Here's Your Hat, What's Your Hurry?

Music will find its place. Always does. I was lucky. Rock'n'roll was the center of all culture for most of my lifetime. Elvis was more important than Eisenhower when I was nine years old. The Beatles were "more popular than Jesus," according to John Lennon in 1966. Less well remembered was his followup quip:

"I don't know which will go first- rock'n'roll or Christianity."

What passes for rock'n'roll has nothing to do with the music that I grew up with. Oh, it's not the art form that repels me when rap plays. Woody Guthrie and Louis Jordan made great rap records. Don't consider accusing me of nostalgia. Their best work was made before I was born. Now, if you want to talk about Nervous Norvus or Bobby Marchan or Ken Nordine- guilty, as charged. I like good rap. I like good music.

As for Christianity, I'm sure it will find its place, too. 

Don't Let It Rain

Herman Blount was born in Birmingham in 1914, but Le Sony'r Ra, or Sun Ra to me and you, was born on Jupiter. I don't know that he ever said anything about when. He told us that he was on a mission to teach peace and love.

Ronny Elliott was born in Birmingham in 1947. He's never been to Jupiter but he's been to Cuba. If he has a mission, and he insists that he does, he's here to teach peace and love, too. 

Sun Ra was a musical pioneer and I'm merely a rock'n'roll journeyman. We've both stooped to purple velvet and gold lamé, though. 

Did Herman hear voices? How would I know? Maybe if you don't, you're just not paying attention.

Love it or lose it, whatever it is. Truth is, we're gonna lose it all. Nothing lasts forever- nothing except love.

The angels keep singing...

...but I don't listen. I tuned them out long ago. I know their every melody and I know just what they're up to. I stole what I could and I moved on. Funny, moving on's not my specialty. You've probably noticed.

This world has gotten too small for me. That's alright, we've pretty much worn her out, anyway. Is there really anything sillier than a man's arrogance? Any time that I'm lucky enough to look into the eyes of an animal, I'm reminded of everything that I care about.

Babies have it. Keeping it is the problem.

Too Much Time In Shoes (Not Enough Time In Love)

Advice? Well, the best I can do is- Ask someone smarter than I am. I have taken a long time to figure out not to argue with folks who are not as bright as I am. Fortunately, the ones who are brighter than I am realized quickly not to argue with me.

Don't turn your back where you're needed but don't look for trouble. You will always find it. Look no further than cable news. Most of us have a hole in our soul.* I'm tempted, of course, to say all of us, but I don't argue with the holy.

You patch that hole with kindness and love and forgiving. You don't just patch it once. It requires maintenance.

                                   

*the hole in my sole

Lightning Bugs and Horeshoes

When I was born one of the Wright brothers was alive. Orville, as I recall. I was born on a Monday. Meantime, stuff has happened.

Once I sat on a bench at a bar with two friends as they fell in love. 

Other stuff has happened, too, but not much of it interests me.

Old Time Fraud

The Black Bush is too dear to mix with Coke, but I like it, and there's no one here to shame me. You could say that I'm set in my ways or you might refer to me as stubborn. I'll answer to either of those. It's beautiful out on the front porch. I inhale pollen by the bushel while I sip my Coleraine concoction and chat with the lizards. I suppose I got that from Grandma. She talked to every jaybird and tree frog that came around. Oh, I talk to Grandma, too.

You see, I do all the old man things, but then, I guess I always did. I've made a pretty good old man but I'm not really comfortable in the role. I feel like a phony. To be honest, I really never was very good at the young man role, either. When I tell you that I'm not like the others, I'm not boasting. I don't apologize, either.

Rock'n'roll tried to save me. I wouldn't be saved.

To live a life out of fashion is nothing to be proud of. Neither is ending a sentence with a preposition.

More Dreams

Twenty years down the road. She's an old lady now. Oh, she's beautiful. Elegant. She's an old lady, though. It's all measured in years. She is mindlessly perusing a love quiz.

"Were you ever adored?"

Here's your opportunity. Oh, you're not in the picture. You were never in the picture, really. Well, maybe there was that moment, but even that moment was mostly your imagination.

Let's face it- you never offerd anything. You never had anything to offer. Whatever you might have had was squandered long before she existed in your sliver of life.

Was she everything simply because there was nothing else there? I can't say. I don't think so. I've had a life with everything already.

She doesn't answer the question, not even to herself. She smiles, though. It was always that smile.