RIP Paul Newman

Man, the good ones are going fast.

At 83, Paul Newman succumbed to cancer today. A philanthropist in his own category, he lived a life that any mother, son, daughter or wife would be proud of. One of a kind.

So long, Butch. Godspeed...

George

He was an intellectual's comedian. He was an activist, in many ways. He certainly was thought-provoking.

He had more bullshit email forwards attributed to him than anyone I can think of, with the possible exception of Andy Rooney. If you knew even a LITTLE about what he thought, you'd know he didn't write that garbage.

Neither headed for heaven nor hell (since he believed in neither), at the age of 71 he's headed six feet under I suppose.

So what do you say about such a man? He was right, he was wrong. He was Carlin.

I agreed with him more often than I will admit, and I won't reveal which subjects.

"...and maybe there are seasons, and maybe they change..."*

Rest in peace, Dan Fogelberg.

I hadn't heard the news until this morning. I am profoundly sad. He was 56, and died of advanced prostate cancer.

He lifted all musicians, influenced almost everyone who strummed a guitar (some even unknowingly) and gave the feelings of millions a voice. If lyrics** are important to you, it's likely you own a Dan Fogelberg album. Check out this video on You Tube for evidence, or these lyrics from "Changing Horses":

Changing horses in the middle of a stream
Gets you wet and sometimes cold.
Changing faces in the middle of a dream
Gets you old...
Oh, gets you old.
Looking farther than you'll ever hope to see
Takes you places you dont know.
Search for someone you cant ever hope to be
And still you go
Oh, still you go.

God bless and keep ya, Dan.

If you're a male, please read up on the symptoms, and if you're over 50 (40 with family history) get checked annually.

*From "To the Morning."
**See Same Auld Lang Syne, Seeing You Again, There's a Place In the World For a Gambler, Heart Hotel.

"It goes on." - Robert Frost

Cardinal Nation lost one of it's best sons this past weekend, pitcher Josh Hancock. He was killed in a car crash just a little less than five years after the death of another Cardinals pitcher, Darryl Kile. Josh was 29, and an integral part of our team. He had no family here - fans, friends and teammates were his family.

Incredible grief for the team, the fans and the city of St. Louis.

Farewell, sweet Betsy*

I'm in a sort of melancholy mood today because it's "turn-my-leased-vehicle-back-in" day. Later, I will part with my all-time favorite car. That's a big deal for a guy.

Cars are far more important to guys than girls. For women it's just a means of transportation. But men enter into a long-lasting relationship with their car. They take extra pride in keeping them clean, they nurse them back to health when they're sick... they buy nice things for them, like brush guards, chrome wheels and subwoofers. We do the same thing with riding mowers, only to a lesser degree. It's really kind of sweet.

So, today is kind of like a break-up. We both knew it was coming, but that doesn't make it easier. We'll hug one last time at the dealership, I'll give the bumper one last "damn, you're sexy" smack... and walk away. It's for the best... right? We're just too different.

And this time, I won't just jump into another relationship right away. No, this time I'm going to wait a while. I need my space. I need time to think.

"Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world... she had to walk into mine."

*325 hp, 330 lb-ft of torque, 4.4-L, 32-valve, DOHC V8... 0-60 in 4.6 seconds... sniff sniff...

Tapioca, Burma Shave and other words that have nothing to do with this post

Evidence is mounting that loneliness and depression are direct causes of physical illness:

"Dr. Jesse Stewart ... found a correlation between depression and hardening of the arteries in his three-year study... The arteries of those who were most depressed had narrowed twice as much as those who were least depressed..."

It's kind of spooky how this reinforces the meaning of the term "hardened heart."

Whenever I'm in a restaurant, I want to approach someone who is alone and say "mind if I join you?" I don't do it for fear of being thought a predator or scam artist (isn't that sad?) but I always feel bad when I see someone eating alone. If they're eating fatty food, and doing it alone, they're DOUBLING their chance of hardened arteries. Damn!!!

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Frankie Laine died yesterday, at age 93.

When I was a little kid, my grandma would stack albums on the console "record player" and sit me on the floor in front of it with a glass of tea on rainy days. Through her albums, she gave me an early appreciation of music. One of the artists she'd play was Frankie Laine.

Grandma's albums are in my possession now, and Laine's "Torchin'" is my favorite. It's still in amazing condition, but I did a search recently and was actually able to find it on CD as part of a two-album package. It contains his versions of "A Cottage For Sale," "I'll Get Along Without You," "I Cover the Waterfront," and "These Foolish Things." If you could wear out a CD, this one would be trashed by now.

A year ago (when I ordered the album) I was surprised that he was still alive, and shocked that he was still actually PERFORMING.

I shed a tear today. RIP Frankie Laine... Old Man Jazz.

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Why do stores still have those stupid security scanners at the exits? They are designed to curb theft, but they've become as useless as car alarms. Anytime one goes off, a clerk just motions you to go on.

I've had great success stealing about 20 bags of gummy worms and a plethora of small electronics because these beeping bitches are ignored.

I might or might not have stolen a few cars too.

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Conversation a few minutes ago:

Me - "Ha! (looking at my site meter) I got a hit today from the search term "Dave's penis."
Vi - "Yeah, it was me. I was looking for it."

I don't know why, I just found that funny. Perhaps I'll have to save her a search.