JSngry

That clip really felt like 1965 to me, maybe early 1966.

Those "covers"...no.

It was a "style point" decision made long ago & far away. Maybe you wanted us to feel warmer & fuzzier by replying to JSngry rather than jsngry, or you were signifying that you're somehow more "personal" or something... maybe you were valiantly resisting the cold impersonal digital world. Truthfully, I had just been "online" for a year or two & didn't think about it one way or the other. But a screen name on a bulletin board is a whole 'nother thing than an email address. This, Dear Friends, is the crux of the matter right here. When I receive an email from somebody, I am just as taken aback and put off when I see that the sender has capitalized this first and last name within the email address in their signature as I would be if they had used all lower case when "signing" their full name.

Wary & weary, a weirdly unbalanced and unpredictable mix of great individual efforts falling short because of team failure, or sometimes the other way around. No traction, until this week, but against who ' The O's & the A's. The Angels are coming on hot, and although they are predicted to not have the stamina to maintain, if the Rangers fail to develop the character to not unfold, it will be a long, painful second half. Stabilization of the bullpen must occur, and one more stable starter must be added in case Ogando blows his arm or D-Wreck Holland loses his mind. We've got Tommy Hunter back in case one of those things happens (and to pitch 1 or two innings in late relief if neither happens) but we got nobody in case both happen. C.J. Wilson has figured it out, Matt Harrison is figuring it out. Colby Lewis has it figured out (but so does his evil twin...). Ogando looks like he was born with it figured out, but...onther than C.J. (largely), they're all prone to hiccups and they'll all give you a solo homer out of the blue just as soon as they would call your house at dinnertime. If these motherfuckers could ever consistent-tize, they would be groove beyond all recognition (and I don't know how much the national sports press has noticed this, but you can take every Ranger starter and put together a pretty damn impressive streak for all of them. Same if you look at their stats outside of their "one bad inning" weirdnesses). But that ain't happening, so realistically...One piece of new cement might be all it takes, but...who, where, and for how long? And wildest wild card of all - what if they do have it in them to get it all togethre at the same time. That would be pretty freakin' fun to see and awesome to watch. Otherwise, I get too much of a sense that last year's success is somehow to be viewed as a predictor for how this year's success will unfold, and when to begin panicking if it don't. That's just so much bullshit. Every season is different every year, every team is different, the only thing that is going to be the same between this year and last year is that every year, you gotta win more games that the other guy, which is why you need to be playing to win every game. It's only recently I've seen this lightbulb start to come on. Is it too late? Time will tell. Definitely predicting a fight to to the wire for the West, unless the whole thing blows up. Beyond that, no real hopes and promises this year. Pitching, obviously, and some key offensive parts still not yet fully firing, or fully firing but inconsistently. I think we got enough gumption to dock the boat, but ptobably not enough to get on up the hill for supper. Honestly, a hard-fought early exit might end up being the best thing this organization. they've now seen what it really takes to win, and what happens when you don't really do that because maybe you didn't yet fully realize just how important it really was. One thing's for sure - I intend to stay silent in this thread for as much as possible during the second half of the year. I started out really loving the team and the organization. The organization so far is still cool, but the players...the disgustingly ugly, triflin loss of the series to the freakin' Marlins raised a red flag for me as to just how ready to be serious were these boys after all, and what is the organization's plan to check and see and do what needs to be done, if something does indeed need to be done, Consecutive (and impressive) sweeps against the Orioles & the A's all "look good", but c'mon dammit, there is still work to be done, lots and lots of work. If that's what happens, if people go to work, hey, I'm in. But if not, fuck 'em. Let them go hustle somebody who don't know any better,

I am very weary of "fame", "success", and "work" all being denigrated into more or less one and the same thing. This is the way we are being steered, and we appear to be so enamored of it that attempting to stop it even a little is a task for the suicidal. The dynamic is this - you are common, we are supreme. We will select from your pool what we need in ours in order to maintain our dominance, If we do select you, you will be expected to sell us your soul. The tiny pieces of it you will be allowed to display from time to time will be tailored and provisioned by our staff and crew to deliver our message in our version of your soul. There will be no other way, Should you desire one, you will be jettisoned and replaced before you even knew it was going to happen, This is what I see everywhere I turn. In order to "belong" you either have to be a whore or else have one to sell (and dead whores are the easiest ones of all to sell, btw). That's where the business is, in selling images and, especially images of "success". Business is the imitation of work done with no further moral imperitbe than to tun the biggest profit imaginable. Work is actually the enemy of business. What made Hamilton's walkoff so meaningful to me was precisely the work aspect of it. The fact that he recognized what the dynamic was, both within and without., and he recognized that he had a job to do. So he found the focus to apply the sklls to realze the sequence of events in such a manner that not only did the lob get done, it got done well, and in a manner that brought pleasure and happiness to those who were watching him work. To me, that's the most praiseworthy aspect of the whole thing, the one thing you can point to your kids to and say "see, that's how it's done." "It" not being hitting a baseball or stepping up to be a hero, no, that's all stuff for the marketing people to wipe their jizz off on to. No, that's an example of going to work, of taking your job and your responsibility seriously, of having pride in who you are and what you do, of defining your place in and feelings about the life you live, and representing that love for yourself, for your life, and for all who surround you by bringing the good stuff for as long as you have it in you, maybe even a sconch longer. if there is an urgent need. That's something you can point out to your kids that Josh Hamilton did, and that's something that your kids can notice you doing - if you are really doing it. If you really are knowing what you are doing it and why, if you are acting out of love, not manipulation, boredom, or cleverness, if you are just keeping a job or are really working. There ain't no shortages of these opportunities out there, especially if people can stop getting distracted by the illuisons of "larger than life" and "glory days" and "one of a kind" that have most people reaching into themsleves only to the point of finding their wallet.

Yeah, all "Greatest, Etc." nonsense out of the way, this is some of Bird's, Diz's, and Bud's finest, most "unfiltered" playing of the time., Bud's in particular.

No.

I'm a tad surprised that Tom Poston got punked, but not at all that Peggy Cass and Orson Bean read the signals, even although it was a subject about which they had no real knowledge. Them two had street smarts, eachi n their won way, and To Tell The truth was really all about street smarts, about not getting conned by every sad sack, pretty face, or slick suit with a story to tell. I knew a guy who went three moths without missing. When he finally did, he was pissed off. Felt like he had been punked, and was ready to thrown down against the liar who suckered him. I mean, this cat was MAD,

Theater, too, is people at work. Very much so. Some very crazy people a lot of the time, but they be crazy and they be workin'. Definitely. So is jazz. Jazz is all about the work. Work is what makes the other shit, good and bad, possible. Work is good. Actually, in theory, there is nothing finer in life than to be at work. To be at work is, ideally, one of the ultimate acts of love. We have come to devalue work in our society. We have replaced it with the love of "success" and a loss of what, if any, work goes into that. "Success" has become an end to itself, not the result of honest, hard, work. Any common thief, whore, or other dumbass with a bit of a head-start, an easy mark or two (even if they're in the family), and/or a good lawyer can have "success". "Success" by itself is nothing but a cheap bauble, a shiny, wiggly, phosphorescent worm on the devil's fishhook. Suckas bite, suckas get hooked, suckas go into the frying pan. The lucky ones get eaten. The unlucky ones get remade to look bigger and better and then get thrown back out on a bigger hook to catch bigger suckas. I wish this only pertained to baseball.

No apology necessary, J.H., but for you to offer one is nevertheless noted for the record as an act of courtesy and decency. And for my misreading of your intent, I offer one of my own to you, which I humbly hope will be accepted. Due to a variety of circumstances, I have become, very, very sensitive to misplaced personal priorities and the wide net that the "forces" that profit as a result have cast. I am wanting to believe that what the Texas Rangers are trying to do - bring a first rate team & organization that values character and dignity in a manner beyond lip service and hype to a fan base and geographical region that has long ago been sold out in these regards by the other two (three, if you count the Stars) major sports franchises in the area is an honorable goal as well as a profitable one. What I'm not yet sure about is whether or not the players on the field understand what it takes to realize that goal, nor am I totally convinced that the front office is going to be able to lure quality talent here or keep it here, no matter how much money they throw around. There's no "legacy" to use as a bargaining chip (other than always being losers), it's hotter than hell here, too many of the fans really don't care about baseball as anything other than an excuse to go party. So I don't know. But for now, the effort appears to be sincere, (successful appears to be very much in doubt right now...the second half of the season will tell about the players, the next few off-seasons about the organization), so, yes, I am wishing them well, if for no other reason that of all the things and places where I actually enjoy paying really good money to watch people work, a baseball game is one of a very few. But it's an uphill climb (never underestimate the power of cultural inertia, internally and externally...), and if the project fails, so be it. No Loyal Doyle from me here. But it is too soon to tell. All that to say that having witnessed the behavior of the Rangers organization during this tragedy has left me willing to defend them against perceived "singling out", which is why I responded as I did. Again, I misread your intent, and I sincerely apologize for doing so.

Word. And they fetishize the object because they have mythologized the sport. It's a great game and you have to have rare skills to excel, but when it's all over, it's men at work, period, and all that comes along with that.

http://www.lonestarb...-happen/2039470 Now, can we leave the emo shit behind and get on with things? I stand corrected. I hadn't see anything about that in the coverage that I had read. Fair enough and all is well then. Just know that there's a lot of things that don't get covered by the national sports press. Not that they should, necessarily, not with the natural order of things and all, but I'm just saying.... EDIT to add that Mr. Deely's self-correction has been graciously offered, and in the spirit of general (rather than team-specific) agreement that there are real issues to be addressed here, let me add that this indeed a very serious issue. Both rail heights and fan education need to seriously be addressed because both are serious issues. The Rangers, for instance, are in the process of developing as a part of their fan base people from rural areas whose main experience at sports venues is at Friday night small town high school football games. Rightly or wrongly, a lot of these people really don't have a real point of reference to deal with about large venues, to them, it's a "dream come true" just to be there, and to the credit of the Rangers' staff that's usually the case (I mean, the staff smiles genuine smiles and offers them up with "thank you for coming" on your way out, win or lose), but....professional sports venues are not without dangers, and people need to be on their toes at all times, especially people who really don't have a lot of experience at baseball games, people who think that what they see on TV is what it's like sitting in the stands. Mr. Stone was not such a person, Mr. Stone and his son were no stranger to The Ballpark. Mr. Stone was simply the victim of some really cruel, random, horribly ugly act of "fate". But people who get hit by foul balls because they're sitting right in the line of fire and gabbing away to their neighbors or texting back home about how their seats are REALLY GOOD, OMG, I can see EVERYTHING!!!! or doing god knows what besides paying attention to the action on the field...that's something that needs to be addressed by MLB in general, that type of fan education. That, and banning the wave.

The railing did not cause the death. The railing meets/exceeds all current codes. The gap between the rail and the scoreboard has been covered. Hopefully a permanent fix is in the works. Frankly, I'm amazed that the gap existed, much less that it's been this long until somebody fell into it. People still want those seats. They were packed last night and they were packed today, and will always be packed. Fans want to sit there, for obvious reasons. Between that tarp as an immediate reminder and memory as a lasting one, any fan who now makes a big lean over that rail automatically wins a Darwin Award, irregardless of outcome. The notion that "the Rangers" should "do something" beyond what they have done is a laugher. What's needed is a comprehensive review of all sports facilities, because I guarantee you, there's some pretty "proceed at your own risk" venues nationwide. Add alcohol and people going to the game viewing it as nothing more than a "social event", thinking that they're invincible just because, the fact that there have been so few deaths nationwide is indeed a miracle. Sitting in an elevated seat right next to a rail is not without its own unique responsibilities. And sometimes, as with Mr. Stone, shit just happens. If Mr. Stone's death really is solely the fault of unsafe stadium design, then there is a nation full of sports venues that should be classified as death traps just waiting to happen. They should all have their front row, potentially high-risk seats blocked off until corrective actions can be taken. Until then, a random, truly tragic accident occurred. Nothing more, and nothing less. Asking what "the Rangers" "are doing" (behind the scenes, for the Stone family, quite a bit, I'm told) strikes me as trivial, disrespectful, and more than a little clueless.

http://www.lonestarball.com/photos/50-41-the-rangers-just-made-magic-happen/2039470 Now, can we leave the emo shit behind and get on with things?

Josh Hamilton is fine. Which is not to say that he's completely "over it". I don't know if you can - or should - ever be over anything like that. But he does know that ultimately it was an accident, and he does know that what's done is done and that whatever figuring out of it all has do be done might take a lifetime, and in the meantime, he's got a job to do, which includes supporting the people who have supported him, the families, from immediate to team to organization to fans to (now, especially) every kid watching him play the game, supporting them by continuing to ply his craft as best he can. Being a "person of faith" means different things to different people, but in Josh's case, it seems to mean handling your own business as best you can, and what you can't handle, trust that your support system, tangible or otherwise, will help you get through. LTB & I were at the game last night (her first ever as anything other than a "tagalong mom"), and I tell you - the air was electric when Elvis got on with two out and Josh came to the plate, especially since Elvis got on by what was more or less a brain fart by Oakland's defense. It could easily have been Out 3. Everybody there was fully aware of "the incidents of the past week" (a phrase that has become as common around here as "DAMN it's hot..."). The people in our section were not just pulling for Josh to win the game, they were pulling for Josh himself, for some sort of collective closure and "personal triumph". RBIA crowds are not always the most collectively intense group in baseball, to put it mildly, but....something beyond just the ballgame was in the air at that moment, definitely. I've seen some blasts in my life, but that one...wow. We we behind the plate, 23 rows up, and from that angle the ball looked for a while like it was going to go over the roof, it was such a blast. As it is, it landed about 5th row upper deck, but point being - that ball was gone the second it left the bat, and everybody knew it. If ever there was a "Purpose Driven Hit", this sure looked to be one. To use the cliche, "the crowd went wild", and most everybody knew what it meant past the Rangers for the first time this year absolutely refusing to lose. Refusing to lose is how you get through life's tougher moments. At least, that's how people who do get through them get through them. Of course there are scars and wounds and bleeding and all other sorts of torture, and sometimes it never stops. But those who survive do it by refusing to lose. In the immediate post-game interview, Josh said that he had been thinking that it had been a while since he had hit a walkoff (3 years to the day, as it turns out), and that maybe he should start thinking about getting that done when he had the chance. Getting it done when you have the chance - is that not ultimately the best way to appreciate life, to honor whatever it is that puts us here with our various abilities? Sentimentalizing and dwelling on the past, be it the triumphs, the tragedies, or even the horrors are good as far as they go, but doing is the only way to actually move ahead. And make no mistake - Josh Hamilton is moving ahead. Not without (still more) baggage, but he is moving ahead. Not everybody can, or would. But he is. And he needs to be - there is a whole lot of baseball left, and his team is just now starting to play like it needs to play to get done what they need to be done. Hopefully it is not too late, but you never know, Lost time is not found again, which is something that Josh Hamilton knows better than most. Josh Hamilton is fine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2p-K3B-B60

what would really have been insane if this would have been on the Gary Moore-hosted syndicated version of the late 60s/early 70s, especially when the set looked like a really purple acid trip.

Insanity? Of course! But who was that drummer? He sounded like he had a clue.

Josh Hamilton is fine.

The two albums with Sonny Fortune & Ricky Ford are pretty intense.

The Pointer Sisters The Righteous Brothers Norman Cousins

All I've heard of is a few extra takes of "Windows" & one of "Litha".

The Good People of Ovilla, Tx http://maps.google.c...ved=0CCMQ8gEwAQ People who drink Ovaltine Oval Teens http://www.myspace.c.../blog/438357580

Javon Jackson Michael Jackson The Jackson in your house