Wildlife: Deepening snow, thicker herds of deer.

NEW Web Site: Theater X-Net

Featuring: Ida Rubinstein Belle Epoch Russian/Parisian beauty.

Visit: Michael's Montana Web Archive
Theater, Art, Flash Gordon, Funky Music and MORE!

Weather: It snowed in pulses during the night, but a full storm is still possible.

Charity Alert: Click on The Hunger Site -- click to coax a contribution from their corporate sponsors.

In The Community: Art Walk TONIGHT! See the List of participants at the Hockaday Museum's Website

Media Watch: East Indian movies -- this time a Tamil (not Bollywood) film called I have Found It, supposedly based on Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. Aishwarya Rai was the advertised star, but she was a secondary lead -- that's alright with me. I like multiple plots in these domestic romances. There were perceptible stylistic differences between Madras and Bombay, but movies are still movies and people are still people -- similarities still rule.


Two of our favorite movie actors -- period.
Versitile comic and all-purpose actor Shah Rukh Khan
and the beautiful, far-from-limited, Aishwarya Rai

Wildlife: Bald Eagles perched on the edge of the aereation pond on Middle Foy's Lake. One at a time usually, while the other hunts elswhere. (see photo below)

NEW Web Site: Theater X-Net

Featuring: The illustrated story of Ida Rubinstein Belle Epoch Parisian beauty.

Visit: Michael's Montana Web Archive
Theater, Art, Flash Gordon, Funky Music and MORE!

Weather: More snow during the night, but it cleared up midday.

Charity Alert: Click on The Hunger Site -- click to generate a contribution from their sponsors.

In The Community: Art Walk this Friday! List of participants at the Hockaday Museum's Website

Media Watch: I've been reading Before the Fallout: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima by Diana Preston , and Uncle Tungsten by Oliver Sacks. Two books about science and the development of atomic physics. The former is an actual history book, the latter is a memoir, but they were very complimentary to each other.

Bald Eagle on Middle Foy's Lake
November 30, 2005 at about 4:00 pm MST
Photo by Michael Evans

NEW Web Site: Theater X-Net

Featuring: The illustrated story of Ida Rubinstein
Russian/Judaic Princess of Belle Epoch Parisian Theatre.

Visit: Michael's Montana Web Archive
Theater, Art, Flash Gordon, Funky Music and MORE!

Weather: More snow over the ice -- slowww going on the way to work.

Wildlife: Two full-racked bucks were following the Whitetail doe this morning on Buckboard. There was no fighting or anything -- she might be their MOM!

Charity Alert: Click on The Hunger Site -- click to help somebody or something good.

In The Community: The Art Walk is this Friday! We got that 100 Years banner down without a problem yesterday, but the damn window sash which was underneath needs repainting, and it can't happen until the weather is right. Hockaday Museum's Website

Media Watch: Bush was on the radio this morning, speaking from the Naval Academy.
(Following rant was cross-posted on DailyKos.com)
Another excuse to get out of class was almost the first words out of his mouth.
My anger was palpable -- so much so I literally saw red in the gray morning light.
The roads were covered with ice and new-fallen snow in my corner of Montana, so I slowed 'way down, made sure my seat belt was fastened, and turned off my radio in order to save my life.
(King Sunny Ade was playing on my tape machine -- thanks for the mellow vibes when I needed them most.)


Juju Music by King Sunny Ade
and his African Beats from 1982.
Drums and guitars rippling together like sparkling water to my ears.

All my life I wanted to be the kind of person who could face facts, listen, and reserve judgement until the facts were in -- and then further suspend judgement to make sure my facts matched reality before I acted. Anger just cuts my intelligence off at the brain stem.
It seems that the words of the President of the United States should have importance. When they are lies, fabrications, and worse, the consequences are beyond dreadful.
What is still worse is that I don't want to even HEAR someone who's lying to me, and I have to read it later, or slowly take it in via media "filters." (like DailyKos or HuffingtonPost)
There is danger to the independence of my mind in this strategy, but it's better than crashing my car in anger (I didn't) because of the deer herd running in front of me this morning.
Clinton damn near sunk his own credibility by lying about his foolish sexual escapades -- Bush lies about things that concern everybody's health and safety, but DEMANDS that we waste our time paying attention to him, while his henchman loot our treasury.
Until I hear that those 14 supposed permanent bases and super-embassy in Baghdad are no longer part of our country's criminal occupation of Iraq, I refuse to even read his blather.

NEW Web Site: Theater X-Net

Featuring: The illustrated story of Ida Rubinstein
Russian/Judaic Princess of Belle Epoch Parisian Theatre.

Visit: Michael's Montana Web Archive
Theater, Art, Flash Gordon, Funky Music and MORE!

Weather: A down-to-it winter snowfall in progress this morning -- all over Western Montana.

Wildlife: The Pheasants were out and feeding this morning, despite the deepening snow.

Charity Alert: Click on The Hunger Site turn your browsing into aid and relief.

In The Community: This snow is going to affect the Art Walk this Friday. Whatever falls now will still be on the ground then. As a matter of fact, I'm supposed to go to the Hockaday this afternoon and take a banner down -- hmmm, might be tricky, but all I really need is a ladder and a set of wire-cutters. We'll need to be dressed for the weather though -- that tall ladder is a monster-drag to handle, and we don't want to be outside any longer than necessary. Hockaday Museum's Website

Media Watch: Last Sunday I was channel-flipping while making my morning coffee. All of the sudden I saw BOOTSY COLLINS onstage in some justly-forgotten 80's comedy and I immediately put the remote control down. The music was fabulous, and there was a lot of it, but I couldn't make out who was in the band -- everyone seemed to be wearing shades, but not their "normal" P-Funk costumes.
I went right to "One Nation, the Semi-Official P-Funk Bulletin Board" and typed an inquiry about The Night Before, the flick in question, which starred Keanu Reeves in a role that makes Bill and/or Ted look smart.
Here are the answers from the Mob's well-versed fans:


Willam (Bootsy) Collins
and his Starburst Precision Mutron Bass
Classic 80s stuff...sorry ass, stereotypical film, but there's The Funk Mob as the Rat's Nest Band. George dons football shoulder pads, Bootsy sports an Uncle Fester type drape, DoWop looking all suave. And the music is the bomb, esp. for the 80s. Not available though on any release. I caught George on a BET show in the 90s, called in and asked him about that film...Bootsy didn't even remember doing it...and of course George, ever the Hustler, said, yeah, brother, you kind of cosmic. I just found those tapes. And you will be hearing it. LOL...shyt, that was about 10-13 years ago. Do that head thing...

Baby Boy, Way Over There, and Honk it (@ 7 minutes of screen time audio in the movie).

I like the "Absent" CD as a Family Series thang. I like it in that sense. That being said, that "Baby Boy" cut would've fit right in. By the way......the movie was shitty.....but The Funk turned it out! Too bad it was a such a sorry flick.

My brother has (had?) a VHS of that movie recorded off of TV from maybe 15 years ago. Very vague memories... I seem to recall Blackbyrd and Mudbone being there ...

Blackbyrd yes, Mudbone no.
Honk is da' jam! That was some nasty funk on there. Way Over There, Baby Boy...

GC, Bootsy, Byrd, Garry, Trey Lewd, Jessica Cleaves, and Lynn Mabry.
If I remember anyone else, I'll add accordingly.
Joe Harris...think he is from the Undisputed Truth.

Summary: So this version of Parliament/Funkadelic was George Clinton, William (Bootsy) Collins, Dwayne (Blackbyrd) McKnight, Garry (Doo Wop) Shider, Tracy (Trey Lewd) Lewis (George's oldest son), Joe Harris, and two of the Funk Mob's finest singers -- Lynn Mabry and Jessica Cleaves. The songs were Honk, Way Over There, and Baby Boy -- none of which are available as independent recordings.

NEW Web Site: Theater X-Net

Featuring: The illustrated story of Ida Rubinstein
Russian/Judaic Princess of Belle Epoch Parisian Theatre.

Visit: Michael's Montana Web Archive
Theater, Art, Flash Gordon, Funky Music and MORE!

Wildlife: The Blue Jays and Magpies sneaked onto the deck for peanuts between snow flurries over the weekend. Huge Canada Geese took off and landed in the lake all day Sunday.

Weather: Middle Foy's Lake had a layer of ice everywhere except in the aereation pond Monday morning. The sun came out, but it was less than 20 degrees (F) most of the day.

Charity Alert: Click on The Hunger Site for an easy way to help out people, animals, and our environment.

Media Watch: NFL Football -- I like closely contested games. Chicago out-muscled Tampa Bay yesterday, then the NY Giants were beating up on the tired Seattle Seahawks, coming from behind to tie the game in the final minutes. New York's kicker missed a the field goal as time expired -- trouble was, he missed two more in overtime as well. After the Giant's third miss, home team Seattle somehow got their strength back and drove close enough to the goal line for a field goal attempt of their own -- and their kicker didn't miss. Since I've been following Philadelphia all season, like it or not, I'll mention that they beat Green Bay 19 to 14. Pregame madness was alright -- Shannon Sharpe has been pretty funny on NBC, the Fox crew is consistently goofy, Frank Calliendo's impressions are still good, and Jillian Barbarie has her voice back -- I'm sure she needed that day off on Thanksgiving.

Happy Birthday To Me: I got a DVD of Cream at the Royal Albert Hall from May of 2005.


Ginger Baker, Eric Clapton, and Jack Bruce
on a Fillmore/Winterland poster from 1968 by Lee Conklin (above)
Photo of Jack Bruce, Eric Clapton, and Ginger Baker
in NYC, Nov. 2005 for a concert at Madison Square Garden
which reportedly grossed over $11 Million (below)