Daily Archives: February 15, 2022

February 15, 2022 1:30 am

by Karen Eames, Lopez Island

If it seems to you, reader, to be a bit late to write about New Years resolutions, I agree.

However, I have settled on one that I wish to share with you: to reduce our familys use of plastic. If the Lopez community is to become Fossil Free by 2033, that includes eliminating plastics, which are made from fossil fuels.

Heres what Im doing to reduce the plastic in our household:

With very few exceptions, laundry detergent comes in large, non-recyclable containers. Ive bought the ones in cardboard containers only to find that they are not easy to clean enough to be considered clean recyclables.

So instead I have started using Earth Breeze, one of a variety of laundry detergents that are soap-infused sheets packaged in a recyclable cardboard envelope and work for all types of washing machines and laundry. A half sheet does a small load, a full sheet a large load of laundry. The sheets come in a cardboard envelope so no plastic container, no mess and take up a lot less space on the laundry room shelf! And it is now available at markets in our county, so no need for Amazon!

The past is the future when it comes to hand soap and shampoo. While we have enjoyed the convenience of the pump hand soaps, they all come in plastic bottles, even the refill sizes. Going back to good old bars of soap and a soap dish is eliminating a lot of plastic in our home. And there is such a thing as bar shampoo!

Three Sisters Apothecary is a brand of soap and shampoo bars that are all packaged in paper; they are available at Blossom on Lopez.

Plastic drink bottles are possibly the biggest culprit, especially during the summer when many more people are here and wanting drinks for picnics, hikes, parties, etc. I am always saddened when I see nearly every cart at Costco with big packets of plastic water bottles. Perhaps we could encourage our local shops to stock more drinks in aluminum cans and less in plastic. The good news is our Lopez Village Market, Blossom and Paper, Scissors on the Rock all sell various types of reusable bottles. Take a look!

Ive yet to solve entirely doing without plastic bags, but try to use fewer and wash and reuse what I have. Its small steps; other steps will follow.

Good luck with any and all of your resolutions! With each of us taking similar small steps, 2022 can be a year of a big step toward a more healthy, more sustainable and more beautiful environment for us all.

More:

My personal take on New Year's resolutions for 2022 - Journal of the San Juan Islands

Yes, the Rams hold the two top spots on this list, and it only seems fitting. Both Super Bowl-winning Rams teams were known for passing the ball, although the St. Louis Rams, aka The Greatest Show on Turf, did feature a Hall of Fame running back in Marshall Faulk.

But even with all their offensive firepower (Kurt Warner, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt), this Super Bowl is remembered by many for Mike Jones game-clinching tackle keeping Titans wide receiver Kevin Dyson from catching and running it in for six points.

But even with Faulk in the backfield for St. Louis, the Rams rushed only 13 times (tied for fewest rush attempts in a Super Bowl) and gained 29 yards on the ground. That is by far your lowest rushing total by a Super Bowl-winning team.

See more here:

The Rams organization owns two of the worst rushing outputs by a Super Bowl champion in NFL history - Deadspin

With talks aimed at solving the Ukraine crisis faltering, we have one piece of advice for the diplomats involved: Chill, dudes. And listen to some rock'n'roll.

Much like you did last week, ensuring that The Bad Day's Devil's Lullaby rose to the top of our Talent Contest Pyramid of Greatness, swiftly followed by Brave Rival's Guilty Love and Colours Of One's Bones Of Hope. And it was all done without border disputes, UN resolutions, or the wearing of clichd Russian hats.

So here's your winning entry again, before we advance bravely into this week's competition. And don't forget to place your vote at the foot of the page. We count every one, you know.

If there's one thing that Jack White's Fear Of The Dawn makes clear, it's how much of a debt much of modern rock owes to his sound: the fuzzed-up riffs, the reckless disregard for complexity, the economy in attack. White's almost guilty of over-egging his own pudding on this one, embellishing the distortion with sundry squeals and screeches, but it's a gloriously wild ride, and it's all over before you can say, "I wonder what Meg's up to these days." It's also the title track of the first of two albums White is releasing this year: Fear Of The Dawn arrives in April, and Entering Heaven Alive follows in July. Bring 'em both on.

Wolfgang Van Halen has released one of our favourite tracks of his as a single (from last years album Mammoth WVH), and it still absolutely kills. A catchy, Foos-y blend of introspective sentiments and upbeat rock energy, its arguably the most complete illustration of what hes all about musically in four and half more-ish, flab-free minutes. If you havent checked out the full album, do yourself a favour and rectify that.

The Ohio rockers (formerly known as Black Coffee) return to Tracks Of The Week with their first single as an independent operation a driving riff-machine that makes us think of Guns N Roses wreathed in smoke. Our goal is to help open the doors for rock in the modern era, says singer Ehab, originally raised on Arabic music in Jordan before moving to America, and discovering the likes of Queen and the aforementioned GNR. We want to sound the way we hear rocknroll in our heads; vintage with a sprinkle of today.

If you only know Reef for Place Your Hands (and of course theres way more to their catalogue anyway), youre in for a surprise. In keeping with the rest of their upcoming record, Shoot Me Your Ace, Wolfman is a heavy, balls-to-the-wall groovefest that finds singer Gary Stringer making like a feral Brian Johnson. Lupine vibes aside its all classic rock swagger with a snarl at its lips and a bottle in hand if Rival Sons turned into mad pirates, theyd probably sound like this.

On this new single, The Blue Carpet Band make a sound thats a bit like the Cramps, at their heaviest, fronted by Jerry Lee Lewis (or Little Richard fronting The Stooges, as they put it). Frontman Djamel Abina says Lyrically the song is a lament, where have the rockn'roll bandits all gone? What has Camden Town become? The death of Camden reflects the death of London as the alternative capital of the world."

Seven Year Witch came together in the backwoods of South Carolina, thrashing out cocktails of hard rock, blues-punk and 70s garage rock, all of which have led to this fuzzed up, biting new track. Capped off with a big ol chorus that rolls as much as it rocks, it tells a tragic love story (in sync with a video full of sad clowns and snatches of dysfunctional lives) and has an element of darkness that nods to the witch part of their name, without veering into any kind of hokey cackling activity.

The Heart singer comes bearing the first taste of her new solo album, Fierce Bliss, and its a belter a gorgeous, swooping swirl of guitars, heartland warmth and soul. And of course theres her voice, a rich blend of grit, power and vulnerability that remains very much on top form after years in the business. Greed is that thing in our animal nature that makes us want more, Wilson says. Whether it be money, sex, power or ecstasy, it fires our craving! It happens with all of us.

Outlaw country legend Ray Wylie Hubbard (he wrote the classic Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother back in the early 70s) has "done" rock'n' roll in the past, hooking up with Whiskey Myers for Die Rockin' in 2019. This time it's Naturally Wild, which barrels along like something from the more boisterous end of Tom Petty's ouvre, and he's called in John 5 for the solo and Lzzy Hale for some vocals. Such is Hale's commitment to her craft that she tends to elevate anything she touches, and this is no exception. We're also awarding bonus points for rhyming "black leather jacket" with "corporate racket". It's from Hubbard's upcoming album Co-Starring Too, which also features appearances from Willie Nelson, Steve Earle, Charlie Sexton, Steve Lukather, Ringo Starr, Ann Wilson (see above), Wynonna Judd and more.

Go here to see the original:

Tracks of the Week: new music from Jack White, Mammoth WVH and more - Louder

NEED TO CATCH up? The Journal brings you a round-up of todays news.

IRELAND

Horses and riders return from an early morning exercise at dawn, on the Curragh Plains in Co Kildare. Source: Eamonn Farrell

WORLD

Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in Warsaw. Source: Alamy Stock Photo

#UKRAINE: Britain said that Russia needs to withdraw troops from its border with Ukraine to ease tensions between Moscow and the West, during a tense press conference between British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

#PARTY PRESSURE: Boris Johnson refuted claims that broke lockdown laws and must go if he deliberately lied to Parliament, made byformer British prime minister John Major has said as he struck out at the brazen excuses issued over partygate.

In another blow to Johnson, Cressida Dick resigned as Met Police Commissioner after coming under pressure from London Mayor Sadiq Khan over racism, sexism, homophobia, bullying, discrimination, and misogyny that still exists in the force.

#ISRAEL-PALESTINE: The former Attorney General of Israel Michael Benyairhas written in The Journal today that he concurs with Amnestys conclusion that Israel is an apartheid regime.

#Open journalism No news is bad news Support The Journal

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PARTING SHOT

David Fennell adjusts a model bus on a Dublin street model, at Brickxfest for Lego enthusiasts at Tayto Park. Source: Alamy Stock Photo

Great news Lego is opening its first Irish store on Grafton Street this summer.

The Danish company that invented what is arguably the best toy in history will be setting up shop in the heart of Dublin which will include 3D Lego models inspired by Irish culture and free build challenges and events each month.

Good news for fans of Dublin Bricks - which sells kits to build mini versions of iconic Dublin pubs, telefn boxes, and the lady on the rock (all sold out at the moment, of course).

Originally posted here:

Here's What Happened Today: Thursday - TheJournal.ie

Avril Lavigne is the latest cover star of FAULT Magazine! In the accompanying interview, the eight-time GRAMMY Award-nominee, singer, songwriter, designer and philanthropist talks self-reliance, making a fully alt-rock album, 20 years in the music industry and inspiring a new generation of artists and fans.

On her upcoming album, coming 25th February:This album is more of a rock alternative album and the first time I've made a record that's rock all the way through

On title track Love Sux:Each track speaks to a very different side of me and with 'Love Sux', it's all about love gone wrong but delivered in a sassy, fun and light-hearted way. I made it for myself but I also wanted it to be empowering to the listeners when they're experiencing it

On self-reliance:Yes, love is hard and relationships are not easy. It's not easy for anybody and I've now lived long enough to realize that I need to prioritize myself and take care of myself. I went through a phase where I was like "I'm gonna be independent and have time on my own for a minute"...And it really didn't last that long! But when I started the album, I was definitely in the mindset of "if I'm going to rely on anyone in this world, it's going to be me.

On the 20-year journey of Avril Lavigne:I look at all my albums like a journey into my story over the last 20 years. I've been writing music from when I was a teen, to a young adult and this one is my story today as a woman.

On inspiring a new generation:It's crazy to see my music still resonating with people from a new generation it's inspiring and it keeps me motivated. I still feel the need to do everything as great as I can and take everything I do seriously. It's just such a unique experience that I get to go through and it's great when new artists come up to me and say they love my older work.

On her Libra tendencies!:I change my mind a lot. I think that has something to do with being a Libra. Everyone that works with me makes fun of me because of it but on the other hand, it keeps everyone on their toes...I'm very exciting.

See original here:

Avril Lavigne: 'If I'm going to rely on anyone in this world, it's going to be me' - Music News

Pete Townshend said he was ready to "moan" in public about the upcoming Keith Moon biopic if he didnt like it but noted that he couldnt see a situation where he'd block its development.

The project has been fostered by theWho'ssinger,Roger Daltrey, for many years, and it was recently confirmed to be going into production. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Townshend said that, no matter how the story unfolded, hewon't go to war over it.

When you talk about it as a Keith Moon biopic, its going to be the first semi-fictionalized, dramatized Who story, Townshend said. It will be a Who biopic. Somebody is going to have to play Pete Townshend. Ive read some very, very varied opinions about what my relationship was like with Keith. I view it one way, and other people view it another way. I certainly was never at war with Keith but neither was I his puppy.

He described the late drummer as a great manipulator, and a great character, a great showman, addingthat "he brought a lot of joy, but he also brought a lot of hardship and difficulty. Ive always been honest about that. It will be interesting to see how that evolves. I certainly dont see a position where if I didnt like the way the story was being told, Id block it. I dont give a fuck, to be honest. I hope it happens because Roger has been working on it.

The guitaristalso said he wasnt in a position to create a fuss if the script deviated from the facts."I think if I felt I was being cruelly misrepresented, Id step in and say, This is a bit much,'" he said. "But I trust the people that are putting the film together. And Roger is somebody who would punch out somebody that said anything even slightly derogatory about me. I trust him.

Townshend noted that Daltrey had to tell his own story through the movie. He has to have his own way," he said. "He sometimes crashes in sideways into my projects! But if I dont like it, I will say so in the press. I might have a moan about it if theres something I dont like, but I will never go to war in the way that some bands have.

From AC/DC to ZZ Top, from 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' to 'London Calling,' they're all here.

Originally posted here:

Pete Townshend Is Ready to 'Moan' About Keith Moon Biopic - Ultimate Classic Rock

Even when the game is a dud, the Super Bowl halftime show is always an extravaganza.

With a television audience that in some years has exceeded 170 million viewers, the halftime shows producers are aiming for unforgettable moments with blockbuster acts, unlikely musical pairings and a general air of over-the-top bombast. (Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige and Snoop Dogg are this years performers.) Theres always pyrotechnics, wacky costumes or a field full of people waving glowsticks who look theyre having the best time ever for the 12 minutes usually allotted to halftime performances.

Yet theres really only one crucial ingredient for a memorable Super Bowl halftime show: something has to go wrong. With one or two key exceptions, the halftime shows that people still talk about are the ones where things have gone off script.

Mostly, that doesnt happen. Since the dawn of the modern halftime show in 1993, when Michael Jackson appeared at Super Bowl XXVII the performers usually hit their marks, there are no obvious technical glitches and the whole thing comes off like the tightly choreographed, slightly sterile promotional behemoth that it is. For all the big-game atmosphere and big-name stars, the halftime spectacle isnt always memorable. Anyone chosen to perform at the Super Bowl can put on a big show, be it Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, the Who, Lady Gaga or Beyonc, who offered a clinic in jaw-dropping choreography (and a Destinys Child reunion) at Super Bowl XLVII in 2013. Even so, the emphasis on grandiosity can overshadow the actual performance, and the result is often an anodyne big-budget show thats fun to watch while it glides by and easy to forget immediately afterward.

But sometimes theres a Left Shark.

Katy Perrys performance at Super Bowl LXIX in 2015 seemed destined to fit the template. She started her medley of hits while sitting on a metallic animatronic tiger, brought on Lenny Kravitz, launched a ton of pyro and then rolled into Teenage Dream surrounded by dancing palm trees, beach balls, surfboards and two sharks. Famously so famously that the NFL lists the timestamp on its YouTube video of Perrys performance the shark on the left improvised some Macarena-esque dance steps, overshadowing Missy Elliotts guest spot and becoming an instant meme.

Perrys performance was much more of a production than some of her earliest halftime predecessors. Indeed, in its present form, the halftime show is a relatively recent innovation. In the early years of the Super Bowl, the mid-game break often featured college marching bands, though jazz great Ella Fitzgerald performed in a tribute to Louis Armstrong at Super Bowl VI in 1972. Occasionally, a comedian or feel-good act would make an appearance: the youth-advocacy group Up With People did four halftime shows in the 1970s and 80s, for example. For a while, the shows were pegged to unwieldy themes: World of Childrens Dreams in 1985, Salute to Hollywoods 100th Anniversary in 1987 or the head-scratching double tribute Salute to New Orleans & the 40th Anniversary of Peanuts in 1990, which somehow included the song Waiting for the Robert E. Lee.

The halftime show edged closer to the pop mainstream when New Kids on the Block appeared in 1991 as part of a Disney-themed celebration of the Super Bowl itself. Since the early 2000s, after a few additional wonky tributes and niche themes through the 90s, its been all big artists all the time, often in weird configurations designed to appeal to the broadest possible swath of pop culture: Aerosmith and N Sync at Super Bowl XXXV in 2001, for example, or No Doubt and Shania Twain, with a cameo from Sting, at Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003.

Once the Super Bowl fully embraced pop music, it wasnt long before the quest for a memorable spectacle backfired, in a memorably spectacular way. At Super Bowl XXXVIII in 2004, Janet Jackson, P. Diddy, Nelly and Kid Rock all performed before Jackson returned to join Justin Timberlake on Rock Your Body. At the grand finale, as Timberlake sang, Im gonna have you naked by the end of this song, he pulled at the cup of Jacksons studded leather bustier and it came off in his hand, exposing her right breast. If 140 million people have ever screamed WHAT?! in unison, that was the moment.

The aftershocks were far-reaching. The FCC fined broadcaster CBS (though a federal court later threw out the fine). Timberlake apologized for a wardrobe malfunction, a term that remains embedded in the popular consciousness. YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim has said the incident helped inspire the idea that resulted in the video sharing platform, so no one would ever have to go without easy access to such footage ever again. All these years later, Janet Jackson Super Bowl is the third search result when you plug her name into Google. Now thats a memorable halftime show.

Subsequent halftime misfires have not resonated as widely as the wardrobe malfunction did, but theyve still injected a much-needed element of humanity into the proceedings. Think about the incredulous look on Bruce Springsteens face at Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 after his knee-slide took him crotch-first into the TV camera operator during Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out, or M.I.A.s smirk when she flipped the bird during her bit on Madonnas Give Me All Your Luvin at Super Bowl XLVI in 2012. The unpredictability made those performances stand out in a way that most of them dont.

Not all halftime performances have to go off script to feel unpredictable, which brings us to Prince. Prince is the exception to the rule that something has to go wrong for a halftime set to become iconic. His appearance at Super Bowl XLI in 2007 remains a standout because it was the rare convergence of memorable and great. He covered Bob Dylan, Creedence Clearwater and Foo Fighters, played three different guitars as if he was channeling an electrical current directly from the cosmos, and got the whole stadium singing along to Purple Rain as an actual, impossibly serendipitous rainstorm came crashing down around him. It felt like there was no script, just an abundance of uncontainable talent. In reality, his set was certainly planned out, but one of Princes gifts as a showman was performing as if anything at all could happen, whether he was enlivening the all-star jam at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2004 or playing a two-and-a-half-hour show in the middle of the night at South by Southwest in 2013.

This years performers are consummate entertainers, no doubt, but living up to Princes legend is a tall order. Then again, maybe something will go wrong.

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See more here:

The Best Super Bowl Halftime Shows Are the Ones Where Something Goes Wrong - InsideHook

Artists and writers can't always bring their works to grandiose completion. Sometimes they plan too big. Sometimes, life just gets in the way. But just because creators' plans fall short doesn't mean that audiences mindor even notice. Here are the stories behind 11 classics that left us hanging.

Franz Schubert probably died of syphilis, and was nicknamed Little Mushroom. But dont hold those things against him. His music has proved tuneful and long-lasting, with one of his most enduring works being this unfinished symphony. In truth, as critic Brian Newbould said, its more of a "finished half-symphony"it consists of two complete, fully orchestrated movements. Most classical symphonies have four. No one quite knows why Schubert stopped working on the piece, and a friend of his kept it secret until nearly 40 years after the composers death.

British animation genius Richard Williams is best known these days for his contributions to Who Framed Roger Rabbit. But he also worked for an astonishing three decades on The Thief and the Cobbler, an animated adaptation of Arabian Nights legends. It turned heads in the animation community (some of its plot points and character designs magically popped up in Disneys Aladdin) but Williams ultimately lost control of the film to his financierswith about 15 minutes of animation left to complete. It was reworked, re-animated and entirely botched in a theatrical release. Fans have responded in recent years with a re-cobbled version, based on Williamss original intentions.

This iconic, square-jawed image is the basis for the portrait of George Washington on the dollar bill and innumerable reproductions. Our image of the man who could not tell a lie comes largely from this single painting, nicknamed The Athenaeum. But political portraitist Gilbert Stuart never finished his image of the nation's first president. Instead, he kept the canvasthe head and shoulders are finished, but not much elseand used it as a source to paint more than 100 duplicates, which he sold for tidy sums. (The original was no picnic to paint, eitherWashingtons new pair of false teeth made his mouth all bulgy.)

After the publication of The Lord of the Rings in 1954 and 1955, fantasy fans waited breathlessly for the next big book from Anglo-Saxon-scholar-turned-fantasy-author J.R.R. Tolkien. While he turned out a few short pieces, it wasnt until after his 1973 death that The Silmarillion finally emerged. The book had started as far back as 1916, and Tolkien kept whittling away at it into the 70s. His son, Christopher, finally put his fathers papers in order, and the collection of legends about Middle Earth raced to the top of The New York Times bestseller list.

In these three books, Bohemian Franz Kafka (he was actually born in the country of Bohemia) attempted to stretch his short story genius into book-length form. He never quite made it, abandoning his three books in various states of disarray (The Castle cant even finish its last sentence). Kafka died in 1924, at the age of 40. In his will, he instructed his friend Max Brod to destroy all of his unpublished work. Brod promptly published it all instead, cementing Kafkas literary reputation in the process.

Mythology is thick around Mozarts last composition, which was commissioned by Count Franz von Walsegg-Stuppach and obsessed the composer on his deathbed. What we know for sure is that Mozart completed only the first two movements. He sketched out the next several parts, but expired before finishing the piece. Mozarts widow, Constanze, then drafted one of the composer's students, Franz Xaver Sssmayer, to ghostwrite the last couple of sections. However the piece came together, its regarded as an imposing classic today and a tempting target for modern composers who have created their own complete versions.

Filmmaker Orson Welles left a legacy of partially completed and abandoned projects. Don Quixote was filmed over some 15 years and left in disarray (the death of the actor playing Don didn't help). Surviving fragments of the film were edited into a somewhat confusing 1992 release.

The Other Side of the Wind was different, though. Welles's last full, non-documentary film was nearly done, and filmed from start to finish. It just had the misfortune of being partially funded by a relative of the shah of Iran. After the Iranian revolution, ownership of the film was thrown into question, and Welles never edited it all together. Director and author Peter Bogdanovich had labored mightily to do so, but those pesky rights issues kept the movie out of bounds for years. In 2018, the film had its world premiere at the 75th Venice International Film Festival.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge meant for his now-classic poem to be 200 or 300 lines long. The whole work came to him in a hallucinatory dream, and after waking up he started writing it down. But Coleridge was then interrupted by a "person on business from Porlock" and forgot the rest of the poem. "A person from Porlock" has thus become literary shorthand for an intruder who breaks a writer's train of thought. Nabokov and Heinlein, among others, have made the reference. And Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy author Douglas Adams used the incident as a major plot point in Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency.

Read more here:

11 Famous Works of Art That Were Never Actually Completed - Mental Floss