Late Winter Music

A rather messy weather system swept through Georgia overnight. Tornadoes were a possibility on the coast. Heavy winds and rains were very real everywhere. By evening the sun broke through high overcast to illuminate scud racing out of the south and a variety of other clouds roaring from the southwest and west.  A dead calm filled the bare orange-blazed trees. It was a minimal and beautiful moment, perfect for late winter music:

Daniel's Bar Mitzvah: So Kosher For Me

Taylor Bigler, Entertainment Editor, The Daily Caller, has posted what she calls "the greatest Bar Mitzvah invitation of all time." No argument here, friends. It's not only an invitation with top-shelf production values, it's also a quality ad for Atlanta's tourism industry, AND IT'S A RAP EVEN OTR CAN ENJOY. Let's hope Daniel has reserved Turner Field for May 11, 2013 - Fernbank won't cut it. That a lot of Coke and Bacardi. Oy vey!.    

The Real George Washington's Birthday

George Washington                                                               Gilbert Stuart, 1796

We had a federal holiday on Monday of this week commemorating Washington's birthday, but it was simply another one of those government manipulations to provide us with three-day weekends. Washington was actually born on February 22  Perhaps a few days don't matter much in a nation that has lost its appreciation for history and reality over the past decades. Still, there are some personalities and events worthy of authentic remembrance. George Washington, fondly recalled as the Father of His Country, is one of them. Here is what Scott Johnson (Instapundit) has to say about the subject:

Of all the great men of the revolutionary era to whom we owe our freedom, Washington's greatness was the rarest and most needed.  At this remove in time it is also the hardest to comprehend.

Today as we contend with the contemporary equivalent of "the Babylonish empire," let us send up our thanks to the Ancient of Days for this indispensable man.

Johnson originally posted his comment in 2006. Read the rest his his remarks here.

Favorite Scenes From A Century Of Cinema - 10

Has to be one of the best Bond films.

George Washington's Birthday

George Washington's birthplace - the original site is in the foreground

Today is a federal holiday, but you would be making a mistake if you thought it was Presidents Day. Officially, it is George Washington's Birthday. The retail world would like you to believe it is Presidents Day so they can relieve you of  hard-earned cash by compelling you to buy something "on sale," a something that is more likely to be a want than a need. All retail ranting aside, this is a day to remember a rather remarkable man for his time. Learn more about him at the following sources:

George Washington Birthplace National Monument

Fort Necessity National Battlefield

Valley Forge National Historical Park

Independence National Historical Park

George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate, Museum, and Gardens

Washington Monument

George Washington Masonic Memorial


In 1747, when Washington was 15 years old, he accompanied his friend, George William Fairfax, on a surveying expedition to the Virginia - now West Virginia - frontier and the headwaters of Patterson Creek, a tributary of the South Branch of the Potomac River. OTR got to know a thousand feet of Patterson Creek intimately over the span of  a quarter century. The creek was a great source of recreation, leisure, study and contemplation. It was a powerful force in shaping his future. He learned of Washington's trip there long after he'd left the place, but he still thinks about what it would have been like sitting on the creek bank in 1960 and suddenly seeing a teenage boy in colonial dress come slogging around the bend. The creek still talks about their imaginary conversation. If you listen carefully you can hear both.

Asteroid 2012 DA14 May Have Sent Us A Visitor

There was a spectacular meteorite in the Russian Urals a few hours ago.  There are reports of damage on the ground and panic in nearby cities. The videos and stills included in this story posted on Drudge are stunning. Authorities have suggested this event is related to the near-Earth pass by Asteroid 2012 DA14 that will occur later this morning.

A Happy Valentine's Day Favorite Scene From A Century Of Cinema - 9

The closing scene from Cinema Paradiso (1988).