Buffalo Gal

I always notice things when I drive east-west or west-east on Highway 10.  This morning, on my way to the New Life Center prayer breakfast, I spotted snow geese flying in a low vee above the highway.  What beauty!   We are so used to seeing the Canadian Honkers that snow geese seem like something novel!  They were headed north, of course.   Then on the way home, I was absolutely sure I saw the first tiny tinge of that marvelous color I call "bud green" or "spring green".  I look for it each April in the stands of poplars that are along highway 10, in profusion in one spot between Glyndon and Hawley.    I was sure it was beginning but when I got up close, it was not so …yet.   It only lasts a day or two so you have to be "there" to see that first tinge of "bud green".

I spotted some very yellow willow stands—another sure sign of oncoming spring.  The wild willows always get bright yellow before the buds and small leaves give willows that characteristic "spring green" glow, also.      There is a stand of what the nursery people call "Flame Willow" and those willows do look like they are on fire.   They are bright orange in the leafless seasons and often provide the only spot of color in a colorless winter landscape. They are still showing thier bright orange branches which will eventually be overtaken by leaves forming over the orange branches and stems.  Flame Willows are really nice hedges in a yard or along a field.

I can always see some red dogwood branches on my Highway 10 trips.  They are bright red in the dull early spring landscape and the red is very bright, creating a really cheerful spot of color on the Spring Palette.  Soon, they too, will be leafing out so the red branches will not be seen til late fall once again.   Some years I clip branches of red dogwood and put them in a big flower pot for Christmas color inside the house.  I have even decorated the branches with tiny lights and tiny ornaments in place of a standard "Christmas Tree".

The best Christmas tree "substitute" I ever heard of was of a huge tumbleweed which had been sprayed with something that made it shine.  It was rather unique and unforgettable.

It is a beautiful day and the tulip bed to the southeast of my home is looking better and better every day.  The green leaves are now visible and I thought about going outside in the warm sunshine this afternoon and doing a bit of loosening of the dirt around the sprouting tulips…..but now that I am home and it is after 2:30 p.m…….my "lazy" phase is coming on strong and I have a desire to "veg out" with some crossword puzzles and a DVD of old "Monk" episodes.  (I am one of the extremely  "Hooked" on the "Monk" shows on the USA channel).  I watch almost nothing of "shows" but this is one I cannot miss.  There is a bit of Adrian Monk in all of us and that must be what makes it so appealing.  Aren’t we all a bit "obsessive/compulsive in some area of our lives?  I think we are.  But the run of the mill of us are not capable of solving complicated murders….Adrian Monk can do that and that also makes the series fascinating.

I wore a lightweight pink "summer sweater" today…..how is that for getting "with" the Spring Palette???

That good old song that begins with "Standin’ on the corner, watchin’ all the girls go by…" came to mind tonight just about twilight time on a balmy evening (one of our first balmy evenings after 6 months of winter, it seems).     After our Wednesday night Bible study/Prayer groups, we stopped at the good old Moorhead Dairy Queen on the corner of Main Avenue and 8th street in downtown Moorhead.   

I love stopping at that Dairy Queen due to memories from years and years ago when it was one of the first DQs on the scene.  It is still the old- style DQ where the customers stand outside under an awning and wait to give their orders at the little windows where you speak to the servers thru a screen window.  Tonight there were up to 30 people at a time standing in three separate lines waiting to step up to one of the 3 windows that were open for business on a fairly busy weeknight.

As we were "standin’ on the corner…." a lot of things occurred, beginning with the wail of an ambulance siren and the ambulance speeding up the that intersection and going through it after its automatic device turned the light green.  Other cars already at the intersection were unable to pull over so the ambulance had to do a bit of tricky swerving and crossing into other driving lanes in order to stay on its mission…..it was moving at top speed also. All of us corner folks at the DQ were craning our necks in the same direction watching the ambulance drama unfold.    At least 5 freight trains caused the railroad crossing near the DQ to be cut off to  traffic just in the short time I was standing on the corner and in the line.  What a huge number of trains in just a short time, reminding me that there are far too many trains and not nearly enough under- or over- passes in either Fargo or Moorhead.  At least there are no loud train whistles any more.  The consequences of that will have to be known as the time goes on since the ordinance was passed.

An obviously serious and devoted runner came by us as we stood there.  He was clad in running clothes, including  shorts, warm tights, a warm sweatshirt, a white winter cap covering his head, and of course, really good quality running shoes.  He passed us by and it was an obvious contrast between us somewhat chubby  "snackers" and his lean, skinny runner’s body.  He would not have stopped to consume high calorie treats that would have interfered with his running regime.  He might be training for the upcoming Fargo Marathon, for all I know.

We were a diverse group tonight also.   There was a fairly large group of exuberant teenagers in the line; there were college students as well and also a few older folks like me.  There were some Moms and Dads with their kids and a few kids, alone, ordering for waiting parents in the parked cars.  All of us are "comrades" in a way at the DQ….the night was sweet and we were all eager for our cold treats and hot eats!   There is alway a bit of conversation between the total strangers that make up the DQ lines.     A couple of huge loud semi’s (big rigs) passed by….  almost too close for comfort….just a few feet from the curb where we were all standing in line.  I thought of the consequences of a freak accident and what it would have done to a lot of people who were standing on the sidewalk together, innocently waiting for sundaes, shakes, cones, blizzards, et.al.

It was my first trip of the spring to the old Moorhead Dairy Queen and I have come away, full of my medium chocolate cone and full of satisfaction for having been "standin’ on the corner" tonight…the first of many such times this summer, I hope!!!!

There are times when I have to step back from anything political or serious (politics CAN be hilarious, at times, such as Sen. Obama "bowling" gutter balls and Sen. Clinton belting down a jigger of Royal Canadian in a blue-collar bar in Pennsylvania).

This blog is being devoted to "time off" from serious matters; rather we must consider some "logic" which was sent by a good friend recently.  This is startling logic!    It might even be true, if one researches it more deeply (like typing in "iatrogenesis" on a search engine). At any rate I offer you these facts on which to ponder( I am blindly trusting in the statistics)    on this first possible rainy day of the current Springtime.     I quote from the missive  the friend sent:

" (A.)  The number of physicians in the U.S. is 700,000.             ( B.)  Accidental deaths caused by  physicians  per year:   120,000.(calculation: accidental death per physician is 0.171)    These statistics are courtesy of  U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services.

Now think about this:   Guns.    (A.)  The number of gun owners in the U.S.  is 80,000,000. Yep, that is 80 million.     (B.) the number of accidental gun deaths per year , in all age groups, is  1,500.     calculation: the number of accidental gun deaths each year, per gun owner is .000188.            Statistics courtesy of the FBI.

So, statistically, doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners.  Remember, ‘Guns don’t kill people, doctors do.’ 

FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.  Please alert your friends to this alarming threat.

We must ban doctors before this gets completely out of hand!!!!!!!

Our of concern for the public at large, I withheld the statistics about Lawyers for fear the shock would cause people to panic and seek medical attention.

‘Growing old is mandatory; growing wise is optional’  "

End of quote on "Facts To Ponder". ——————————————————————–

My Thoughts on this matter:  Are you in great danger today from a medical appointment?   Are you hospitalized?     Seek shelter and help from your family as soon as you can….your life may depend on it.

The past weekend (April 12-13) has been an amazing period of time for me.  Prior to the weekend, I read an article from a journal published by the Council For Foreign Affairs, dated July/August, 2005…so the article was not a brand- new one, but it was an alarming one and factual, written by a Council of Foreign Affairs official named Robert S. Leiken.  I think I downloaded it from RealClearPolitics, one of my favorite websites for the most balanced political coverage that I have currently  seen.   Reading Mr. Leiken’s lenthy article coincided with a special seminar held at our church fellowship this past weekend, and the convergence of the seminar with my having read the Leiken piece seemed almost pre-ordained, if I can use such a term.    

Mr. Leiken’s work was titled "Europe’s Angry Muslims" and the seminar at our church had as the Guest Speaker and presenter, a highly educated man born and raised as a Muslim in Pakistan.  The year he was 25 years old, he had an almost "Apostle Paul-like" conversion experience, not unlike the Damascus Road conversion of Saul, who later became "Paul". The Pakistani gentleman is now a most fervent Christian missionary to Muslims in Pakistan and elsewhere.  His knowledge of the Koran and the writings in the Haditha, learned as a child from first grade and on and his multiple languages….Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and English, (as well as an understanding of the original languages of the Judeo-Christian scriptures, Hebrew and Greek), are  most amazing.  He spoke on many subjects which enlighten the knowledge of the religion of Islam.   I learned many things I had not previously known. This man’s life is in danger due to the Pakistani government’s desire to see him dead, instead of teaching the things he is now teaching.  He will never be able to return to his homeland in spite of having parents and other relatives there.  The zeal of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was shocking to learn about.  He is convinced that it is crucial to inform American people of the true nature of his former religion.  That was the shocking part of the seminar sessions.

Mr. Leiken’s article was another eye-opener…. to what has been taking place in European democracies since the end of World War 2.   At the close of this world conflagration (1939-1945) the countries of Europe…principlely the Low Countries (Belgium and Netherlands) Germany, France, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, and  England lay in ruins from the war… the battles and the heavy use of bombing during the course of the war.    These European countries, at that time, institutued "guest worker" programs to bring in people from other parts of Asia and the Middle East, to work on the re-building of the nations that were all war-torn.  Many guest workers flooded into Europe…into France from Algeria and Morocco, into England from Middle Eastern nations such as Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Egypt and Palestinian areas; and  into Germany adn the Baltic nations, workers from Turkey.  The plan was to have these guest workers stay til the work of rebuilding was done and then have them return to their native lands.  However, as we have recently seen  in our own nation, things do not work that way, and  most of the guest workers stayed in the European nations, were made citizens, had children and eventually the children had children until at present, many European nations have 2nd and 3rd generations of people who are of the Muslim religion.

Another unfortunate fact about these generations of Muslim citizens of European countries, is that the European nations did NOTHING to  assimilate them, probably due to the deeply ingrained "class systems" of Old Europe which have exist, silently, through the present day.  The Muslim citizens lived in separate enclaves, often on the outskirts of the big cities of Europe..Paris, London, Berlin, Madrid, Amsterdam and Brussels, just to name a few prominent cities.  The work they performed was mostly the lowest- paying jobs, and there were no professional or upwardly mobile jobs available to them , due to the ingrained "class system" entrenched in the countries to which they came.

Presently, this 2nd/3rd generation of immigrants from Muslim nations have become "Angry Muslims’"…especially  the young men who are the predominant members of Muslim society according to their own ancient traditions.   Perhaps many of us remember the outbursts of

this smoldering "anger" in the suburbs of Paris just a couple of years ago when young Muslim men rioted and burned homes, vehicles and other things in the suburban area where the riots occurred.  There have been similar uprisings in Germany and Spain and the Netherlands, as well as outright "jihadist attacks" on the trains in Madrid, Spain, the underground subways in London and other plots that were uncovered before they could transpire.  All of these attacks were traced to 2nd and 3rd generation "citizens" who are of the Muslim religion.   

The Muslim population is rapidly outnumbering the  native European population due to the much higher fertility among the people who originally came as "guest workers".  These people who are "citizens" are demanding that their governments provide them with all services such as full welfare payments to the unemployed (any so many ARE unemployed), and government funding to build places of worship (mosques) since the European governments build Christian churches under the old antiquated "state church" systems in Europe.

There have also been some very violent murders committed by angry Muslim citizens, esecially in the Netherlands, where the adult child of Moroccan immigrant workers murdered, in broad daylight on a street in a major city,  Theo Van Gogh (related to the Dutch artist, Vincent VanGogh).  Another murder by a Muslim citizen was of a member of the Dutch Parliament, Pim  Fortuyn, a Gay man who opposed Muslim immigrant demands made upon the Dutch government.  His murder, especially, stirred up anger and violent retaliation among Dutch native citizens who burned some mosques in the Netherlands and committed other acts of violence agains Muslim citizens.  The current situation in the Netherlands remains intensely volatile, epecially with the more recent speeches and the documentary film made by Dutch parliament member, Geert Wilders, whose film titled "Fitna" has  caused Muslims in the Netherlands, and other countries, to demand that the documentary be banned.   Wilders , alone, in the Dutch parliament, calls for the constant flow of immigrants from the Muslim countries to be stopped and has also spoken out against Muslims demanding from the Dutch government such things as Sharia laws in Netherlands.   Wilders may probably be the next victim of "jihad" assassination in that nation.

The lengthy article contains so much information about the present status of European governments’ efforts to stem the flow of Muslim immigrants, to  intercept and put a stop to Jihadist plots to cause havoc among the nations where Muslims are beginning to outnumber the native populations.  The reality of the desire for  "Jihad"(Holy War)…. be it outright violent attacks, or a "silent Jihad" perpetrated by non-violent ways to  gain dominance, is the subject of the Foreeign Affairs article    Leiken’s writing points out the reality in modern Europe of huge changes that are being wrought by the presence of the second and third generations of the original guest workers who came to post-WW2 Europe and have remained there for all the years since the end of WW 2.

My  attendance and learning at the seminars in my church fellowship and the coinciding reading of Robert Leiken’s article in the journal of Foreign Affairs, have had a HUGE effect on my previous knowledge of the subject of radical Islamic Jihad, and its very real effects in Europe.

The turn of the United States for such similar events, as have occurred in Europe over the past 60+ years, are another reality that Americans must face up to  in the coming years.  I have an entirely  new perspective on the upcoming presidential election and its possible effects for years to come,regarding our national security, and the huge changes that could overtake us just as the huge changes have overtaken Europe already.     It is very sobering.

The most recent Democratic campaign "flap" comes as a result of Barack Obama—(could he possibly have "misspoken" or "missremembered"?….) airing his views on small towns, especially in the hotly contested state of Pennsylvania.  Obama said in essence that small town people in Pennsylvania are bitter over their job losses and the degradation of their economies and are turning to guns, to religion, to finding fault with people who are unlike them, and are anti-"immigrants" (I suppose that would apply to  the mulitudinous Illegals who have taken many jobs in the current climate in the United States).   

Obama said these things at a small fund-raiser in San Francisco this past Sunday (April 6)    Since no meeting is ever totally "private" any more, the words leaked out and are causing yet another firestorm which has caused Hillary Clinton and John McCain to agree on this topic:  Obama is clearly an elitist and clearly out of touch with ordinary Americans.

There is probably some truth to their conclusions in spite of Obama protesting greatly in his personal newspaper outlets such as the New York Times, Washington Post, and Chicago Tribune…as well as other national news outlets.   Television news stations were full of this latest "gaffe" last night and I would bet money that Hillary is hoping that this is the "crash" by Obama that she is sure would help her win the nomination.  That remains to be seen, especially in Pennsylvania’s primary a week from now.

Jerry Bowyer, writing in the Opinion Journal section of the Wall Street Journal today, has an interesting take on the background of Obama’s statement in San Francisco.  Bowyer maintains that this is nothing new in the Democratic party over the years.  He contends that the Dems have used "identity politics" for years to garner votes from blocs of voters by race, by economic class, by gender, and other ways of "identity".    He also  traces the present state of affairs in the Dem party to the convention in Chicago of 1968 when war protestors nearly disrupted and brought down the Dem convention that summer.   As part of that convention, Democrats devised the current way of running primaries and caucuses, using "identity politics" to create quotas on political committees and other inside political "machinery" so that race, gender, age, class, etc. became part of the mechanics of Democratic policy in choosing delegates on committees etc.    This action from the summer of 1968 has probably resulted in  this year’s political difficulties in places like Florida and Michigan and all the other turmoil brought on by the modern version of "Identity Politics" which the Dems have been playing for years and years.   Now it is "Coming Home To Roost" and the prospect is not a good one.  It has divided the party badly in 2008 and the latest Spat about Obama’s view of small town working class people is firing up yet another division.

In Bowyer’s opinion journal piece in the WSJ, he includes a stunning statement based on 4th President James Madison’s view way back in the beginning of our political history.  He paraphrases Madison’s statement that said this:   (I put quotation marks around it because I am quoting directly from the Bowyer essay)

"When there is liberty, some men will create more wealth than others.  Property and class factions will result.  Members of these different economic classes are tempted to pass laws which help themselves at the expense of public good. Over time this excessive self-regard distorts the gift of reason and causes people to speak and think in ways that seem strange to the country at large."

I am stunned by the truths seen by James Madison long before this sort of thinking has become the "norm" in the United States.  I am stunned when I think of what the U.S. Congress does or does not do for the supposed "good of the people".  It has all dissolved into what James Madison described way back in his time….when the U.S. Constitution and Government were brand-new and so revolutionary in the rest of the world.

He described what we see today…..class warfare, gender warfare, race warfare, economic warfare…all of it among American citizens who are most concerned about their "excessive self-regard" as Madison put it, and not the "public good" at all.  Our society has spiraled downward into petty fights among "Identity" groups on the political scene, and Obama’s remarks in San Francisco and the responses from Hillary and McCain and others, are just one more sign of this degradation in American culture and society which inevitably gets reflected in American politics, every time we have an election cycle loom up.

It is discouraging and leaves a true "ordinary" citizen with feelings of hopelessness for our political future.  There is not a candidate that makes me feel confident about the future of the United States.

No, not me…but I wish to quote "Mancow" Muller, a top radio talker I used to listen to for about 6 minutes on a segment of the morning show "Fox And Friends" when I was still a fully employed teacher;  I would listen and watch this morning show while I was getting ready to leave each weekday morning between 6 and 7 a.m.  (did I really get up that early back then? I don’t now!)

I had never heard of "Mancow" until hearing him on that show, but he was a fascinating talker and clearly eager to express his opinions just as much as Don Imus and other nationally known radio talkers.  His views often astounded me but also made me think deeply.  I more often than not agreed with him, and now, I read a short article in the NEWSMAX monthly magazine written by none other than Mancow, who does have a last name…Muller.  The article also has a colored picture of M.C. wearing blue jeans, a khaki shirt, big dark sunglasses and his characteristic  small beard/goatee.  He is standing in the Oval Office in front of the President’s desk.

Here is what Mancow Muller says he would do if he were president and I agree with him on a lot of his "would dos"….if I were President… (move over Hillary, there are other women who could do the job too!!!)

Quotes from Mancow Muller:       "My first act as President would be to invite all conservative, Bible-thumping radicals to pray for America, return common sense, and be blessed like never before.   I’d blockade the Memorial Bridge into Washington {D.C.} to protest the one-sided media and the god-awful public schools—-have you talked to kids lately?   I’d name William Shatner to serve my cabinet as my life coach!  He told me there are peaks and valleys ‘Keep walking! Don’t stop in the valley!’     My Sunday Radio Address would be different from other presidents’ because I’d spice it up a bit with with FM radio production elements. I’d play a lot of Kink’s music.    The first time I took a ride on Air Force One, I’d grab the public-address microphone and announce ‘Let’s restore the constitution!’ while playing ‘The Ride Of The Valkyries’ from ‘Apocalypse Now’.   I’d have a sleepover in the Abraham Lincoln Bedroom  with all the living cast members of the ‘GoldenGirls’.  They knew Abe Lincoln and it would probably give them a kick in the Depends.       There’d be plenty of hollering and screaming and finger-pointing at my cabinet meetings because I favor school choice and I’d want the IRS dismantled.      If I had to fire someone, I would just tell them to hit the bricks.  I’m definitely not the smiling- enemy type.       I would nominate a UN Ambassador who would get inside  the UN and destroy it.  It’s a real cancer."

So says Mancow!!!     What would I  REALLY DO  "If I Were President"?      I think one of the first things I would do is use my power in a constitutional way to override the do-nothing Congress members and I would use that power to stop the bleeding at our borders.  I would make it possible to absolutely STOP the flood of Illegal Aliens crossing into this nation from our southern border and also from the northern border—however, the real bleeding is occurring at the Tex-Mex border.   I would probably bring American military troops home from the many places they now are stationed and I would put them on our borders to protect OUR NATION instead of lolly-gagging around the world trying to occupy and do "nation-building".  Let the other nations build themselves.  That’s what we did a few hundred years ago. (I am currently reading David McCullough’s JOHN ADAMS, and I fear that these sort of men no longer exist)

It could be interesting if commenters stated what they would do if they were president!!! We might change our country radically if it were possible to do it.

Don’t we all need to do that fairly often…..relax and smile????    I need it badly and a couple of days ago I got a forward on e mail from my cousin in Bloomington that made me not only relax and smile—it just about did me in from the laughter I could not stop from coming in waves.    The forward was of a man who was calling from his cellphone while on a very busy freeway in the Dallas area.  He was telling a colleague about getting delayed by heavy traffic and rain falling when suddenly he shouted, "WHOAAAAAA!  There has been a wreck right in front of me….a guy ran a red light and crashed into an Impala with 4 old ladies in it".   He then went on to describe the results of the "wreck" which included the light-running man who was dressed in a business outfit, smoking a cigarette, and charging over the car of the old ladies, acting like it was their fault.   He then described how the man pounded on the driver’s window which got opened by the old lady who was driving and she immediately pepper-sprayed him in the face so he went down on his knees.  She then opened the car door and began beating him with her umbrella.  The second old lady got out and began pummeling him with a "black purse" according to the observer who was getting hysterical with loud guffaws by now…his laugh was  so infectious, I found myself laughing WITH him as if I were seeing the same sights as he was.   The man reporting on the crash described the old lady with the balck purse  as "about 4- foot, nothing; she looks like Mother Goose!!"  Then,  a third old lady came out of the back seat wielding a huge bag with which she also began beating the man over the head; he  was still down on the ground, unable to get up,  being beaten with umbrellas, and finally, with a  a Bible "that she is using like a jackhammer"   The Bible had fallen out of the third lady’s huge bag.  The fourth old lady got out and beat him and poked him with another umbrella til he finally managed to crawl away and get back to his own car.  Just the verbal description of it was so funny I could barely breathe.  If laughter is the best medicine, I added years to my life when I read that one.  About the only thing those 4 old ladies did not do, was "knee" him in the groin, for which he should have been very thankful. They probably thought he was going to attack them and kidnap them and they did not hesitate to defend themselves.

I have a few "sage sayings" from a site called "conservative truth.com"   They are titled "Undeniable Rules of Life" and here they are……..(drumroll please)

**Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.                  **My idea of housework is to sweep the room with one glance" {a-ha! that’s was one for me!}    **  "For every action there is an equal and opposite government program."     **"Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed as checks"      **" Eat well, stay fit, die anyway"     **Men are from Earth, women are from Earth….deal with it."     ** "No husband has ever been shot while doing the dishes"       **"A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand"       ** "Junk is something you’ve kept for years and throw away three weeks before you need it."    **  "Thou shalt not weigh more than thy refrigerator"       ** "Someone who thinks logically is a nice contrast to the real world"      ** "If you look like your passport picture, you probably need a long trip"         ** there is always one more imbecile than you counted on"        ….and last but not least…..  **  "If you must choose between two evils, try the one you haven’t tried yet"

I hope you all have relaxed and smiled a bit!

What occurred last night happens very seldom—-I had a ticket to a concert at the FargoDome’s Gate City Theater.  I saw and heard the famed and adored "Mannheim Steamroller" after having loved their music since about 1980 when Eldest Son brought home some audiotapes of the first two "Fresh Aire" albums from the mid-1970′s.

It was a marvelous experience for me and for all the other "Steamrollers" who have been buying their albums over the years.  My daughter- in -law is as big a M.S. fan as I am, so both of us were there, as well as our husbands (father and son).  The men agreed that the concert was excellent, even though they may not have been as enthusiastic about attending as the women were.   It was just magnificent, from the first notes of the first half of the concert in which they played music from all the "Fresh Aire" albums.   I heard many familiar and dearly loved melodies played in the way that only the Mannheim Steamroller and its originator, Chip Davis, meant them to be played.

I was surprised by the smallness of the traveling ensemble….5 full time Steamrollers plus a small group of professional musicians from Fargo-Moorhead, who provided additional strings, brass (two trumpets) and some percussion.  The Steamroller sound is largely generated by sophisticated recorded orchestration plus the most elegant synthesizer sounds anywhere.   It was nearly overwhelming to a M.S. freak like I am….along with my daughter- in law.  The two of us very nearly went into a genuine "swoon" when they opened the second half with "Morning" from the "Yellowstone" album.  The pleasures of the music just kept washing over us like giant ocean waves until you think you cannot take even one more beautiful sound….but they kept coming til the very end, when the enthusiastic crowd produced an encore; we got to hear several more Steamroller songs from the Christmas albums. 

It is a most energetic performance by the 5 traveling members….the keyboard player, especially, got his excercise, moving from one instrument to another (including a tiny child’s rinky-tinky- sounding piano mounted on a moving cart which he pushed across the stage while playing).  The regular piano is capable of many sounds including harpsichord.   The violinist had all sorts of options for sounds with his several electronic violins;  he played music that sounded like a quartet of French Horns, for one example.  The bass guitarist literally danced his way through the concert.  

The effects of the entire concert included awe (the sound and the visual arts accompanying the sounds);  the beautiful and often-eerie lighting effects; and the reaction of the Steamroller audience, who were a noticelably older crowd (probably teenagers or college students from the mid 1970′s and the early 1980′s)

I must say that every cent of the ticket price was MORE than worth it!   What a great night!

It IS springtime in spite of the weather.   This morning there was 8-10 inches of wet heavy snow on the deck of my home but by this afternoon, the brilliant, strong sunshine had dispatched it and the deck was dry!   That is  power in the early April sun!!!  Instead of mechanical snow removal, a decision has been made here at the Buffalo Bluff to let the sun do the snow-clearing instead of a large tractor with a snow blower that would clog up from the wet slush anyway.

Today after the snow was gone from the deck, I set up my folding chair close to the steel siding (which adds about 10 degrees to the outdoor temperature close by it) and soaked up some vital rays to encourage the ergosterol in my skin to turn to Vitamin D.  I nearly got sunburned in that short time…..power of the sun in April again!!!    While sitting there in the relative quiet (such an advantage to living in a city or town) I listened to the sounds of April 7 and heard………..a huge flock of robins singing merrily in the thick woods below the hill on which the house sits.  During the snowstorm, I saw the huge flock of robins sitting in the trees, especially in the thick underbrush right next to the river.  Those brushy small trees are loaded with dried berries from last summer and the robins feed on them before the worms come up from the cold soil.  I also heard the slushy sound of a lone vehicle driving slowly west on the country lane which is known in these parts as "Old Number Two" ….referring to the only way to get to town prior to the construction of Highway 10.

As I sat basking like a happy Iguana, I thought of something I researched yesterday during the snowstorm…..Sandhill Cranes who gather at this time of year on the South Platte River in Nebraska.  The cranes are gathering as a precursor to their northerly journey to summer nesting grounds far north of Nebraska.  I would love to visit the Crane Preserve along the South Platte right now and see these huge flocks of some of the biggest migratory birds.  The cranes are so large that they are lazy fliers, and instead of flying, depend on warm southerly winds to carry them northward on the thermals that rise from the earth on warm windy days.  I have seen flocks of cranes go over my house on days such as those described….the birds circle on the thermals and let the south winds carry them northward. Their cries as they circle slowly are eerie and haunting and always draw me outside if I hear them through an open window.  The information said that the cranes would be heading north between March 25 and April 6 and now I am a bit concerned that I have missed their odd flights  riding the thermals.  I shall keep watching and listening for the strange cries on a  day  when it is warm and the south winds are blowing.

About two days ago, I thought I heard cranes for sure, because there were cries from the sky to the northeast of the house…..but I saw the characteristic "Vee" formation and decided I was seeing wild geese…but they were snow white.  Unless swans fly in "vees"  I think I saw snow geese on their way north.  It was another beautiful sight that assured me that spring is here, indeed, in spite of the weather.

With this weekend’s heavy snows, I expect to see the Buffalo River flooding out of its banks in a few days and turning our lower meadow into the shallow lake that becomes inevitable when the Buffalo leaves its banks and swells across "Old Number Two" into one of our meadows.  The nice thing about living atop a very high hill, is that all you do, in case of a flood, is just watch it happen…there is no danger of a wet basement or a flooded lawn.

In 1993, when the Buffalo overflowed into the meadow, our bottom lands became a large lake for several days but when the waters receded, a white scum was all over the grasses and other vegetation.  This shocked us into buying and having installed, a reverse osmosis pure – water system.  We reasoned that whatever was in that white scum  was probably harmful chemicals from farm fields and who knows where else, and it would sink into our water supply deep under the ground.  Our well is not that deep, so the Reverse Osmosis system works well and keeps us drinking purified water.

Speaking of this subject reminds me that I am very thirsty.  I need a drink of nice pure water!!!!!

In an article garnered from the RealClearPolitics website, I learned of a dangerous new condition (OBS) that is running amok in the United States currently.  There were definite confirmation of symptoms of this new syndrome present at the sessions of the North Dakota Democratic convention in Grand Forks this past weekend.  The symptoms were especially noticeable on Friday afternoon and night.

In the article from RCP, two doctors who are studying the syndrome were interviewed by a staff writer from the  SCIENCE BI-QUARTERLY periodical.  Dr. Geraldine Gomez and Dr. Shelby Feldstien were interviewed and here is part of that interview with SBQ. The following statements are direct quotations from the interview.

"Scientists Report Little Progress In Understanding And Stemming The Spread of OBS:     

 SBQ(Science Bi-Quarterly):     First off, what is OBS?

R. Gomez:  Well, Obama Bedazzlement Syndrome (OBS) is not too dissimilar from Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS) which was originally diagnosed by Dr. Charles Krauthammer, who found that BDS can afflict otherwide reasonable liberals.  At the sound of President’s Bush’s voice or seeing him on a video, emotions overwhem the left side of the brain, causing feelings of anger, paranoia, and conspiracy theorizing.  Like with BDS, OBS suspends rational thought but the diffrence is in the emotional response, which is mostly a feeling of warm gushiness.

SBQ:  Is OBS dangerous?

Gomez: So far, less so than BDS, mainly because scientific studies have shown that prolonged anger and bitterness  have resulted in health problems downstream.  We have seen no evidence that feelings of warm gushiness affects human health.

SBQ: What are the symptoms, and are people able to identify OBS when they see it?

Gomez: There is a range of symptoms….if you see two or more ‘flags’ in a person, then he or she may very well have been infected. If a friend is a little more glassy-eyed than usual and uses terms like ‘hope’ or ‘change’, while at the same time offers no additional specifics, you may be witnessing the early onset of the syndrome.  There are also physical manifestations.  If you or a friend swoons more frequently or feels a thrill going up the leg like Chris Matthews, that would be a more pronounced case.  Fainting in the presence of Obama is a telltale sign of advanced OBS.

SBQ: How long does OBS last?

Gomez:  We initially thought several months, similar in length to the infatuation stage of a romantic relationship.  But it looks like OBS could last for a full election cycle.  But we are not giving up.  Last December, we added a half dozen PhD’s to intensely study OBS.

SBQ: Sounds expensive.

Gomez:  It is, but we’ve received some generous grant money which will last through November.

SBQ:  Who are the benefactors?

Gomez: We have two main ones.  One of them is Ickes Wolfson Lehane LLC, whoever they are.  The other is the National Association Of Infomercial Products .   One of their representatives said they would like to ‘put the Obama lightning’ in a bottle and sell it on a 30-minute program.

SBQ:  What would you like to say, Dr. Feldstein?

Feldstein:  Nothing really.

SBQ: C’mon, man, I’ve got Yankee tickets.

Feldstein:   Well, OK. We’ve beeen applying the similar scientific tactics as Dr. Gomez but our subjects are watching and listening to Hillary’s speeches and comments.  The effects are rather the opposite of Obama’s, especially when they hear THE CACKLE  or when she tries to talk like a black person.  When you add the mistruths and the dirty tactics, most of the subjects feel emotions of revulsion.  We call it the Hillary Impolitical Vector, or HIV.  "

(end of direct quotations)

I have already identified  at least one cousin who has been infected with OBS, but he has spent his life as an academic on a college campus, so I suppose I should not be surprised by his coming down with OBS.  As I said in my opening paragraph, there was certainly an abundance  of evidence of OBS infection at the Democratic convention for North Dakota held in Grand Forks this past weekend.  All of them are probably infected at least through November, 2008, and if I understood the work of the two doctors…Gomez and Feldstein, there is no cure.

(by the way the article on RCP was definitely a genuine, "Spoof"…rather well done I must say.)