Stuff

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

"Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" was/is an excellent film, and (I thought) stayed true to the book. The book series and the films derived from them have a lot of lessons to teach, foremost among them (imho) that it is sometimes necessary to break rules in order to attain a desirable outcome. This, perhaps more than the so-called 'witchcraft' aspect, may be threatening to some people who espouse 'strictness' and 'absolutism' as philosophies. Just a thought.

No further tea experiments yet; I may add more dried apples and cherries just to see how much it actually takes to give the tea substantiality - I know already that my frugality will prevent me from buying these products again. Orange tea is definitely in my future, and (dare I try it?) perhaps grapefruit.

Fun fact #14:

"One in every four Rochesterians claims to own (or has a family member who claims to own) a piece of the True Cross or a vial of water that was too blessed by the Pope."

Personally, I have a pebble that smells slightly of gall and may have come from the crown of Golgotha.

Fun fact #15:

"Rochester is home to 36-year-old WCMF-FM (96.5), not just one of the nation's longest-running rock stations, but also one of a shrinking group that has never changed its format or call-letters since sign-on."

Bonnie & I got married the year WCMF first graced Rochester's airwaves, and we have been listening to it throughout our matrimonial existence. It truly is in a class by itself, and we have a BIG soft spot for it. If you want to know more, visit http://www.wcmf.com.

Fun fact #16:

           

"Three critical things to know about its gravelly voiced morning man, Brother Wease:

1. His Saturday morning show 'Radio Free Wease' features, essentially, whatever he takes it into his head to play. 'Fat Man in a Bathtub' by Little Feat, live? OK. Elvis Costello followed by Elvis Presley followed by cajun, blues and Zappa? Fine. As you know, this is virtually unheard of anywhere except Europe.

2. Almost everyone here has either won something from him on the air, gotten into a fight with him on the air, or been called 'honey' by him on the air (male or female), and enjoyed it.

(Yep. Won a Rush audiotape.)

3. He did two tours of 'Nam; is married for the third time (who's more romantic than someone who would marry three times?!); has a lot of kids and a wife from Long Island who takes utterly no s#!t. This has made him a debater of the highest order. Engage at your own risk."

Brother Wease has always lived his life on the air, sometimes (I suspect) much to the discomfiture of certain of his family members (one of the reasons he's been married three times.) As far as I know, no one has written a biography of Wease yet, but his devoted listeners know so much about him from listening to him that any one of them could produce a 900-page tome, and be guaranteed to have a best-seller.

Two notes: When Howard Stern brought his show to town, he threatened to take Wease down. Without going into detail, Wease is still here and Howard is gone.

Wease is currently recovering from radiation treatment for nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and in 6 weeks he'll learn whether it was successful. His wife Doreen has been doing some limited broadcasting, because right now he's in pretty bad shape. Ironically, Wease has been a huge supporter of Camp Good Days and Special Times, a facility set up to help children with cancer. All of Rochester and environs is praying for his speedy and complete recovery.

Peace.