Do we love the unexpected, or are we just crazy for crazy?
“I want a man who’s kind and understanding. Is that too much to ask of a millionaire?” Zsa Zsa Gabor
“My boyfriend gives our dogs their own voices,” one woman wrote on Reddit’s Ask Women the other day, describing the antics of her boyfriend who appears to have way too much time on his hands. “It gets hilariously ridiculous sometimes,” the woman added, “but I love it.” No doubt the dogs love it, too, but barking only gets you so far in this world.
Another woman said her boyfriend’s turtle has its own Instagram account. Again, funny, charming — a…
The sad truth about politics and people in America.
“Beware of false prophets, which comes to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they’re ravening wolves.” Mathew 7:15
Donald Trump isn’t particularly worried about this election. He should be, but he isn’t. He’s done the job he set out to do. There were glitches, and people saying he was a disaster, but so what? He never ran for office expecting to do anything. Like every politician in Washington with a keen sense of self preservation, the more you say, the less you have to accomplish.
Maybe he learned this from his mentor and fixer, Roy Cohn, the right hand to…
Where else can you go when John Fogerty tells you to take a hike?
“They’ve got everything for you men to enjoy…” The Village People (YMCA)
President Donald Trump doesn’t pay much attention to lyrics. His favourite song “Is That All There Is?” sung by Peggy Lee, describes watching a house burn down and turning to drink. Why does Trump like it? “It’s a great song because I’ve had these tremendous successes,” he said. “And then I’m off to the next one.”
Missing a song’s point seems to be standard with this president. It’s like there’s a little man on one shoulder doing the “daddy dance.” On the other, he’s singing something else entirely…
Baste your bird, don’t debase it, for crying out loud.
“My cooking was so bad, my kids thought Thanksgiving was to commemorate Pearl Harbor.” Phyllis Diller
As history describes it, turkeys were first introduced to the Thanksgiving dinner table way back in the early 1600s. No record explains exactly why the Pilgrims chose turkey for this historic feast. They weren’t the plump and juicy turkeys we know today— in fact, they were embarrassingly skinny by comparison. Then again, so were cows and sheep.
No, the choice of wild turkey remains a bit of a conundrum, although it might have been because the Pilgrim’s guests were the Wampanoag tribe.
The Wampanoag…
Talking is what we know and what makes us feel safe.
“Everybody’s talking at once in a hypnotic, hyper din: the cocktail party from hell.” Maureen Dowd
“Reading is 4 chumps, brotha,” Mew16 wrote on reddit, an opinion shared by many in the discussion group — and not just brothas. As one woman explained, “Maybe it was being forced to read for 12 years, and the whole thing associated with shitty teachers and shitty people and shitty memories.”
Whether “shitty” memories can account for not reading, or the content of books themselves, certainly there’s a turn-off rate. …
Hint: Guts. Second hint: Still guts.
“Go home and sin and come back with a song I can sell.” Sam Phillips
“You’ve got a song you’re singing from your gut,” Johnny Cash once said, “and you want that audience to feel it in their gut, too.” He spent a lot of years trying to connect this way. Some songs did it better than others, probably the most powerful being “Folsom Prison Blues.” It was the second of Cash’s songs recorded on Sun Records (the first was “Hey, Porter”).
Cash must have sung “Folsom Prison Blues” thousands of times during his career. He even sang it at…
A story of lost love by Robert Cormack
“I just like to sing for people who have lost love.” Mac Miller
Carole’s back in town now. She’s sitting on my rug. She still calls it her rug even though I bought it from her a month ago. Everything she owned was sold or given away. The rug was the last to go. Her friend Helen dropped it off at my place before taking Carole up to the drying-out facility in Saint Sauveur. It was only 45 minutes from Montreal. …
A short story about vacations by Robert Cormack.
“I hate vacations. There’s nothing to do.” David Mamet
This happened at a resort, south of Saint Marc in Haiti, two months after Baby Doc Duvalier left the country for good. One morning, the Haitian staff went on strike, locking up the food and water. They wanted an increase in pay, despite making more than professors in Port-au-Prince.
Guests were asked to stay in their rooms until the army arrived, the army being Tonton Macoute. Nothing much came of it. By that evening, the guests were back eating dinner in the outdoor dining area.
Seated at a table of eight…
Every pandemic has had its detractors—some sillier than others.
“Tell all the people, we’ll be free, follow me down.” Robby Krieger, The Doors, Soft Parade
They were called The Feast of Fools, a group of horribles parading around in grotesque costumes back in 1347. This was during The Black Plague, known for killing some 20 million people over three years. You might say they began the whole anti-vax movement we see today, the genesis, so to speak.
Faced with what seemed like almost certain death, the horribles decided to go out in a bizarre display of freakish dress and raucous parties.
Parades formed in the streets, sometimes with people…
A short story about strippers and boxers by Robert Cormack.
“I don’t miss boxing.” Sugar Ray Leonard
Manz Farino won a fifteen round decision against Larry Krill in ’73, a big win that nearly cost Manz his left eye. He hung up his gloves after that, and opened a strip club on Decarie near the Blue Bonnets Race Track, attending charity events, and becoming what columnists called “a gentleman hero.”
I met Manz through Jonesy, this playwright friend of mine. We’d just come off a ten day hunger strike, meaning we hadn’t written a thing in weeks. Jonesy and Manz went way back. …
