Some New Images

Thought I would post some new images I have been working on:

Learning the Lessons of History

For those that seem confused by the dialogue about health care, torture, or the myriad of other ailments that appear on 24 hr "News", I suggest that you read the article by Rick Perlstein

"In America, Crazy Is a Preexisting Condition: Birthers, Town Hall Hecklers and the Return of Right-Wing Rage".

I am old enough to remember some of the silliness of past political issues that have come and gone and yet the republic has survived ( I still don't know why).

Enjoy and Dang These Sins

Denny

Voices Heard but not Heeded

Item in the Washington Post today

"The Republican National Committee suggested in a recent fundraising appeal that Democrats might use an overhaul of the health-care system to deny medical treatment to Republicans."

Do they know that the health care system already has certain limitations of Psychriatric Care?

On the Passing of Ted Kennedy

With Ted Kennedy's passing I am thinking of the Dylan Thomas poem "Do Not Go Quietly Into That Good Night" Another thinker also reflected about Kennedy's passing

Here is a excerpt from a blog by the Rude Pundit

A man works to help those who need help. A real man is a liberal because a real man is unafraid of change and progress and difference. Let us come back to the money. The Kennedy family has always seen wealth as a privilege, a burden, and an opportunity to do good for others. Yes, it is easier to support charities and to have the time to work for various causes. But Kennedy made it his role in government to level the playing field. Where do you wanna go with this? Other than his work that climaxed with the Americans With Disabilities Act, other than his support for civil rights legislation going back to the 1964 act, we could talk about the Ryan White CARE Act, which gave funds to cities hardest hit by the AIDS crisis; we could talk about his intense support for the rights of workers through raising the minimum wage and supporting union goals; we could talk about his work for housing, for education, for women

A man knows how to die. A man understands that the end comes and doesn't desperately cling to every millisecond of life that medical science can squeeze out of him. No, a man dies with his family, in a place he loves, having done much, knowing that there was much still to be done, but accepting that there's only so much one can live. and children, for the Family and Medical Leave Act. We could talk about how he opposed the Iraq War, how he was working to provide educational opportunities to kids in Muslim countries, how he helped end the war in Northern Ireland. We could talk about how he believed, his entire career, that health care for everyone was a right, not a privilege, with COBRA and S-CHIP having been accomplished because of him. He was an unabashed, proud liberal whose full-throated speeches roared in defense of the whole ideology against the ignorance of those who would keep progress from being achieved.

Ted Kennedy will be missed by me and many others. "Good Night Sweet Prince"

Dang These Sins

Denny

Half Assed Theology

Just read a blog from a very dear friend who posted the poem High Flight by John Patrick Magee. In her blog she was concerned that there are those that may think less of the poem because of some intellectual bigotry. Like all bigotry it seeks to place boundaries on what is acceptable and what is not. I for one refuse to accept such boundaries. I enjoy all sorts of poetry from Ovid to Charles Bukowski (Buck). I have never been bored by the word of that particular poem and specifically the line “I put out my hand and touched the face of God.”

I do not know what God is because so many charlatans have used that term to “work their side of the street”. As hustles go, the God hustle is one of the better ones. It has worked well since we crawled out from the cave and saw the stars and figured that because we couldn’t touch them, that they “Must be some one else’s groceries” and so we created a god to own the groceries (The allusion to groceries is from the movie “inherit the wind”). Any way I digress, as is my nature.

The point is, that I understand the concept of god and have all of the respect necessary to see the beauty about us. It is this beauty that I try to capture in my art. It is in the doing of the art that I feel a connection to everything. When I see color in the image I am constantly thrilled by it. I bathe in it (figuratively speaking). I can spend hours adjusting the tone, contrast, the gamma, the light and dark and have to force myself to stop as I am never satisfied that I have achieved the effect my heart feels.

Of coarse this is my madness as I too try to reach out and touch the face of god.

Damn these sins. See you next time. Denny

Loss and Laughter

Not many people know Peggy Cooper Cafritz. I was one of those people and I mourn for a loss suffered by her as well as a loss of all of us. Peggy lived in a 5.2 Million dollar mansion in Kent, Washington that burned down recently. Now I know that the rich know how to be compensated sufficiently for loss and ordinarily I would not bother but in addition to the mansion, what was lost was one of the largest private collections of African-American art

The Cooper-Cafritz Collection included over 300 pieces of African-American art, sculpture photographs and other pieces. (See the example below). Although it was a private collection, I none the less, mourn its destruction because there is always the faint glimmer of hope it would eventually be in a museum for all to see. So all of you that read this know that you too have lost a part of our humanity


Kerry James Marshall's "Study for Great America"




And now for something completely different

I was interested in Bill Clinton’s trip to North Korea. I can see the discussion now.

State Dept Official 1: How are we going to get the reporters out of North Korea?

State Dept Official 2: Why don’t we send Bill Clinton? They like him over there!

State Dept Official 1: What could we offer him to undertake such a mission, rife with political dangers?

State Dept Official 2: Tell him that the reporters are two young women and will have a 13 hr flight back alone with them. For Bill that is an offer he can’t refuse.

YEAH BABY, THE BIG DOG IS BACK

I love Clinton, he has not only given us a more or less decent presidency but he is the gift that continues to give when it comes to jokes.

Dang these sins. see you next time

Denny

Televison Pundits

I came across a quote that I thought is appropriate for those on TV that seem to know what is going on.

"Really, it's like listening to a 911 call from a brain damaged shut-in who can't figure out the can opener. And that the toaster won't stop screaming at him."

I laughed at the imagery created in my mind. (Or perhaps I saw my self)

Enjoy

Dang these sins. See you next time.

Denny

Wisdom from the Big Lebowski

Dude: It's like Lenin said. You look for the person who will benefit, and, uh, uhm you know...
Donny : I am the walrus?
Dude : You know, you'll, uh, uh... you know what I'm trying to say.
Donny : I am the walrus.
Walter: That fucking bitch!
Dude : Oh, yeah...
Donny : I am the walrus.
Walter : Shut the fuck up, Donny! V.I. Lenin. Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov!

White Sands visit

Carol and I decided that the house was capable of taking care of itself without us for a day or two. Accordingly we took a two day trip south to the White Sands National Monument.

We ended up in Truth or Consequences (T or C) NM and stayed at the Blackstone Hot springs Lodging. Great room and a huge bath (ready for two). Got into the room and went right for the bath. The water came in through a waterfall direct from the springs. Below is a promo from the place. Keep in mind that the town was named after a television game show so in keeping with that concept the rooms were all named after tv stars or shows. We got the "Golden Girls" room but passed on the "Babaloo" room (We thought Desi was a little too much).

As can be seen the interior is what used to be called "Camp" and we rather enjoyed it.

Anyway we had a wonderful bath and sleep. As we get more into the Senior Category, the sleep seems to be of particular interest.

Below are some images I took during that trip.

Dang these sins. See you next time

Denny




Door Window - Blackstone Motel



Sign Post Shadows - White Sands



Erosion - White Sands

Resting Places - White Sands