Robin Adler & Mutts of the Planet - River

City of the fallen angles

I traveled to Los Angeles yesterday with my friend Ken Seals for a rewarding but ultimately exhausting, fun filled day. Our first stop was at my favorite mexican restaurant in the world, La Cabanita in Montrose. We both dined on and adored their amazing chuletas, thin pork chops cooked in a pasilla chile sauce topped with sour cream. Amazing green tomatilla sauce and a smoky chipotle sauce, the cuisine just doesn't get any better. It was great riding up with Ken because, besides being a great guy, we have very similar taste in music. Started with the Band, Will the Circle be Unbroken, Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, made for a very nice ride.

After lunch we drove over to the Getty to see the new Herb Ritts exhibition. We parked in the lot off of Sepulveda and took the tram up the hill. Ritts is the late Los Angeles fashion photographer, known for his slick and sinewy black and white photography of nudes.

I must candidly admit that this was my first trip to the Getty. What a repository and what a revelation! A beautiful complex, inside and out. Lots of space and perfectly designed down to the nth detail.

Ritts is not exactly my cup of meat. Think Mapplethorpe, west coast edition. Technically brilliant, the commercial photographer liked to venture into both overt homoeroticism and the rather grey androgynous area between gender, but only with the most beautiful of human bodies as his subjects. It is a celebration or continuum of the Nazi era film work of Leni Reifenstahl. The brutality of fashion, set to a colored aryan ideal. Ritts subjects sometimes wore thorns or clay or became inanimate figures on a mantle.

In at least the Ritts photos I saw, I notice an interesting phenomenon; men are quite soft and women are invariably hard. He has no problem celebrating the most delicate and gentle expressions of men but his women are taut faced, severe and contorted. His photo of swimmer Lynn looks like a drug store mannekin or a man in drag. The women might have sand or water on their face, always slightly obscured and I noticed usually a touch out of focus. He did not appear to allow his women models to be femininely beautiful.

His subjects also often obscure their sexuality. Several photos showed androgynous bodybuilders of undetermined sex entwined with each other. Gender blurring is great and evidently you can make a whole career out of it. It just got tedious for me. Only a few pictures resonated. But it obviously worked for him so I guess he never felt the need to stretch or alter his approach. The curse of success, I suppose.

The stuff was quintessentially Los Angeles in its reliance on perfect form and surface. I just didn't feel a lot of breadth underneath.  Bit shallow I think. I really liked one of the photos, a closeup of two bodies, reminded me of my photographic hero, Weston. And sure enough underneath the work was a thumbnail of a Weston piece that he riffed on. Might as well borrow from the best.

Ritts is a master of photography. Some of his dark on dark techniques are truly amazing. I wonder if there is any more personal work extant, perhaps not as candy coated and wrapped up in the issues of sexual identity? This exhibition bored me very quickly.

*

View through screen, Getty © Robert Sommers

Next door was a great collection of early photographers, more pleasing for me. Adams and Cunningham, Stieglitz, Steichen, Weston, Muybridge, Brady. Early camera lucida work. A wonderful photo of Mrs. William Morris. Bravo. Another of powerful picture of Martha Graham dancing in her dance piece Lamentation. The Gloria Swanson photograph. A murderer's row of photography. (another term of venery) I was in heaven. The Getty has a lot of money and they have spent it very wisely. An absolutely incredible museum. And they let you mostly take pictures. A very pleasant staff, I might add.

*

Mirror 

Ken looked at each Ritts photo methodically, gave them much more deserved attention than I could muster and I decided to go upstairs and look at the fourteenth century german drawings. A fantastic exhibition. Durer and Holbein, Cranach, the Master of the Coburg Roundels. Many artists whose identities are lost to history and now can only identified by initials, style or glyph.

Lucas Cranach the Elder

*

We continued upstairs in our wing to european paintings. I was in a room with three Manet's, one Renoir, three Monets, three Degas, a great Jericault, two Pissaro's, a so-so Sargent, maybe more expensive canvas than I have ever seen in one place. Great Van Gogh. A large Munch, an underwhelming Turner that the Russian guard told me was just purchased for 55 million.

We saw earlier paintings as well and many objects. Illuminated pages, stained glass. And only managed to scratch a small portion of the museum's offerings.

I am really hoping to get back up to the museum
soon to continue to sample its many fruits.

*

After dinner we drove through Burbank and up to the Castaway Restaurant, perched high above the city. Ken belongs to a photographer's group called Clickers and Flickers and they meet every month for a meal and a slide presentation. A lot of old pros, a lot of film people.

We had drinks in the bar. A really good jazz band with a blonde woman sax player were grooving on the other side of the room. Met a few photographers, looked out at the great view of the expansive valley below.

We got seated at our table. Introduced ourselves tot he group. I had an older man who was a friend of Weston, Ed Martin across from me, Gail Natzler, Otto's widow to my immediate left. A school teacher and her husband on the other side. A man who just created a photographic tarot deck, Lee Varis.

People brought shots of their latest work. I thumbed through the slick magazine that the group puts out. All very impressive.

The featured guest was ace Los Angeles Times photographer Mark Boster.  He just published a book entitled Four Seasons of Yosemite: a photographer's journey. Mark is a great photographer and responsible for some of the paper's most iconic shots. His slide show was incredible, especially the shots he has taken for the paper. He is a smart and funny guy, a self confessed member of the 7:30 a.m. crash and burn crew.

We finally left for home around 11 and started the long drive back to Fallbrook. I want to thank Ken for driving and for accompanying me on this quite epic day.

The Last Thing On My Mind

Deep River Blues

A legend has passed.

Water District Riposte

I recently published a blogpost that contained an unsolicited letter from an anonymous person that made certain allegations regarding the management operations of the Fallbrook Public Utility District. I received this letter yesterday from my neighbor Bert Hayden, who is a board member and print it in its entirety, in the interest of balance and fairness.

Robert,

Thank you for forwarding your blog with the anonymous email regarding FPUD to Barbara, she provided me a copy.

If I may I would like to set the record straight.

The author is either Director McPhee or one of his supporters who follows Director Mcphee’s misleading and incorrect ads in the Village News.  By agreement with the Village News, “Opinions” from any of the FPUD Directors will not be accepted or published.  The Village News will accept paid advertisements; and Director McPhee often chooses to advertise his incorrect and misleading, speculative opinion.

Transportation costs

I don’t know where the dollar amount regarding transportation originates but the total cost quoted sounds like the cost of operating the entire FPUD fleet to me. The Board has discussed take-home vehicles in the past and determined that we would rather incur the expense than delay responding to an after hours emergency while an employee drives a personal vehicle to the FPUD yard and then drives to the emergency with the appropriate vehicle; after hours is up to 16 hours each day and week ends.

Lewenger’s Contract

FPUD did contract with former General Manager Keith Lewenger for professional services in the areas of transitioning the new GM, continuing the negotiations with the Base (which were at a critical stage) and working on a project which would allow four of the north county water districts to share equipment and specialized staff and perhaps save money for all by reducing duplication. GM Brady controls Lewenger’s working hours and since February, Mr. Lewenger has billed $1308 of which FPUDS ¼ share was $327.  (This was for work on the sharing project).

Santa Margarita Conjunctive Use

FPUD has rights to 1/3 of the water flowing down the Santa Margarita River (as documented in Federal Court).  This is very complicated because there are lots of complex water rights that are prior to the court decision.  But for the first time we have a “Letter of Understanding” with the Base re. water sharing (the FPUD share is an average of 3,100 acre feet per year), delivery ground rules, etc. which has been approved by USMC in Washington and the Department of Defense. Efforts are under way now to flesh-out the details so the project can proceed; probably a 200 page document that will take more than a year to get DOD approval.

SD Water Authority/MET Representation

While he was General Manager Mr. Lewenger, at the direction of the FPUD Board, consistently worked to keep both Metropolitan and San Diego County Water Authority, (our water wholesalers) water rates as low as possible.  Unfortunately, on the San Diego County Water Authority Board, FPUD’s weighted vote is between 2% and 3 % of the total. Mr. Lewenger’s reputation and skill in working with the group provided us with much more representation than our small percentage would allow.   The City of San Diego has more than half of the representation. By joining with Valley Center and Rainbow we have been successful in establishing an agricultural SD County water rate (which continues for the next two years) even though the Metropolitan interruptible agricultural surplus water program ends this year. (This is the Met. program that sold farmers cheap water for 17 years and then with the drought, contractually required a 30% reduction in agricultural water usage. The result was many of the Avocado trees were stumped or the groves abandoned). Likewise San Diego County Water authority is one of a number of water agencies (a number like 33) that belong to Met.  Even with a no vote from the SD Water Authority, the rate increases passed; but the increases were less than Met’s staff proposed and Lewenger’s efforts to moderate the increases obviously helped.  Los Angeles County is the major player on the Met Board.  Mr. Lewenger currently works for the city of Carlsbad and is their representative to the San Diego County Water Authority and also represents The Authority on the Met Board.

Per Diem Payments

While he was General Manager Mr. Lewenger was receiving Per Diem for his Water Authority Service while being paid by FPUD.  The Board explored the issue with the Water Authority. The Water Authority would not agree to reimburse FPUD rather than Lewenger for his service on the Water Authority Board and the only other alternative was to refuse the Per Diem.  The Board determined that since the District benefited significantly from Lewenger’s involvement, and water rates would not be reduced by refusing the per diem, that the Board would allow Lewenger to receive the payments.

Breach of Fiduciary Duties

Since both MET and The Water Authority have Boards that are entirely made up of representatives from member agencies, I can’t see where any breach of fiduciary duties occurred.

Thank you for allowing me to set the facts straight.

Bert Hayden

Director Seat Number 1

Fallbrook Public Utility District

Easy To Be Hard

Fossil Fool

I was honored to be a judge at the Fallbrook Car Show yesterday. I was joined by my buddy Bill LeMasters, who has a garage full of fine italian metal. My secret every year is having somebody that really knows their stuff helping me and he was just fantastic. I had a really good time and didn't take pictures for once. Plenty of people did. Had a very nice Gullwing in my class but it didn't win. You don't win for having the most expensive car but for the best turned out car and the 190 Mercedes was as sweet as they come.

My pals Garry Cohen, the Escondido glass blower and teacher and Leven Jester came over to the show to see me. Hadn't seen Garry in ages. They have been friends for ever. Leven and his wife Bethany have a business in Fallbrook called Paleofacts. They sell fine fossil and mineral specimens from around the world. Their inventory is always interesting and wonderful. Fallbrook has quite a few high level gem and mineral dealers and many collectors and I am privileged to know quite a few of them.

Anyway we went over to their place after the show and convinced Leven to show us some of their nicer stuff. The iridescent fossil in the picture above is an ammonite from British Columbia. They develop the most incredible rainbow sheen. This ancient mollusk from the cretaceous period is about 70 million years old. It comes from a region near southern Alberta.  Ammonites existed for over 300 million years on our planet. Quite valuable, this one was marked around $9500.00. Breathtaking.

Leven and Beth have a very nice collection of trilobites which they have collected in Morocco.  With these pictures you can see them in three dimensions.

This is a horseshoe crab fossil from Germany.

A forgotten dragonfly on a dendritic substrate.

My late friend and idol Rick Griffin originally introduced me to Garry Cohen. Rick, Ida and I went to a costume party and Garry was wearing an astronaut suit and Rick recognized him inside the suit. I have known Garry since I was about 19. He went to elementary school with Rick, talked to me about the incredible contraptions Rick would build, even in the fifth grade. Garry is a fabulous artist, jeweler, ceramist, glass blower, anything. A unique talent. He was the man who developed the initial image for an iconic psychedelic creature called the monitor, originally a totemic design for a jewelry piece. He says he got the idea from Rick, Rick said it was Garry. Whoever. They both ran with it. 

Man from Utopia © Rick Griffin Estate

You really can't beat lifelong friends, can you? They stick with you whether you are up or you are down.

Vanadanite crystals

This slightly fuzzy shot is a natural copper formation, spreads like a little bonsai tree. If I had a macro lens, I could do this stuff justice.

This guy reminds me of the monitor. Both Rick and Garry's version. 

Check out the Paleofacts website. Some wonderful things to purchase at importer's rates, straight from the source, in all price ranges.

© Rick Griffin Estate

Delmore Brothers - Blues Stay Away From Me

Merle Travis & Johnny Bond - Blue Railroad Train

Wanda Jackson

Doc Watson

Frank Donadee from Collector Magazine stuck a video camera in my face at Long Beach last sunday and started asking me questions about guitars and guitar players. He wanted to know my favorite guitar player. I immediately blurted out Doc Watson.

Doc Watson is an American legend and institution. I have seen him four times, once with his late son Merle. To see him is to love him from your heart. Pure as the driven snow and an extraordinarily sensitive and soulful musician. A true virtuoso who doesn't need to be flashy and has always remained humble and kind.

Doc is real sick. The 89 year old man had surgery to repair a colon blockage yesterday and reports are that it was a very tough day. I hope that he pulls through okay. I can not imagine a world without him. Feel privileged to have him exist in my lifetime. Thank you Doc.

Eye, eye

I learned something new and remarkable about myself last week.  I have a client that practices the somewhat obscure vocation of developmental or behavioral optometry. It was time for a new pair of specs. It had been three years since my ophthalmologist had given me a comprehensive check and since my regular ophthalmologist is cutting back and in the slow process of retiring, I thought that I would check out the new doctor, just to try something different and to support someone who has supported me. What I learned was actually pretty incredible.

Norman Rose is a Doctor of Optometry who practices in Escondido. The name of the office is the Premier Eyecare Optometric Center. Here is a link to his website. Leslie accompanied me and I met his courteous and very friendly staff. The walls of the office are covered with testimonials from people and parents whose children had benefitted from his care and treatment. His staff initiated a battery of tests on me with some equipment I was unfamiliar with.

Dr. Rose came in to the room. A tall, gentle and affable fellow, his accent rings with evidence of his roots in upstate New York. He had told me something about his approach before, a neural, nutritional and somewhat radical, behavioral approach to eye problems. He had told me that my regular eye doctor might not be entirely aware or supportive of his unusual approach and methodology. I had tried to get the two of them together but hadn't managed. A blurb from his website:

  Dr. Rose is a Developmental / Neuro-optometrist. He treats children and adults who have reading and learning difficulties, patients with dizzyness and vertigo, patients who are progressively becoming more nearsighted, patients with a turned eye or amblyopia ( lazy eye ) and patients with a history of stroke or traumatic brain injury  who have  visual, cognitive, perceptual and balance difficulties. He also examines infants at six months old for eye diseases , turned eyes and potential amblyopia (lazy eye) development. 
Dr Rose is a member of:

• The American Optometric Association
• The California Optometric Association
• The San Diego County Optometric Society
• The Neuro-Optometric Rehabiliation Association
• The College of Optometrists in Vision Development
• The Orthokeratology Academy of America
• He is licensed to practice Optometry in New York, New Jersey and California

He put me through a battery of tests. And then made a stunning discovery. At about 15', my brain shuts my left eye out of the vision equation. He held a disc with green and red lights on an x and y axis. At a certain distance I lost touch with the horizontal lights. This was confirmed with additional depth of field testing. He explained to us that the eye was only one component of the vision equation, with the brain having a far greater contribution. And mine had been instituting a neural kill switch, maybe for a long time.

This explains a lot about my problems driving near barricades and parking garages, my life time's annoying habit of tapping my accelerator pedal. My vertigo. No one had ever detected it before. I have always had a hard time with distance and depth of field. And this has been since I was 17. A lot of my physiologic symptoms and behavior suddenly gained clarity and clarification. Things began to start make sense.

In addition we discovered that my Lens Crafter® glasses were not even close to the prescription that I had previously ordered, a phenomenon that has really hit the news lately as being unfortunately quite common. He found the beginnings of a left cataract, evidence of cholesterol and sun damage and made a few more prescient comments. Talked about nutrition and the need for supplements, and daily dosage of cruciferous vegetables. I am set to embark on a rehabilitation regimen with Doctor Rose.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate this doctor. Visiting him was a real eye opener. I like him, respect him and I advise anyone experiencing vision problems to call his office at 760-743-6540. He is located at 1299 East Pennsylvania Ave., Suite B in Escondido, behind the old Vineyard shopping center in a yellow building. Tell them that the blast sent you.

Excellent read.

How Boaz Weinstein outsmarted J.P. Morgan.

Johnny Winter - Be Careful With A Fool

I can already hear a certain person's comments, too many notes, etc. I think that virtuosos are different. Peacocks like to strut their stuff. With their mastery, if they want to embellish it is fine with me. Texas blues players are a different breed than chicago, than mississippi...

Muddy Waters Blues Summit in Chicago

Tube ride

Conservatives like to grouse that all will be better once the government gets off business's back, with all of their infernal regulations and interference. Businesses if left alone, will police themselves. Just ask Jamie Dimon over at J.P. Morgan.

This is why the news out of San Onofre is so disturbing. The nuclear power plant has been shut for over four months while federal regulators try to pinpoint the reason that the tubes that carry radioactive water in the new steam generators are eroding and failing at such an alarming rate.

This week comes the news that the piping is a new alloy, that had never been tested by the feds and that it was installed as a routine maintenance item on new bracket supports in order to get around government review. Over 1300 pipes to date have been classified as beyond repair.

Of course, the way that the power monopoly game works, you can rest assured that the ratepayers will take the ultimate hit for the risky business that the power companies have been engaging in and we will pick up any eventual tab. That is a given.

Fukushima. You think it can't happen here?

*

The Catholic church was not being shown in the greatest of lights in Philadelphia last week. Monsignor Lynn says that he was instructed by his Cardinal to keep those accusing his priests of sexual abuse in the dark. He says that he did what he was told and never really wanted the job.

The worst part was when he said that he didn't turn one of his priests in for molesting kids because he molested women too and that meant he wasn't really a pedophiliac. He apparently kept a shred list of priests who were suspected of molestation in a safe, where it was discovered a few years ago.

From Chicago Tribune - Reuters:

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - A senior church official on Thursday defended his response to a child abuse victim who was told that a predator priest could not be punished because he had sex with women too and therefore was "not a pure pedophile."...
On the witness stand on Thursday, Lynn was asked about a delay in his response to a child sexual abuse complaint filed in 1998. In the complaint, a former seminarian, identified only as Tim, said he was repeatedly sexually abused by Reverend Stanley Gana, who was removed from the ministry in 2002, according to a scathing 2005 grand jury report about the widening church scandal.
"Monsignor Lynn asked the victim, who had been forced to have oral and anal sex beginning when he was 13 years old to understand that the archdiocese would have taken steps to remove Father Gana from the priesthood had he been diagnosed as a pedophile," the grand jury report said.
"But Father Gana was not only having sex with children and teenage minors, Monsignor Lynn explained, he had also slept with women, abused alcohol and stolen money from parish churches," the grand jury report continued.
"That is why he remained, with Cardinal Bevilacqua's blessing, a priest in active ministry. You see, Tim,'" said Monsignor Lynn, ˜he's not a pure pedophile.'"
Lynn is accused of covering up the abuse of priests including Gana, who was never charged with a crime and who was reassigned from parish to parish as complaints surfaced.
"Father Stanley Gana, ordained in the 1970s, sexually abused countless boys in a succession of Philadelphia Archdiocese parishes," the 2005 grand jury report said.
"He was known to kiss, fondle, anally sodomize and impose oral sex on his victims. He took advantage of altar boys, their trusting families and vulnerable teenagers with emotional problems ... He molested boys on a farm, in vacation houses, in the church rectory. Some minors he abused for years," the grand jury said.
Lynn, who is not accused of any molestation, faces the possibility of 28 years in prison if convicted.

Bird brain

I can't seem to leave the valley anymore without running into hawks. Red tails everywhere. Red tail woodstock, seemingly from every high branch or telephone pole. Whole mess of them this morning. Saw my namesake flying around too, our valley's resident blue heron aloft with its majestic wingspan. I also espied another very psychedelic colored little bird in the bushes that I have never seen before and think might be very rare but couldn't squeeze off a shot with my slow camera.

I was supposed to meet with my photo group at the coffee shop as we do every saturday morning. I decided to be late, figuring that it was more important to take pictures than to talk about taking pictures. Managed to get there finally in spite of myself.

Animal Zoo

Obama's real class warfare

Music, music, music

Timothy Leary, Mystic Arts © Bill Ogden

Busy week, picked up one of the most amazing estates I have ever handled. Gay designer from Houston with Alzheimers, poor guy. Gallery now filled to the brim with male interest bronzes, some really great material. Bob Dylan's birthday yesterday, thank you Grumpy, he is a spry one hundred and seven. Alan Seymour's too, not nearly as old as Zimmy. He just stopped by on his way to see California Painter Bill Ogden with the very Ogden painting featured in the new issue of Surfer's Journal. Fleet of birds shat on my van in a massive organized attack this morning. Car show sunday. A big thank you and shout out to Randy Walters, for sending me a new copy of Alberto Manguel's A History of Reading.

Yesterday I was carrying packing blankets in when a blanket corner caught a painting, which caught another painting which fell over onto a lamp, which came crashing down to the floor, but not before grabbing my prize 1981 mint, koa Taylor guitar with the florentine cutaway and the extra wide neck, my favorite guitar and sending it hurtling to the floor two feet down. I stared at the fruits of my infamy, dumbfounded and couldn't even look at the carnage for several minutes. What is done is done. I picked it up, waiting to see the snapped neck and puncture wounds and there's not a scratch on it. Miraculous. Forget that atheism stuff. I'm a believer.

Stan sent this over:

Check this out!

Right now:

Listening to Chris Whitley (and going to see his daughter Trixie next week…talented people.)

but here's the thing. I needed to upgrade my sound system.

So I bought a 25 year old Yamaha Class A, 100 WPC….holy crap

EBAY.  70 bucks plus shipping….a steal.

I also picked up an immaculate Carver 900 yesterday from an architect. It is in showroom condition.  That was 125 and worth 250 in this kind of condition.

I have a wonderful pair of Infinity bookshelf speakers with double suspended woofers. I got them from Janis Ian as a gift in 1979.

So am looking forward to re-listening to all my favorite music for the next ten or fifteen years or until my hearing goes away!

It's all good.

Stan

FELLOW MUSIC LOVERS...THIS IS QUITE POSSIBLY THE MOST INCREDIBLE MUSIC E-MAIL I'VE EVER SEEN. 

AFTER CLICKING ON AN ARTIST, LOOK TO SEE ALMOST ALL OF THEIR FAMOUS WORKS, THEY ARE THERE , with the lyrics!!

FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE.  ENJOY AND PASS THIS ON.

  

1)  Elvis Presley    2)  Roy Orbison    3)  Beatles    4)  Abba    5)  Bee Gees    6)  Michael Jackson    7)  John Lennon    8) Celine Dion    9)  Frank Sinatra  10)  Creedence Clearwater Revival  11)  Julio Iglesias  12)  Queen  13) Neil Diamond  14)  Paul Mccartney  15)  Rolling Stones  16)  Pink Floyd  17)  Bruce Springsteen  18)  Elton John  19) U2  20)  George Harrison  21)  Cliff Richard  22)  Tina Turner  23)  Bob Marley  24)  Andrea Bocelli  25)  Dire Straits  26)  Barbra Streisand  27)  Eagles  28)  Madonna  29)  Simon & Garfunkel  30)  Ac/Dc  31)  Bob Dylan  32) Dean Martin  33)  Andr? Hazes  34)  Tom Jones  35)  Eric Clapton  36)  John Denver  37)  Eros Ramazzotti  38) Deep Purple  39)  Led Zeppelin  40)  Rod Stewart  41)  Status Quo  42)  Louis Armstrong  43)  Fleetwood Mac  44) Bryan Adams  45)  Jimi Hendrix  46) Barry White  47)  Nat King Cole  48)  Santana  49)  Michael Buble  50)  Gipsy Kings  51)  David Bowie  52)  Adriano Celentano  53)  Robbie Williams  54)  Charles Aznavour  55)  Metallica  56) Doors  57)  Shakira  58)  Beach Boys  59) Cat Stevens  60)  Bon Jovi  61)  Ub40  62)  Joe Cocker  63)  Whitney Houston  64)  Phil Collins  65)  Enrique Iglesias  66) Ricky Martin  67)  Ray Charles  68)  K3  69)  Zz Top  70)  Van Morrison  71)  Ringo Starr  72)  Stevie Wonder  73)  Gloria Estefan  74)  Supertramp  75)  Jethro Tull  76)  Black Sabbath  77)  Marco Borsato  78)  Guns N? Roses  79)  Neil Young  80)  Chuck Berry  81)  Billy Joel  82)  Sting  83) Kinks  84)  R.e.m.  85)  Laura Pausini  86)  Genesis  87)  Who  88) Monkees  89)  Animals  90)  Simple Minds  91) Prince  92)  Aretha Franklin  93)  B.b. King  94)  Iron Maiden  95)  Pearl Jam  96)  Christina Aguilera  97)  Alice Cooper  98)  Depeche Mode  99)  Nirvana100)  Gary Moore  Top 70 Songs:  1) Always On My Mind - Elvis Presley   2)  Fernando - Abba   3)  Dancing Queen - Abba   4)  Oh Pretty Woman - Roy Orbison   5)  Spanish Eyes - Elvis Presley   6)  Are You Lonesome Tonight? - Elvis Presley   7)  Chiquitita - Abba   8) Massachusetts - Bee Gees   9) Love Me Tender - Elvis Presley 10)  Imagine - John Len non 11)  Suspicious Minds - Elvis Presley 12)  California Blue - Roy Orbison 13)  My Way - Elvis Presley 14)  Billie Jean - Michael Jackson 15)  In Dreams - Roy Orbison 16)  Blue Bayou - Roy Orbison 17)  Only The Lonely - Roy Orbison 18)  I Have A Dream - Abba 19)  Yesterday - Beatles 20) Mamma Mia - Abba 21)  Thriller - Michael Jackson 22)  Amazing Grace - Elvis Presley 23) Unchained Melody - Roy Orbison 24)  Can?t Help Falling In Love - Elvis Presley 25)  Jailhouse Rock - Elvis Presley 26) Ave Maria - Celine Dion 27)  And I Love You So - Elvis Presley 28)  Blue Moon - Elvis Presley 29)  Hey Jude - Beatles 30)  I Started A Joke- Bee Gees 31)  My Way - Frank Sinatra 32)  Hotel California - Eagles 33)  A Big Hunk O? Love - Elvis Presley 34) Bridge Over Troubled Water  Elvis Presley 35)  The Winner Takes It All - Abba 36)  Bad Moon Rising - Creedence Clearwater Revival 37)  Ben - Michael Jackson 38)  Waterloo - Abba 39)  Stayin? Alive - Bee Gees 40) Words - Bee Gees 41)  How Deep Is Your Love - Bee Gees 42)  Crying - Roy Orbison 43)  Blue Suede Shoes - Elvis Presley 44) Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley 45)  Beat It - Michael Jackson 46)  A Day In The Life - Beatles 47)  Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen 48)  Let It Be - Beatles 49)  Only You - Roy Orbison 50)  Sweet Caroline - Roy Orbison 51)  A Hard Day?s Night - Beatles 52)  Bad - Michael Jackson 53)  Earth Song - Michael Jackson 54)  Woman - John Len non 55) Imagine (live) - John Len non 56)  Heal The World - Michael Jackson 57)  Stand By Me - John Len non 58) Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond 59)  O Sole Mio - Andrea Bocelli 60)  Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon & Garfunkel 61)  Man In The Mirror - Michael Jackson 62)  Strangers In The Night - Frank Sinatra 63)  Black Or White - Michael Jackson 64) Only You - John Len non 65)  My Sweet Lord - George Harrison 66)  What A Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong 67)  24 Horas - Julio Iglesias 68)  Everybody Loves Somebody - Dean Martin 69)  I Just Can?t Stop Lovin You - Michael Jackson 70)  Smooth Criminal - Michael Jackson

Dave in Japan sent over this must read from Rumpus, Steven Almond's incredible column, this week in greed.
Incredible early photos courtesy of Hudg - Atlantic.

HoboBeans brought over her mayan calendar ragnarok/armageddon/rapture end of the world compliance stickers. Nice. Fungusamongus 12/21/12, a very interesting number.