Are You There Blog? It's Me, Ethan

So, May 1st, huh? is that "May Day"? I never knew, exactly.  You would think a Red Diaper Baby Radical like myself would actually know when the symbolic day of the worker actually is....  However, I'm puckishly ironic in these contemporary times; what can I tell ya?  I know I am letting everyone down.

So, this Mueller Report about Trump deal. Does it clear the President and his Administration, or not? I don't get it. Y'know, obviously, the guy is the hugest scumbag; anyone who grew up in the NYC/Philly area in the 1980's can attest to what farce and carnival broker this schmuck is. However, was there collusion or not with The Russians with the election? Isn't it a "yes" or "no" answer in the report?

Is it a vague gray area? How can The Special Council (Not The Specials, mind you) spend 2 years investigating, and then the report comes out and the reaction is "eh, who knows" My interpretation is that some screwed up stuff happened but they could not find anything concrete to pin on Drumpf. However my opinion and .50 will buy you a cuppa coffee.

I still remember this song from back in 1970/1980ish time period. It was Thatcher and her Conservatives, destroying the Labour Party and Privatizing just about anything she could get her hands on.  The US is kinda like a Ghost Town now, no? Fast food culture, devoid of hope; endless coffee cups, etc. Maybe not.

In some other news, I'm making some changes in the places where I ask lot's of questions. Some well wishes towards my future endeavors were handed my way, somewhat unexpectedly.  You live, and you learn.

I'm asking questions and listening to kids at this after school place. Anger issues, won't listen, etc. First time small world incident where a kiddo who I was joking with was the BROTHER of a kid I used to ask questions to at my Internship 3 years ago. Funny ol' world, innit?

Still asking questions at night at the drug/drink place. Just "on call" as needed. They have good snacks there. New kind of Sprite in the soda machine is great.

What about you? Did you find parking? Did you get the good bread from the Italian Bakery on the drive home?  How are you? Hope you're rockin'. 

It's tough when you ask lot's of questions!

Y'know, as I think I have said previously, I have a gig where I talk and talk and talk. Sometimes I feel like a 1970's talk show host ("So Bob Hope, Tell me about your new Christmas Special!") Sometimes  I wonder if the stuff I talk to the person(s) about, if it is more for my benefit or for their interest as well.  I am told that it is healthy to question the direction of the questions and themes you are throwing out as a professional asker  of Q's. it's healthy to have some self-doubt when it comes to question asking.

What I do know is that by the time I am done asking and reassessing stuff and people at the end of the week, I totally want to disengage.  I love people, but I'd much rather be a watcher and observer on the weekend or after 5PM during the week.  I don't get to observe too much, and I find I still, a, quite verbal.  In the end, I hate silence. Silence leads to free time, and free time leads to self-reflection.  Once I make the right turn onto Self-Reflection Avenue, it's only a matter of time before I find myself cutting across traffic to merge onto Self-Loathing Parkway!!

Once I'm on Self-Loathing Parkway, put the hazards on and get over to the shoulder. I'm gonna be there all day!  So yeah, I'm constantly in motion. I have to be, even if it's self-deprecating stuff. Quiet = Alone = Self and that is not a good combination for Mr. Blogger over here.  I mean, I don't know if that means if it's quiet, I begin to ask the same sort of questions to myself that I do to others? That's above my pay grade.  All I know is that people and sound (laughter, love, anger, passion) = Life/The Human Condition for me.

I reflect all the time because I'm a Mushy Nudnik

So, a while ago HBO announced they would no longer televise boxing after something like 45 years. Huge announcement. Big time statement for television and internet streaming type networks. ESPN got all these fighters assigned to exclusive contracts and will pay 'em a gazillion $ to fight on streaming platforms... new streaming platforms...blah blah blah. I don't like it. I want my boxing on my cable. And I will share why because I'm reflective:

Watching boxing was one of the things that bonded me with my Father. While I loved my Dad (and I'm sure; he loved me) he was a difficult guy to get along with.  There was always something to argue about when it came to Dad and I. Stuff like:

• Ethan your cholesterol is too high!
• Ethan, you haven't been going to the gym enough! 
• Ethan, why are you dating that girl!?
• Ethan, why do you make stupid decisions!?

 So the thing with Dad was there was always love, and fun, but on his terms. That was just the guy he was. I'm not saying there weren't good times, they were just confusing and good. Anyway, I digress...boxing...

There was this one night, I came home (i was in my mid 20's, post college, living at home. No $, no job, etc.) My Father is sitting there in front of the TV like an inch away from it because he was deaf. He's got Spanish (Univision) TV blaring. He didn't speak Spanish. He looks at me and takes his glasses off - - I instantly know he has something serious to say, when he took his glasses off it was on like Donkey Kong.

"I want you to listen to me for a moment, will you just listen to me for a moment, Ethan?"

I said I would listen. My question about why he was watching Spanish television was dismissed with a wave of his Talmudic hand.

"Listen this is Boxing from the LA Forum. The fights are fantastic, and the fighters are just out of this world. It will blow you way like nothing you've seen before, trust me."

 I was skeptical but decided to hang in there when Dad said the following:

"You know how we go to theatre, to Broadway all the time? Well, this is theatre like nothing you've ever seen. It's Shakespeare. Passion like nothing I've ever seen before. Good against Evil, and more. So listen to me, please, please watch it with me."

 And wouldn't you know it, he was right? I was blown away. And from that Univision Moment, I discovered a new passion, I realized saying "That guy has a lot of heart", and "Fighting in a phone booth"were compliments of the highest type in the Sincoff Family."

And with this (now mutual) love of boxing; Dad and I had something we would not fight about.  There was no discussing of my weight, or my cholesterol, or my choice of relationships, or spending.... there was this silence on the phone, as the wheels turned in his brain down here in Florida, and in my head up in Jersey....trying to find something in common to not argue about, to be in unison on......

"Hey isn't that devastating body puncher from _______ (Mexico City, Puebla, Argentina, etc.) fighting tonight? That's going to be good, don't you think?" 

And instantly,we were in agreement. Of course there were the late night phone calls during the fights where we would shout at each other, and voicemails where when I was out on the town, my father would scream about what I was missing...

So, simply put, Boxing on HBO was a very special thing that Dad and I shared. When we talked boxing (and politics, too to be fair), We connected on it, there was only love and respect.  

That's why not having boxing on HBO means the end of something, much like Dad not being around anymore.

Dad was a good guy. He tried. He had alot of heart, you know?

 

The Jam - Town Called Malice

Pretty much no other song signifies "England" to me. When I think of the UK, I think of this bass line, and that keyboard intro, and Paul Weller immediately going to Pop Marxism and Working Class Struggle, I'm hooked. And the lyrics! Listen to this great lines about empty milk bottles, runaway buses, and hanging old love letters on line to dry.... it breaks your heart, and then you get fish and chips.

Other than maybe a couple Billy Bragg songs, I can't think of a band/performer like Paul Weller/The Jam who combined fantastic rock songs about love, and also fill them with a sense of the class struggle. Brilliant. Enjoy x.

The Jam - That's Entertainment

That's Entertainment!!