A Couple of Things…

Toad the Wet Sprocket

Photo of the band Toad the Wet Sprocket

1. We had pretty good seats for Toad the Wet Sprocket on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at the Lobero Theater in Santa Barbara. It was an acoustic night filled with deep cuts and all their hits including “Something Always Wrong,” “All I Want,” “Good Intentions,” and of course “Walk on the Ocean.” Glen Phillips’ voice sounded just a strong as it ever did!
Back in the 90s all tunes by Toad were a “shoo-in” when adding songs to our playlist at KXBS radio in Ventura. #SoGood #StandsUpToTime


2. Nothing like killing two birds with one stone. First I love supporting local art whether it be music, paintings, ceramic or theater. Secondly, Young Frankenstein will always hold a dear place in my heart. I’ve loved the movie since the 70s (1974 to be exact) and I was happily delighted to find my daughter Syd Rose loves it as well (almost 40 years later).
The production at the Ventura College Performing Arts Center was a musical and very well done. The young talent was inspirational!

Advertisement for Young Frankenstein

Favorite lines, “Put…zee…candle…back!” and “It’s pronounced ‘Fronkensteen’.”


3. You are your own best advocate when it comes to your health, and healthcare, but you must be educated on all the different options when something bad happens, or even when your body is starting to slow down. I was once prescribed anti-seizure medication for numbness I was experiencing on the top of two of my toes on my left foot. Turns out that exercise such as brisk walking has kept the symptoms to a minimum….for FIFTEEN years!
The side-effects of anti-seizure medications include mild to severe drowsiness, dizziness, and cognitive issues along with gastrointestinal distress, skin reactions, and declined bone health. Had I taken them, I would now be on different medications to keep the side effects at bay.

I’ve watched lots of food-related documentaries on healthy diets and my biggest take away is that doctors are not taught about prevention, but rather how to treat problems. As we progress, I trust this is changing. #FingersCrossed


photo of man holding sleeping baby

4. An article that piqued my interest was called, “16 male traits that attract almost all women, even when they are not aware of it.” (story by Hasthi Wand) #TitleTooLong

The first one is Perfect Timing; which isn’t what you think it is (wink wink). The article states, “Socially intelligent men know that they don’t have to stay till the bitter end. They know when to walk away from a conversation after it’s peaked, when a party is fizzling out, when it’s time to say goodnight instead of prolonging a good time till it gets uncomfortable.
Knowing how to make people wish they could hang out with them for another ten minutes is powerful.”

My other favorite one is The Softer Side: “Observe how a man treats a skittish animal, holds a sleeping baby, picks up something fragile, or assists a hurt bird. Physical gentleness can make a memorable juxtaposition to an otherwise man’s man or hypermasculine man. That contrast can be more powerful than blatant aggression.”


Photo from cross overlooking City of Ventura

5. I took a quick impromptu trip up to the cross overlooking the city I love so much!!! Sure it may have been 90 degrees, but keep in mind it’s a mere five minute drive to the water!


6. You ever come across someone and you want to so badly ask, “What is wrong with you?!!” but you don’t because you’re 100% certain they absolutely will not know. #ThatsTheProblem #NoSelfAwareness


7. I started to research AI photo detector apps because I really want to believe certain photos are real and not fake. Case in point, alleged photo of cat on bear’s lap circulating on social media. I tried out a demo of “TruthScan” and the results were AI Probability 39% and confidence as “medium.” Reasoning: “The image appears authentic due to its natural photographic qualities, including the realistic texture of the bear’s fur and the cat’s coat, the authentic depth of field that blurs the background appropriately, and the organic shadow falloff on the furniture and ground. The natural color temperature variations across the scene also contribute to its genuine appearance.”
Regardless, I want to believe it’s true…and, the cat survived!

photo of bear with cat on its lap

8. From my “Things that drive me crazy file”: When provided with a new Number I need to remember or enter on a platform like a bank or TSA precheck and they mix it up with numbers and letters…I would like the letter “O” to never be used. How much does it look like a zero? TOO MUCH! I had a very hard time trying to tell if my new TSA Precheck number is was a Zero or the letter O based on the TSA’s OWN fonts. The difference between Zero and the letter O is almost indistinctive:

screenshot of letters and numbers from the TSA
Screenshot from TSA website

9. It would have been cool for the Los Angeles Dodgers to win a three-peat for the World Series this year, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be when the Milwaukee Brewers swept them 4-0 in the National League Championship series. I love attending Dodger games, the stadium, Dodger dogs, cold beers, the fans… and watching the boys do their thing. Looking forward to next year. #StillAFan

I love this self-evident quote from Dave Roberts:

artwork of Dodgers logo

“I think at the end of the day, we got beat. We got outplayed in all facets. Those guys played flawless. Defensively, they pitched better than we did, they hit better than we did, they slugged better than we did.”

Dave Roberts,
Dodgers Manager

10. From my favorite quotes file: “Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too.” – Yogi Berra

Thanks for listening!

A Couple of Things…

1. As the seasons change from summer to fall, I continue to kayak until conditions change to when it’s so windy when one paddles, you barely move. But for now, the perfect conditions prevail.

photo of Channel Islands Harbor kayaking

2. I saw a great t-shirt that read: “I’m not completely useless. I can be used as a bad example.” #TrueDat


Steinholding competition
Man on left won the competition

3. It’s that time again when beer-filled steins are aplenty, bratwurst and sauerkraut sandwiches are all the rage and people arrive wearing goofy German clothing, of course I’m speaking of Oktoberfest. I attended the 2nd annual Oktoberfest at the Ventura Fairgrounds this week and I was a little annoyed that you have to pay to get in, you stand in line for an “over 21” wristband, you stand in line for a beer ($15-$30 each), you stand in line to order food and then wait in line to pick it up and while all the time you’re being overwhelmed by German polka bands.
I did indeed enjoy the sandwich along with a warm soft pretzel straight out of the oven along with my beer (sorry…did not opt for German). I also enjoyed the Steinholding competition. I had never witnessed (nor heard of) one before. People lined up with a beer stein in front of them filled with water (no need to waste good beer), and then they pick it up and the last one to hold it with out spilling a drop wins. Turns out, there’s a US Steinholding Association which delineates rules for the competition. I won’t list all (you can read them here), but these are my favorites.

  • The arm holding the stein must remain parallel with the ground and, from a side view, should remain close to perpendicular with the line of the torso from the neck to the bottom of the rib cage.
  • If any amount of the liquid filling the stein spills or drips off of the stein, the competitor is immediately disqualified, regardless of the number of strikes otherwise assigned.
Photo of friends David and Marnie with me

I did mention people dressed up in their best “traditional” German garb, well I came across two of my father’s friends (and mine), David and Marni who were all about the festivities. It was good to catch up with them!


Late for the Sky advertisement
Aaron Orbit and Travis Greer

4. Congratulations to local filmmaker, Travis Greer, on his short film, “Late for the Sky.” I caught a screening of it last weekend here in town at the Cinefest held during ArtWalk Ventura. Both Greer, and local musician/artist, Aaron Orbit starred in it and it was really well done. I was enthralled by the cinematography. The close ups were amazing and truly mesmerizing. A job well done and the film was the winner for Best Comedy.


5. Checked out an early morning screening of “Digger” this past weekend. We’re talking 10:10 am which one would think is too early for popcorn, but not this popcorn lover! “Popcorn for breakfast, it’s your choice!” should be the campaign of the next Orville Reddenbaker ad run.

As for the movie, if you see it, I hope it sticks with you and makes you think. You need to pay attention and follow the plotline. #Deep

Digger movie poster

6. Things that live in my head rent free:

  • Tom Cruise’s latest movie, Digger
  • (To be continued…)

7. Why is prostitution illegal and not porn? Of course prostitution is legal in areas of the state of Nevada; and as I delved into the subject, I found that porn is argued that it’s a first amendment issue with actors regarding “artistic expression.”
But if a woman is 100% willing and not under duress, why is it illegal? It’s her body.
I thought of this workaround: Start a FansOnly page, and prostitute one’s self, but position it as being hired for an art project so she would film it in order to post it so it would pass the First Amendment rights provision. The “John” would either give consent to be filmed or be blindfolded, which could be fun.

While researching this, Wikipedia provided this tidbit: “Prostitution is illegal in every US state except Nevada, where licensed brothels are permitted in some counties, and Maine, where selling sex is decriminalized but buying sex is illegal.”


artwork of Famous last Words episode

8. If you get a chance, watch the episode of Famous Last Words on Netflix featuring Gloria Steinem. There are now three episodes, I’ve seen Steinem’s and Jane Goodall’s, and will get around to watching the one with Eric Dane who passed away from ALS. At the time of the recordings, the person being interviewed is promised that no one will see it until they have passed away. But you can’t help but think what other episodes are in the can just waiting for that someone to die. #KindaGrim


9. From my favorite quotes file: “Why is it immoral to be paid for an act that is perfectly legal if done for free?” – Gloria Allred