Ed Giovannoni 's 80th Birthday in Walnut Grove

           Our day with Ed started out with a powdered grey and ominous sky, stroking the road with numerous inclement talking points as we drove down Highway 101, edging ever so sullenly into Petaluma, wondering whether or not the back splash from the vehicles in front of us were going to severely damage our progress to Walnut Grove to celebrate the man who Joyce's family knew as the rich side, when they chowed down on Roast Beef and Orange Crush. As we approached Highway 80, off of Highway 37, our environment settled into a more disputable calm, in what could only be digested as the eye of the storm.
          Though before we had casually enveloped ourselves with the change in the meteorological nuances, we made a quick tour of where Papa Harry (The Old Bear) Joyce's had worked at Mare Island, and where her brother Russel had also spanned most of his early employment years, learning similar work habits and experience as his father.
           Before we really took to the back roads of Highway 113, we

had to take a quick sidebar to Winco, and since Russel had never been, he got the Grand Tour, and vowed to return someday while in Vacaville.  It was a new Back Road for all of us, and until we made the left onto Highway 12, Russel found himself bewildered as to where he actually was, and Joyce thought we were still going to be passing the Train Museum before we hit the Rio Vista Bridge.
          As we arrived at the celebratory location of St. Anthony's Parish Hall in Walnut Grove, the events began to transpire. Being

early gave us time to get acquainted with the "Party Room" and where most of the opportunities of communal joy were to take place, and waited for the caterer from Lodi to show up.  Then the congregation of friends, family and relatives made their way into the hallowed hall and scene that would eventually stamp it's collective wit onto Ed Giovannoni's memory banks.  Though I am not the stenographer of the event, though being tied into the celebratory nonsense by being part of the "Mortensen" clan, you would be best
informed of the individual members of the crowd by Joyce herself.  I can tell you that David and Kathy, Ed's son, and his spouse, Kathy were benevolent and worthy hosts, while Debbie, Ed's daughter, Joyce and a few very diligent members of the crowd, did the Kitchen Patrol.  David had just gotten a new camera, and made sure that from one moment to the next, you had better be prepared to smile for the casual Candid Camera or Polaroid Moments.
                                                             While on the other hand, Janine, Steven Nielson's significant other, with an i-pad, went around and did the same photographic shenanigans as David was doing.  Joyce had mad up this wonderful Old Stand Redwood Plaque for Ed which not only prominently displayed his last name of Giovannoni, but had the wonderful depiction of one of his favorite tractors.
Everyone did a lot of chatter, mingled from place to place, did a lot of reminiscing, barrel laughing and enjoyed the culinary treats of not just Lodi, but an Italian Rum Cake dotted with whole cherries inside circular mountain swirls of whipped cream, and numerous Anita and Vickie home made cookies for dessert.                             
                                                        Can't tell you all the secrets of the glorious event, but as the crowd began to disperse, we all knew that getting together for all the right reasons, as David had so eloquently said in his toasting speech, was certainly a blessing, and a great way to celebrate the history of Ed Giovannoni's life and times.  We all left with those bylines of a life well lived, and vowed to keep in touch the memories and community we all had shared for a few hours in a hall that often clamored with Bingo from time to time.  This is your guide, Steven, who for better or worse, goes along the roads of perdition from time to time for the ride, hoping you all have enjoyed similar moments in your own glorious lives, filled with the abundance of these type of beautiful gathering, Child, signing his way into future Oblivion's .    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1a1Ha3TJI8

Consensual Fringes

              If one hears someone tell them that pursuit is not the course of action that is recommended, then it is not the right of that individual or open to interpretation the fringe outcomes that are associated with such a decision.  Mutual consent is really the authority in such an event, and any opportunity that arises out of a blatant disregard of the instruction has now become the property of the perpetrator.  All of the exponential perimeters that occur after this flagrant decision, including carrying an unequal advantage to control the situation, which in reality is not part of the program, in acceptance of the responsibility undertaken are no longer valid as an excuse for your actions and any outcomes are solely the responsibility of the pursuant violator.
             Irregardless of the cultural commentary leading up to this event, the decision to no longer comply with the consensual fringes outlined in the original commentary has no bearing as to the calculation of the soon to be applied guilt laid upon said defiant defendant.
              So neither close friends or family, with the intent of somehow spinning the responsibilities tied to the original fringe assessment of the given situation, the application of responsibility goes directly onto the person who has gone beyond what little consensual opportunity existed before the perpetration of the prolonged contracted derivitives inherent in having gone beyond the fringe.
               Neither the political wills intent on making available some form of character assassination to the victim of this non-consensual inclination to defy the odds to somehow further notions of fearing for one's life can justify any of the actions that eventually occur because of said decision, whether or not they themselves become the victim of the original assault or not.  Standing one's ground does not imply the pursuit of any intentional suspicious element in your surrounding environment, but rather a call for sanity, that allowing the proper authority to take over the care and feeding of such fear, so that it would only suffice itself to say, the outcome would at that point in time, be one of a mutual consensual fringe of the variety of more caring conclusions to the problem solving necessary to obtain a more positive outcome to any of the consensual fringe responsibilities we all take on for whatever reason.
             

Moving the Mountain Ranges of Volatility

        In the chilly hours of the morning of uncertainty, we all long to be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues again.  For those of us not diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder or numerous glances of Bi-Polar Syndrome we are continually going mobile with thought processes that mimic Brain Roulette, and where it stops nobody knows, unless the Fat Lady sings.
       To think that we all need constant wake up calls on our Social Networks, rather than taking the time to decipher, for whatever reason, the mountain ranges of volatility that seem like tulle fog swirling around what little neuron firing capacity is left between our ears with 24 hour a day cable News Channels, to clear the litanies of being appalled, shocked or disgusted by setting in motion the initiative of setting our people free.
         I realize that the disinformation, the platitudes of lack of parenting skills by the NRA, the driving forces by political Neophytes to banter about the rights of the public with new legislation on either ID voting rights, or limiting the preventative medicine rights dictated in what is portrayed as Obamacare, those who enjoy the sounds of frakking, attempts at getting rid of Union concepts, have convinced us that maybe it is time to ask again, why do we want to climb that mountain range of volatility and the only answer out there, in my mind alone is, because it is there.
        It's not enough to be persuaded by the Choir of your choice to wake up from another episode of Rip Van Winkle, when you are hit by an errant apple, suddenly realizing that feeling that you get when you think Gravity exists, but the glue that holds the fabrics of reality to the fashions of community don't always contain those similarities attributed to truth, justice and honor.  It is instead as that comment that hung on the wall on one of my first attempts at employment that went, "I know you think you heard what you thought I said, but what you don't realize that what I said, is not what I meant..." that you need a stern slap on the face to get the blood flowing so you can again be in the present to become responsible for the outcomes of your choices and not allow those anomalies to exist in the first place.
        It is no longer the rights of the "Public Domain" to claim anyone can "Monday Morning Quarterback" their way into a righteous philanthropic impression that Boys will be Boys.  Though it may seem disingenuous to promulgate the issue by saying you have to get off the couch and put the remote down, but is necessary as being part of the Human Race to do so now.  Please, for the love of God, which you all seem to sing the praises of being, knock off the soliloquy of 24 hour a day news cycles and get back to those things that got us to "Here" in the first place. There will be courses available for the culturally deprived.  Some of those things attributed to our "Success" are sharing the wealth and the burdens of equality, respect for your fellow citizens, the "Work Ethic", common sense, the family and parenting skills, ingenuity, creativity and celebrating the harvest of any of our unique accomplishments while we play out this androgynous multiple act play called Humans, "Being".
           It is not through speculation or the Mayan calendar that we strive to evolve out of our own existence, but the notion that somehow selfish motivation and individualism can conquer the thirst for power and recognition to fulfill the consciousness of being alive in an individual reality format, while circumnavigating the multiple dimensional parameters that the theoretical physicists and quantum mechanical engineers have taken the time to describe and stipulate that makes our Universal Time and Space world go round and round.
         What sticks out like a Sore Thumb here in all of this diatribe for Humanity to make a comeback is change is inevitable whether we like it or not, being static is not a way out of the Rabbit Hole, and part of "Being Here" is not the "Destination", but the "Road Trip" intrinsic values, that make the "Destination" possible.  So, as the evolutionary tale goes that somehow the single cell came onto the Land Mass, and took to walking on it's hind legs, so too, to make things in evolutionary terms, for the powers of faith, joy, love and abundance really display some of her honest attributes display their inherent wisdom, you'll have to take the necessary steps yourself to retain your original intentional Gestalt, rather than waiting for "Mother Nature" or the realm of the "High Priestess" to not let the door hit you and me in the Ass on the way out of either "Here or There". 
         Let the epilogue state, that "I am here, and you are not, and then so too, you are there, and I am not..." and yet, could it really be " I am you, and you are me, and we are all together..."
             

The Happenings at River Rock Casino

           Mind you, we didn't really have any set plans after the
events of yesterday evening, but as Joyce began to reaquaint herself
with Sunday Morning, we decided to take a Road Trip up to RiverRock
Casino for a bite to eat, while I checked out the new digs, seeing as
I haven't been there for awhile, and now there was two new eateries
and a hotdog stand, where you could get a nice hotdog and some
domestic on tap brew for a fiver.
           Nowadays, the Quail Run Buffet has International Cuisine,
which runs around the Mediterrean, takes in the Asian aspects and does
some justice to some South of the Border Cuisine, as well as doing the
salads and breakfast items, along with a variety of breads and a whole
set of desserts ranging from Jello thru some cream puffs, chocolate
eclairs and lots of pies, cakes, brownies and ending up with the ice
cream machine with different toppings.
            With the weather picture being in transition, the clouds
circulating the horizon and puffing from edge to edge, the visual with
the cloud action and the green, green hills made for some Kodak
moments on our ride up there, along with a few of the roadway
attractions before we reached our destination.
              The new policy, not like a few years ago when you
couldn't take picture inside the Casino, is that you can take whatever
you want while you're there. So I went around taking the logos of
three out of the four eateries, except for the dog and pony show, and
then we went into fulfill whatever International Cravings we had, and
while I was there, I took a few shots of what we so politely put onto
our plates for display purposes.  I even took the time to order some
milk, but when you do, either tell them to make it iced cold, or get
some extra ice to make it cold, like my High School buddy, LeRoy
McNair used to do.  I did take a picture of the view out the back, and
one of how the outside seating on a warm summer day would be ever so
lovely staring out at the 180' view of the Alexander Valley.
               On the weekends they often have local or live bands on
stage in the Center Stage Bar and Grill, so you don't just go up there
for the one armed bandits, the food or the view, there is a
multi-media show going on constantly with all the sport TV's all
around the place.
               So some weekend day, or some weekday when you could be
spending time doing yardwork or lazing around in your favorite
hammock, take a road trip up toward Geyserville, and coming in from
any direction, and find some time to leisure around on the back patio
and enjoy a meal, or sit around and listen to their choice of music,
as you wile away a perfectly good day, inhabiting something other than
your typical duldrum of a day.  This is Steven, hoping that the
beautiful place we live in will drive you from your seat, and set in
motion, better half of your back side, and take the time to drive and
relax and just stare at the moment by moment of visuals that Alexander
Valley can so easily satisfy, Child, wishing your hangover from St.
Patty's is just a moment away from being part of the Past.

St. Patty and the Drum and Bugle Corps

              As I wander through life, the sense of community, those
family and friends that congregate to celebrate the special moments we
all share during the course of the year is no better represented than
going to an event, and in this case it was St. Patrick's Day at the
Veteran's Memorial Building in Santa Rosa, with a large group of
American Legion families.  As most celebrations of St. Patty's comes
down the Pike, it was a feast of Corned Beef and Cabbage, with
Potatoes and Carrots, which by the way were cooked to perfection, and
came with Rye Bread and condiments.
            Joyce had lined up with Roy and his family to go to the
event, for more than just one reason, but one of the biggest
surrounded the fact that Roy was a member of a Drum and Bugle Corps,
which always played at these gatherings.  Joyce knew Roy and his
family because they lived kitty corner to Ray and Gladys Widdifield,
and Roy had gone to school with Adele, Joyce's mother.
             We had gone up to Healdsburg and picked up our friend
June in Healdsburg, and then went and picked up Adele, and made the
short Road Trip over to the Veterans Memorial Building.  Once inside
the door, we found Roy and his familly and sat ourselves in, and got a
couple of plates of appetizers and drinks, and started up some
conversation with all the people that were gathered for the
celebration.
              We all got treated to Corned Beef and Cabbage, and
during the conversation it dawned on us that Roy's family actually
knew June, so that brought us all a little closer.  There was also a
gentleman there that Joyce had quite the conversation about Doyle Park
Elementary School, and that ongoing tranformation of becoming a French
Charter School for various budgetary reasons.
               While the Drum and Bugle Corps played their usual
fare, they also treated us to each of the anthems of the Army, Navy,
Marines and Coast Guard, and members of the crowd representing each of
these branches of the military stood up as their anthems were being
played.
                Earlier, raffle tickets had been sold, and during the
progression of winners, our dear friend June actually won something.
You got to go and pick whatever you wanted, and she picked out a
beautiful necklace.  It always adds to the fun and frivolity of the
moments you enjoy while your conversing, when one of your group
actually wins something, and it couldn't have happened to a more
deserving member of our small clan.
                 During the event, I had a conversation with Adele
about a particular gentleman in the crowd about what he had done for a
living, and I had guessed a few things, including a School Principal,
and later when I had a short conversation with him, he informed me one
of his jobs was working at the County Hospital.  For me, I conceded, I
was way off.  Later I was to have another short conversation with a
woman with a beautiful turquoise blouse, and she informed me she had
acquired it at a neighbor's Estate Sale, for a dollar.  Wonders, never
cease to be amazing.  All and all, again being surrounded by the
community with a variety of people with shared backgrounds and
families tied to the community is a warm and enchanting experience,
and though I am what I consider an interloper, I am again tied to the
grace and pomp and circumstance, and the warmth of such events by my
glorious wife of going on 26 years of Holy Matrimony, Joyce Lynn.
                 So one day, if you get the chance to have the
opportunity to become involved with such Kismet or Serendipity, please
avail yourself to participate and enjoy the camaraderie of and the
sense of community that is so richly endowed in such events as these,
and let the hustle bustle of the speed of the sound of loneliness pass
you by as you indulge in the small town emotional ties that come from
such wonderful people who come together to celebrate their compassion
and enjoyment with each other.  Again, Steven, with his fellow
travelers, this time including Adele and June, finds that the road
trips that he chooses to take, brings him the Joy and Solace he so
warmly desires to derive from such occurrences, Child, wishing all of
you had the same expectations fulfilled on your celebrations of St.
Patrick's Day.

Garden Wings

            So everyone, we are not looking for our shadow today in Sonoma County, even though it is prevailing into our external environment, being the calm before the storm.  I went outside today and took what is primarily Spring, not Sprung, but spreading it's wings to take flight, and spread the Joys of Creation into our limited senses, drying out from a couple of days of Wetness, that for the area we live in, was after all, a drought of sorts, and is now becoming that, like other areas in the heartland of our great nation, taking up the task of aiming at tearing apart communities.  I saw a picture in today's Press Democrat depicting a home that the rain had dislodge it's roots, and took out half of somebody's home.  History, culture, memories, and the like, seconds to disembark on their own wayward journey into an alternate reality. So please, take a view of what is taking place and speaking loudly in our garden here in Windsor, and remind yourself, you get what you pay for, and in this case, the richness that exacerbates itself here, doesn't cost lots of the coin of the realm, but only a few winks, a few kind words, and the work ethic that frames in diligence and dedication of mind, body and soul......the tidbits of visual information, and  the resolutions that come from the rat-a-tat-tat of the mind beats of an aging percussionist.....Steven

Frivolity's Volatility

                 It's not encapsulating the moment when it slides on by, either in a spoken word, a gesture, or phrase that doesn't carry with it the weight of serious content, but only the incredible lightness of being of any given conversation, the definitive limitations,  but  it is in letting it be, to encounter whatever the outcome dictates, that makes the experience so volatile.  Naturally to make it really ornate, you can't think of any consequence attached to the parameters of the given choice of speculative harangues, while inducing a dare into your environment to soak it up, and with the will of the whispered intent, you can turn and walk away, hoping that in time the angelic nature will be led to the promised land.
                Now maybe before any Big Bang should awaken your departure, keep whatever nuance is lazily hanging out carefully hidden in the subtle clues that the M and M's have left in their attempts to get you to phone home, hoping that the distances traveled with be well within their reach.  It is not intrinsic to the Jester's belled cap that someone knew you were coming, but once the remark had stood before what little audience you treated to the occasion, no one will have gotten any wiser, or realized that you had appeared out of nowhere to casually insult their protocols, and with each passing segment of cultural epitaphs, no one has either felt besmirched and will in all the efforts to deny, have accustomed themselves to the contracts attached to such frivolity's intentions.

Discernible Healthcare Mandates

           Somewhere in the flow of thought patterns there are Rivers surrounding many discernible tributaries that become increasingly aware of the convoluted rhetoric surrounding the dialogue of affordable Healthcare. It has nothing to do with religious beliefs or big government coming in and forcing you to take on something you can't afford or believe that you don't need it.  When in Europe, whether you have children or not, when they take 50 percent of your personal earnings, so all children will have the benefit of public education, it just happens.  It does have to do with being a member of society, one which is based on the individual, and yet with that responsibility comes the concepts of a the debts you owe for being part of that democratic style of government.
           Like car insurance, home insurance if you have a mortgage, or any other forms of  insurance mandates that comes with individual responsibilities or liberties associated with being a member of a democratically governed community, health care, now that it has become a corporate entity,one that is based on profit due to free enterprise or capitalism in general,  carries with it that everyone associated with using the benefits involved with the products and services of that care should also be responsible for taking care of their health care needs, to protect the collapse of the system in general.
          This entails getting some form of insurance that provides the minimal coverage needed to take care of the prevention side of the medical criteria involved.  Whether it be through a employer based benefit package where you are involved with paying part of the cost, or an individual providing  his own coverage, not only for himself, but if he has a family unit, it should also be mandated that he take responsibility for the minimal care of everyone involved in the family unit.
           As we are all mandated to pay taxes in oh so many ways, whether we like it or not, we should also be mandated to take care of our own personal health care, not just so we as individuals keep our own health care in check, but that we don't inflict our lack of self discipline and preventative health care on others.  That's the cost of living in a free society and as a responsible individual in a local community.  This has to be done so those who have coverage, either through their employer, or a personal benefit coverage don't have to bear the responsibility for those who use catastrophic healthcare found in the emergency room, don't have to pay added premiums each year stemming from these abuses.  This is the same problem that those people who don't carry car insurance make the rest of us pay more in premiums from their abuse of the system providing those who live up to the mandated issue.  You aren't supposed to be able to register your vehicle unless you have proof of insurance.  That's the law.  Why is it so hard for people to wrap their brains around the same responsibility of mandated healthcare. The more users, the less the cost, and the cost stabilizes over the course of the human events surrounding the compliance to the mandate.  The employer providing the coverage, gets a stable work force, less lost man hours on the job, and because the employee pays for part of the coverage, his cost is a lot less over the course of the long term employee sticking it out, and it costs much less over the long haul for preventative care as opposed to the overall cost of catastrophic healthcare.  There would be co-payments involved in most of the products or services involved with the individual health care provided, so neither will the owner of the insurance, or the person providing the insurance be burdened with the entire cost, and the provider will still, because of more individuals having the insurance, be able to make a profit.  Everyone has to share the cost for the system to work.  I rest what little case I have against those people who cry wolf, or foul, or confuse the issue with misinformation about it being Government interference into our religious affiliations with our Deity of Choice or our individual choice of what we do with our own bodies.

What's this?

               Okay, it's Super Tuesday, and that doesn't mean Clark Kent is going to show up.  What it engenders is that somehow with numerous States voting in the Republican Primary, we are going to see Mitt Romney grab a choke hold on the Republican Nomination Process.  By no means does it mean that the caustic rhetoric will stop flowing out into the public domain.
         This lack of objective fortitude about what the Republicans and the Tea Baggers have hoisted into the air, stopping any real progress for this nation to move into the 21st century, has certainly stymied Obama from having a chance to facilitate fixing some of the Global Competitive Initiatives we all look forward to, as a representative of Democratic concepts, including what we seem to enjoy in the economic sense of Capitalism and Free Enterprise.
          When Bush was in office the Democrats, though reluctant, allowed the Tax Cuts to the Rich, two unfunded wars, and an unfunded Senior Drug Discount policy.  Since Obama took office, his desire to get single payer Health Care or some form of mandated Healthcare to stop the bleeding of those who used the emergency room as catastrophic healthcare, has been totally thwarted.
           Though Obama got some form of Health Care enacted, it has been constantly attacked.  He did get legislation on equal pay for equal work passed and signed.  Though he didn't get a large enough stimulus package signed, he did seem to stabilize the economy, and lately, as it would do anyway, it has shown some significant signs of reversing and get the unemployment rate down.
           It seems that though the conservative wing of politicians want the government to get out of their lives, by ridding us of the Dodd/Frank legislation, they don't seem willing to get out of our bedrooms or women's healthcare issues.  They also seem determined to use the concepts behind voter fraud to enact legislation in Conservative run State Legislatures to make a lot of the population that votes Democratic harder to vote, which is a right, not a privilege.  Poor, old,seniors and minorities, along with students who register to vote where they go to college are all affected by this power grab.  Along with this, even though I do agree that Unions, especially for Public Jobs cause the deficit to grow larger, like Greece, by providing larger benefit packages and pensions, Union Busting is kinda going back in time for those concerned with safety and sanitation situations.
           It just doesn't seem fair that people claim that Obama is soft on foreign policy, considering what he did to Osama, and how he dealt with Libya, and that he is trying to make government larger, or that he has raised taxes, when people are paying less tax now than they did when Bush was in office.  We never, either those who swept him into office, or those determined to make him a one term president, gave him a chance to enact the bold concepts for what he thought would make this a better country, not only for those who live here, and want jobs, but for the global situation on coming to terms with some form of equality, which makes successful economies run smoothly.  Tax breaks for those manufacturing companies that bring their operations back to this country seems like a good idea to me.

Quilting with June in Healdsburg

        One doesn't fathom sometimes the simple nuances that come from any endeavor into the fields of dreams of any craft, but today I got an inkling into the same sort of cultural anthropology that comes with what I have

always espoused about architecture and it's protocols as far as the material the geometric patterns and shapes and the textures associated with the gender of the architect and their images of historical sequences in

 their personal artistic nomenclatures.

        I can tell you even though I was actually thrilled with going with our friend June, who I consider not only an historian of great stature personally, but of her time and space in the community in which she was born and

 raised to such an artful degree, to see a variety, and also fusions of different historical time frames and the materials and the shapes that shared sometimes individual art pieces symbolized in the quilts we were so lucky to

 have the opportunity to witness, but I gladly accepted the numerous additions to my new beginnings into the altered states involved within the artwork and the craft itself, but also the historical signposts associated with

the evolutionary processes that came with quilting itself, just like you would find in the evolutions of humankind itself.  There is the necessities of time consumption, yes, but also the multitasking qualities necessary to 

 achieve the completion of the story, like a novel, which takes place over time, and goes thru numerous character changes, as well as plot changes.

           Along with our guide, like you would find on any Antique Roadshow, who had cultural, historical, religious and political information about the design, the accepted patterns, the fabrics being used, she took each separate

quilt, displayed it on a large board, and preceded to explain what part of the country it represented, the time period involved, the type of stitching or applique that was being represented and then went on to enrich your

knowledge of the type of material being used, and which cultures made the same patterns in less or more colors, and the differences that each culture used in their borders, plain or patterned, and like the Germans, she retorted

who couldn't stop being creative and colorful and not only made the borders patterned, but found the time to be as creative on the backing as they were on the pattern they had chosen to symbolize on the front of the quilt.

         I have to admit, I was only into the color, the pattern, not even so much the historical time frame, or the cultural fusion that came with it, but also the geometric shapes involved with the individual designs

represent on the face of the quilt itself.  I was ignorant as to the type of fabric, the stitching, the historical time frames, the colors that were used, and the actual cultural backgrounds of the individual doing the piece

of craft involved, but also the artwork necessary to complete the storytelling going on, like in a book about what was going on in their personal lives, but also of the communities they lived in and the ancestry

of the people they represented in the quilt but also the story that was symbolized in the face of the quilt itself.  There is after all, for me, lots to learn about this craft, this storytelling, and the foundations of the lives it represents.

Our Garden in Windsor

Shot of some of the "Goings On" in my Garden

Steven Child	12:01 PM (9 hours ago)

          I have been communicating with one of my nephews in Afghanistan, and I told him I would take some pictures of our garden to give him an idea of what I do to support the freedom that his lifestyle choice gives us all.  I have, from the age of three, chosen to be a pacifist.  I am getting a real sense of what he and his friends and the surrounding indigenous population are experiencing in the real time he takes to write updates about his personal "Goings On", including going to people he meets houses and enjoying some of the regional cuisine.  One of those people commented when he experienced mess hall food, remarked..." you prepare lots of different food, but it is okay, where as I prepare one type of food, and it is wonderful"....by the way my nephew Michael, said that the "Naan" bread he had was the best he has tasted in his tours in Afghanistan.   Here is a full size photo of some of our yard, here on the third of March, during the preoccupation with the community at large, here in Sonoma County, deciding, even though we need more rain, that weather in the seventies is what we want as a symbol of our group think, as lots of the country's communities are being destroyed by tornadoes.  What a diverse and wonderful country we all share hopefully for the continuation of the evolution that is constantly being referred to as "Humans" being....!!!!!!

Tastings at Bruno's

Bruno's on Fourth

Steven Child	8:52 PM (12 minutes ago)

          So after spending a few educational hours at a Quilt Show
in Healdsburg with June, we took another Sonoma County backroad trip
into Santa Rosa, again with June, in tow, to go to Bruno's on Fourth
St., located across the street from the Goodwill on Fourth.  It was a
little after five, and being the first of two Restaurant Weeks for the
local restaurants throughout Sonoma County, with their prix fixe
menues, and to tell you the truth, I was happy that I had made
reservations, seeing as this place only seats 35 people.Talk about a
hole in the wall, or the eight ball in the corner pocket, but you get
the jist of the matter.
           As we do, we perused the menu, though I had already
decided on what I wanted, having downloaded the menu and studied it ad
nausuem, so when it was time for us to order, we had the gig down and
took the engine number 9 right on down the line.
           For appetizers we took out some calamari, which had some
beautiful and tasty cocktail and homemade tartar sauce, and just had a
wonderful crunchy texture, along with the nice freshness of the squish
of the squid itself, both body parts and tentacles.  Next we had these
wonderful crab and shrimp cakes that had been rolled in ball shapes
littered with two wonderfully citrus sauces, breaded and deep fat
fried and accompanied with a nice mixed green salad tossed in a citrus
vinagrette, which opened up and cleansed the palette, easily pairing
with the meaty texture of the crab and shrimp with out the textures
associated with typical filler ingredients.
            Joyce and June both ordered Harry's clam chowder, which
was very creamy, and I know it should be very clammy, as it were, with
delightful little chunks of potato to balance the creamyness with the
little bits of apple smoked bacon that crossed over the diversities
implanted in your taste buds.
             For the mains, Joyce had pancetta wrapped grilled prawns
that came with risotto in a saffron cream sauce.  Believe you me the
flavors that crossed over our palates mixing the pancetta with the
saffron cream was extroidinary and well worth the slow washing that
followed the initial hit on your tongue.  I had oven roasted pork
tenderloin, with slices of apple that was smothered in a ginger apple
glaze, and a potato croquette that was filled with bleu cheese drizzle
that was out of this world.  June got a crab filled fetticine with
artichoke hearts, avocadoes and tomatoes, which she was very happy
with, though I don't think Joyce or I got a bite of that.  She had
enough left over to eat for lunch and dinner tomorrow.
              Lastly we indulged in what they called an ice cream
sandwich, that was two chocolately brownies, with a vanilla ice cream
scoop in the middle, with a sprinkling of Reese's peanut butter chips
and both carmel and chocolate drizzles slithering all over the plate.
Other than the visuals, I can only tell you that you must, if nothing
else hits it out of the park for you in this culinary diatribe, you
have to try this delicacy.  This type of thing never goes out of style
and leaves you with wide eyes and a bushy tail, like one of the three
little pigs, all the way home.
               So for the first Saturday in the Month of March, we
have had a very satiating day, filled with history, culture and flavor
profiles that carry most of what you are into the future, leaving the
memories to a later date, giving Steven your Road Trip and Culinary
Companion time to kick back and wonder where the long and winding road
will take him next, Child, joining any ripples in the pond that are
left after this adventure, a fond farewell.

TheTheoretical Physics of Economics

          While we wallow in these conceptual images of economic gloom, probabilities languish awaiting our faith in applying those notions of prosperity.  In the present permutations of capitalism and free enterprise, our images are limited in scope to the realms relating to prosperity symbolized only by the owners of the equity.
         Historically speaking, those concepts of prosperity that were successful were exponentially shared with those providing the physical applications for the theoretical equations surrounding the original economic premise to exist in the realm of possibilities.
         In order for those theoretical equations to co-exist with the present set of circumstances, those same principles need to be reapplied to both free enterprises and capitalistic formulas, by balancing the equation between the owners of the equity and the physical forces necessary to perform the functions that provide those theoretical premises, the successful outcomes of prosperity to exist.