Music

My daughter, a friend, and I attended the Rush concert last night. What a show! The tickets were fairly expensive but worth it in my opinion. Plenty of high tech bells and whistles worked well to enhance, not detract from, the talent on stage. It was just a great evening all in all. One of the nice things about getting older is that your hearing does start to deteriorate a bit. The volume level was not offensive to me in the least. Maybe a slightly different mix for my precise position in the building would have been nice but all in all the sound was quite good. I prefer to have a little better articulation on the lyrics but in a live setting it's really hard to achieve. Still I could make out a good bit of the lyrics. This is a group that I had not been aware of at any meaningful level, during their early years. Only recently, at my daughters bidding, had I started listening to their music. She's quite the fan you know. I found their music to be interesting and engaging on a deeper level than most rock groups. They are constantly making subtle rhythm changes and are often using odd measures to bring an interesting twist to the song. The melodies are largely unpredictable but in a musical way. A good piece of music will build and release tension. There are several ways to accomplish this but they often used the rhythm changes to do it. Combined with the excessive talent available from the members the result is a great evening of music and entertainment. This is, as it may already appear, a recommendation to go see them if you have the chance. I think you'll enjoy them.

Third party humor or, do you have decaf?

All right then, listen good 'cause I need to go do the family budget for the week and I have a limited amount of time to spend on this subject. While I prefer to directly inject humour into my postings I will be looking to an external entity for it's input today. I'm not the greatest teacher so it will require a little extra effort from you to make this work. You see, my teaching method is to stand at the end of the forested path yelling, "I'm over here".

Whereas a good teacher will come meet you where you are and show you how they got there. So sue me.
The starting place today will be a statement pertaining to economics that I hope we can agree on. If not, your path to "over here" will be a different one, though still attainable. Providing a product does not result in a purchase. Seems simple enough to me, what do you think? Can we start there together? If I build 2000 gizmos that there is no demand for, my inventory will likely stay at 2000 for quite some time. Meaning, I will not need to buy parts from my vendors to build said gizmos, meaning those vendor businesses will suffer equal to the proportion of their dependence on my need for their parts. This is a very direct relationship. I don't sell gizmos, they don't make parts for me. If I am their only customer, their fate is mine and so on. Further, if there is a demand for gizmos, and there are 10 different manufacturers of these items, then the flow of money to purchase materials, make parts, assemble parts into gizmos, etc. all moves on smoothly and effectively.
Now then. Jim and Jill Fredrickson are planning a gizmo purchase in 6 months when their old gizmo will be completely worn out. At the time of their decision, there are 10 companies making gizmos. 6 months later there are 8. Is it logical to suppose that they will not purchase their new gizmo because there are now only 8 companies making them? If so, then my fiction has no valid point in reality. However, I believe, Jim and Jill will simply buy from one of the 8 companies still in business, don't you? And if there are now 8 companies building gizmos providing for the demand, there will be no fewer jobs in the material supply stage, the parts vendor stage, or the assembly stage for the gizmos to be produced. It's all driven by the demand. Whether there are 10 companies, or 2 companies, the demand is what determines the need for jobs in the companies, not the companies themselves.
So, how can Mr. Obama, claim to have saved all these jobs by bailing out GM and Chrysler? The only real difference would be that people would be buying cars from different companies, requiring these other companies to hire more workers and order more materials and parts from their vendors, who would in turn be required, to hire more workers to supply the companies with what they needed. When the dust cleared, we would be left with more efficient companies and more affordable vehicles, not to mention less debt for us, and our children to be burdened with. My argument is, any jobs that cannot support themselves, that is to say, any empoyee providing a service to their employer, that is not equalled by what that employer can then extract from the value of it's product, is an overpaid employee. Other wise the whole system comes down and the company goes bankrupt. Oh, wait a minute.

Not Sure Where This Is Headed

It's been so long since I entered anything on my blog I felt obligated to stop by. I can only imagine how disappointed the two of you have been. I don't have a strong sense of direction so let me start with something that came to mind yesterday. I had gone outside to wait for my wife to arrive so I could take her to work. She is working 2 part-time jobs in addition to her other family activities. I had her bright chartreuse, (who'd a thought that word starts with a "ch"), Turnpike shirt and some tennis shoes for her to put on while I drove her to the plaza where she was starting her shift. While standing in the front yard I saw a neighbour kid, a little girl, ridding her bike. While she did not speak to me on this occasion, in the past she has called me, "Emma's Grandpa". "Hi, Emma's Grandpa, what are you doing?" For whatever reason I began wondering about addressing my Heavenly Father as Nancy's Heavenly Father, or Tim's Heavenly Father. Of course He is mine too, but thinking in terms of His position as my fellow believer's Heavenly Father lends a sense of community to the reference. (My sister would be proud) I haven't fully explored this paradigm but I kinda like the early stages of considering it.
On a more serious note I was faced with an uncomfortable situation the other day. We were headed to church from Winfield where we had attended a retirement party for my brother-in-law, (never did like him much, lucky stiff), anyway, we passed a sign announcing an auction with some information about when and where presented on the sign. It all seemed so seamless looking back on it, the transition from a fairly mundane event to the genius that was unfolding in my head. Almost instantly the tune and words came rushing into my thoughts, totally unabated. "Come on, let me show you where the auction is, oh, baby come on, let me show you where the action is, baby come on, let me ......,well, you get the idea. So simple, so incredibly funny and yet it took 40 some years of reading signs about auctions with this song waiting in the shadows of my fertile imagination to finally be masterfully combined into this soon to be classical bit of humour.
Gosh, I'm so glad you stopped by. Let me leave you with a stolen joke. I just read this on facebook a few minutes ago. To protect myself from any copyright liabilities let me be unambiguous about the source of the joke. A friend of a friend had posted it so here goes, "It's so hot I saw a bird pulling a worm out of the ground wearing an oven mitt".

Home, sorta.

What a great trip our family had to South Africa. One we will not forget I'm sure. We were greeted by a very hospitable people who, by and large, seemed to be a happy lot. It seems the World Cup provided a chance for the country to take on a party atmosphere for a while. Yes, we drove by some of the slums and yes, we visited the Apartheid museum and learned more about the horrible rule of a very detailed, law based, discrimination. But the over all sense I came back with was one of appreciation for their culture and a sense of gratitude for their accepting the world with open arms. In the airport there was a collection of people, some who I believe worked there, and some who did not. Some older, some younger, but all of them smiling and laughing as the danced to a song playing on a boom box. This dance was obviously practised and the 25 or so people all moving together made a wonderful visual set against the backdrop of an airport hallway. The enthusiasm was contagious and you couldn't help but feel happy watching them enjoy the music and motion together.
At the Game Reserve where we stayed there was a visit from a group of folks who treated us to some more dancing as well. They offered some more current dance routines but then demonstrated the more traditional dancing of some of the tribes there. Again, it was a wonderful experience followed by some songs that they had prepared. One day we took a drive through the reserve to view the animals. This reserve is close to Josieburg, (Johannesburg), and did not have the larger animals on it. However, we saw several gazelle, wildebeest, zebra and baboons. At night you could hear the hiena's calling. Similar to coyotes though a bit like laughing. There were several baboons around the camp and we saw a village of 20 or 30 of them close to our camp. They would raid the trash cans in the early morning hours.
We stayed in Safari tents that had beds in them. While it's winter there, their winters are relatively mild compared to ours. Of course, while we were there they had an unusually cold night or two that got down to below freezing. With the extra blankets they provided we were fine though the first few minutes in bed were a little chilly.
They drive on the left side of the road there and of course the steering wheel is on the right. This provided many opportunities for a little comic relief for the family while travelling to our various destinations. You could always tell when I was getting ready to turn because the windshield wipers would come on. It was all so very confusing. We saw two games while we were there and Germany and the Netherlands are still in the tournament so we saw two of the better teams as well. We didn't get ahold of any tickets for the US matches but we watched the games on a big screen there at the camp. There is much more to say but I will save it for another time. My wife and granddaughter will be back tomorrow as they took a detour upon our arrival back in the states, to attend a family reunion. So we will be whole again tomorrow as a family, and we will have a great adventure in common as we move on through life.
Thank you, Lord, for South Africa and all the creative things you have done and are doing there.

Lions and Tigers and Elephants, oh my.

Golly gee, we're off for South Africa tomorrow night. Well, technically, weds. morning about 2:30 am. I'm very excited about the trip even though I know it'll be over in a flash. We are only there for a week and there will be more to do than we have time for. Soccer is what lured me originally but once the family decided to go, too, my focus was shifted a bit to a more general vision. We are staying in a Safari tent village that is located on a game reserve. These aren't your standard issue Boy Scout tents. They are really nice and will have beds in them rather than sleeping bags. Not sure about showers and such but with it being such a short trip who needs a shower? It's fun to see my granddaughters enthusiasm rise as our departure approaches. I'm not naive enough to think there won't be some "tough" times on this journey. Long waits in airports and long periods of time in a plane can be a difficult thing for a 9 year old to deal with. But I am confident this trip will be a blessed one and one that will give us all a chance to laugh together and just party down for a while. We've lived under the same roof now for 30 years, well, just 9 for my granddaughter, and some of those times were less than joyful with plenty of strife and heartache to go around. Now we celebrate a time when God has moved us to a place where my daughter is ready to take her family and move out on her own with an ever deepening faith and a more mature attitude toward life. I suppose I see this as a bit of a send off for her, though she is only moving a few miles away. She is ready to attack life with the gusto that has always been part of her personality and with her Saviour by her side. (which is, by the way, where He has always been) Look out South Africa, here we come!

Sneak attack

So, there I was just minding my own business, watching my granddaughter singing with her school mates at a musical program featuring the story of Moses when out of the blue I was visited by a thought that seemed to come from God himself. My granddaughter enjoys music and it is enjoyable to watch her enjoy music. Additionally, the presentation itself was quite good with several humorous commercials between the main songs. One such commercial was touting the attributes of Almighty Manna Mix. The commercial ended with a well delivered "my personal favorite is bamana bread". The music was totally new stuff with the exception of the next to the last song which was the traditional, "Bound For The Promise Land". As it turns out this song was the bait for the "sneak attack". It was like God pulled out His highlighter and sent the opening words of the familiar old song directly to my heart. "On Jordan's stormy banks I stand and cast a wishful eye, to Canaan's fair and happy land where my possessions lie". Wow, what a powerful picture. I'm standing on Jordan's stormy banks. Standing, very assuradly in this world that seems to have an innate strand of struggle and sorrow in it. A fallen world, so I believe, that is not capable of sustaining a joyous disposition. Yes, we can look and find comfort in our Saviour, even in the midst of our struggles, but the struggles do not go away, they are simply moved to their proper place. However, there is a place, Canaan, or heaven if you will, that is "fair", and "happy" in a profound way. And I was blessed with a quick glance at that place through the voices of those children. Also, carried on their voices, was the question of Matt. 6 of where I am storing up my treasures. Are they here, where moth and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal, or, are they in heaven. Once again I held the majority of the tears at bay, but the glimpse of my true home was momentarily overwhelming. My soul was looking through the window the children had opened for me and longingly telling me that someday we would get to go there. It's my home you know, my soul said to me, and you'll love it there. Sometimes I just can't wait.

Heaven can wait for me, but I can't wait to see,
who's in the marching band, and who's gonna be set free
(Michael Omartian)

Music

Music at any level can be a true joy. It reminds me of one of the beauties of the beautiful game, soccer. You can be totally ignorant of the laws of the game and still enjoy it. Kids with little understanding of the strategies or techniques of the game can have a truly enjoyable experience on a weekend playing the game, not to mention the entertainment value for the on-lookers. Yet I rewind over and over certain plays from the English league games I watch in complete awe of the level of skill required to do what they do. It requires skill but also determination. A player who is on the field for the whole 90 minutes will often run over 6 miles during the course of the game. Much of that time is spent testing the defence and looking for the best way to attack the goal. A great build-up of several passes and lots of hard work will often come to naught. But if you have the stamina to keep attacking you will eventually be rewarded with a goal. Not that different, I suppose, from all the plays and strategies that go into getting into the end-zone at an American football game. Music, even in its simplest form, can be immensely enjoyable. My granddaughter needed to practice her clarinet tonight. She indicated that she just needed to play some. No particular assignment or anything. Well, while she was getting out her instrument I figured out what notes she could play to accompany a song I like to play on the guitar. She had to learn a couple of new notes but we were soon on our way through the song. Then I decided to see about scaring up the ol' trumpet that had been purchased some years ago. Sure enough, as mis-fortune would have it, I found it. As my granddaughter and I played a couple of simple duets and her enthusiasm became more and more evident, I realized what a great blessing music can be. Will she write or perform great masterpieces? As wonderful as that would be, it does not affect the great time we had this evening in our living room. We are planning for an encore performance in the near future. I remember stories about my Uncles wanting to stay home from the movies to play music with their mom and dad. They eventually made a living with their instruments in New York playing for Broadway plays. But would those times have been any less enjoyable if they had pursued other careers? Nope. And so music has found a way, once again, to enrich my life. Thank you, Lord, for music. You are the author and finisher of my faith and the writer of the most marvellous symphonies.