Another Month

The end of September. Is plying her with tears in place of pearls no longer applicable? Only Walter Houston would know.

Master and Command

I am not referring to Patrick O'Brian's naval saga on my subject line. It's on something else.

Recently, an internet acquaintance invited the world to visit her 12-year-old son's audio-visual media clip. I visited the young person's work. It was really a createive and original piece of work. I made a mistake of calling her son 'Master Johnson'. This episode spawned the 20-questions (okay, maybe three).

When I called her son "Master...", it was a subtle double entendre. Perhaps she didn't understand and thought I had been unscrupulous in digging into her privacy.

The word master has several definitions. One of which is referring to a male child who is not yet an adult. It's a formal if not an archaic English word. I called young Johnson as such because I have high regards for his person as an artist. In any case, Mrs. Johnson thought I'd somehow found out her son's real name. I have no idea what her son's first name is. I didn't care to know at any rate.

The second reason I chose to call young Johnson "Master" was because he has mastered some technological skills very few of his age or even adults could have achieved.

As for my knowing Master Johnson's surname, because of his mother's email address in her correspondence to me on some other particulars.

I have to agree with other scholars that proper English usage is on the demise. Our generation doesn't care or want to understand the beauties of our native tongue anymore. We no longer master and command the language of Shakespeare. That is the sad truth.

Oh, Well

This post was sent from the mobile iPAQ hx2755.

Someone in the neighborhood has recently installed an unsecured Wi-Fi. It's most likely a g-router setup. My PDA is connecting to it as of this writing.

I have my own network and secondary service setup. This "free" connection will serve as my tertiary backup. An embarrassment of riches, as Wi-Fi goes. Oh, well.

Not So Vain Anymore

Among all of the reviews I have done on Amazon.com, most of them have to do with books. There were a few choral CD's thrown in here and there. Now, I am adding Carly Simon's new CD Moonlight Serenade (2005) to my short music CD review list.

This is an exceptionally fine recording of the "standards." The supposed voice of the passionate You-Are-So-Vain Carly was another voice of a distant past. The older and sophisticated Carly now sings with a sensual smokey voice not unlike that of Julie London, Dusty Springfield, or Diana Krall.

The jazzy orchestral arrangements coupled with Simon's phrasing of the songs once again certified the endearing artistry of Parish & Miller, Dubin & Warren, Rodgers & Hart, and etc.

EXPIRED: A sampler of Simon sings Rodgers & Hart - Where or When (1939).

Spiorad na nGael

Hear, Hear. That's the way, Irish.

As for the old days and troubled dreams:

Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow
Raze out the written troubles of the brain
-- Macbeth, A5,S3.

Loved Walked In

EXPIRED: George Gershwin's Loved Walked In on his birthday on 26 September.

Romancing the Gadfly

"I try to make my music speak simply and directly that which is in my heart at the time I am composing. If there is love there, or bitterness, or sadness, or religion, these moods become part of my music, and it becomes either beautiful or bitter or sad or religious." --Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)

At the risk of incurring the wrath and indignation from others, my unlearned thought on the great Russian classical composers is that their music is inherently beautiful yet pensive. If there be bubbling gaiety and insouciance in the compositions, the melodic strains are tethered to some shadowy melancholic emotions.

Today is Dmitri Shostakovich's birthday. He'd written a most contemplative score for the 1955 film, The Gadfly.

Janine Jansen, violin (2003)
Romance (The Gadfly Suite, Op. 97a)
Film Score: The Gadfly (1955)
Dmitri Shostakovich
Click here to view this L'Envoi YouTube.

A Season of Mellow Fruitfulness

A musical thought on the way to the farmers market.

Mozart's Violin Sonata in C Major K 296 would be the piece to listen on this glorious autumnal morning.

At the market I bought for brunch a Jalapeno and Cheddar Cheese wrap. As for the week's fruit supplements, I picked out a selection of pluots, late season freestone peaches, and Thompson seedless grapes. And for the carbs, some cranberry scones and a loaf of zucchini chocolate bread will suffice.

A Breath of Autumn

In this time of the year, the vinegarishness of wine making wafts incessantly from the Delicato Winery. A breath of autumn every state route 99 traveler knows so well.

First Day of Fall

After the tempestuous storm which passed through the valley a few days ago, once again the seasonal clime has returned. Today the high was 87°F/31°C. The forecast temperture for this evening and early morning hours will hover about 57°F/13°C.

Today is the first day of fall. The city tree crew came by the neighbood today and did some preventive maintenance on the deciduous trees. They trimmed much of the overhanging branches looming above the rooftops and utility lines.

Autumn brings a different but equally alluring charm than summer. The urgency is over. The Myrna figs are ripen in the backyard; the garden eludes attention - except for the two chrysanthemum plants I bought last week at SaveMart. They are now gracing the southside of the house.

In recent days, there is a stillness at dawn that is unique to the season - not a rustle of wind nor the cacophony of bird-speak. Early morning mists mask the orchard and fields along Route 99. Autumn fruits hanging on the boughs are ready for the harvesting.

The autumn equinox has ushered in the season of harvest and thanksgiving. It is a time for the scarecrows to begin celebration another successful year in their illustrious career. From one generation to another, they have toiled in the fields under the most inauspicious conditions. Truth to tell, there would be no cornucopias without the aid and dedication of these faithful friends. Yet, they demanded little in return. Most admirable of their kind is nary a disparaging word nor discontent ever uttered.

So then, on this very night when the scarecrows celebrate their annual Autumn Dance, I have decreed Shostakovich's Waltz Number 2 as their signature dance for the occasion.

(This music segues nicely into Dmitri's birthday celebration on 25 September.)

September in the Rain

As I left the agency, the unseasonal humid air carried a whiff of ozone. The lurid clouds laden with autumn's first promised rain had rolled in unceremoniously from the Pacific. The skies turned grey with a tinge of yellow, as the late afternoon sun gasped its last resplendent moments.

Going south on route 99, the sun had relented to the dark shroud. Shards of intense lighting were flashing sinister smiles in the distant horizon. Surely, Zeus' thunderbolt was waiting us mortals. After fifteen minutes on the road, the first roll of thunder brought a splatter of heavy drops. These first warning spits pummeled the windshield. Inside the Chevy S10, the air had become humid and stifling. I switched on the air conditioning, shifted my weight, and drove head-on to Mordor South.

It was approaching chaos when I exited the freeway. Traffic lights were out at or near the on-and-off ramps. I grumbled and sighed at the circumstance briefly. While waiting for fifteen minutes to drive two blocks away from the off ramp, I thanked God and asked Him to uplift those in my circle for their health and safety.

This was the day that was. George Shearing's tune September in the Rain was definetely in order for the remains of the day. EXPIRED.

Full Moon, 18 September, 2005

Full Moon, 18 September, 2005, 2143 Hours, California
98% of the Moon is Illuminated
中秋節

Seven More Days

The élan of summer is fading in the smoldering sunsets. Songs heard from the trees not long ago have winged. The air fragrant still with the last flowerng of September. Hummingbirds seeking the last of the season's eau de vie. Hot coffee before dawn is much savored now in these dark, cool, and misty mornings.

The cusp of autumn. Seven more days to fall. A time to harvest the summer treasures. The monotonus languor of the season begins to beckon the mind and body.

Weep No More

Weep no more. Grief is dark and wears on so wearily. Pressing the thorn of separation inward aggravates the fragile heart.

Fling the woes to the sky. Open your arms and sing to the sun. Let it cauterize the wounds and dispel the gloom of your pallor. Life's warm rays of friendships and promised love still await you.

Getting to Know You

The song is now online, Carol.

Out of the Blue

Mrs. Heacock had a surprise in store for me this morning at the office. I was handed a two-disc bonus version of the film Cabsablanca. She said something to the effect, "This is a late birthday or an early Christmas present." A very nice gesture, indeed, and is very much appreciated.

The American Film Institue (AFI) voted Casablanca number two behind Citizen Kane on the 100 best movies in the last 100 years.

A Word from the Gulag

One of my post-grad required readings in an Inter-Disciplinary course was Aleksandr Isaevich Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelago. That was a distant summer ago. As my last post on 9-11, I thought a quote from The Gulag is appropriate:

The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either, but right through every human heart, and through all human hearts. This line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates with the years. Even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained; and even in the best of all hearts, there remains a small corner of evil. It is impossible to expel evil from the world in its entirety, but it is possible to constrict it within each person.

The Biblical world view of this conclusion is:

By sin, man fell from their original righteousness and communion with God (Genesis 3:6-8; Ecclesiastes 7:29; Romans 3:23), and so became dead in sin, (Genesis 2:17; Ephesians 2:1), and wholly defiled in all the parts and faculties of soul and body (Titus 1:15; Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:10-18).

He Sees and Knows

"I will be glad and rejoice in Your love, for You saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul -- Psalm 31:7 (NIV)

David had been through a lot of hellish moments and depressions. He never gave up. God tells us this in Psalm 31 and elsewhere in the Bible.

God knows of David's and millions of others' hurts. Including yours. He cares. Pray to Him. Ask for strength and courage. Talk and pray with your pastor and fellowship circles.

You are in my thoughts and prayers.

A Future and Hope

Indiviually and collectively, each of us and our church are mobilized to aid the victims of the Katrina aftermath. Through Medical Amassador, the Prebyterian Diaster Assistance, and Salvation Army, etc., we are helping financially and with human resources. At this moment, we have a team working to coordinate with the locals at New Orleans for victims who have lost everything and would consider relocating to our community.

The Cat's Meow

It seems Mrs. Heacock's disposition has improved vastly since the death of her father about a month ago. She approached me at 0730 hours this morning and suggested we play a practical joke on our office manager. The latter comes in later at 0800 hours.

What do you have in mind?
My new cell phone has a ring tone of a cat meowing. So I thought....

Say no more. Who's the target?
C.C.
Hmmmm. Are you sure?
Yes. I like to see her go searching for a lost kitten in our offices.

We tested the sound of the ring tone, and looked for different places to hide the phone in the course of the day. I was to be the dialer to call the cell number. At 0745 hours, the plan was in place. We were ready for the first cat's meow (pun).

The first call to the cat executed at 0819 hours before Mrs. Heacock and C.C. left for their morning briefing. The cat meowed.

C.C. was not a bit perturbed. It fact she casually remarked about someone's cat or someone's cell phone ringing. Bummer. The plan needed to be modified.

After the two left for their briefing at another building, I solicited a junior staff of the unit whose office was on another floor. The protege agreed to be the caller so I would not be caught while dialing for the cat to meow. The phone now placed in a dry flower vase on a cabinet several feet behind C.C.'s workstation.

The second call came at about 0915 hours. C.C. actually went to look for the cat. We two were smugly congratulating in our silence the plan was going according to plan. Then she abruptly stopped and said something about a cell phone again. I looked out from my office to Mrs. Heacock office. She nodded slightly. We knew C.C. wasn't going to be suckered into looking for the cat again.

I sent a coded message to the protege to have the exercise terminated. On this Friday morning, we three culprits enjoyed an abbreviated respite from an otherwise strained and very difficult week at the HQ.

Take That, SBC-Yahoo!

After resolving my so-called "issue" I metioned in the post "Take Five", Yahoo sent me two different surveys to complete. I spent an hour before writing this log to complete these survyes online.

Albeit the surveys were long and repetitive at places, I must admit the questions were quite thorough and allowed the respondent to explain the choices selected. More than once I made references to my "Take Five" URL. It saved my repeating why the SBC-Yahoo tech support was unsatisfactory.

Suwannee River He Liked

Question: What European composer from the late 19th century admired Stephen Foster?

Today is his birthday.
Every music student has played his Humoresque.

Answer: His name is in L'Envoi Music Selection.

The Winning Number

This past Sunday, Smokey gave out two prizes at a drawing as we wrapped up our summer adult ed session at the church. With the winning number "101", I won a sweet deal.

I received a certificate for See's chocolate candies. The prize entitled me at any See's confectionary, a selection of a pound's worth of chocolate morsels.

Since I do not have a sweet tooth, I transferred my entitlement to Mrs. Heacock first thing this morning at the office. She was all grins when I surprised her with the certificate. A chocolate fancier she is. She would benefit from the polyphenols in the cocoa. These naturally occurring antioxidants in cocoa should help maintain her cardiovascular health.

Picnic - A Tale of Two Tunes

As a fan for old movies, a mention of playwright William Inge's Picnic on this Labor Day Weekend is obligatory. At least this once. Lacking the depth of intellect in anything literary, I just as soon talk about a particular piece of music from this Pulitzer Prize play, now a movie. This 1955 film centered about the lives in a small Kansas town on Labor Day. The music that accentuated the movie Picnic was "Moonglow and the Theme from Picnic." Therein lies the tale of two tunes.

Three writers (Will Hudson, Eddie DeLange, and Irving Mills) wrote "Moognlow" in 1934. It didn't become a hit then. The song soon languished in obscurity inside the dust jackets on store shelves. It met a fate similiar to Herman Hupfeld's "As Time Goes By". For the latter, a new lease on life and fame finally came in 1942 by way of one of the all time great movies ever made, "Casablanca". Similarly, the tune "Moonglow" of yesteryear was given a new life in the motion picture "Picnic".

George Duning took "Moonglow" and interwove it with the love theme he wrote for the movie "Picnic". By doing so, he created a 2-for-1 new original tune, or not too original as some would argue, into a big hit. This lush, and sensual dance movie score has since insinuated into the American musical conscious.

In this soft cha-cha, Duning interwove "Moonglow" as a counterpoint to the theme "Picnic". The score began with a piano jazz quartet lithely setting a sensually teasing prelude and invitation to the dance. The piano lead of "Moonglow" beckoned "Picnic" to join in the fun, as it were.

"Picnic" finally relented and joined the dance with a flowing melodic sway of the string ensemble. The two themes finally entwined and blossomed into one luxuriant and supple orchestral masterpiece. All the while the six-note recursive of the counterpoint: 'that.moon.glow.gave.me.you' anchored the soulful landscape of this married score. The perfect musical metaphor for destined lovers as played by Kim Novak and William Holden.

For this creative and vibrant arrangement, George Duning was taken to court by the composors of "Moonglow". Duning made his counterpoint (pun) rather convincingly in the trial. He won. No hard feelings nor monetary settlements for either side. Then along came Steve Allen.

In the meantime, the "Picnic" theme in and of itself was also a big success over the air wave. Steve Allen of "The Benny Goodman Story" (1955) fame, was a renaissance man of many talents. He liked the "Picnic" tune so much that he wrote the lyrics to it - after the film was released, and not having met George Duning either.

The "Picnic" lyrics encapsulated the Freudian sentiments of the main characters in the film. In 1956, the McGuire Sisters recorded "Picnic" with the Dick Jacobs Orchestra.

If you are remotely curious as to why I am so transported with the Duning arrangement of 'Moonglow' and the Theme from 'Picnic', please give it a listen the next couple of days. On the coming Wednesday and Thursday PDT, please also listen to the McGuire Sisters' recording of "Picnic".

Love's Labour's Lost (Not)

Berowne:

Why, all delights are vain; but that most vain,
Which with pain purchased doth inherit pain:
As, painfully to pore upon a book
To seek the light of truth; while truth the while
Doth falsely blind the eyesight of his look:
Light seeking light doth light of light beguile:
So, ere you find where light in darkness lies,
Your light grows dark by losing of your eyes.

--"Love's Labour's Lost, Act 1, scene 1, 72-79" ~William Shakespeare

In this early Shakespearean comedy, the Spanish King of Navarre decreed he and his three friends were to swear an oath and devote three years to a life of "academe." (Would the Bible be studied in this sabbatical?) The scholary regimen included contemplation, fasting often, sleeping three hours a night, and speaking to no woman.

One of the three courtiers, Berowne, trippingly on his tongue, pleaded against such a harsh academic trial, he alliterated: "Light seeking light doth light of light beguile."

When one staring too long at the books, Lord Berowne contested, it would be painful; why should anyone give up life's pleasures to pursue pain? Reading is blinding, he pressed the point further. Light (the eyes), by seeking light (in seeking truth), doth light of light beguile (it ruins the vision). Then Berowne prattled on in this deliciously self conscious sophistry. Rather than thinking one is going to find truth in the dark recess of books, he reasoned, one is plunged in despair because blindness will shut the latter from the truth.

When the Princess and her retinue arrived, all pretense or modicum for academia dissipated. Lofty ideals for learning gave way to wooing. After some merriments of mixed-up love letters and masquerades, the ladies chided the men for their abundant gestures of infatuation but deficient in true love and commitment. Before the ladies were to give their hands, all four men must wait a year for their affection and fidelity to be tested. Thereby it hangs the tale of a love's labor's lost (temporarily).

God's labor of love is not inconstant. In the 1189-chapter letter to His children, God meticulously lay out His abiding love for them. Metaphorically, the catholic church is His bride (Song of Soloman 5:9; Ephesians 5:23; Revelation 19:6-8). His love is not a fickle affection amounts to no more than infatuation. It is unmeasurable and everlasting. In the second person of the Trinity, Christ's love expands from the beginning before time (Proverbs 8:22-23.) It spans from the east of the sun to the west of the moon, reaching to the farthest of heavens (Psalm 103:10-12). Moreover, His holy light never dims to hurt or blind, but to heal ( Revelation 21:23). Notwithstanding Berowne's witticism, it is in God's light do we see and feel the light of truth evermore (Psalm 36:9; Isaiah 60:18-20).

Neither is God's love labored in vain. For we are a fragrance of Christ saved from wrath through His lovingkindness (II Corinthians 2:15). On this Labor Day, I read once again how Christ Jesus labored and supplicated for His own (I John 4:10; John 17).

By the grace of God within us, let us labor to prove His love for us is not in vain (I Corithinans 8:6; I Corithians 15:10).

Word Verification Turned On

Please accept my apology, folks.

I didn't want visitors to my blog having to type in word verification to leave comments. Those moronic spammers left me no choice. The filter is now turned on.

This means a honest-to-goodness commentator will have to key in the verification before submitting his comments.

Take Five

I wished it had been the Brubeck-Desmond "Take Five" perennial jazz favorite instead.

What I thought was a simple on-line service activation of a previous free but un-used service of 500 MB Yahoo storage space, it turned into a 2-hour tech service "issue" discussion.

What I called a problem, SBC-Yahoo tech support liked to call in an "issue." A rampant use of junk English like most everyone else do these days. There are no longer "problems" out there but "issues". Problems require resolution. Issues, on the other hand, can be discussed and debated until the cows come home without having to say the "p" word.

I have written an article/book review on junk English usage a few years ago. Junk English usage is the strangling fig of the English language. But I digress.

The error message I got when trying to activate the 500 MB storage space:

Yahoo! was not able to process your order for a new special offer (12:cancelcoupon:cancel coupon : operation not allowed - contact customer service). Please contact a Customer Service Representative.

Chronology of today's SBC-Yahoo "issue" tech supprt:

Contact of the First Kind: On-Line Tech Support, Melissa.

Chatted for about 15-minutes on a slow and poorly designed Cisco message board and replicated the error message. I was referred to Premium Services with a case number and a telephone number 1-877-469-7847.

Contact of the Second Kind: Premium Services, Joseph.

I described the problem, my personal data, and recited the case number to Joseph. No help here with my issue. Referred to Billing Services. Billing Services? Yes. Press menu option 2, then 1, then, 2, then 5, will get you transferred to the right support staff. Please don't hang up. In case of disconnection, call (408)349-5151. (Whatever.)

Contact of the Third Kind: Web Hosting Billing Services, Anna.

(This billing person has no foreign accent. Maybe it had to do with money. Money talk should not be hard to understand.)

I described the problem, my personal data, and recited the case number to Anna. Sorry, this is Web Hosting Billing. You need to talk with DSL billing. Please stay on the line and don't hang up. I will transfer you. (Whatever.)

Contact of the Fourth Kind: DSL Support, Dave.

No menu option sequence to press. Got a real person. Dave. (Dave had a slight accent.) I described the problem, my personal data, and recited the case number to Dave. He was very helpful. Dave stayed with me the longest time. I gave him my account password. He successfully replicated my issue. Now it finally became a worthy issue and a challenge to Dave and his issue solving skill. (It made his day.) He recorded the discussions I had had with his peers. (Whatever.)

Please don't hang up and I will transfer you to Tier Two tech support. (Tier Two?) (Dave liked to say 'please don't hang up' many many times. Whatever.)

Total time spent from Chat to Tier One Tech Support Dave abut: 1 hour 40 minutes.

Contact of the Fifth Kind: Tier Two, Hawk.

(Hawk spoke with the heaviest accent than the previous tech support people.)

You got my case number, Hawk? Yes. And give me your name, account, and telephone number. (Again?) Yes, please. Tell me your password and let me log in as you. (I had to repeat the password alphabet by alphabet - three times. Hawk had a hard time with the spelling of my password.)

Stay on the line, please. This may take 3-4 minutes. I will talk to the engineers (software guys) to see if they want to accept the case. (Huh? Could you not at least say this was really a problem with SBC-Yahoo?). OK. (Whatever.)

The engineers said they will accept the case. They replicated the error. You have been assigned an Escalation Support Number. (Wow! An Escalation Support Number. I am on Level 2.) It's the Yahoo web service (Lucky me. The high priests of Yahoo accepted my petition.) Don't try to activate the account until 72 hours later on Tuesday. (Tuesday???)

Whatever. It took two hours on a simple on-line service matter. Half of this morning was spent on this issue, (strike that), problem, on the first day of my 4-day weekend.

Will You?

I am so glad to see you again.

Perhaps no balm can ease your deepest emotions of hurts and foibles. We all have regrets and hurts...

Still, treasure the vibrant life with which you've been blessd. Beyond, live life more than withered petals locked within your heart. Though crushed, the lavender emits a healing and soothing aromatic. Will you? I know you will and can.

The past is ashes. Let not the coming days inviolate the waking eye.

Be well, my friend.

Godspeed, Captain

With the return of Lt. Colonel Tate two months ago, today I said goodbye to another officer and collegue. He will be deployed to Iraq in ten days, with a stopover in Kuwait.

Godspeed, Captain. By God's grace, we will see you in 18 months.