George R. R. Martin - The Authors List

George R. R. Martin - The Authors List. 6 Novels. Game of Thrones... I read all five books of that series A Song of Ice and Fire in 2011. One right after the other. A few years later I read another novel. I was never really into reading fantasy novels very much but this was something a little different. It was more like a medieval alternate history but with some dragons.

I did enjoy reading the books and then of course I watched the TV series that went on for 8 seasons running between 2011 and 2019. A new prequel series began on HBO in 2026. I guess I should check it out.

George R.R. Martin books I've read:

• A Game of Thrones, 1996 - Jul 2011
• A Clash of Kings, 1998 - Aug 2011
• A Storm of Swords, 2000 - Sep 2011
• A Feast for Crows, 2005 - Oct 2011
• A Dance with Dragons, 2011 - Dec 2011
• A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, 2015 - Jan 2016

Fish Fry Tonight

We were going to go out last night for our usual Thursday dinner but realized that with the Sabres playing our favorite spots would be a little crazy so we went out this evening instead. We went to Coles and I had a fish fry. Becky had a Buffalo Wrap. Lots of delicious fries too.

We got there around 5:30 and it wasn't very crowded but by 6 the place was filling up and when we left around 7 every table was full. The food was wonderful as always and the service was great.

Canisius Library Today

I went down to the Canisius library today to pick up some books. I have been planning to do this for awhile. It's been quite a few months since I've last been down there. So after cutting the grass today I got in the car and went down the street to my old workplace. It was a Friday afternoon so I was expecting it to be quiet there... I was wrong.

It's also near the end of the semester so the library was quite full of students. I first talked with Matt and caught up with what was happening at the library. I also had a nice conversation with a grad student working the desk. Then I went down to the lower level to see if Kris was there. She wasn't. Then I went and got the books I was looking for. They were books on my to-read list that I hadn't been able to get previously from other sources.

I also went up to the second floor. It was a shock to see all the books were gone but the college did do a great job renovating the space for it's new use which is not being a library. It is more of a student study center... without books. Last year I was surprised to see that thousands of books were discarded from the stacks on that floor and tossed into trash bins. The books that were kept were all taken down to the lower level and reorganized which is still an ongoing process.

New Lawnmower - Cuttin' Grass

I got the new electric lawnmower up and running this week. A couple of days ago I cut the front lawn. It was an easy job because the bad weed has been somewhat under control in the front. Then it rained a couple of days so I waited for the back lawn to dry out the extensive weed. So yesterday I tried the mower out with the heavy weed in the front of the backyard. I filled a very heavy bag full of weed from the mower's catch container.

Today I went back out there and did the rest of the backyard. It took about an hour because of the heavy weed. I also did it in four sections and loaded a full white trash bag for each section. That's a lot of heavy weed bags overall. 

The mower did a great job cutting the weed and grass. I didn't do the weed whacking trimming yet though. It's going to rain tomorrow so I'll probably wait until Monday.

Hugh Howey - The Authors List

Hugh Howey - The Authors List. More science fiction. 6 books I've read by this writer which I started reading in 2014 with Wool from the Silo trilogy. When the Silo TV series came out in 2023. Then the Beacon 23 TV series was released later the same year on a different network. Apparently his novels make good television shows. I did watch them both. The third season of Silo is coming out this summer.

In 2024 I read Beacon 23 and the Sand series. All have been interesting science fiction stories.

Hugh Howey books I've read:

• Wool, 2012 - Sep 2014
• Shift, 2013 - Aug 2015
• Dust, 2013 - Sep 2015
• Sand, 2014 - Jul 2016
• Beacon 23, 2015 - May 2024
• Across The Sand, 2022 - Jul 2024

Doris Lessing - The Authors List

Doris Lessing - The Authors List. I read 6 of her books including 5 from the Canopus In Argos: Archives series. More science fiction. She was an interesting writer and I liked her books of what she called "space fiction" which I discovered in the early 1980's. The first novel I read was Shikasta in 1981 followed by the rest of that series during the 80's and a dystopian novel from 1974. 

This was a fascinating and challenging science fiction series. I think it would be interesting to read a biography of this writer.

Last year I put this series of paperback books in one of our nearby Little Libraries one by one over a week or so. The books were always picked up the next day.

Doris Lessing books that I've read:

• Shikasta: Re-Colonized Planet 5, 1979 - Aug 1981
• The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five, 1980 - Oct 1981
• The Sirian Experiments, 1980 - Jun 1982
• The Memoirs of a Survivor, 1974 - Jun 1983
• The Making of the Representative for Planet 8, 1982 - Jan 1984
• The Sentimental Agents in the Voylen Empire, 1983 - Apr 1984

Fish Dinner Wednesday

Tonight we had a nice fish dinner. Salmon with rice and an avocado salad.

Richard Thompson - Kitchen Listening

Kitchen Listening. We spent some time playing a couple of incredible Richard Thompson albums and enjoyed the kitchen stereo. Today I put on a couple of his more interesting albums. Started with Acoustic Classics from 2014 which is a collection of acoustic versions of songs from his back catalogue. Lots of great music. Then I followed that up with a live album from 2003 titles 1000 Years of Popular Music where Thompson performs what he considers the best songs of the last 1000 years. This was another very fascinating listening experience. This set of music played for about two and a half hours.

He has always been one of my favorite performers whom I've seen in concert several times both solo and with Fairport Convention. I have about 30 of his albums in my collection.

The Hidden History of the War on Voting - MAGA Dystopia

The Hidden History of the War on Voting: Who Stole Your Vote and How To Get It Back - Thom Hartman, 2020. MAGA Dystopia.

Last night I finished reading this incredible book that clearly documents the numerous cases of voter suppression throughout American history and especially in recent years while exposing the Republican myth of voter fraud. This problem continues and is getting worse with all the latest gerrymandering and GOP laws to limit voting. Everyone should read this book and the author will probably be writing a second volume focusing on the current MAGA dystopia and hopefully the backlash of the American people.

The book discusses how the modern American oligarchs have stayed in power using voter suppression, massive misinformation campaigns from their bought and owned right wing media and through explicit and overt racism. Republicans have repeatedly been shown they need to depend on election fraud and treason to "win" elections and it has been this way for many decades.

It was also interesting to read about how much the role of slavery had in the creation of the Electoral College and it's racist legacy. Here are a few of the fascinating issues and solutions discussed in the book... Abolish the Electoral College, make election day a national holiday, universal mail-in voting, extensive early voting, all elections are Federally protected and monitored, affirmative right to vote as part of the Constitution, a national popular vote, abolish partisan gerrymandering and the Senate should represent citizens not states. Lots more issues too.

David Mitchell - The Authors List

David Mitchell - The Authors List. 6 books I read and the first one Cloud Atlas I read in 2010 is one of my favorite novels. I thought the challenging structure of the writing was interesting as a historical and science fiction novel.

And then I went on to read several more of his novels and most recently in 2020 I loved Utopia Avenue which was about a fictional psychedelic rock band in 60's London.

Overall, I've really enjoyed all six of the novels I've read and he is one of my favorite novelists.

BTW, I really enjoyed the film of Cloud Atlas too.

David Mitchell books I've read:

• Cloud Atlas, 2004 - Nov 2010 
• Ghostwritten, 1999 - Feb 2011 
• The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, 2010 - Apr 2011  
• The Bone Clocks, 2014 - Feb 2015
• Slade House, 2015 - Jul 2020
• Utopia Avenue, 2020 - Oct 2020

William Kotzwinkle - The Authors List

William Kotzwinkle - The Authors List. 6 books read. I somehow discovered this writer of the cult comic novel The Fan Man and read his book in 1976. It was a crazy hippie story I enjoyed very much and got me hooked on this author throughout the 70's. I read three of his novels one right after the other in 1976.

Later in 1982 I read his novelization of the screenplay for E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial movie. I loved the film and the novel was very entertaining too.

William Kotzwinkle books I've read:

• The Fan Man, 1974 - Apr 1976
• Night Book, 1974 - May 1976
• Elephant Bangs Train, 1971 - Jun 1976
• Dr. Rat, 1976 - Feb 1977
• Fata Morgana, 1977 - Jun 1978
• E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, 1982 - Apr 1982

John Le Carre - The Authors List

John Le Carre. The Authors List. 7 classic spy novels of his that I've read. Started off with The Spy Who Came In From The Cold which I read in late 1973. Then it was on to the George Smiley Trilogy starting with Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. I also liked the films made from these two novels. Later I enjoyed reading The Night Manager and then also watching the BBC television series based on the novel.

He has written 26 novels. I read the last novel of his lifetime in 2020 shortly after it was published. I sometimes think I should go back and read those books backward starting with the the most recent one.

John Le Carre books I've read:

• The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, 1963 - Nov 1973
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, 1974 - May 1974
• The Honourable Schoolboy, 1977 - Dec 1977
• Smiley's People, 1979 - Sep 1981
• The Little Drummer Girl, 1983 - Oct 1984
• The Night Manager, 1993 - Dec 1993
• Agent Running In The Field, 2019 - Jan 2020

Philip Jose Farmer - The Authors List

Philip Jose Farmer. The Authors List with 6 science fiction novels I've read. Although he has written many novels and several series I've just read novels from his Riverworld series starting with To Your Scattered Bodies Go which I read in 1987. The 6 books on my list were all read in the late 1980's. I was fascinated with his science fiction novels.

Philip Jose Farmer books I've read:

• To Your Scattered Bodies Go, 1971 - Dec 1987
• The Fabulous Riverboat, 1971 - Feb 1988
• The Dark Design, 1977 - Apr 1988
• The Magic Labyrinth, 1980 - Jun 1988
• Gods of Riverworld, 1983 - Dec 1988
• Riverworld and Other Stories, 1979 - Sep 1989

The Backyard Lawn

The backyard lawn full of the weed and is looking like it's almost time to cut the grass. I'll need to wait a couple of days after it stops raining which means I will be out there mowing the lawn early next week with the new lawn mower.

The Upside Down - PT

I was doing some physical therapy exercises today on the floor in the living room and while laying on my back I looked up behind me and this is what I saw. I had my phone next to me because I was looking at the videos on my PT app making sure I was doing the reps properly. So I snapped a photo of this interesting perspective. I like how the dining room ceiling looks from this view.

Darkness and Filth

Pope Leo XIV's response to the orange turd...

Some Trader Joe's Pizza

Becky went out to Trader Joe's today for some food shopping and among the many items she came home with was a box of Trader Joe's Frozen Pizza which we always like. This one was a little different than what we have had previously. This one was their Uncured Pepperoni Pizza from Italy and it was delicious.

There was a little bit leftover and I'm looking forward to that too.

The New Mower

I was out in the shed today taking the new mower out of the box and getting the battery charged. It was something new working with this electric mower and it took me a little while to find the starter key which was located under the battery hood on the mower. Something I wasn't used to. I also checked a YouTube video on how to assemble this particular Ryobi electric lawnmower. 

Yesterday we went over to Home Depot and bought the mower and brought it home. The staff at the store were very helpful both checking out and getting the mower into our car. Then when we got home with it our neighbor Nick just happened to be out front, saw the mower in the car when I came out with the two wheeler, and he helped me take it out of the car and onto the wheeler cart. I had the space cleared out for it in the shed and it was easy to slide it off the 2 wheeler and onto the floor. 

With tax the total for this mower was a little over $500. 

Joseph Conrad - The Authors List

Joseph Conrad. The Authors List with 6 books that I've read. I did read a couple of his novels when in high school for classes and read them again a few years later while in the Navy along with a few more. The first was Lord Jim both times. In 1966 and then again in 1970. I recently noticed an old copy of Lord Jim on one of our bookshelves... I should read it again.

I enjoyed the books of his that I read but never felt the urge to read any more of his novels or short story collections.

Joseph Conrad books that I've read:

• Lord Jim, 1900 - Jun 1970
• Heart of Darkness, 1899 - Mar 1971
• Nostromo, 1904 - Jul 1971
• The Secret Sharer, 1910 - Jun 1972
• The Secret Agent, 1907 - Sep 1973
• Typhoon and Other Stories, 1902 - Jan 1983

Coolest Songs in the World - Kitchen Listening Pt. 2

Coolest Songs in the World - Volumes 5-8. Here is another set of songs from Little Steven's Underground Garage show. They were four albums released in 2008 and 2009. So very awesome sounding as the first four volumes. 

Becky used to listen to that show in the car back when we had Sirius XM and she was commuting to UB everyday.

Vol. 5, 2008

• Some Other Guy - The Hentchmen
• Nothing Terribly New - The Hellacopters
• Hot Girls In Good Moods - Butch Walker & The Let's-Go-Out-Tonites
• Because I'm Awesome - The Dollyrots
• If It Takes A Lifetime - Cheap Trick
• If I Ain't Got You - The Len Price 3
• Pull Shapes - The Pipettes
• Almost Summer - The Apers
• Why Do They Know - The Satelliters
• Code Fun - Black Tie Revue
• Ain't So Cool - Hell On Heels
• Baby Du Jour - Roy Loney & The Longshots
• Hands - The Raconteurs
• What Would Joan Jett Do? - The Launderettes
• Porno Movies - The Saints
• 25 Hours A Day - Jimmy Jukebox

Vol. 6, 2008

• 365 Rolling Stones (One For Everyday Of The Year) - The Andrew Oldham Orchestra
• Needle In The Camel's Eye - The Wolfmen
• Free & Freaky - The Stooges
• You Don't Look So Good - The Urges
• La La Land - The Go-Go's
• She Does - Locksley
• Belinda - The Stabilisers
• Ain't No King Of Rock 'N' Roll - The Nomads
• Baby That's Me - The Cake
• Love To Love You - Mink Jaguar
• Never Gonna Die - The Shys
• King Of The Freaks - The Maggots
• Goodbye Rock And Roll Band - The Novaks
• Stranger In The House - The Paybacks
• Suzanna - The Wildbirds
• All Light Up - The Pretty Things

Vol. 7, 2008

• Dolls - Primal Scream
• All The Right Friends - R.E.M.
• Black Sheep - The Doughboys
• Mother Mary - Foxboro Hot Tubs
• Doin' Alright - Big Midnight
• Longshot - John Fogerty
• I Predict A Riot - Kasier Chiefs
• Johanna Beach - Hawaii Mud Bombers
• American Gangster Time - Elvis Costello & The Imposters
• I Found Out - The Pigeon Detectives
• Heart Of A Rat - Rocket From The Crypt
• Rock'N America - The Catholic Girls
• Streets Of Atlanta - The Mother Truckers
• Requiem For A Dying Song - Flogging Molly
• Shady Grove - Mudcrutch

Vol. 8, 2009

• Baby Should Have Known Better - Palmyra Delran
• Terminal Boredom - The Cute Lepers
• Jump In The Fire - The Night Watchers
• Come With Me - The Peter Best Band
• Tonight - Vibeke Saugestad
• Turn It Up - Man Raze
• Catherine - The Krayolas
• Always Complaining - Skybombers
• Give Em What They Want - The Love Me Nots
• Awesome Rumble - The Belmondos
• Rehab Girl - The Bleeding Hearts
• A Look Behind - The Rippers
• Dum Dum Ditty - The Downbeat 5
• So Long My Friend - Broadway Calls
• Rock 'N' Roll Napalm - The Resistoleros
• Days - David Bowie

Asian Noodle Dinner

Becky made a very tasty Asian Noodle dinner tonight. This was something she hadn't made in a while. Nice veggies too and a little spicy. Of course the peanuts are important.

Frank Herbert - The Authors List

Frank Herbert. The Authors List with 7 books I've read. The first was Dune which I read in 1976. Over the next few years I read all six novels in that series. Then one other science fiction novel.

For me everything about this author has been Dune. In addition to the books in the series I also read a spin-off Dune prequel written by his son. I should probably read a few more of those prequels and sequels written by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. 

And I watched all of the movies and the television series. I also recently read the original Dune novel a second time in 2025.

Frank Herbert books that I've read:

• Dune, 1965 - Jun 1976, Jun 2025
• Dune Messiah, 1969 - Aug 1976
• Children of Dune, 1976 - Dec 1976
• God Emperor of Dune, 1981 - Sep 1983
• Heretics of Dune, 1984 - Sep 1984
• Chapterhouse: Dune, 1985 - Mar 1985
• The Dosadi Experiment, 1977 - Sep 1985

Coolest Songs in the World - Kitchen Listening Pt. 1

Little Steven's Underground Garage Presents The Coolest Songs in the World Volumes 1-4, 2006-2007. A collection of garage rock, psychedelic garage rock revival, alternative indie rock, etc. featured on his radio syndicated rock shows. The collection doesn't feature a lot of hits but does focus on garage-centric bands and songs. Loud and raucous.

This set of four albums makes for a very entertaining listening experience over the course of a little over three hours. 

Vol. 1, 2006

1 On The Airwaves - The Shazam
2 Can't Stand It - The Greenhornes
3 My Kind of Girl - The Forty-Fives
4 Gimme That Shot - The Charms
5 Somewhere Nowhere - The Chesterfield Kings
6 Lost My Motto - Cotton Mather
7 Put Some Hurt On You - The Boss Martians
8 I Woke Up This Mornin' - The Mooney Suzuki
9 Straight Shooter - Reigning Sound
10 You're My Favorite - Caesars
11 Whatever Happened To My Rock N' Roll - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
12 You're On My Mind - Ko & The Knockouts
13 Weird Scene - Mr. Brown
14 Bye Bye Baby - Creatures of The Golden Dawn
15 Quivers - Davie Allan & The Arrows

Vol. 2, 2007

1 Maria Bartiromo - Joey Ramone
2 I Am The Eye - The High Dials
3 Rock and Roll Babe - Cocktail Slippers
4 Sick City Sometimes - Buzzcocks
5 Love's Lost On You - The Grip Weeds
6 Mindreader - TEN HIGH
7 C'mon Everybody - The Chevelles
8 What Keeps Your Heart Beatin'? - The Rattlers
9 Take It Off - The Donnas
10 Sister Surround - The Soundtrack Of Our Lives
11 That Great Love Sound - The Raveonettes
12 Mystery #1 - The Contrast
13 Form A Straight Line - Sugar Shack
14 Fool Of Me - The Crybabies
15 Girl You Have Magic Inside You - Outrageous Cherry
16 She's Fine - The Stems

Vol. 3, 2007

1 The Savage Beat - The Dictators
2 She's My Girl - The Shake
3 Maryanne Lightly - The Insomniacs
4 Wanna Be - The Fondas
5 Got A Heat On - The Woggles
6 Shake It Off - Supersuckers
7 Money For Soul - Baby Woodrose
8 Feeling Alone - Killer Barbies
9 Pretty Pretty Pretty - The Fleshtones
10 Detroit Slums - Back In Spades
11 Walking With A Ghost - Tegan & Sara
12 Rudy Cholo - Manic Hispanic
13 Nobody Does It - Roy Loney & The Longshots
14 C'mon Over To My Side - The Mockers
15 For You - The Sugar Twins
16 Out Of My Mind (Into My Head) - The Romantics

Vol. 4, 2007

1 Dance Like A Monkey - New York Dolls
2 Cruel Girl - The Red Button
3 Everyone Knows - Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
4 Who's Foolin' Who - Dave Davies
5 She's Wicked - The Fuzztones
6 Mamie Van Doren - Catfight!
7 Street Survivor - The Flaming Sideburns
8 Dance the Go-Go - The Breakers
9 Main Offender - The Hives
10 Dress Up Girls - The Model Rockets
11 Save Yourself - The Vacancies
12 Open Eyes - The Apples In Stereo
13 Come Dig Me Out - Kelly Osbourne
14 Zeno Beach - Radio Birdman
15 I Got A War - Gluecifer
16 Mystery of Being - The Yardbirds

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The Coolest Songs In The World. Vol 1

PT Again

Went to Buffalo Rehab this morning for my first PT session since December 2024. I'm working again with Matt P. who took care of me during my last sessions there.

He gave me an evaluation and I'm ready to get back to it. I have been doing some of my stretching and exercises over the past few months but I wanted to regain my focus and work through the pain and discomfort caused by the protruding disc and pinched nerves in my left leg and hip.

In a couple of weeks I will also be working with an occupational therapist who will work with me on the painful arthritis issues I am having with my hands.

I have scheduled appointments over the next few weeks on Wednesdays at 11 am.

Jesus H. Trump

Jesus H. Trump LOL. He has been telling everyone that the recent AI post of him as Jesus was really him as a doctor. Nobody believes that for one moment. Especially when the word is out that his staff had told him the original trump as Jesus AI photo was "doctored". So the dumbass now thinks he was the doctor.

Ray Bradbury - The Authors List

Ray Bradbury. The Authors List with 7 books of science fiction I've read over the years but mostly in the 1970's. The first novel was The Martian Chronicles I read as a young teenager and then again in 1971 while overseas. The next three I read while overseas too.

I loved all of his books both novels and short story collections. He was one of my main science fiction influences. The last book I enjoyed was his Bradbury Stories: 100 of His Most Celebrated Tales I read in early 2021 during the pandemic.

Ray Bradbury books I've read:

• The Martian Chronicles, 1950 - Nov 1971
• The Illustrated Man, 1951 - Jan 1972
• Fahrenheit 452, 1953 - May 1972
• Dandelion Wine, 1957 - Oct 1972
• Something Wicked This Way Comes, 1962 - Dec 1974
• I Sing The Body Electric, 1969 - Jan 1982
• Bradbury Stories: 100 of His Most Celebrated Tales, 2003 - Jun 2021

Capitol Sings... Kitchen Listening Pt. 2

Kitchen Listening. Singin' In The Rain: Capitol Sings Hollywood, 1995. Another album in Capitol's wonderful series of Hollywood and Broadway vocal collections. We really enjoyed listening to the amazing singing on this album of stars like Lena Horne, Mel Torme, Peggy Lee, Nat King Cole, Sarah Vaughn, Dinah Washington, Dean Martin and so many more.

Songs on the album:

• Singin' In The Rain - Lena Horne
• Louise - Dean Martin
• It Could Happen To You - Julie London
• When Your Lover Has Gone - Keely Smith
• Stella By Starlight - Vic Damone
• They Can't Take That Away From Me - June Christy
• My Foolish Heart - Ethel Ennis
• There's A Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder - Bobby Darin
• Stormy Weather - Peggy Lee
• That Old Feeling - Dinah Washington
• Again - Mel Torme
• Stuff Like That There - Betty Hutton
• I Remember You - Sarah Vaughn
• You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me - Trudy Richards
• Put The Blame On Mame - Mark Murphy
• Be Beautiful - Nancy Wilson
• On Green Dolphin Street - Dakota Staton
• My Baby Just Cares For Me - June Hutton
• Smile - Nat King Cole
• If I Had A Talking Picture Of You - Johnny Mercer & Martha Tilton

Capitol Sings... Kitchen Listening Pt. 1

Kitchen Listening. And the Winner Is: Capitol Sings The Best Movie Songs, 1992. Recently we have been listening to some of the many albums in my collection that are part of the Capitol Sings series of songs from Hollywood movies and Broadway musicals and also featuring many composers such as Irving Berlin, Johnny Mercer, Rogers & Hammerstein, Rogers & Hart, George Gershwin, Hoagy Carmichael, Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen, Sammy Kahn and so many more. It's a lot of fun hearing this music as we hang out in the kitchen preparing and eating meals. It's nice listening to so many amazing vocalist from that era... Peggy Lee, Nat King Cole, Nancy Wilson, Helen O'Connell, Al Martino, Judy Garland, The Four Freshmen, Chet Baker, June Christy, The Lettermen, etc, etc. Becky loves watching old movies and of course I was a Film Studies major in college. And the winner is... us! Lots more of these albums in the mix as I have 14 more volumes in this series.

The music in this Capitol Sings series also reminds me of my childhood hearing the radio station WIP in Philadelphia my mother had on every day that played adult contemporary music throughout the 1950's and 1960's. There was a stack of 78 rpm records in our house back then too.

Capitol Sings... the series in my collection:

• Johnny Mercer: Two Marvelous For Words, 1991
• And the Winner Is: The Best Movie Songs, 1992
• Irving Berlin: Puttin' On The Ritz, 1992
• Jerome Kern: The Song Is You, 1992
• Rogers & Hart: Isn't It Romantic, 1992
• Fascinatin' Rhythm: Gershwin, 1992
• Duke Ellington: Mood Indigo, 1994
• Rogers & Hammerstein: Hello Young Heart, 1994
• Broadway: Making Whoppee!, 1995
• Harold Arlen: Over The Rainbow, 1995
• Sammy Cahn: It's Magic, 1995
• Harry Warren: An Affair To Remember, 1995
• Hoagy Carmichael: Stardust, 1995
• Hollywood: Singing In The Rain, 1997

Rick Atkinson - The Authors List

Rick Atkinson. The Authors List with 6 books I've read. They are all books on American history and American wars in particular. The first book I read was a history of the Persian Gulf War written in 1993 and read in 1995. Then I read another book about the Gulf War in 2005. Ten years later I read his trilogy about World War II. In 2022 I started his new series about the American Revolution and I should read the second book soon. I've always enjoyed reading books about history and he is a very good historian.

Rick Atkinson books I've read:

• Crusade: The Untold Story of the Persian Gulf War, 1993 - Dec 1995
• In The Company of Soldiers: A Chronical of Combat in Iraq, 2004 - Aug 2005
• An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943, 2002 - Mar 2014
• The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1955, 2005 - May 2015
• The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945, 2013 - Mar 2016
• The British Are Coming: The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777, 2019 - Mar 2022

Murder at la Villette - #22

I just finished reading another Cara Black murder mystery novel set in Paris. Murder at la Villette published in 2024. 

This is the 22nd book of hers that I've read and I might just consider this to be a favorite.. this one really had me from the first page to the last. It is also the 21st book in the Aimee Leduc Investigations series. There is only one book in that series, the 2nd one, that I have not read. I read two other books from her Kate Rees WWII series.

I should track down that book I've missed from 2000 while waiting for her next book to come out.

Lawnmower Shopping

Becky and I went over to Home Debot to look at new electric lawnmowers. The woman at the lawnmower area was very knowledgeable and we were impressed. We looked at a few and came away thinking we will be getting a Ryobi self propelled electric mower that will run about $479. We didn't buy it at the time and will probably go over and pick one up early next week.

I had to go into the shed and make some room for it. When we get it someone from the store will load it into the car for me. It will be in a large box. Then when we get home I'll lower the box onto our two wheeler and roll it back to the shed. But first I needed to make some room and rearrange things because everything was stored away for the winter. We also had Sean and Ashely's baby wagon in the shed that they accidently left here last weekend. That takes up a lot of space too. Now I'm ready.

Brian Wilsonesque - Kitchen Listening

Brian Wilsonesque: The Pocket Symphonies To God - Kitchen Listening. The influence of Brian Wilson. Covers, clones and cousins from an assortment of pop groups and artists. 

This makes for a very interesting listening experience as the sound of The Beach Boys influence fills the air.

I think I got a copy of this around 2008 or so. A little later I expanded the concept to include a lot more music with the Brian Wilson influence from my collection in a mix I called the Brian Wilsonesque Cycle and another one called California Dreaming.

Track listing

1.1  Champagne - Smile
1.2  Paul Steel - In a Coma
1.3  John Davis - I Hear Your Voice
1.4  Wondermints - Ride
1.5  The Fraternal Order of the All - Love Tonight
1.6  The High Llamas - Literature Is Fluff
1.7  Splitsville - The Songs of Douglas B. Wilson
1.8  The Dukes of Stratosphear - Pale and Precious
1.9  Kelley Stoltz - Ever Thought of Coming Back
1.10 The Explorers Club - Forever
1.11 Matt Tyson - After All This Time
1.12 Jeffrey Foskett - Thru My Window
1.13 Frank Ciampi - Anyway
1.14 Pugwash - It’s Nice to Be Nice
1.15 June & the Exit Wounds - How Much I Really Loved You
1.16 The Ruby Suns - Criterion
1.17 Andrew - He Can Fly
1.18 Richard Snow - and Then
1.19 Peter Lacey - Dear Life
1.20 Chris Rainbow - Dear Brian
1.21 Craig Bartock - Things I Know
2.1 Elliott Kendall - Symphony for a Sunset
2.2 Elliott Kendall - Honda Bike
2.3 The Paley Brothers - You’re the Best
2.4 Dave Edmunds - London’s a Lonely Town
2.5 BMX Bandits - Back in Your Arms
2.6 Jason Byrd - Don’t Mind
2.7 Hal- Softly Spoken
2.8 Cabinessence - A Sound I Hear
2.9 Cosmic Rough Riders - Morning Sun
2.10 Randell Kirsch - My Socks Don’t Stink
2.11 Chewy Marble - Cross-Hatched World
2.12 The Nines - Ghost Town Sunday
2.13 Ken Stringfellow - When U Find Someone
2.14 Fugu - Triple Bass
2.15 The Pearlfishers - Cherry Sky
2.16 Linus of Hollywood - Heavenly
2.17 The Heavy Blinkers - Smile and Show Your Teeth
2.18 Epicycle - Sunday Girl
2.19 Marty Rudnick - Some Summer
2.20 Vinyl Kings - Sycamore Bay
2.21 Maple Mars - The Soft Carousel
2.22 The General Store - Nothing Can Come Between Us
2.23 The Squires of the Subterrain - Blind Date
2.24 Noel Coward's Ghost - What’s Wrong With Who Cares
2.25 The Barracudas - His Last Summer
2.26 The Scheme - I Don’t Want to Say Goodbye

Kevin J. Anderson - The Authors List

Kevin J. Anderson. The Authors List with 8 of his science fiction novels I've read. Seven books were part of the Saga of Seven Suns series which I enjoyed and read over several months in 2016. I also read a Dune prequel he co-authored with Brian Herbert. Most of Anderson's books are spin-off novels including 20 for Star Wars, about another 20 Dune prequels and some X-Files novels.

Kevin J. Anderson books I've read. 

• Hidden Empire, 2002 - Nov 2016
• A Forest of Stars, 2003 - Nov 2016
• Horizon Storms, 2004 - Dec 2016
• Scattered Suns, 2005 - Dec 2016
• Of Fire and Night, 2006 - Jan 2017
• Metal Swarm, 2007 - Jun 2017
• The Ashes of Worlds, 2008 - Sep 2017
• House Atreides, (Dune Prequel with Brian Herbert) 1999 - Mar 2000