{"id":1514,"date":"2019-12-03T02:05:47","date_gmt":"2019-12-02T20:05:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/?p=1514"},"modified":"2021-06-19T20:13:11","modified_gmt":"2021-06-19T14:13:11","slug":"who-i-am","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/?p=1514","title":{"rendered":"WHO I AM"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0Well, there goes another month and here goes, hopefully, another blahg.<\/span><\/strong><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\" alignnone\" src=\"http:\/\/www.falseducks.com\/mrcool.jpg\" alt=\"Scott Henderson still thinks he's cool!\" width=\"170\" height=\"225\" align=\"right\" hspace=\"10\" vspace=\"10\" \/><\/strong><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 Recently, I popped in on my friend Bryan, with a colleague of mine, and he referred to me as Mr. Comedy.\u00a0 Of course this was just after me making a joke about something but Bryan had to explain our comedy history and our once famous, in our own minds, radio show &#8220;Dead From The Neck Up&#8221;.\u00a0 But, I&#8217;m getting ahead of myself.\u00a0 The Mr. Comedy is part of the larger &#8220;who I am&#8221; and I hope to detail more of that in this blahg.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0Back in 2000, the singer Jessica Andrews had a hit with a song called &#8220;Who I am&#8221;.\u00a0 I have to admit that the song has been running through my head as I attempt to write this blahg.\u00a0 The lyrics really give some kind of make-up to the singer and define who she is.\u00a0 It may just be a song but the lyrics and her vocal are quite good.\u00a0 Check out the official video below <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Jd9zYKLepCw\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0I started to wonder what the lyrics to my own &#8220;Who I Am&#8221; would be; other than Mr. Comedy.\u00a0 If I go back far enough, it would start with being A Son (I know, some would say Son of A Gun or Son of A&#8230;fill in the blanks).\u00a0 In the past year I&#8217;ve mentioned a great deal about the struggles I had after my Dad fell last June.\u00a0 All that led up to his eventually dying in January of this year.\u00a0 Of course I haven&#8217;t talked a lot about what I continue to do as a Son for my <a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/christopherswedding.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-1366 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/christopherswedding-284x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"284\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/christopherswedding-284x300.jpg 284w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/christopherswedding-768x812.jpg 768w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/christopherswedding-968x1024.jpg 968w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/christopherswedding.jpg 1175w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 284px) 100vw, 284px\" \/><\/a>Mother who survived my Father.\u00a0 The picture on the left is one of the last pictures taken of my parents.\u00a0 It was on the\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">occasion of my nephew Christopher&#8217;s wedding.\u00a0 I guess I&#8217;m also an Uncle if anyone&#8217;s compiling a list.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Over the past few years I took care of making sure all of my parents&#8217; finances were in order and that their bills were paid.\u00a0 I still do that for my Mother.\u00a0 Five years ago I helped them deal with their insurance company when they lost their old house to an oil spill.\u00a0 I negotiated with the insurance company and the builders and the result is the new home that my Mother still lives in.\u00a0 I joke, of course, that my inheritance is looking sweet!\u00a0 But I don&#8217;t do that in front of my Mother because she doesn&#8217;t like that type of humor.\u00a0 To her, I&#8217;m not Mr. Comedy.\u00a0 I do all of this because she provided for me when I was growing up and I think it&#8217;s my duty.\u00a0 That&#8217;s what you do when you&#8217;re a Son.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Just briefly, I&#8217;m also a brother.\u00a0 I have four brothers and one sister.\u00a0 Sometimes it seems like I&#8217;m an only child when it comes to doing things for my mother but Christmas is coming up and we usually gather at Mom&#8217;s.\u00a0 That&#8217;s always something I look forward to.\u00a0 I just can&#8217;t talk politics with my brothers.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0I&#8217;m a husband.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/js1987-2.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright wp-image-1520 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/js1987-2-238x300.jpg\" alt=\"Jeanette &amp; Scott get married\" width=\"238\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/js1987-2-238x300.jpg 238w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/js1987-2-768x967.jpg 768w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/js1987-2-814x1024.jpg 814w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 238px) 100vw, 238px\" \/><\/a>I guess that also makes me a son-in-law but more important is the husband part.\u00a0 If you check out the picture on the right you will see Jeanette and I as we were married at the end of May in 1987.\u00a0 Click on the picture to see a larger version and a smaller picture in the bottom corner of what our family looked like 11 or 12 years later.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014810032-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1435\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014810032-1-300x199.jpg\" alt=\"Jeanette and I 32 years later\" width=\"300\" height=\"199\" srcset=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014810032-1-300x199.jpg 300w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014810032-1-768x509.jpg 768w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014810032-1-1024x679.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014810032-1.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>The picture on the left is us 32 years later taken this past June 1st at our daughter Emily&#8217;s wedding.\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0Ok, so to comment about being a husband.\u00a0 Am I a good husband?\u00a0 I&#8217;ve tried to be.\u00a0 I&#8217;ve never cheated on my wife although I think a few women over the years looked at me in that particular light.\u00a0 It might just be my vivid imagination.\u00a0 Jeanette and I have had our struggles but this past year saw us grow closer as I struggled with the death of my Father, a tragedy at work, and my mysterious illness.\u00a0 I posted this video earlier this year of the Father of the Bride speech I gave at Emily&#8217;s wedding.\u00a0 It&#8217;s moving and at one point it sums up the love I have for my wife.\u00a0 It&#8217;s well\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">worth putting up again:\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qoTfiGC--UM\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I am a Father&#8230;and now a Father-In-Law. <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-IMG_20190601_172046448.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-1451\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-IMG_20190601_172046448-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Emily , Noah, and Abbie\" width=\"205\" height=\"205\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014820016-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright wp-image-1433\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PC-006014820016-1-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"205\" height=\"205\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">The above pictures are of my three children on the left (left to right:\u00a0 Abbie, Emily, and Noah).\u00a0 The picture on the right is my son-in-law Charlie.\u00a0 He&#8217;s a card.\u00a0 My own children are so distinct but also distinctly like me.\u00a0 Abbie enjoys movies and Tv and comics like I do.\u00a0 Noah enjoys TV and movies as well as old camera and video technology.\u00a0 I believe he got those interests from me.\u00a0 I don&#8217;t know what Emily got from me but she&#8217;s got Charlie so maybe she inherited the gift to choose the right life partner.\u00a0 She&#8217;s also a tech guru and I might have influenced that.\u00a0 Charlie got Emily from me.\u00a0 I gave her away this year at our wedding.\u00a0 No returns, Charlie. <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I am a writer.\u00a0 I guess when you get past the personal parts of son, husband, and father then you get to what&#8217;s left.\u00a0 I always wanted to be a writer. <a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/proan.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1541\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/proan-202x300.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"202\" height=\"300\" \/><\/a>I continue to write but for some reason it has been limited to Christmas stories over the past few years.\u00a0 Once upon a time, 2007 to be precise, I self-published a collection of Christmas entertainments called &#8220;Proof For Believing.&#8221;\u00a0 It contains a novella called &#8220;Proof For Believing&#8221; as well as many Christmas poems, short stories (both fiction and non-fiction), and some left-over Christmas sketches from my once brilliant radio career.\u00a0 The cover design is based on a painting by my oldest daughter Emily.\u00a0 Below, is one of the short stories from that collection.\u00a0 Maybe I&#8217;ll draft a new Christmas story this year if the inspiration hits me right.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\">The Hole<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben struggled with the Christmas tree all the way to the curb.\u00a0 It was Boxing Day and he couldn\u2019t stand to look at it in the house a moment longer.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSee ya, wouldn\u2019t want to be ya,\u201d Ben mused as he gave the tree one last heave and balanced it against a snow bank.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben Miller didn\u2019t mind Christmas but there was only so much a man could take.\u00a0 He was still stuffed from the turkey and the pies from the day before, he\u2019d wallowed all month in the sentiment from numerous Christmas movies, and he\u2019d gotten exactly the gifts he had asked for from his wife and kids.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben looked down the block.\u00a0 No other house had a tree out at the curb.\u00a0 All of his neighbours usually waited until New Year\u2019s Day or after to rid their homes of their evergreens.\u00a0 There wasn\u2019t even anyone out on the street either.\u00a0 They were probably still all inside and reveling in the Christmas spirit.\u00a0 Ben didn\u2019t get it.\u00a0 Why hang on to it?\u00a0 What was the purpose?\u00a0 It was time for it all to come to an end and for the holidays to move on.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Turning to look down at the other end of the block, Ben noticed the Hole in his front yard.\u00a0 Immediately he fell back into the tree on the bank.\u00a0 There shouldn\u2019t be a Hole in his yard!<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Oh, it wasn\u2019t that there was a Hole in the ground or a spot where the snow had melted to reveal a bald patch in the yard. Rather there was an upright Hole about Ben\u2019s height just standing there in the middle of his lawn.\u00a0 It was pitch black and nothing could be seen on either side of it when you attempted to look through it.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben cursed at the scratches he\u2019d received from falling against the tree.\u00a0 Struggling out of its branches, Ben eyed the Hole and wondered what on earth it could be.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat on earth could it be?\u201d Ben asked aloud.\u00a0 He was more than a little shaken from his first sight of the Hole and from falling into a tree that no other house had leaning against their snow banks.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It took a few minutes for Ben to compose himself as he studied the Hole and rubbed at the scratches on his arms and legs.\u00a0 His robe had fallen open and he stood open in his boxer shorts to any and all.\u00a0 But there were no onlookers.\u00a0 There was just Ben and the Hole and that stupid tree.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cStupid tree!\u201d\u00a0 Ben wrapped up his robe and tried to think what he should do next.\u00a0 He was sure the Hole hadn\u2019t been there before.\u00a0 He would have seen it as he struggled with the tree out to the curb.\u00a0 Maybe it was a reflection, he thought.\u00a0 Maybe it was the sun reflecting against the snow.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s stupid,\u201d Ben muttered aloud.\u00a0 \u201cThe sun wouldn\u2019t reflect a black hole.\u00a0 It\u2019s probably\u2026\u201d Ben stopped himself.\u00a0 \u201cA Black Hole.\u00a0 Like in space maybe.\u00a0 I\u2019ll bet that\u2019s what it is.\u201d<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Sure that\u2019s what it was, Ben thought.\u00a0 It had to be.\u00a0 It was some kind of Black Hole like those scientists were always talking about.\u00a0 Only this one was in his yard and not in space.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Explaining it this way to himself made Ben more at ease.\u00a0 Half the terror of a thing is not knowing what it is.\u00a0 That made sense.\u00a0 Well, it made about as much sense to Ben as there being a Black Hole in the middle of his yard.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Feeling the tension easing, Ben decided to check out the Hole a little closer.\u00a0 First he walked all around it.\u00a0 He was right.\u00a0 It was a Hole.\u00a0 It was flat and he couldn\u2019t see through it.\u00a0 \u201cYep, it\u2019s a Black Hole.\u00a0 Funny, I thought it would has some force that would suck you in.\u201d\u00a0 Ben was enjoying this a little.\u00a0 The thought occurred to him that besides there being no trees against snow banks in front of the other houses, his was the only house that had a Black Hole on the front lawn.\u00a0 Ben swelled up with some pride.\u00a0 He thought maybe he could sell tickets or something or that maybe those scientists who were always talking about Black Holes would probably pay big money to study this one.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben walked up closer to the Hole and tried to peer into it to see if he could make out anything inside.\u00a0 It was at this point that Ben felt a hand on his back and was pushed abruptly into the Hole.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It was dark.\u00a0 Ben stumbled forward from the force of being pushed into the Hole.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t see a thing.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Suddenly there was a blinding light and he shut his eyes against the glare.\u00a0 Opening them slowly, Ben was startled to discover he was standing in his yard again about ten feet behind the spot from where he had stood only ten seconds earlier peering into the Hole.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben might have continued pondering this revelation if it wasn\u2019t for the other revelation that he was standing on his front lawn looking at himself peering into the Hole.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben started to stumble backward and remembered his earlier backward stumble into the tree.\u00a0 He caught himself quickly and stayed upright.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It couldn\u2019t be.\u00a0 How could he be over there peering into the Hole and here staring at himself peering into the Hole?\u00a0 What was that thing?\u00a0 Was it even a Hole?\u00a0 Maybe it was some kind of Time Portal.\u00a0 Scientists were always talking about Time Portals as much as they were Black Holes.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 But why would a time portal only take him ten seconds into the past?\u00a0 What could be the purpose of that?\u00a0 What could you even do with those ten seconds again?\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t like it was time enough to change the world or something.\u00a0 What could you do with ten seconds?<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Slowly it dawned on Ben.\u00a0 He hadn\u2019t just been given ten seconds.\u00a0 He\u2019d been given another chance.\u00a0 It was all about the value of time.\u00a0 Not about rushing through it or discarding it like it had no value or meaning.\u00a0 It was a lesson.\u00a0 He could look at things differently.\u00a0 He could make other choices.\u00a0 When looked at that way, ten seconds seemed liked time enough to do anything.\u00a0 It was the perfect gift for someone who thought they\u2019d already gotten everything they\u2019d asked for.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben knew what he had to do.\u00a0 He had to live like every second had been given back to him to use correctly.\u00a0 He wouldn\u2019t mess it up.\u00a0 To make it all work he only had to do one thing.<\/h4>\n<h4>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ben walked purposefully across the gap between himself and his other self who was peering into the Hole.\u00a0 Ben put his hand out and pushed himself into the Hole.\u00a0 Turning, Ben went to the curb to bring the tree back into the house.<\/h4>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\">The End<\/h4>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Now what about that Mr. Comedy?\u00a0 Well, that hearkens back to our\u00a0radio show &#8220;Dead From The Neck Up&#8221;.\u00a0 Even further back than that, my friend Steve Dafoe and I used to make these comedy recordings in my parents&#8217; basement.\u00a0 We thought we were funny and my friend Bryan remembered that when he was working\/training at the college radio station at Loyalist College. It began meagerly as a fifteen minute slot on a sunday evening free-for-all music bash hosted by the weird beard himself, Bryan Dawkins. Bryan would later go on to fame as the high mucky muck producer, co-writer, and occasional voice talent on the highly acclaimed but rarely heard &#8220;Dead From The Neck Up.&#8221; After an initial test as &#8220;Two Guys In Short Pants&#8221;, Dafoe and I were pulled from the airwaves for making alleged pseudo-insulting remarks regarding the Mayor&#8217;s hair and a certain resemblance of one of the Council persons to the infamous Yosemite Sam! &#8220;Two Guys In Short Pants&#8221; were no more.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0After a bit of retooling and two weeks in the penalty box Dafoe and I returned in a weekly 30 minute slot as &#8220;Dead From The Neck Up.&#8221; Starting out with a set format which included comic sketches, phony commercials, a rotating commentary, and a comedic song, we soon realized our strength was in allowing the format to fall into disarray and in the realization that the commentary was crap and that neither Dafoe or I could carry a tune between us.\u00a0 The show then founded itself as a clearinghouse of sorts for brilliant sketches featuring such odd characters as Two Dead Guys, Stan the Welcome Mat Man and his faithful sidekick Teddy the Topless Dancer, Goody Twoshoes&#8211;Actor, John Tirefire&#8211;The Man from the Ministry of the Environment, and Wally Wandaleer with things you just don&#8217;t see on radio.\u00a0 You can read more about our show at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.falseducks.com\/dead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.falseducks.com\/dead\/<\/a>.\u00a0 You can listen to some of the sketches and you can check out a few videos of us in the studio.\u00a0 Or you can just watch them here:\u00a0 <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/owLKiXi1X5A\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/g_y5k4k8aGM\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/n2ESSnOGcY8\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1JubRWFbFpM\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-MOLq2kVjsU\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/g_y5k4k8aGM\" width=\"450\" height=\"320\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0I am a music fan.\u00a0 Why leave that to last?\u00a0 It&#8217;s because I can play myself out with the music.\u00a0 This has been a really tough year with losing my Dad and having a mysterious illness.\u00a0 I&#8217;ll admit I&#8217;ve changed.\u00a0 Here&#8217;s the segue from &#8220;Dead From The Neck Up&#8221; to music (not including the badly sung parody song from above).\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/theultimategift.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-1548\" src=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/theultimategift-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/theultimategift-210x300.jpg 210w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/theultimategift-768x1098.jpg 768w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/theultimategift-716x1024.jpg 716w, http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/theultimategift.jpg 1049w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 210px) 100vw, 210px\" \/><\/a>This past weekend I watched a favorite movie that I like to watch during the Christmas season.\u00a0 \u00a0 It is called &#8220;The Ultimate Gift&#8221; based on the book by Jim Stovall.\u00a0 It&#8217;s about redemption and the change in character of the main protagonist.\u00a0 Near the end of the movie is a wonderful song called &#8220;Something Changed&#8221; by Sara Groves.\u00a0 I&#8217;ve become a big fan of her music and highly recommend her as an artist.\u00a0 In fact, her song &#8220;Why It Matters&#8221; was the song I repeatedly played when dealing with my grief over the lost of my Dad.\u00a0 If you want to listen to |&#8221;Why It Matters&#8221; hop over to my blahg\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/?p=1392\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Me And My Grief<\/a>\u00a0and read about my Grief and listen to the song.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 15pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Arial Rounded MT Bold','sans-serif';\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0On &#8220;The Ultimate Gift&#8221; DVD is a special feature video of Sara singing &#8220;Something Changed&#8221;.\u00a0 The video is below.\u00a0 All I can add before the music begins is that I have changed.\u00a0 I was what I was and now I am what I am.\u00a0 What this new am is&#8230;I&#8217;m still trying to figure out.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/oaRPGqm7oVE\" width=\"450\" height=\"350\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0 \u00a0Well, there goes another month and here goes, hopefully, another blahg.\u00a0 Recently, I popped in on my friend Bryan, with a colleague of mine, and he referred to me as Mr. Comedy.\u00a0 Of course this was just after me making a joke about something but Bryan had to explain our comedy history and our [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[42,4,116,118,115,3,117],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1514"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1514"}],"version-history":[{"count":39,"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4869,"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1514\/revisions\/4869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/falseducks.com\/theblahg\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}