Band of Horses

“Break out everybody in the jail,

Let’s get it on.”

    “Dumpster World,” Band of Horses

I picked up “Mirage Rock” by Band of Horses and Green Day’s “Uno!” at Best Buy in Valpo after stopping by Barnes and Noble and finding “Valor” in the Biography section.  There was only one left; wonder how many they’ve sold.  I keep missing community affairs manager Michele to see about a book signing.  “Mirage Rock” has all types of interesting songs ranging from harmonious ballads to rousing rockabilly, while Billie Joe Armstrong, Tre Cool, and Mike Dirnt (Green Day) simply rock out, exactly what I’d hoped for after hearing “Nuclear Family” on WXRT.  After finishing Lawrence Samuel’s “The American Dream,” both “Dumpster World” and “(The Death of a) Nuclear Family” contain nightmarish lyrics.  “There’s no hope for any modern world,” the Band of Horses declare, so “bring on the booze,” “bust out the drugs,” and “let’s get it on.”

Driving along 80/94 I spotted a billboard for Amherst Asylum.  I did a double take until I realized Halloween season was near and the advertisement was for a haunted house. Already leaves are turning yellow, red, and brown.

A pumped Jonathyne Briggs posted the cover of Journal of the History of Sexuality, which included his article “Sex and the Girl’s Single: French Popular Music and the Long Sexual Revolution of the 1960s.”  He was especially delighted that the photo showing two French “copines” (gal pals), Francoise Hardy and Sylvie Vartan, posing with the “French Elvis,” Johnny Hallyday pertained to his chapter-length contribution.

At lunch Jonathyne and Brian O’Camb discussed the problem of texting in class.  Jonathyne got so upset at one student that he thought it best to leave the classroom for a minute.   Anne Balay takes iPhones away from offenders.  “I use my ‘mom’ voice, and it works every time,” she said. Former colleague Rhiman Rotz would go nuts when students interrupted his train of thought.  I’d get annoyed if someone appeared to be using a computer for something other than note-taking.  Occasionally cell phones would ring, but usually it was by mistake or a family emergency, and the students were invariably apologetic.  Now some adolescents can’t get through a meal (or a college class) without partaking.

Versatile Amy Adams (saintly Sister James in “Doubt,” bitchy Charlene Fleming in “The Fighter”) shines in “Trouble with the Curve” as crusty Clint Eastwood’s daughter Mickey (for Yankee great Mantle).  She takes time off from her career as a high-powered workaholic lawyer to join the old man scouting a North Carolina prospect for the Atlanta Braves.  Eastwood had better material to work with in “Gran Torino” but again personifies the aging tough guy better than anyone, whether yelling at his penis for taking so long to piss (“Ha! Ha! I’ve outlived you”) or railing at the garage he bumps into for being to small.  He tells Mickey he’ll put a bullet in his head when he can’t take care of himself.  The old codger smokes cigars, ridicules vegetarians and doctors, and, breaking a beer bottle, threatens to cut the throat of a guy in a bar who put his hands on his daughter.

A researcher visited the Archives inquiring about Cudahy, a working-class neighborhood near the East Chicago - Gary border until it was razed to make way for the toll road and Cline Avenue.  Roy Dominguez lived there when his family first came up from Texas.  A hundred years ago the Cudahy Packing Company produced Old Dutch Cleanser and also repaired refrigerator railroad cars.

Paula DeBois is searching for information about St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church at 2425 West 19^th Avenue in Gary, which will be celebrating its eighty-fifth anniversary. It has a mostly African-American congregation although for the past 20 years its pastor has been Father David Hyndman, nephew of political prisoner Katherine Hyndman, jailed during the Red Scare.  In particular Paula has questions about a photo of Reverend Wallace Wells and others attempting to desegregate Marquette Beach. It might be from the 1949 Beachhead for Democracy demonstration.

Phil directed a TV show with guest Peter Yarrow of the legendary folk trio Peter, Paul, and Mary.  Mary Travers passed away, but (Noel) Paul Stookey is still performing solo. Phil and Delia attended Yarrow’s concert that evening.  Peter’s daughter and her male life partner sang with him.

Ray Smock sent me an essay he wrote 12 years ago called “Plebiscite: A Tale of Politics and Elections in the Not Too Distant Future.”  In a 2007 Author’s Note he wrote: “Presidential debates are not debates at all but short-answer quizzes by self-serving celebrity-journalists.  The American people are polled constantly on everything from politics to their favorite peanut butter. The news consists of hearing about the latest polls taken by the news organization presenting their polls as news. Then we are polled about how we feel about the latest poll.”

Ryan Farag sent me the almost finished eBook version of “The Signal.”  The next step is to get it uploaded onto Amazon and then market it.  An IT staff member helped me read it on mobi.  I took motes on what steps he took but could never do it myself.

I borrowed a Vee-Jay box set that I’ll use during my upcoming talk on founder Vivian Carter.  I’ll not only play “Goodnight Sweetheart” and “Oh What a Nite” but show how the record label pioneered of genres by playing excerpts from John Lee Hooker (electric blues), Staples Singers (gospel), Jimmy Reed (funk), Jerry Butler (soul), and r and b flavored rock ‘n’ roll (Dee Clark).

Returned Jackie Gipson’s call.  She was watching Ryder Cup golf so declined my offer of lunch.  I ate half a sandwich from Redhawk Café and bowled three practice games at Cressmoor but still can’t find the pocket with consistency.  Wednesday Ryan Dulla’s 280 was more than I scored in the first two games combined.  Time to retire, get lessons, or purchase a new ball.

Before defeating Tampa Bay on the strength of Alex Rios’ three hits, the White Sox had lost nine of their last 11 games to fall two games behind Detroit.  It was fun while it lasted unless the Tigers stumble.