to do this job. But, also realizing that admitting that will publicly humiliate her and her party, she'll employ the magical art of getting away with not doing your job that we call Politics, and will convince her moron supporters that not only did she DO a good job, but that she should get another term.
So, please... smart people in Delaware, and New York, and everywhere in the USA... PLEASE inform yourself over the next month or so, and make time to get out and vote for the truly best candidate for the office. Whether it be Governor, or School Board President. Stop the insanity, and send the right message. Make it really hard for Fox News to spin this positively towards their side.
By the way, if you do your research, inform yourself, and still think that Paladino is the right choice for NY Governor, then by all means; vote your conscience. Consider, though, that voting for a businessman for governor, or someone with no career or usable job skills for senator, is kinda like hiring a garbage man to be a chef in your 5-star restaurant. Sure, he can do the job, but should Chateau La Mer be serving grilled cheese every night?
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
12 Things Good (People) believe
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
A Blogger on http://www.choralnet.com/ copied this from a blogger at the Harvard Business Review . The article was called "The 12 Things Good Bosses Believe." The choralnet blogger changed it slightly to be what Choir Directors believe. I will choose to apply it to what Teachers believe. They are as follows. The bold is Robert Sutton's words, the rest is my reflection on them.
The 12 Things Good Teachers Believe
1. I have a flawed and incomplete understanding of what it feels like to be in my class. It's happened to me often. I expect that a group of 7th graders ought to be able to do this. I mean, I can do this! It's easy! I'm also 40 and 18 years out of school. I think I need to find ways of simply being a choir member, to remind myself of that side of the experience.
2. My success — and that of my students — depends largely on being the master of obvious and mundane things, not on magical, obscure, or breakthrough ideas or methods. Or as Kung Fu Panda put it... there is no secret ingredient. Strangely, the manner in which administrators and government choose to "reform" education is by offering this new, innovative, brilliant method which will be implemented immediately or you're fired. Education reform is easy. Get rid of truly bad teachers. Get politicians out of school administration and Boards of Ed. And parents, do your freakin' job as parents! Most importantly, don't be terrified of students failing. Grades need to accurately reflect student performance. If students don't do anything, and they still pass, then THAT'S where schools fail. In short, Public education works, stop messing with it.
3. Having ambitious and well-defined goals is important, but it is useless to think about them much. My job is to focus on the small wins that enable my class to make a little progress every day. Long term goals are just that, Long Term. Do your job, day to day, and don't screw up.
4. One of the most important, and most difficult, parts of my job is to strike the delicate balance between being too assertive and not assertive enough. That's a big one. Can't be a pushover, but also shouldn't be a dick.
5. My job is to serve as a human shield, to protect my class from external intrusions, distractions, and idiocy of every stripe — and to avoid imposing my own idiocy on them as well. I'm taking this role VERY seriously this year. Negativity is simply not allowed in my classroom. If you're going to discourage my students in any way, I'm going to need to take you out.
6. I strive to be confident enough to convince people that I am in charge, but humble enough to realize that I am often going to be wrong. In conductor's terms, If I screw up, all of you need to screw up as well. I'll happily accept responsibility for cuing you incorrectly. But if I'm there for you, you need to watch and follow. It's on me to be correct.
7. I aim to fight as if I am right, and listen as if I am wrong — and to teach my students to do the same thing. Never was it put more clearly than this. I heard it both ways in my legendary and tumultuous career. I heard, "Be true to yourself," which made me arrogant. Others said, "But Carl, you're not perfect, and you're usually wrong, so let others tell you how to improve," and that made me a wuss, dependent on others to make your decisions for me, and allowing me to compromise what I KNOW to be correct. Again, a balance must be struck between the two.
8. One of the best tests of my leadership — and my organization — is "what happens after people make a mistake?" Students don't need you to do it for them. They need to be trained to do it themself. I have an annoying and not helpful habit of singing along with me choir. That makes them dependent on me. I need to stop that. My dream, my goal, to have a group of students who, when I'm not around, will go into a practice room and sing their parts themselves.
9. Innovation is crucial to every team and organization. So my job is to encourage my class to generate and test all kinds of new ideas. But it is also my job to help them kill off all the bad ideas we generate, and most of the good ideas, too. 'Nuff said.
10. Bad is stronger than good. It is more important to eliminate the negative than to accentuate the positive. While I disagree with this statement; I prefer to believe that good will overcome all; I will rephrase... Bad is more seductive and tempting than good. A choir member once asked me, "Mr. F, wouldn't it be better if we all just sang the melody?" I responded, "No, it would be easier, and would require less thinking, but it wouldn't be better."
11. How I do things is as important as what I do. It's not what you say, it's how you say it. Example, "She had a crack baby." Or. "She had a crack, Baby!" - Zach Galifinakis
12. Because I wield power over others, I am at great risk of acting like an insensitive jerk — and not realizing it. But I like power! But yes, I'm a role model. Careful the things you say, Children will Listen. (Sondheim) They'll forget what you said, and what you did, but they'll never forget how you made them feel.
Such is my goal for this year. Be a better leader, and have a more fun time in school.
A Blogger on http://www.choralnet.com/ copied this from a blogger at the Harvard Business Review . The article was called "The 12 Things Good Bosses Believe." The choralnet blogger changed it slightly to be what Choir Directors believe. I will choose to apply it to what Teachers believe. They are as follows. The bold is Robert Sutton's words, the rest is my reflection on them.
The 12 Things Good Teachers Believe
1. I have a flawed and incomplete understanding of what it feels like to be in my class. It's happened to me often. I expect that a group of 7th graders ought to be able to do this. I mean, I can do this! It's easy! I'm also 40 and 18 years out of school. I think I need to find ways of simply being a choir member, to remind myself of that side of the experience.
2. My success — and that of my students — depends largely on being the master of obvious and mundane things, not on magical, obscure, or breakthrough ideas or methods. Or as Kung Fu Panda put it... there is no secret ingredient. Strangely, the manner in which administrators and government choose to "reform" education is by offering this new, innovative, brilliant method which will be implemented immediately or you're fired. Education reform is easy. Get rid of truly bad teachers. Get politicians out of school administration and Boards of Ed. And parents, do your freakin' job as parents! Most importantly, don't be terrified of students failing. Grades need to accurately reflect student performance. If students don't do anything, and they still pass, then THAT'S where schools fail. In short, Public education works, stop messing with it.
3. Having ambitious and well-defined goals is important, but it is useless to think about them much. My job is to focus on the small wins that enable my class to make a little progress every day. Long term goals are just that, Long Term. Do your job, day to day, and don't screw up.
4. One of the most important, and most difficult, parts of my job is to strike the delicate balance between being too assertive and not assertive enough. That's a big one. Can't be a pushover, but also shouldn't be a dick.
5. My job is to serve as a human shield, to protect my class from external intrusions, distractions, and idiocy of every stripe — and to avoid imposing my own idiocy on them as well. I'm taking this role VERY seriously this year. Negativity is simply not allowed in my classroom. If you're going to discourage my students in any way, I'm going to need to take you out.
6. I strive to be confident enough to convince people that I am in charge, but humble enough to realize that I am often going to be wrong. In conductor's terms, If I screw up, all of you need to screw up as well. I'll happily accept responsibility for cuing you incorrectly. But if I'm there for you, you need to watch and follow. It's on me to be correct.
7. I aim to fight as if I am right, and listen as if I am wrong — and to teach my students to do the same thing. Never was it put more clearly than this. I heard it both ways in my legendary and tumultuous career. I heard, "Be true to yourself," which made me arrogant. Others said, "But Carl, you're not perfect, and you're usually wrong, so let others tell you how to improve," and that made me a wuss, dependent on others to make your decisions for me, and allowing me to compromise what I KNOW to be correct. Again, a balance must be struck between the two.
8. One of the best tests of my leadership — and my organization — is "what happens after people make a mistake?" Students don't need you to do it for them. They need to be trained to do it themself. I have an annoying and not helpful habit of singing along with me choir. That makes them dependent on me. I need to stop that. My dream, my goal, to have a group of students who, when I'm not around, will go into a practice room and sing their parts themselves.
9. Innovation is crucial to every team and organization. So my job is to encourage my class to generate and test all kinds of new ideas. But it is also my job to help them kill off all the bad ideas we generate, and most of the good ideas, too. 'Nuff said.
10. Bad is stronger than good. It is more important to eliminate the negative than to accentuate the positive. While I disagree with this statement; I prefer to believe that good will overcome all; I will rephrase... Bad is more seductive and tempting than good. A choir member once asked me, "Mr. F, wouldn't it be better if we all just sang the melody?" I responded, "No, it would be easier, and would require less thinking, but it wouldn't be better."
11. How I do things is as important as what I do. It's not what you say, it's how you say it. Example, "She had a crack baby." Or. "She had a crack, Baby!" - Zach Galifinakis
12. Because I wield power over others, I am at great risk of acting like an insensitive jerk — and not realizing it. But I like power! But yes, I'm a role model. Careful the things you say, Children will Listen. (Sondheim) They'll forget what you said, and what you did, but they'll never forget how you made them feel.
Such is my goal for this year. Be a better leader, and have a more fun time in school.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Thoughts from the Emmys 2010
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com (Seriously, please follow my blog!)
The Jimmy Fallon/Glee opening was really incredible. I'll admit it. You all know I hate the show, so this may seem odd. Consider, though that this opening was a good Variety Show opening. AND a great SPOOF of the show. Rarely do openings to Awards shows become good series. Remember the Billy Crystal Sings Songs About Movies fiasco?
People tell me Modern Family is a great show. I don't see it.
Jane Lynch is amazing, and definitely deserves an Emmy. And she's the only good part of Glee, so Bravo.
People tell me Big Bang Theory is a great show. I don't see it.
I long for the day when there is no longer a need for the category "Reality."
People tell me Nurse Jackie is a great show. I don't have Showtime.
A lot of Reality based competition shows involve taking a bunch of people who do the same thing for a living, and pitting them against each other in witty challenges. Top Chef, The Apprentice, Design Star, etc. I think they should continue this trend, but with ridiculous professions. Top Plumber. America's Top Accountant. So You Think You Can Run a 7-11.
Drama... do you give it to Lost in its final spectacular season, 24 in its final spectacular season, or House in just a spectacular season?
If Bryan Cranston won over Hugh Laurie THIS SEASON, he must have been orgasmically phenomenal. I've never seen "Breaking Bad." I never hope to see it. But one thing I can tell you now, I'd rather see than be it.
Jimmy Fallon needs to host EVERY SINGLE AWARDS SHOW EVER. If they can't book him, get Neil Patrick Harris. If they can't get either of them... just don't have the awards this year.
I guess the Tony Awards deserved some Emmys. I mean, they made a passable broadcast out of a complete absence of talented nominees. And of COURSE, it's not going to win best direction. Not with all the technical problems that happened.
I guess I should have expected that Tonight Show with Conan wouldn't win. But what's really disappointing is that everyone in Hollywood who voted missed a LEGENDARY opportunity. Imagine. Conan winning. ON NBC. When Leno's not even nominated. That speech alone would have been the greatest TV moment of all time. Close 2nd? Moon Walk. Imagine. Knowing that if he won that SOOOOOOO would happen. But, no. Instead, you resist that temptation and base it on merit. FINE.
I wonder if anyone ever impaled themselves or others on an Emmy award.
Did anyone else catch that as Al Pacino left the stage after receiving the Emmy for playing Jack Kervorkian, the band played "Killer Joe?"
The Nominees for Best Mini-Series are... That thing no one saw on PBS, or The Pacific. Hmmmm. What will win?
And my dream comes true.... Glee lost.
So... I guess I have to Netflix Mad Men, and Breaking Bad, and Modern Family, and Big Bang Theory, and Temple Grandin, and... I'm saying I'm apparently missing the greatest stuff on television. Instead I'm slumming it, watching True Blood, Entourage, How I Met Your Mother, 24, Lost, House, The Good Wife, etc...
The Jimmy Fallon/Glee opening was really incredible. I'll admit it. You all know I hate the show, so this may seem odd. Consider, though that this opening was a good Variety Show opening. AND a great SPOOF of the show. Rarely do openings to Awards shows become good series. Remember the Billy Crystal Sings Songs About Movies fiasco?
People tell me Modern Family is a great show. I don't see it.
Jane Lynch is amazing, and definitely deserves an Emmy. And she's the only good part of Glee, so Bravo.
People tell me Big Bang Theory is a great show. I don't see it.
I long for the day when there is no longer a need for the category "Reality."
People tell me Nurse Jackie is a great show. I don't have Showtime.
A lot of Reality based competition shows involve taking a bunch of people who do the same thing for a living, and pitting them against each other in witty challenges. Top Chef, The Apprentice, Design Star, etc. I think they should continue this trend, but with ridiculous professions. Top Plumber. America's Top Accountant. So You Think You Can Run a 7-11.
Drama... do you give it to Lost in its final spectacular season, 24 in its final spectacular season, or House in just a spectacular season?
If Bryan Cranston won over Hugh Laurie THIS SEASON, he must have been orgasmically phenomenal. I've never seen "Breaking Bad." I never hope to see it. But one thing I can tell you now, I'd rather see than be it.
Jimmy Fallon needs to host EVERY SINGLE AWARDS SHOW EVER. If they can't book him, get Neil Patrick Harris. If they can't get either of them... just don't have the awards this year.
I guess the Tony Awards deserved some Emmys. I mean, they made a passable broadcast out of a complete absence of talented nominees. And of COURSE, it's not going to win best direction. Not with all the technical problems that happened.
I guess I should have expected that Tonight Show with Conan wouldn't win. But what's really disappointing is that everyone in Hollywood who voted missed a LEGENDARY opportunity. Imagine. Conan winning. ON NBC. When Leno's not even nominated. That speech alone would have been the greatest TV moment of all time. Close 2nd? Moon Walk. Imagine. Knowing that if he won that SOOOOOOO would happen. But, no. Instead, you resist that temptation and base it on merit. FINE.
I wonder if anyone ever impaled themselves or others on an Emmy award.
Did anyone else catch that as Al Pacino left the stage after receiving the Emmy for playing Jack Kervorkian, the band played "Killer Joe?"
The Nominees for Best Mini-Series are... That thing no one saw on PBS, or The Pacific. Hmmmm. What will win?
And my dream comes true.... Glee lost.
So... I guess I have to Netflix Mad Men, and Breaking Bad, and Modern Family, and Big Bang Theory, and Temple Grandin, and... I'm saying I'm apparently missing the greatest stuff on television. Instead I'm slumming it, watching True Blood, Entourage, How I Met Your Mother, 24, Lost, House, The Good Wife, etc...
Saturday, August 28, 2010
On the subject of Tipping
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
(please follow me!)
It's good to get back to teaching, but it's also a nice change of pace waitering and bar tending over the summer. I'll be honest, the catering company I work for pays pretty well, for a summer job, but we're always praying for the best source of income for food service people... tips.
In the restaurant world, waiters and barkeeps make meager salaries, so tips are their life blood. I actually heard of a cafe in California that changed this. They pay their staff a decent wage, and DIScourage tipping. My catering company is sort of halfway there. I make roughly $13-15 per hour (and I think that varies according to age and experience) and sometimes I get tips here and there.
I've waitered parties where my whole job was to bring guests drinks, in which case I got a few "slipped" bucks here and there. I made about $30 extra that night.
Some parties were at country clubs or yacht clubs, where they pay exorbitant fees to belong, so they feel that they don't need to tip. Others believe that you must tip a waiter in order to guarantee the best service. These people also act like, "I just gave you a tip, now you're my bitch!"
I bar tended at a wedding this summer, where people tipped a LOT. The bride and groom were young, and all their guests were college age. Ergo, they drank like fishes. In fact, the bride had a pimp goblet she carried around that I had to keep filled with wine. They also tipped like they were at an ACTUAL bar. On the other hand though, they were also rich brats. One of them became my buddy, and I kept him filled with his signature drink. At the end, he raved about us. "You guys were great! Really! Awesome! Thank you so much! Here, let me give you guys something." He gave us $2.
We pooled the tips together, and I was informed that what "they did" at this catering hall, was give 10% to the runners, and split it with the bussers, etc. And I ended up with $26 instead of a quarter of what had to have been over $200.
My monthly gig pays best. I bar tend at the American Legion hall in Amityville, which is really in Copaigue. (I know, it's weird.) They have a monthly senior singles night, and I'm basically the guy for that evening. What's great about it is that it's a pre-paid open bar, but the guests come up with the intention of "buying a drink." Therefore, whatever they would have given me for a purchase goes into the tip basket. I come back clearing $200 a night.
As a tipper myself, I always tip generously. 15% is the standard, but I always go up to 20%, mostly because it's easier to calculate in my head. (Just move the decimal (10%), and double it.) I've only had a few occasions where I felt like Mr. Pink in Reservior Dogs, and I didn't tip because of poor service.
Once at Friendly's, we had an incredibly rude waitress. We gave her an equally rude tip. One Penny. Another time, we left the diner honestly forgetting to leave a tip. The waitress ran out to the parking lot asking, "Did you guys leave a tip?" She meant that she thought someone else took it. I, panicking, ran over and gave her a few bucks.
Overall, I'm happy to get back to a yearly salary. And I will continue to tip generously. A) because I DO believe in Karma, and what goes into your waiter's pockets comes around to you in service, and b) because I've looked at food service from both sides now, from up and down, and still somehow it's tips' illusions I recall. I really don't have any money at all.
(please follow me!)
It's good to get back to teaching, but it's also a nice change of pace waitering and bar tending over the summer. I'll be honest, the catering company I work for pays pretty well, for a summer job, but we're always praying for the best source of income for food service people... tips.
In the restaurant world, waiters and barkeeps make meager salaries, so tips are their life blood. I actually heard of a cafe in California that changed this. They pay their staff a decent wage, and DIScourage tipping. My catering company is sort of halfway there. I make roughly $13-15 per hour (and I think that varies according to age and experience) and sometimes I get tips here and there.
I've waitered parties where my whole job was to bring guests drinks, in which case I got a few "slipped" bucks here and there. I made about $30 extra that night.
Some parties were at country clubs or yacht clubs, where they pay exorbitant fees to belong, so they feel that they don't need to tip. Others believe that you must tip a waiter in order to guarantee the best service. These people also act like, "I just gave you a tip, now you're my bitch!"
I bar tended at a wedding this summer, where people tipped a LOT. The bride and groom were young, and all their guests were college age. Ergo, they drank like fishes. In fact, the bride had a pimp goblet she carried around that I had to keep filled with wine. They also tipped like they were at an ACTUAL bar. On the other hand though, they were also rich brats. One of them became my buddy, and I kept him filled with his signature drink. At the end, he raved about us. "You guys were great! Really! Awesome! Thank you so much! Here, let me give you guys something." He gave us $2.
We pooled the tips together, and I was informed that what "they did" at this catering hall, was give 10% to the runners, and split it with the bussers, etc. And I ended up with $26 instead of a quarter of what had to have been over $200.
My monthly gig pays best. I bar tend at the American Legion hall in Amityville, which is really in Copaigue. (I know, it's weird.) They have a monthly senior singles night, and I'm basically the guy for that evening. What's great about it is that it's a pre-paid open bar, but the guests come up with the intention of "buying a drink." Therefore, whatever they would have given me for a purchase goes into the tip basket. I come back clearing $200 a night.
As a tipper myself, I always tip generously. 15% is the standard, but I always go up to 20%, mostly because it's easier to calculate in my head. (Just move the decimal (10%), and double it.) I've only had a few occasions where I felt like Mr. Pink in Reservior Dogs, and I didn't tip because of poor service.
Once at Friendly's, we had an incredibly rude waitress. We gave her an equally rude tip. One Penny. Another time, we left the diner honestly forgetting to leave a tip. The waitress ran out to the parking lot asking, "Did you guys leave a tip?" She meant that she thought someone else took it. I, panicking, ran over and gave her a few bucks.
Overall, I'm happy to get back to a yearly salary. And I will continue to tip generously. A) because I DO believe in Karma, and what goes into your waiter's pockets comes around to you in service, and b) because I've looked at food service from both sides now, from up and down, and still somehow it's tips' illusions I recall. I really don't have any money at all.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Pepsi Free - The return of the Tri-Glycerides
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com
I know what you've been thinking. "Wow, CJ hasn't blogged in a while, I wonder what ever happened with his HFCS diet." (Please refer to the chronicle...)
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/02/hfcs-free-week-1.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/02/hfcs-free-week-15.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-week-2.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-week-3.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-week-4.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-final-week.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/04/pepsi-free-epilogue.html
I started out being moderate. One Pepsi a day. An occasional snack at 10ish. Nothing major. But just like I usually do.... I fell off the wagon. HARD.
Now, I was very curious back in April how my change in diet had affected my health. I was actually looking forward to my annual physical. (my last one was 2 years ago.) My doctor informed me that since I'm about to turn 40, I should wait until then. There's a whole OTHER barrage of tests that they do post-40, so why do 2 sets of tests? Thus, I would wait until July for my physical.
I waited until August.
I seemed to be in great health. Everything looked normal. Everything... shall we say... that the doctor... um... FELT... felt normal. Then, I did a blood test. The results came back. My Triglycerides were high. I looked it up for understanding. You know when you eat Carbohydrates, but then don't work them off, and they turn to fat? That fat is a triglyceride. Mine are over 400. More than 200 is considered high. Over 500 is cause for real concern. So, I'm pretty close.
My doctor prescribed Trilipix. You've heard of it. It's that medicine on TV with the commercial with the Triangles. It is supposed to raise my Good Cholesterol, and clear my Bad Cholesterol and my Trigs from my blood. So here's my dilemma. I considered the possibility that I could change absolutely nothing about my lifestyle and just take the Trilipix, and I'd probably get healthier.
Now, a few years ago, I had a scare with my cholesterol levels. My doctor prescribed Vytorin, and I took it. It made me feel kind of crappy. I didn't like it. So, I did some reading about how to reduce my LDLs and raise my HDLs. I stopped taking the Vytorin, and went on a crash diet. I learned a lot about food, and about my own eating habits. AND, without the aid of pharmaceuticals, I lowered my cholesterol. (Hooraaaaaaay!) But then, my Triglycerides started climbing. (Aw, Maaaaaaaan!)
So, I started thinking that I don't want to go on medication again. I want to see about changing my lifestyle again. I mean, I did it for Lent, and ended up feeling GREAT. But carbs are so COOL! AND delicious... What to do? I really should eat healthier, and get more exercise.
So here's what I decided. I'm permanently going back on my Lenten fast diet. 1) I'm SERIOUSLY limiting myself to One Pepsi per day. 2) no snacking after 9pm. 3) take the Trilipix. Hey, it works, right? If I start noticing side effects, I'll call the doctor. and 4) I'm going to consciously move more. Late night walks; more work around the house; parking further away from the mall, so I have to do the long walk to the car; Wii Fit; Rock Band. (the drums are a hell of a workout!)
I just have to psyche myself into sticking to it. What worked for me during Lent was a rather extreme thought: "Dude, Jesus ate NOTHING in the DESERT for 40 days, and STILL battled Satan and won. THEN, He dies for your sins. And you're complaining that you want a piece of cake at 10 O'clock?" When I crash dieted during the Cholesterol Scare: "Sure, you can have those cheese fries. And tomorrow you can DIE!" These very extreme thoughts are ridiculous, but they work. And they create comedy, which lightens the mood. Wish me luck. I want to be healthy.
Good news, though. It's been a week of me doing this, and my pants keep falling down. I need a belt. That's a good sign.
I know what you've been thinking. "Wow, CJ hasn't blogged in a while, I wonder what ever happened with his HFCS diet." (Please refer to the chronicle...)
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/02/hfcs-free-week-1.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/02/hfcs-free-week-15.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-week-2.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-week-3.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-week-4.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/03/pepsi-free-final-week.html
http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/2010/04/pepsi-free-epilogue.html
I started out being moderate. One Pepsi a day. An occasional snack at 10ish. Nothing major. But just like I usually do.... I fell off the wagon. HARD.
Now, I was very curious back in April how my change in diet had affected my health. I was actually looking forward to my annual physical. (my last one was 2 years ago.) My doctor informed me that since I'm about to turn 40, I should wait until then. There's a whole OTHER barrage of tests that they do post-40, so why do 2 sets of tests? Thus, I would wait until July for my physical.
I waited until August.
I seemed to be in great health. Everything looked normal. Everything... shall we say... that the doctor... um... FELT... felt normal. Then, I did a blood test. The results came back. My Triglycerides were high. I looked it up for understanding. You know when you eat Carbohydrates, but then don't work them off, and they turn to fat? That fat is a triglyceride. Mine are over 400. More than 200 is considered high. Over 500 is cause for real concern. So, I'm pretty close.
My doctor prescribed Trilipix. You've heard of it. It's that medicine on TV with the commercial with the Triangles. It is supposed to raise my Good Cholesterol, and clear my Bad Cholesterol and my Trigs from my blood. So here's my dilemma. I considered the possibility that I could change absolutely nothing about my lifestyle and just take the Trilipix, and I'd probably get healthier.
Now, a few years ago, I had a scare with my cholesterol levels. My doctor prescribed Vytorin, and I took it. It made me feel kind of crappy. I didn't like it. So, I did some reading about how to reduce my LDLs and raise my HDLs. I stopped taking the Vytorin, and went on a crash diet. I learned a lot about food, and about my own eating habits. AND, without the aid of pharmaceuticals, I lowered my cholesterol. (Hooraaaaaaay!) But then, my Triglycerides started climbing. (Aw, Maaaaaaaan!)
So, I started thinking that I don't want to go on medication again. I want to see about changing my lifestyle again. I mean, I did it for Lent, and ended up feeling GREAT. But carbs are so COOL! AND delicious... What to do? I really should eat healthier, and get more exercise.
So here's what I decided. I'm permanently going back on my Lenten fast diet. 1) I'm SERIOUSLY limiting myself to One Pepsi per day. 2) no snacking after 9pm. 3) take the Trilipix. Hey, it works, right? If I start noticing side effects, I'll call the doctor. and 4) I'm going to consciously move more. Late night walks; more work around the house; parking further away from the mall, so I have to do the long walk to the car; Wii Fit; Rock Band. (the drums are a hell of a workout!)
I just have to psyche myself into sticking to it. What worked for me during Lent was a rather extreme thought: "Dude, Jesus ate NOTHING in the DESERT for 40 days, and STILL battled Satan and won. THEN, He dies for your sins. And you're complaining that you want a piece of cake at 10 O'clock?" When I crash dieted during the Cholesterol Scare: "Sure, you can have those cheese fries. And tomorrow you can DIE!" These very extreme thoughts are ridiculous, but they work. And they create comedy, which lightens the mood. Wish me luck. I want to be healthy.
Good news, though. It's been a week of me doing this, and my pants keep falling down. I need a belt. That's a good sign.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
A Place of Worship at Ground Zero
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
I realize a few things from the onset. I realize that the news media is making a BIG deal about nothing in order to sell papers and get viewers. I realize that most intelligent individuals can see through the propaganda and are not giving anything a second thought. That being said, enough of the fire has been fanned by the disgustingly insidious, the blissfully ignorant, and the galactically stupid, that I must weigh in.
First off, Sherman, turn the Wayback Machine to 2001. September 11th. We were just attacked in a sinister and truly evil manner. Terrorists hijacked four planes, and flew them into major targets. Two hit the World Trade Center, One hit the Pentagon, and One was diverted en route to the White House and, instead, crashed into Pennsylvania. In the minds of most intelligent people, one question was prevalent: "Why?" That question, however, was squelched by people who confused understanding with "sympathizing with the enemy." We were meant not to wonder what Al Quada's motives were in planning this attack. "They hate us for our freedom." 'Nuff said.
Answering the question "Why," would have led to the answer that this fringe group of Saudis calling themselves Al Quada, objected to US presence in the Middle East beginning with our engagement in Iraq back in the '90s. It was THIS that motivated them to commit several acts of terrorism over the past decade and a half: for example, Attacking the USS Cole; the first attack on the World Trade Center; and culminating in the 9/11/01 attacks. Saudis attacking the USA, NOT Muslims attacking Christians. And... for that matter... A Saudi fringe terrorist group called Al Quada, not the nation of Saudi Arabia. What's bizarre is that this knowledge proves OUR case. The United States, because of our history of support for Israel, our participation in the Middle East peace talks, and our history in the region, good or bad, SHOULD have a military presence in the Middle East. In 2001, our presence there was not interfering with anyone. Al Quada is and always has been totally wrong and crazy, and in it for their own personal agenda.
At best it was an unfortunate side effect, (At worst, it was by design) that because we did not ask the "Why" question, in many of our collective minds, we over-generalized our attackers. Not a specific fringe group attacking the U.S. government, but rather "a bunch o'Muslims attackin' us for our Freedom." And our limited knowledge of what Islam actually entails led to fear of all things Muslim. And now, 9 years later, a Mosque being built 2 blocks from Ground Zero is making the grossly misinformed go Ape-shit.
First of all, a Mosque is a Muslim place of worship. To object to a place of peaceful worship being built ANYWHERE; be it a Church, or Synagogue, or Mosque, or Buddhist Temple, or Star Trek Museum; is ridiculous and can only be motivated by ignorance.
Second of all; no one in Al Quada is a man of God, or a spokesman for Islam. They do not speak for all Muslims; just as the Ku Klux Klan, or anyone killing doctors who perform abortions do not speak for all Christians. (And while we're on the subject, do not say to me that the Prince of Peace told you to go to war, or that the man who preached "love thy enemy" told us to hate gays, and then call ME an idiot.)
Third of all, I'm just happy that SOMETHING is being built at Ground Zero. The new world's tallest building in Dubai took, what, 4 years to build? It's been 9 years, can we get STARTED on the New WTC?
And finally, I think you'll find that the hottest furor over this supposed issue is coming from the Right. These are the same people who have been accusing our President and the top Democrats in Congress of "Throwing out the Constitution." The Fox News Crew, and Republican pundits everywhere made their point very clear: The Constitution is a sacred document that must be followed explicitly. That is, apparently, except for the First Amendment, which guarantees every American freedom of religion. They've been speaking very strongly against the 14th Amendment as well, which states that people born on American soil are American citizens. Make up your mind, or at least admit that you're full of crap. In fact, smart people everywhere, acknowledge that they're full of it and move on.
According to my findings: 8 Million Americans are Muslim. Many of them live in New York City. They were just as offended by 9/11 as the rest of us were. And, like most of us, when we visit Ground Zero, we want to pray. I say build a Church, a Synagogue, a Mosque, a Buddhist Temple, AND a Star Trek Museum right in the lobby of the new WTC, and let everyone pay homage to their individual God freely and peacefully. Rather than starting a battle between the things that separate us, how about bringing us together as a country? "Cages or Wings, which do you prefer?" (Jonathan Larson)
I realize a few things from the onset. I realize that the news media is making a BIG deal about nothing in order to sell papers and get viewers. I realize that most intelligent individuals can see through the propaganda and are not giving anything a second thought. That being said, enough of the fire has been fanned by the disgustingly insidious, the blissfully ignorant, and the galactically stupid, that I must weigh in.
First off, Sherman, turn the Wayback Machine to 2001. September 11th. We were just attacked in a sinister and truly evil manner. Terrorists hijacked four planes, and flew them into major targets. Two hit the World Trade Center, One hit the Pentagon, and One was diverted en route to the White House and, instead, crashed into Pennsylvania. In the minds of most intelligent people, one question was prevalent: "Why?" That question, however, was squelched by people who confused understanding with "sympathizing with the enemy." We were meant not to wonder what Al Quada's motives were in planning this attack. "They hate us for our freedom." 'Nuff said.
Answering the question "Why," would have led to the answer that this fringe group of Saudis calling themselves Al Quada, objected to US presence in the Middle East beginning with our engagement in Iraq back in the '90s. It was THIS that motivated them to commit several acts of terrorism over the past decade and a half: for example, Attacking the USS Cole; the first attack on the World Trade Center; and culminating in the 9/11/01 attacks. Saudis attacking the USA, NOT Muslims attacking Christians. And... for that matter... A Saudi fringe terrorist group called Al Quada, not the nation of Saudi Arabia. What's bizarre is that this knowledge proves OUR case. The United States, because of our history of support for Israel, our participation in the Middle East peace talks, and our history in the region, good or bad, SHOULD have a military presence in the Middle East. In 2001, our presence there was not interfering with anyone. Al Quada is and always has been totally wrong and crazy, and in it for their own personal agenda.
At best it was an unfortunate side effect, (At worst, it was by design) that because we did not ask the "Why" question, in many of our collective minds, we over-generalized our attackers. Not a specific fringe group attacking the U.S. government, but rather "a bunch o'Muslims attackin' us for our Freedom." And our limited knowledge of what Islam actually entails led to fear of all things Muslim. And now, 9 years later, a Mosque being built 2 blocks from Ground Zero is making the grossly misinformed go Ape-shit.
First of all, a Mosque is a Muslim place of worship. To object to a place of peaceful worship being built ANYWHERE; be it a Church, or Synagogue, or Mosque, or Buddhist Temple, or Star Trek Museum; is ridiculous and can only be motivated by ignorance.
Second of all; no one in Al Quada is a man of God, or a spokesman for Islam. They do not speak for all Muslims; just as the Ku Klux Klan, or anyone killing doctors who perform abortions do not speak for all Christians. (And while we're on the subject, do not say to me that the Prince of Peace told you to go to war, or that the man who preached "love thy enemy" told us to hate gays, and then call ME an idiot.)
Third of all, I'm just happy that SOMETHING is being built at Ground Zero. The new world's tallest building in Dubai took, what, 4 years to build? It's been 9 years, can we get STARTED on the New WTC?
And finally, I think you'll find that the hottest furor over this supposed issue is coming from the Right. These are the same people who have been accusing our President and the top Democrats in Congress of "Throwing out the Constitution." The Fox News Crew, and Republican pundits everywhere made their point very clear: The Constitution is a sacred document that must be followed explicitly. That is, apparently, except for the First Amendment, which guarantees every American freedom of religion. They've been speaking very strongly against the 14th Amendment as well, which states that people born on American soil are American citizens. Make up your mind, or at least admit that you're full of crap. In fact, smart people everywhere, acknowledge that they're full of it and move on.
According to my findings: 8 Million Americans are Muslim. Many of them live in New York City. They were just as offended by 9/11 as the rest of us were. And, like most of us, when we visit Ground Zero, we want to pray. I say build a Church, a Synagogue, a Mosque, a Buddhist Temple, AND a Star Trek Museum right in the lobby of the new WTC, and let everyone pay homage to their individual God freely and peacefully. Rather than starting a battle between the things that separate us, how about bringing us together as a country? "Cages or Wings, which do you prefer?" (Jonathan Larson)
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
What hill? I didn't see any hill!
Courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
It's 1:30 am on July 6, 2010. At 2:43pm this afternoon, I officially finish my 40th year of existence on this earth. Turning 40. It's supposed to be a monumental milestone. I guess I never choose to do that: focus on the milestones. Turning 30 wasn't such a big deal. Neither was 20.
I actually have no memory whatsoever of turning 10. I remember receiving my first penance at 13, and my father equating that with a Bar Mitzvah, had I been Jewish. It meant I was now a man. 16 would have been my first major milestone. I only remember the legality of FINALLY being able to drive. I also remember my first accident. Pulling out of my driveway on the way to a Poison/Tesla concert. I forgot to look, and BAM, got hit by a car driving down the street. That concert, which my parents ended up driving me too, was great. I recall Tesla cursing up a storm, and Jones Beach Theater smelling like pot.
21? I remember celebrating by proudly going to the local beverage store and buying my parents some beer. I went in preparing myself for the event. They would ask me for ID, rather snarkily, as if they were about to bust me for underage drinking. Except, I would pull out my license and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was now 21 and legal! I walked in... They didn't even ask. I got my beer, and walked out. Oh well, I don't drink anyway.
30? I had been married for a year, was on my third full time teaching job, and praying not to get fired. I was enjoying the first summer where I DIDN'T have to look for work. I guess THAT was a milestone in and of itself.
Now I'm 40. I'm in a very different place than I was 10 years ago. I'm a homeowner, even though it's a part of a house. I have 2 amazing children. And I made many changes in my outlook on life and philosophy which I guess have made changes in my marriage and career, as well. 28-year-old me was fighting for his life in Roosevelt, which led to 29-year-old me's major attitude. 30-year-old me had changed gears and began compromising in order to keep his job; which caused more problems than it created. Since then I lost, meaning was fired from, 2 more jobs; neither of which had anything to do with merit; and received tenure in my current position. And since then, I had a breakthrough in therapy, I returned to my religion, achieved success as a choral director, and I first heard Benjamin Zander speak. Between B.Z. and good ol' J.C., I started to look at the world with a different attitude. The whole wisdom thing kicked in.
I guess I live in the moment a bit more than I used to. The future, and the politics of everything were my major focus back then. Fighting for people's respect. Where will I be in 10 years? Where is this relationship going? When will people finally notice how brilliant I am? I used to be out to prove something. Out to prove that the people who told me my whole life that I wasn't good enough, smart enough, and that people didn't like me were wrong. My big breakthrough in therapy? Realizing that they WERE wrong, and I don't need to prove it. I had to stop showing everyone how good I was, and start focusing on being good.
Now, I enjoy my family. I enjoy day to day living. I enjoy cooking and maintaining the house. And I'm enjoying the success my career has taken. I get paid to make music, which I love. What better life could anyone ask? I still stress out from time to time, but overall, I realize that it's all invented anyway, so why not invent a pleasant life?
So, no, I'm not stressing out about turning 40. I feel exactly one day older than yesterday. I still rock, in fact in many ways, I rock better than I did 10 years ago, because I've grown as a musician since then. I understand Billy Joel's songs better than I used to, because I'm approaching the age he was when he wrote them. "I believe I've passed the age of consciousness and righteous rage. I found that just surviving is a noble fight. I once believed in causes, too. I had my pointless point of view. And life went on, no matter who was wrong or right."
I'm about 15 years from retirement, when I plan to be the elder statesman that can bestow wisdom onto the next generation. In fact, the only thing that that can make me feel like I'm "over the hill" would be something medical hitting me, which, knock wood, will be far from now.
On Saturday, we're planning a big party to be shared with my daughter. I'm getting together with friends. Those of us who are musicians will be jamming on the greatest hits from the year I was born, 1970. Then I'll watch my kids jam on Beatles Rock Band, and enjoy the company of my family and friends. Then, the next day, I'll help my grandfather celebrate 90 years of life, and thank God longevity runs in my family.
After that, I'll continue living a pretty damn good life.
It's 1:30 am on July 6, 2010. At 2:43pm this afternoon, I officially finish my 40th year of existence on this earth. Turning 40. It's supposed to be a monumental milestone. I guess I never choose to do that: focus on the milestones. Turning 30 wasn't such a big deal. Neither was 20.
I actually have no memory whatsoever of turning 10. I remember receiving my first penance at 13, and my father equating that with a Bar Mitzvah, had I been Jewish. It meant I was now a man. 16 would have been my first major milestone. I only remember the legality of FINALLY being able to drive. I also remember my first accident. Pulling out of my driveway on the way to a Poison/Tesla concert. I forgot to look, and BAM, got hit by a car driving down the street. That concert, which my parents ended up driving me too, was great. I recall Tesla cursing up a storm, and Jones Beach Theater smelling like pot.
21? I remember celebrating by proudly going to the local beverage store and buying my parents some beer. I went in preparing myself for the event. They would ask me for ID, rather snarkily, as if they were about to bust me for underage drinking. Except, I would pull out my license and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was now 21 and legal! I walked in... They didn't even ask. I got my beer, and walked out. Oh well, I don't drink anyway.
30? I had been married for a year, was on my third full time teaching job, and praying not to get fired. I was enjoying the first summer where I DIDN'T have to look for work. I guess THAT was a milestone in and of itself.
Now I'm 40. I'm in a very different place than I was 10 years ago. I'm a homeowner, even though it's a part of a house. I have 2 amazing children. And I made many changes in my outlook on life and philosophy which I guess have made changes in my marriage and career, as well. 28-year-old me was fighting for his life in Roosevelt, which led to 29-year-old me's major attitude. 30-year-old me had changed gears and began compromising in order to keep his job; which caused more problems than it created. Since then I lost, meaning was fired from, 2 more jobs; neither of which had anything to do with merit; and received tenure in my current position. And since then, I had a breakthrough in therapy, I returned to my religion, achieved success as a choral director, and I first heard Benjamin Zander speak. Between B.Z. and good ol' J.C., I started to look at the world with a different attitude. The whole wisdom thing kicked in.
I guess I live in the moment a bit more than I used to. The future, and the politics of everything were my major focus back then. Fighting for people's respect. Where will I be in 10 years? Where is this relationship going? When will people finally notice how brilliant I am? I used to be out to prove something. Out to prove that the people who told me my whole life that I wasn't good enough, smart enough, and that people didn't like me were wrong. My big breakthrough in therapy? Realizing that they WERE wrong, and I don't need to prove it. I had to stop showing everyone how good I was, and start focusing on being good.
Now, I enjoy my family. I enjoy day to day living. I enjoy cooking and maintaining the house. And I'm enjoying the success my career has taken. I get paid to make music, which I love. What better life could anyone ask? I still stress out from time to time, but overall, I realize that it's all invented anyway, so why not invent a pleasant life?
So, no, I'm not stressing out about turning 40. I feel exactly one day older than yesterday. I still rock, in fact in many ways, I rock better than I did 10 years ago, because I've grown as a musician since then. I understand Billy Joel's songs better than I used to, because I'm approaching the age he was when he wrote them. "I believe I've passed the age of consciousness and righteous rage. I found that just surviving is a noble fight. I once believed in causes, too. I had my pointless point of view. And life went on, no matter who was wrong or right."
I'm about 15 years from retirement, when I plan to be the elder statesman that can bestow wisdom onto the next generation. In fact, the only thing that that can make me feel like I'm "over the hill" would be something medical hitting me, which, knock wood, will be far from now.
On Saturday, we're planning a big party to be shared with my daughter. I'm getting together with friends. Those of us who are musicians will be jamming on the greatest hits from the year I was born, 1970. Then I'll watch my kids jam on Beatles Rock Band, and enjoy the company of my family and friends. Then, the next day, I'll help my grandfather celebrate 90 years of life, and thank God longevity runs in my family.
After that, I'll continue living a pretty damn good life.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
End of the School Year - 2010
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
(CJ plummets into a storm of negativity, waiting for the angel of positivity to pull him up.)
Well, another school year has gone by. Once again, I'm loaded with ideas for how to improve next year, most of which I'll forget by September, and won't follow through on in January to June, so that I must come up with new ideas next June for the following year. Downward spiral. Overall, the year was a downer. Here's a short list of everything that went wrong this year.
My so-called "Select" 7th and 8th grade choir completely failed. There was an out-and-out mutiny in the ranks as 5 students decided that no matter what the consequences, no matter how much I beg or threaten, no matter how badly they fail, or how it effects the rest of the group, they were NOT going to participate in rehearsals or performances, and in the meantime, they will disrupt every rehearsal with the most disrespectful and asinine comments and behavior imaginable. This made the other "good" students feel self conscious and effected their morale and performance. In fact, some of my best students confessed to me that they didn't want to sing in chorus anymore, because these kids made it such a negative experience.
It wasn't just them... The 9th graders did the same thing. The only difference was that they are more mature, and the "good" kids won't let a bunch of miscreants stand in the way of their success. Problem is, their presence at the rehearsal was disruptive enough to eat into their real rehearsal time, and plus their immaturity calls for every disrespectfull disruption to be responded to which leads to more disruption.
Now you may be thinking, "Why are these kids in Chorus if they don't want to be there?" Answer: because Guidance is incredibly hesitant to switch kids out in mid year. I can send them to the office, but often they're sent back with a note saying, "take care of this yourself." Call home? Good luck finding parents. Write a letter? Parents can't read. They have been removed from chorus class for next year, but a new crop of 7th graders will follow.
(The angel reaches down) So, how will we resolve this next year? I will change my attitude. No child will be allowed to take over my rehearsal. We WILL get students dropped from the group if they won't behave or achieve. Don't want to participate in rehearsal? Go over there and complete the written assignment. Won't do it? Do it in Detention. Won't attend detention? Written Up. Written up often? Good-bye, Welcome to General Music.
September will be a nightmare of disciplinary action, but the kids WILL sing, and they WILL try, and they WILL learn what is expected of them in a choral rehearsal. They'll learn to love the art later.
(The angel lifts CJ a bit higher) Of course, this will be done with an incredibly positive and supportive approach. This IS, after all, Chorus; the most amazing activity that can be done by everyone. Our music next year will be, as always, top notch and enjoyable. And I will personally try to have fun with it, hoping that that will rub off onto the students. I even selected some novelty numbers to lighten the mood.
I also think that I got too ambitious this year. I forgot Rule Number 6 (Don't take yourself so G-Damned seriously.). I had 9th graders for the first time this year, and I was pushing them to be a full fledged SATB choir, even though we realistically had only one male singer. I did that thing that I hate to see other teachers do. I focused more on WHAT the kids did than on HOW they did it. They would compete at level 4, that was the goal; not that they would perform WELL. They would learn 5 songs including a medley. Never mind that we didn't really focus on any of them enough to perfect them, or spend enough time with them enough to love them. I could kick myself for letting that happen.
Bottom line. They have to sing FIRST. They have to sing well, FIRST. Once they get to the point where they can learn music quickly and instinctively perform well, then we can move on to high achievements. K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple, Stupid. My role at the Middle School is to build on the basic skills learned at the elementary level, and bring them up to the point where they can be amazing at the High School Level. If, along the way, they should become amazing at the middle school level, great!
(The Angel gets CJ to highlight the high points of the year.) So, what happened that was GOOD? I chaired the SCMEA All county festival, and did very well. My 9th graders learned level 4 music, and prepared a large amount of music in a short time. They got to sing behind Larry Gatlin, Crystal Gayle and Andy Cooney at the Theatre at Westbury. My 3rd period group did amazingly. My 8th period group consistently sounded great, behavior aside. The 7th/8th grade students need to learn to behave, but now they KNOW how to sing. My students got good Sight reading scores an NYSSMA, one of them got a 10. The Board of Education FINALLY came to see our Drama Club, and were impressed by what they saw! We even took our show to the Elementary School and performed for the 6th grade. My Star pupil, who has been having a tendency to sort of half-way prepare her performances, really shined as Cinderella this year, and found her key! Her level of professionalism improved immensely. I built 3 new flats for our scene shop, and we now have a sort of working set!
I now get to get spoiled by my summer chorus, recharge my batteries and begin next year with a plan, a scathing letter written to me by me in the future reminding me of the consequences of laziness, and this blog entry, reminding me of my plan, and I get to teach Kindergarten Music every day!
Onward and upward!
(The Angel gives CJ a big kiss.)
(CJ plummets into a storm of negativity, waiting for the angel of positivity to pull him up.)
Well, another school year has gone by. Once again, I'm loaded with ideas for how to improve next year, most of which I'll forget by September, and won't follow through on in January to June, so that I must come up with new ideas next June for the following year. Downward spiral. Overall, the year was a downer. Here's a short list of everything that went wrong this year.
My so-called "Select" 7th and 8th grade choir completely failed. There was an out-and-out mutiny in the ranks as 5 students decided that no matter what the consequences, no matter how much I beg or threaten, no matter how badly they fail, or how it effects the rest of the group, they were NOT going to participate in rehearsals or performances, and in the meantime, they will disrupt every rehearsal with the most disrespectful and asinine comments and behavior imaginable. This made the other "good" students feel self conscious and effected their morale and performance. In fact, some of my best students confessed to me that they didn't want to sing in chorus anymore, because these kids made it such a negative experience.
It wasn't just them... The 9th graders did the same thing. The only difference was that they are more mature, and the "good" kids won't let a bunch of miscreants stand in the way of their success. Problem is, their presence at the rehearsal was disruptive enough to eat into their real rehearsal time, and plus their immaturity calls for every disrespectfull disruption to be responded to which leads to more disruption.
Now you may be thinking, "Why are these kids in Chorus if they don't want to be there?" Answer: because Guidance is incredibly hesitant to switch kids out in mid year. I can send them to the office, but often they're sent back with a note saying, "take care of this yourself." Call home? Good luck finding parents. Write a letter? Parents can't read. They have been removed from chorus class for next year, but a new crop of 7th graders will follow.
(The angel reaches down) So, how will we resolve this next year? I will change my attitude. No child will be allowed to take over my rehearsal. We WILL get students dropped from the group if they won't behave or achieve. Don't want to participate in rehearsal? Go over there and complete the written assignment. Won't do it? Do it in Detention. Won't attend detention? Written Up. Written up often? Good-bye, Welcome to General Music.
September will be a nightmare of disciplinary action, but the kids WILL sing, and they WILL try, and they WILL learn what is expected of them in a choral rehearsal. They'll learn to love the art later.
(The angel lifts CJ a bit higher) Of course, this will be done with an incredibly positive and supportive approach. This IS, after all, Chorus; the most amazing activity that can be done by everyone. Our music next year will be, as always, top notch and enjoyable. And I will personally try to have fun with it, hoping that that will rub off onto the students. I even selected some novelty numbers to lighten the mood.
I also think that I got too ambitious this year. I forgot Rule Number 6 (Don't take yourself so G-Damned seriously.). I had 9th graders for the first time this year, and I was pushing them to be a full fledged SATB choir, even though we realistically had only one male singer. I did that thing that I hate to see other teachers do. I focused more on WHAT the kids did than on HOW they did it. They would compete at level 4, that was the goal; not that they would perform WELL. They would learn 5 songs including a medley. Never mind that we didn't really focus on any of them enough to perfect them, or spend enough time with them enough to love them. I could kick myself for letting that happen.
Bottom line. They have to sing FIRST. They have to sing well, FIRST. Once they get to the point where they can learn music quickly and instinctively perform well, then we can move on to high achievements. K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple, Stupid. My role at the Middle School is to build on the basic skills learned at the elementary level, and bring them up to the point where they can be amazing at the High School Level. If, along the way, they should become amazing at the middle school level, great!
(The Angel gets CJ to highlight the high points of the year.) So, what happened that was GOOD? I chaired the SCMEA All county festival, and did very well. My 9th graders learned level 4 music, and prepared a large amount of music in a short time. They got to sing behind Larry Gatlin, Crystal Gayle and Andy Cooney at the Theatre at Westbury. My 3rd period group did amazingly. My 8th period group consistently sounded great, behavior aside. The 7th/8th grade students need to learn to behave, but now they KNOW how to sing. My students got good Sight reading scores an NYSSMA, one of them got a 10. The Board of Education FINALLY came to see our Drama Club, and were impressed by what they saw! We even took our show to the Elementary School and performed for the 6th grade. My Star pupil, who has been having a tendency to sort of half-way prepare her performances, really shined as Cinderella this year, and found her key! Her level of professionalism improved immensely. I built 3 new flats for our scene shop, and we now have a sort of working set!
I now get to get spoiled by my summer chorus, recharge my batteries and begin next year with a plan, a scathing letter written to me by me in the future reminding me of the consequences of laziness, and this blog entry, reminding me of my plan, and I get to teach Kindergarten Music every day!
Onward and upward!
(The Angel gives CJ a big kiss.)
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
It's in the Bible....
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Just for fun one night, I was reading the Bible.
I've often wanted to really read this Holy book, and more importantly read INTO it. True, part of my job as a Church choir director is to read the lectionary readings and plan music accordingly. I actually have my former pastors to thank for getting me into the rest of the Bible. Rich Holmes had a whole Bible study on the Book of Romans, for example, whereby I discovered my new favorite Bible verse, Romans 2:24. A little background: At the time, the Christian church in Rome was making a big deal about how their new converts were Romans; Gentiles; not Jews. They were asserting that the former pagans needed to be circumcised, before being baptized. Basically the book of Romans is Paul's way of saying, don't do that. He tells them that it's your actions, not the rituals that make you a Christian, and you don't need any kind of initiation into the church, you only need to follow Jesus. In admonishing the Roman Church, Paul writes Romans 2:24 (Roughly translated): "It is because of you that people talk badly about God." I've since written that on various websites devoted to "Christian" groups promoting very un-Christian things.
Pastor Twyla Boyer, (who's since been married, but I can't remember or, for that matter, spell, her new last name.) decided on a whim, that she was going to take three weeks and preach on the book of Titus. Because, quote, "Who the heck preaches on Titus?" Unquote. So, I read the extraordinarily small letter to Titus, which had to do with Church leaders practicing what they preached, and setting an immaculate example for their followers. This started my whole way of thinking when I read something in the Bible... What was going on at the time that someone needed to tell them this?
So, I read into some of the other books in the Bible. The verse that often gets quoted as justification for anti-gay sentiment is in Leviticus, so I thought I'd start there. See what's really in there. First of all, the entire book of Leviticus is a book of rules. There's a whole section devoted to rules for sexual conduct. (Leviticus 20.) It explicitly says... Don't sleep with your mother, daughter, daughter-in-law, your sister, or anyone of your own gender, or animals. (Again, what was going on at the time that people NEEDED to be told that?) Here's what I found hysterical... It then goes into punishments for this conduct. Sleeping with your mother is an abomination, punishable by death. Sleeping with your daughter is an abomination, punishable by death. However, sleeping with your sister... banishment. Interesting....
I close with two funny things.... An acquiantance pointed this one out to me... Deuteronomy 25:11 "If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his genitals, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity." I S#!^ You NOT! Again I am forced to ask... WHAT WAS GOING ON BACK THEN...???
And finally...I love this... Leviticus starts off with instructions on animal sacrifice. How to slaughter a goat to offer up to the Lord? It describes how to skin it, cut it up, throw its blood on the wall, etc. Each set of instructions ends with you throwing the meat of the animal onto hot coals, and it says "The odor of this is pleasing to the Lord." in other words.... GOD LOVES BARBECUE! It's in the BIBLE!
Just for fun one night, I was reading the Bible.
I've often wanted to really read this Holy book, and more importantly read INTO it. True, part of my job as a Church choir director is to read the lectionary readings and plan music accordingly. I actually have my former pastors to thank for getting me into the rest of the Bible. Rich Holmes had a whole Bible study on the Book of Romans, for example, whereby I discovered my new favorite Bible verse, Romans 2:24. A little background: At the time, the Christian church in Rome was making a big deal about how their new converts were Romans; Gentiles; not Jews. They were asserting that the former pagans needed to be circumcised, before being baptized. Basically the book of Romans is Paul's way of saying, don't do that. He tells them that it's your actions, not the rituals that make you a Christian, and you don't need any kind of initiation into the church, you only need to follow Jesus. In admonishing the Roman Church, Paul writes Romans 2:24 (Roughly translated): "It is because of you that people talk badly about God." I've since written that on various websites devoted to "Christian" groups promoting very un-Christian things.
Pastor Twyla Boyer, (who's since been married, but I can't remember or, for that matter, spell, her new last name.) decided on a whim, that she was going to take three weeks and preach on the book of Titus. Because, quote, "Who the heck preaches on Titus?" Unquote. So, I read the extraordinarily small letter to Titus, which had to do with Church leaders practicing what they preached, and setting an immaculate example for their followers. This started my whole way of thinking when I read something in the Bible... What was going on at the time that someone needed to tell them this?
So, I read into some of the other books in the Bible. The verse that often gets quoted as justification for anti-gay sentiment is in Leviticus, so I thought I'd start there. See what's really in there. First of all, the entire book of Leviticus is a book of rules. There's a whole section devoted to rules for sexual conduct. (Leviticus 20.) It explicitly says... Don't sleep with your mother, daughter, daughter-in-law, your sister, or anyone of your own gender, or animals. (Again, what was going on at the time that people NEEDED to be told that?) Here's what I found hysterical... It then goes into punishments for this conduct. Sleeping with your mother is an abomination, punishable by death. Sleeping with your daughter is an abomination, punishable by death. However, sleeping with your sister... banishment. Interesting....
I close with two funny things.... An acquiantance pointed this one out to me... Deuteronomy 25:11 "If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his genitals, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity." I S#!^ You NOT! Again I am forced to ask... WHAT WAS GOING ON BACK THEN...???
And finally...I love this... Leviticus starts off with instructions on animal sacrifice. How to slaughter a goat to offer up to the Lord? It describes how to skin it, cut it up, throw its blood on the wall, etc. Each set of instructions ends with you throwing the meat of the animal onto hot coals, and it says "The odor of this is pleasing to the Lord." in other words.... GOD LOVES BARBECUE! It's in the BIBLE!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Thoughts on the Tony Awards.
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
Sounds like they have my high school tech crew running sound for this show.
Opening number is OK. Who knew Sean Hayes could play piano so well? Just wish I could hear the singing, and at least nobody got a concussion.
Definition of Irony: Singing "I walk alone.... on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams" with the entire cast all around you.
Million Dollar Quartet: Would be amazing if it were ACTUALLY Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley, and Johnny Cash. Otherwise, what's the difference between this and the "Legends" show in Atlantic City? Tickets to the AC show are about a fifth of the price.
You're not going to get me to come see La Cage Aux Folles if you do the Tony performance using every theatre Cliche in the book! Dancers in the aisle. CHECK. Lead going into the audience and mugging with people in the crowd, CHECK. Bad Singing compensated by flashy staging. CHECK. It's officially community theatre.
Memphis: "If you listen to the beat that's in your soul, you'll never let anyone steal your rock and roll." Really?!!! Best Musical??? Really?!!!! WON BEST SCORE! REALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A Little Night Music: What gives? Catherine Zeta Jones sounds pissed! Oh. She's supposed to be. Never mind. Seriously, people on facebook were ripping on her, but considering she's ill, that was a great performance. Best Acting of the night, though? Her pretending to be surprised when she won.
Ragtime - Great show... why that song? And why so short?
Fela! - OK.. I take back everything I said about bad singing tonight. I suppose if you're into Afro-beat music, this is the show for you. I'm not, apparently, so no.
Toy Story 3 commercial featuring Hamm, voiced by John Ratzenberger, as a mail carrier. Am I the only one who finds that hysterical?
So far, the best singing was in Come Fly Away. But that was pre-recorded Frank Sinatra. Why do I get the feeling that if Sinatra in his prime was nominated tonight, even HE'D suck?
In memoriam. Very touching. No mention of the American Musical which seems to have died this year, though.
NO! The best performance of the night will NOT be Glee will it? Nevermind, Lea Michele is singing now. Never before have I actually WISHED for Barbra Steisand. I can't live in a world where Glee trumps Broadway!
American Idiot was the best singing of the night. Most energetic performance. And most retarded dancing!
Can I just say. I went to the Memphis website to check out the score. I listened to three songs from the show, including the dumbass number they did for the awards. It's catchy, but it's hardly R & B. Every song sounds like... Bon Jovi! So they're trying to convince me that in 1950s Memphis, Bon Jovi's music wouldn't be played if it was sung by a Black girl? I see the point. I'm sure they did the best they could? But Seriously, Best Musical???? NO!!!!!
Sounds like they have my high school tech crew running sound for this show.
Opening number is OK. Who knew Sean Hayes could play piano so well? Just wish I could hear the singing, and at least nobody got a concussion.
Definition of Irony: Singing "I walk alone.... on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams" with the entire cast all around you.
Million Dollar Quartet: Would be amazing if it were ACTUALLY Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley, and Johnny Cash. Otherwise, what's the difference between this and the "Legends" show in Atlantic City? Tickets to the AC show are about a fifth of the price.
You're not going to get me to come see La Cage Aux Folles if you do the Tony performance using every theatre Cliche in the book! Dancers in the aisle. CHECK. Lead going into the audience and mugging with people in the crowd, CHECK. Bad Singing compensated by flashy staging. CHECK. It's officially community theatre.
Memphis: "If you listen to the beat that's in your soul, you'll never let anyone steal your rock and roll." Really?!!! Best Musical??? Really?!!!! WON BEST SCORE! REALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A Little Night Music: What gives? Catherine Zeta Jones sounds pissed! Oh. She's supposed to be. Never mind. Seriously, people on facebook were ripping on her, but considering she's ill, that was a great performance. Best Acting of the night, though? Her pretending to be surprised when she won.
Ragtime - Great show... why that song? And why so short?
Fela! - OK.. I take back everything I said about bad singing tonight. I suppose if you're into Afro-beat music, this is the show for you. I'm not, apparently, so no.
Toy Story 3 commercial featuring Hamm, voiced by John Ratzenberger, as a mail carrier. Am I the only one who finds that hysterical?
So far, the best singing was in Come Fly Away. But that was pre-recorded Frank Sinatra. Why do I get the feeling that if Sinatra in his prime was nominated tonight, even HE'D suck?
In memoriam. Very touching. No mention of the American Musical which seems to have died this year, though.
NO! The best performance of the night will NOT be Glee will it? Nevermind, Lea Michele is singing now. Never before have I actually WISHED for Barbra Steisand. I can't live in a world where Glee trumps Broadway!
American Idiot was the best singing of the night. Most energetic performance. And most retarded dancing!
Can I just say. I went to the Memphis website to check out the score. I listened to three songs from the show, including the dumbass number they did for the awards. It's catchy, but it's hardly R & B. Every song sounds like... Bon Jovi! So they're trying to convince me that in 1950s Memphis, Bon Jovi's music wouldn't be played if it was sung by a Black girl? I see the point. I'm sure they did the best they could? But Seriously, Best Musical???? NO!!!!!
Friday, June 11, 2010
What's on my mind?
courtesy of my blog: http://cjferrara.blogspot.com/
I haven't blogged in a while. Not because I haven't had any profound thoughts. But really because I've had too many. And not enough that have fully realized into blog entries. So here's my thinking.....
I haven't blogged in a while. Not because I haven't had any profound thoughts. But really because I've had too many. And not enough that have fully realized into blog entries. So here's my thinking.....
- I only tend to get angry and depressed when I'm thinking politically. Then after fully realizing my political point of view, I realize that that's exactly what someone in politics wants me to do. They want me to believe that there's only one right side to this issue, and that I need to fight to defend it. And everyone who disagrees is evil. Truth is, if this were ages ago, and there were no mass media, there'd be no real reason for me to care about Israeli forces boarding a ship and having a fight. It doesn't affect my farm, or my immediate family, my life goes on without having an opinion on this subject. The fact that it's on television, and a-holes like Glenn Beck insist that I need to have an opinion on it, makes me feel like I have to choose sides. I don't know anyone in the Middle East. I shouldn't have to care. I realize that I should have empathy for what's going on there. And it's cool that I know about it. Was a time ages ago that I'd never even know that people LIVED in Gaza, let alone believe or disbelieve that they are living in poverty there, or where Gaza was. Often we only have strong opinions because our culture has peer-pressured us into having them.
- Of the 4 Best Musical Nominees at the Tony Awards, three are Jukebox musicals, a storyline created aroung pre-existing music, and the only original musical is really not that good. The real competition and quality productions are in the Revival of a Musical category. It's a sad time for Broadway.
- I realized as I watched the students during an assembly devoted to jazz music, that it's not just that they don't know how to behave in an audience, it's that they do not consider this culturally relevant to them. It's as if they believe that African-American cutlure started in the year 2000. If it's not hip-hop or Gangsta, it's not worth their attention. I'm sorry to be blunt, but a room full of African-American and Hispanic children should care about Jazz, the music of their heritage. It's the only distinctly American form of music, and it was created by their ancestors. Without it, they'd be listening to Country and Classical. Not Taylor Swift Country Music either, I mean Bucktoothed, Jugband, Sister-screwing, Country Redneck music. and while we're on the subject....
- Teabaghers, and so-called "patriots" who try to lecture ME about what America really is need to stop doing so while presenting Bucktoothed, Jugband, Sister-screwing, Country Redneck music. This music is a derivative of old European folksongs, and hasn't changed in centuries. More modern country music has been influenced by Jazz and Rock. True Americans embrace that fact, and in turn embrace African American culture, and in turn have no problem with the African-American in the White House. But then again, I only have that opinion because someone in power keeps showing me ignorant people on the TV, and want me to either be for them or against them.
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