“Diana makes it to the beach”
We kicked off the week with an early morning walk in the park. It is hard to drink enough water when it’s so hot outside. Anne and Diana took advantage of the pool at Merry Lee and Jeff’s condo on Monday afternoon.
For Tuesday trivia there were a lot of teams and thankfully it was a few degrees cooler than last week. We were doing well going into the final round (1st place if I remember correctly.) There were some easy questions like this one:
And then there was “What is a German Shepherd dog called in Britain?” That was an easy one for me and I suspect not for many of the other teams.
The final question involved putting these events in chronological order:
The first episode of Charlie Rose
Pete Rose banned from baseball
Kiss for a Rose on the chart
Kate Winslet won Oscar for Rose
We got the first two in the wrong order – Charlie Rose was more recent than we suspected. I think we finished in 4th place.
I promised Diana that we would try the Happy Hour at Cafe Degas on Thursday. This is an excellent value – full sized martini for $5 (and not drowned in vermouth), Diana approved sparkling wine for $5, escargots for $6, and pate and cheese board for $12 (a really good selection and portion.)
The food and drink seem to taste better when you know you’re getting a really good value.
I got a NOLA.com alert at Cafe Degas about a man running down Bourbon street with a “Love” flag. This could only be our buddy, Chris Peet. Here’s the article – really well written with some good pictures:
Chris Peet Love Flag on Bourbon St
I treated myself to a delicious breakfast sandwich from Gracious bakery on Friday. I haven’t decided if I prefer this to the one from District or the one from Chicory – so many great options in walking radius. I picked up a lemon bar treat for McD while I was there – well received. I enjoy reading the “On this day in history” column in the paper. Some highlights from August 1st:
Baden Powell hosted a camp at Brownsea island in Southern England, marking the first Boy Scout camp.
In 1981, MTV took to the airwaves with the first video played being “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles – a good trivia question:
Diana made it to the beach, courtesy of Julia’s beach house, and Anne’s transportation. I chuckled at her little packing station on the counter:
This was her location:
Ok – I didn’t do a very good job with that screenshot – she was between Mobile and Pensacola on the south (Gulf) coast.
The beach looked very pleasant and came with some interesting wildlife:
The heron has a name, and I don’t remember it now.
Denny organized a get together for the male members of the krewe while the ladies were at the beach. We met at Gris Gris and enjoyed their Happy Hour snacks – mini meat pies for me, wings for Good Lord Alex etc.
We relaxed a bit at our home after that:
I finished “King of Ashes” by S.A. Crosby this week. My summary – very dark content, great characters, sad story. Off to find something a bit lighter.
Here’s a recent poem by Giancarlo (Diana’s brother). I tried to get the line spacing closer and gave up after 30 minutes of putzing around in WordPress.
*Love Poems to Gaza (Songs to Gaza)
I come to you from my speck on the planet
10,000 miles of proximity
I am eager to know you
Even in my speckled English
My own lost language hovers in the atmosphere
Just out of reach
I have drunk the poison known as empire
And in my veins the antidote still lives
It works diligently day and night
To salvage my flesh housing my soul
I say this to you now even in my shock
My sorrow wants to embrace yours
This desire riddled with the grapples
Of my nation’s self-pleading
I must pass through a climate of indifference
To reach your shores
I suspect you know the old lines
The betrayers announce themselves
Before they charge
I too have to calm myself before the thieves
Overtake me
I tell you with my voice only a shrivel of meaning
No act stifles your life
No cruelty disappears your heritage
You are not lost to me
Please, I do not want to burden you
I want to lift the yoke of your hurt
My eyes burn and my heart clenches
My hand is near just outside the flames
Where I embrace your brethren
Still living amidst the explosions
In my proximity there is a gulf of fire
But the winds blow cold
Parting the flames momentarily
I reach in and lift you out
Hold you as if you were my own
Your planet as mine joined by a blaze
Our planets merge into one
Inseparable as we’ve always been
To know you again to know your strength
Inseparable as we’ve always been
Believing our climate traces a proof
The skies push back smoke
We look together to the skies
A silence we begin to remember
Where was I the last time
The waters overdrew my feet
I looked out at the sea’s
Tangled white crests
Watching for any signs of you
I looked beyond the swells
Past the imaginary line of horizon
My bare feet grasp the sand,
Inextricable
I feel you from here
Water tumbling like cries
Waves spreading a burdened life before me
Shell eyes, driftwood limbs
I reach down to pick up a stone
Chiseled and smooth by innumerable fingers
And toss it through the spray
To reach you
I love the funky side of John Scofield:
And on a completely different musical track, just a masterclass in songwriting:
And finally, a similar style from another great singer songwriter:
Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all.