".....Think Of It This Way...We're On Opposite Sides Of A Door Marked 'Push'..."....."

Open letters aren't my thing.

I'm talking about the widely distributed, let everyone see what you have to say to one or more particular people kind of open letter.

Not the kind that makes you say "hey, who opened my mail?"

As a rule, open letters of the widely distributed type tend to be a little snarky, even if they're not intended to be, because there's really no way to avoid the slight coating of "...and I'm telling you this in front of a big audience so that you'll be embarrassed/motivated/moved/inspired, etc" that is unavoidable.

Every now and then, though, lacking any other means to communicate with someone, open is all there is.

Ergo....

An open letter to Eric Bolling.

(Eric Bolling (born March 2, 1963) is a conservative American television personality who specializes in financial news and political commentary. Bolling is the co-host of Fox News Channel's early evening talk show The Five. He has occupied numerous roles as a commentator on financial issues for television, most notably for Fox News. Bolling was described as "relentlessly upbeat", "hard-charging", and "cheerful" in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.^[1] Bolling took over as host of the Fox Business Channel news program Cashin' In, replacing fellow FBC anchor Cheryl Casone, who hosted the program from September 2009 until January 2013.)


Dear Eric,

I hope I'm not being impolite or presumptuous to call you Eric. Having watched your programs on Fox over the past year or so, I feel, as is often the case with television and radio personalities who "visit" us in our homes, a certain familiarity that would be in conflict with a more proper, formal address of "Mr. Bolling".

So, dude....

Here's a story I came across today during my routine perusal of various resources in search of writing material.

On Wednesday, the hosts of Fox & Friends recapped Vice President Joe Biden’s appearance on ABC’s The View this week, in which he touted the Affordable Care Act’s benefits for women who want to take time away from work. Guest host Eric Bolling observed that Biden’s command of the facts was not challenged by The View’s hosts and that the program is worse off without their former co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
“Joe Biden, he was on The View,” Hasselbeck began, “To tell American women, Look, this is a new woman’s movement: no working.’”

Biden told the hosts of the ABC talk program that providing women with options for health coverage outside of their “dead-end jobs” “gives women a great deal more freedom.”

“You know what they miss? They miss you holding his feet to the fire,” Bolling said. “This is how you’re going to help women in America? By giving them free health care — or by allowing them free health care? This is outrageous.”

Bolling added that Biden misrepresented the Congressional Budget Office’s estimation of how many jobs would be “lost” as a result of the ACA.

“How is that acceptable,” host Brian Kilmeade said of Biden’s misrepresentation. “How does he not understand nothing is free?”

“How do they still miss the mark on women?” Hasselbeck asked. “How do you miss the mark on opportunity that working gives women?”


I actually saw the link to this story where you placed it on your Facebook page.

What really caught my eye, though, was the comment you posted along with it.

"...Call 'em the way I see 'em. If that's not working for you. #TooBad..."

Given the number of times I have found myself in some measure of disagreement with you over the past year or so, I was surprised, even pleased, to find that we do have something fundamental in common.

I, too, "call 'em" the way I see em.

It's after that that we, once again, find ourselves taking different roads.

I don't feel the need to add on what is, although phrased for general audience consumption, still the equivalent of "if you're not on my page, then f**k off"....."

Whenever I'm in the mood for adamant intolerance, stonewalled refusal to even consider an opposing point of view and/or generally insulting, albeit high class, bullying, I just wander over to Nick Searcy's Facebook page.

Initially, you didn't strike me as that type.

The operative word, there, being "initially".

Sadly, for me, anyway, I'm staring to sense that I misjudged.

And I say sadly because I am disappointed that I didn't, in fact, find someone I have been seeking for what now seems like a very long time.

A committed, passionate, articulate conservative voice whose ability to actually listen to, and hear, opposing and/or alternate points of view matched his or her ability to espouse their own.

With your kind indulgence, may I take just a few more moments of your time to share something with you?

I don't like labels.

I don't, in my heart, brain or spirit, believe that there truly is any such thing as a "pure" Democrat or Republican or Tea Partyer or Libertarian or name your party, name your position.

Life, at least the life that I have experienced for the past sixty three years, simply doesn't work in a way that would allow for that.

We are all, all of us, an amalgam of liberal...and conservative...and moderate...and passionate...and determined...and committed...and unyielding....and flexible....and reasonable....and hysterical...and selfish...and giving...and compassionate....and unsympathetic......

...human.

I grew up in a reasonably "liberal" household. But plenty of values witnessed and instilled would, if pressed for definition, be defined as conservative.

My grand and great grandparents were Orange County Republicans of the 1930's-1970's, but I, and a lot of my generation, were inclined to be caught up in the 1960's Kennedy energy.

All of that said, though, I still, if pressed, would refuse to be pressed to define myself as a liberal.

Or a conservative.

Or libertarian.

I am, simply, a man.

A man who loves his country. His friends, family and peers. A man who believes in God and the teachings of Jesus.

While reading, and at least pondering, the teachings of Buddha.

And the Dali Lama.

And the Koran.

I believe in less government and less governmental regulation, but I also believe that government should do what it can to help those in sincere and genuine need of help.

I don't believe in "welfare" in the form of mindless handouts, enabling those who would take advantage of "bleeding hearts" and live a parasitic life of non-purposeful laziness.

But, kids who are hungry should be fed, regardless of how it gets done or how much it costs.

I believe that owning a weapon is a privilege and that, like all privileges, it comes with responsibility. And I believe that everyone willing to step up to that responsibility should be free to own whatever weapon they choose.

I don't, though, support the idea that "the right to bear arms" is an open entitlement to any and all, regardless of their willingness, or lack of, to step up to the aforementioned responsibility.

I believe in the sanctity of life and I believe that life begins at conception.

I do not, though, believe that it is my place to usurp the authority of God to determine or judge what a woman should do with her body.

I believe that "liberal" thinking is responsible for many, if not most, of the forward motion that man has made in history.

And I believe "conservative" thinking has protected us from reaching too fast, too far, too soon, too carelessly.

I believe in dialogue.

I don't believe in monologue.

I passionately turn away from demagogue.

And, more than ever, after having witnessed sixty plus years of this life and its politics, I passionately believe that any fool, regardless of party stripe, can burn down the town.

Or, worse, make a pretty good living out of contributing nothing more to the dialogue than the venomous and vicious monologue detailing, over and over and over...and over, what the "other guys" are doing to burn down the town.

I believe there are, out there in that group once theatrically titled "the silent majority", a lot of people who are seeking the same thing I seek.

Committed, passionate, articulate voices whose ability to actually listen to, and hear, opposing and/or alternate points of view match his or her ability to espouse their own.

Voices that offer more than just yelling "fire!"

Voices that could actually change hearts and minds.

Voices that could lead, not just lambast.

Initially, you struck me as one of those voices.

Over time, whether as a result of some personal evolution, perhaps a bit too much media fame and attention or whether your own weariness at the fraying of our national fabric simply caused you to dig in your own heels even deeper and talk more than listen, preach more than ponder, I've come to believe otherwise.

And that's a little tragic.

Because I also believe that strong, energized voices from both sides, advocating their positions with passion while sweating, swearing, struggling, but committed to respecting and listening to each other, can, ultimately, convince each other that commonality really does, and can, exist and that commonality will help us all find the path we can both walk to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.

From what I've seen and heard from you, I think it reasonable to say that we would find ourselves, for the most part, on those opposite sides.

Opportunity lost, though, sir.

I won't benefit from your counsel.

Nor you, mine.

Because, I've stopped listening.

And gone on with the search.

"....The 'Private' In Private Lives Is Oxymoronic...The Key Word Here Being 'Moronic'...."

Here's something fun.

And chock full of irony.

Old wives' tales.

Wikipedia defines them as a derogatory epithet used to indicate that a supposed truth is actually a superstition or something untrue, to be ridiculed.

The phrase comes with the assumption that a story told by old women could not have credibility, regardless of the particulars of the story. The phrase is used in the context of unvalued women's knowledge.

It can be said sometimes to be a type of urban legend, said to be passed down by older women to a younger generation.

Such "tales" are considered superstition, folklore or unverified claims with exaggerated and/or inaccurate details.

 Today, some "old wives' tales" have proven to be valid. Old wives' tales often center on women's traditional concerns, pregnancy, puberty, social relations, health, herbalism and nutrition.

A few "classic" examples.

Masturbation will make you blind and have hairy palms.

Ice cream leads to nightmares.

Toes pointed up signify low blood sugar.

Cracking knuckles gives arthritis.

Don't go outside with wet hair or you will catch a cold.

High heart rates lead to female fetuses.

Don't swallow gum or it will stay in your stomach for seven years.

Don't make silly faces or it will make the silly face permanent.

Chocolate leads to acne.

Shaving makes the hair grow back thicker.

Eating crusts (of a sandwich) makes your hair go curly/you grow hair on your chest

The appearance of white spots on the fingernails is due to lying/not eating enough green vegetables/calcium.

Turns out there's one more that, for unknown reasons, didn't make this list.

Share that one with you in a moment.

But, first.....


By Jessica Bliss (The Tennessean )

Just one day after TNT premiered its new unscripted series “Private Lives of Nashville Wives,” the production company behind the show already is casting for a second season.

Evolution Media, which produced “Private Lives” in addition to the “The Real Housewives” of Orange County and Beverly Hills, sent out an email Tuesday looking for women who fit the following:

• Attractive Caucasian and African American ages 35-45

• Married or single/dating

• Prominent

• Rich/wealthy enough to live upper-class lifestyle (think “Real Housewives of Orange County”)

• Nice house, car and toys a plus

• Outspoken and opinionated a must

Prospective candidates should send an email to Nashvillecastingcall@gmail.com with name, age, occupation, current photos and bio.

Though the current cast members have yet to see how the first season plays out on screen, several said they would consider returning for another season.

“I would probably do it again,” singer/songwriter Sarah Davidson said. “Evolution and TNT have been such amazing people to work with. They asked me to write the title track of the show (”Bright Lights Big City”). I have been honored and shocked by the support of them, and what great people they are.”




Since this "unscripted" series has only aired once, at this writing, the jury (flat screen variety) is still out as to whether the show will be successful or not.

Although a casting call for a second season issued before the end credits of the first episode have faded into a "Law and Order" re-run is a clue that would require nowhere near the skills of a Sherlock Holmes.

Or Detectives Briscoe and Green, as the case may be.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I did not watch the first episode.

And I have no plans to watch the program.

I have, in fact, seen more than one airing of more than one trailer for the show, though.

And, with the sense of it that I got from the trailer, I realized that I have no plans to watch the program.

The first, best reason is that "unscripted", "reality" programs that consist of people whining about their lives, bitching about other people and the way other people whine about their lives, people who seem to operate under the delusion that an upper middle class lifestyle makes their lives any more special or view worthy than any one else and shows that trowel on the tantrums, bury us with backstabbing and light up our viewing rooms with a hard candy coat of conniving just ain't my cup of tea.

Or sweet tea, as the case may be.

Regardless of whether those people reside in Beverly Hills or Nashville, Tennessee.

The second reason I don't plan on catching the catfights is my overall emotional impression of the presentation, based on what I saw promoted in the trailers.

Embarrassment.

I lived, and worked, in Nashville for over twenty years, from the mid 1970's until the mid 1990's.

I worked in and around Music Row, over those years, in a variety of capacities, in a variety of venues, from publishing houses to recording studios to demo studios, worked and met with and count as friends and professional peers some of the world's most talented, proficient and professional writers, producers, publishers, singers, musicians, label people, studio engineers and their families and, not once, in twenty plus years did I ever encounter the kind of cheap, cheesy, bimbo, backstabbing, barking bitch bullshit that TNT is shoveling out each week under the catastrophically misleading title that includes the words ".....of Nashville....".

Nashville, the city, is a remarkable blend of big city spark and small town values, "Metropolitan Mayberry" my friends and I have called it, affectionately, for years, given that combination of virtues. A world class symphony, revered and respected educational facilities,  medical schools and heath care facilities second to none in the world, the home of major league sports and the kind of city/town that presents itself to the first time visitor as the ideal place to raise a family and live a fine life.

A city that deserves every accolade that anyone is inclined to offer.

A city that deserves the respect that a community of this caliber earns each and every day.

A city that deserves so much more than to be portrayed on national television as the home of cheap, cheesy, bimbo, backstabbing, barking bitch bullshit.

From Brentwood Barbies wearing designer shoes with country music playing in the background.

Shame on you, TNT.

And shame on whichever "Tennesseans" are party to this parody for profit.

Given the hype, and the second season casting call clue, it's a good guess that this show will be around a while and will generate a lot of buzz for Nashville.

And that's a damn shame.

Because, as I mentioned before, there is one old wives tale that was, for whatever reason, left off that earlier list.

There's no such thing as bad publicity.

Turns out...there actually is.

"...Seriously, Guys, Either Knock It Off Or Get The Girl An Exclamation Point !......"

Herpes.

NASCAR.

Analogy coming up.

Danica Patrick’s hopes of starting her 2014 season with a bang in the Daytona 500 were brought to a crashing halt—literally.

 

A 13-car wreck on lap 146 ended the race for some, including Patrick and her No. 10 car. Patrick led the race at one point, but the disruptive crash was a scary moment for racing fans as she went head-on into the side wall.

Jeff Gluck of USA Today tweeted some of the big names affected by the crash:

 

 

Note the list of names once again.

 

Waltrip

Almirola

Danica

Newman

Gilliland

Maybe more

 

 

Danica.

 

Not Patrick.

 

Danica.

 

Like Cher!

 

Or Gaga!

 

Or to you really, really long time NASCAR followers...

 

Zsa Zsa!

 

And this list comes, not from an in the pit or behind the wheel, long time stock car driving good old boy.

 

But from an, ostensibly, contemporary "journalist" who writes for USA Today.

 

Picky picky?

 

Maybe.

 

But when it comes to re-configuring conventional wisdom and/or dismantling stereotypes, little things mean a lot.

 

In this case, no harm, no foul intended, I feel sure, but, still, sexism.

 

If only subconscious.

 

Danica Patrick has shattered the glass ceiling.

 

Or, more appropriately, driven through the glass barrier.

 

But it's still obviously a long drive left to go from the only one to one of the group.

 

Because, sexism is like herpes.

 

Sometimes, just when you think, and hope, that it's gone.

 

It shows up again.

 

Not to mention the irony of its continued popping up in a sport that consists of guys driving around, for hours, in circles.

 

As if they needed directions.

 

 

 

 



"....Maria.....We All Love A Girl Named Maria....."

The Sound Of Music.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

One of these things is not like the other.

And, for that matter, the other is not like the other, either.

Au contraire, mon amigo.

Turns out they are just alike.

Translation just ahead.



(CNN) -- Maria von Trapp, the last of the singing children immortalized in the movie musical "The Sound of Music," died at her Vermont home of natural causes, her half-brother told CNN on Saturday.

The native of Austria was 99 and lived in Stowe. She died Tuesday.

 

Maria von Trapp was the third-oldest child of Agathe Whitehead and Capt. Georg von Trapp. The couple had seven children: Rupert, Agathe, Maria, Werner, Hedwig, Johanna and Martina.

Georg von Trapp's second wife, Maria Kutschera von Trapp, wrote a book titled "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers," which sparked two German-made movies and "The Sound of Music."

The Trapp Family Singers rehearse in 1946. Maria von Trapp, who died Tuesday, is third from left.

In 1959, the play "The Sound of Music" opened on Broadway. Julie Andrews, in arguably her most famous role, played the part of Georg's wife, Maria, in the 1965 film. Christopher Plummer played Baron von Trapp. The movie won five Academy Awards, including best picture.

 

Johannes, the youngest son of Maria and Georg von Trapp, issued a statement following his sister's passing: "Thank you for your thoughts. Maria had a wonderful life and while we will miss her, the memories of her will live on," Johannes wrote.

 

 

First, let's get a couple of rim shot remarks, that wont let me rest until expunged, out of the way.

 

"...the family that sings together.....very often has to cross the Alps on foot in the dead of night with the Nazis in hot pursuit...."

 

Ba...

 

"....Maria Von Trapp died at 99 of natural causes and there is no truth whatsoever to the vicious rumor that Carrie Underwood's acting had anything to do with it...."

 

...dum bump.

 

Thank you, I'll be here all week.

 

Far as I know.

 

And now, back to......

 

Among the myriad "guilty pleasures" we experience in our lives, there is probably none so universally experienced and enjoyed than "The Sound Of Music".

 

Three hours of acclaimed, celebrated and much beloved wholesome, uplifting, virtue and victory validating, family friendly comic/dramatic/musical entertainment for every one and all between the ages of five and five hundred.

 

And nary a "real housewife", millionaire duck call carver, back stabbing pair of country music older and younger divas or oversized bootied, talentless sex tape capitalizers whose name rhymes with Marnashian in sight.

 

Or sound.

 

Everybody loves "The Sound of Music".

 

Whether they want to or not.

 

Guys.

 

Naturally, given human nature, it is inevitable that a lot of people (guys) would find the whole presentation not their cup of tea, let alone their stein of good Austrian ale.

 

It's the province of trained and education sociologists to research and determine why a lot of people (guys) find the whole thing not of their liking.

 

My own instincts as an average member of society (guy) lead me to suspect that it's probably because "The Sound Of Music" is three hours of acclaimed, celebrated and much beloved wholesome, uplifting, virtue and victory validating, family friendly comic/dramatic/musical entertainment for every one and all between the ages of five and five hundred with nary a "real housewife", millionaire duck call carver, back stabbing pair of country music older and younger divas or oversized bootied, talentless sex tape capitalizers whose name rhymes with Marnashian in sight.

 

Not to mention a lack of mention of anything pigskin, horsehide, foul shot and/or jock strap related.

 

But even hard core hard hearts (guys), if pressed (or, more likely necessary, injected with sodium penethol) will grudgingly admit that they have a soft spot in that hard core hard heart for the lives, loves and libretto of the family von Trapp.

 

And while I'm not academically qualified to postulate the cause/effect of any surface anti-Sound of Music attitude, I have what I think to be a literally pretty sweet theory as to why it is, underneath everyone's all, much beloved.

 

It is, I would offer, a perfect combination.

 

Or even a recipe, if you like.

 

The very real and, even, relatable core substance of the story, a caring family caught up in the horrific oppression that was Nazi Germany, the courage shown by people willing to risk everything to resist being "conquered" by an evil and corrupt group of sadistic and savage oppressors at a time in history when such resistance was almost immediately fatal if discovered, an admittedly tender, but still relatable love story of a man who had lost a wife, was left to deal with a large group of children he was ill equipped to raise on his own, finding both a caring parent for his kids and a second chance at a successful marriage.

 

In short, the kind of life events that, in, at least, one small way or another, almost anyone with a pulse can identify with.

 

And if not admire and adore, then, at least, appreciate.

 

The other part of the recipe?

 

Catchy, sing-along songs that, while catchy and sing-along to some, might easily seem sickly, syrupy, saccharine, yes, not just a spoonful of, but a whole damn dump truck full of....

 

...sugar.

 

Christopher Plummer, the actor who played the father in the movie, even said, for years, that he feared he would contract diabetes during the filming.

 

In this case of this musical, though, the sugar of syrupy songs comes almost perfectly balanced with the spirit feeding nutrition of the real and relatable story.

 

Sugar.

 

Kind of like chocolate.

 

Nutrition.

 

Kind of like peanut butter.

 

Which will bring us back to do-re-mi...the...

 

...Sound Of Music.

 

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

 

And even the least romantic among us (guys) love Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

 

Hell, some even enjoy the smell of roses.

 

Or honeysuckle.

 

Maybe, even......

 

Eidelweiss.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"....Well, Don't Leave Us Hangin'....Did She Wear Her Hair Swept Up Or Did It Fall Loosely Around Her Shoulders...?"

Here's a thing.



Lisa Kudrow's income from the megahit comedy Friends was discussed in detail Thursday when the actress took the stand in her long-running legal battle against her former manager.

The Friends star has been fighting in court with Scott Howard, who first entered into an oral agreement to represent Kudrow in 1991 and claims he is owed 5 percent of her earnings after he parted ways with the actress in 2007. Howard sued in 2008 and the case has been winding through various courts.

Dressed in a black trouser suit, Kudrow took the stand for about two hours in Los Angeles Superior Court in Santa Monica.



Nothing particularly tabloid-y going on here.

Reads like a garden variety, everyday adventure in that labyrinth of legal la la oxymoronically referred to as our judicial system.

There is, though, flickering in the light amongst the he says and she says, just the slightest glimmer of something very profound.

And once you recognize it, the glimmer becomes pretty glaring.

Re-read the first six words of the third paragraph.

In a society that has seen women evolve from third class citizen to second class citizen to, ostensibly, equal in, at least, the eyes of the law, a society that denied them the right to vote until well after the electric light and telephone were invented, a society where women, although, as yet, have still not yet acquired the keys to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, but have achieved seats in state houses and Congress and Presidential cabinets and the Supreme Court...in a society where women are powerful CEO's of  multi billion dollar corporations.....

It's still instinctive second nature to report on the fashion choices a woman makes when she appears in court.

Pretend, for a moment, that, rather than Lisa Kudrow, the defendant in this case was, say, Matthew Perry.

Can you imagine any circumstance (with the exception of Perez Hilton) in which the last graph would have read....

" Nattily attired in a fetching Dockers/sport coat ensemble, Perry took the stand for about two hours....."

Old Virginia Slims cigarette advertising slogan....

"you've come a long, long way, baby...."

Suggested updated addendum....

"....and you've got a long, long way to go...."

The obvious point of all this is that, for all of the progress that women have made in society, old habits die very, very hard.

The proof being that it seems to matter what Lisa Kudrow wore to court.

When it actually shouldn't.

Because it doesn't.

"...These Days, More Like An "F-Cherry Bomb"......

The bird, bird, bird, the bird's the word.

Actually, not so much.

The notorious "F bomb" is back on the "A" list of stories on "TV".

A fairly proficient articulator of all things profane, my own self, I have a certain intellectual, if not particularly intelligent, potty mouth perspective.

I can understand, and respect, what I believe to be both sides of any discussion regarding the prolific pronouncement of profanity in our current, everyday lives:

   a) The increasingly common use of this kind of language is simple, irrefutable, empirical evidence that the empire is crumbling, the very foundation of our moral and spiritual well being cracking, splintering and opening gaps in the earth that will soon swallow us up like screaming, babbling slaves in those Tarzan movie earthquake scenes.

  b) It's just words and words, themselves, have no power over us that we don't allow to have power over us.
      This argument known, more commonly, among the younger demographics, as "ain't no thing".
      And among the even more young demo as "lighten the f*** up, dude".


Understanding, respecting and having spent a fair amount of time participating in both sides of that discussion notwithstanding, a more simplistic analysis has become part of my P.O.V. in recent years.

I'm not convinced that there's any real danger that calling someone a "red neck dumb ass mother***er" is going to cause any more cracks in the Republic pavement that calling them a "red neck dumb ass".

And, yes, although, at the very bottom line, words have only the power with which we, well, empower them.

But, we crazy Earthlings have a way of not seeing the distinction in those heated moments when seeing the distinction really counts.

Here's a simpler thought.

And a philosophy I am working, in baby steps, on adopting.

If you take all of the passion, exaggeration, politics, in sum, every simple human emotion out of the equation, what remains are two simple truths.

There is, in fact, no really good, undeniable reason not to use these words freely.

There is, at the same time, in fact, no really good, undeniable reason to use them, either.

So, why not opt, just this once, to take the high road?

Plenty of popular attractions still to be visited traveling the low.

A veritable f***in' plethora.

"...Yes, They Gave Them Quite A Party, Party...."

Fifty years of Beatles.

90 minutes of tribute to fifty years of Beatles.

Random impressions.....

....a lot of love and respect from a lot of very talented people...

...sincerely poignant seeing/hearing Dhani Harrison playing/singing on "Something".....

...yes, in answer to my sister's rhetorical question, I think Yoko was, in fact, the inspiration for Elaine Benes' style of dance....

...what fun so much of the music was, and is, as opposed to the "why so serious"ness of contemporary pop music...

...couldn't help but be tickled by Eric Idle's narration of the bio segments....with that voice, I kept expecting each bio to turn into a Monty Python gag at any/every moment....

..Paul gets a lot of credit for being a "showman", but Ringo ain't no slouch when it comes to playing the songs and the part...

...speaking of Ringo, from the more things change folder, props for his good natured willingness to be Paul's opening act.....

...there's no question that the anniversary was worthy of notice and some kind of celebration, but I honestly can't see John, or George, for that matter, sitting there with the gang, singing and clapping along to the greatest hits....

and, speaking of clapping......

...I found it stunning, and not just a little amusing, that so many of today's, and yesterday's, musical icons can't clap their hands in time to the music to save their lives......


given the source material, a splendid time was guaranteed for all....

nice work, lads......

yesterday and today.....