From A Bird's Eye View

Posted in opinion

THERE’S A GADGET FOR THAT

January 9, 2017By Sparrow/WatsonComments:7 Comments

By Suzanne Sparrow Watson

This past weekend the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was held in Las Vegas. It’s a major event for high tech companies; an opportunity to showcase their latest innovations and launch trial balloons on some pretty goofy gadgets. I love technology, although the relationship is not always reciprocated. My language while trying to fix our computer, iPad, Direct TV or cell phone systems would make a sailor blush. But still, I am fascinated by gadgets so it is with more than a passing interest that I follow the CES each year to see what’s on the horizon. For those of you who are sensible and don’t pay any attention to this stuff let me give you a bit of background. CES was started in 1967 in New York and featured such marvels as pocket radios, the Scottie record player (pictured) and the first TV’s with integrated circuits. Integrated circuits meant that TV’s no longer had those blasted tubes, which invariably blew out right before the Ed Sullivan Show or Gillette’s Cavalcade of Sports. Each time a tube faded out it required the services of a repairman to come and replace it. Or at least it did in our house because our dad could barely tell a screwdriver from a hammer.

Kuri – the nag

Over the years the CES has become the place for companies to showcase their latest inventions. It has featured such advances in technology as the cordless phone (remember when we had ONE phone in the house and it was attached to a wall?!) and the cassette tape, which eliminated vinyl records from the mainstream for decades. This week I’ve been reading about the trends for the coming year. They range from the scary to the ridiculous. First, virtual reality seems to be huge, with phone attachments and special glasses that can sweep you into another dimension. I guess given all of the drama of 2016 maybe a little “virtual” in our reality isn’t such a bad thing. The other popular trend is robotics. There is the Kuri, a home robot that has a cute little face and will perform tasks or provide information at your command. It can autonomously patrol around the house and – get this – has its own unique personality. Somehow that seems just the slightest bit creepy. Maybe I’ve watched too many episodes of Westworld but I am highly suspicious of a robot with personality. Oh sure, at first it’s bringing me my newspaper and giving me the answer to who starred in On the Waterfront, but what stops it from telling me that I shouldn’t have that second helping of chocolate cake? Or that I really should clean up the mess in the kitchen before I sit down to read. With my luck I’d get a Kuri that had the “personality” of a nag. I think I’ll stick with Dash the Wonder Dog getting my newspaper for now.

There are all sorts of “connected” gadgets this year – ones that hop onto your wireless network and interact with each other or with you, even in your sleep. The Sleep Number company has a new bed that can sense what you’re doing all night long and make adjustments. It will automatically adjust if you snore, add an automatic night light on the bed if you get up in the middle of the night, and pre-warm the mattress to toast up your feet on a cold night. It also connects to an app to offer information on how you’re sleeping. Do we really want a machine “sensing” what we’re doing all night long? Just imagine if your local neighbor’s 15 year-old hacked your system and sent that information around the neighborhood? Or worse, if somehow the Sleep Number bed and Kuri teamed up. Maybe a robot’s idea of fun is to goof around with the Sleep Number elevation system. You’d be bobbing up and down all night.

The Vacuum Shoe

I think I’ll stick with lower tech gadgets for now. The best thing I saw come out of the show is the Shoe that Vacuums. Yes! You can buy a pair of shoes that will pick up dust and crumbs as you stroll along your carpeting. Now that is innovation!

Posted in Holiday observations

The Unexamined Life

January 2, 2017By Sparrow/WatsonComments:9 Comments

by Bob Sparrow

“The unexamined life is not worth living”

Spoken by Socrates at his trial after he chose death rather than exile

It was suggested by more than one reader that my last blog, the one about ‘creative’ Christmas gifts, was simply filler, fluff, no real depth, mailed in, not intellectually challenging, stimulating or provocative.

I offered excuses about the hustle and bustle of the season, my new work schedule, another birthday, travel demands (Dallas, Salt Lake and Vegas in the last 60 days). But after searching for the many layers of that last blog, I discovered that it was a piece with no layers at all and in fact had no redeeming social, or for that matter, antisocial, qualities. So, as an apology I proffer a Top 10 list (along with my cogent comments) espoused by an All-Star cast of deep, philosophical thinkers to help you put your New Year’s resolutions in perspective.

I will say yes to life

Nietzsche, means rediscovering the seriousness one had as a child at play. (Pretty heavy when you think about it)

I will grow collective

Badiou commented that when people find love, they realize life offers them more together than it does alone. (Can we really trust a guy whose name is BAD I.O.U.?)

I will be present for others

Authentic engagement is world-disclosing work. Implicitly, by trying to enable the other, I acknowledge the value of sharing a world with them. (I think he means, wherever you are, be there!)

I will be a giver not a taker

Ask yourself, ‘What unique contributions can you make that could empower others?’ (Great arm farts probably don’t count)

I will focus on the things I can control not the things I can’t

Genuine self-control is equal parts focus, drive and humility. (and perhaps some prozac)

I will be a meaning maker

We must be prepared to disrupt ourselves every now and then in order to see the unexpected opportunities in daily events and take our lives in new directions. (We have to look no further than the latest election to affirm that we have indeed disrupted ourselves)

I will convert negative emotion into creative energy

Anger can be a gift. Channel it into a creative activity (Some are more ‘gifted’ than others)

I will question everything

By learning to think skeptically, we are not only better able to identify things that have real meaning, relevance, and value in life, we are also enabled to identify the things that lack meaning, relevance, and value (I know what you’re thinking – this blog lacks meaning, relevance and value)

I will celebrate abundance

Everything is fed by the flow of radiation from the sun. Hold out your hands to the sun. Feel it vitalize the molecular flows of your body. (Sun worshiping – it’s all come full circle)

I will never give up

Sartre argued that authenticity involves making a fundamental choice about how to live – as a philosopher, writer, communist, whatever. The caveat is that we acknowledge that this is only a choice, and there are other choices we can make in life. Camus argued for what is ultimately, I think, a more uncompromising position: that existential authenticity demands that we admit to ourselves that our plans and projects are for the most part hopeless and in vain – and struggle on regardless. This, for Camus, is existential revolt – to affirm the absurdity of life and continue. (I couldn’t have said it any better myself, actually I couldn’t have said it at all!)

Final words to think about when making your resolutions, from former publisher of Success magazine, Darren Hardy . . .

“Resolutions tend to focus on what you are not (skinnier, wealthier, punctual). As you try to focus on the life you want, you’ll be fixated on the things you haven’t accomplished”. He suggests that resolutions should start with your abundances and expand them.

Or you could forget about resolutions this year and just curl up with your new Santa Farting Butt Pillow.

Posted in Holiday observations • opinion

HAVE YOURSELF A FIZZY LITTLE CHRISTMAS

December 23, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:12 Comments

By Suzanne Sparrow Watson

Music, in all of its forms, always seems to evoke memories of times past. That is never more true than at Christmas when emotions run a bit higher and hearing a carol on the radio can make even the most hard-hearted a bit sentimental. I have been listening to the “Holly” station on my satellite radio and find myself drawn back to some wonderful Christmas memories. Here are just a few – and to make sure you read until the end – I am also including Pop’s Christmas Ice Cream Fizz recipe.

“Silver bells, Silver bells, it’s Christmas time in the city.”

The City of Paris tree

“Silver Bells” was our mother’s favorite Christmas song. I remember back in the 1950’s we had a record player that was roughly the size of a modern day refrigerator. I thought it was a miracle of engineering that we could stack records on top of each other and they would drop in succession. At Christmastime our mother couldn’t get enough of “Silver Bells” so each time it concluded she rushed to the record player to keep the next record from dropping so she could hear it again. The song was our anthem; every year during the Christmas season we got dressed up, including gloves and hat, to make the 22 mile trip into San Francisco. We had three destinations: the Christmas tree in the City of Paris rotunda, the windows at Gump’s, and getting a sundae at Blum’s on Union Square. Only Gump’s has managed to survive. Blum’s closed in the 70’s and Neiman Marcus is now in the City of Paris building. The magic of the City of Paris Christmas tree was not only its 40 foot size, but the decorations – tricycles, dolls, trains and all manner of toys, bright lights, glass bulbs and a huge star on top. Each year it was a bit different and each year I stared at it in wide-eyed wonderment. When Neiman Marcus bought the store they tried to carry on the tradition but judging by this year’s effort – a metal, blue spiral cone hung upside down – they have done an abysmal job of it. Where is the magic in that? Makes me glad I grew up when I did.

“Silent Night, Holy Night”

Our grandmother was in her 50’s when our grandfather died in 1948. She never re-married. She referred to him constantly and loved to keep his memory alive through stories. She had a full life but was always a little sad around the holidays when she missed him most of all. His favorite Christmas carol was “Silent Night”. When all of our relatives would come on Christmas morning our mom would always have Christmas albums playing (by now we had graduated to a “console”). The problem was that “Silent Night” would bring our grandmother to tears. Unfortunately, of the approximately 87 Christmas albums our mother had, “Silent Night” seemingly appeared on all of them. So my job was to remember the various “cuts” on the albums where “Silent Night” was placed and then race to the console to skip over the track before grandma dissolved into tears. I can’t hear that song today without thinking about her and about the countless times I practically tripped over the Christmas tree lurching for the record player.

“Through the years we all will be together, if the Fates allow…”

A jolly man indeed!

This will be the 15th Christmas without our dad. I miss him just as much this year as I did that very first one. He was a happy, joyful guy, always kind and helpful to others. He was also one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. All year long he embodied the Christmas spirit and when I was very young I thought he even looked like Santa, with his twinkling blue eyes, rosy cheeks and a stomach that shook like a bowl full of jelly. He loved the holidays, welcoming friends and family alike into our home. Our whole family misses his loving spirit but we also recognize we were very lucky to have him as long as we did and are grateful that he left us with so many cherished Christmas memories.

“…So have yourself a Merry Little Christmas now.”

One of Pop’s hallmarks was the Ice Cream fizz he served every Christmas morning. Oh sure, most families had hot chocolate and cider while we were drinking gin. But don’t judge – it has given a roseate hue to many a Christmas morning. So this year we are once again sharing his recipe so that you and your family might also enjoy this wonderful tradition.

POP’S CHRISTMAS ICE CREAM FIZZ

Fill a blender 1/4 full with ice cubes

Add 6 jiggers of gin

Add 4 scoops of French Vanilla ice cream

Add 1 small bottle of soda water (the size you get in a 6-pack)

My brother Bob adds an egg so the white adds some froth, brother Jack doesn’t add an egg. Personally, I’d add it just because you can then claim it’s a protein drink.

Just blend it well and – voila – you have a concoction sure to put a positive spin on everyone and every thing!

Our mom served them in a wine glass with a dash of nutmeg. As we got older we would conspire with Pop and ditch the wine glass for a chilled beer mug from the freezer. Saved having to go back for seconds…or thirds.

We wish everyone a Happy Holiday season – we’ll be back in 2017!

Posted in Holiday observations

I’m Not Making This Stuff Up!

December 19, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:8 Comments

by Bob Sparrow

Who wouldn’t look good in this?

Some of you may remember that last year around this time, I posted a blog entitled ‘Gift Ideas for Those Who Have Everything’. It was one of our least read blogs, but I did hear from readers who found it helpful, not for finding things they would really give to someone, but for putting into perspective the things they actually bought. “Hey, that laundry soap on a rope wasn’t as stupid as that yodeling pickle!” So, here I am again this year, with another selfless act of providing you with great ideas for gifts for that person who may not have everything, but you can be sure they don’t have any of these!

Doggie Go Pro – Tired of a bird’s eye view? Get a dog’s-eye view with this ‘fetch mount’ camera. Shouldn’t your dog be able to capture his adventures on film? Only $399.99 – film not included.

Your Cup of Joe – You coffee lovers who didn’t jump on the coffee mug in the shape of a toilet bowl last year, probably won’t jump on this coffee mug in the shape of a basketball, complete with hoop and ready for dunking marshmallows. Or you may want to just be honest and get the ‘There’s A Chance That This Could Be Vodka’ mug

What could be more romantic than snuggling up with that special someone with your own Santa Farting Butt pillow. Aside from the Santa beer fart smell, it comes in various holiday fragrances, my favorite is reindeer breath.

Trying to get that special someone to stop smoking? Here’s the perfect gift, the ‘Black Lungs Ashtray – the more you smoke, the blacker it gets.

The Faux Tummy Stuffer – we all over-indulge during the holidays, what with all the cookies, candy and booze laying around. It’s hard not to become an alcoholic or chocoholic at this time of year; so when people comment, “Say, that extra weight really looks good on you.”, you can surprise them by revealing the Tummy Stuffer that makes you look fat, which takes their attention away from how really fat you are.

Hillary Nutcracker – no comment

Time in a Can – Is that special someone tired of the convenience of a wristwatch, but wants to know the time? Here’s your solution; just carry around this ‘Time Spray Can’ and you can spray the time on anything. Now that’s convenience!

You’re welcome! You’ve still got a few more shopping days left!

S.P. Suzanne and I wish you and your family the very Merriest of Christmases

Posted in opinion

THE CHRISTMAS CARD DILEMMA

December 12, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:10 Comments

By Suzanne Sparrow Watson

I love everything about Christmas – the decorations, the tree, the festive spirit that seems to permeate the air. Of course, all that egg nog and hot buttered rum helps. The only Grinch to my Christmas spirit is the dreaded Christmas cards. Don’t get me wrong, I love to receive them, I just hate sending them. So while our house is now ready for Christmas (my husband has opined that it looks like an elf vomited in here), I have put off my decision on cards until this week – do I send some out or just forget the whole thing? Christmas cards just seem so 80’s to me – the 1880’s, which is when Christmas cards became popular in America. The sending of cards is reminiscent of a time before the internet, when you didn’t hear from people except for the annual Christmas card. Social media and email have completely changed that; today I can tell you what my friend down in Texas had for breakfast because she posted it on Facebook. I know of every birth, death, marriage, divorce and trip to the mall. So I don’t really need to get a Christmas card or worse yet, a Christmas letter, to know what my friends have been up to. I know what my friends are doing right down to their scrambled eggs.

My Christmas cards seems to fall into four major categories. First are the corporate cards. You know, the ones from the banker or insurance agent. The first card we received this year was from our attorney, which seems only fitting since we bared our souls to him a few months ago while drawing up new life and death documents. I don’t know whether he’s sending genuine greetings or he’s just checking to see whether the card gets returned and he needs to start filing paperwork. The second category are from distant friends – people that we don’t see all year long but somehow the need arises to wish each other the very best for the holiday season. Mostly they are old neighbors or workmates I couldn’t pick out in a crowd. Am I morally obligated to continue this exchange of well-wishes? The third group are the true friends – some of whom we see or keep in touch with all year long. Heck, some of us are golf partners or good friends with whom we socialize every week. We will be wishing holiday greetings in person, some of them several times. Do we really need to send cards too?

The last category is the Christmas letter. There are some that are really well done. Some. But most seem to have turned the Christmas tradition of wishing others a happy season to one giant “let’s talk about me” exercise. Generally, people just don’t know where to stop. Johnny got into Harvard? Great. Snookie was elected president of her third grade class? Good for her! But too often it goes into such minutia that it borders on the ridiculous. My parents used to receive one that was so full of trivia and self-aggrandizement that our mom used to wait until we were all gathered on Christmas Eve so that one of us kids (by this time adults and full of “cheer”) could read it in dramatic fashion, everyone breaking into gales of laughter. Each year my husband and I receive one from one of his former co-workers that last year had me going from the start. In addition to a litany of the various trips taken, there was a review of golf handicaps (they went down, of course), a tabulation of their granddaughter’s Girl Scout cookie sales and the net worth of the company that their son-in-law went to work for, along with its employee count and various office locations. Seriously. As they’re writing this tome do they really think anyone cares about the headcount in Poughkeepsie?

Perhaps the best take on Christmas cards was from a friend of our parents back in the 60’s. They kept every card they received the previous year. Then they re-addressed it to the sender inserting a note that read “We liked your Christmas card so much last year that we have decided to give you the pleasure of seeing it again this year. So, we’re sending it back to you.” Now that is clever. And it beats using old cards to make ornaments. As for all the Christmas letters? They could be shredded into bird cage liner and the circle would be closed.

So, here I sit in mid-December still trying to weigh the pros and cons of sending cards. Mailing cards has become exponentially easier with the advent of computer-generated mailing labels so I don’t have that arthritic wrist to provide an excuse anymore. And since I do like to see photos of people’s kids, grandkids and dogs I feel like I need to somehow reciprocate. After all, who am I to deny the world of one more cute picture of Dash the Wonder Dog at Christmas?

Posted in travel

“This is the Place”

December 5, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:1 Comment

by Bob Sparrow

SLC and the Wasatch Mountain Range

That’s what Brigham Young said in 1847 after a long overland trek from Illinois, when standing at the mouth of Emigration Canyon on the east bench of the Wasatch Mountain Range looking over what is now the Salt Lake Valley. It was there that their journey would end and where the Mormon religion would call home as they committed to “make the desert blossom like a rose”. It is said that there was only one tree in the valley at that time, now there are over one million trees and lots of roses.

I was first introduced to Utah in 1964 when visiting the campus of the University of Utah on a football recruiting trip. I was immediately taken by the beauty and majesty of the surrounding mountains. It was January and a blanket of snow covered the Wasatch Range as well as the wide boulevards of Salt Lake City. It was a spectacular winter wonderland, especially for a young man who was born and raised in California.

Tuscany entrance

In recent years Linda and I as well as brother, Jack and wife, Sharon have tried to get back to a Utah football game each season. This year we were joined by Mark & Kathy Johnson for the Utah-Oregon game. The Johnsons had an additional incentive to go to Utah as Mark’s parents and a brother live there. For the last seven years we have always had our ‘pre-game Friday night meal’ at a wonderful restaurant in Holladay, a southern suburb of Salt Lake, called Tuscany. It is nestled among cottonwood and box elder trees making it barely visible from the street and has a ‘cozy old world’ feel inside. On this Friday night we had one of the owners of the restaurant, Mark Eaton, eating at the table next to us. He was a professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz and is hard to miss at 7’4”. At 59 years old, he looked like he could still play. Delightful dinner, the pork chop is to die for!

Rice-Eccles Stadium

The game was at noon on a clear, crisp Saturday, which kept us from using the day to stop by the campus of my son Jeff’s and my alma mater, Westminster College. But it did not keep us from heading to the tailgate party across from the stadium where Jeff had alerted a Utah alum friend that we would be there and so we were invited to their tailgate party, which was no small bash! With no professional football team within 500 miles, Salt Lake is a college football town, which was easily seen by the throngs of supporters wearing red and pouring into a sold out stadium. Rice-Eccles Stadium was brought up to its current state-of-the-art condition when Salt Lake hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics. The football game itself? I suppose it was exciting, but not a good exciting, as Oregon scored the go-ahead touchdown with 2 seconds left in the game to win 30-28.

Tailgaters

Our ‘consolation dinner’ that night was down town at the Market Street Grill, which was just a couple of blocks from our City Center Marriott hotel. We were directed to the Main Street Grill by dear friend and neighbor, Marge Dunn, whose niece, Sarah works there. We had a delicious dinner and were able to talk with Sarah, who was bartending this night.

In spite of the Utah heart-breaking loss, which kept them from playing for the Pac-12 South championship the following week, the visit was invigorating. The weather was truly ‘fall-like’, which we don’t get much of in Southern California and Salt Lake has to be one of the cleanest and safest cities in the country. If you’ve never been there, put it on your bucket list, you won’t regret it . . . and don’t forget to have dinner at Tuscany.

Posted in opinion

GROUCHO MARX MAY BE RIGHT

November 28, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:8 Comments

By Suzanne Sparrow Watson

I’m betting they didn’t have Jell-o salad

Well, here we are, launched into the holiday season. “Holiday season” being a euphemism for “gain five pounds”. Like most people, I consumed more food than normal last week, further endangering my cholesterol numbers. I dove into mashed potatoes, gravy, pies and whipped cream like I was going to “the chair”. In my food stupor I also gave some thought to the original Thanksgiving – the one where people actually got along and shared stuff. Can you imagine? The Pilgrims have been on my mind lately because earlier this year I applied for membership in the General Society of Mayflower Descendants. To say that the requirements for entry are stiff is an understatement. These people take their mission seriously; one can imagine hunched-over researchers with green eyeshades taking delight in stamping “Reject!” on the hundreds of applications they receive. Actually, there is ONE man who is the gatekeeper to the organization – it is he alone who makes the decision as to whether your documentation is up to snuff.

I’ll spare you the details but let’s just say this research is not for the faint of heart. One must provide birth, marriage and death certificates for every person in the descendant line, including spouses who aren’t even a blood relation to the original Mayflower passenger. I don’t know about you but I can’t even find my own marriage license. I asked myself several times during the research and collection phase of this process why I was going through this effort. I’m not sure I ever satisfied myself with a great answer except that I am a history buff. I love not only the facts and figures but the people who lived before us and shaped our world. No detail is too small. I am the type of person who goes through the National Gallery, looking at the portraits wondering what the subject had for breakfast that morning. In the case of the Mayflower passengers I have also been looking for any hints of DNA that might have trickled down to our generation and I have been pleasantly surprised to find some similarities.

The very serious William Brewster

John Alden, for example, was our forefather and was a “cooper” – or barrel maker – in England before setting sail. I immediately saw a connection; our brother Jack works for Fess Parker Winery and has great knowledge about barrel-making, not to mention his excellent ability to consume their contents. We are also related to the Elder William Brewster, the religious leader of the Plymouth Colony. No relatives I know of inherited his pious devotion, but prior to becoming an elder he worked as a postmaster and an English teacher. Brother Bob also worked for the post office during college and then taught high school English upon graduation. Finally, Priscilla Mullins (who later married Alden), was the spinner and weaver for the colony. And anyone who has seen my vast collection of yarn or knows me as president of the local knitting guild would see an immediate link. So who knows? Maybe there are some genetic traits that filter down. So far I haven’t found any horse thieves but we are descended from several rabble rousers and a heretic burned at the Salem witch trials. Anyone who knows my brothers or me would testify that that apple didn’t fall too far from that tree either.

It’s also been interesting to see which famous people are related to Mayflower passengers and, by extension, us. John Adams, Dan Quayle and Marilyn Monroe are also related to John Alden. I’m not sure about John or Dan, but I know I’m related to Marilyn because, as my brother can confirm, every year on his birthday I do my best Marilyn Monroe to Jack Kennedy version of the “Happy Birthday” song. William Brewster’s descendants include Bing Crosby, Cokie Roberts and Julia Child. I’m questioning my relation to Julia – I think the gene pool mutated somewhere between her and me. But I can carry a tune and I love history so I figure two out of three isn’t bad.

As I say, it’s a long and laborious process. I submitted my application on June 1 and I have yet to hear the status of it. I’m hoping that I catch the man who is the arbiter of all things Mayflower in a good mood the day he reviews it. Otherwise I may have to adopt Grocho Marx’s philosophy – “I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would accept me as a member”.

Posted in Historical • opinion

That Day in Dallas

November 21, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:10 Comments

by Bob Sparrow

I had the pleasure a couple of weeks ago of attending the wedding of Reid Hendrix in Dallas, Texas; Reid is the son of good friends and former ‘hood residents, Cap & Sharon Hendrix, but no relation to Jimmy Hendrix. It is hard to mention the city of Dallas to people of my generation and not have them think of the Kennedy assassination. It was 53 years ago this week when we all not only remember the date of November 22, 1963, but we all know exactly where we were and what we were doing when we heard the news – “President Kennedy has been shot”. Our generation saw Kennedy as a young, energetic, charismatic leader; who we were less concerned about his politics and policies than we were about the goings-on of Jack and Jackie in ‘Camelot’.

That day in Dallas was an historic day in many ways. To me ‘the 50s’ started in 1954 when Bill Haley and the Comets released Rock Around the Clock and ended with the Kennedy assassination. The age of innocence was gone as it was less than three months later when the Beatles made their first appearance in the United States and the psychedelic 60’s were underway.

6th Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

Although I have traveled to Dallas many times on business, I have never visited the site of the Kennedy assassination, the Texas School Book Depository, or as my colleagues called it, the Book Suppository (Ouch!), maybe that’s part of the reason it’s been renamed the Six Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. Regardless of the name, they’ve done a great job of telling the complete, albeit controversial, story of the assassination and the strange series of events that followed. The self-guided tour through the museum exposes you to historic films, photographs, artifacts and interpretive displays that document the events surrounding the assassination. The museum presents the background of Lee Harvey Oswald and what might have been his motivation to shoot Kennedy, the story of Jack Ruby, who shot Oswald two days after Oswald shot Kennedy, and the Warren Commission’s report that unconvincingly concluded that Oswald acted alone. It is a conspiracy theorist’s paradise.

The highlight of the tour for me was standing by the window on the 6^th floor next to the site from where the gunshots came (one can not stand exactly where Oswald was as it is surrounded with Plexiglas). While standing there, one can see a video simulation of the Kennedy convertible turning the corner and coming right toward Oswald (presenting him with what seemed to be a much better target than the car later offered), then taking a left turn on Elm Street (Elm Street?!) where after Kennedy’s convertible moved laterally away from Oswald’s perch until it was about 100 yards away, at which time the shots were fired from the rear.

Me searching the ‘grassy knoll’

What about the ‘second gunman behind the grassy knoll’ you say? As you can see by the photo, I examined it quite thoroughly and came away more confused than I was back in the 60s. There’s a lot of stuff that just doesn’t add up. To wit:

Oswald was not a particularly good marksman
The alleged weapon was an average quality bolt-action rifle, meaning one would have to manually discharge the spent shell and move a live shell into the firing chamber, which makes firing 3 or 4 bullets (they’re not exactly sure) accurately in just a few seconds very difficult
Critical documents were withheld from the Warren Commission and they ignored some of the testimony and some of the evidence was tampered with
Certain film and photographs of the assassination were confiscated

And to me the most interesting controversy revolved around the ‘Magic Bullet Theory’, which goes as follows: Allegedly one bullet passed through President Kennedy’s neck and Governor Connally’s chest and wrist and embedded itself in the Governor’s thigh. If so, this bullet traversed 15 layers of clothing, 7 layers of skin, and approximately 15 inches of tissue, struck a necktie knot, removed 4 inches of rib, and shattered a radius bone. A magic bullet indeed!

While the tour told an interesting and detailed story, I came away disturbed, disturbed that we still don’t know all the facts of what really happened that day, and why. Viable cases have been made for various murder suspects, including Vice President Lyndon Johnson, the CIA, the KGB, Fidel Castro, a Secret Service agent and the mafia, just to name a few!

A lot stuff just doesn’t add up. So if our government didn’t give us the real scoop on this, I’m going to look into that so-called moon landing we did back in 1969 and perhaps start searching for Elvis, who may still be alive.

Posted in opinion

DASH, THE CANINE BOB HOPE

November 14, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:11 Comments

By Suzanne Sparrow Watson

Well…it’s been quite a week. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to discuss something – anything – other than the election. Luckily, there are two events that have my attention – Veteran’s Day and Dash the Wonder Dog’s fourth birthday. On the surface there wouldn’t seem to be any connection between those two events but this week I discovered that my beloved pet is the Bob Hope of dogs, ready to entertain the troops at a moment’s notice. As you may recall, Dash began his working life last spring when he got a job at a local care center. Each week he trots into the facility like he owns the joint and cuddles up with the residents. He shamelessly begs for treats, which many of them readily provide. He is especially fond of people who have poor hand-eye coordination because the floor around their bed or wheelchair is a veritable treasure trove of crumbs and shattered crackers. Fortunately for Dash, such people are in plentiful supply, plus they have the added attraction of fawning over him as he roots around for their droppings.

This week Dash was lucky enough to call on several men who were celebrating Veteran’s Day. Most of them are former dog owners so they especially appreciate being able to pet and hold Dash. I have observed that most of the veterans’ walls are adorned with photos of themselves in uniform, American flags, and commemorative awards and medals. This week the center gave them special recognition at a Veteran’s Day celebration, replete with music from the ’40’s and a special memento plaque. One of my favorite veterans is a 97-year-old man whose mental acuity puts me to shame. The first time we visited I remarked on a photo of him in a WWII fighter plane. “Oh yes”, he said, “I was 19 years old when I enlisted. It was a good time to be 19 because I was too young to have the good sense to be scared“. That said, he wheeled around and pulled a sheet of paper out of his drawer. On it was a typed list of the FIFTY missions that he flew in Europe. That is an extraordinary number of missions – the maximum allowed by the Air Force at the time. He is still quite proud of his accomplishment, as well he should be. Last week I noticed that he had the book “Killing the Rising Sun” on his bed. There is a picture of General MacArthur on the cover so I mentioned to him that my husband and his family were rescued from a Japanese internment camp by Mac Arthur. “Humph,” he said, “I think there’s only one word for MacArthur – pompous!”. As I said, he’s as sharp as a tack. We discovered last summer that this wonderful man and I share a birthday. I can only hope that portends I will be as engaged and dynamic as he is at 97.

Also residing in the care center is a retired four-star general and a man who fought in the Battle of the Bulge. I love talking with these men, not only because they love being entertained by Dash, but because I have such unbridled admiration for their service and frankly, the dedication of their entire generation. I read just enough sociology books to be boring at parties, and one recent phenomenon that worries me is the rise of the “cupcake” or “snowflake” generation – young people who are easily offended, shrink away from any opinion that differs from their own, and seek the constant reassurance of hearing “good job”. I think about the “Greatest Generation” by comparison, whose work ethic and approach to life was forged by the Great Depression and World War II. Most, like my own parents, didn’t have the money for college. Their families “made do” during the Depression and when war broke out they volunteered and did whatever they could to contribute to the war effort. That generation knew a lot of sacrifice and hard work. They didn’t expect anything to be handed to them and learned how to face adversity with renewed resolve. The World War II vets are dying at a rate of 1100 a day, and it is estimated that by the end of the decade almost all of them will all be gone. We will be the worse for it. So it was a privilege this week to wish the men in the care center a happy Veteran’s Day – we need to cherish them while we still have them.

As for Dash – we will celebrate his special day on Wednesday with treats and – if my husband isn’t looking – a cute little birthday hat. I can’t believe how quickly the past four years have passed. Our lives are forever changed by having this sweet and loving dog in our lives. He makes us smile every day and his kisses, which he so lavishly dispenses, act as a salve to mend any cracks in our hearts. I have to say he really is a wonder dog. Last week a nurse at the care center asked us to visit a new patient in the memory unit. Dash crawled up on her bed and she stroked and cooed for five minutes. When we left the nurse said it was the first time in three days that the woman had smiled. In short, he makes everything – and everyone – better. Maybe I should send him to Washington.

Posted in Historical

Make Room Mt. Rushmore?

November 7, 2016By Sparrow/WatsonComments:6 Comments

by Bob Sparrow

“My lips are sealed”

This week we will, or already have, decided who will be our next president, or perhaps more accurately, decided who we want to keep from being our next president. In a desperate move to help us all to feel better about our new president-elect, I thought I would look at the ‘character’ of some of our past presidents, who had the huge advantage of not living in this era of ‘social media’ where everyone carries a camera and bad news travels at the warp speed of the Internet.

As it turns out our founding fathers weren’t without their flaws, both Washington and Jefferson owned slaves, in fact Jefferson was more than a groper, he fathered six children with slave, Sally Hemings – that would have been a little difficult to keep off the TMZ network today!
Lincoln, who is often revered as our best president, seemed to think of himself above the law as he single-handedly suspended habeas corpus (the principle that someone under arrest can’t be held for long without being brought before a judge), shut down opposition newspapers and jailed their editors, conspired to establish a
Teddy the Elephant Killer

military government in Washington DC and used military force to keep the Maryland legislature from meeting so that it couldn’t vote on secession. I suspect that WikiLeaks would have had a field day with old ‘Honest Abe’.
Teddy Roosevelt’s lust was of a different sort, he lusted for war. His imperialism and racism can be summed up with the following quote from him, “All the great masterful races have been fighting races,” he claimed. To fellow Anglo-Saxons, he said, “It is wholly impossible to avoid conflicts with the weaker races,” and added, “The most ultimately righteous of all wars is a war with savages.” I’m guessing that Hitler was a big fan of Teddy.

OK, that takes care of Mt. Rushmore, but there is plenty more . . .

Benjamin Franklin was careless with secretive documents that ended up in the hands of the enemy – a British
Lying Franklin

secret agent. But he swore that those documents only contained information about how he was going to fly a kite to invent electricity and Chelsea’s wedding.
Franklin D. Roosevelt was known to lie a lot (What? A politician lying!!!) He was in terrible health, which he kept from the public, he was said to have liked Stalin too much and he had Soviet spies in his cabinet and didn’t really care, family members enriched themselves by his being in office, the New Deal actually slowed the recovery from the Great Depression and, among other things, he was accused of trying to seize control of the Supreme Court. Gosh, he could easily get elected today!
The list of sleazy presidents is too long for this blog, but here’s a few of the all-stars:
- John Tyler – fathered 15 children with two different wives and had several more with his slaves; in November 1836 he became the Whig’s party president ‘erect’.
- Andrew Jackson invited prostitutes to the White House Christmas party – I’m sure he just wanted to make sure that there were plenty of Ho Ho Hos to go around!
- Bill & Monica
  
  While Jack Kennedy and Bill Clinton are considered modern history’s best-know presidential horn-dogs, Lyndon Johnson, who called his naughty bits ‘Jumbo’, was worse than either of them. Both Grover Cleveland and Warren Harding were also known to have a number of dalliances while in the ‘oval orifice’.
  
  Marilyn & Jack
- It is well known that FDR and Eisenhower (at least while a general in the army if not while president) had mistresses while serving in ‘pubic’ life.

There’s more, lots more, but I think you get the point. So while you may think that we’ve reached new lows with this year’s two candidates, it’s actually just politics as usual, so we’ll be just fine. There now, don’t you feel better? Yeah, me neither!

Even if this didn’t make you feel better, why not SHARE it, maybe it will help a friend with pre or post-election blues.