There are too many books I haven’t read, too many places I haven’t seen, too many memories I haven’t kept long enough. | |
— Irwin Shaw | |
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On This Day In: | |
2016 | Not Yet, Anyway |
2015 | On Pornography |
2014 | Nudge, Nudge |
2013 | The Journey Will Be Joy |
2012 | Hopeful Flights |
2011 | Irrationally Predictable |
Lawful Restraint | |
Posts Tagged ‘Places’
Too Many
Posted in Philosophy, Quotes, tagged Books, Irwin Shaw, Memories, Philosophy, Places, Quotes on March 19, 2017| Leave a Comment »
Reality Vs Imagination
Posted in Pictures, Places, tagged Bucket-List, Everton, Everton Football Club, Everton Lock Up, Glendalough Round Tower, Liverpool, Nil Satis Nisi Optimum, Pictures, Places, Tower In Omagh County Tyrone Northern Ireland on September 12, 2015| Leave a Comment »
On This Day In: | ||
2014 | Penalty Period | |
2013 | Theft | |
2012 | Cranky Old Man | |
2011 | A Man’s Got To Know His Limitations | |
R.I.P. – Tom Laughlin
Posted in Lyrics, Movies, Philosophy, Places, tagged Aikido, Billy Jack, Death Wish, Die Hard, Hapkido, John McClane, John Rambo, Judo, Kung Fu TV Series, Kwai Chang Caine, Lyrics, Martial Arts, Movies, One Tin Soldier (The Legend of Billy Jack) - song lyrics, Paul Kersey, Philosophy, Places, Poems, R.I.P., Rambo, Saudi Arabia, Steven Seagal, Thomas Robert "Tom" Laughlin, Tom Laughlin on December 16, 2013| 2 Comments »
Thomas Robert “Tom” Laughlin (August 10, 1931 – December 12, 2013) | |
Before Steven Seagal (all three word title movies), before John Rambo (“Rambo” series), before John McClane (“Die Hard” series), before Paul Kersey (“Death Wish” series), before Kwai Chang Caine (“Kung Fu” TV series) – there was Billy Jack in “Born Losers” (1967). Tom Laughlin brought to the big screen the start of the modern vigilante movie genre with the character of Billy Jack. It seems strange how a little martial arts on the big screen, mixed with some social awareness and righteous indignation can affect people’s lives. | |
As a twelve year old kid I remember thinking, “Wow, I’ve got to learn how to do that!” What I was looking at was Hapkido – a Korean form of Karate (open hand fighting). Ten years later, I found a Hapkido dojo in Germany and studied it for almost a year during my off hours (I was in the Army). That was set aside once I returned to civilian life… Until I found Judo, while I was in college. I took that for a semester, too. When I moved to England in the ’90’s, a friend from work (who was a black belt in judo) said he’d love to get me on a mat and asked if I was interested in going to a dojo to learn Aikido. My friend (Dave) and I found a local dojo and began our lessons. We continued on with that for about two years. It was great having someone who was a lifelong martial artist as a co-student because he could explain things in much greater detail than I could ever have gotten (except in one-on-one personal lessons). For his side, he got someone who was bigger and heavier who he could throw around for a couple of hours twice a week. We both moved on and I stumbled on to a Philippine “combat” style of Aikido while I was in Saudi Arabia which I tried for another year. And then finally, once back home in America, I was back to traditional Aikido at a local dojo for several years (until I developed AFib and went on blood thinners). | |
Practicing martial arts, of course, lead me to read about martial arts, which in turn lead to me reading about martial philosophy and then philosophy in general. | |
Did I ever “become” a martial artist? No. Did I ever learn how to do that? Not hardly. I never took it seriously enough to be more than what I was – a novice and a bit of a dojo sampler. Did I enjoy it? Yes, very much. Did it affect me? Yes! And for at least some small part of that, I have to thank Billy Jack (Tom Laughlin). | |
Beyond the enjoyment of playing Aikido itself, I learned timing, balance, grace, philosophy, and I gained a certain amount of inner peace. For all of which, I will always be extremely grateful. | |
R.I.P. Tom | |
Signed, | |
KMAB (A Fan) | |
[Please also go check out the song lyrics to “One Tin Soldier – (The Legend of Billy Jack)” on my Song Lyrics And Videos page. — KMAB] | |
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On This Day In: | |
2012 | All Aboard |
2011 | Sail On, Sailor |
Memories Of Arlington
Posted in My Journal, Places, tagged Arlington National Cemetery, KMAB, My Journal, Places, The Marine Corps War Memorial on April 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »
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To a Marine, the sky coloring was unusual – a light blue, thin and distant. The scene was Arlington National Cemetery. | ||||
On a single pedestal before me stood the memory of five men; the glory of one nation; the pride of one corp. | ||||
They fought for peace, justice, and freedom in a war plagued, strife wrought time. | ||||
They stand bronzed, still, silent. Reassuring, uniting, proclaiming. | ||||
Above them, what they and their friends fought for, lived for, died for; a piece of cloth; a dream of man’s; a fraction of history. | ||||
Their bravery is America’s life. Their willingness is America’s pride. Their strength is America’s glory. | ||||
[The text above was written on Nov. 18, 1969, before I had ever actually visited the statue or cemetery. Based on the pictures I’d seen, I didn’t realize there were six Marines in the statue. — KMAB] | ||||
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A Place To Hang My Hat
Posted in General Comments, Pictures, Running, Work, tagged Baltimore, Baseball, Camden Court Apartments, Pictures, Places, Running, Slow jogging, Work on January 3, 2011| 2 Comments »
Well, it was getting down to the wire, but it looks like I’ve got a place to stay when I get to Baltimore next Monday. I’ll be staying at the Camden Court Apartments. I’m leased for all four months. I guess the clock tower (in the left of the picture) has some significance. I’ll blog about it when I know more… | |
The apartments are about two blocks from Orioles Park at Camden Yard, so I should be able to take in a couple of baseball games when the season starts. If nothing else, the baseball park will give me a nice, well lit place to jog around. It looks like it’s about 800-900 meters around the park. The web site says it (the apartment complex) has a fitness center, so I should be able to use the tread mills there until the weather improves. | |
Work was busy again. Lots of explaining to my backup and I gave a class on a data store query I run for a different team. The team will be given access to the query and data so they’ll be able to run the query themselves in my absence. | |
I had my third consecutive jog tonight. I was tired after work and didn’t really want to go, but I sucked it up and got out there. The night was cold and the going was slow, but I finished the 4 miles. I tried to add in a little interval training, but my Achilles both flared almost immediately, so I went back to long and slow. Getting better, but not healed. The sky was clear after all the rain and there were a million stars out. Still, cold, clear air. It doesn’t get much better than that when you’re out for a jog. | |
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Final Competition
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Pictures, tagged Concord HS Marching Band, Family and Friends, Hil Pics, Kevin Pics, Merced, Pictures, Pictures of Concord Marching Band, Pictures of Hil, Pictures of Me, Pictures of Sarah, Places, Santa Cruz pictures on November 13, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Today, Hil and I drove down to Merced, CA to watch our youngest daughter (Sarah) participate in her final Concord High School Marching Band competition. They still have two more performances in December, but those will not be “judged” competitions. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sarah plays the flute in the Marching Band and Cymbals in the Percussion Line. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This is Sarah’s fourth and final year in Band and the following photos are just a few from this trip and from the Santa Cruz Band Review (back in Oct. 2010). Also included are a couple of photos showing the Band Moms helping to get the students ready for the competition. The dedication of some of the Band Moms to their kids and to the Band / Music program is really something to watch (and experience.) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Enjoy… (And please support Music and the Arts in your schools!!!) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Playoff Fever Gets the Best of Me…
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Pictures, Sports, tagged 2010 World Series, Baseball, Family and Friends, Pictures, Pictures of Giants parade, Pictures of Me, Pictures of Sarah, Places, San Francisco, SF Giants on November 3, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Victory in the World Series got the best of me and I decided to take the day off of work to attend the Giants victory parade in San Francisco. Being the conscientious parent that I am, I brought along my daughter Sarah. She, in turn, invited along some of her friends. Before I knew it the whole thing had gotten out of hand and I was surrounded by about 800,000 of my closest friends. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
I asked for leave at work and called in sick for Sarah – and off we went… | ||||||||||||||||||||||
The following are some of the photos. All of the good shots were taken by Sarah. All of the bad/fuzzy ones were by me. In fairness, she was using a real camera. I was using my phone. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
The photos start off with our 45 minute (!!) wait at the BART station in North Concord / Martinez to get tickets. I’ve then added some shots from the train showing how the train went from empty to packed in only 4 stations – North Concord, Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
I’ve then added some crowd shots from where I was at the Powell & Market Cable Car turn-around / BART Station. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Then come Sarah’s photos from the Civic Center – where the parade ended, in front of San Francisco City Hall. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Finally, there’s a photo from a Mr. Luis C., a friend of mine who is one of the most devoted Giants fans I’ve known for some time. He sent me a picture of his “shrine”, which was set up when the Giants clinched the title by beating the San Diego Padres. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Sound delicious? Enjoy… | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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San Francisco (favorites)…
Posted in Lyrics, Places, Poetry, tagged Harry Chapin, Jeanette McDonald, Judy Garland, Lyrics, Places, Poetry, San Francisco, Taxi on August 29, 2010| 2 Comments »
I grew up in San Francisco, CA. | |
Everyone from San Francisco has a favorite song about “The City”… | |
For some it’s “We Built This City“. For some it’s “Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay“. For a lot it’s Tony Bennett and “I Left My Heart In San Francisco“. | |
For me, there are actually two songs – one from early childhood and black and white movies. It’s Jeanette McDonald singing “San Francisco“. The other is from much later in my life. It’s a song about growing up and how things change from what you hoped for or expected. It’s called “Taxi” by Harry Chapin. | |
As usual, read my version of the lyrics and then go find the songs on-line somewhere… [Note: the lyrics for “San Francisco” are actually Judy Garland’s version, because Jeanett’s was mostly background singing during the movie and although it’s Jeanette’s voice I hear when I remember the song, it’s Judy’s version. I know, a trick of memory, but still true… KMAB] | |
Oh, and here’s the link to the City’s web site. | |
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Northwest Passages – Evening Two
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Pictures, Places, Vacation, tagged Crater Lake, Family, Florence OR, Mo's Restraurant, Northwest Passages, Old Town Inn, Pictures, Pictures of Me, Places, Siuslaw River Bridge, Vacation on August 23, 2010| Leave a Comment »
This is a continuation of the series of blogs I was writing about the drive I took with my wife (Hil) and our youngest daughter (Sarah) back at the end of July. The main point of the trip was to see Crater Lake. Along the way, I wanted to see some redwoods, some light houses, some waterfalls and some covered bridges… | |||||||||||
The day two drive seemed the longest. We had to go from Crescent City – in northern California – half-way up the coast of Oregon to spend the night at Florence, Oregon. We were going to Florence because a friend at work had told me it had an “old town” with lots of little shops my wife would love. I thought it would be the high light of the trip for her so I planned for us to stay in a hotel right in the old town area. | |||||||||||
We did. We stayed at the Old Town Inn which was directly off the bridge entering town and around the corner from the old town area. The hotel was clean and friendly (if a bit musty smelling), but it was ideal for price and location. There is a free “lite” continental breakfast and pretty good parking. We also recommend it. The particulars are: | |||||||||||
Old Town Inn | |||||||||||
Florence, Oregon | |||||||||||
Just north of the Siuslaw River Bridge at 170 Highway 101 | |||||||||||
The AAA guide says you have to book for two nights – but you don’t. I would recommend calling ahead for reservations as the hotel is so close to the sand skiing areas, it can get full earlier than you’d expect. | |||||||||||
For dinner we went to “Mo’s” restaurant. It was scenic if you can get a window table overlooking the Siuslaw River and we got a sundown view of the bridge. The price was reasonable and the service was good, but the food was only average-to-good. | |||||||||||
To be honest, we were disappointed with the shops in the Old Town. I had browsed the web and got the impression it was a neighborhood. In fact, it was more of a three-block strip. It was kind of a miniature Fisherman’s Wharf tourist area with T-shirt shops and a few local restaurants and bars. | |||||||||||
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Northwest Passages – Morning Two
Posted in Environment, Faith Family and Friends, Pictures, Places, Vacation, tagged Battery Point Lighthouse, Crescent City, Environment, Family, Jedediah Smith covered bridge, Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, LightHouse Heritage, Lighthouse Inn, Northwest Passages, Pictures, Places, Redwood Hikes, Stout Grove, Vacation on August 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »
The objective today was to see some lighthouses, redwoods, beaches, and anything else we could find between Crescent City, CA and Florence, OR – where we planned to spend the evening/night. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
We started off with a trip to the local lighthouse, paid a visit to the Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park, and found our first covered bridge. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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For those of you interested in additional information on lighthouses, check out this site: LightHouse Heritage | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The lighthouse (referred to in the “Lighthouse Inn”) was literally right outside our window that night and though it looked to be far out at sea, it was actually on an island only about 150 yards off the mainland and we could walk to it during low tide. It’s name is the Battery Point Lighthouse. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The best thing about the Lighthouse Inn was the convenience – right on 101, across the street from the restaurant and pier, blocks from the lighthouse and only a few miles from the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
While in the park we stopped at Stout Grove and on the way out we saw our first covered bridge (Jedediah Smith covered bridge). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Many of the parks and their paths are described at: Redwood Hikes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Northwest Passages – Evening One
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Pictures, Places, Vacation, tagged Crescent City CA, Family, Fisherman's Restaurant & Lounge, Lighthouse Inn, Northwest Passages, Pictures, Places, Recommended restaurant in Crescent City CA, Vacation on August 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »
The first evening we ate at the Fisherman’s Restaurant & Lounge, located at 700 US Highway 101 S, Crescent City, CA 95531. I had calamari, Hil had fish & chips and Sarah had a burger. Maybe it was the long drive or the sea air, but we all really enjoyed it. I personally thought it was some of the tenderest calamari I’ve ever eaten in my life! We highly recommend the restaurant. | |||
After dinner, we took a stroll around the pier and then went back to the hotel: Lighthouse Inn, at 681 Highway 101 South, Crescent City, CA 95531. | |||
It was very clean and friendly and had these cool little miniature houses around the reception area. They also offered the best of the “free” continental breakfasts we had on the trip. | |||
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Northwest Passages – Day One
Posted in Environment, Faith Family and Friends, General Comments, Pictures, Science and Learning, Vacation, tagged Chandelier Tree, Drive thru tree, Environment, Family, Leggett CA, Northwest Passages, Pictures, Places, Vacation on August 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »
The general plan was to wander our way up to Crescent City by the end of the day. We were to try to see as many trees and shorelines as possible. | |||||||||||||
Our main stop this day was to see the drive-thru Redwood named: Chandelier Tree, located in Leggett, CA. The Chandelier Tree is one of only three remaining “drive-thru” trees still standing. | |||||||||||||
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Now there are two interesting things here… The first is the feeling you get when you actually drive thru a tree. As much as I consider myself to be “environmentally aware” – it’s SO COOL!! It really does just blow you away. | |||||||||||||
The second thing is, of course, this is a living thing which has been violated. Imagine if you had a large section of your stomach carved thru so folks could see your innards. And the tree is at least 2,400 years old! For a little perspective, that’s about halfway between the founding of Rome (752 BCE) and the transition of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire (27 BCE). And, of course, 400 years before the birth of Christ! | |||||||||||||
Next, evening one… | |||||||||||||
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Northwest Passages – Intro
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, Places, Vacation, tagged Crater Lake, Family, Northwest Passages, Places, Vacation on August 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Ok. A little background first… | |
Our youngest (Sarah) did a report on a volcano named Mount Mazama about six years ago. As it turns out, the volcano blew up and became what is today called Crater Lake. Sarah is a Harry Potter fan and as you would have it, Crater Lake has an island – called Wizard Island – in it. So, Sarah has always wanted to visit the lake. | |
Not knowing this, James and I went out for a cruise last year and ended up at Crater Lake. This was my way to smooth the ruffled feathers… | |
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The King Is Oscar
Posted in Faith Family and Friends, General Comments, Movies, Places, Walking, tagged Academy Awards, Ashton Kutcher, Colin Firth, Family and Friends, General Comments, Inception, Kevin Cosner, Lafayette Reservoir, Matrix, Movies, Oscar, Places, The Guardian - movie review, The King's Speech, Transformers, Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen - movie review, Walking on February 27, 2011| Leave a Comment »
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