A Sad, if Not Unexpected, Day

I woke up this morning to sad, if not unexpected, news. My candidate for the Democratic nomination for President, Bernie Sanders, has suspended his campaign.

In response to a friend’s disappoint this morning, I wrote this:

I’m equal parts angry and sad.

I didn’t see a path forward for Bernie, so I’m sad not angry he’s dropped out. But I AM angry at the persistence of a social-political structure that will claim victory and do little more than inch forward.

It seems the liberal-democratic establishment learned little from 2016 and I do fear Trump will wipe the floor with Biden.

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While I continue to struggle to write daily, these videos are becoming easier to do. For one, I enjoy the process of looking for songs to do and learning (if necessary) the lyrics. For another, now that I’ve refreshed my memory on how to actually edit them in Premiere Pro, they’re pretty easy to make.

I don’t have any particular attachment to this song and so I don’t have much to say about it. “A Favor House Atlantic” is performed by Coheed and Cambria and is on their album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3.

I think it’s just a fun pop-rock song. Though iTunes classifies the genre as “Alternative & Punk.”

So for your enjoyment, here’s my Music Monday video:

 

And if you’re interested in seeing Coheed and Cambria’s video, here it is:

 

Happy Monday!

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Sunshine is the Best Disinfectant

“Sunshine is the best disinfectant” ~Justice Louis Brandeis

On March 16 of this year, Governor David Ige issued a Supplementary Proclamation to the previously issued Emergency Proclamation in response to the COVID-19 crisis. There’s been some to-do about Governor Ige’s decision to suspend Hawaii’s Sunshine Law in the wake of the Coronavirus emergency.

This proclamation, among other things, suspends Chapter 92 HRS and Chapter 92F HRS. Chapter 92 deals with public agency meetings and records and is generally referred to as “Hawaii’s Sunshine Law”. 92F deals with the Uniform Information Practices Act commonly referred to as UIPA or the open records law.

The suspension of these two laws has generally gone with little or no push-back from the public. Though some have raised concerns.

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A Ha's Take On Me

Though I guess I am technically a child of the ’80s, I didn’t hit my teen years until the early ’90s and it wouldn’t be until later in that decade when I would find an appreciation for 80’s music.

Everyone may have their own ideas about which songs, artists best define the music of the decade. And I would have to wonder about anyone who doesn’t have A Ha’s “Take On Me” on their list. The song, along with their famous, era-defining music video would certainly have to be counted among the art defining the ’80s.

As I get older and we move further and further from that turbulent decade, I find more and more appreciation for the music that came out of the ’80s. “Take On Me” is no exception.

I had intended to share my own lip-sync of this song, but it seems the copyright holder has blocked the content outright. So in lieu of that, I hope you enjoy the original.

I may try to upload “my” video to my website directly, but that will take more time than I’m willing to commit right now. Sorry.

If you were really hoping to see me, here’s the first one I did all the way back in October of 2016.

I’ll have to do more of these so I have a catalog just in case this keeps happening…. In the meantime, enjoy it. And happy Music Monday!

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Me hatted and sunburned

In September 2004, I returned to Ohio for the first (and I think last) time since I graduated college in 2001. Having moved to Hawaii in 2002, this was the first time I saw a lot of these folks since leaving the continent.

The above picture was taken on the last night of the trip. Was I really ever that young?

I was there to attend the wedding of my friend Doug. “Snoop,” as he was known to us, a college friend and fraternity brother. Yes, I was in a fraternity. Don’t judge me.

Sadly, I don’t really have any “good” pictures from the actual wedding. The camera I had at the time was a piece of shit. I chose this one to share. The look on Snoop’s face as he tries the cake, with his new wife looking on, cracks me up.

The wedding was an opportunity to take some time to visit with other Ohio-based friends from my college days. Not everyone I had the pleasure to catch up with are in the included pictures.

My closest friend from my college days, Hal, had a friend who lived relatively close by and owned a boat. So we, along with some other friends spent the day before (I think) on some lake enjoying a lovely September day of sun and swimming. And, of course, good company.

Here’s me with some of my “crew” from our Oxford days. Left to right: Erin, Melodie, Melissa, and me. It was good to see them and we had a good time catching up.

Sadly, I don’t really keep in touch with any of these girls. But we had some good times back in the day.

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