Povey Prattle

It's Bastille Day. Vive la France. With that in mind I confess that I  am a great admirer of the French National Anthem "La Marseillaise".  Never mind the words,  it has a magnificently stirring tune. Twenty five or more years ago I came across Hector Berlioz' superb and extended version.  It is thrilling!! Back in my St. Stephen's, Pittsfield, MA days (1984-2000)I would tote my C.D. player into the office on or near Bastille Day to play the Berlioz version as recorded by the Baltimore Symphony and Chorus in about 1988.   The late and great parish lay leader Phil Desch and I would go into rhapsodies as we listened to the  superb Berlioz  arrangement of La Marseillaise. And (heaven forfend) I introduced the Berlioz version to my French friends Jean-Paul et Lizzie who had never before heard it. SO: Vive la France R.I.P. Phil Desch Blessings to Jean Paul et Lizzie. And here is a recording of Berlioz'  great version: h...

Zion and I were at work today at a local Memory Unit/Assisted Living facility. We encountered a lovely gentleman on the assisted living floor.  He's met Zion previously and was happy to see us. I noticed his cap.   It read "Jungle Air Force":  of which I had never heard.  It transpires that "Jungle Air Force" is the nickname for the U.S. 13th Air Force, formed for far eastern/pacific  service in World War II. I asked the man about his service.  He'd seen service in such places as Guadalcanal and New Guinea.  I did not press him for details about his tours.  That may come if I get to know him better. But I had a sense of awe.  Here I was talking to a man who truly knew what it meant to defend our freedoms in the face of Japan's Imperial might, (Remember Pearl Harbor)  He had been in the thick of it. This man was at war before I was born.  What a truly awesome privilege to meet him. He...

As I walked out in Arlington Park, Sarasota this morning I encountered the two thirty something women  (probably friends and neighbours) who step out with energy and zeal each day. As we drew close one of the women looked at Zion and said "Oh here's the model dog" That's the truth!  Zion and I accepted the compliment. He is a beautiful blessing. 

 We are so used to our President's habit of  shooting from the hip that our eyes may have rolled (mine did) when he announced at the NATO meeting that "Germany is captive to Russia".   Despite his overblown rhetoric he is on to something as the article below (from the left leaning, pro European newspaper "The (London)  Guardian" suggests.  It is worth a gander, or a serious read.  Also note  that the former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder  (1998 - 2005)  who negotiated this deal with Russia is now on the Board of Rosneft  - the State owned Russian Oil Giant, and has been observed hanging out with Russian President Putin at pre-World Cup  events.  Curiouser and curiouser. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The following  (in red)  is from The Guardian. Donald Trump may have used typically emotive – if premeditated – language ...

Global average temperatures  4th July 2018 Think that it is hotter than hades where you live?  You are not alone. Much of the world is baking hot. ---------------------------------------------- Global warming Rising sea temperatures and sea levels Ice melting in Arctic and Antarctic. Unprecedented floods in some places Disastrous droughts in others Massive deforestation Extinction of vital species in the oceans, in the air (birds and insects), and on the land Utterly polluted water sources in rivers, aquifers, and the oceans Unbreathable air in almost all the world's Cities Unbridled population increase ---------------------------------------------------------------- Mother Earth is stressed beyond belief.   We are almost certainly on the cusp of a global ecological melt down leading to famines, food shortages, new and deadly diseases, and new military conflicts. I fear for my darling great nieces and nephews. They are...

Now that I live in the American south I can say " you-all" know that I am immensely proud to be a native of the "mother of all Bristols", i,e. Bristol, U.K. There are many places in the world which are named for my home town -  a place for adventurers, traders, sailors and slavers. See this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_places_called_Bristol My Staten Island cousin Kippy reminded me that there are a goodly number of towns and cities in the U.S.A, which are named for Bristol U.K.  (where her father was born). Here are some of them: Bristol, Rhode Island  (probably the loveliest of the American Bristols0 Bristol Pennsylvania --  least said soonest mended,  Bristol, Maine. Bristol, New Hampshire Bristol Connecticut.  Was/is the HQ for the TV Sports network ESPN.  Former vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin was such a fan of ESPN that she named her daughter "Bristol" Bristol Virginia and Tenne...