My dad had an old, dusty radio in the garage
It would play country music
And give weather reports
And deliver the news
And cause dad to whistle along sometimes
One day it said the war was over
I asked my dad, “Is the war really over?”
“No, not really,” he said.
2008 By David Jacobi
My dad introduced Paul Swan into my life. A few years ago he was clearing out a part of his basement and came across a painted portrait of a relative on my mother’s side. None of us knew her in life, but the back of the painting had a note tucked into it telling us who she was and how I was related to her. Dad asked if I wanted it so I took it. I looked up the artist’s name online, “Paul Swan,” but could not find many details. As of this writing he does not have a Wikipedia page. All I could initially find was he was an artist and a dancer and, in his old age, was filmed by Andy Warhol. Somehow I found out there were two people, Janis and Richard Londraville, working on a biography of Paul Swan. I contacted Janis by email and began an online correspondence with her. After telling her about the painting I had by Swan she filled in many of the blanks about him, who turned out to be quite the Renaissance man. When their book was published I bought and read it. Born in 1883 in Nebraska, Swan ran away from the farm at fifteen to Lincoln, then Chicago and New York during which time he modeled, learned to draw and paint. He was a much sought after portraitist and was also famous in his prime as a dancer. He wrote and recited poetry, acted on stage and in early movies and was a sculptor. He died in obscurity in 1972. The person in the painting I have by Swan is my maternal grandfather’s cousin. Swan painted it in his Carnegie Hall studio June 18, 1955. The note behind the painting said she was a professional opera singer, played piano, lived in N.Y.C. and had no children. After some time of research, contacting opera halls and theaters to search their archives, I came to a dead end. No one had any record of her. On the back of one of Swan’s other portraits he quoted Dobson in black ink:
All passes, art alone
Enduring stays with us.
The bust outlasts the throne,
The coin, Tiberius.
The Core Historical Literature of Agriculture “is primarily a collection of landmark agricultural texts published between the early nineteenth century and the middle to late twentieth century. These full-text materials cover agricultural economics, agricultural engineering, animal science, crops and their protection, food science, forestry, human nutrition, rural sociology, and soil science. Teams of scholars selected the titles in this collection for their historical and scientific importance.” This free resource offers 2,084 books and 36 journals ranging from 1623 to 1969.
I first came across this site several years ago when I was looking for information on Buddy Rich. Drummerworld “is a encyclopedia-like website and features Drummers from all genres in the history of Jazz and Rock – from the past till present times.” This addictive site includes photos, videos and extensive biographies.
ScienceDaily “features breaking news about the latest discoveries in science, health, the environment, technology, and more — from leading universities, scientific journals, and research organizations.” Don’t forget to sign up for their free email newsletter.
Poets.org “is produced by the Academy of American Poets. The site was launched in 1996, becoming the original online resource for poems, poets’ biographies, essays about poetry, and resources for K-12 teachers.” They also offer a free email newsletter.
After a very long, cool, rainy, wet spring, summer hit us with everything expected: bugs, fast growing grass, faster growing weeds, heat, humidity, thunderstorms, mowing, and more heat, humidity and bugs. The mosquitoes we were used to in the city have been mostly traded here in the country for biting flies, which have left me with tiny bleeding wounds on my legs and arms if I forget to spray myself down with repellent when I go out into the acreage. We have gone through two containers of weed killer spray so far and are trying a homemade brew that is not working so well yet. We planted a garden of tomatoes, peppers, green beans and cauliflower. The green bean seeds were old, leftover from previous gardening in the city, and did not sprout. The little cauliflower plants I bought two for a dollar survived for a week. They just disappeared, so I don’t know if it was bugs, critters or disease that got them. The tomato plants are doing well, and the pepper plants are full of blooms and tiny peppers. The rain this spring and early summer has been epic for Iowa and the Midwest of America in general. This last year has been the wettest here since 1895. Now with June giving way to July the heat has ramped up, with temps reaching the low 90’s Fahrenheit. Combined with high humidity it makes for some soupy days and nights. Still, all in all, I will take a hot, humid summer day over a freezing winter blizzard any time.
I was first introduced to the Merck Manual around 20 years ago when my mother was diagnosed with cancer. My dad gave my wife and I a copy so we could better understand what my parents were dealing with, but also for our own reference. The manual is both detailed and concise. For ailments they list an overview, causes, symptoms, diagnosis, prevention, treatment and prognosis. From their website, their Mission Statement reads: “We believe that health information is a universal right and that every person is entitled to accurate, accessible and usable medical information. And we believe that we have a responsibility to protect, preserve and share the best current medical information to enable more informed decisions, enhance relationships between patients and professionals, and improve health care outcomes around the world.” A noble cause and a valuable web resource.
Once a month I highlight a piece of art I have created and posted on my Fine Art America site. This one is titled Systematic Ruin, from the Spray Art collection.
3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup sweet pickle relish
1/4 cup finely chopped bell pepper, optional
1/4 cup finely chopped onion, optional
2 teaspoons minced fresh dill
8 large eggs, hard-boiled, chopped
6 croissants
1) In large bowl, beat together cream cheese and mayonnaise until smooth and creamy. Stir in salt, pepper, celery, and pickle relish. Add bell pepper and onion, if using. Stir in dill and chopped eggs.
2) Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow flavors to blend.
3) Serve on croissants.
A paperback copy of this book has been in my library for several years, unread until a few months ago. It looked like a depressing read just from the front cover of a grubby, sad boy, taken from a still of the movie made from the book. It is a memoir written by Frank McCourt (1930-2009) beginning with his earliest memories in New York City, his family’s move to Ireland and his growing up there until he returns to America. His father Malachy is a kind hearted but hopeless alcoholic who can’t keep a job. His long suffering mother Angela is eventually reduced to doing whatever she has to to keep her family alive when Malachy leaves for work in England during World War Two. He does not send any money back to his family and eventually word reaches them that he is still drinking up whatever money he manages to make. There is much humor spread throughout the misery as Frank recounts his struggles with his faith, dealing with colorful relatives and neighbors, surviving sadistic school masters and eventually discovering girls. His tone throughout is matter of fact and even, allowing readers to evaluate the people and situations for themselves. He won a Pulitzer Prize for the book and wrote two follow up memoir’s titled ‘Tis and Teacher Man, neither of which I have read. The movie made about the book got mixed reviews, and I don’t think I will watch it because I don’t want it to tamper with the characters in the book as I envision them. While much of the subject matter is grim, most pages brought out at least a chuckle from this reader. It could be the pathos the book evokes is what won it that prize.
The Foundation For Intentional Community states their mission is to “support and promote the development of intentional communities and the evolution of cooperative culture.” Communes today are associated with hippies and as settings for horror movies, but exploring this site should help part the curtain of old stereotypes.
If the suggested viewing Netflix offers you is coming up a little short try What’s on Netflix for some ideas. Whether you are looking for some recommendations or want to dig into a sub-genre, it’s all there. A very useful site.
Gnod is a project of Marek Gibney’s that allows you to “use the latest technological advances to make us all discover more and better things.” Input a few samples of music, products, art, literature or movies that you like and Gnod will make recommendations of new things to try.
Black and WTF is full of funny and bizarre, mostly vintage, photos. The site has not been updated for a few years, but it still makes for addictive viewing.
Have a good weekend!
Shelly and I have been camping together since she was pregnant with our daughter, who is now 30 and has four children of her own. We camped in our home state of Iowa until the kids were out of diapers and able to talk and feed themselves, then began venturing to neighboring states. We ended up when the kids were teenagers in the Grand Tetons, Rocky Mountains, Yellowstone, The Badlands, Black Hills, The Great Lakes, and other places along rivers, lakes and in forests. We endured countless bugs, torrential thunderstorms, a tornado, lost gear, wet gear, wrong turns, smoking brakes in the mountains, vapor lock in the middle of a busy intersection, a pack of thieving raccoon’s, collapsing tents, howling coyotes, burnt food, cold food, cold nights and days, hot nights and days, and even more bugs. Last, but maybe worst, if you have ever gone on a long trip with a sullen teenager you know what special kind of a situation they can create. And then there are the forests, mountains, hills, flatlands, starry skies, waterfalls, caves, rivers and streams, huge clouds, blowing prairie grasses, flowers, peaceful wildlife, memorable sunsets, winding highways and back roads, fishing, hiking, campfires, good food, spectacular lightning storms, and, of course, smores. Whenever we returned home from a camping vacation it would be with mixed feelings and reviews. As time passed and the vacation took hold in memory, most of the bad would filter out and leave what was truly important. Before too long you are ready to venture out again, with the road ahead and expectations in tow.
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Off The Back Porch 