Open Threads

I bought the new album by the Blind Boys of Alabama, named Atom Bomb, and I have to say that right now this may be one of the oddest and greatest gospel ever created. I don’t think I have been this swept away by an album since The Grand Pecking Order by Oysterhead or one of my all-time favorites, Nothing Personal by Delbert McClinton.

This isn’t your traditional gospel. This isn’t even your Rev. Al Green “I’m gonna sing about Jesus then sleep with the choir” gospel, either. Every song is different and unique. The title track, Atom Bomb, sounds like it was the product of a collaboration between God, Moby, and jingle writers. it is catchy, quick, great sounding, and has great lyrics:

You know now everybody’s worried
About that Atom Bomb.
No one seems worried,
About the Day my Lord shall come.

You better get your house in order
For he may be coming soon,
And he’ll hit like an atom bomb,
When he comes, when he comes.

And it just gets better- ‘Old Blind Barnabas’ has that same Moby feel, but with music that sounds like a funeral dirge if performed by a Southern rock band. You will love their remake of Blind Faith’s ‘Presence of the Lord,’ and their version of ‘Spirit in the Sky’ is a treat.

On a scale of 1 to 10, this is a 27.

Also this weekend, I will have a review of the new Enron documentary called ‘Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room.’

*** Update ***

This is why I love blogging- you learn from your readers. Apparently the title track, Atom Bomb, is itself a remake from 1948.

Weekend EntertainmentPost + Comments (5)

This is distressing:

A major earthquake struck off the west coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island late Monday, and officials issued a tsunami warning for as far away as Sri Lanka. Residents of Banda Aceh fled their homes in panic.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the temblor, which occurred at 11:09 p.m. local time (11:09 a.m. EST), measured a magnitude of 8.2. It was described by one of the agency’s geologists as an aftershock of the devastating Dec. 26 quake.

In Banda Aceh, the Sumatran city that was hit hardest by December’s tsunami, the quake cut electricity and thousands poured into the streets, most getting into vehicles to flee low-lying areas.

Tsunami warnings were issued in Thailand, Japan and Sri Lanka. Authorities said it could take several hours to know whether the quake had generated a devastating tsunami.

Sirens blared along Sri Lanka’s devastated east coast as the government warned seaside residents to evacuate immediately.

I hope the alarms are successful.

Please- Not AgainPost + Comments (1)

Woke up this morning and the ceiling in my kitchen had partially collapsed and the entire kitchen was a wet soggy mess. Fortunately, it was from the water heater upstairs, and not their commode.

The, I went outside to the car to run some errands, and the battery was dead.

Fabulous.

One of Those DaysPost + Comments (7)

Have a good one. Lot of passion and hot tempers and hyperbole and hyperventilating this week. Remember what is important.

Happy EasterPost + Comments (4)

One of the best friends of my family, and one of the most fundamentally decent human beings I have ever known, Ruth Westlake, died last night of a massive heart attack. She died in the ambulance en route to the hospital, while my father and her sister were in a separate vehicle racing to meet her there.

She worked her entire life for Bethany College, was always kind, an animal lover, had a great sense of humor, and was a dear friend to those close to her. In the spring and summer, every night, my father and Russell (our Jack Russell terrier) would go to Ruth’s house, where a group of people would congregate with their dogs and drink coffee and talk until it got too dark to see. When my parents went on vacation, I would fill in, and over the past few years I got to know and respect her.

I, like my family, her family, and her friends- who, in essence, were a second family, am devastated. I think I am going to cry.

Ruth Westlake, RIPPost + Comments (15)

Ward Churchill’s jackassery has been overshadowed recently, but the report on his behavior is now out at the Blogger News Network. The Instapundit comments that “the bottom line is that he’s in trouble for research fraud, etc., but not for his ‘little Eichmanns’ statement.”

Which is, IMHO, as it should be. Academic tenure should protect all speech, however controversial, however idiotic, however offensive. The real question should be how he got tenure in the first damned place.

Churchill UpdatePost + Comments (16)

Just wondering how everyone eats their corned beef and cabbage.

I throw the brisket of corn beef, some new potatoes, and a head of green cabbage in a pot and boil it, adding water and salt and pepper.

Delicious.

St. PatsPost + Comments (2)