Bum Pinching and Yard Work

Now this is just funny...apparently her bum was just too irresistable...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/oxfordshire/6924592.stm

Not much going on this week...various workshops have drawn to a close and the mad rush of first-of-the-year subbing has yet to begin, so I have a week or so of relative freedom. I have been spending a lot of this time helping my dad put up a fence in my parents' back yard. From digging holes to mixing cement, I have done a little bit of everything, and actually sort of enjoyed it. We've been able to spend some time together, and the work has been hard but rewarding.

Comedy of Errors continues apace. I am struggling with memorization...Elizabethan prose is something you can't really paraphrase, so it's a bit tricky. The show is going to be performed outdoors in Aldridge Gardens, which will be very nice.

I have a few more Harry Potter comments, but I am still sort of forming my thoughts...lots of philosophical imagery...will post them soon and hopefully get a discussion going. It is fascinating to see how the series "grew up" with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. The first few books were obviously for children, and then the series got darker and more sophisticated. I am still planning to read the entire series again, in sequence. Maybe I will offer a running commentary as I go along.

FLT3

BBC Link

God Save The Queen! The new PM, Gordon Brown, is in America talking to Shrub...I must confess to imagining Winston Churchill or Clement Atlee meeting Jethro Bodine...however, I will hope for the best. I just hate the thought of how many derisive laughs are gotten in the halls of Parliament over the dumb-as-a-bag-of-hammers American President.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6918997.stm

Potter Commentary

Well, I have sped through Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, and am now almost finished with a more relaxed, thorough second reading. IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED THE BOOK AND DO NOT WANT TO READ ANY POTENTIAL SPOILERS, STOP READING NOW.

Okay, now that the disclaimer is out there, we can continue...

I found the book to be very exciting and well-written, as is always the case with Rowling...I particularly enjoyed the escape with the "Seven Potters" and the ensuing shoot-out with Voldemort. Another favorite moment was Snape's back-story, which really created some true sympathy for the character. Fred's death upset me, as did the many deaths of various members of The Order of the Phoenix. However, we were warned by Rowling that there would be loss of life...

Rumor has it that JK Rowling's next literary undertaking will involve a boy archaeologist. I would hazard a guess that it will also be a well-written/well-received series, but nothing will ever replace Harry and Co. (At least not to this Muggle! :-)

If you have not yet read the Harry Potter series, please do...whether you're eight or eighty, you will love it.

FLT3

Back To Hogwarts...

Have read the first hundred pages or so of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows. DON'T WORRY! I'M NOT GOING TO TELL ANYTHING ABOUT THE PLOT. Instead, I will just make a brief comment about what I saw at the bookstore. It was a joyous sight to me to see so many kids getting excited about a book. I always feel happy when I see young people actively enjoying reading...it gives one hope for the future!
Blackpool And Parrish continues apace. Tonight's audience was happy and lively, and as always, the show was great fun to perform.

FLT3

Back To Comedy...

Today was a very nice day...I started another workshop/teaching job, this time for Birmingham Childrens' Theatre. I have a great group of kids, and they are (at first glance) extremely talented. I am looking forward to working with them.

I also resumed rehearsal tonight for The Comedy of Errors, with Park Players. This is the same group with which I have been performing Blackpool And Parrish, so it's sort of becoming like an extended family. :-) As with Blackpool, the cast is extremely nice and welcoming. I am playing two twins (Dromio of Ephesus and Dromio of Syracuse) so I have definitely got my work cut out for me! The show seems to be taking shape nicely, and I predict quite a success. Comedy will be performed outside at Aldridge Gardens, which should be nice.

Not much else to say today. All is well, but somewhat uneventful.

-FLT3

Have Yourself A Happy Little Bastille Day...

Okay, admittedly, we are rather short on Bastille Day carols...I also considered "Have A Holly Jolly Bastille Day," "I'll Have A Blue Bastille Day Without You," and "I'm Dreaming Of A White Bastille Day," but none of them really seemed to work...

Feeling terribly Francais today, albeit (as always) with a British twist...I just read (on BBC.co.uk of course) the report of the festivites on the Champs-Elysees...and somewhat wistfully wished I was there. While England will always be The Motherland, I have enjoyed a few trips to France, and the Champs-Elysees has always been a high point of any visit to The City Of Light.

For a look at the day's events, click here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/6899011.stm

And now on a completely different subject... I noticed that Pope Benedict has declared the Catholic Church "the one and only true faith." Interesting...

With all due respect, the Pope is full of crap...wouldn't the Greek Orthodox denomination be the closest to the original teachings of Christ? Of course, I am firmly convinced God is an Anglican, but I certainly don't think He turns a blind eye to those of other denominations or faiths...I fear that more revisionist back-tracking will be issuing forth out of The Vatican in the days to come... oh John Paul II, we miss you...

Thank God my inspiration comes from Canterbury and not Rome...

Au Revoir

Francois le Trois

Lamenting The Wigs

According to a story out of London this Morning, the Lord Chief Justice has announced that England's barristers will no longer wear the traditional horsehair wig in civil or family court cases. (They will remain in place for criminal cases.)
While I can't say this affects my daily life in any significant way, I am mildly upset at the news. When I was in Law School, I spent a month at University of Durham on an exchange program, and we were taught one class by an English barrister, who brought his wig to class a couple of times. It was far from what I'd call attractive, but steeped in tradition.
Oh well, here's the article if anyone is interested. God Save The Queen!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070713/od_nm/britain_wigs_dc_1;_ylt=Akp8EFexm6cRTUEH6r.xPcML1vAI

-FLT3

A Successful Opening

Well, we opened Blackpool And Parrish tonight to a very receptive audience. I have never performed on the stage at ASFA before, and I really enjoyed it. The show itself, while very funny, deals with such issues as death, destiny, good vs. evil, etc... it will make you laugh while making you think, which is really pretty wonderful...

The cast for this show is rather small (only 5 of us) but it has definitely been one of the most warm, inviting, and all-around "fun" groups of people I've ever worked with. The director has been a good friend of mine for years, and the rest of the cast & crew are just so incredibly nice that mention must be made of the fact. We all play together so well that we (as a group) are already looking for projects to do together in the future.

Not much else going on. I am doing some writing again for WBHM, which is good from both a creative as well as income-based perspective...I've also been teaching at the CenterStage theatre workshop, and will begin working at BCT's workshop next week.

Shameless self-promotion time... Blackpool And Parrish runs through next Saturday. For ticket info, please visit www.bhamparkplayers.com

-FLT3

This Sceptered Isle...

Once again it's 4 July and most Americans are celebrating the break from Mother England 231 years ago. While I will admit that life under George III was probably not an idyll, I still sometimes wish we hadn't been so hasty...

If anyone knows me even remotely well, it's not a shock that I am an Anglophile of the first degree...no disrespect to the USA, but there's just something in the Motherland that really speaks to my soul...

Short posting today, but it's late and I've had a full day. I am happy to say that I did not embarass my parents (who had a very nice cookout) by breaking into "Rule, Britannia" or "God Save The Queen" at any point during the proceedings...although the thought did cross my mind... :-)

FLT3

Retraction

Okay...I have to take back the begrudgingly-positive things I have been saying about Dubya for the past day or so...I really agreed with him on the Scooter Libby thing...(see post below.) 30 months for perjury seemed excessive, and I really believe that non-violent crimes can be punished adequately with fines, probation, etc.

Now, in typical fashion, Dubya has issued a statement that a full pardon is "not out of the picture."

Yeah, my jaw hit the floor, too.

Once again, this corrupt, self-absorbed, maniacally delusional MORON is taking care of his cronies and thumbing his nose at what is right. This man Libby was involved in a massive cover-up FAR beyond anything Clinton ever lied about. (Hmmmmmmm...one lied about the outing of a CIA operative and covered up illegal acts by the Vice-President while the other lied about sex with another consenting adult...you tell me who did more damage.)

President Dubya has once again proven himself to be beneath contempt. The beautifully-choreographed visit by Putin to Kennebunkport was just ruined by the comment on Libby.

Hillary in '08...Hillary in '08...Hillary in '08...

FLT3

Scooter, Scooter, Scooter...

The announcement came today that Dubya has commuted Scooter Libby's prison sentence. If I understand correctly, he will still have to pay the fine and bear the stigma of the convicted felon. The only deus ex machina turn is that he will not have to actually serve time in prison.

While I am disgusted by Libby's actions, it may shock some of you to learn that I have no problem with the commutation. I have long held (and espoused) my belief that non-violent crimes can usually be handled outside the penal system. I just think prison sometimes creates more problems than it solves...and tossing Libby in with serial killers and hard-bitten thugs wasn't the answer. (I also think Don Seigelman and Richard Scrushy could have been punished outside the prison system, but that's another story...)

A quarter-million dollar fine, two years probation, and forever being branded a felon is punishment enough for what Libby did. I know that many of my fellow Democrats will be screaming for blood, but for once (JUST ONCE) I actually agree with Bush...Libby's sentence was too harsh.

...but I still think Dubya is an idiot. ;-)

FLT3

Small Things

I just ate the most wonderfully cold, sweet, crunchy watermelon I have eaten in a long time. I know it sounds silly, but it actually got me thinking about all the tiny little pleasures we take for granted in our daily lives. With that in mind, I started thinking of others, including...

.A nice, hot, shower with plenty of soap and shampoo. When you stop and think of how many people on Earth don't have this luxury, it really makes it seem special. I have always loved the shower...I used to take toys into the big shower in my parents' bathroom when I was a little kid...I'd stay in and play with Star Wars figures or whatever until I literally looked like a prune. As I got older, I discovered that I could lie down diagonally and take a nap while the water cascaded down...this became a bit of a ritual when I was in high school...I never fussed too much about getting up because I knew I could catch another 15 or 20 minutes of sleep in the shower before someone would bang on the door and wake me up.

.Books. I have hundreds (literally) spread between my apartment, my friends' houses, the homes of various family members, etc. etc. When you read some statistics on literacy (or the lack thereof) it will blow your mind at how many people do not have the skills to lose themselves in a book.

.Ice Cream. Yes, I'm being a bit cheeky, but sincere. I love ice cream. I could eat a gallon of it at a time. I love everything from cheapie store-brand to Haagen-Dazs...pretty much any flavor, although my absolute favorite is Mint Chocolate Chip. Bryer's Vanilla Fudge Twirl is a close second. As far as life's little pleasures go, ice cream is near the top for me.

.Friends. I have some really good ones.

. This is a bit more esoteric, but there is a particular tingly feeling that you get when you are about to kiss someone for the very first time...you're close enough to smell her perfume, you've both got your eyes closed, and the head-tilt has happened...yet for one brief shining moment (with thanks to Alan J Lerner for the phrase) you just hang there in space with delightful anticipation. It's a second or two at the longest, but wow...what a rush...

.Music. I can't imagine my life without it...I grew up in a house where the radio or record player (yes, I'm a child of the 70's) was usually always on. Getting in the car usually meant turning on the radio, too. Throughout my life, music has always been a backdrop to the day's events.

...and the list goes on. I suppose the point of all this (if there is one) is to point out some of the small things that make life pleasant, yet often get overlooked. I'd love to hear some more from others...anyone...?

FLT3

Sunday, Sunday...

I have always enjoyed Sundays. There's a serenity and happy glow to Sunday that goes all the way back to childhood for me...especially in the summertime. I always associate Sundays with going to church, going someplace nice for lunch, and then just relaxing for the rest of the day. Obviously, some Sundays are more full than that, but the overall flavor of the day is one of contentment and coziness.

When I was living in Tuscaloosa, I went to Christ Episcopal, which was a little grey church with a tiny courtyard and a beautiful little sanctuary...I always felt peaceful there. Having grown up in Birmingham, I have always gone to church at Advent, which is much more grand but equally soothing. When I was a kid I used to want to be left entirely alone in the church so I could take a nap on the pews...I suppose they have rules against such things, but it always sounded so restful...

Sunday nights always have had an appeal as well...I find myself going to Books-A-Million frequently on Sunday nights, especially in cold weather. Getting a coffee and browsing the shelves while the cold wind and rain spits and sputters outside always seems comfy, safe, and good.

Sort of a rambling rumination on Sundays today... I think I'll leave it there. I'll hold forth on politics, theatre, my life, etc. next time. Today's post is just warm, fuzzy, and happy.

After all...it's Sunday... :-)

FLT3

Hear, Hear, Jocky!!!

Yes, that is a rather cryptic headline for today's post, but it is most apropos given the day's events. With yet another car bombing (this time in Glasgow) I fear my beloved UK is truly under seige. After watching the news report from the Glasgow airport, I kept thinking of a minor character from Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. Jocky Linton's primary distinguishing characteristic is a tattoo of a Lion Rampant with "Scotland Forever" beneath it.

While I'm not going to rush out and get a tattoo like Jocky's, I share in his feelings. My heart lies in England, but Scotland is "part of the family," and She just got attacked. Today, we are all Scottish. Since I indulged in a little free-flowing reverie yesterday when London was hit by two (mercifully undetonated) car bombs, I think it only fair to pop in the cd of Brigadoon and reminisce about Bonnie Scotland...

I have flown into Glasgow and spent a little time there, but my main exposure to Scotland has been through the city of Edinburgh, which I have visited a couple of times. Actually, Edinburgh dispelled me of the delusion that there is no such thing as bad fried chicken. The KFC I visited served something grey and vaguely meat-like, but it wasn't the southern-fried goodness we all know and love. Who cares? I'd still eat a bucket of it today just because...

Edinburgh Castle is a great sight/site to see, and I especially enjoyed the Scotch Whisky tasting offered there...The Royal Mile is home to some amazing shopping. I got my mother a red serape cape there about 10 years ago, and I think Alabama has gotten cold enough to allow her to wear it 5 or 6 times so far. Oh well, it looks great in her closet...Aberdeen is another neat Scottish town, home of Loch Ness, where Nessie, alas, failed to appear the one day I visited her loch...perhaps she was getting her beauty sleep.

FLT3

God Save The Queen...

...and the rest of London. This morning was most distressing. I awoke to the news of a car bomb having been discovered in the West End of London. Within hours, Buckingham Palace had been sealed off and a second car bomb had been located in the Haymarket area, also near the West End. Apparently Al-Quaida is the obvious source of these instruments.

As usual, I am waving the Anglophiliac flag with pride. Today, I would honestly join the British Army if I could. Just the thought of someone attempting such a despicable act in what I consider to be the most wonderful city on Earth (in the most wonderful country on Earth) makes my blood boil.

Today has been a busy day, but I still took the time to say a little prayer and ask God to watch over the metrop. I have been humming "Rule, Brittania" all day, and will have a cup of tea in a little while (at 4:00 of course! :-)

Thinking lovely thoughts of Harrod's...Soho...Trafalgar Square...Shaftesbury Avenue...Hyde Park...Westminster Abbey...The Tower...Park Lane...Covent Garden...St. Paul's...Big Ben...The Adelphi Theatre, where I once saw Me And My Girl with a lovely British girl. (Yes, it was one of those nights when God was in His Heaven and all was right with the world.) Actually, it's a story that bears re-telling...

In 1991, I was in London for my 21st birthday (thanks, Mum & Dad!) with a friend of mine. He and I had separated for a few hours, and were due to meet at a particular pub at 10:00. By 9:45, when I realized I was hopelessly lost, I stopped a group of girls to ask directions. Well, as it turns out, they showed me where the pub was, and I asked them to join my friend and me for a drink. They accepted, and by the end of the evening, I had a date for the following night with (in my opinion) the loveliest of the bunch. While a gentleman never kisses and tells, I think her reputation will be safe if I only mention her first name, which was Joy. The date was, without exaggeration, idyllic. We saw the play, had dinner, had a drink, and took a long walk around the city. We wound up spending the next week basically attached at the hip. (Luckily, she and my friend got along just fine.)

Of course we made all the standard promises to keep in touch, and exchanged a couple of letters and a phone call or two (this was before email.) Eventually, we lost touch and I have often thought of her. I don't know if she ever realized how perfectly perfect she made the trip for me. I hope wherever she is, she's happy and remembers our week as fondly as do I.

The memory still makes me smile.

FLT3

PARIS IS LIBERATED!!!!

Today has been an excellent day. Paris Hilton has been released from jail.

Okay, before the cacophany of "you just say that because she's hot" begins...well, you're partially right, but that's beside the point... The law used (or misused) to justify her return to jail was shaky at best and illegal in all likelihood. The activism and overreaching of the judge was most egregious, and the slippery slope down which he may have started will be treacherous, indeed.

Enough said. La belle Paris est la fille de liberte. Magnifique! (Et oui, elle est tres belle, mais n'est pas importante...)

Francois le Trois

Blackpool And Parrish

As usual, I have let too much time pass between postings...my apologies to all four of my confirmed readers. (Paul, Andy, Jennifer and Aaron, thanks for reading!) If anyone else ever reads any of this, please respond. I'm thinking of holding an appreciation lunch for my readers in a single booth at Shoney's...

I have been cast in a VERY funny play, "Blackpool And Parrish." It is directed by a good friend of mine, Clay Boyce. So far, the cast seems extremely talented and FUN! Nice, nice people and a hilarious script. I know the show will be successful, and I am going to do my best to get lots of people in the theatre.

Not much else to mention...the CenterStage Rising Star workshop is going well...the kids will be performing "Grease" next Friday/Saturday night, and I am really proud of the work they are doing. It's a talented group, and even the one or two slightly mischeif-prone kids are so good-natured it's hard to fuss at them too harshly. Besides, it's summertime and they're having fun, so all is well.

That brings up a point of philosophy I have been pondering lately in re CenterStage...for those unfamiliar with the Bham theatre scene, let it suffice to say that there is a LOT of theatre and as many philosophies as there are companies. Schools of thought range from "we're all here to have a good time" to "this is as serious as a heart attack." I think we (as a company as well as a collective of individuals who love theatre) have found a nice balance between the two. On one hand, you don't want to just goof off and do a crappy fraternity skit, but at the same time you don't want to make the process so opressively harsh that the final product, while good, is borne out of drudgery. It's a hard balance to strike, but I think we succeed.

"Futurama" is coming on now...got to run.

FLT3

FREE PARIS!!!!

I cannot believe this...out in LA, Judge Michael T. Sauer has sent Paris Hilton back to jail. I have never seen a more egregious and absurd display of judicial abuse of power. Driving with a suspended liscence...oh yeah, she's a menace to society. I can only hope that the citizens of Los Angeles create a sufficiently loud outcry to force this moron from the bench. If I lived in LA, I'd already be there with a picket sign.

I'm sure many of my readers (both of you) think I am merely taking Paris' side because she's beautiful (I suppose I should say "hot.") I'll admit that if she looked like Ernest Borgnine I may not be as passionate about the case, but the legal issue would remain...the sheriff had the right to release her to house arrest. This bastard judge is merely trying to make a name for himself, and I hope it will backfire. Hopefully he will become the most reviled figure in the California legal system.

O.J. walks free after killing two people, yet the system (and the imbecile on the bench) decide to make an example of a socialite with a traffic violation who couldn't hurt a fly. Where is the justice?

Today is day one of ParisWatch. Hopefully we won't even make it to day two. FREE PARIS!!!

FLT3

How do you set the Blogspot Clock?

It is now 12:10am on 4 June, but my last post, which is only minutes old, says that it was posted at 8:58pm. I'm so confused.

FLT3

I'll be 36 for another hour...

Yes, that's right. I am about to turn 37. Tomorrow (4 June) is my birthday. I am getting older, which kind of bites, but is, as they say, "better than the alternative." (Unless the aletrnative is living forever in some sort of Peter Pan-style Neverland, where one remains mid-20's in perpetuity. That could be nice.)

Anyway, I decided I would spend the last hour of my 36th year doing something I love...writing. This post will most likely be somewhat lengthy, rambling, and intermittently interesting. I can't promise cohesion of plot or even linear thought. Read at your own risk.

I spent a few hours this afternoon with my mother, which was very nice. We went shopping and stopped in at the World Market, which is sort of an importer's warehouse-ish "everything store." I, of course, wound up in the British food section, and eventually (with some help from Mum) found several tiny jars of Devonshire Clotted Cream. For those who have not tasted clotted cream, ignore the name. It sounds disgusting, which even those of us who love it will freely admit. When spread on a scone or shortbread cracker,however, it tastes beyond delicious. I didn't even wait to get home...I spread some on a cookie and dug in. Although my body was at the Galleria, my taste buds were at Harrod's. The best way to describe the taste is...well...just to say that it tastes British. That's the highest compliment I can give, and the only one that fits. Of course, that really doesn't describe the taste, so I'll do my best and describe it as a slightly sweet cream-cheesy-buttery-whipped-cream-icing-ish taste. Good stuff.

That taste took me away to London just as effectively as What's Up? took me to Manteo. (If you don't know what the hell that last sentence means, read the post from a few days ago titled What's Up?.) It's interesting that I would have two experiences of such a nature so close together in time. I suppose taste is another great memory trigger. Smell certainly is...if clotted cream tastes British, deisel fuel smells British. Any time I smell deisel fuel, it smells like Trafalgar Square...all the traffic helping to create a very specific (but not unpleasant) eau de metrop.

Twenty minutes into the hour, and I haven't yet started to ramble beyond all hope. This is a good sign.

I have been wrestling a lot with death lately. (No, I'm not, to my knowledge, dying.) Actually, that's the problem...none of us are "dying" in the sense of progressing in an orderly, predictable manner towards a specific and scheduled demise. It's all so random...the teenage kid in perfect health drops dead for no reason, while an octegenarian proudly attributes his longevity to drinking, smoking, and enjoying a high-cholesterol diet...a child is murdered and dies at 10 while another person dies in a car crash at 95...and so forth. It's the sheer randomness that I find so terrifying, yet oddly intriguing. There's an old Southernism, "you can't take the devil to the ground lest you got a hold of him first." That is exactly what makes death the rat-bastard that it is. You can't get a hold of something that follows no real pattern. (Okay, yes, as someone gets older, the likelihood of death increases, but the actual "when and how" are still capricious to say the least.)

Onward, onward...we're at the half-hour, and it's time to get on to cheerier subjects.

I saw the tail end of a news report on the Democratic Presidential Debates. I am holding my breath, but I honestly believe Hillary can get the nomination if she doesn't make any major blunders. My guess at this point is that it'll come down to Hillary vs. Rudy. As much as I hate to say it...I'm afraid she'd lose. Rudy is gonna ride that 9/11 train for all it's worth, plus he's the one Republican in the race who is completely detatched from Bush.We may have some hope that Rudy's famous temper will flare at the wrong time, and he'll be the new Howard Dean...aaaaaarrrrrghhh!

Hillary can beat John McCain or Mitt Romney. Bill Richardson should just go ahead and concede at the Republican Convention if he happens to win the nomination (unlikely.) Not sure who among the dems could beat Rudy at his best...maaaaaaaaybe John Edwards, but he'd have to play up the Kennedyesque resemblance to the hilt. If anything, Rudy is less attractive than Nixon, so maybe that would give Edwards an added edge. Personally, I think a Clinton/Edwards ticket could be formidable. It would be like having the second comings of Bill Clinton and JFK. (We should all be so lucky...)

A quarter to it, as Scrooge would say. I'll be 36 and writing for 15 more minutes.

Kelly Ripa really is hot. Just thought I'd mention that.

My childhood superhero fascination has been mildly re-ignited with the new Spider-Man and Fantastic Four sequels at theatres. I haven't seen either of the movies, but the surrounding advertising blitz has kept the characters in my face for several weeks. These were my two favorite comic books as a kid, so at least I recognized the costumes. It's interesting to me how sequels/recreations change the whole frame of pop culture reference...for instance, if someone mentions the character of Spider-Man, I immediately think of the comic books of the 1970's, while someone in his 50s would probably think of the original comics. A kid of 10 would probably think Tobey Maguire of the films. All three of us would be correct, given our frame of reference.

Five minutes of 36-hood left.

I really doubt that most "firsts" are remembered in equal proportion...I mean, I remember my first kiss, first car, first job, etc., but I couldn't tell you who my first best friend was, or what I ate for dinner on my first date, or the name of my first pet. I'm sure there are people who remember the exact "firsts" I have forgotten, and vice-versa.

One minute...okay, song lyrics...

"Forty-Seven Ginger-Headed Sailors"

Now there's a good ship, HMS Cock-Robin,
On her home trip. Up and down she's bobbin'
Well, the sea is so rough, the crew is so tough,
They're all fed up and say that they've had more than enough.

And then her father, he's an able seaman
And they call him Red-Haired Tom.
He wired to say "I'll meet you,
And with your friends I'll greet you,"
And who'd you think he's got a message from?

Forty-seven ginger-headed sailors,
Coming home across the briny sea.
When the anchor's weighed and the journey's made,
We'll start the party with a
"Me hoady hearty!"

Forty-seven ginger-headed sailors,
You can bet you're going to hear them when they hail us!
An old maid down in Devon
Said "My idea of heaven
Is forty-seven ginger-headed sailors."

( From the BBC Television series Jeeves And Wooster. )

Wow...I've been 37 for 4 minutes. So far, so good... :-)

FLT3