A Confederacy of Dunces

It is a rare thing to find a funny novel. Novels often have funny passages, but a novel that is laugh out loud funny from start to finish is a rare thing.

In 1980, John Kennedy Toole published just such a rarity. He never saw it in print. He committee suicide before then, but his Mother pushed the book to many potential publishers before finding a taker. The literary world should praise her persistence.

Toole created a character like few others in literature. The closest I can think of is John Falstaff but Toole's hero, Ignatius J. Reilly is far stranger and far funnier that Shakespeare's comic creation. Reilly is a genius and as lazy a human as you can imagine. He lives in New Orleans with his Mother and confronts the Modern World with a mind that would have been fear more at ease in the Middle Ages. He is morbidly obese, unkempt. and has few, very few, social graces.

He is forced, through odd circumstances, to go out and find a job. I won't mention the circumstances; you will have to read the novel. His entry into the working world and his encounters with a variety of exceptionally odd folks makes for the funniest novel I know of. Give the book a read and enjoy a nice, long laugh.

Entertaining at the Inaugural

It seems that many major performers are refusing to do their thing at Friday's Presidential Inaugural  Ceremony. Who cares?

The Inaugural is a political event, not a night club show. Of course, some pageantry is involved and it is, in its way, impressive. It is a ritual of our Nation and a way of showing the World that we can change without violence and upheaval. Any entertainers who choose to perform should do so, but they must realize that they are not why people are watching.

I have heard that many high school matching bands will be there. Great. It should be a wonderful experience and an honor those kids will remember for a life time. I have heard that some Country entertainers will be playing. Fine, the traditional music of America should be there. There are plenty of talented people in America who would love to perform at this huge event. Any who don't, don't. You won't be missed.

Actually, I would be far happier if the performances were limited to amateurs and little known talents.  There are some very gifted folks who get no exposure and this would be a thrill for them. Let the big name, spoiled brat celebrities stay away. We'll all have some fun without them.

Sequels

My Dad used to say, being an old fan of horse racing, that when you get a good horse, you ride it to death. Well, what's true in many areas is not true in books and movies, at least not often.

This comes to mind because I am reading Steven King's Doctor Sleep, a sequel to the Shining. It's okay, that's all. The Shining was an excellent, frightening, horror story and KIng should have left things there. Instead, he wrote a novel that, while its moments, it seems to be primarily an excuse for King to tout the benefits of AA. It is overly sentimental and down right preachy. He should not have revisited the story.

In movies, I thought the original Star Wars was decent entertainment. I never thought that we would be subjected to a seemingly endless stream of sequels and prequels, each more inane than the last. Raiders of the Lost Ark was a fine movie. They should have stopped there, the follow ups have steadily declined in quality and now it seems we are going to have another.

While I'm on the subject, there is serious talk of a Blade Runner sequel. Please, no. The original is about as good a movie as can be made. Let the story die there.

One of the few sequels I ever ran across that equaled the original is Larry McMurty's follow up to Lonesome Dove, The Streets of Loredo. Both his novel and the TV mini series version are great. Unfortunately, he decided to write a couple of woeful prequels.

Maybe there is just an incredible lack of imagination these days or, more likely, writers are just too pushed to turn out product. Whatever the cause, I would like to tell all writers one thing: if you have nothing new to say, keep quiet.

Entertainment and Politics

In recent weeks, we have witnessed the complete meltdown of many entertainers over the election of Donald Trump. I normally do not bring up politics in the blog, but I have to say one thing to these spoiled brats. "Get over yourselves."

From Springsteen to Madonna to Merle Streep, from Samuel Jackson to Steven King to Cher, celebrities seem to believe that we have elected the Antichrist. We have not. The American people have chosen a leader who they feel will represent the views and interests of the average folks. Seemingly, this does not correspond to what our celebrity elite think are our best interests and they are aghast, appalled that we dare disagree with them.

They do not understand in the least why we are ignoring their beliefs. They should be asking themselves, why would we listen to them? Just because you can play a decent role in a movie does not mean the you understand foreign affairs. Singing a song, does not mean that you are qualified to enter a scientific discussion of climate change. Telling a few jokes does not entitle you to tell people who actually work for a living how their tax money should be spent.

So, all of you entertainers should remember something. Americans can always find other people to sing and act and tell jokes. We don't need you. But, without us, you have nothing. Why, you might even have to go out and do some honest hard work and, trust me, you couldn't stand up to one day of it. Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert DiNiro, Whoopie Goldberg, and all the rest of you, need to retreat to a corner, shut up, and just be glad you have made a bunch of money off the rest of us, the folks who work for a living..

A Request

I'm taking time out today, from my usual ranting and babbling, to ask for a bit of help. No, this is not a request for money, but I have a situation.

I live in Brunswick, Ga, with my long time friend, Deb. We wish to move to N. Georgia, near, but not in Atlanta. This is just not a good place for us to live.

However, in this town, there are no train stations, no Greyhound stations, the only airport is for small private planes, and we have no car. Neither of us, due to vision issues, can curretntly drive.

We would like suggestions on how we might get to N. Georgia. We do not have a lot of belongings and we would be more than happy to pay for transport.

If you have any suggestions, please contact me. If anyone knows the feasibility of using Uber for long trips, your comments would be welcome. If you, or someone reliable who you know, wish to make a little money for about a 7 hour drive , please contact me. Contact me at wrightjohn996@yahoo.com.

Gardening

Raising a garden, be it a full size vegetable patch or a window box or just a few flowers near the front steps, is a wonderful pastime. It brings beauty into your life and keeps you grounded, in touch with the basics of life.

You need very little, some decent dirt, something to dig with, and some seeds or seedlings or even grown plants. That will do. Just learn what the plants you wan and need to thrive, and provide it, when possible. Of course, there are limits. You cannot grow palm trees, outdoors, in Michigan, or Blue Spruce Trees in the desert, but, within reason and with some planning, you can grow something you like where you live.

Even with little space, you can grow something. I like having some potted fresh herbs growing in the kitchen. My Grandmother, used to take sweet potatoes, cut off the end, stick toothpicks around it, and suspend it in a vase of water. In no time, she had a lovely little vine. She would get a few violet leaves from a neighbor, root them (basically, stick the leaf in some soil and keep it damp) and would line her windowsills with pretty little violets. Then, around her front steps, they had a very tiny house, she would plant wild periwinkles that she found growing in nearby vacant lots.

The time you spend gardening, and it can be as much or a little as you wish, is always time well spent. It soothes the soul and provides hours of simple, wholesome pleasure.

Movies and Comic Heros

In recent years, film makers have tackled about every hero ever created in comic books and comic strips. We have had countless Batmen and Supermen; we've had Hulks and Thors and Spidermen and Ironmen. We've seen X-Men and The Fantastic Four, and going back a few tears, we had the awesome Conan.

I am going to remind film makers of another great comic strip that would make an fantastic movie, Terry and the Pirates.

This strip was around for many years and had one of the best story lines around. Terry was a young American adventurer, seeking his fortune in China, the pre-Chairman Mao China. He was involved in a world of intrigue, mixing with warlords, spies, ex-patriot Americans and shady Europeans, in a dark, complex lawless world. And, of course, there were pirates; thieves and smugglers, sinister and murderous, led by a fantastic character, the Dragon Lady.

The strip was daring for its time, with a female as the lead villain and about as much sex and violence as a newspaper comic strip could get away with. The adventures of Terry and his many strange accomplices were great, entertaining fun.

I just wonder why this fine hero has been overlooked. True, he has no super powers, but neither does Batman. A film maker, with a decent budget and a good imagination could turn good old Terry in to a fine movie. Actually, since, over the strip's lifetime, many plots unfolded, this could make series of films. Think, Indiana Jones, only much darker.