It's 2022

That's about all I can say at this point.  I hope and pray it's a better year than 2021, which was arguably worse than 2020.  I wish all of us the best of luck and health and maybe a miraculous dose of common sense; which the world seems to have lost, as of late.
I mean, when people actually believe that JFK Jr. is going to return and then actually go to Dallas to see him, all bets are off...

I gotta say, John-John didn't age too well.  I woulda thought he would've hooked up with a good face cream at an early age.
But I don't want to dwell on that...
I have a little ritual I do every New Year's Day.  When I get in the car, I turn on the radio, and the first song I hear is going to set the tone for the year.  I'm not gonna say, predict the future; because that's a little too fate tempting.  Last year the song was Rod Stewart's "Forever Young."  Now none of us can be young forever.  But we can try to stay young at heart, right?  So that's how I took that one.  Rod's about to turn 77.  This is him today:

I would argue that Rod, at 77, looks better than John Jr. at 62.  Apparently Rod did invest in a good skin cream.  He may want to rethink his hair.  But, what the hell.  It's the hair-style he's had since he was a kid and maybe that's what keeps him forever young at heart.  We should all be like Rod.

​This years song was "One Thing Leads to Another" by The Fixx.  I turned on the radio just as they were singing the title. Then I snapped the radio off.  That was enough.  The rest of the song is kind of dark; so I'm just going with the title.  One thing generally does lead to another.  And sometimes those things can be good.  And sometimes those things can be bad.  Sometimes they can be both.  As long as all those "things" lead to a good one.  That's the stance I'm taking on that message from the Universe.

Now, this is not what I would've imagined the sleeve of that 45 would look like.  And you know, it very much puts me in mind of the cover of the first edition of my first novel:

Mystery upon mystery!  Is the Universe sending me yet another encouraging message?  Yes she is!  I mean, I've never seen that single sleeve until today, and I mean...it's kinda spooky.  The lead singer is in the exact same position (more or less) as the kid in the red swimsuit.  I'll just leave that right there.
So, I've been blogging pretty steadily for the last year or so; much to the chagrin of my other writing.  So, I gotta get back to that.  I will still be blogging, but with less frequency; and of course, if the muse hits me with a frying pan and I just have to say something.  I will at least be doing one or two blogs a month (some will simply be video postings); and hey, if you want more content, let me know.  I know people are out there reading this and these blogs do have comment sections and you can contact me at various places on the interweb-machine.  Also, I'm writing a musical version of Jaws.  I've pretty much completed the first two numbers: "Hungry" and "Swim With Me In the Moonlit Sea." I'll post them in a few days.

We all know the song "Let It Be" by the Beatles.  When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me...speaking words of wisdom, let it be...
Well, sometimes Mother Mary does come to me.  She's thus far never spoken any words, wise or otherwise; but she has appeared.  She appears in patterns on trees sometimes.  She's appeared in the striations on a reflective glass window of an office building once.  One time she appeared on the side of a clothes dryer I happened to spy through a window in Seattle.  It was clear in moving the machine, the enamel paint had been scraped from the metal; and there, in what was left behind, was Mary.
I hope in 2022 and beyond that Mary will come to you.  She is a symbol of hope, whether she has anything to say or not. I think she is the Universe and what's good in it.
​Keep an eye open.