Death & Other Fun Topics

• A lot was said this week about the death of Dick Clark, and rightfully so.  The man accomplished much in his career, and was a seminal figure in the world of rock and roll without ever picking up an instrument.  One guy who did pick up an instrument (or several) was one of the co-founders of The Band, Levon Helm.  While Levon wasn't exactly the most pleasant person to look at, and while his voice wasn't exactly "dulcet," he was a pioneer in the world of rock.  Without The Band, the concept of Southern Rock would've had to wait a while, as he and his band mates basically introduced the concept to the world with such classics as "The Weight," "Up On Cripple Creek," and "The Night They Drove Ol' Dixie Down."  While Robbie Robertson may have written these songs, and all the others that The Band performed in their career -except for a couple of early songs co-written with Bob Dylan- Levon Helm was the undeniable force behind one of the seminal bands in rock history.  Many folks forget that when Dylan was making his transition from acoustic to electric guitar compositions in the mid 60s, The Band was, well, his band.  It would be after they parted ways that the Southern Rock style would start.  And when you think about it, it's quite ironic.  Sure, Helm was from Arkansas, but Robertson, Garth Hudson, the late Rick Danko and the late Richard Manuel weren't from the south at all.  They weren't even from America.  They are/were Canadian.  But nobody cared about that.  Once Helm's southern drawl took over, and Robertson's writing style veered towards a more southern sound, it didn't matter that not everyone was from below the Mason-Dixon line.  All that mattered was that they were forging a new style of music in a then-still-growing medium called Rock and Roll.  I'd have to say that bands like Lynyrd Skynrd, The Allman Brothers and even the Black Crowes never happen without The Band.  While Helm's name may not been at the forefront of everyone's mind when it came to the history of Rock and Roll, he certainly had a hand in writing said history.
• Can we just admit that the Cubs season has as much chance at being a success as The Band has at having a full reunion tour this year?  Yes, I realize we're calling this a rebuilding year.  Yes, I realize Rome wasn't built in a day.  But as a lifelong fan, I'm sick of hearing "rebuilding."  You can't rebuild what was never properly built in the first place.  I'm kind of done with having patience and waiting for next year.  No, I didn't expect miracles, but I also didn't expect a complete bed-crapping to start the season either.  Six straight losses, and only a half-game above having the worst record in the National League doesn't make me excited for this season, it makes me suspect for what's to come.  The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results.  Well, they didn't make any good trades, they didn't make any good off-season signings, and now we're still expected to believe that this train is on the right track and isn't going to careen off said track killing hundreds.  I, for one, can't do that anymore.  No, I'm not saying I'm giving up being a fan, and believe me when I tell you that I hope they prove me wrong.  But I think it's time to stop drinking the Kool Aid.  And I don't just mean me, I mean everyone.  More people (than the last 2 seasons) have to stop buying tickets to go to games for "the experience."  When we hit the organization in the wallet, and make them realize that we're going Twisted Sister on them ("We're Not Gonna Take It"), perhaps that rebuilding process will hit a record pace.  If the Cubs still have massive attendance and people are still pouring money into their coffers, it'll be more like Talking Heads' "Once In A Lifetime" lyrics (same as it ever was) instead of truly BEING a once in a lifetime experience.  And, seriously, I'm not asking for a dynasty.  I'm not greedy.  My grandfather died without a World Series win, as did my father.  Is it wrong to not want to be a third generation to go without?  I didn't think so.

Okay, two topics today is enough.  Unfortunately, the next time we meet, I'll probably be blogging about the death of one of the nicest celebrities I've ever met, Robin Gibb.  But, until then, let's keep things positive, even though I just spent an entire paragraph being negative.

Where on Earth have I been?

"You know, you haven't blogged in a while"--Anonymous.

Wow... it's been since Oscar Sunday. I've been thinking about it a lot, but haven't put fingers to typewriter in a while. Was sick for a bit, and honestly, I just didn't feel like complaining to y'all. Well, at least about that. So, I'm going to try something different today. An early morning blog before I leave for work. Let's just hope this all makes sense. Let's do this.

• Ozzie Guillen, former White Sox Manager, is in the news for comments he's made... again. This time, he's seemingly crossed a line by claiming he respects and loves Fidel Castro for his ability to stay in power for so long. First of all, Ozzie obviously hadn't been watching the news the last couple of years, as he's apparently not aware that Castro hasn't been in power for about 2 years. Now, what makes this even worse? He's now the Manager for the Miami Marlins. You know, Miami. Not a lot of ex-Cubans there at all. Oh, wait. Here's my question to you: are you surprised at this? This is a guy who mouths off at any opportunity. A man who famously called a local Chicago sportswriter a fag just might be the candidate for position of someone who would say something positive about a longstanding brutal dictator. But here's the thing: everyone's outraged, and a lot of people want him to lose his job. As much as I don't agree with his comments, as much as I think he'd have been better off saying "you know, I'm into torturing puppies" to the citizens of Miami, we have to take a step back and remember one thing: he has the right, in America, to say whatever he wants short of threatening folks. Do I like what he said? Hell no. We're all aware that Castro was a pretty mean dude, putting it very lightly. We're aware that he spent the better part of 50 years depriving his citizenry of, well, just about anything and everything for the sake of a Communism, something that has just as much life in 2012 as the Macarena or Ricky Martin's singing career. We're also aware that so many people had to flee Cuba for their lives, risking them by traveling the 90 miles between Cuba and Miami on make-shift rafts that would've made Tom Hanks' character in Cast Away cringe. But that's the thing about freedom of speech, people. We face this all the time with folks like Rush Limbaugh running off at the mouth with statements that only incite a country. Now, do WE have the freedom to say that we don't like his comments? That we would like to see him fired? That we'd enjoy seeing him pelted with eggs? Sure, just as long as "eggs" doesn't really mean "bullets." But, again, he's got the right to say what he wants here. We don't have to like it one bit... hey, look at that, we don't. But to go so far as to say he should be fired for what he said is jumping the gun, if you don't mind that turn of phrase. This is just another example of Ozzie being Ozzie, and if anyone thought he'd suddenly turn into a choirboy once he was hired in Miami, that's just naivety at work.
  
  
• The Three Stooges movie: was this entirely necessary? I don't need to see the movie to say the following: I doubt it was. It just shows that Hollywood is running out of original ideas, and that they'll do anything for a buck. Think about this for a second... Sean Penn was originally slated to play Larry, and Benecio Del Toro was picked to play Larry. They're both Oscar winners, and they both had the good sense to consider the project for the better part of about 20 seconds before they decided not to sink their careers into the toilet with said roles. This brings up a question that my friend Andy and I discuss when major award winners pick projects that seem beneath them (see: paycheck): Should Sean Hayes, who won multiple Emmys for his fantastic portrayal of Jack on the hit TV show Will & Grace, be forced to to give back his Emmys for deciding to play Larry in this movie which is bound to be an absolute disaster? Well, I guess if you take my previous paragraph into consideration, the answer is no. If we've got freedom of speech, I guess we've also got the freedom to take whatever job we feel we want/need to at that time, whether we think the movie will be the 16mm version of the Hindenburg or not. That said, I can't NOT see this movie fast enough.
  
  
• Another Cubs season has begun. I say it just like that, because this season's going to be a great example of "second verse, same as the first." Except, in this case, this is about verse 102 in what is the longest most painful poem in American sports history. The thing is, this time we at least seem to have a direction. The new GM is the former Red Sox GM, Theo Epstein, who knows a thing (or two, technically) about ending baseball curses. I've got very low hopes for this particular season, looking at it very much as transitional. But Epstein isn't going to just sit there and let it happen. He'll look at how this season goes, take the blank checkbook that he's been handed by the Ricketts family, and start to make changes that will benefit the club. In fact, he may have already started to do it. There's some signings he made during the offseason (David DeJesus, anyone?) that could end up being good moves in the long run. That's the thing about sports, you just never know.
  
  
• Speaking of which, let's wrap up this year's Masters tournament. Going in, we had 3 main favorites to win: Tiger Woods (not sure why, the guy has absolutely no history with winning major golf tournaments... oh, wait), Phil Mickelson (the winner at Augusta no less than 3 times), and Rory McIlroy (winner of last year's US Open, and the "hot" name on the tour for the last 12 months). Well, by the time Friday night rolled around, Tiger was an afterthought, Rory was in position, and Phil was almost ready to make a charge. By the time Saturday night rolled around, only Phil was in contention. Well, he took care of that in one shot on Sunday as he hit a shot off the 4th tee that I'd probably make, and I've never played a full round of golf in my life. Who did we get as a champion? A guy named Bubba. Not just a guy named Bubba, but a guy named Bubba who has appeared in a music video wearing nothing more than a pair of bib overalls. A guy named Bubba who, earlier this year, purchased the original General Lee from the show Dukes of Hazzard. At a time where folks all over the country are clamoring for Augusta National -the host of the annual major tournament- to stop being a group of "good ol' boys" and start admitting women to their exclusive country club, we got... well, according to the Dukes of Hazzard theme, a good ol' boy as champion. Here's the thing: he really IS a good ol' boy, in the more strict version of the term. The guy has wanted nothing more than to be able to adopt a child for the last 2 years (and was finally successful in doing so less than a month before the biggest win of his life). He's done so much charity work, he makes Tim Tebow look like a slacker. And you want a good story? This guy won the most prestigious tournament in golf without -get ready for this- ever having a formal golf lesson in his life past his dad once showing him how to grip a golf club at age 10. It's tough to root against him, even if his name is Bubba. Remember the last guy we all called Bubba? Bill Clinton. How'd things work out for THAT Bubba? Yeah, pretty well, I'd say. I'm not saying that Bubba Watson is going to rip off another 4-10 majors or anything like that, but I think we oughta take a few moments and enjoy a regular guy, "just a good ol' boy never meanin' no harm," and his major victory. Just as long as we never have to see him in overalls again. Wanna see that video? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PM2NocuEihw He's the one all the way to the right to begin the video. Then again, given that I told you about the overalls, I probably didn't need to tell you that.
  
  
• What am I listening to right now? Get ready to have my age exposed to you in a big way:
  Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball. This is one angry little record, when Bruce is at his best.
  Paul McCartney - Kisses On The Bottom. Despite the near porn-like title, it's a pretty little album of jazz standards with one original composition that will have you feeling good and relaxed.
  Little Dragon - Little Dragon. This is an older record, but I got turned onto it recently by my friend Lee. Laid back, yet modern sounding. Perhaps we've all got an album from recent times that sound like this, but this is the one that's grabbing my attention at the moment. Go check it out, I think you'll like it.
  Madonna - MDNA. I'll be honest, I'm listening to it, but probably not for much longer. I want to like this album because everyone's talking about how great it is and what a comeback it is. Maybe I should give my gay-card back, but I just don't see it. There's a couple of decent tracks, but nothing really write home about. To me, it sounds like she's trying to impersonate Lady Gaga, a woman who has been accused of trying to impersonate her. The thing about her, though, is that she's at that age where she really doesn't have to be innovative anymore, she's just got to put something out that her core fans will like, and I guess she was successful there. And you have to give her credit, I'm not sure as many gay men have EVER watched the Super Bowl as they did this year just waiting for her performance (likely turning off the game before the second half).

Okay, that's enough for today, and I didn't even get to the political scene this time around. I promise not to take as much time between now and my next post. And I promise the next one will be a touch funnier. This is what happens when I try doing this when I first wake up. But hey, that's what blog experimentation is all about, right?