You really can’t beat the Godfather of Soul on this season excursion. Get your groove on with James Brown performing Santa Claus Goes Straight to the Ghetto
Heading to the south and east, I give you another instant classic: Maxi Priest singing We Wish You a Rasta Christmas
Let’s get guitar serious here. If James Brown is the Godfather of soul, Joe Bonamassa has to be the Earl of Guitar. Here he is cranking out: Lonesome Christmas
Todays capper is in the classic zone. We’ve got the Glen Miller Orchestra cranking out Jingle Bells
Mr. President, we need to talk about a couple of issues that are on my mind. I love what you’re doing with the nation’s economy. I endorse your foreign policy stance. I fully support you firing anyone you want – you have the legal right. In general, I admire your lack of political correctness. I think your calling it like it is helps us as a nation break through the tendrils of socialism that threaten to strangle our Republic.
But you are hurting your own cause with some of the rhetoric. I honestly feel like you have nothing but good intentions for the nation. But when you let the press get your goat, or you slide off-script in front of the rally crowd, it hurts you a lot. Today I had lunch with two very dear friends. Both good church-going people who have history as entrepreneurs. We talked politics as only friends in their later years can: listening to each other.
Mr. President, I heard two things: “I like some of the policies.” This was quickly followed by “But when he starts demeaning people on looks and IQ it seems so wrong that I have to shut him out.”
President Trump, he’s right. You’re right. Some of the people you blast are exactly what you say they are in your speeches. But the average person who’s not a political animal (which is most of the country) misses the policy, or your heartfelt words, because the press only carries the slur on somebody that you had along with the great thing you did for the country. The average person never reads the transcript, or watches the full video like I do as a political junkie.
So, without further ado, I’m offering my help. I’m almost ready to retire, and I’d be willing to come and hang out with you to help keep you on message. Just like you, I wouldn’t take a dime for the job. I think that if you had an ex-spook who can cuss like a sailor, and do it in several languages, you might also listen to my guidance on how not to be perceived as a crass bully. I’m pretty smart, can write a sentence, and have an excellent background in military events, technology, and intelligence. You can trust a guy like me to keep my mouth shut as well. You need that badly right now.
In the meantime, how about you just quit saying things like “She’s a very low I.Q. person.” Seriously, unless you have the testing to prove it, it just makes you look tacky. Same thing for nicknames. Yes, Senator Warren is a fraud and a fake in the eyes of the Cherokee nation. But all you have to do is smile when it comes up. Don’t rise to the bait. Use minions for that sort of thing if you must, but never wrestle in the mud with the pigs. They like it.
Finally, if you do all of the above, I think we can grant you a special dispensation to call Jim Acosta anything you want. He is a preening twit, and has proven it over and over. But you only get to point a finger at him and say that if you can restrain yourself on the other items I mentioned.
Do we have a deal?
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NEW BOOK IS OUT!
My second novel, Nicholas of Haiti, is now available. Go fetch your credit card for the Kindle, print, and audio book versions. This is not a sequel to Assault on Saint Agnes, but a unique book in the speculative Christian fiction world.
Audio book cover on the left, Kindle cover on the right.
Don’t forget to subscribe (the box is on the right side of the page) to be eligible for free e-books and other benefits! Oh yeah – grab a copy of Assault on Saint Agnes if you’re of a mind.
Some of our traditions are a little strange here on the blog. That’s fine with me. In the spirit of Christmas, and the strange, I’m kicking off the Christmas music video Friday theme with The Night Santa Went Crazy by that Santa with curly hair, Weird Al Yankovic (Don’t let the kids watch this one.)
That was awfully – noelish – if such a word exists. Let’s go on to something a bit more “normal” for our second tune. Christmas from Ecuador Feliz Navidad
I know all of you have come here weekly to have your brains expanded. Today, in the wake of the past weekend, I’ve got little to offer. Why? I baked 100 minature sweet potato pies, created 3 pieces of cover art for the book, uploaded the manuscript to two different platforms, completed the audio book, quality checked the uploads, and then sent it off for ACX to do their review.
Other than that, I just sat around.
I hereby announce the publication of Nicholas of Haiti. It will be available on 22 November, 2018. Some versions are now available for pre-order, but the audio book is not yet there for sale.
Here’s the back cover copy:
Nick Bacon is a life interrupted. When his commercial airline flight explodes over Utah, killing everyone on board but Nick, his miraculous survival draws unwanted attention. The press can’t get enough of his story while the FBI is convinced he planted the bomb that took down his plane. All he wants is a place to heal and time to let the world forget him. Unable to return home, Nick accepts an offer to join a missionary medical team and flees to Haiti.
But Nick’s new life in Haiti is haunted by visions. He’s forced to examine his sanity and faith in a world of turmoil and chaos among a people he’s never met before. Aided by Andre, his Haitian translator and protector, Nick confronts the dark forces battling for his soul, and the soul of the abused little girl he’s only seen in his dreams.
Because in Haiti, there’s more than just Nick’s sanity at risk. The fate of the world may now depend on Nicholas of Haiti.
On the 22nd, you will have your choice of a Kindle, paper, and audio edition. It is NOT a sequel to Assault on Saint Agnes. It’s a stand-alone book and it’s quite a yarn. It’s something new for you from me, but it’s my first love as a writer: supernatural/speculative fiction. Very Christian in its focus, you will find a world of missionaries and Haiti that you never knew existed. Best of all, all proceeds from the sales of the Kindle and paper editions are being donated to a charity that works in Haiti.
Without further ado, the book cover (the Kindle and paper versions are slightly different in font and color) and the audio book cover:
You may notice that the cover model is just some random idiot I found on the internet. He works cheap.
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NEW BOOK COMING THANKSGIVING WEEKEND
See how easy that was? You read the headline and you know what the review says. (Warning: for the closed minded, Freddy was gay. Not just a little. He kisses guys in the movie. If you can’t live with that, you’re missing out on a great flick.)
Bohemian Rhapsody tells a story about Freddy Mercury and the band Queen.
Is it perfectly accurate? Nope! I actually prefer it that way. Watch the trailer and then resume below.
Neat, eh? Well the whole movie is a series of deftly knit scenes that bring back the music that every kid who listened to top-40 music in the period 1970-1990 knew all the words to without a karaoke screen. Frankly, it’s still some of the best stuff on the “oldies” stations. I am old. Such is life. It’s what we used to call a “popcorn movie.”
For those of you who hadn’t yet been born, or who predate the music of Queen, it’s still a good movie. I am fairly sure the reviews have been horrible because the SJW (Social Justice Warriors) despise the fact that the sexuality of Mercury wasn’t the main focus. For my money, sometimes less is more. If you missed the fact that Freddy died after a long struggle with the fact that he was gay, and the world was terrified of AIDS at that time, you weren’t watching the same movie I was. Not that it’s a direct comparison, but it’s kind of like JAWS. A little shark is better than a lot of shark for getting the point across.
It is safe to say that everyone I know who has seen, and commented on, this movie loved it. I will watch it again when it comes to the internet. But if you’re a Queen fan, get out to the theater now and enjoy it on the big screen. But buy your tickets in advance if you’re smart, as the theater was sold out on the day I went.
Now, get out there and vote.
Oh, and a bonus. It stands (in my mind) as the greatest concert appearance I’ve ever seen. I don’t think I caught it at the time, but it’s something I’ve watched on the tube many times. I present for your viewing enjoyment, Queen at Live Aid in 1985:
NEW BOOK COMING THANKSGIVING WEEKEND
My second novel, Nicholas of Haiti, will be available Thanksgiving weekend. Details will be forthcoming, including the cover and synopsis, shortly. Put aside your money for the Kindle, print, and audio book versions. This is not a sequel to Assault on Saint Agnes, but a unique book in the speculative Christian fiction world. Please follow me on Twitter, and “Like” the Facebook author page. Don’t forget to subscribe (the box is on the right side of the page) to be eligible for free e-books and other benefits! Oh yeah – grab a copy of Assault on Saint Agnes if you’re of a mind.
