Play Stefon with me.

One of my favorite SNL characters in the last ten years is Stefon, the arm sleeve tattooed club boy who is this close to bringing back glow sticks and 1996 warehouses rages, in fact may have been there just got plastic surgery. He shows up to the SNL weekend update to tell us all what the new hip hotspots are and they are always funny skits. Please take time out of your busy day saving the whales, harnessing the bales and building sustainable mud homes for rich white tourists in Africa who want to shoot animals and feed the poor and watch some Stefon skits on You tube sometime. In the meantime, its fun to make up your own Stefon dialogues in your head, perhaps while your children are torturing each other in the background with merciless teasing or perhaps while a new spring storm rolls overhead as it is right now in our peaceful abode.

"New York's hottest new club is called Malick Terrace located underneath the MoMa's recycling bin, and features long periods of extreme silence while large indoor screens show images of falling leaves and rain drops. In between the long periods of silence, you will enjoy the latest new groove by DJ Skittle who will amaze you by playing Backstreet Boys songs backwards while you dance on a floor covered in blue cotton candy and Cheetos. Bring a friend. Everyone who gets there before 2 a.m. takes home a stuffed unicorn that plays lullabies. The password is 'Red Rum' and everyone will be there."

History of Rap 4 (Jimmy Fallon & Justin Timberlake)

A Few Words

Running to Stand Still is one of my all time favorite U2 songs. This may be considered an Irish thing, but I have a special memory of a great guitar duo playing this at The Swamp (formerly Chaucers in Gainesville) just for me upon request,  and also seeing U2 live in Tampa (in all places, weird huh) it was a swamp there but they did a great show amidst a very suburban metropolis area). My best memory of this song, besides listening to it decades ago and enjoying it personally, was that my roommate's friend played this in their home in Gainesville, knowing I was a true U2 fan, and playing the songs they knew I loved. Music is the maker of memories. 

U2 - Running To Stand Still - RATTLE AND HUM - Live

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee;
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.

- See more at: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15529#sthash.TfzERYgd.dpuf

When Irish Eyes Are Smiling...

After many days of being very much under the weather, and trust me I am not for one to get sick easily but GOD WOW that was some bad sickness we had going down in our home last week ( which is totally cleaned and bleached top to bottom thanks to my own special OCD DNA) . I hated not being able to write anything...you may think that's silly but trust me it's not. It is my code that I write- my great great uncle had poems published and many relatives of mine in both families seem to share the same need to dwelve into the words and the oil paints to express themselves. 

In the meantime, I just wanted to wish everyone a very happy weekend. I have had a very interesting and hard week, so sleep is a priority the next few nights. We went to the beach today at 10 a.m. and by the time we were leaving, there was a line to the bridge. My best advise is..get up early and go to bed by midnight on the weekends. I love me some Craig Ferguson so he's my treat during the week about twice. I would also suggest listening to the Lumineers sometimes- we all have loved them for a while as do my friends from Bay County who moved to Denver Co. 

"Took a bus to Chinatown..."    Good night friends, and take good care of yourselves. I would highly suggest also to read  WB Yeats when you can. My first book of his poetry was given to me in 1989, I bought another in 1996 during college and he is my personal alma mater. Forever the swans, the golden apples and the Innisfree. Yeats, the Irish man for those of us not Irish. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Where My Books go

All the words that I utter,
And all the words that I write,
Must spread out their wings untiring,
And never rest in their flight,
Till they come where your sad, sad heart is,
And sing to you in the night,
Beyond where the waters are moving,
Storm-darken’d or starry bright. 

William Butler Yeats

Tori Amos & Metropole Orkest - Winter (Rotterdam, NL 2012-10-01)

"When you gonna make up your mind? When you gonna love you as much as I do?"

This is a great way to send off the winter as the gusty winds of cool spring air come into our north Florida home today. I have had a fever for 24 hours now, a lovely gift from my sons who have been bug riddled this weekend poor things. So, if I ramble a bit the next few posts you know why.

 But don't pray for me, just listen to this wonderful video. Tori Amos was my first true "idol" if one could call being in love with a modern composer and piano player that. Listening to her music old and new ("Scarlett's Walk" is wonderful too) I am always amazed at how she has changed and adapted to the past few decades, never trying for radio hits but always bringing some fresh and inventive sounds to her music, such as her last album which combined some Gregorian and Baroque tunes to suit her own words. A true talent. We are still waiting for the time I can see her live.
In a world of pop, people who really play and who really sing are always nice to come home to. (ending with a preposition..)

Russell Brand wrote something down that is actually really good.

Russell Brand, ex husband of Katy Perry's feminist flame spewing breasts, wrote what I think is a very wonderful article here:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2013/mar/09/russell-brand-life-without-drugs#start-of-comments

Say Hello to My Little Friends circa 1988

During this annual spring cleaning and donation weekend I came across 4 large boxes of "stuff" I've been toting around for about 10-20 years now. Some of it report cards from Lucille Moore Elementary School, my talent show programs, playbills from plays I've seen, concert stubs, weird poetry (LOTS OF THAT), homecoming banners, plastic bags of 8 dusty dance/prom corsages which sadly had to be thrown out before I died of mold poisoning, and various other school and youth related items. It has been fun but now I have two boxes instead of 4. These boxes contain my forever past - the stuff i am keeping forever and ever amen. They are slightly organized so that my kids can peruse through them someday ala "Bridges of Madison County" and think "Wow my mom was really strange God bless her". 

Many things got thrown out, which means they are in bags ready to be burned during our next outdoor fire this week. Many things stayed - a few mix tapes from boyfriends, the penciled in song titles fading, a keychain that says "Woman of the Year", tickets to Gator games, maps to state parks near Gainesville, airline stubs to far places, very funny notes and cards from my oddball but very smart girlfriends, and some school folders with grades and directions to keg parties on PCB on the sides...guess what else stayed? My Converse high tops from 8 th grade. Yes these were my first babies, my second black pair lost to history during freshman year at Bay High but these were my Jinks Middle School twins. My friends and I covered them with "I love so and so" ,crossed out and my wonderful skater girl art work and puffy paint intact. They are staying. Some things just beg for a "forever home", and my Converse have seen some STUFF people. If only those laces could talk. Some of you reading this would be in big trouble :)

 Love, JUJU 

 RIP 1988. It was a very good year in fact. 

Gators vs. Legends of The Fall

Top of the morning to you friends and freaks. I just returned from a 9 am. walk on our local beach and although the sun was out, the wind was gusty as warmer weather and rain comes tomorrow- ahh spring, the most bipolar time of the year. Anyway safely back in my little black computer chair, I have a few minutes to spare before the second half of the day begins - the time I call the better half (always on the weekend, always the clock pointing towards 5 pm.). As you know, we have "free tv" which means weekends are not made for tv in our house - it's pledge week on all the PBS channels, which is great if you are willing to sit through "remembering the 50"s- doo- ops and bee-pops" and pay $500 for a 3 CD set. normally we watch PBS all during the week and the evening programming is fantastic - but pledge week is campy, all over the place and yes they need everyone's support. So- our options are limited further by 3 networks and what I call the "Jerry Springer" channels, plus about 10 Christian related channels which is fine but the level of bad production is hard to take seriously in any way.

Right now- we have Gators vs. Kentucky in hoops- Gators ahead by 7 at this moment. Great game, I don't have anyone to watch it with right now since everyone else is out too, but I know we've got some Major Gator fans and family that are glued to their tv's right now. Let's go Billy's Boys!

On the other hand, while flipping through I found some very old school drama from our film past- "Legend of the Fall". WOW> I forgot what a melodramatic over the top matyr driven story this was. It has great acting from Anthony Hopkins and cast but WOW Brad Pitt and his pouty lips. Let's take a moment.
Let''s also recap how incredibly torturous this movie really was, and me and all my girlfriends LOVED it when it came out. We would rent it and watch it even though we knew this happened:

Samuel the little brother (the E.T. child actor) gets tangled up during the war in barbed wire, is blinded, and is shot and killed while his brother Tristan tries to untangle him.

Then - Tristan cuts Samuel's heart out of his dead body. To keep for future use- which is this:

Tristan then retreats to a tent, cooks his brothers heart and smears his blood on his face, emerging as a reborn Native American even though he is obviously Brad Pitt and still very much a white boy.

Upon returning home to his dad's huge cattle ranch (a dream house) Samuel's new widow falls for Tristan and his long flowing hair as they ride around on horses and she talks and he listens -always looking off from her and avoiding conversation but still having sex with her. In fact, Brad Pitt says about 5 words this entire part. But his long blonde hair speaks volumes.

Huge bouts of anger erupt from Tristan, dealing with his brother's death and feeling responsible, so he packs up to leave and was going to do it without saying goodbye.

He leaves, reutrns later with Native American love in tow, and Samuel's wife has married Tristan's older brother Alfred (yes there was another brother). Chaos ensues. No one is happy.There are babies. There are more deaths. No happiness in sight.

Tristan is killed by a large grizzly bear, probably the one he should have shot years ago on the ranch, and this death is narrated with empathy by the Native American narrator which gives it a mystical quality, but still he is mauled to death.

Alfred's wife with the really pretty long curly hair who loved Tristan the entire time, shoots herself out of extreme grief. THE END.

GO GATORS! This game is getting tight now- I'm going to pretend like Legends of the Fall isn't on right now and get back out of the house, keeping track of Gator score. There aren't any tissues in the house, and my high school dreams of unrequited love are OVER.

Sign Your Name - Terence Trent D'Arby

Tesla - Little Suzi (with intro)

Guns N' Roses - Patience

The Dead Milkmen - Punk Rock Girl HD

Lightning Seeds - Pure

oh lovely to my old ears...

Iggy Pop - Candy

"Geez it's been twenty years..Candy"  In my opinion the best love song ever written in modern pop.

Rush by Big Audio Dynamite 2 *album version*

"situation no win..." LOVE THIS SONG

Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls

KLF - 3 a m eternal (Complete)

Mix Tape

I have recently recovered a big plastic bag full of cassettes I used to listen to in my childhood room and in my  very awesome Toyota Tercel back in the day. No sentimental love notes here folks, just some laugh out louds at the highly eclectic mix of music I loved. Here are just a few: Yes it's pretty bad mixed with some good- just like the fashions of  high school in 1991.

Lighten up already

Hello friends from far and near. Wow it's been a tough week out there, especially for women, homeless people and women. Also, I have noticed a HUGE increase in terrible grammar and spelling on the news and on the internet, among comments, scrolls and even on the morning news (GMA). Yes I know we are much more concerned with Hot Topics like Jessica Simpson and her big ole milk teeth but can we not even get the spelling correct on something that MILLIONS of people are reading (or maybe they aren't....) Sigh. The world is going to Hades in a cheap knock off man purse real fast folks. I need a tissue.

Anyway, How is it going for you all out there? Are we still holding on to our careers, our dreams or just happy to settle for some bad reality tv every night, our dreams out there are not in our hearts anymore (God I really hope that's not the case for any one you).

In this country of easy food, cheap entertainment and low rent insults, I would like to advise every one of you to get the heck out of your home and job today, tonight and tomorrow and breathe in mother nature.  I mean GET OUT> Turn off the tv, the interwebs, turn off the voices of people you don't really care about (FB) and get back into what is real and who you are. You might say "Well I have never really liked the dirt anyway, I'm a mall girl" ...Well after my short meditative prayer for your sorry soul, I would say "Hello sunshine..you are made of dirt, you are made of the dust of stars, all carbon and blood and gristle and such so get back to nature and say hello to your one celled ancestors." Or I might say something less "all in my head" like
"Hey friend, it's all good, how about just going outside in barefeet, or digging a garden up, or putting on the jogging suit for a nice run in the sunshine for a while and just ignore all that snow- because I'm in Florida and I forget about The North sometimes. "

Last weekend was turn it off weekend, I tried hard. We watch some stuff via Netflix but truly don't watch alot of tv shows anymore. Internet is just as invasive, so sometimes i just get on here and write, or use good old Office to add to millions of documents and ideas I have created over the years (to be heralded as the better and female version of Hemingway and the better and male version of O'Conner when I die as happens to all great talent hee hee). Jonathan Franzen wrote his wonderful works in a room with the internet turned OFF. No wonder why his work has been obviously edited to death and offers up such a clear vision of characters and plot (ok there are not really plots with him but there is an arc) - they were written in a vacuum, without the online comments, the constant chatter and the interruption of other's opinions.

Get back to Real, get back to you. It does a person good. It has for me. Yes, I write alot on this space of things that bother me, but then I go out into the real world and try to do something about it. life is not a discussion board, it's action. And it's Out There.

Florida House of Representatives - HB 395 - Abortion (JIMMY PATRONIS)

Florida House of Representatives - HB 395 - Abortion

I would like to take the time on my teeny tiny blog to say thank you to all those big men over there in NW FL (some of whom I went to school with in Panama City) for being so considerate of us little women. Thank you for Thinking For Us, For Guiding Us in Life's Big Decisions, For Leading us Out of the Depths of Our Despair Because We Just Don't Know What To Do With Ourselves and Need Your Educated and Wise Advice On What to Do With our Bodies.

Thank you, Politicians as you fight the good fight and take time to work on the important issues like the high illiteracy rate in NW FL, the high child abuse rate, the massive need for higher paying jobs with benefits, and the need for intense pill mill regulations and drug abuse rehab centers for those less fortunate than you who cannot afford to "get better"  and go to a good four year party school like we all did. Amen for fighting the fight that means so much to you. Thank you for selling your souls to the polls that tell you joining the conservative movement (or what is left of it, because it's been taken over by truth deniers and paranoid people) is the thing to do now. I am surprised, truly, because I thought some of you were actually Smart. But Smart doesn't get you to Washington, does it Not So Young Men from the Panhandle with an eye on that ladder to DC?

No, Choosing Sides does. mm mm mm.

Well, my life's decisions less worrisome now, as some men across our country have once again decided to take it upon themselves to make decisions for me. WHEW!! I guess I'll join the Quiverfull cult and just let my 20 children do the rest...the important stuff like laundry, baking, and quilting.

Oh well, nothing against quilting...

These are people who are shaking hands over what women are allowed to do with their bodies. No women in the picture. Let us take a moment to think about this wave of backwardsness our country is taking right now. Jimmy Patronis is next so watch for his photo next.

These Aren’t Your Average Snapshots: Bill Gekas’ Portraits of His Daughter as Classic Paintings

These Aren’t Your Average Snapshots: Bill Gekas’ Portraits of His Daughter as Classic Paintings: Bill Gekas loves taking pictures of his daughter – but these aren’t your average dad’s snaps.  Beginning in 2010, the Australian photographer has created a series of portraits inspired by classic paintings, like Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring. What originally was intended to...

Baby born with HIV functionally cured

Baby born with HIV functionally cured

Latest GOP shocking rape gaffe= Because rape isn't really rape unless a wrongly wired Republican Woman says so. "Rape- because you can't get pregnant that way."

Latest GOP shocking rape gaffe

This is how we roll...

Our sons wake up at around 6:30 every day..including weekends. So, after an afternoon out in downtown Pensacola with a lite bite at Hub Stacie's (a great landmark bistro with live music) and enjoying music drifting in from the nearby Seville Square, we came home, put our little ones to bed and enjoyed some old people fun with two episodes of "Justified" and called it a night by 11. OLD PEOPLE FUN. Anyway, being an early morning news buff, Saturdays are kindof a downer since the news we have on NBC sucks (sorry Lestor Holt and co.). In exchange for this cultural vacuum, my husband hooks up the youtube on the large screen t.v and peruses funny clips to brighten the day. Lo and behold I have discovered Key and Peele. We don't have Comedy Channel (who needs it, You Tube.) and this clip i found very funny. If you're game for some un p.c. fun or just love sports humor- this clip is too funny. And oh yeah, good morning. We are hunkered down, waiting for spring, temps will hit low 30's tonight but that didn't stop us from going to the beach twice this week after work, one for just checking in on it to say hello and holy cow the waves, and the other day to watch my man surf. It was awesome. The one thing I love about clear cold nights in the upper FL is the vast amount of stars we could see last night...it was amazing. Camping days ahead for sure. Love to you all, and keep checking in for more worldly insight and wisdom ;0 

ENJOY CLIP BELOW - I'm Ready for some SEC football aren't you??? 
http://www.comedycentral.com/video-clips/5fndtz/key-and-peele-key---peele--east-west-bowl