REPEAT FOR THOSE HIT BY SANDY

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.

On a day when life was personally at its most confusing, I heard this song "Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On" (2005) on Radio Margaritaville (where else) and thought what a great piece of advice Jimmy was giving me.

 

Then upon realizing that I had the song on CD, Take the Weather With You, I listened a little more closely to what Jimmy was actually singing about.  As many of you know, Jimmy Buffett grew up in Alabama and has strong ties to the Gulf Coast and here he is singing about when Hurricane Katrina and "Pontchartrain buried  the ninth ward to the second floor".  The song has a 2005 copyright so must have been written soon after this terrible hurricane hit in September 2005.  

At first it seemed rather banal advice to people whose loved ones died and had their homes ruined, but right after the storm what else was there to do but "Breathe in, Breathe out, Move on".  As he so often does, Mr. Buffett got it right again. 

WEEKEND JAZZ

Usually this blog features a Jimmy Buffett video for your "Weekend Song", but for this short weekend before the long weekend I thought we could all use some great jazz.  This is why I am introducing you to La Cuchina in case you aren't already into them.  What can I say about a group whose motto is "La Cuchina makes people want to dance to jazz again"!   It couldn't be better for a great spring weekend, so give the video a listen.

After that I know you will want to hear more and learn more about them.  They have great songs on the website so follow the link and become a fan.  LA CUCHINA

If Jimmy Buffett can play at Jazz Fest in New Orleans, these guys should be the headliner!!!!

MY GUILTY PLEASURE

For GBE2 #52: Guilty Pleasures

Most people think of pirate pleasures as being rum, a clear sail, booty, etc.  But, these are not guilty pleasures since most pirates have difficulty feeling guilt in any case.

I, however, not being the average pirate, do feel guilt and have quite a few guilty pleasures and the most ridiculous one (at least in some people's eyes) is HGTV"s "House Hunters".  Wait, not just "House Hunters", also "House Hunters International", "House Hunters World Tour" and any other variations on this show that HGTV wants to provide.  During rough times, when I've seen then all, I might even resort to "Property Virgins" and "For Rent".

When having a bad day, many of us turn to ice cream, chocolate, RUM, etc., but all I have to do is turn on an episode of "House Hunters"and am instantly cheered up.  Why?  I've always loved looking in other people's homes even if they are million dollar homes that have amenities that I would never hope to own.  But wait there's more, where else can you watch people with an amazingly low budget get upset because the house doesn't have stainless steel appliances.

Here are the must haves for almost all house hunters including the international ones:  Stainless steel appliances, double sinks in an en suite bathroom attached to the master bedroom, a master bedroom large enough to play tennis in, and a great back yard that requires no maintenance on the part of the owners (also no maintenance fees).  Are you beginning to see why this is fun?  The newer shows have actually been showing the exasperation on the part of the poor real estate agent who has been saddled with this couple.

Overseas, it's even worse.  People moving from Texas to Germany don't seem to get the idea that they won't have huge rooms, updated kitchens (sometimes there's no kitchen), at a reasonable price in German cities and the European countryside lacks even more of the amenities they can't live without.  Don't you just want to say "why didn't you stay home".  Is this a great distraction or what?  

The hardest part about this guilty pleasure is that HGTV has actually been cutting back on the hundreds of hours of House Hunters that they used to show in favor of OTHER SHOWS.  Still though there is a new one every weeknight at 10 p.m. eastern.  Check it out!!!

TITLE TUNE BY JIMMY BUFFETT

I promised on Thursdays that I would post the Jimmy Buffett song for your weekend listening and this week it is the one that this blog is named after, "A Pirate Looks At Forty".  Both Jimmy and I have are way past forty now, but it still rings true for whatever age you are.

My favorite line: "I made enough money to buy Miami, but I pissed it away too fast".  

Enjoy your weekend!!!

GREAT DRINKING SONG FOR THIS WEEKEND

Well, I'm no longer posting Jimmy Buffett everyday, but I do not want my fans to go without, so I'm going to try to post a favorite on Thursdays anyway.

"A Lot to Drink About" from Buffett Hotel  is an absolutely great song for the Cinco de Mayo weekend and the video is a great one of Jimmy and Mac MacAnaly doing an impromptu concert at the Margaritaville Cafe in Key West.  Why doesn't that happen when I walk into a Margaritaville Cafe????

So, listen, enjoy and I know you'll know all the words by the time you need a good drinking song. This one hits on everything that's happening now and just a bit more.  Thanks, Jimmy.  I need some RUM!!!

Z is for (USS) ZYDECOLDSMOBILE

Here we are at the final day of the A to Z Challenge and here is the Jimmy song that I found for "Z","USS Zydecoldsmobile" (2002) from the Far Side of the World CD.

Jimmy did not write this song, it was written by Sonny Landreth, but as usual with his lively performance and great band, Jimmy makes it his own.

Zydeco, for those that don't know, is from cajun music in Louisiana and you hear it all the time in New Orleans.  This is get up and dance, have a few more drinks and enjoy yourself music.

I hope that's what you've been doing here on "A Pirate Looks Past Sixty" during this challenge and PLEASE stay tuned, we'll be doing more Jimmy, more pirate info and more sailing and getting high!!!!  Thanks for joining.

Y is for You Call It Jogging...

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


Jimmy didn't write this song, it is attributed Loudemilk and please all you fans, let me know who this is.  Jimmy makes it his own though and it is included on the 1999 Beach House on the Moon CD.

The song is obviously about a husband who believes that instead of "jogging" like she tells him, his wife is out fooling around.  Pointing out all the signs that he sees, such as, "Somebody said they saw you down at the corner getting out of some stranger's car".  Also after hours of jogging, she comes home not even "breathing hard".

Jimmy's roots are in country and this sprightly little song is a step back into the genre, which he does well.

X is for X RATED

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.

Well, it is probably more PG 13 rated now, although it was a little wilder when it first came out in 1973.  From the weirdly named and great CD  A White Sports Coat and a Pink Crustacean, we have the infamous drinking etc. song, "Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw".

Naturally this has become a concert favorite and listen hard, the words pretty much say it all.  Not my favorite Jimmy song, but one of the songs that will live on forever and ever and ever.

So have another drink, find your partner and follow Jimmy's advice.

W is for WINGS

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


From the relatively recent Hotel Buffett CD (2009), we have a philosophical song written by Jimmy Buffett and Will Kimbrough called "Wings".

We all know that Jimmy loves to fly in his airplanes and he also loves the idea of  "treetop flying" which is mentioned in this song.  I think that they are telling everyone to take a fresh look at life or look at it from a different point of view and you might fly on "wings that you can't see".

I'm also very fond of the line "I don't need no runway, I got fuel here in my bong, I can buzz at treetop flyer level all day long".  Also near the end of the song where they say "You can try to fly away from all your problems, well, I'm here to say that ain't the way to solve them".

Jimmy once again give us things to think about.

V is for VAMPIRES, MUMMIES AND THE HOLY GHOST plus bonus song

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


I know many, many of you were expecting "Volcano" and I will put a video of that at the end, but if you haven't heard "Vampires, Mummies, and the Holy Ghost", you really need to, which is why it is my "V" for the day.  This great fun song is from the Fruitcakes  CD, which if you don't own it you should get it.

Jimmy is only afraid of vampires, mummies and the Holy Ghost, nothing else scares him, lucky him.  I do like the verse about the "serial killer down the block" , he seemed so quiet and raised orchids, who knew.  It's a great fun song so sing along and enjoy your Wednesday.

For you purists, here is Volcano:

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U is for UNCLE JOHN'S BAND

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.

Well as you all know, this song was not an original Jimmy Buffett song, but originally and wonderfully done by The Grateful Dead.  Also, I am not too fond of Jimmy's covers, which he seems to be doing quite a bit of lately.

That being said, "Uncle John's Band" which Jimmy covers on the Fruitcakes CD is a pretty good cover and a great song for "U" day.  As you can probably tell from my use of songs, this album is one of my favorites and will also show up on "V" day.

Listen and enjoy and mellow out, however you usually do, be it rum or other stuff.

T is THE WEATHER IS HERE I WISH YOU WERE BEAUTIFUL

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


"The Weather is Here I Wish You Were Beautiful" (1980) from the Coconut Telegraph CD has been one of my favorite songs for two reasons.

The first one is that of course, it has all the Jimmy Buffett elements, love of the palm tress, escaping a bitchy girlfriend, finding new love and finally deciding to kick it all over and move to the islands.  In the song, I am assuming he is from NYC and not sure where the flight attendant is from (Jimmy used the politically incorrect "Stewardess" in the song).

The other thing I love about this song is that at the time he recorded it Jimmy was a big "All My Children" fan; that's right the soap opera.  I watched it off and on when I was home with kids, but my friend called one day and said "Jimmy Buffett is going to be on 'All My Children' today!"  and he was.  He walked into a bar sat down, I don't remember if he had any lines, but the juke box was playing one of his songs.

THIS song comes into this all (ah, you were waiting for a point, right) because of the line "Billy Clyde wasn't insane".  Billy Clyde Tuggle was a "All My Children"  character, so I've always gotten a kick out of that and remember Jimmy's brief soap opera cameo every time I hear this song. .

S is for SON OF A SON OF A SAILOR

This song is the title song of one of my favorite Jimmy Buffett albums Son of a Son of a Sailor (1978).  As we know from following Jimmy's other songs, he actually is the son of a son of a sailor in that his grandfather was a sailing ship captain.

This song celebrates sailing and being on the water.  As Jimmy says, :The sea's in my veins, my tradition remains, I'm just glad I don't live in a trailer".  He has never been fond of the trailer parks scattered over Florida and especially hates them in the Keys.

This song more than many others speaks to how this guy became such a hit with many people.  He dreams the same dream, sings about them in song and then goes out and lives the dream, but shares it all with his fans like he's their best friend.  I have to admit that there are times in my life his songs have been my best friend.

Hey, this weekend go down to the ocean and listen to some Buffett!!!

R is for RHUMBA MAN

CMT music video


Today is "R" day and I'm finally putting up a song from one of Jimmy's most recent CDs.  The song is "Rhumba Man" (written by Jesse Winchester, who performs with Jimmy here) and it is on Jimmy Buffett's 2009 CD Hotel Buffett. 


I played it because today is a beautiful spring day and we're nearing summer and it's a great day to get out there and Rhumba as I know so many Jimmy fans are already doing in the parking lots prior to his concerts on the present tour.

RHUMBA BABY!!

Q is for QUIETLY MAKING NOISE

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


First off, don't forget to check out the amazing video for this song, actually I think he used the song to highlight the video of cats being drawn by what appears to be a computer program.  Good stuff!

Anyway, "Quietly Making Noise" (1994) is from the very lively Fruitcakes CD which includes "Fruitcakes" which is also a great song.

Naturally this one was chosen because it was the only Jimmy Buffett "Q" song that I could find, fortunately it's a good one.  Jimmy is once again singing about Paris which appears to be a place that he really loves and so there are many references to Oscar Wilde "died in bed, several floors above my head" and then goes on to mention going into the metro, meeting various people of different nationalities, and then "singers and writers and poets have flocked here for centuries, the city of light is built upon mountains of memories".

A reader did comment that he had seen Jimmy perform in Paris, did he do this song?
 

P is for PEANUT BUTTER CONSPRACY

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


"Peanut Butter Conspiracy" (1973) is a really quirky song from the equally quirky album A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean, which also includes another of my favorite of Jimmy's crime songs "The Great Filling Station Holdup".

In "Peanut Butter Conspiracy", Jimmy takes us back to his "hard luck days" when apparently (probably fictionally) he and some co-conspirators would go into a mini-mart and shoplift.  So that we'll all know that he is not really bad, he vows to pay the mini-mart back when he hits the big time.

Interestingly, Jimmy was involved in investing in an underwater treasure hunt and they actually found some valuable items, I'm not sure when this was.  The news media at the time quoted this song and asked if now   was when he would "pay the mini-mart back"!

O is for ONE PARTICULAR HARBOR

"One Particular Harbor" (1983) is from the album of the same name and is Mr. Buffett's ode to Tahiti.  He sings the first and last verses in Tahitian which obviously many of his fans have learned,  because they try anyway to sing it along with him at concerts.

This lovely song is about a beautiful place in Pacific (not Jimmy's usual stomping ground) and is soothing to listen to.  The CMT video that I've included is from a concert Jimmy did in Antuilla, not Tahiti.

The translation of the first Tahitian verse (according to Wikipedia) is:

"Nature lives (life to nature), Have pity for the Earth, (Love the Earth)"

And the translation of the final Tahitian verse is that plus:

 "Bounty of the land is exhausted, But there is still abundance on the sea"

Sounds like Jimmy for sure!

N is for NO PLANE ON SUNDAY

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


Continuing down the alphabet, I find Jimmy has very few "N" songs, but this one is a song I've always liked and actually remember singing to myself when stuck in McCarren Airport in Vegas overnight one night.  "No Plane on Sunday" (1986) is from the Floridays CD.

The story is very simple and we've all been there, although I know I didn't do it Jimmy style.  They're planning on flying out of the islands (since he says "we're on island time") and the flight has been cancelled because of "something with  the landing gear" which seems like a fine reason to me.  Well, most of us would sit around the airport like the disgruntled people in the video, but Jimmy envisions a different plan.

In his plan, you meet a handsome guy (or beautiful woman) and even though you both have someone back home you spend the night dining, walking on the beach and very  much together.  Then comes Monday and it's back to real life.  It sure beats playing the slots and sleeping on the floor at McCarren.  Jimmy always seems to have a better plan.

M is for MARGARITAVILLE (what else!)

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation


There was really no question what "M" would be, but for those new to Mr. Buffett, "Margaritaville" (1977) was the BIG hit for Jimmy and the one that led many of us to the rest of his music.  This song first appeared on the Changes in Lattitudes, Changes in Attitudes CD,

I first heard the song on the radio in 1977 when I was living on Fort Carson in Colorado Springs, CO, with my husband and  one year old daughter.  (see "Little Miss Magic").  I don't know why I remember this so well, but we lived in the shadow of Cheyenne Mountain and Pikes Peak and I swear I was looking at those mountains and was thinking how far away I was from my Atlantic Ocean roots and Jimmy brought me back there.  When did you first hear this?

I've posted the lyrics version this time in case this was your first time and in case you've been singing the words wrong for years and years.  A simple song that led to complex feelings for me and thousands of others, and that's what Jimmy's songs are all about.

L is for LITTLE MISS MAGIC

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


While Jimmy does have a lot of  "L"s, this little song has always been close to my heart.  Once again he is writing about his daughter, the older one this time, as "Little Miss Magic" is on the much older Coconut Telegraph CD.

This You Tube videographer put the lyrics up in this version which I think is great because I'm sure it's not a song that a lot of people know.  I always felt it was about my daughter, or a least what my husband would write about our daughter if he were in fact a songwriter.  Now, I totally believe it describes our beautiful granddaughter who will be 5 months old tomorrow.

I'll bet a lot of you have some "miss magics" in your lives, and love them just as much as Jimmy Buffett loves his.  Enjoy!!!

K is for KICK IT IN SECOND WIND

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


Oddly there are very few "K" songs in Jimmy's repertoire.  "Kick it In Second Wind" (1976) is from the Havana Daydreamin'  CD.

I only found one video for this song and oddly enough the lyrics are somewhat changed on this version.  The lyrics that I am familiar with use the refrain "losing anymore hope of scoring any more coke, and we still have to do another show".  If you look at the printed lyrics online this is also what you get.  Perhaps there was this drug free version recorded for some reason that I am not aware of.  (seems odd for Jimmy though).  I couldn't find any history on it.

It's not his best or worst song, just telling the story of performing late nite at the clubs and all the things that go wrong, "somebody locked in the bathroom" ,  "bassman  takes a great fall".  It's fun enough and it is a "K" so on with the challenge.

I guess all of us "older" fans are getting to our "Second Wind" about now!!!

J is for JAMAICA MISTAICA

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


I am sure that many of you have heard about the fact that Jimmy Buffett's plane was fired upon by Jamaican authorities in 1996.  Well, in this lively and fun song, "Jamaica Mistaica" (1996), Jimmy musically tells us the story and the song is part of one of my favorite CD's Banana Wind (which has a hidden track of "Treetop Flying" on it).

Something that Jimmy does not include in the song is the fact that Bono (of U2) and his wife and kids were some of the passengers on the plane when it landed in Nigril.  Apparently, the authorities in Jamaica mistook the plane for a smuggler's plane that they had been alerted to watch for.  Fortunately (especially for Jamaican authorities) there were no injuries although there was some property damage (bullet holes) to the plane.

We all know that Jimmy loves flying and loves his planes.  This one was a Grumann HU-16 Albatross

Ah "another shitty day in paradise" to quote Jimmy.

I is for (TWO SONGS)

O.K. I really didn't think I could get by doing "I" without using "It's Five O'clock Somewhere" (2003) which has been associated with Jimmy Buffett since the day it came out.  You may wonder, looking at the video why, instead good old Jimmy, you see very handsome Alan Jackson singing.  This is a song that they did together and gave Jimmy his first Country Music Award ever.

When Jimmy does this one in concert he often calls on his old friend and singing partner, Mac Macanally, to sing Alan Jackson's part and it sounds really good.  You can hear live concerts on Radio Margaritaville often.

Now for the song that I love and that I fully planned on putting in for "I":



Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


"Island" (1980)  is a beautiful little song where Jimmy seems to be saying that finding love is as difficult as landing on this beautiful island that he sees in the distance.

Enjoy the Double Concert.   Link to RADIO MARGARITAVILLE

H is for HE WENT TO PARIS

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


"He Went to Paris" (1973) is not a really well known song of Jimmy Buffett's, but it is one of his most poetic and tells a great story.  The album this is from is the intriguingly named A White Sport Coat and  a Pink Crustacean.  


The story is of a man going to Paris "looking for answers" and of the ups, downs, loves and sadness of his life.  He enjoys great love with his wife and family and then loses them all to war and circumstances.  It has been said that Jimmy is writing about a man who was a Spanish Civil War veteran that he met in his travels.  Another interesting aspect to this song is that Jimmy never put it on his concert play lists until at one point he heard that Bob Dylan liked the song, then he start including it more frequently.

The great line in this song for me is "Some of it's magic and some of it's tragic, but I had a good life anyway".

G is for GROWING OLDER BUT NOT UP

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


This song almost says it all in the title "Growing Older But Not Up" (1981) which is on the Coconut Telegraph CD. 


I know that I personally do not feel my age, especially since I've gotten a little fitter and Jimmy feels the same way as he's out playing baseball and breaks his leg realizing that perhaps his body has gotten a little older than he feels he is.

I know my comments are short on this one, but Jimmy delivers it best with the wonderful line "I'd rather die while I'm living than live while I'm dead".  Me too.

Happy Easter and see you as the challenge continues on Monday.

F is for FINS

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


"FINS" (1979) was originally a rather innocuous song about a cute woman down in the islands who has guys (sharks) "schooling" around her.  (Not a really bad problem if you ask me.) It is on the Volcano CD.  

However, as you can see from the video (from a concert in Australia), "Fins" has become the quintessential concert song and Jimmy cannot do a concert without it.  If you've been to a concert you  know that there will be a time that you will put your hands together over your head and sway to the left and then to the right and that EVERYONE else there will be doing the exact same thing.  It is is part of what makes Jimmy Buffett concerts some of the most popular in the world.

If you have done the concert correctly and arrived several hours beforehand for the the tailgating, you will have seen people with shark hats, cars with shark fins on them and cars that actually are dressed up in total as sharks.  As a Patriot fan I hate to add this last bit, but in 2009 Jimmy wrote new lyrics for this song to be used by the Miami Dolphins when they get a touchdown, if that ever happens.  So FINS UP!!!!!

E is for EVERYBODY'S GOT A COUSIN IN MIAMI

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


This is another lively song from the vibrant Fruitcakes CD of 1994.

"Everybody's Got a Cousin in Miami" is Buffett's anthem to the fact that everyone in Miami and actually the whole country has come from somewhere else.  As he says, it's hard to remember that Miami was once a trading post "home to the Seminole, pirate and pioneer"

The two stories that he relates are in the beginning of the song: one about people coming from Cuba, 90 miles away, customs allowed them to land as their kinfolk were here.  The other is about a drummer from a third world country, not named, and his mom sends him to his relations in Miami where he sees his name on a "cardboard sign" and he begins to live the dream.

Of course, with the exception of the Seminole and other tribes, Jimmy reminds us that we are all from somewhere else and always about his connections to the "temperate zone", the love for parties and of course, "everybody's got a cousin in Miami"!

.

D is for DELANEY TALKS TO STATUES

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


Jimmy Buffett seems to be at his song writing best when he is writing about his children and, as he says in the video, this one is for his daughter, Sara Delaney.  "Delaney Talks to Statues" (1994) is on the Fruitcakes CD.


I had some trouble finding a video for this song as so many people posted it with their children in it and, of course, restricted the video.  This one is of an acoustic concert that Jimmy did and it does have a certain intimacy and closeness with the crowd that is not seen in his larger concerts; although Jimmy is always good with a crowd.

I've always loved this song as it is such a nice anthem to a young girl just dancing around and living in her imagination.  She also gets to be in Rome which is certainly a bonus, but as any young kid will do, she talks to the statues and chases cats and enjoys her life as a little girl whose father loves her so very much.

C is for COCONUT TELEGRAPH

Please note that the videos embedded with the songs were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


I chose "Coconut Telegraph"(1980)  from a large selection of "C" Buffett songs because it signifies what so much of Jimmy's repertoire is, JUST PLAIN FUN! It is from the CD of the same name, Coconut Telegraph.  

Here the story is about a bunch of party folk, who all live near each other on the same (knowing Jimmy) island in the Caribbean.  Every weekend there is a major party and from Sunday until possibly Wednesday there is much discussion among these friends about who did what crazy thing at that party on the "Coconut Telegraph".

When Friday rolls around again and everyone gets paid, they are ready to forget all that craziness and jump into it all again as so many of us did in our younger years, or may be even in these years.  Enjoy!!!

A is for AFRICAN FRIEND

Please note that the videos with the songs embedded were posted by some great Parrotheads on YouTube and not my creation.


 African Friend (1973) is one of my favorites from the Son of a Son of A Sailor album and well proves that one of the things that Jimmy Buffett does best is tell a story; he is a writer at heart. This story is about a man from Africa visiting Haiti, we're never told why but there is some political feeling to his visit. Looking forward to some free time, he goes to a casino, plays craps and runs into the narrator (I always think it is Jimmy, but who knows). They have a great time gambling, winning, drinking and ending up on the "steps of a whorehouse".

The African man is asked to leave the country and leaves the narrator a note which has my favorite Buffett lines in it: "It was a pleasure and a hell of an evening, surely was our night to win". I think of these lines every time I've had a great night doing anything especially gambling. The American and African became friends for a night and who knows, maybe always. 

What are your thoughts on this song?

AN A-Z JIMMY BUFFETT CONCERT

That's right "A PIRATE LOOKS PAST SIXTY" will be having a spring concert of Jimmy Buffett songs for the A-Z challenge. STARTS TOMORROW!!! Each day I will post a song and (if all goes well) you'll be able to listen and see the great video some Parrothead on YouTube created, and then read what I think about the song. It doesn't end THERE though. Let's all discuss the song in comments!!! Could be fun!

A SHORT LIST OF PIRATE THINGS

Written for GBE2 week #44




This is my short list of pirate facts and other things:

1.  Yes the flag in the picture is hanging outside my house on an unusually warm day in March in New England.

2.  Pirates are often shown with parrots because in the 1600's, 1700's etc., these were considered "exotic" and were therefore somewhat valuable.  Never accuse a pirate of not wanting to make a quick buck.

3.  In my pirate reading I have found that it was not really known for pirates to use "walking the plank" as a punishment.  More usual punishments for wayward pirates that upset their captains were the wonderful practice of leaving them on an uninhabited island to die or the warm thought of tying them to the mast to starve.

4.  This is for my fellow rum lovers.  Yes, Captain Morgan was a real pirate named Captain Henry Morgan, who was actually the British Governor of Jamaica for a time during the 1600's.  I prefer Gosling's rum, especially the Dark Rum which makes a great Dark and Stormy.

5.  A Dark and Stormy is the world's best drink mixing Dark Rum (preferably Goslings) with Ginger Beer (not ginger ale).  This drink came to popularity in Bermuda and I'm sure all good pirates drink it.

6.  Rhode Island was considered a great place for pirates in the 1600's and 1700's because of vagaries of its coastline with many safe inlets and the corruptibility of the government.  i.e. the term "Rogue's Island".  Some things never change.

All you readers join this blog for it's A-Z of Jimmy Buffett songs starting April 1, or I'll have to tie you to the mast.

Simplifying to Complexity

Written for GBE2 Week #41 "Simplicity"

Many times I've found that trying to "keep it simple" has made things more complex. Sure everything starts out simply enough, say for instance playing the piano. You start with the basic C scale, no flats, no sharps, no chords, just one note at a time. However, if the point is to play the piano decently you need to learn all the scales with sharps, flats etc. and chords and different timing and many other things that then make it a complex pursuit.

When simplifying one's life, does it not really lead to more complexity? How many politicians have left office saying that they want to get back to the basics; time with their families. Now, when has time with anyone's family, particularly your own relatives, been particularly simple. Family relationships are beyond complex and spending more time in them may enrich them, but will never make it simple.

There are those people who want to simplify their lives by getting rid of the "clutter". In many cases, such as my husband's, this means to literally get rid of junk accumulating around the homestead. Usually, in his case, this means getting rid of MY "junk" from around the homestead. Nonetheless, does removing clutter simplify things? Certainly you may have to hold an annoying and amazingly complex yard sale to rid yourself of these items, also you may find you actually did need one of the items and end up buying it again.

Is my whole thesis in this post that we can never simplify our lives? No, but it may not be as simple as it first appears.

THANKS TO Elaine Kehoe at TEA LEAVES for this award

Now to the hard part of receiving an award, coming up with seven things about myself for the world to read.  Here goes: 

1.  I am a pirate at heart and mind and enjoy doing all sorts of things.  I am also an old pirate. 

2.  Believe it or not I've been married for 37 years and spawned a beautiful, accomplished daughter, who has given us 3 great grandchildren, and my always interesting son, himself a pirate. (see RI PIRATE PLAYERS). 

3.  I've had many strange and interesting jobs over the years, not the least being my 16 years as an attorney.  I've also had some real boring ones, but always seemed to be surrounded by interesting people. 

4.  I do a lot of sort of things like:  sort of play the piano, sort of knit (see PIRATE KNITTING), sort of write and sort of get paid.  

5.  I've been sort of blogging for a few years and have met some great people and read some really nice things throughout blog challenges, GBE2, Blog Park etc.  

6.  You meet many people in 62 years, some of who are friends for a time, some drift away and some stay as friends forever.  I am lucky to have at least 3 of those friends forever (BFF), one of whom is my husband. 

7.  I have been lucky in many things and am gambling that luck continues. 

Now the good part, my nominees for this award:

Frizzy (what is your name?):  http://ibfrizzy.blogspot.com/

Mary Anne: http://www.writewrongorindifferent.com/

Beth (of course and always):  http://www.word-nerd-speaks.com/

Joyce Paull Lansky:  http://joycelansky.blogspot.com/

Jo Heroux:  http://jo-mywanderingmind.blogspot.com/

November Rain: http://bloggitwrite.blogspot.com/

Claudia Moser:  http://cnovac.blogspot.com/

Laurie Peel: http://earthdragonhealing.blogspot.com/

Langley Cornwall: http://langley-writes.blogspot.com/

Jenn Duffy-Pearson:  http://www.wine-n-chat.com/

Gill Taber:  http://mojowritin.blogspot.com/

PIRATES DON'T WORK OR VOLUNTEER!!!

Written for GBE2

 Well, this pirate has actually done both, work for pay and piles of volunteer work. As with many people, my first paying job was when I was 16 and I was a library messenger at the Providence Public Library downtown. Because I was working for a nonprofit they could pay under minimum wage at the time, lucky me. (So I was sort of volunteering). My paid jobs have gone from library messenger, secretary, medical transcriptionist, attorney, and now, sometimes I get paid for writing.

 However, some of my most interesting and fun work has been volunteer work. At 14, I was a candy striper (not the stripper you might expect from a pirate) at a local hospital. I worked in the pharmacy which was fun and made me want to be a pharmacist until I took chemistry and realized that wasn't going to happen. I came from a family that embraced volunteerism, my mother eventually becoming President of the Rhode Island YWCA. My parents took in refugees from Europe in the 1950s and did many other things pro bono, that's "attorneyspeak" for free. This stuck with me.

 While I always needed to have a paying job, I spent many interesting hours knitting hats and making meatballs for school bazaars; running fundraisers; and even was a Girl Scout Brownie leader for a year (pirates do not make good Brownie leaders!). In this period of my life with a newborn, a 5 year old and a husband overseas, I met many good friends through this "work".

 This blog is not about a pirate turned good person, (that never happened, still a pirate) but it is rather about the fact that some of the most fascinating work and people can be found in the volunteer sector. As an attorney, I did my pro bono through the bar association and elderly affairs being a guardian for people whose families were either living off them or disappeared. I enjoyed helping these folks through probate court. I also loved working with Lawyers in the Arts helping artists and creative folks with intellectual property issues. Once again I benefited the more than the clients from this work by meeting some great people and entering lives I would not have otherwise seen.

 Today, too crazy to be a lawyer any more and trying to make some money writing, i.e. retirement to some, I am back at the library. This time as a volunteer, shelving books and meeting people in our very diverse local branch. This is excellent exercise and a great way to find books you might not have thought to take out, but the pay is even lower the before, just plain 0, but the world opened by volunteering is "priceless". Or in pirate terms, that's something with ARRH  booty!