News From the War Room - 2025

Alabama beat Oklahoma.  Like always, Bama came out slowly, letting the Sooners jump ahead. Then the Sooners made two huge mistakes, allowing the Tide back in the game.  Can Alabama beat Indiana?  The SEC part of me thinks so.  The Auburn in me hopes Indiana embarrasses them.

Once again, A&M couldn't do it.  Miami beat them in the most boring game of the day.  Practically nothing happened until the last three minutes.  I was hoping to see lots of Beck sacks, but the Aggie defence disappointed me.   I do not like either one of these teams; I was also hoping that both would lose, but I'll have to wait for Miami to lose to Ohio State.  Ohio Stateshould whip their non-scoring asses.

As expected, Ole Miss handled Tulane.  It wasn't a game so much as a practice before playing Georgia.  We need to drop the G5 rule in the CFP.  Florida fans are probably wondering if they've made a huge coaching mistake.  I feel for the Tulane players.  I hope the Rebels beat Georgia.  Chances are?  I asked my all-knowing seer. "Reply Hazy, Try Again."

JMU played hard against Oregon.  What would have happened if the Ducka had traveled all the way across the country to play JMU in front of a home crowd?  These guys were tired, nervous, playing in the biggest game in their school's history.  No one thought they could win.  Yet, James Madison scored 34 points on Oregon.  They outscored them in the second half with four touchdowns and another field goal.  You can hold your heads high; you're for real, JMU.  Certainly, I'm cheering for Texas Tech on New Year's Day.

I don't think any of these teams move forward, unless the Bye Curse* is real.  Last year, every team with a first-round bye lost in the quarter-finals.

*31 December 2025: Ohio State, after a 25-day break, was defeated by the Miami team, who played last weekend.

*1 January 2025: Texas Tech looked lethargic in the Orange Bowl and was soundly defeated by Oregon.  They hadn't played a game since 6 December

Each year on the Salisbury Plain, at the Summer and Winter Solstices, people from all over the world converge on Stonehenge.  Like Halloween in the United States, it's dress-up time.

Devoid of any historical or scientific consensus on the reason or meaning of the circle of stones, the crowd always includes individuals and groups who make shit up to celebrate the two days.  Druids, Pagans, Wiccans, Wizzards, Saxons, and Earth-loving people abound.

It's a reason to party.  As for me, I'd go all the way back just to see This Girl.

Get excited.  Netflix is about to begin filming a new Luther Movie, a sequel to Luther: The Fallen Sun.  Filming in February, the release date is around mid-2027.  

Idris Elba returns as DCI John Luther, joined once again by Ruth Wilson as Alice Morgan.  Love Her!

This show is for you!  Watch the old TV Show on Britbox and The Fallen Sun on Netflix.  You can thank me later.

Coming back home from Alexandria, we like to drive Highway 29, rather than I-95.  To get there, we drive south on Highway 1 to take I-495 North to I-66 West.

Though we religiously use Google Maps, we've missed the exit to I-66 three times.  It is poorly marked, if at all.

Today,  I thought for sure I had it and began moving toward the exit.  Kady said, "Not here."  "I think this is it," I argued, slowing to give myself time for a last-minute lane change.  "Not Here," she said again.  

I shifted left.  

When we passed the exit I was going to take, it was obvious to both of us that we had missed the ramp.

"You missed the turn," she said.

"Oh, Oh, Alabama."  You got your ass beat.  Georgia owned you from the start.

Those of us outside your fanbase have known all season that you were a poser.  I knew that if you played Georgia again, like you played Auburn, you'd lose the SEC Championship.

Your losses to Florida State and Oklahoma weren't anomalies.  Your regular-season wins over Georgia, Vandy, Missouri, South Carolina, and Oklahoma were Lucky, and you didn't beat Auburn; Auburn beat Auburn.

Good Luck in the Playoffs—you're going to need it.

*Alabama by Neil Young

In a surprising turn of events, surprising to the nay-sayers back in Birmingham, Kady and I have been happily married for 44 years as of today.  

They knew all the reasons it wouldn't last—The age difference was too great, I was divorced with a child, I was a poor soldier, and she was used to having money.  They knew our marriage wouldn't survive the Army life.

To hell with those people.  What they didn't understand was how much I loved this woman and how much she loved me.  

It has been WONDERFUL.  She's WONDERFUL.

Back in July, when ATLAS Station first discovered this interstellar object, I joked that it would soon begin it's breaking maneuvers to move into Earth Orbit.

Everything I read about it these days gives me pause; It's doing some weird shit out there—cyclic jets every 16.6 hours, tails facing away from and pointing toward the Sun, and FM transmissions.  I understand about half of the science I read about it, but I don't have the math for the rest.  Thanks a LOT DR. Loeb.  Big Help.

So, Dad was right about me needing Math.

My Opinion: The double tail is probably caused by its trajectory. The FM transmissions are from its composition reacting to our sun, and the 16.6-hour jets are from a slow spin.  This thing is going to whiz by Mars and Jupiter and keep going, leaving our Scientists and all the internet sleuths scratching their heads and wondering, "What the hell WAS that thing?"

Unless it engages some serious brakes.

We could have beaten that other team.  Too many dropped passes, fumbles, penalties, and stupid mistakes cost us that game.

I have no clue what we'll look like next year.  I expect the transfer portal will treat us harshly, as quality players go to more successful programs that are offering them more money.   Somehow, we have to keep Cam Coleman and Deuce Knight!

Now, we have a new coach.  In a very hush-hush hire, Tiger's AD picked Alex Golesh from USF, a solid guy with a winning record and years of giving Bama fits.

At my age and in my current situation, I believe that my traveling days may be over.  I'd rather be home.  Home, where I'm most comfortable.  Home, where things are conveniently located.  Home, where I eat healthier.

Home, where Kady has built us a little Heaven on Earth.

This became evident in Tennessee -  I couldn't get comfortable, didn't sleep well, and ate too much junk.  I was hot, then I was cold.  I couldn't go outside for more than a minute or two.  I love the Farm, but the cold and wind were unbearable.

Now, I'm in my chair, drinking a Lavazza Coffee, connected to my NAS, and watching Michigan play Ohio State.

I'm "Indoorsy!"

We're headed to The Farm for Thanksgiving.  I'll make a day trip from there to Charlotte, NC, for lunch with CFN.  I'm taking these cameras and all their kit with me, hoping to squash my defeatism and do some real goddamn photography.

I have a Cunning Plan!   "(A plan that) is as cunning as a fox who has just been appointed Professor of Cunning at Oxford University. So Cunning that you could put a tail on it and call it a weasel." ~Black Adder

I'm going to take some Beautiful Photographs!

I love this time of year for the colors, cool temperatures, football, holidays, and all the shows.  Here's what I'm Watching -

Death by Lightning, Netflix, Now - Done.  Great History Lesson.  Learn more about Garfield before respecting him.

Zero Day, Netflix, Now - DeNero.  Intense.

High Potential,  Hulu, Now, Weekly - Fun.

Boston Blue, CBS, Now, Weekly - Blue Bloods continues in Boston

Plur1bus, Apple, Now, Weekly - Happy Zombies!

The Diplomat, Netflix, Now - Done in one day.  So mad at myself.  Great Show!

Only Murders, Hulu, Now - Funnier each season.

Ghosts, Paramount, Now - Haven't started it yet.

Tulsa King, Paramount, Now, Weekly - Cool Show.  Add Dana Delany; sold!

Landman, Paramount, Soon - Just a few more days.  Love me some Billy Bob

Music has always helped me focus.  As a kid, Mom and Dad never understood that.  As an adult, I learned that I was more productive with good music in the background.  As a Sergeant First Class, First Sergeant, and Sergeant Major, my music was always playing in my office.  My soldiers took part by suggesting music I might like.

One day, in Charlie Company, a Trooper stuck his head in my door and asked if I had ever heard of Toad the Wet Sprocket.  "Toad the Wet Sprocket?  What kind of stupid name is that? "  I may have dropped a few expletives to go with that.

The next day, I found a Toad cassette on my desk.  Laughing, I gave it a try.  I've been a fan since.  I still listen to them, more than any other music.  I love all their stuff, old and new.

I have cancelled my birthday plans to revisit Key West.

I wanted to visit every filming location used in the Fox series, but I have to realize that I'll never find that Key West.  Like Bourbon Street, KW is for younger folks, not an old man in the sunset of his life.  I've added it to my list of things I won't get to do, like driving Bess along the Miracle Strip in PC and returning to İzmir.

Kim suggested a cabin in the mountains, with a fireplace and beautiful vistas.  She knows me.

Goodbye Savannah.  Farewell, Seamus, Gumbo, Rikki, Flame, and Jojo.

I included a "Favorites" page in the first versions of my website.  I included things like my favorite song, movie, playmate, team, car, and the only beer I have ever truly loved.

I've never been a drinker (not counting my time in 1 Para), but I always kept a six-pack of St. Pauli Girl, a German export, in the fridge for those times friends would visit.  Otherwise,  six beers would last me a year.

The Girl is still imported, but very hard to find on the shelf.  I sublimate with Corona and Blue Moon.

Nowadays, I can't drink, so I keep non-alcoholic beer in the refrigerator for when I feel like celebrating or enjoying a beautiful day.

When I can drink (about 2.5 years from now), I plan on having a St. Pauli.  On the beach.  At Sunset.  With another Beautiful Girl.

We'll never understand the Middle East or the colonization of the New World unless we begin here.  I'm also listening to "The Knights Templar" podcast while I walk.

"I put no stock in religion.  By the word "religion," I have seen the lunacy of fanatics of every denomination be called the Will of God.  I've seen too much religion in the eyes of too many murderers.  Holiness is in right action, and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves, and goodness.  What God desires is here (head) and here (heart), and what you decide to do every day.  You will be a good man . . . or not."  ~ The Hospitaler, Kingdom of Heaven 

I fell in love with Turkish music during my first tour.  Boris Moncho, Sezen Aksu, and MFO were my initial favorites, but I loved a young singer who released her second album shortly after I arrived.  The first hit was Hesap Ver.  I couldn't get it out of my head; her voice was a Siren Song.

I know that Turk Muzik isn't for everyone, but kindly try the video below.  I hope you'll agree with me that there is magic in that voice.

Back home in America, I couldn't find her music, so I wore out my cassette.  I bought all of the CDs when I returned in 1990, and new ones in 2000.  Learning the words to the songs and translating them helped me learn Türkçe.

I saw her in Concert during my last tour.  As I expected, she was fantastic.  I'm sure I was the only American in the crowd who sang along with every song.  My Turk friends thought this was very funny.

I'm not a Vietnam Vet.  I graduated from high school in '71, but it took me a while to figure out that I should serve.  I joined in '76. Since I was not in 'Nam, I didn't know about Cris Noel and what she meant to the soldiers who did.

I discovered her researching a subject on the internet. You need to know her.

Between 1963 and 1966, she had appeared in seven movies and had recorded two singles.  She put her promising career on hold to host a radio show, "Date with Cris," on Armed Forces Radio from 1966 to 1971.  She went to Vietnam several times to perform holiday shows for the troops, visiting large bases and choppering into small firebases.

When the war ended, she continued to take care of the returning troops.  She formed Vetsville Cease Fire Shelters in Florida to provide for disabled, homeless, and hungry Veterans. Now in her 80s, she's still helping Vets.

Cris is an American Treasure.

It's back!  One of the best series on the net.  Watch!  Apple TV, every Wednesday.

You've probably seen the Pampers commercial with a great version of “Stand by Me” playing in the background. I asked, out loud, Who the hell is that? That's great! 

Well, of course, I went Googling and found out that I was not the only one looking for this guy.  I only had to type in Pampers Commercial and Google filled in the rest.

The singer is Stephen Wilson Jr. He's fantastic.  He plays a mean guitar, writes his own stuff, and sounds like Willy Nelson and Chris Stapleton's mom had a baby.  Most of his stuff is country, but he does some genre-crossing songs.  He's written songs for a lot of people in the music industry.

Give him a shot; you'll be impressed.

Begin with "Tonight, Tonight."

CFN just ordered a new Pixel 10 in "Lemongrass."  I'm envious.

I love having the newest and fanciest gadgets, but do I really need them?  I checked in with my service provider, and I'll be qualified for their upgrade program after my next payment.  I could have a P10 for very little money.

Comparing the specifications of the two phones shows little difference.

My phone is perfect for me.  I'll Keep It.

But Wait!  The Pixel Fold 10!  Cool!

Stop, Neely!

My phone is perfect for me.  My phone is perfect for me.  My phone is perfect for me!

There is a certain age span where my grandchildren have enjoyed my company.  Though they have always preferred Kady, I've been their outdoor playmate.  The fun begins when they are about two, but sadly ends when they are about nine or ten, when hanging out with granddad gives way to video games, friends, and more important things.

With Jk, it was Ball.  Any Ball.  We played lacrosse, hockey, tennis, football, soccer, and, our favorite, baseball.  The Kid could hit!  He was good at everything he tried.  He was fond of going to the baseball field, running, and sliding into the bases.

ES loves science. At five, she asked me why we sometimes see the moon in the day and sometimes at night.  When I explained it, she understood.  We watched the stars and the ISS together, visited museums, and built projects.  She loved learning photography and going to the park with me.  She was interested in my guitar.

SGM will come looking for me when she can't see me.  She knows Kady and I go together.  Whenever they FaceTime, she asks, "Where is Granddaddy?"  We build  Magnatile things together.  I'm her big playmate.

And, then . . . they get older.

Streets of Fire, the 1984 movie starring Diane Lane, Michael Paré, Amy Madigan, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, Rick Moranis, Bill Paxton, and Willem Dafoe, is one of my favorite movies.  I consider it one of the few "perfect" movies.

Walter Hill directed and gave it the same feel of his movie, The Warriors.

The cast was solid, the story was well written, the acting was strong, and the music was Fantastic.  It wasn't a success here in the States, released the same weekend as Indiana Jones: Temple of Doom, but it has gained a strong worldwide cult following since.

I found out this morning that there was an unauthorized sequel.  It starred Paré and Van Valkenburg.  Everything I read said it was terrible and suggested I didn't watch it.

I'm going to say this right here - Do Not Watch This Fuckin' Movie.  Everything about it is wrong.

The screenwriter turned hometown hero and tough guy, Tom Cody, into a Vietnam Vet, driven to madness by his military training, who has become a serial killer.  His weapon of choice, of course, is a Rambo knife.  Cliché much?  he movie is filled with B-movie eye candy, none of whom could act if their lives depended on it.  The music is bad, ripping off the original soundtrack.  The girl imitating Ellen Aim did a bad job of trying to replace Diane Lane.  Had the movie deleted the unnecessary close-ups, redundant scenes, and most of the dialogue, it could have been billed as a short; the comic book feel felt like a very long graphic novel. A bad one!

Paré says he was duped into making this movie.  I believe him.

If you're stupid like I am, it's on YouTube.  Don't Go There!

Yesterday, the Secretary of Defense announced that the Reconciliation Monument would be returned to its rightful place over the Confederate graves at Arlington National Cemetery.

"It never should have been taken down by woke lemmings.  Unlike the Left, we don’t believe in erasing American history— we honor it," Hegseth said.  

I plan to be there.

I had high hopes for Season 3.  I can't watch another episode.

With a whole universe out there, all the writers can come up with is rewriting old stories, sprinkled with glitter.

Episode 3/1 - Enterprise surrounded by overwhelming force, escapes with last-second bullshit tech built by, who else, Mr. Scott.  How many times have we seen this?  If we take the framistat and, using a right-hand rotomoter, phase it with the whatchamagizit, we can ram their ship without concerning ourselves with the laws of physics.

Episode 3/2 - Rewrite of The Squire of Gothos with a fashion show and the same ridiculous ending.

Episode 3/3 - Zombies in Space!  Wimpiest Klingons Ever!  Still another miracle rescue by warping into the atmosphere from orbit.

Just, No!

My love for the FOX TV series led me to Key West, which sparked my interest in Papa Hemingway and his writings.    I read everything I could get my hands on.  Studying Papa, sent me to Captain Tony's Bar.  Reading about Captain Tony introduced me to Mel Fisher, his search for the Atocha, and his discovery of its treasure.

I have a vague memory of this discovery, but it has only now impressed me.  I should have visited the Shipwreck Museum in Key West.  Duh!

Yesterday, I watched 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Treasure Island.  I'm catching up.  I'm currently unable to do much else.

First stops when I get back to the Keys: Mel's Maritime Museum and The Shipwreck Treasures Museum.

Let it be said of him that he pilgrimaged to Canterbury, wondered at Stonehenge, worshiped at the Alter of Zeus, visited three of the Ancient Wonders, jumped into the sands of Oman, crossed the Dardanelles, sailed the Aegean and Mediterranean, became one with the Jungles of Panama and Grenada, climbed the Beaches of Normandy, and walked the streets of Holy Ilios. 

The Neel505 Bird Observation Facility (BOF) continues to grow, much to the chagrin of my wife, and attracts birds from all over Charlottesville.  Well, maybe just Hollymead. I have included squirrel-resistant, thistle, and peanut butter suet feeders.

Mom taught her boys the birds and gave each of us a copy of her favorite book.  I took it everywhere until it was destroyed on a field exercise.

I enjoy sitting out back and watching them.  They are a favorite photo subject.

I took this with my P9P; it's a quick shot of all three feeders in use.

I can't wait to tell Kady I need a Hummingbird Feeder.

I'm going to Walmart today to buy some clay pellets for my slingshot; the squirrels are little assholes.

I dig science.  I've read most of Dr. Tyson's books and listen to his Star Talk podcast.  His remake of Cosmos was good, though it didn't have the brain-tingling feel of Carl Sagan's series.

I saw him speak at VMI.  Impressive.

He has a way of getting his point across so that even dumb-ass high school grads from Alabama can understand.

I can't wait to get into this, but I need to finish the Captain Tony book first

 3I/Atlas (A11pl3Z), an object 10-20 kilometers wide, is moving across our solar system from interstellar space, traveling at about 60 kilometers a second.  This is the largest and only the third interstellar object ever detected.  Astronomers predict it will pass by the sun outside the orbit of Mars.  The Atlas Sky Survey discovered it.  The discovery was first announced by astronomy student K Ly (handle: @astrafoxen) on BlueSky.

Let the fun speculation begin.

I'm betting it'll begin its breaking maneuvers to move into Earth orbit.  Kidding.

After repeatedly binge-watching Carnival Row, Harry Potter, and Middle-Earth movies, the Richmond Faerie Federation, and other like-minded weirdos left the Shire, converging on IX Park (of course) this past weekend.

The local media touted it as a "Renaissance Faire," but this was nothing like that. This "Fae Festival" featured Faries that couldn't possibly fly, Whale-sized Mermaids, Tubby Trolls, and anything else people dream about being while using Bath Salts.  The photos clearly showed that the Fae Folk desperately needed a physical fitness program and that there are a LOT of strange people in America.

When I heard it was a Renaissance fair, I thought I'd dress up as a Medieval Friar— brown robe, sandals, rope belt, big wooden cross, and shave the top of my head in a Tonsure.  Not really, though I would have had a brilliant time saying, "Bless Your Little Heart."

I have a rule: If it is at IX Park, I'm Not Going.  If I could buy that place, I'd tear it down (Three Notch Brewery would be safe), burn the faux art, dig up the concrete, and plant a small hardwood forest, a habitat for real fairies, elves, sprites, nymphs, and unicorns.  I would hire a local shaman to purge the IX demons.

I'm leaving it Right Here for the whole world to read or the two or three people who visit my site: Brussel(s) Sprouts Suck!

Every time I say this, one of my friends tells me they know a person, place, or recipe that makes them good.  "Delicious.  They always use that word.

Why are there so many recipes for Brussels Sprouts (BS)?  Because everyone is trying to make them palatable.  I don't care if you're Paula Dean, Gordon Ramsay, or Julia Child, you can't fix BS.  I don't care how they are cooked or who cooked them; they taste like cardboard.

If you're serving them, it is best not to invite me.  It is wise not to insist that I try them.  If you do either, you're setting yourself up for a blunt and unkind appraisal of your Best BS Recipe, Ever.  See what I did there?

KS has been telling me forever, "Watch Godless on Netflix."  It took me a while, but I got to it and finished it today.

I'll make a bold statement— Godless is the best Western Series since Lonesome Dove.

Watch it.  You'll fall in love with every character, even Jeff Daniels' Frank Griffin, the worst bad guy ever.  My favorite was Tantoo Cardinal playing Iyovi, a Paiute Grandmother.

I bet, if you even saw this article in Physis.Org, you skipped it.

Gunther Kletetschka, a University of Alaska Fairbanks associate professor, has postulated that Time, not space plus time, might be the single fundamental property in which all physical phenomena occur. He says, "The theory also argues that time comes in three dimensions rather than just the single one we experience as continual forward progression. Space emerges as a secondary manifestation."

Supposedly, reading through the article, he says he has the "math" to prove it.  OK.

Why is a scientist, able to upset the Space-Time applecart, only an associate professor in Alaska?

This makes no sense to me.  Of course, I'm no associate professor of physics at the University of Fairbanks.

In the real world, I'm 6'1" tall, entirely too wide, and far too narrow.  My mass is, as of this morning, 222 pounds.  I will exist in time for about 80 +/- years.  That's looking like a big old "minus" right now.  I have grown over time, but that ain't what he's saying.

Once the brainiacs review his math, I'm betting he'll be proven wrong and remain in Alaska for the rest of his time in the universe.  But, maybe we'll all be time-traveling in the near future.

"Look there on the bench behind you— that coiled spring.  It's a helix, a two-dimensional cross-section twisted in a third dimension.  If you make two marks on it, you can go from one to the other by traveling along the spring, round and round, for about six inches.  Or you can cut across from one spiral to the next . . . That's all there is to it.  Past time-present time-future time, side by side."  ~ P. Schuyler Miller, The Sands of Time, 1937

Hulu dropped all ten episodes of The Bear, yesterday.  I'm already done.

So. Good.

Listen to this girl.  I discovered her about ten years ago, looking for Radiohead's Creep on YouTube.

She's amazing.  She does a lot of covers, but has released her own stuff.  It's all on Spotify.

You can't argue with her 1.97 million YouTube subscribers.  Her cover of Creep has over 41 million views.

Also, she looks like this!  Hey, Girl.

If you are a Parrothead, Conch, or visitor to Key West, you know of Captain Tony.  His place on Greene Street is a prominent Key West bar, Captain Tony's Saloon  It was the first Sloppy Joe's, the bar frequented by Papa Hemingway.  Jimmy Buffett sang about him in his song Last Mango in Paris.  Tony gave Jimmy his big break, singing at the saloon.

I'm reading Brad Manard's book about him, $15.45 on Amazon.

So far, I'm loving it.  There are small pearls of wisdom throughout, a surprise.  Tony was a bit of a rascal.

One of the first things that hit me was what he told Manard about doing the book— "I'm a dead man trying to get my house in order.  This book is all about my ego.   My friend, Shel Silverstein, once told me books are forever.  I know I won't live forever unless we get this book written.  I want to live forever." ~ p. 41

Reading that, I asked myself, "Is this silly website what will survive me after I die?"  Poetic Justice.

I never met Tony.  I wish I had.  But, perhaps we're still friends.  He has a cameo in one of the best episodes of Key West, Act of God.  He's the old man in Gumbo's, giving everyone his opinion on the tropical storm that became Hurricane Andrew.

Captain Tony Tarracino died on 1 November 2008 at 92.

Kady bought CE this dress at one of the many Laura Ashley stores we shopped in England.  I think this was in 1989 while Kady's mom, Sylvia, and our friend, Sally, were visiting.  I took photos of her wearing it.

This morning, CE  sent us a photo of SGM wearing it.  Kady had me find my photos of CE.  They were in Black and White.

No Problem.  I colorized baby CE and then layered the dress in Photoshop.  SGM Left, CE Right, both 4 years old.  It's true!  I'm a Wizard!

I wish I could be around to photograph my great-granddaughter wearing it.

I need a place.

I need a secluded beach with sunshine and surf, where I can sit, dig my toes into the sand, and listen.  The Keys.  Back Bay?

Whatever happened to Insert the name of your favorite movement.

Where are all the Prohibition, Me Too, Black Lives Matter, Occupy Wall Street, Defund the Police, Anti-War, ERA, Antifa, No Nukes, and Anti-Israel people now?  What did they accomplish?

The truth is, they fizzled out from a lack of popular support, accomplishing nothing.  Unlike the Vietnam Anti-war and the Civil Rights movements, which had the overwhelming support of the American people, these pipe dreams likely fizzled by being boring, unpopular, and one-sided. and by becoming overly restrictive and violent.  

Americans do not cotton to destruction and looting.  They believe in their way of life.  They know right from wrong and don't believe lies.  They want to go about their lives without your input.  They are bored with you.

P.S. - The Tesla dealership is open in Stonefields.

One of my favorite actors is Leland Crooke.  Hell, he's probably my favorite.

You've probably never heard of him.

I discovered him in the short-lived Fox TV Series Key West.  If you know me, you know how I loved that show.  He played Gumbo, the owner of a bar which was the show's central set.

You can watch all episodes on YouTube.

Like Jennerfer Tilly, he was a favorite of the writer-producer-director, David Beaird.  Crooke played Jumper in Beaird's Scorchers, Cat Bite in My Chauffer, and Buddy in The Civilization of Maxwell Bright.  He had some minor parts in Matlock, Melrose Place, ER, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, JAG, Angel, and Charmed.

I just watched Scorchers on MGM.  It was marvelous.  It must be one of his best parts.

Watch Lelan's opening monologue here

But, I'll always remember him as Gumbo, in his bar, with Tickle Pink the Alligator. I just discovered that Coconut Malory's put the Gumbo's sign back over the bar.  It's a clear sign that it is time for me to return.

This new creation from 505 Coffee was conceived in necessity— what I had available in the kitchen.  I heated and frothed a half-cup of Oat Milk and added it to 6oz of Lavazza Espresso with my Keurig.

I was impressed by how beautiful it was.  And, surprise, it was delicious.  No, really!  Neely is getting good.

This week has been a whirlwind. I put 6 important steps behind me.  

The Med Board reviewed my case over the weekend and agreed that we're in the right Track.

I saw the Anesthesiologist on Tuesday, my Oncologist on Wednesday, my Cardiologist for clearance and did an MRI on Thursday.  They gave me 10mg of Valium to get through the MRI, which worked nicely.  Kim rewarded me with Bone Fish Grill for being such a big boy.

We were "Go" for surgery on 12 June.  All I had to do was get a final CT scan and see my surgeon on Wednesday.

My surgeon's office called this morning to cancel surgery so she and my Oncologist could review my PET Scan, MRI, and CT Scan.

We rescheduled my surgery after I met with them.  So, 10 July, then.

I'm disappointed but Fuck It; it ain't nothing but a thing.

Update:  My MRI results are back.  It confirmed that I do have a brain and that nothing is wrong with it.  Thankfully, MRIs don't measure intelligence.

Once again, the Forest Lakes Community has to replace the Information Nature Signs around Hollymead Lake.  Vandals continue to break them or tear them off their posts.  I don't know who put them up in the first place, but I have enjoyed stopping at each one to read about the fish, birds, and plants around the lake.

Who wouldn't appreciate them?  

The damage looks like a stupid Kid Stuff to me.

I hope they go back up.  

I suggest mounting the signs on half-inch steel plates, welding them on larger steel posts, and cementing them deep in the ground.  Set up Trail Cameras to catch these hooligans.  Advise parents that you're tired of this crap, and suggest they teach and supervise their kids.  Remind everyone of the penalty for vandalism and the costs of replacing the new, expensive signs.   We need a reporting system so we can report damage.

Don't give up.  Replace signs as soon as they are damaged.  Every time it happens, raise the Housing Association Fees to cover the cost (Nothing motivates like losing money).

If adults are doing this damage, I hope I catch them.

My favorite song is Procol Harum's Whiter Shade of Pale.  I believe it is the greatest song ever written.

Released in May 1967, just before I entered high school,  it sold over 10 million copies and has been covered more than 1000 times by lesser artists like Annie Lennox, Joe Cocker, and Bonnie Tyler, who tried their best to ruin it.

I'm thankful to Gary Brooker and Matthew Fisher for the music, Keith Reid for the lyrics, and J. S. Bach for the inspiration ( Orchestral Suite No. 32, Air, BWV 1068).

We're on Tybee Island. The family converged here to celebrate my granddaughter's birthday.

I got up early and took photos of the Lighthouse and North Beach Boardwalk at sunrise.  It was beautiful. Peaceful.  Serene.

The Beach!

Kady and I went for Turkish and then to the Walking Mall to drop off my pocket watch for repair and to find SGM a birthday present.  Inside this two-block area, I counted ten people camped on benches, beside buildings, and in front of business and residential entrances.  Some had their stuff in carts or buggies.  Some piled their belongings near their chosen sleeping area.

The City Council won't do anything about it.  They consider this a city-wide problem.  They say they are "exploring options" like working with The Salvation Army and building shelters, but demand they be "Low Barrier."  Low barrier is a term for no rules, like Proof of ID, Drug Testing, and Background Checks.

All they promise is enhanced police presence. 

I didn't see one officer while I was there.

Lately, a lot of the news is about the death of some guy in Rome.  I don't know anything about this person nor could I give two shits about him.  His organization, however, is the most pervasive evil ever perpetrated on mankind.  I loathe it.

Let's go back in their history and have a look, shall we?

• Suppression of other religions, ancient texts, and scientific discovery

• The Inquisition

• The Crusades

• The Doctrine of Discovery - justification for the colonization and exploitation of non-Christian lands and peoples

• Wars of Religion (Thirty Years Wars, French Religious Wars, England’s War of Three Kingdoms, . . . )

• Support of Evil Regimes

• Forced Assimilation of Native Americans

• Handling of child abuse cases and protection of priests

• Subjugation of women, beginning with the defamation of Mary Magdalene as a Prostitute

This organization has always been about Money, Finery, Power, and World Domination.  It is so far outside the teachings of Jesus that it should never be called a Christian organization.

Sadly, Frank's "church" didn't die with him.

This is the High-505, based on Grit Coffee's High-Five. I made it this morning by pulling Espresso over a pinch of raw sugar, pouring in a little steamed Half-and-Half, and sprinkling a pinch of sea salt over the foam.

It smelled amazing, looked delicious, and tasted fantastic.

Now that I have perfected the taste of Espresso, Cappuccino, and this, I'll start learning to do Latte Art.

Visit.  Have a coffee with me.

Yesterday, rich people paid an exorbitant price (estimated at $28M) to ride a rocket on an eleven-minute ride to slightly above the Kármán Line into outer space and then free-fell back to earth, until the chutes deployed.  They didn't touch one control.

They did launch with a token scientist, Aisha Bowe, whose credentials are impressive enough to set her apart.

It wasn't lost on me that the group included two whites, one black, one asian, and one Hispanic.  

Now they want to call themselves The All-Woman "Crew" and "Astronauts."  They babbled about how this 11-minute joyride changed their lives and increased their love for Mother Earth.

Thankfully, they survived to experience the ridicule and backlash waiting for them back on Earth.  Had they not, songs of lamentation would have been sung for years.

Let's be clear, they were passengers or tourists.  They were not a crew, and they are not astronauts!  That's like saying I'm a Pilot if I ride in an airplane.

I have proudly displayed this on the wall of The War Room or my Office for years.  Now, in my last days, I have an issue with it.

In this document, I am called an "Honorary Member of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment."

The Secretary of the Army was Togo West, who only served in the Army for eight years, mostly as a JAG Captain.

COL Newman served as the 505th Commander from June 95 to July 97 - two years.  I remember him as a good commander and as a Ranger Regiment guy.  He jumped into Grenada with B-1-75.

I served in the 2nd Battalion 505PIR from 1996 - 1980, 1981-1984, 1985-1990 (88-90, I was in the Parachute Regiment, still assigned to the 505), and 1992-1995.  I was COL Newman's Brigade First Sergeant (1SG) from 1995 to 1996.  That's fifteen years, rising in rank from PV1 (E-1) to 1SG (E-8), until the Army selected me for Sergeant Major.

I count that as sixteen years, twice as long as Togo was in the Army and eight times longer than Clyde was in the 505.  Who the fuck are these two guys to designate me as an "honorary" Anything?

No, I am A Member the 505th Parachute Infantry!

I loved this show and wished it would never end.  Taylor Sheridan finished Strong.  I loved the ending; tragic and moving.  I may have cried.

Who didn't love Spencer the Badass and Alexandra the Duchess of Sussex?  I hope the Duttons in Yellowstone share their bloodline.

I'm left with questions:

1. Was Jack's real name John?

2. Which John is John III's father, who fought in World War II?

3. Did Jack's child with Elizabeth return to inherit the ranch?

4. What's the Spencer, Widow, and her boy story?

5. Who in the Wide World of Sports are Ned and Chance (S1/E2)?

Taylor, speak.

I haven't said shit all season.  I was afraid that if I did, I'd jinx the team.  I believe in Jinxes.

Coach Pearl and the Team had a great run.  They played their hearts out and asses off every game.  That's hard to do.  Am I disappointed? Of course.  Every Auburn Fan believed we would win.

Great Season, Tigers!  You made us PROUD!  I believe in Auburn and Love It.  War damn Eagle!

I figured out two new (and useful) things in Photoshop Elements:

1. The easiest way to correct a "marginal" photo.

2. The fastest way to add your metadata to an image.

To illustrate, I chose an old photo from 1985 of Army Photographer Bob Ducette.  It was one of my first attempts at Available Light People Photos.  I love the shot, but it was never a great photo.

I discovered that you can open any image as a RAW photo and adjust it using the RAW Window in Photoshop. (File - Open in Camera RAW - choose your file - PS loads your image in the RAW Adjustment Window).

You have to try this.  It will convince you to Always Shoot in RAW.

Next, protect your photo.  Add your Personal and Camera info to the metadata (File - File Info).  That's easy enough... but why do it every time?  Why not build a Template you can load to every photo?  Easier (File - File Info - IPTC Extensions - type in your repeating information - Template at the bottom - Export - PS puts it in a special folder for importing to your next image).

For this image, I watermarked, framed, shadowed, and saved it for the web to reduce the size and speed of browser loading.

Making a watermark in PS is super easy:

1. Open your Brand Image (white background)

2. Using the Horizontal Type Tool (T), choose your font in Black (000000), Type.

3. In Layers (Windows, check Layers), choose the image layer and adjust the opacity (top Slider) to show lots of contrast between the image and letters.

4. Save as PSD File

5. Create a Brush (Edit - Define Brush), then name and save it.  It'll show up at the bottom of your brush list.

6. Now, with the Brush Tool, you can paint this anywhere on your photo, in any color, with a mouse click.

Protect Your Photos!

You need to give David Nail a try. He's fantastic. His music is not really "country." I'd call it Americana. This lad is a singer-songwriter. You probably know his version of Red Light by Jonathan Singleton, released in 2009.

Listen to every song; there are great treasures here - Mississippi, St. Louis, Missouri, Sound of a Thousand Dreams . . . Hell, they're all good.

Start with his first album, I'm About to Come Alive.

You're Welcome.

When I got my first Android phone (Samsung S10), I loaded Sketch Guru from the Google Play Store.  It was a great app that let me turn photos into sketches.  I used it a lot during my first experiments with Instagram.

I once used it to turn a Brett Niles photo of me doing my Jump Master thing into a sketch.  This photo had been stolen from my website, turned into "Art," that the "Artist" was selling at his online Military Art Store.

Brett, an amazing Photographer, had recently taken his own life, another victim of the plague decimating our particular species, so I took a real exception to this property infringement.  I contacted this asshole but never heard back.

If you haven't watched this movie on Netflix, get to it. Watch it with your kids. It stars Chris Pratt, Millie Bobby Brown, and Stanley Tucci. It's a fun and comical movie about the fight between good and evil.

The cast playing the robots is unbelievable.

Highly Recommend.

Yesterday, I thought about going to VMI's New Market Parade this May.  I recovered quickly.

I miss the Cadets and the great Southern Military College it once aspired to be, but I don't miss the politics, the entitled alumni, the professors, or some of the staff.

The school pissed me off when they buckled under the whines of a few alumni and liberals to remove the Statue of Jackson in front of Jackson Arch, agreeing by doing so to the rewriting of history that labels Stonewall a traitor.

I thought this school was a bastion of Southern Conservatism and truth.  I was wrong.

Will it recover in this time of backlash?  Nah.  Probably not.  "Higher" education is all about the money.

A while back, I got an email from a former cadet asking about a memory of a Fake Colonel coming to VMI and messing with Cadets.  I confirmed and gave him all the details I remembered.  Yesterday, he sent me a story he wrote from the Rat Perspective of the incident.  It was good.

Today, my daughter-in-law came over for coffee. She wanted to show me what she had found about her people on Family Search. I set up a Family Group so she could see and edit my tree. She's already working like a little beaver, building on my strawman for her side of the family.  Finally, a member of my family is interested.

I miss teaching and working with young people.  

I need a budding photographer to mentor.

Mirra Andreeva!  She will be a big thing and My Favorite Player once she turns 18;  I don't want to be "creepy."

Update: She beat Sabalinka after losing the first set to win Indian Wells.  Hokie Smokes, it was amazing.

My Dell XPS8930 finally died right in the middle of watching Reacher.  She won't turn back on.

Miriam was a hell of a girl.  For seven years, old age in computer years, she was a beast - an i5 processor, 32GB of RAM, two mirrored 500GB SSDs, running Windows 11 Pro.

I was prepared.   I hooked up my new laptop to my big monitor, and that's all it took to do things like always.

Farewell, Good and Faithful Friend.

Update: I ordered a new Dell.  When will I ever give up on the Chrome OS Idea?  It just doesn't work for my hobbies.

Dark Winds, Season 3, just started on AMC.  If you liked Longmire, you'll like this.

Zahn McClarnon plays a tough Navajo cop, very much like his character in Longmire.  It took me a while to get into Season 1, but I'm hooked now.

Great series!

The best SciCom Podcast out there is Ologies by Alie Ward.  I've said that before, I know.

No walk is complete without my Alie Time.  She's clever, funny, knowledgeable, sometimes "colorful," and unafraid of asking dumb questions.  She interviews top experts in each field, choosing a new 'ology each week.

She covers serious subjects and hard science, but fun enough to cover witches for Halloween.  Even the beat of her theme song is the exact cadence of my walking pace.

Listen!  Pick a subject that interests you.  You will not be bored.  You will learn something you didn't know before.  Guaranteed.  Be prepared for a little Woke Thought disguised as science.

When I returned home from my 1985 assignment to Türkiye, the 1985 BBC series In Search of the Trojan War by Michael Wood was released on American TV.  You can still watch it Here.

I return to it often.  I'm not sure what it is about this series, but it brings on an emotional response in me, every time.  Perhaps it is the music or Michael's wonderful ability to tell a story.  Is it my love of history and archaeology, or that I stood in many of the places he visits?

Most likely, it is my way of returning to my beloved second home, Türkiye.

Troy was the first place I visited during my second and third NATO tours of duty.

During those tours, I took my soldiers to Troy, telling them the story on the bus and walking them around the site.  I had our UH-1 Pilots make a detour over Hissarlik as we returned to Izmir from a NATO Exercise in Keşan.

I bought this book a while ago, but never picked it up.  I took it with me on a trip to Maryland, and I'm completely caught up in the story; I can't put it down.

HBO is making a series to be released in 2026.  I'm for it, even if there are no dragons.

Highly recommended! 

I displayed the cameras from my youth in The War Room for years.  After retirement, I gave most of them away or sold them.  I kept my Canon A-1 and Uncle Ed's Mamiya-6.  I have Dad's 35mm Rangefinder.

The guy in the Stanton Camera Museum is cut from a different cloth.

I went there yesterday.  This is not a museum but a huge collection of film cameras and equipment.  There were so many cameras that the place was cluttered, resembling the inside of a hoarder's house.  It was hard to navigate.

This collection, though amazing, would be better served with fewer cameras, displayed chronologically, by type, or by make, rotated often to keep it fresh and clean.  It needs a much larger, more open space and professional informational graphics.  The proprietor should stop his pedantic hovering and remove the mountain of old camera bags on the floor.

If you're a camera fan, this place is still worth visiting.  There are treasures here. 

405 E 45th St, New York, NY 10017

Oh, how I hope this happens in my lifetime.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, introduced bills in the Senate and the House called DEFUND (Disengaging Entirely from the United Nations Debacle) to get us the hell OUT of this evil international organization.  

If this happens, we can stop propping it up with American dollars, remove the largest purveyor of foreign intelligence inside our country, and free up a large office building in downtown NYC, right on the East River.

I'm for it.  I've always been for it!  Do it NOW!  Expel all of the UN Ambassadors and their lackeys.

You Go, Lee Roy!

That's right, I said it.

Last August, in my 2024 Notes, I said this little girl would be special.

Mirra Andreeva (#12) just beat three Grand Slam winners, Rybakina (#7), Vondrousova, and five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek (#2) to get to the Dubai Final.  She defeated injured Tauson 7 - 6, 6 - 1 in the final.

At 17, she is the youngest to win the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and championship in a WTA 1000 event.  She'll probably be in the Top Ten next week.

I may have found my new player.

"Microsoft’s new “topological qubit” is not based on a solid, liquid, or gas. It is another phase of matter that many experts did not think was possible. "  ~ NYT Article, 19 February 2025

My son sent me this with an exploding head emoji.  "I'm Smart," I thought.  I read the article.

Huh?

I read a few articles.

Uh?

I sent back -"This is so beyond my ability to understand it's crazy.  I'm going to file it under Magic." 

I remain convinced that we humans are unfocused.  What if we took the same amount of time, effort, brain-power, and money spent on new and better cell phones, faster gaming computers, going to Mars, and killing each other, on more important shit like saving the only home we have?

Huh?

Come on, Neely!  What nonsense!

". . . no kindly thaw shall melt the snows of age." ~ Robert Burns, The Winter of Life 

It's snowing again today.  So far, it's not a lot and isn't sticking to the roads, but it's supposed to accumulate an inch an hour till the wee hours.  

I'm ready to get past this crap.  I'm ready for Spring.

Yawn.

It was over in the first quarter and all downhill from there.  This year's "Super" Bowl was anything but.  M'Homie couldn't get anything going until the second half.  By then, it was too late.  The problem was his protection; The Eagles Defense was all over his ass and the Chiefs didn't adjust.

Conversely, Jalen and Barkley were solid, and their team wanted the Title and the Big Ring.  They smoked the Chiefs.

As bad as the Chiefs' performance was, the halftime show was worse.

A 1970s high school football player (I forget his name) marched around a stage, mumbling unintelligible words, amidst formations of people marching and bobbing their heads.  I was bored.  

This is How it's Done, you little Wanker

Supposedly, a retired tennis player danced for a few seconds.  I missed that, and I couldn't care less.  Even the commercials were forgettable.

I must admit that the synchronization of the marching head bobbing was spot on.  I wish I had been able to get that kind of precision out of the Corps of Keydets.

In the Second Half, the Chiefs outscored the Eagles 22 - 16.  It didn't matter.

My Player, Simona Halep, retired from professional tennis yesterday.  I am not happy about it.

The way I see it, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) screwed her over, blowing a trace amount of a drug in her system way out of proportion, suspending her for four years.

About a year and a half later, the Court of Arbitration in Sports reduced Simona's suspension and fined the ITIA 20,000 Swiss Francs.  The suspension was wrong and everyone knows it.

She never recovered from the time away from competing.  She trained hard, but no amount of practice could replace competition to keep up your game.

Simona retired from pto tennis after losing 6-1, 6-1 to Lucia Bronzetti in the Transylvania Open.

Though I am sure we'll see more of her, it's a sad day.

Late nights in Fayetteville/Fort Bragg, from 1978 until I left the army in early 1980, I listened to WQDR out of Raleigh.  WQDR was our preferred Rock radio station and one of the first Album stations in the nation.  My car radio was permanently set on 94.7 FM.

When I rejoined the Army in 1981, I returned to WQDR.

The DJs for the station were super.  They introduced their listeners to the Real Rock Stars, refusing to play hard rock or heavy metal.  We never had to listen to the repetitive "Top 10 Hits" played on other stations.

The night DJ, Daniel Brunty, played great music, introduced by his smooth-as-silk voice.  He turned WQDR's listeners on to Bruce Springsteen.  Daniel was a self-professed Springsteen Fanatic. Many nights, he'd play nothing but The Boss.

I became a fan of Springsteen's old music while listening to Daniel's show.  Some of those songs are still included in my favorite tunes.

It all ended in September 1984 when WQDR went to a Country format.  I stopped listening to the radio when I returned from overseas in 1986.

I missed my calling!

I love listening to podcasts while walking.  Two of my favorites are Radiolab and Ologies.  I liked the old Radiolab episodes before they turned the show over to young people.  Once I could listen to balanced science shows there.  Not so much anymore.  I see the problem as Laziness.

Radiolab did an episode called The Argentine Invasion.  That episode was my first and what got me hooked on the old Radiolab.  It was about Argentine Ants taking over the world.

Ologies just re-released an old episode called Myrmecology - The Study of Ants.  I listened to it yesterday on my walk.  It is a great episode and pairs well with The Argentine Invasion

I highly recommend both.

OK, Betty Gilpin!  I just finished American Primeval.  I loved it.  The lead actress looked familiar and, BOY!, was she good.  I Googled her.

Ah! Ha!  This is the lady who played in Mrs. Davis on Peacock.  It was a wacky show, but as a Nun, Betty was Hot!

Let's watch more Betty.

I watched The Hunt on Prime.  That was fun.  Now I'm starting GLOW on Netflix.

Yowza.

I watched almost all of the Inauguration Events today.  I'll have to say, The Donald earned a little of my respect.  He didn't pull any punches with the Clinton-Obama-Biden-Harris Coterie.  He called them out on all their ridiculous policies and detrimental actions, and they had to sit there and take it.

The best part was watching them squirm in their seats.

He has plans for immigration, energy, the economy, military strength, the evils of DEI and CRT, and government corruption, which I agree with.  How he implements them will be a shit-show, I'm sure.

I hope he can take back our Canal (Jimmy fucked up) and reinstate the American Canal Zone.   I hope he pardons the 6 January folks just to watch the Left melt down.  I hope he renames the Gulf and Mount McKinley.

I hope he can return this country to common-sense thinking, but he has none.

This is going to be fun!  Make some popcorn.

I do not like waiting.  I never have.  I like getting things done.  I'm aggressive about it.

Sitting around waiting for other people is particularly painful.  I want to know what's next, and I want to know NOW!

Whatever I need to do, I want to do.  I will handle it.  I want to get shit done so I can live my life on my terms.

Well.  This is cryptic.

Notre Dame and Ohio State.  Now, there are two boring teams.  Yawn.

I'm guessing that I'll go to bed at Halftime.

Way to go, Texas and Georgia; you couldn't do it, could you?  Says the Auburn Fan whose team didn't get to a bowl game.

I dutifully began the first season of Dune Prophecy on the first day of release.  I watched the second episode the next Sunday, two days before surgery.  While in the ICU, which was a long and terrible week, I tried to watch the third episode.

I was not in the mood.

Through the pain, drugs, and extreme discomfort, I lost interest.  "This is not for me," I thought.  I returned to it last week and love it.  I'm almost finished.

Highly Recommend.

The same thing happened between me and Silo.  I need to revisit.

Just when I had accepted that I had to do another MRI, a Pulmonary Function Test, and a Thyroid Biopsy, the Weather!  We're getting hit with a significant snowstorm tonight and tomorrow.  UVA began rescheduling my appointments.  Smart Business.  I'm certainly not going out in this shit.

I'm such a Poor Little Old Man these days.