Re: covery

Choir -- a non-starter. I sound bad. I used to sound good -- as in Mennonite basso good. Now I just sound bad

Oscar Isaac -- I'm watching Moon Knight the same comic book that a young Bill Sienkiewicz  cut his teeth on in the early '80s. (Yeah, I remember, Bill. Hey, Dear Reader, you should follow him on Facebook. He's not fussy (witness...)). The Corporate Rodent gets Disassociative Identity Disorder (DID) wrong (it's kinda the flavour-of-the-month in TV-land) but Oscar gets the character of Marc Spector. And any soundtrack with Engelbert Humperdinck is bad in a good way (unlike my singing (or guitar playing -- about which, more later) which is just plain bad). 

I watch Moon Knight on Disney+. 

"Ramble On," Led Zeppelin -- how does a song which doesn't make a lick of sense last over 50 years? Rick Beato lays it all down. 

"Hey, Google: what are the best headphones to practice guitar in?" Boss Waza-Air rates a mention, but only just. After that it's Sennheiser, Audio-Technica and other expensive brands. I mention Sennheiser HD 650 because I already have the Yamaha THR10c and as with other THR amps placement is all. If you're not standing in the "sweet spot," forget it. There's no tube "feel," nothing. It just sounds tinny. Try tilting it up, or something. Or mebbe try expensive headphones!

Linux -- it's ridiculously easy. If you already have an old laptop, tablet, whatever why wouldn't you give it a try? I don't know where it's got this difficult "programmer's" reputation from. 

And lastly , John Darko is worth following. Entirely out of my price range, but worth following. 

Disney+

Song of the South is a non-starter, of course (you were looking for Riley's First Date or The Sound of Music maybe?). 

But Pinocchio is a go, as are the Don Bluth years. I recommend Obi-Wan Kenobi. But I'm also the guy who recommends Star Wars Vintage: The Clone Wars.  Hey, it's by the same team that delivered Samurai Jack and that's not bad!

While you're there you may as well watch Mickey and The Three Musketeers.  I hate that little turtle, but what are you gonna do? Move the story forward, always move the story forward. 

Write a book!

I spent most of 2021 and some of 2022 in a coma. I "woke up" and I'd lost my wife's brother and mother. You want to write a book? Hey, me too! In the meantime read Maud Newton's Ancestor Trouble: A Reckoning and a Reconciliation -- it's what I'll be doing.  

Julia Kasdorf, and the company she keeps

"For the most part writers from my tribe produce work I'd rather not read" I said so here. Julia Kasdorf is the exception, and Michial Farmer is the reason for that. 

Full disclosure: Michial is somebody I Facebook-know. Hey, you can Facebook-know him, too! Just say Prajer sent you. 

KEITH RICHARDS: UNDER THE INFLUENCE dir. Morgan Freeman

Truth: I would rather listen to the people Robert Johnson has inspired than listen to the man himself. Also true: Keith Richards makes me want to dust off Johnson and give him another listen. I saw Under The Influence on Netflix. 

"Rock and Roll had nothing on these guys" -- Keith Richards on American Country Music in general and Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins in particular. 

Yeah , but there was a time when The Rolling Stones were particularly scary. Read Sway for some idea. And Keef is big on going straight to the source. Robert Johnson didn't record much, so The Centennial Collection should do you. Plus you get a spiffy essay by Jimmy Page. If you can find it I recommend The Sun Years by Howlin' Wolf. And I recommend the recently rebuffed Damn Right, I've Got The Blues by Buddy Guy -- the album that turned everything around (for Buddy Guy, of course). 

STAR TREK: STRANGE, NEW WORLDS and ENTERPRISE: various directors and show-runners

 Most of this is from my other blog here. But it pertains. 

Somebody please explain SF hair to me. In the meantime I will enjoy Star Trek: Strange, New Worlds on Crave TV and Enterprise on Netflix. 

Star Trek always worked best as television. Enterprise is better than I remember, thanks chiefly to this list and Netflix's "skip credits"option. Leave all "Rod Stewart" jokes in the comments. 

As for Strange, New Worlds the jury is still out. Kirk, Spock and Uhura are present and accounted for but they are almost an afterthought kind of a big deal. Anson Mount as Christopher Pike is lots of fun. But please won't somebody explain SF hair to me. 

DON'T LOOK UP dir Adam McKay

I don't know how you look past your shoes and not see climate change. I should be an ideal audience. But Don't Look Up is a lousy movie. 

There is no tension, first and foremost. The script would never make it in the classroom. See Terminator 2 if you must. Or watch Adaptation. Either way you'll get some idea what I'm talking about.

You will have to look up Adaptation.  The other two are on Netflix.