photo by Howard Words
Watching the Royals on Radio
Jay Kerner Publisher/Back-up Rightfielder
I started a couple of years late. Most of the other kids had been playing baseball for a year or two, but now I was the new kid with a new glove, and no idea. Couldn’t catch, couldn’t throw. And hit? Please! I couldn’t toss it up and hit it, yet alone when some juvenile Wild-thing with a 40mph heater was slinging it my direction. But in Boys Baseball at the time, they had to take you. They just didn’t have to play you much. There must have been some minimum, because me and a couple of other “end of the bench” guys rotated between “last inning rightfielder” and “last inning pinch-hitter”. More than once I was at the plate hacking at strike three to end a game. I’d been part of the action for maybe 45 seconds out of the 90 minute affair, but somehow it was all my fault. But I was relentless and just kept coming back. A couple of years later you reached the level where they no longer had to take you and you can imagine the rejection. They did, however, offer me a spot on the “At-Large” team, made up of the guys nobody picked from all over town. Swell. But I had great fun with the AL guys. We actually had some amazing players, just not enough of them. Some of the better ones missed the original tryouts. (That’s what we all said.) We didn’t win many games but when we did it was a really big deal, putting it to the guys that didn’t want us. And all along this baseball journey, I had the radio. A plastic RCA clock/radio to be specific. It was a Christmas gift when I was around 8 and it was the same magic for me that radio has been for generations of listeners. A connection to somewhere else. No matter what commotion was happening wherever we were staying, I could shut a door and escape. It was always right beside my bed, so I could keep it on low at night without detection. And that was where I learned the language of baseball. The Kansas City Royals were a new team with no history. They didn’t slink away here in the night from some other city. They were an expansion team filled with castoffs from the rest of the league. They were the guys nobody wanted. Sort of an At-Large Major League team. They weren’t that good but they hustled. It was the start of a 46 year love affair. (And counting). I kept a schedule taped to the top of the radio and listened to practically every broadcast. Early season games started before school was out and the Royals played in the Western Division. A lot of road games started after my bedtime and sometimes lasted past midnight our time. Many a May evening found me drifting off to the sound of baseball. Then, somewhere along the way, from year to year, I started getting better and so did the Royals. Pretty soon, we weren’t the worst anymore. We were both sort of middle of the pack. And both with crazy aspirations for more. The Royals made some trades. Amos Otis from the Pirates took over in center-field. Hal MacRae from the Reds knew what it took to win and brought his hustling style to the team.
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Then our scouting and farm operations started producing with the arrival of George Brett and Frank White. When they finally started making the playoffs, the hated Yankees treated them like, “Who do they think they are?” and swatted them away time after time. A World Series run in 1980 followed by the unlikely victory in 1985, were the peak of a slowly built mountain of work. The other side wasn’t so pretty, and the slide was long and painful. We hit bottom. The climb back up was arduous, but you could see the progress the last several seasons if you were paying attention, though even long suffering fans had a hard time believing what we saw last year. This season was about showing it wasn’t a fluke. They got off to a great start, and only some curious last minute changes to the process, kept almost the entire starting lineup of the All-Star team from being manned with “Boys in Blue”. Now, with a second straight American League Title in hand, you can’t argue they aren’t one of the best built, best managed teams in baseball again. And fans are responding. New ones. Old ones coming back. And of course, those of us who never left. Enjoying the resurgence! I enjoy the games on TV but was tweaked when I found out how Major League Baseball held some of the playoff games hostage for their own network. That was a crappy way to treat their loyal customers if you ask me. But anytime I can’t watch it, the radio works just fine for me. Baseball and radio just go together. When the broadcasters are as good as ours have consistently been, they paint a picture of the action in your mind, that puts you right there in the stands. When slanted TV announcers annoy, we turn down the sound and find it on radio. Sorry, Joe Buck. By the time you read this the series may be over. We like our chances going in, but win or lose, we thank the Royals for a wonderful season.
Dear Joe,
We are Zion UCC in St. Joseph, MO and we respectfully request assistance from our community in restoring our church. We are a church that values social justice and we have demonstrated that in our fundraising and advocacy for the disenfranchised and oppressed. Some of our efforts have included Cropwalk, a remembrance of World Aids Day and organizing and hosting the first ever LGBT Pride Festival in St. Joseph, We realize that in order for us to continue to serve the community, we need to make repairs and renovations to our facility. We now call our upon your kindness to help us restore our church. This first campaign will go towards restoring our church’s exterior. We hope that you will give what you can and then come visit us to benefit from the results of your efforts. Many blessings, https://www.gofundme.com/m22ksev5 Dear Joe, The New Old-fashioned Santa will be returning to the St. Joseph Holiday Food & Gift Mart at Civic Arena on November 14th & 15th. Children of all ages (and the young at heart) can visit with jolly old St. Nicholas and have their picture taken with him, creating memories that will last a lifetime. The New Old-fashioned Santa, aka Gene Newman, will be making his second appearance at Civic Arena Saturday from 10 am-5 pm, and Sunday from 11am-4pm. He is also available for inhome visits, private parties, corporate gatherings and other holiday festivities. Tickets to the Holiday Food and Gift Mart can be purchased at the door. Anyone interested in scheduling a special appearance of Santa should contact Gene Newman at 816-341-4806, or at thenewoldfashionedsanta@ gmail.com
The Regular Joe
phone 816-617-5850 read us online at www.theregularjoepaper.com email us at email@theregularjoepaper.com snail mail us at The Regular Joe P.O. Box 1304 St. Joseph, Mo. 64502
St. Joseph Live Music Highlights Cafe’ Acoustic 2605 Frederick
ALL SHOWS 9:30pm unless noted Nov 4 Open Mic Hosted by Tyler Harman Nov 5 Open Mic Poetry hosted by Mary Stone @7pm Potluck Party Nov 6 Cafe Acoustic 6th Anniversary party @9:30pm Nov 7 Stone Blind @10pm Nov 11 Open Mic Hosted by Tyler Harman Nov 12 Sterling Wit & Square Circus Nov 13 Stormbourne & CARBON Nov 14 9 Penny & the BBQtioners Nov 18 Open Mic Hosted by Tyler Harman Nov 19 Thomas Schwarz & Eric Clark duo Nov 20 IT Nov 21 2 Miles Deep & MOJO SAINT Nov 25 TURDRUNKEN V ft. BELLOQ @10pm $5 admission Nov 26 OPEN @6pm, Potluck dinner @8pm Lighting Ceremony !10pm Nov 27 Beatles Tribute Trio @10pm Nov 28 Strickly Wicked KC cover band
The Lucky Tiger 718 Francis
First Saturday with live music all afternoon.
Eagles Lodge N. Belt Hwy. Sat. 11/7 No Limits Sat 11/14 Ranger Sat 11/21 Rev’d Up Sat 11/28 Dixie Cadillac
Magoon’s Deli 8th & Locust Sun 11/1 Jerry Forney Mon 11/2 Amalgam Jazz Tues 11/3 Open Jam Wed Tracy Huffman Thurs 11/5 Brody Buster Fri 11/6 Darling Nicki Sat 11/7 Side Tracks Sun 11/8 Jerry Forney Tues 11/10 Open Jam Wed 11/11 Tracy Huffman Thurs 11/12 Jason Riley Fri 11/13 Levee Town Sat 11/14 Katy Guillen & The Girls Sun 11/15 Jerry Forney Tue 11/17 Open Jam Wed 11/18 Kris Lager Thurs 11/19 Jeff Lux Fri 11/20 The Motors Sat 11/21 Roll Your Own Sun 11/22 Jerry Forney Tue 11/24 Open Jam Wed 11/25 Tracy Huffman Thurs 11/26 Closed for Thanksgiving Sat 11/28 Big Noise w/Chris Moore Sun 11/29 Jerry Forney
Freddy Byrd- Author/Photographer/ Art Scene Regular Danny R. Phillips Freddy Byrd, the ever present, always smiling fixture of the St. Joseph art scene, can now add published author to his ever growing resume. “Night Time” is a collection of Byrd’s work as a photographer that came with inspiration from a portrait that fellow photographer Brooke Kukendall took of Byrd at sunset. “She took it right at sunset, the colors were amazing.” This was not the first time that the young Mr. Byrd has been inspired, either by frustration or beauty. The release party for the book will be held at The Lucky Tiger (718 Francis), along with music by Play Dead, as part of the monthly First Saturdays events. Freddy arrived fashionably late to The Vault for our interview. After a handshake and a Budweiser, we set to work on this interview, an interview that Byrd was noticeably uncertain about. Where would the questioning go? Byrd had no idea and I frankly, didn’t either, and I was conducting the damned thing. We began talking of photography, writing, the St. Joseph arts and music scene, what it was like growing up gay in St. Joe and how he went to the camera out of creative frustration. “I always wanted to write a children’s book, around that time I was really into poetry. But from the age 8 or 9 I’ve wanted to write a book, but I became frustrated with my lack of ideas,” Byrd told me in a voice slightly above a whisper. “My friend had a flickr account or something and was taking pictures, I thought it was cool. My uncle bought me my first camera, I felt drawn to the camera, to photography. I always enjoyed it.” As we talked, Byrd loosened up, the shroud of wit fell away, telling me that the need to write his own children’s book is still on his mind. “I still would love to write one someday, I hope to.” For now, Freddy is focusing on his work, “Night Time” and finding a solid place for himself as an artist. St. Joseph and the open minds have supported Byrd and his artistic brethren, musicians, painters, poets and manic street preachers. Byrd has documented his world and the people he calls family, always open to him and everyone else, for that matter. Deep within, Byrd is a die-hard St. Joe native; making the rounds on a lazy Monday or a jam packed punch to the heart of a St. Joe Saturday night, ready to document joy and sadness on the faces and souls of his friends, his family, or just a broken-heart drinking beer at 2 in the afternoon. Freddy is there with his camera, his weapon of choice, ready to capture a moment forever; freezing it in time, locking it into a memory that will always be there, or at least until he hits the delete button.
What Freddy brings to our ever widening circle thanks to open minds and bands like Scruffy and the Janitors and the trio of the Brothers Radkey is an artist’s eye; able to see the between the lines, ready to catch an unique time and place, catching a glimpse of something different, a different angle, a different tilt. What is sane? What is beauty? What is normal? It is all up to the artists, muses, charalatains, criminal, sinners and saints to sort out. All we can do in the here and now, is support art, beauty and patience. Be there in a moment and be part of something special. Freddy Byrd is a unique talent with the eagle’s laser sight, locked into the artist’s way of perception and offering his work in “Night Time” to the friends and masses of St. Joseph in hopes it inspires someone, that will find a place for it to be in their minds and hearts. Looking to the night for a ray of joy and purpose, creative places in our minds unlocked, thanks to Freddy’s camera lens.
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Mug Shots
If you know any of these folks, tell ‘em you saw their mugs in The Regular Joe!
Shake the Pom Poms for Pomegranates! Pomegranates are one of the hottest, coolest ruby-colored superfruits the fall harvest gives us, but most of us have never even eaten one! That’s because pomegranates are not the easiest fruits to eat. Split one open and you have to scrape or knock out the bright colored seeds called arils that look like little rubies. Also, you have to deal with the white pith the seeds are embedded in. But not to consume pomegranates deprives us of one of the most beneficial fruits nature offers in terms of overall health. With about a dozen anti-inflammatory phytochemicals and three times as many antioxidants, pomegranates have been the subject of several clinical research studies. One such study conducted in Israel on diabetic patients and published in the journal Atherosclerosis, reported that daily ingestion of pomegranate juice significantly reduced atherosclerotic plaques and did not raise blood sugar like other fruit juices because the sugars in pomegranate juice are attached to unique antioxidants. Pomegranate’s power comes from its reported ability to lower the oxidation of LDL cholesterol and to increase the body’s production of nitric oxide, a recently discovered antioxidant that increases blood flow through the arteries. For those who choose not to drink red wine because of its alcohol content in spite of the fact that it is often recommended for its heart-protective effects, pomegranate juice might be the perfect alternative, and with greater benefit to boot. In addition to its cardioprotective properties, pomegranates also protect against certain types of cancers, specifically, prostate. Another study done at the University of California, Los Angeles on men with prostate cancer revealed that a cup of pomegranate juice daily quadrupled the time during which they suffered little or no progression of their cancer. Aging men with low testosterone can also benefit from pomegranate juice, since the fruit blocks the
activity of aromatase, an enzyme that converts testosterone into estrogen, thereby making more testosterone available to promote lean body mass versus storing fat in the abdominal area which happens with too much estrogen. At the U.K.’s Society for Endocrinology 2012 conference, it was reported that drinking a glass of pomegranate juice daily can raise salivary testosterone levels by a whopping 24 percent! Women as well as men, can benefit from pomegranates. Because they are one of the few foods that contain phyto(plant)estrogens, pomegranates may be effective in balancing hormones and protecting women against breast cancer. A daily glass of four-to-eight ounces of pomegranate juice may, indeed, keep the doctor away, more than any apple ever could. Just make sure it’s pure pomegranate juice with no added sugar. If you would prefer to take pomegranate in a pill, one of our top supplement companies, EuroPharma, produces a softgel called PomXtra that combines pomegranate extract and seed oil, providing the equivalent of 14 ounces of juice. We also feature a pure pomegranate juice concentrate from Tree of Life that tastes delicious. Any way you take it, pomegranate is one fall fruit to root for! Yours in health James Fly Certified Health Coach (Institute for Integrative Nutrition)
Sugarplum Festival Nov. 12-14th Mark your calendars for November 12-14th as the artwork comes off of the walls at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art, setting the stage for the event that kicks off the holidays in St. Joseph and the surrounding areas. Vendors move in, holiday decorations go up, and the building is transformed into a “Holiday Gift Gallery”… and so much more! The Annual Sugarplum Festival is a chance for all to get some early holiday shopping done, and pick up some decorating ideas while they do so. The festivities start Thursday evening with the Preview Party and continue thru Saturday. Festival hours are Friday, November 13 from 10:00 am – 8:00 pm and Saturday, November14 from 10:00 am-4:00 pm. The Sugarplum Luncheon Cafe will be open Friday and Saturday from 11:30 am – 2:00 pm. ~Call the Museum at 816-233-7003 for more information. Admission is $8 and children under 12 are free. ~Advance tickets can be purchased for $6 at the Guest Services counter at East Hills Shopping Center through Wednesday, November 12. ~Parking at the museum is limited. Visitors are encouraged to park behind the old Vatterott College (East of the AKMA on Frederick, just off Brookside). A complimentary shuttle will be running throughout the Sugarplum hours on both Friday and Saturday. This annual fundraiser for the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art helps to kick off the holiday season, while benefitting the programs offered throughout the year. Thursday, November 12th - PREVIEW NIGHT (Reservations required) *$35 per guest *Includes Weekend Pass *1 Drink Ticket *Savories & Sweets provided by Wabash Junction *Live Performances by MWSU *Holiday Spirits (cash bar) Be the FIRST to enjoy all that Sugarplum has to offer! Check out our new vendors, purchase your Sugarplum gifts, bid on the “Deck the Halls” Silent Auction items, sign up for the AKMA Spring Wine Walk and much much more! Includes 1 Preview Admission with 1 Drink Ticket & 1 Weekend Admission. Friday, November 13th Gift Gallery Hours: 10am-8pm – Admission $8; under 12 free. Luncheon Cafe: 11:30am-2pm *Special Holiday Happy Hour 2-4:00 pm Admission is ½ price! Wine Tasting: 5:30-7:30pm *$20 at the door/ per guest (Includes weekend admission) *Presented by Granite Creek, Riverwood, and Tipple Hill Wineries *Light Hors d’oeuvres presented by Pink Salt *Music provided by Seth Campbell and Jupiter Jazz. Saturday, November 8th Gift Gallery Hours: 10am-4pm – Admission $8 Luncheon Cafe: 11:30am-2pm Admissions $8 Admission *children under 12 are free
Complete Dell and Gateway Desktop Systems $129
Woods & Bruce Electric “No job too small!” David Bruce, Master Electrician 816-617-1152
Nick’s Painting Over 40 Years Experience (816) 232-3258 Interior
Problem with alcohol? We have a solution. AA info: district2@wamo-aa.org 816-471-7229
Now Open 4 Lunch!
Create Your Own Normal Shannon Bond It’s hard to slow down after race season. The goals are gone, and with it the motivation, at least some of it. Maybe it’s time to go back to school or a big work project has reared up. How do you balance intellectual or academic pursuits with fitness when there isn’t a race looming? Sometimes it’s hard to switch gears throughout the day, but it’s all perspective. By trying to not define yourself by any one concept, such as “I am a runner, cyclist, student, mother, teacher…etc.”, you stay open to the possibilities. It’s important to remember that the sum of a day’s efforts is different depending upon the lens it is being examined through. Your neighbor, for instance, may think you’re crazy for peddling into the chilly air at 5:00a.m. All he can see is the frost on the ground and the missed sleep. Through the glass of your lens, however, you see adventure, fitness gain, increased mental focus, and an emotional high. The day will be so much better if you can fit in an hour before you have to go into office land where coffee and cubicles stretch on forever. As a matter of fact, you may have gone to bed thinking about your next outing, while your neighbor may have gone to bed thinking about that next report, his last performance review, or where to invest. Those are all thoughts brought on by the constant pressure of office land. Whether you have a race coming up or you’re in it for the adventure, your focus is on moving forward as a human being. The anticipation is there whether you are training or not, but the pressure you put on yourself is different. In the off season or when you don’t have a specific goal, there is more freedom. Your nighttime thoughts are centered on whether it is a run or a ride in the morning. How far can you go and how much time can you squeeze in before work? The challenge is to keep it up since there are no looming goals and the thought of finishing last isn’t driving you to open your eyes and get to it. What makes a successful person depends on how you define success, it’s that lens again. If you define it as a balance of adventure and fitness, or being crazy fast on two wheels (or two feet), you’re probably thinking through the next day as you lay in bed at night. Instead of thinking about that next performance review or fixating on yesterday’s awful meeting where you should have stood up to so-and-so, you’re thinking: wake up at 6:00 a.m., ride, shower, commute, work, (if it’s training season there may be a run at lunch), commute, family time, get the kids to bed, row machine or stationary if you missed the lunch session, then bed, where the next day’s sequence swims in your mind as you fall asleep. If there is school and extracurricular activities, it gets really tricky. Even if it’s a squeeze and your schedule causes a bit of stress, the funny thing is, you’re an overall better human being if you get that personal fitness time in. You’re in a better mood when you get that dopamine high from exercise, you have more energy, and you’re more focused. If you have more demands on your time such as school (yours or the kids’), this may mean trying to fit runs and rides into everyday life. The thought process goes: if I ride from home to the store, it will give me 18 miles, preferably on an unexplored route. Then, the family picks me up, I clean up in the bathroom, shed the kit, throw the bike on the car, and it’s off we go for the day’s events. This way we fit in the ride and fam-
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ily time, I just have to leave an hour earlier and meet the family. It’s also helpful to plan active activities with the family like bike rides, hikes (even if it’s through the vast expanse of the outdoor shopping mall), or zoo and park visits. This may not be the hard training you need to increase your fitness level but it keeps you well rounded and helps get the family active too. Eventually, this approach to everyday life becomes the normal for everyone. Picking you up in a stray parking lot twenty miles away so you can take that family trip to the grocery store is just another day. However you do it, it’s up to you to define your own normal and chances are, those around you will start to see things your way. Or, they will at least stop thinking you’re crazy.
Trouble With a Capital “P” Jay Kerner Publisher/Pot Stirrer We do our best to make more friends than enemies, but you can’t do what we do without taking some shots along the way. Like, we sometimes hear complaints that we shy away from controversial subjects. Our defense is in our tagline, “Celebrating the Coolest Local Stuff”. When things push past our bounds of acceptability, we look to our civic leaders, but all seem consumed with other matters. That’s why an injustice like this has been allowed to exist right under our noses all this time. So, we decided to speak up. We’re talking about the pickle problem! Statistics (we made up) estimate that at least 60% of you understand our outrage. You want a sandwich. You look at the menu and choose one based on the printed list of fixin’s. You give the waitress your “No Pickles” speech. (See ours below). Then, what do you get? That’s right, PICKLES! On your food! It’s automatic. Sometimes the waitress sets down the plate and says, “whoops,” as if she can salvage the situation by simply removing the offending ovals and setting them to the side. Pickle haters know that sandwich is ruined. Every bite a mine-field as you wait for the cringe when you hit the nasty pickly parts. Yuck! Sometimes the waitress will catch it and pitch the pickles before bringing it out. Like we wouldn’t notice the putrid green puddle soaking into our fries and our buns. Dietary time-bombs just waiting to go off. When did automatic pickles become the default setting? I figure it this way. The cucumber plant is basically a weed. Yet, because pretty much any doofus can grow them, many do. So many in fact, that there is always an abundance of them. That’s when the evil magic happens. The piles of cruddy cucumbers rot and ferment. Somewhere along the line, some lower example of the population ate of the nastiness and incredulously found it good. They wanted more. They perfected their dark arts over the generations, until what was once a home/farm based operation became part of the industrial revolu-
tion. And that’s when “Big Pickle” took over. You know the names. Ethnic, Eastern European sounding names! Communist sounding names! Pimping pickles to an unsuspecting American public. They knew a percentage of the population is born with stunted taste receptors, making them susceptible to the vile allure of spear, slice, or relish. We don’t blame the taste diminished. There are certainly worse conditions to have. But why do the rest of us have to suffer for your affliction? Big Pickle isn’t going to like it, but here’s what I want: Default Pickles banned by law, across our great land. “Pickles available upon request” printed on every menu. Let the pickle-eaters eat the damn things if they insist, but quit making the rest of us suffer for their sad indulgences. It’s the right thing to do. We plan to use our not inconsiderable, political influence to get this done, and we hope we can count on your support. And if I happen to die mysteriously anytime soon, have my body tested for traces of dill. My Pickle Speech (Actually, I rarely have to say it anymore. I barely start on mine, when the Queen and one or more of my kids will take over and say it together verbatim in mocking voices that sound nothing like me.) “Please, no pickles on or near my food. Even if you take the pickles off, I’ll still know, and I won’t be pleased. What I’d really like is no pickles, even on the plates next to my plate. But I’ll settle for none on mine. Thank you, kindly!”
Holt County Carcass Hans P. Bremer (photo by Mike Rockett, Jr.) You can’t avoid the wind. Crossing the bottoms, it slaps and kicks, burns the fleshy round of our exposed ears. When we retreat to the back of the shed, a hollow moan stalls in the ridges of tin roof flapping between us and the South’s autumn advance.
We linger there. The talk is thin. Eric’s eyes are unfocused and seem to swirl over the piles of lumber, PVC pipe and grainy lead glass panes wedged between a post and the splintered wall of the shed. I’ve got a hundred projects, he says, and none of them are completed.
My heels sink in the soft earth. I watch a few corn silks take flight in the back field. Above the terraced acres, a few turkey buzzards swoop and rise on the barbarous thermals. I wonder what death has coaxed them here, what weak collapse their creased pink heads
foretell.
From the Desk of Joe Northwest Mindi L. Phillips, Regular Joe Northwest Editor We at the Regular Joe are offering you something a little different this month. With a combination of all three editions, those of you in the Northwest region will get a sneak peek into the St. Joe and KC Northland editions as readers in those areas peek into ours. Our fearless founder brought the idea to me at just the right time. We had discussed it before, but I wasn’t ready to try it just then. Frankly the past year (or two) has been fraught with change, some personal, some physical, most of it very unpleasant and quite unwelcome. I was pretty sure that one more change was just more than I could take. As with many aspects of life this year, change has made it necessary for me to take a fresh look at why I hold on to old ways, my tight control over details, the general need to take each bend in the road as a personal affront. One big change that has developed recently has been in my own outlook. I find myself stopping more often to analyze just why it is that I have this need to stay in a rut, to keep a vise-like grip on my little world. As we all know, the nature of life is that it changes; circumstances are, in the end, beyond our control. The best we can do at times is just to hang on and enjoy the ride. Those who know me know that for me this is easier said than done. Until now… This year has been for me, in gentle terms, a beast. I have had some scary phone calls. I’ve had some frustrating situations. I’ve had major health issues that changed just about every aspect of my life for the past several months - and the cure to that one? More change. I’ve seen so much change on this spinning orb we call Earth that I’ve barely been able to keep my balance. And yet, I found myself again today stopping to think what all the fuss I was putting up was all about after another little disruption reared its ugly head in my midst. Given a moment Mindi L. Phillips, editor to think about why I was so irritated, instead of ruminating over the issue until my mind was red and raw, I found myself Rich Piper, editorial happily accepting the direction in which this “inconvenience” was Mike Rockett Jr., health headed. I actually embraced it, choosing to instead concentrate on the benefits of this unexpected change. Thomas J. Williams, movies However, the important change today wasn’t the one that just popped up. It’s the one I’m noticing in me. When we have the Contact Mindi at Regular Joe Northwest hindsight to see what can be lost to perfectionism, anxiety, anger, whatever our personal proclivity in these situations may be, we 816-596-0701 see that letting go and accepting change as not only welcome but northwest@regularjoepaper.com beneficial can be the best change yet.
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Mindi
LEADERSHIP NORTHWEST MISSOURI RECRUITING FOR 2016 CLASS Leadership Northwest Missouri is looking for the right men and women to fill its 2016 class, promising those who join an experience they’ll never forget. Seven days over a six month period is the commitment, but the results are worth so much more. The deadline to apply is December 1, 2015. Often, seminars offer tips on leadership and networking. But Leadership Northwest Missouri is different. It provides a localized experience, offering leadership training, education on hot topics in the region, and access to a well-connected network of contacts. “Leadership Northwest has been a huge blessing in my life,” said Ben White, Executive Assistant, Main Street Chillicothe and Leadership Northwest Missouri Alum. “Being new to the area, I really didn’t know many people or what issues were important to the region. Leadership Northwest has not only helped address these issues for me but has helped me to become more confident in my leadership skills and what my strengths can bring to the table. I look forward to continuing to grow as an individual and to interacting with not only my classmates but also the alumni of the
program. The 2016 class will begin with a two-day retreat at Conception Abbey, January 20 and 21, led by Tim Crowley, Ph.D., a national speaker on personal and professional development. Day-long monthly classes will follow in various communities throughout our 19-county region, (Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Caldwell, Carroll, Clay, Clinton, Daviess, DeKalb, Gentry, Grundy, Harrison, Holt, Linn, Livingston, Mercer, Nodaway, Sullivan and Worth), with the class graduation scheduled for June 30. Class participants will come away with a new outlook on the workplace, enhanced leadership skills, hands-on team building exercises, communication and motivational skills, and so much more. To create an effective experience, Leadership Northwest Missouri must limit the number of class participants. The deadline to apply is December 1. Please contact Deb Powers at MERIL if you have questions or to request an application; e-mail: debp@meril.org, phone: (816) 279-8558 x. 1007. Website: http:// www.leadershipnorthwestmissouri.org
November Events at Tipple Hill Winery TIPPLING THURSDAY CREATIONS November 5, 2015 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Fall craft project. Anyone & everyone invited to join us! This group will meet the 1st Thursday of each month for crafting, creating, relaxing, and as always fun & laughter! This month you will be making a Autumn Door/Wall Hanging. $15 - all supplies included & a glass of wine. Limited participation, so call to save a spot for you -and your friends. 816-294-7968 or email contactus@tipplehillwinery.com or message. BRUSHES & LUSHES- Christmas Theme November 15, 2015 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Artist- Jeremy Eaton $35.00 per person includes all art supplies, by step instructions, a glass of wine, light snacks and a n afternoon of fun! You must register and pre -pay a nonrefundable deposit of $15.00 per person. Balance of $20.00 will be paid at the event. Please enter the date and name of the event you are registering for. Erica McKenzie November 21, 2015 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Come enjoy Erica, one woman band play Folk, Soul, Pop, Blues, Rock and Country.
10501 SE US Highway 36 Easton, MO 64443 Just 5 miles east of St. Joseph, MO right on Highway 36 north side
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RegJoe NW Mo. pg. 24
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from the shelf:
David Hasselhoff on Acid’s “Eudaimonia”
Danny R. Phillips The name David Hasselhoff on Acid grabs you. Unless you are from Germany where he is considered a rock god, David Hasselhoff is the dude that ran down the beach to judge “talented” people while sitting in his talking car drunkenly eating a cheeseburger off the floor mats. Wait, I got some shows mixed up there. Oh well. The latest from the Lawrence, KS band David Hasselhoff on Acid Eudaimonia is a trip. A rapid-fire jazzrock fire fight, blasting out of the blocks with “Breakfast,” a jam that must be of supernatural origin, coming on like something The Sword would do if they spent quality hang time with Frank Zappa and prog rockers Yes, while expanding their imaginations to impressive heights. There lies the rub. I sit listening, eating a burnt English muffin, lounging in flannel pants, needing desperately to shave. I love this record. What has happened to me? Historically, I am not a fan of long, self-important, drawn out, seemingly improvised jams. I hate Phish, The Dead were overrated, I detest Widespread Panic and Dave Matthews is the Anti-Christ. I grew up listening to punk rock where, if you could not get it done in three minutes or less, do not play it. On occasion, if the mood struck me, I would indulge a bit in progressive rock but those times were as rare as seeing Bigfoot at a keg party. However, DHOA has struck me differently; there is method to the madness, melody in the chaos; it is not just “look what I can do!” wankery. There is beauty lying in the eye of the storm. “Tiny Bubbles” is an 8 minute 8 second extravaganza that plays like a threesome between Primus, Metallica and Carlos Santana. It just should not work in this or any other universe but indeed it does. However, it does push the limits of my ADD so if you have similar issues, double up on the Adderall before pushing play. “Someone Just Caught a Unicorn” is just plain cool. An interstellar trip on par with 1970’s trip out artists Captain Beyond is one of the most spaced out tracks on Eudaimonia. Adrian Belew
and Syd Barrett would be so very proud. Although, at over 13 minutes, even the most dedicated Dungeons and Dragons player would reach their limit. Immediately following is “Noodly Appendages,” the 3:36 jam with Zach Legler doing his best Gene Krupa/Buddy Rich drum-fill attack, bassist Erich Thomas blowing the funk out and guitarists Phil Wolf and Brandon Bamesberger alternating between subtlety and rocket blasts. This is a real gem among gems. The closer “Sheep Led By Wolves Owned by Pigs” is just straight up weird and at times creepy. David Hasselhoff on Acid is clearly the Mothership for some of the best musicians I’ve ever heard. Ever. Period. The players make their instruments do things that a precious few could or can do. LFK, you should be glowing with city pride to have these prog champions in your borders. That said, my friends, be in the right headspace for Eudaimonia; wait until you are sufficiently lubricated to get sucked in, to get lost. Do not get in a hurry, enjoy it, and let it get under your skin, to take you away, as any good acid trip should.
The Power of Gratitude Rich Piper
Thanksgiving is a day in November but should be a constant occurrence any and every day. The reasons for being thankful, for having and expressing gratitude, exist from the first spark of our life, the first breath of the day, and throughout every moment of our life. There are reasons for gratitude all around us, literally every moment of our lives. Gratitude, shown in words or other expressions of appreciation, can be very powerful and extremely meaningful to both the giver and the recipient. But the lack of receiving gratitude can also carry with it negative consequences. A report from the U.S. Department of Labor noted that failing to feel appreciated was the most common reason why people quit their jobs. Generally, spouses who express appreciation to each other are more likely to stay committed to their relationship. It doesn’t take a Ph.D. to figure out that relationships lacking in the expression of appreciation may likely face serious dangers. There is significant research that a genuine attitude of gratitude produces a great many benefits in one’s life. For example, people who often show gratitude tend to be more relaxed, more resilient, have more good feelings, feel less envious of others, and hold happier memories. The personality of someone that often expresses gratitude tends to be less self-centered, more optimistic, and encompass greater self-esteem. Physical health appears to be improved also, with folks being less sick, living longer lives, participate in more exercise, and have increased energy. Socially, folks with a greater depth of gratitude as a part of their lives, tend to have more friendships, experience deeper relationships, be kinder to others, and have healthier marriages. And in their careers such folks tend to display better decision making skills, increased productivity, greater goal achievement, and are better managers. In short, an attitude of gratitude and its application through appreciation helps make one happier; and often helps others around one to be happier. Here are a few thoughts about gratitude and appreciation. I hope they are original, but if not, I am grateful for the inspiration of another and I appreciate that at least some of it was retained in my memory: Saying thank you is not enough, but it is a good start. True gratitude for what we have diminishes envy, lust, and greed; for it helps us appreciate what we have. Certainly there is more than just a little space that makes the difference between ingratitude and in gratitude. If you are alive today, give thanks for yesterday, for without it, you wouldn’t have today. If what we got, is but one of an unimaginable number of possibilities, should we be more grateful for the not than for the got. Appreciation is one of our basic emotional needs, yet, unfortunately, providing it is one of our greatest weaknesses. How we use a gift speaks louder than mere words, including thank you. Counting your blessings is truly higher math. Take minute to find that for which you should be grateful, and you will add joy to your life. Take time to find that for which you can be angry, and you will have
RegJoe NW Mo. pg. 28 lost a minute of your life. We work for a paycheck, but we live for appreciation. It takes one second to say thank you. Certainly we can use one of our daily 86,400 seconds to say it to someone -- or maybe more. The best appreciation is that which sparks aspiration, which in turn should inspire additional appreciation. The only thing wrong with the pursuit of happiness is that when we catch it, it is never enough. Unexpressed appreciation is a gift never presented. We often overestimate the power of bad occurrences and circumstances upon the course of our life, and too often underestimate the power of a small act of caring, a word of appreciation, to change the course of life for the better. Saying “thank you” signals one has good manners, meaning it, signals one has a good heart. Let me finish up with a challenge, a challenge for both you and me, we good folks of the Regular Joe of Northwest MO, to be personally, and specifically thankful for the many good things in our lives, and to also let folks around us know that for which we appreciate them. And to you dear reader, I offer my appreciation, for without a reader there would not be much use for a writer. As always, I promise to appreciate any and all comments you wish to share. Please feel free to email me at RichPiper@LifePraise.org and share your thoughts. Perhaps even a report on how you recently expressed gratitude. Rich has spent most of his adult life living and/or working in small, rural communities in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Northwest Missouri. Rich chooses to spend most of his weekday, daytime hours teaching students science, and other things, in Union Star. He also chooses to spend his Sundays, and some other occasional time, with the good folks in Cainsville. You can reach Rich at RichPiper@LifePraise.org with comments.
Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart
Thomas J. Williams
In this charmingly animated French and Belgian co-production, a baby boy (Jack) is born on the coldest day of the year and is born with a frozen heart. A town’s tinkering witch/midwife named Madeleine saves the baby’s life by swapping his dying heart with that of a cuckoo-clock that can be wound tightly to keep the boy alive. Yes, it is bizarrely odd, but this is animated fantasy so allow yourself to go with it as by film’s end you will get one of the most beautifully moving endings of any animated film I have ever seen. It may produce a sniffle or two, but the end scene/thought is magic. The film is based on/inspired by a concept album by French band Dionysus and an illustrated novel entitled La Mécanique du cœurby Mathias Malzieu. While the animation here isn’t as spectacular as some Pixar releases over the years, it is nice enough to keep one’s interest as I found it similar in style to films like James and the Giant Peach, Coraline, and The Book of Life. Jack’s life depends upon that cuckoo-clock heart and so he is given three little rules to live by that will keep him alive which are: (1) he must never play with the hands of the clock, (2) he must never lose his temper, and finally (3) he must never fall in love. As a growing boy Jack is able to remain in check by his watchful guardians, but as he grows into a young
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man that third rule quickly becomes one which is rather tricky to manage/ control, especially after meeting a blind girl on the streets of Edinburgh named Miss Acacia who has also won the eye of a schoolyard bully who is none-too-fond of Jack. Jack’s animated world is just as fanciful as his life-sustaining device and it veers into Terry Gilliam-esque wonderment when he joins a carnival of sorts in Andalusia, Spain while going in search of a missing Miss Acacia as he also befriends a young filmmaker named Georges Méliès (yes, him !) who believes in the magical power of the moving (motion) picture. The film is small and simple as there is a classic villain and a theme of adoration/love. Can Jack quite literally give someone a key to his heart? Will there be consequences if he does? It is a rock musical inspired by the before-mentioned album and the characters do break out into a variety of songs from time to time. Earlier this year (2015) saw the release of another animated rock musical, Strange Magic, that was horribly bad, but Jack’s songs luckily all play into the film’s narrative and story seamlessly. It works...better than the boy’s cuckoo-clock heart.
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Deer Watching
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Carol Carpenter A man gets up before dawn, showers, dries his hair, puts on long underwear, camouflage clothing, walks through the timber, climbs into a tree stand, in the dark and waits without coffee or a hot breakfast for the woods to awaken, for the first grey light, flutter of wings, scurry in the leaf litter, for the promise of bragging rights, a buck with antlers bigger than any he shot before, bigger than his neighbor, who shot the huge buck the man saw next to his house the day before rifle season started. From the trees, two does step out of the shadows followed by a small buck, feathery clouds in pink and orange swirl above as the man watches the buck in his rifle scope cross the field right in front of him, chasing the does back into the trees. Gold rains as the sun strokes the frozen leaves. The man smiles, lowers his rifle, stretches his legs and slowly climbs down from the tree. Carol Carpenter is a writer/photographer living in the paradise of northwest Missouri. Carpenter enjoys singing, watching the birds, playing with her grandson and making pie.
TRIVIA: In what movie trilogy did the actress who played the main character die part way through the making of the third one? First reader to post the correct answer on the “Regular Joe Northwest Edition” Facebook page wins a large pizza from Benelli’s!