Unusual, very creative and beautiful music videos by Deep Forest

Deep Forest - Sweet Lullaby...



Deep Forest - Marta's Song

The State of the World

OK, this is a Blog, or Web Log, so I guess that I’m supposed to write something. Comment on the world, my life, society, things of interest. Whatever.

Right now things are rather confused and scary. Active conflict in Lebanon and Israel, as well as Iraq, Afghanistan, and other places that most Americans couldn’t point to on a map, let alone intelligently discuss the reasons for fighting over them. Tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, tornados, and fire ant infestations. The whole world seems to be going to shit.

Fear not. This is just a passing phenomenon enroute to the next passing phenomenon on the continuum of history. Good times follow bad, which are followed by more good and then more bad. Doobie Doobie Doo.

To paraphrase a wise old parable (or whatever it is), “this too shall pass.”

They're rioting in Africa

Remember this song, made famous by the Kingston Trio over 40 years ago? Seems like the words are still pretty much true, and they could probably add a couple of verses about the Middle East.

The Merry Minuet
written by Sheldon Harnick
________________________________________

They're rioting in Africa, They're starving in Spain
There's hurricanes in Florida, And Texas needs rain


This whole world is festering with unhappy souls
The French hate the Germans, The Germans hate the Poles
Italians hate Yugoslavs, South Africans hate the Dutch
And I don't like anybody very much


But we can be tranquil and thankful and proud
For Man's been endowed with a mushroom-shaped cloud
And we can be certain that some lovely day
Someone will set the spark off...and we will all be blown away


They're rioting in Africa, There's strife in Iran
What Nature doesn't do to us will be done by our Fellow Man

Sweet, innocent youth

I missed out on Woodstock. I was already in the U.S. Army at Fort Knox, KY getting ready to go to Viet Nam. While I am proud of my military service, and convinced that we were right to try to help the South Vietnamese people, I do wish that I had been able to attend the historic concert at Woodstock. One of the defining moments of my generation. I don't agree with Country Joe McDonald's Politics, but I really enjoy his song.

By the way, if you are too young to remember this classic, make sure you cover the kiddie's ears before you hit the play button.

Country Joe McDonald; I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag

Michael Mead and Toni Redpath, the 4-time Professional U.S. Ballroom Dance Champions, performed at the 2003 World Dance Festival in Japan.

NOTE: In case you haven't already guessed, I don't dance anything close to this level. Still, it is interesting to watch a couple that has perfected their art form so well. A tremendous amount of time and effort go into honing these skills. I enjoy ballroom dancing, but only as a hobby. This video clip is an example of near perfect human motion, rythm and physical communication.

An Interesting Philosophy

" Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!"
--Hunter S. Thompson

Hunter Stockton Thompson (July 18, 1937 - February 20, 2005) was an American journalist and author. He is credited as the creator of gonzo journalism, a style of reporting which blurs distinctions between author and subject, fiction and nonfiction.

Michael Mead and Toni Redpath win the 1999 United States National Professional Ballroom Championships. Nice overview of high end ballroom dancing

Cha Cha

Paso Doble - the Dance of Spain

Part 1:


Part 2:

The Argentine Tango

An authentic Argentine tango on the street.



A video clip with some of the background and sidelights of Tango.

When Harry Met Sally - remake

The most important national holiday, ARGGGGH

Talk Like a Pirate Day (Sept. 19) http://www.talklikeapirate.com/

Talk Like a Pirate Day: The Five A's http://snipurl.com/tauo

Talk Like a Pirate Day: Phone Etiquette http://snipurl.com/taug

Talk Like a Pirate Day: "I'm a Pirate" song http://snipurl.com/taue

Talk Like a Pirate Day: Slappy Rap http://snipurl.com/tauk

Where to live?

My test for the ideal place to live is for a home to offer the potential for you to sit naked in a hot tub in the back yard, drink beer, then toss the empty cans into the yard, and fire at them with a large caliber handgun without offending the neighbors.

Not that you would actually do that, of course. Just that you could if the mood seemed right.

'Double Heart Risk For People Who Live Alone'

"People who live alone are twice as likely to develop serious heart disease, according to new research.

A Danish study of more than 138,000 adults aged between 30 and 69 found those on their own doubled their risk of suffering a heart attack or angina compared with those who cohabited with a partner."

http://snipurl.com/t6xi

Your humble Blogmeister has been living a celebate lifestyle for the past few years. Perhaps I should re-think that and find a live in Snuggle Bunny to prolong my time on earth. Any volunteers, or recommendations? ;-)

Hahn Beer commercials - very funny, very creative

Hahn Beer, one of the Australian company, Lion Nathan’s brands. Primarilly sold in Australia, but expanding to other markets. I’ve never tried their beer, but I love their commercials. Click on the links to see some very creative beer commercials.

http://snipurl.com/t67l

http://snipurl.com/t686

http://snipurl.com/t67k

For more information about the company, click this link.

http://www.lion-nathan.com.au/home.htm

The power of the well written word

It was a long and twisting sentence...

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - An opening sentence containing a burrito, an angel and a shovel was judged appalling enough to win the annual Bulwer-Lytton literary parody prize on Tuesday.

Retired mechanical designer Jim Guigli of California was proclaimed winner of the contest, which challenges entrants to submit their worst opening sentence of an imaginary novel.

Guigli's winning entry read: "Detective Bart Lasiter was in his office studying the light from his one small window falling on his super burrito when the door swung open to reveal a woman whose body said you've had your last burrito for a while, whose face said angels did exist, and whose eyes said she could make you dig your own grave and lick the shovel clean."

Guigli's powers of invention and his determination to succeed -- he submitted 60 different entries -- also won him a "dishonorable mention" in the historical fiction category.

"My motivation for entering the contest was to find a constructive outlet for my dementia," Guigli quipped.

The Bulwer-Lytton fiction contest was started in 1982 by the English Department at San Jose State University to honor the Victorian novelist who opened his 1830 novel "Paul Clifford" with what were to become the immortal words, "It was a dark and stormy night."

It began as a quiet campus affair and now attracts thousands of entries from around the world. But the grand prize winner receives only a pittance and other winners "must content themselves with becoming household names", organizers say.

The 2006 runner-up, Stuart Vasepuru from Scotland, played with one of the most famous pieces of dialogue from the Clint Eastwood movie "Dirty Harry".

"I know what you're thinking, punk," hissed Wordy Harry to his new editor, "you're thinking, 'Did he use six superfluous adjectives or only five?' -- and to tell the truth, I forgot myself in all this excitement; but being as this is English, the most powerful language in the world, whose subtle nuances will blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel loquacious?' -- well do you, punk?"

http://snipurl.com/t64g

Jim’s prescription for a long and healthy life

Have the greasy omelet with extra sausage rather than the granola for breakfast. Don’t get drunk more than once a day unless you really want to. Get most of your exercise on the dance floor or in the bed room. Remember, this isn’t a dress rehearsal; this is the only lifetime that you may get. Make the most of it! As they used to say in ancient Rome, “Carpe Diem,” or in a more modern phrase, “if you’re going to ride the Titanic, go first class!"

Dance Practice; hanging out with fellow dancers

Becoming a dancer requires years of dedication and practice. If you really want to become a great dancer you must let it all hang out, and really put your heart and soul into it.

Communication, It's a Mars and Venus thing.

1. - HER DIARY

Saturday night I thought he was acting weird. We had made plans to meet at a bar to have a drink. I was shopping with my friends all day long, so I thought he was upset at the fact that I was a bit late, but he made no comment.

Conversation wasn’t flowing so I suggested that we go somewhere quiet so we could talk, he agreed but he kept quiet and absent. I asked him what was wrong he said nothing. I asked him if it was my fault that he was upset. He said it had nothing to do with me and not to worry.

On the way home I told him that I loved him, he simply smiled and kept driving. I can’t explain his behavior; I don’t know why he didn’t say I love you too.

When we got home I felt as if had lost him, as if he wanted nothing to do with me anymore. He just sat there and watched T.V. he seemed distant and absent.

Finally I decided to go to bed, about 10 minutes later he came to bed and to my surprise he responded to my caress and we made love, but I still felt that he was distracted and his thoughts where somewhere else. I decided that I could not take it anymore so I decided to confront him with the situation but he had fallen asleep. I started crying and cried until I too fell asleep. I don’t know what to do, I’m almost sure that his thoughts are with someone else. My life is a disaster.


2 - HIS DIARY

Today the Lakers lost, but at least I got laid.

Looking for attention? Get a thong.

Rated PG.

http://www.ladyskylar.com/swffiles/thong.swf

If you're into that sort of thing. . ..

http://snipurl.com/symg

Kiss and Tango: Looking for Love in Buenos Aires, by Marina Palmer

http://snipurl.com/symi

Kiss and Tango : Diary of a Dancehall Seductress (Paperback), by Marina Palmer

Amazon.com Editorial Reviews & Book Description

"Approaching her dreaded thirtieth birthday, Marina Palmer suddenly found herself adrift in anxiety. A successful but bored advertising executive -- on the therapist's couch thrice weekly and with no lasting love in her life -- she longed for true passion and adventure. Then, on a whimsical vacation to South America, at a steamy two A.M. milonga, she found what she was looking for: tango! From her very first close-up glimpse of Argentina's signature dance she fell head over heels. She left everything behind -- her fast-track career, her desperate search for "the One" -- to pursue her new obsession in Buenos Aires, seeking a dancing partner, storybook love, and the tango lessons that might ultimately help her to earn a place on the professional circuit.

In Kiss & Tango, Marina Palmer chronicles in no-holds-barred diary-style confessions her exhilarating misadventures on the Argentine dance floor . . . and beyond. An inspiring, outrageous, and unforgettable true story bursting with passion, adventure, romance, heartbreak, and steamy sex, it is the ideal book for anyone who secretly dreams of taking that one sweet, impossible gamble of a lifetime."

If anyone reads either of these books, please provide me with an unbiased review of them.

Florida dance school operators sentenced to prison

Published July 8, 2006 in the St. Petersburg Times

" Cheat gets 30 years to ponder his crimes
Saying dance teacher Michael Pasquarelli was merciless in cheating the elderly, a judge has no mercy for him, either.

By JACOB H. FRIES

LARGO - Before issuing her sentence, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Linda R. Allan had something to say about Michael Pasquarelli and the way he "delighted" in bilking elderly customers who visited his dance studio.

Allan didn't hold back.

"Anyone so lacking in conscience cannot be trusted in this society," she said of Pasquarelli. "Insatiable, wicked greed leaves remarkably ugly footprints."

On Friday, after a morning of legal sparring and watching several of his elderly victims cry in her courtroom, Allan sentenced Pasquarelli, 50, to the maximum 30 years in prison for violating the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, also known as RICO.

In a separate proceeding, the judge sentenced one of Pasquarelli's employees at Dance Place in Safety Harbor, David B. "Vic" Andrews, to serve 10 years. She said she would have liked to give him more.

The men had shown their victims no mercy - swindling customers out of thousands of dollars at a time - so they deserved none for themselves now, Allan said. Reading notes that she took during the trial make her queasy, she said.

"Mr. Pasquarelli and his enterprise selected society's most vulnerable members as its victims," she said. . . .."

"Former dance studio owner Michael Pasquarelli, center, was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison. Pasquarelli tricked 30 customers into signing 328 different sales contracts totalling $3.5-million, according to investigators.

The $257,000 dance (1/27/02)

---

AVOIDING DANCE STUDIO SCAMS
Florida's Dance Studio Act requires ballroom dance studios to register annually with the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Dance studios that have been in business less than three years and demand advance payment of more than $250, or those that enter into installment contracts, also must post a bond with the state.
Consumer protection officials recommend that prospective dance students:

Never sign a blank contract.

Always get a receipt.

Be cautious when signing up for expensive travel and competition packages.

Check for a studio's registration certificate. It must be displayed prominently in the studio.

Always get a written contract for an agreement that entails a commitment of more than seven days. A clause in the law allows a customer to cancel a policy within three days of signing.

To learn more about the state's dance studio law, check online at www.800helpfla.com/dance.html
To file a complaint, go to www.800helpfla.com/ccform.html"

For the complete article go to: http://snipurl.com/sxpb

NOTE: I do not think that this case is typical of dance studios in general, but as with any hobby, people should be careful not to spend more than they can afford. Consider your other needs before budgeting money for recreation.

Business Jets

I teach people how to fly business jets.
http://snipurl.com/svmw
This link has an interesting slide show with pictures of various types of business jets from around the world.

Animusic 2 - 02 - Pogo Sticks

Creative music video annimation on You Tube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1gaPEDdllU

Parade Magazine article on ballroom dance

Last Sunday’s Parade magazine, the insert magazine in Sunday newspaper, had an article on ballroom dancing. If you missed it, you can still read the on-line version by clicking this link. http://snipurl.com/srab

Dance Across America; July 2006 National Geographic Magazine

Feature article on dance in America in the July 2006 issue of National Geographic magazine.

The online edition includes a beautiful audio/visual presentation at: http://snipurl.com/sox4

"Por Una Cabeza"

Made famous to current generations by movies such as “Scent of a Woman,” and others, this tango was actually written for a much earlier movie by Carlos Gardel and Alfredo Le Pera in 1935. To see an interesting web site with the lyrics and an MP-3 audio clip of the song, as well as some of the history of this tune, click on the link to the right: "Por Una Cabeza" tango tune from the movie "Scent of a Woman."

If you just want to listen to the song, click this link:

http://snipurl.com/sm3u