Explaining yourself....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Sunday May 31, 2009

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I was just thinking about being focused on something and the relationship of that concentration to being able to express one's self in a satisfactory manner. What I mean is, I don't think that you can really get your message across, in any kind of attempt at expression unless you know and believe in your subject matter.

.I am thinking, for example, of writing a short play or essay or just about anything involving expression. You simply have to be thinking about the topic you are interested in. You have to be dedicated to the task and be totally committed to the success of that task as well. I guess this idea could apply to human relations as well, but that is a topic for a different day of course. Here is an example for you so you know what I am talking about. Let us say that I woke up from a dream and I wanted to tell you about that dream the best way that I could. To do that I would have to have a good recall of that dream. Hopefully, it was a good dream in the sense that it was still fresh in my mind. I would want to give a good account of that dream and I would want to be as detailed as possible so as to let my reader know what was occuring in my mind. And, so it is with any topic that you sit down and write about. You have to be in love with your topic and have complete mastery over its content. And, I think that is the way you go about getting your readers interested in your content and your ideas. Because if you are knowledgeable and in love with your material then what you are saying will have a better chance of being understood by your reader. Your thoughts and emotions should come alive in your prose. And, the more involved you are with your subject matter then the more your audience will appreciate what you are doing and they will be more able to accept you as a disseminator of information and one who is adept and believable as a transmitter of that information.

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Friends, I suppose what I am saying is that you have to believe and you have to know what you are talking about. And, the more you focus and organize your thoughts in a coherent and explanatory way then the more successful you will be as a provider of content and ideas. Now, I hope I am not pushing the envelope too far here, but maybe these thoughts can be applied to human relationships as well. For example, if you really like somebody or some thing then your emotions and thoughts will most likely show up in your actions and thoughts as well. People will be able to understand and accept you if you communicate to them your true thoughts and feeling. You will be more successful if you are in love and in touch with your subject matter to put it plainly. I think people always appreciate honesty and forthrightness actually. And, if you are in tune, with your thoughts and emotions, through expression, then you are more likely to succeed with your subject audience. And, maybe this idea can be applied to the singing and composition of songs as well. Who knows?

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Well, just something to think anyway. I hope I did not wander too far off from my topic idea, but even if I did, well, that is my character to do so. Anyhow, thanks for reading and have a nice day. And, what a string of beautiful days they are let me tell you.

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Now, what kind of mood am I really in today? Well, for my song of the day here is something from my teenage years. Let's go back to 1964 again. I was fifteen years old at this time. This was the year of the British invasion and as I explained to you in the past I was not a huge fan of this invasion. Maybe because I was reacting to the dramatic change that was occuring; I was still living in the past and hanging on to the love songs so to speak. And, besides I am a rebel and I like to be independent of thought and action. But, there were some songs that I would accept because they did not turn me the wrong way. Remember, the Beatles were huge now and their hits were on the top of the charts. Check out the top 100 songs in 1964:

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http://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/1964.htm

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Anyway here is a song by Peter and Gordon that you might like. It would not be one of my favourites from 1964, but would represent a compromise for me; living with the British invasion and what they had to offer:

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A world without love - Peter and Gordon

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1964

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Music will fix it for you....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Saturday May 30, 2009.

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I am in a fairly disagreeable mood this morning and the reason for that is that I am thinking about the state of the world. And, what is the state of the world you might enquire? Well, to my mind, people are generally a selfish breed and this characteristic shows up in the broadest sense in the everyday habits of all of us - yes, all of us, including yours truly.

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And, what accounts for this selfishness you may further enquire? Well, in the first instance there is the matter of survival; we all need to get through our days in one piece, so to speak; we need certain things just to survive; to breath; to eat; and in a modern society we need a job or we need to receive something from those who have a job if we are one of the unfortunates who do not have a job. So, as you can see survival is a critical factor in the needs of mankind.

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Problems develop of course when our needs cannot be met. Either the society is going to devise some kind of a system that will allow us to fulfill our needs or we are going to make sure that we do it ourselves; we will all find a way to fulfill our needs. And, this is the root of the conflict of course. Some people are better at surviving than others and have found ways to not only survive, but to far exceed their neighbours in the matter of getting the things that they need and want.

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Now, some people are going to suffer in a system where they are not getting the things that they want and need. I am not talking about sex and advanced wealth accumulation, but just general everyday things that all of us are searching for. Just look around you and you will be able to see those who are not as successful as others. They want all of the things that the rest of us have, but they cannot, for whatever reason, achieve them. And, just what are the results of these inequities you might enquire? Well, they manifest themselves in numerous ways of course. The most obvious things that you will see are crime and its corollary, namely a police force. You will see the poor neighbourhoods and the rich ones as well. You will see people driving fancy up to date vehicles and you will also notice people driving older cars, or perhaps even bicycles, or perhaps they will have no mode of transportation at all. Further things that you will see will be religious affiliations being formed so as to provide spiritual needs for the dispossessed in order to mollify and eventually to control them. Yes, dear friends religion itself has a hand and purpose in this dislocation of the masses. There are many other institutions that develop as well as I am sure you are all aware, but I just wanted to provide you with a couple of examples to let you know where I am coming from.

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Yes, friends I believe that man and his needs, not being properly met, is a way of understanding how man organizes himself and of the institutions that are developed as a consequences of the imbalances that occur in man. And, it all boils down to man's selfish nature. Now, we should caution here that selfishness in and of itself is not a bad thing. For, simply put, if man was not a selfish creature then he would surely die. Nature has endowed man with the will to live and to survive, and to even prosper. Getting the things you want satisfies needs and this is not necessarily a bad thing. The problems develop of course when all men want the same things and in the same amount. The history of civilization shows us that conflict arises when the needs of all men are not satisfied. So, that is why we continue to experience conflict and inequities in the society. And, it all goes back to man's desires and his general character. Now, most of us survive under these conditions and we find ways to compensate for our positions if they are subservient to others. Some people steal and some take drugs to dull the pain of their condition. Some people go on expensive vacations or buy expensive cars to celebrate their relative success over others. We all do a lot of things based on our needs and our relative successes or failures. But, something that we all do and like as a group is to listen to music. Music is the great soother of society I think and we all listen to different kinds of music as well. What kind of music do you like and when and why do you listen to it? And, when you are listening to music are you celebrating or just trying to dull the pain and to forget, or just try and feel happy? Well, personally I listen to music because it makes me feel happy and I would rather be happy than sad. And, that in itself is a very selfish act indeed - and it is perfectly human to do be that way. But, I like love songs and that is where I want to be. It is where my personality tells me to go, I think. I think music does for all of us what society cannot do; it helps us to get through the day or it helps us celebrate where and who we are. Dear Friends, music is everything and anything you want it to be. So, thanks for reading and have a nice day.

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P.S. see you at the track around 16:00 hrs if you are coming

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Dean Martin - Send Me The Pillow That You Dream On

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singing in 1965

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Don't get mad...get even

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Friday May 29, 2009

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Last day at work dear friends and then time to relax again. It was really a beautiful day here in Vancouver yesterday, warm and sunny - gorgeous actually. Tomorrow is a racing day once again, and hopefully, we can get even and win our money back that we lost last weekend.

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Now, if you examine my title this morning you will realize that it has other applications as well, more negative ones. Getting even is a very big deal for some people as you are probably aware. I once knew a person, not mentioning any names of course, who lived by this saying. I consider this person to be a loser though for believing in the idea of getting even. Why a loser you might enquire? Well, being a loser because getting even is really just an act of revenge, you know, something the Christians believe in - an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth and that kind of thing. Well, since I am not a Christian and not someone who believes in getting even for the sake of getting even then you will realize that I do not subscribe to this motto as an act of faith. When I was younger I might have thought that getting even was the thing to do of course. But, now that I am older and wiser I can assure that this is a very bad prescription to follow. Nothwithstanding the fact that our civil and criminal law is basically based on this creedo, I can tell you forthrightly that I believe it to be bad policy and bad philosophy as well. You simply do not gain anything by getting even with someone. And, if gain is your goal then do not practice the methodology of getting even. Being compensated for a loss is not the same thing as getting even by the way. Retribution is, so I think you should recognize the difference.

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So, what the hell has all of this got to do with horse racing anyway? Well, actually quite a bit upon closer inspection. Like I said above, you do not gain by trying to get even for the sake of getting even. Now, you may want to get your losses back, but that does not imply some sort of punishment against those who stole or took your money from you. Horse racing does not involve any kind of punishment against anybody. There is nobody to get even with anyway, so don't even try to do it. Friends, all I am saying is that I would like to recover my losses, either now or later. And, the only way to accomplish that is by getting even. But, we are not going to get even by punishing anyone or causing harm in any way. We are simply going to continue to employ our system and rely on the racing gods to do their part. We are going to accept the fate that they dole out upon us; that is all that we can do and that is what is meant by getting even in this context. So, I hope that I have made myself perfectly clear on this issue.

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So, don't be afraid to pop into the track if you are popping into town. See you there if you are coming. Thanks for reading and have a nice day.

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Here is the song of the day for you. It is some wise words from Andy Williams and it is about fools and it is his philosophy about girls and love. It is from 1964 and that is the year that we are looking at in the main part of my blog too - my teenage years.

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Andy Williams - A Fool Never Learns

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1964


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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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One down and two to go

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Thursday May 28, 2009

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I was quite busy at work yesterday and I made it all the way out to Chilliwack, so that was kind of neat of course. So, it is one day down and two to go and then I am off again. And, don't forget about racing on Saturday of course. Anyhow, I just thought I would post my ' Teenage Years for 1964 ' since I did all the work on it anyway. Here below then is the exact same post as found on the main part of my blog. I hope you do not hold this against me and think that I am lazy or something. I remember most of the things about the trip in 1964, but not everything. Like I am pretty sure we made it over to Rivers Inlet and some other places, but for the life of me I cannot recall some details of the trip. Here is the post then and it includes a song of the day as well:

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My Teenage Years: 1964

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A failure and a success

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Friends, pictured above is a Spring Salmon. A couple of important things happened to me in the summer of 1964 and they both involve salmon. One event was a failure and the other was a success - I was fifteen years old and I was about to find out just what kind of a person I really was.

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My father decided that I should go up to northern B.C. in a gillnetter and see what commercial fishing was like. I really liked the idea and I was eager to go. I remember packing everything including my brand new 22 calibre rifle. I bought this weapon and bullets with no questions asked from a local store. Things were different back then. Why you could even smoke in restaurants and movies if you really wanted to.

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So, me and this elderly fisherman headed up north in this tiny gillnetter. We made our way up through Georgia Strait and into the Johnstone Straits too. There was a narrow gap along the way where the tides ran swift and when we got there the steering wheel cable broke and we were swirling around in a swift moving current. Now, that was pretty exciting indeed. But, we got out of it eventually and moved on. But, once we got to the northern tip of Vancouver Island we could go no farther because the winds were too high - the crossing of the open ocean would be unsafe and very dangerous - so like all of the other gillnetters we had to wait for the storm to pass. And pass it did.

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Eventually we crossed the open waters of Queen Charlotte Sound and I had my very first real experience with the Pacific Ocean. I remember the huge swells rolling in one after the other from the west - they were enormous and breathtaking. Being on that small boat was like riding on a giant roller coaster over water. I have never been afraid of water and I like boats and I like fishing. This was exciting. But, it didn't take me long to find out that I was a land lubber - I was getting seasick and it was just awful. I wanted to throw up constantly and all I could do was to lie down and hope that this night mare would end as fast as it started. But, there was no cure for this madness, and no medicine. I just had to ride it out and hope the hell I survived in one piece. I guess my mentor knew right off the bat that I was not going to be much use to him in the catching of the salmon. What a disaster and what a disappointment.

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But, we finally made it to a little fishing village called Klemtu which is in a protected area north of the open waters. I was glad to get back on land. We bought some smokes and some bullets for my rifle. I remember taking pop shots at the seals and other creatures swimming about. We did manage to get one fishing trip in before I would go home. But, it was a bad set if I recall and no salmon just a bunch of junk fish came in the net. I guess we got the wrong tide or something. I really did not know much about the intricacies and techniques of the trade and I never found out. So, things were going poorly all around it seemed. I cannot remember how long I lasted, but I do not think it was very long at all. My apprenticeship as a commercial fisherman was to going to come to a close and I knew that I would never fish salmon for a living. It just wasn't in me. I like the water, but this kind of ocean water and me did not see eye to eye.

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I remember taking a seaplane from some village and I think I flew down to Campbell River to catch a bigger plane to Vancouver. The details are a little sketchy now so I hope you don't hold that against me. But, I remember jumping into the bigger plane and I was packing my 22 caliber rifle and all of my other gear with me. Nobody said boo, so that was OK by me. Actually, I never thought much about it since once I got to Vancouver and took a bus home nobody cared that I was packing a rifle with me. Things were just different back then in 1964.

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Once I got home I found a nice surprise waiting for me. It was a big Spring salmon that I had won in a contest. I got a salmon and a carton of Sportsman cigarettes. That was my prize. I had written a little story and sent it in to the local television station. The show was called ' Tides and Trails ' and was hosted by Ted Peck. At the end of each segment of the show they would read out somebody's ' Tall tale '. Well, my tall tale had won while I was gone. My story was basically this: I was out fishing with a bunch of guys and we started to cook the fish after we caught them. But, we noticed that nobody had any salt to put on the fish, so we all started crying on the fish so as to get the salt from our eyes and onto the fish. That is the story line that won the contest. So, they read my story on television and I won the Salmon and the smokes. And, that was the beginning of my literary career. So, I may have failed in some manly endeavour, but it certainly was not the end of the world.

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Here is a sample of the kind of music I liked in 1964 when I was fifteen years old:

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Diane Renay - Navy Blue

This original human is going back to work....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Wednesday May 27, 2009

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Good morning friends. I was trying to think of doing something original because that was the thought that was on my mind - originality. When something is original it is fresh and it is newly inspired. So, I guess that is the attraction of something being original. You know, it is just something that writers and painters and any kind of artist does for that matter. That is what artists are famous for - doing original things. And, that is what we expect them to do as well. Remember back in school when you had an assignment and it had to be original? Well, that is what the teacher was looking for, something original, something that would be an expression of your imagination and of your ability to produce something that no one else in the world has thought of. It is capitalizing on the nature of ideas because this is where originality comes from. And, I think that is a very good thing indeed, to be original that is. In a way it is an expression of your humanity and of your special situation in life. You are the only person in the world who is like you - there is no other. So, each person in the world is really an original piece of work. Perhaps then, we could all start right there by examining ourselves when we are asked to produce something original. We might be cheating a bit, but at least we would be adhering to the idea of originality because we are thinking of something original - ourselves. We would have a starting point from which to produce our original piece of work or even our original thought or idea. The logo above is related to humanism and humanism is related to atheism. I think that this humanist logo is quite original don't you? Well, it certainly caught my attention and in my mind this is something original - at least it was when it was created anyway.

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And, now on to the song of the day. And, in keeping with the theme of originality I thought this song might fit the bill. I think you would agree that all of the songs in any year or category have something original about them and that is why they are a success. But, to be really original means you have to reach out a bit and perhaps try something just a little more daring or do something or employ some theme that no one else is using. I think this song fits the bill more or less and hence I would describe it as being original in its form. Who ever thought of marrying an ugly wife and what would the benefits be?

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Jimmy Soul - If you wanna be happy

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1963

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I'm a lover not a fighter....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Tuesday May 26, 2009

Friends, I am a lover, not a fighter. That really is the root of my personality you know. So, don't take too much stock in all of my macho talk lately because that is not the real me. I will listen to a good love song anytime over some rowdy sounding thing. So, just keep that in mind when you are trying to figure me out, if you have not done so already, that is.

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Had a bit of a dream this morning. It was kind of interesting actually. It was about an opportunity, an opportunity that I was not interested in. But, it was still an opportunity and that means that someone believes in me and my abilities. So, let that be a lesson for you - someone will present you with an opportunity at some point in your life. You will know that it is an opportunity when you are confronted with it. At least I hope you will anyway, because if you don't then you will not be able to understand what kind of a person you are and what other people think of you and your capabilities. So, just keep these things in mind when an opportunity lands on your desk. Only you can decide if it is an opportunity of course, and then you must further decide whether or not to act upon it. I hope you can all appreciate what I am hinting at here. Friends, there are opportunities out there and lots of them. But, of course in the final analysis nothing is an opportunity if you decide, for whatever reason, not to act upon it.

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Anyhow, I do not have much else to say on this my last day off. Back to work tomorrow and I am still capitalizing on an old opportunity from the past. I think that is one way of looking at my job don't you think?

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Here is my song of the day. I kind of liked this song back in 1963 now that I think about it. It made me mellow out and relax, just like all the good old love songs. And, being the lover that I am, well, naturally I was attracted to a song like this one.

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Sunny & The Sunliners "Talk To Me"

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1963

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The macho mentality....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Monday May 25, 2009

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I did not buy my car to be a drag racer or to be a muscle man from the past - you know the muscle cars of the sixties. I just like to cruise about in the unit in the sunshine and listen to tunes with the top down. That is my most pleasurable past time. But, what I am finding out by just cruising around is that there are a lot of macho types on the road. There is an inherent competition on the road if you have not noticed. Now, I am not just talking about the regular speeders on the road and the goofs, but there are some really aggressive types out there.

.Like, for example, it is not uncommon for me to stop at a light and then be challenged by the driver next to me after the light turns green. There are lots of these characters out there let me tell you - mostly younger of course. More than you think. For example, just last Saturday I was driving home from the track and some goof has to climb on top of me and tailgate at about 70km per hour. I am driving in the right or slow lane. He needed to prove his manhood I suppose and I just laughed. He was only coming up to me and then turning right by going into the right hand turning lane at high speed, but he had to make this big statement before he did. Interesting eh? Actually, I do tend to accept the challenges once in a while as well, just for entertainment of course if you know what I mean. Besides, my five speed transmission can hold its own off the line you know.

.Now my job is difficult enough as a courier as you probably know, but now we have to deal with these characters on the weekend as well. Maybe they all just want to get back to the sixties and the muscle cars - who knows or cares? Anyway dear friends I am just letting you know that male machismo is far from dead - it lives and breathes and is alive and well.

.Well, that is about it for now, talk to you all tomorrow.

Here is the song of the day for you. It is from 1964

.Jan and Dean - Dead Man's Curve

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On being a man....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Sunday May 24, 2009

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Friends, my topic this morning is manhood. Manhood is a very important issue for men. It is so important that I don't think any other thing is on the mind of a man more often than this crucial thing, except perhaps thinking about women. And, these things surely go hand in hand as I am sure you are all aware.

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The inspiration for my theme this morning was my stunning losses at the races yesterday evening. Quite simply, my harness racing triactor system let me down and I was zero for twelve races. That means I did not win a dime. Nothing. All I received was the entertainment value of the sport; that was my consolation prize if you will. But, I bucked up. Yes, friends the buck stopped on my desk and there was no one to blame but myself. I took the heat for the losses and I did it like a man. I was gracious to myself in my defeat. I did not swear or call out for an intifada on the world or of racing or of the drivers, owners, and their horses. No, I took my resounding defeat like a man. And, how did I do this? Well, I just assessed the situation and said to myself: this is how the racing gods conduct their business; they are testing me and my durability and I must not let them down - and I did not. I know my system is solid and when the horses are running in top form and conditions are favourable then I will win - and I know that I will win. It is just a matter of time and waiting, waiting for the right set of conditions to produce the desired results for me. Friends, I have faith in myself and my system. Our day will come and I will most likely recover all of my losses and then some. That is an act of faith in the racing gods, combined with being a man. Manhood is tough sometimes, but it is possible to be a man even under extreme conditions. Some men are beaten by the odds and some are not; the trick is to overcome the obstacles - by being a man. And, being a man means knowing what the odds are and what to do about them.

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Dear friends I hope I have made myself perfectly clear on this manhood issue. But, there is more. There is more because when you are talking about manhood you are automatically talking about women as well as I mentioned above. Now, sometimes situations with women can be really challenging. But, let the challenge be what it is - it is a chance to prove your manhood. And, the woman expects it of you so do not let her down. When women give you a hard time or perhaps even reject you for whatever reason, this is time for your manhood to shine as well. Assess the situation and realize what is going on between you and your woman. The love gods are in charge of this critical area just as the racing gods control your fortunes at the racetrack. Friends, I hope I don't have to spell it out for you. Be a man and let things be as they may. A woman will love you all the more if she sees that you are a man. A man waits his turn in love just as he must at the racetrack. Your day will come, but in the meantime you must be a man and accept your fate. Thanks for reading and have a nice day.

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Here is the song of the day for you from 1963:

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Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons

Walk Like A Man

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The death of innocence...

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President Kennedy

assassinated

Friday November 22, 1963

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Good Morning Friends,

..today is Saturday May 23, 2009

.I hope I did not frighten you with my title - the death of innocence. But, I think that is what the period 1963 represents; things got a lot tougher and more serious more quickly after 1963. The Beatles and the death of Kennedy were to herald in a new era, but the new era had not yet arrived - but its messengers had. ..in just five years I would be in university and involved in student demonstrations. The enemy was the Vietnam War and authority and control and U.S. imperialism and even capitalism itself......It gets tough when you get older you know. Like, I was just counting on my fingers trying to figure out how old I was and what grade I was in at school in 1963. So, I think I have it boiled down to the fact that I was in grade nine and I was fourteen years old, in 1963 that is. I was looking at the music charts, you know the top 100 songs for the various years and it looks like this was the transition period, so to speak. Because in 1964 the Beatles hit the scene, starting out with their big hits She Loves You and I Want To Hold Your Hand. But, in 1963 there were still a lot of songs that I could grab on to. This was also the year in which Kennedy was shot - Friday November 22, 1963. It is just one of those dates and days that I do not forget. Of course everybody thought Lee Harvey Oswald did it. But, now that we have the internet we tend to look at things a little differently of course.

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This was also the period of my first big crush on a girl. She kind of looked like the Mona Lisa now that I think about it. It was just one of those Platonic or puppy love kind of things I suppose, but they are very exciting when they happen of course.

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.I did not really like the Beatles and the British invasion actually, when it actually happened, I mean. And I did not like the Rolling Stones and drugs and acid and all of that kind of stuff. These things were to make their appearance soon enough. I am an old love songs kind of person which I have already told you about of course and a group like Jerry and the Pacemakers would garner my attention or even Hermans Hermits. There were no Beatles hits in the 1963 top 100 songs.

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Anyhow, here is just a sample of the kind of song that still grabbed my attention in 1963, and as I told you things were going to change quickly once the Beatles hit the scene.

Here are the Ronettes in 1963 singing Be My Baby:

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Anyhow, thanks for checking in and don't forget the races later on today if you are popping into town.

Talk to you all tomorrow.

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.Here is a related article for you friends.

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Added on Saturday August 14, 2010

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Reverse the Revolution of 1963

Happy to be alive Friday....

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Friday May 22, 2009

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It was a beautiful day here in Vancouver yesterday, almost perfect actually. It was warm and it was sunny and I was happy to be alive and out and about doing my job as a courier. Actually, there have been a number of beautiful working days this Spring so far. Once the rains stop it just seems like another gorgeous day comes along - almost like clockwork.

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Anyhow, about 16:30 yesterday I was doing a job from White Rock going to downtown Vancouver. So, that means I had to go downtown when the rush hour traffic was piling up. The traffic was thick indeed and I had a couple of important rush deliveries that had to get downtown before the offices closed. Well, to make a long story short I got the job done and felt good about the whole business as well. But just as I was going toward the Oak Street Bridge this old song came on the radio. Before I mention the song I have to tell you that advertising really works. You know how you see those radio stations advertising on buses? Well, when I was cruising about in my car on the weekend I saw this radio station ad on the side of a bus. It was radio station 104.9 FM and it was an oldies station. Wow, I thought to myself. Oldies on FM. So, I tried the station out and sure enough it was a great oldies station. So, I put it on my preset selection in my truck and in my car and now it is one of my favourite stations. Neat eh? Anyhow, the song I heard was: Up on the Roof by the Drifters, sung in 1963. What a great old song that was. It just makes you feel good when you listen to it. Man oh man. I was just really singing along in the sunshine listening to this great old tune and very happy to be alive in the process. See what a great job this courier business is? Now. what you rather be doing I ask you?

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Anyhow, tomorrow is a racing day at Cloverdale, so see you there if you are popping into town. And, the weather is supposed to be great for the weekend too. Here is the song of the day, from yesterday:

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Up on the Roof, by the Drifters - 1963

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Follow that dream....

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Circe Offering the Cup to Odysseus

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1891 picture by John William Waterhouse

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Thursday May 21, 2009

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Yes, dear friends, follow that dream, but be careful as dangers lurk everywhere. So, just a word of caution of course. You can read about this treacherous women of Greek mythology here: Circe - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. And, you can listen to account of Odysseus' travails with Circe in chapter 10 of the Odyssey ( as found in Librivox )

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Book 10 - 00:37:04

[mp3@64kbps - 17.7MB]

[mp3@128kbps - 35.5MB]

[ogg vorbis - 18.8MB]

Read by: Reynard T. Fox

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I know that I am always cautious in my job as a courier and I am constantly on the lookout for danger. Who knows what the next delivery will bring or where I will end up or what type of woman I will encounter next. Sure, my job is exciting and loaded with beautiful women as well, but I am on my guard should anything go wrong. That is why it is important to believe in the gods, the courier gods, that is. So, let the tale of Circe serve as a lesson for the pitfalls that can overcome a courier as he conducts his business.

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Well, nothing out of the ordinary occurred on the job yesterday and I was safe and well after all was said and done. The weather was not stellar, but had some hints of promise, however. A few sprinkles of rain here and there mixed with some sun. So all in all it was not an unpleasant day as I had the pleasure of serving the customer once again. Just a reminder friends that the weekend is almost upon us once again and should you be venturing into town do not be afraid to pop into the track and partake of a few bets, if that is your pleasure, that is. So, long for now friends and see you there if you are coming.

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Here is the song of the day. It is a 1962 song by Elvis Presley:

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" Follow that Dream "

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Are you running scared?

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Plato (c. 427-347 B.C.E)

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Good Morning Friends,

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Today is Wednesday May 20, 2009

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Well, it is back to work Wednesday for me. Check out Plato above. He is a really famous Greek philosopher as I am sure you are all aware. It is supposed to be his birthday tomorrow so I guess we should take time out and wish him a happy birthday. So, Happy Birthday Plato! There, I did it.

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Funny thing about Plato. I don't know whether he was a bachelor or not. I am hoping he is so that I can include him in my Bachelor Philosopher series in another part of my blog. The link is on the side bar if you are interested. But, when you read the bios on the man nobody mentions this detail of his life. It is almost an act of censorship or something. Like, was he married or not? What is the big secret here?

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We know that he was sort of handsome and a well-built man with broad shoulders, or was it his broad head that made people call him Plato? Seems like a decent pick for the ladies, like coming from a wealthy connected family and all. He seems like prime marrying material, except we still do not know what his social situation was with respect to women. Nobody talks about this detail of his life. His mentor, Socrates was a grubby man of poor means, but he was married, so just what is the deal with Plato?

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Plato is a huge figure in philosophy. He started off this business about the forms and ideas. He was an idealist philosopher of course and this is why the Christians like him. They like him because it makes their religion more saleable to the public; there is a God and there exists this business of idealism ( eternal things exist like forms and Gods ) which makes the idea of a god possible. Plato was also known for the idea of Platonic love, among other things. Physical love according to Plato was much less important than real love, which is characterized as caring for another person and not wanting to love them strictly for sexual pleasure. All in all he is an important man that has stood the test of time. But, what about the women? It is the same thing with Jesus Christ, why the omitting of this aspect of their lives?

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The song of the day is by Roy Orbison. I was a big Orbison fan as a teenager and I was immediately attracted to his style of singing. Once again, I think I am a closet country and western fan, or maybe just I am blues fan or somebody hooked on love songs. Not sure where Roy fits in, but I know that the country people like him. And, yes I even bought the Roy Orbison songs as a young teenager too. And, I have a Roy Orbison cd in my unit right now.

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Talk to you all tomorrow and have a nice day.

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So, here is Roy Orbison singing his 1961 hit song:

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Running Scared

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Are you organized yet?

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Good Morning Friends,

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Today is Tuesday May 19, 2009

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Well, this is my last day off and then back to work tomorrow, so I guess I had better try and make something of it. I posted a couple of pictures today and they are both from Wikipedia's collection of snaps. My theme is one of organization. Yup, good old organization. Notice that everything is always organized or trying to be organized? Well, I think that is one of the mysteries of nature and it just represents what nature really is. And, man and all of the animals are part of nature; we are simply all matter and molecules and the like. And, we all react in certain ways as a consequence of what we are and what are present circumstance is. That is why the universe itself is in motion and is expanding and moving about. It is simply organizing itself; it is reacting to its environment if you will. That is what nature does; it moves about and adjusts itself and organizes itself. Maybe that is why man is a never-satisfied creature; his personality and character is such that nothing will ever satisfy him. That is what the philosophers say anyway. And, maybe man is so organization-oriented simply because he is made of matter that is constantly under influence of other matter and other things; he is being forced to adjust and to organize. What do you think?

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Anyway, this is just another one of my hair brain ideas so don't get too excited if you see nothing in my thoughts. But, look at weather itself and how it is constantly organizing itself. We speak for example of an organized weather system. Like, look at the photo above - it is an organized weather system packing winds of 135 miles an hour and about to attack Korea. It is just a natural event, but it is an organized natural event. And, it gets it power to do what it does from nature itself, from sun and heat and wind, etc. And, then look at our friendly neighbourhood wasp. The queen is going about the business of organizing a colony; she is setting up shop and getting ready for business.

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And, so it is with us humans as well. We are constantly organizing things, you know, doing things to make our lives more comfortable so as to survive and to prosper. And, we do all of these things in conjunction with our fellow humans and in relation to our environment as well. All of the things that confront us make us organize ourselves in certain ways. So, that is how important organization is if you want my opinion on the matter.

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Anyhow, on to the song of the day. It is by Skeeter Davis and it is a 1963 song: "I Can't Stay Mad At You" You know, while I am doing my research on these songs from the sixties I am finding that I am actually a country fan. I didn't actually know that until recently. But, many of the songs that I liked back then are actually performed by country and western singers. Why, even Patsy Cline would have been a country star herself. Do you think I am a closet country and western fan?

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" I Can't Stay Mad At You "

Skeeter Davis - 1963

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Well, that is all for now friends. Talk to you all tomorrow. And, sorry about getting the date wrong yesterday. I guess I must be getting lazy as a result of all of this free time on my hands or something. Just a reminder, that this is not the main part of my blog. There are lots of other links on the side bar to my other areas of interest. Thanks for stopping by.

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Mixed Monday emotions....

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above snap is " Christ Carrying the Cross "

1516 by : Hieronymus Bosch

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Monday May 18, 2009

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You will have to forgive me for thinking it was Sunday today.

I have just finished changing the title of this post.

How silly of me indeed. A psychological mistake perhaps or

maybe too many days off?

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It was quite a pleasant day yesterday and I got out and about in the unit. It was so nice in fact that I just decided to take a spin downtown and just drive around aimlessly and listen to tunes. Nothing makes me feel better than that so that is what I did. And, I even listened to Patsy Cline as well. See song of the day below. Very pleasant weather indeed and numerous happy people walking about in their finery on the streets of Vancouver. Finery being defined as summer gear of course.

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Not much else to report at this time and I still have a couple more days to relax and to think and to study. One does not really get away from work does one? If one is a conscientious person that is.

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Anyhow, here is the song of the day for you. It is by Patsy Cline. Now, I can't say for sure that I was a big Patsy fan in the early sixties, but I certainly am now. Maybe her songs are a country type and I think I would have been kind of prejudiced against country music back then. That would have just been part of my teenage personality of course. You know, listening to country music was not something a teenager did back then. But, listening to love songs was. And, Patsy Cline is a master singer in my opinion. I never really discovered her music until a couple of years ago if you want the truth. I bought one of her cd's in a local store. And, what a fine purchase that was let me tell you. Worth every penny of the fifteen dollars for the Greatest Hits cd. She is awesome and I can listen to her sing all day long. Here is my favourite song from her all time big hits.

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Patsy Cline " Why can't he be you? " 1962

.DeDear friends just in case you were wondering I am not all sixties music you know. Here is my favourite song at the present moment:

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVTyLqkez6A

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Well, that's all for now friends. Talk to you all tomorrow.

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This is not the main part of my blog. You can go there by clicking on the link below:
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Carl Baydala Wants You To Know....
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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Are you a rubber ball?

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Good Morning Friends,

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today is Sunday May 17, 2009

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Here is the song of the day for you. It is by Bobby Vee and it was produced in 1961. You know, in a way, this song kind of characterizes my life sometimes too. If you read all of my blog you will get the connection of course. Now, something to think about is this: The sixties were happier times than now, or so it would seem to me anyway. Love songs were love songs and many of them had very unhappy content indeed. But, they were still love songs and people enjoyed listening to them for their simple ability to make one happy by doing so.

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This particular song is about a guy who is hooked on a girl and she seems to be controlling him. Now, if you think about that this kind of relationship it is not a very healthy one at all. But, the young boy is hooked on the girl and he most likely cannot do anything about it, except live with his situation. So, I guess the song really is just about power and its effects. And, in today's context, where things seem much more serious sometimes, well, this kind of song could relate to numerous other features occurring in our society right now, on top of the control feature I mean. Like, for example, back in the sixties we do not talk about wife battering or the negative effects of one-sided or other unhealthy aspects of relationships. Remember, the sixties was a more simple time, if I can use that term. The Vietnam War had not produced its effects yet, for example and we were only beginning to enter a new phase of womens' rights and that kind of thing. There were no Beatles until 1963 and there was not a serious drug problem like we have now. The seemingly endless play of family and marriage breakdown was not a dominant theme as it is now. There still was a nuclear family and the multitude of different kinds of personal and sexual relationships did not take centre stage. Things were kept simple and happy and the themes were different. A boy falls in love with a girl and that is basically the story; there is no more serious detail and discussion and no violence associated with the event. That is the kind of criticism that we engage in now. We have a different perspective and a different history.

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Well, now I hope I have not ruined your day. And, if I have, just listen to the song of the day. The content may be sad and potentially ominous, but that is not the message one gets from a sixties love song. That was not their job to make you a social critic, but merely to allow you to enjoy or appreciate one side of the love equation. Think sixties and think love - you will never go wrong if you do that.

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Bobby Vee - Rubber Ball -1961
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This is not the main part of my blog. You can go there by clicking on the link below:

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Carl Baydala Wants You To Know....

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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Settling in on the weekend....

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Good Morning Friends,

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Today is Saturday May 16, 2009

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This is the beginning of a long weekend here out on the West Coast. The Cloverdale Rodeo also takes place this weekend as well. Here is the song of the day for you. It is Soldier Boy by the Shirelles in 1962. You can also find this song in one of my earlier posts as well. I added this video to the post this morning. The original post is here:

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Another Gorgeous Day in Vancouver

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Anyway, here is the video.

And, by the way, you can listen to the song and look at the snaps at the same time. Sometimes these songs take a long time to load, so be patient. Or, you might want to try

and refresh the page as well.

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Here are some snaps that I took at work on Thursday. This is a new community that one of our customers is building in Fort Langley, which is east of Vancouver and is situated adjacent to the Fraser River.

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Talk to you all tomorrow and have a nice day.

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Vancouver, B.C. Webcams

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