Roger O Green

Give blood – time #174, or so

vCJD

I decided to give blood again on January 27 at the high school. I’m not certain how many times I have donated altogether. It may have been 172 times by November 2018. Did I donate in 2019? I KNOW I gave at least once before during the pandemic, also at the high school. So this past event was at least time #174.

As NPR noted, “Some hospitals say they’re rationing blood products.” Nora O’Donnell, the anchor of the CBS Evening News, said she’d donate for the second time as a result of the blood crisis. OK, time to return to the ranks of donors.

The school is in the midst of construction, so I needed a guide from the entrance to the gym annex. I “passed” the medical check-in, with my iron at 15.6, my temp at 98.3, and my BP at 123/73. My pulse was 86, probably based on walking there when the air temperature was about 5F/-15C; the pulse was 57 when I was home. To give blood, it has to be between 50 and 100. I saw two of my daughter’s friends, each donating for the first time.

When I got to the table where I would recline, I told the phlebotomist about how I have had some difficulty donating in the recent past because of the scar tissue that has developed near the veins in both arms. They said, “Do you want a supervisor?” I said, “No, I just wanted you to know.” Nevertheless, I ended up waiting for another person.

This went well because she poked me beneath the vein rather than above. Or something like that. It took the usual five or six minutes – I still have it! I got up from the table…

Plot twist

…when the fire alarm went off. Apparently, this had happened before because Alicia, the LIBRARIAN who was in charge of the school side of things indicated that they were prepared for this scenario. The protocol was that we should stay in place, even as I could see students pouring out of the building into the cold.

In fact, my daughter was incredulous when I replied to her text that we were still inside. Finally, after a fire truck arrived and ascertained the building wasn’t on fire, the students returned to the building even as I was trying to exit it.

I’m planning to donate again in a few months, certainly not waiting as long as I did this last time.

Here’s a real sidebar. When I donated in 2018, I wrote inelegantly on Facebook as though I’d donated 172 times in ONE DAY. I was playfully teased, but one of my Binghamton/Dickinson buddies vigorously came to my defense. Not that it was needed, but it was quite kind.

Damn mad cow

My wife still can’t donate blood because she spent a semester in England in the early 1980s. “In some parts of the world, cattle can get an infectious, fatal brain disease called Mad Cow Disease. In these same locations, humans have started to get a new disease called variant Creutzfeld-Jakob Disease (vCJD) which is also a fatal brain disease. Scientists believe that vCJD is Mad Cow Disease that has somehow transferred to humans, possibly through the food chain.

“There is now evidence from a small number of case reports involving patients and laboratory animal studies that vCJD can be transmitted through transfusion. There is no test for vCJD in humans that could be used to screen blood donors and to protect the blood supply. This means that blood programs must take special precautions to keep vCJD out of the blood supply by not collecting blood from those who have been where this disease is found.

“You are not eligible to donate if, from January 1, 1980, through December 31, 1996, you spent (visited or lived) a cumulative time of 3 months or more, in any country in the United Kingdom (UK)…” Alas.

Gay male donors

But the rules aren’t quite as stubbornly awful towards potential LGBTQ+ donors.

“The FDA guidance Revised Recommendations for Reducing the Risk of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Transmission by Blood and Blood Products’ states, ‘Defer for 3 months from the most recent sexual contact, a man who has had sex with another man during the past 3 months.’ All U.S. blood collection organizations must follow this federal requirement.” At least, this isn’t the rejection of all men who had sex with a man even once since 1977.

“The Red Cross recognizes the hurt this policy has caused to many in the LGBTQ+ community and believes blood donation eligibility should not be determined by methods that are based upon sexual orientation. We are committed to working with partners toward achieving this goal.

“We continue to assist in evaluating alternative donor eligibility criteria and the expanded use of new technologies to work toward the elimination of donor eligibility questions based on sexual orientation that would no longer be necessary. However, as a regulated organization, we cannot unilaterally enact changes concerning the MSM deferral policy.”

A song

Pete Townshend

Soft Spoken, But Not

Art show

Here is a piece of art called Soft Spoken, But Not. It was created by my daughter, who weaved it. She showed me the process but I can’t really explain it to you.

The angle of the photo may not give you a good vantage point, but the object is a megaphone. In fact, it is a replica of one she owns. (What? You don’t own your own megaphone?) Oh, here’s another shot, by the artist.

She bought it in the summer of 2020 when she and some of her friends organized and participated in demonstrations following the death of George Floyd. Ultimately, it became about other unarmed black people who died violently at the hands of authorities.

The rallies were about a block from our house, so occasionally her mother or I would participate, but it was mostly much younger people. What was fascinating is the response of passersby. Not only were they overwhelmingly positive, but they brought items. Ice cream sandwiches and doughnuts. Quite a bit of water, including a case from Sam, the son of a late friend of mine. And one woman, a stranger, brought my daughter another megaphone.

Display

From the Albany School District site: “Five pieces, created by four Albany High School student-artists, were chosen for display in the Art in Three Dimensions 2022 show.

“The juried exhibition, organized by the Capital Area Art Supervisors, runs Feb. 1-28 at the W.B. Haessig Art Gallery at Mohonason High School in Rotterdam.” This was cool.

In other daughter news

My daughter has been applying to college, eight of them, I believe. This involves, among other things, completing the convoluted FAFSA application for financial aid. She was accepted into four colleges and hasn’t heard from the others yet. As the above piece might suggest, she would like to combine art with some social justice and/or environmental angle. I will be extremely happy when this process is over.

My friend Mike Attwell, RIP

lives by the spring

mike attwell cropped I don’t remember exactly when I met Mike Attwell – the late 1980s or early 1990s – but I certainly know where. My friend, the late Norm Nissen, and I played racquetball at the Albany YMCA on Washington Avenue.

Some combination of Danny, Charlie, Mike, and his co-worker Alan wanted to know if we wanted to play games with partners, two on two; or cutthroat, in groups of three. We did, and from that point until 2010, when the Y closed, we all played about thrice a week with whoever showed up, which eventually included Tyrone and others.

You learn a lot about a person when you play racquetball with them. Mike wasn’t the fastest guy; that’d be Tyrone. Or the best (Danny or Charlie). But he may have been the most tenacious. When we played as partners, he’d almost always play the front, because he anticipated well and could get to a lot of shots.

But, in the earlier days, he was also the hardest on himself, often spouting an invective that included MF, always at himself. Interestingly, I think he played better after he stopped the cursing.

After the Y closed, he occasionally drove me to Siena College so we could play with some of the others, but it fell by the wayside.

Singing

In 2000, when I started attending First Presbyterian Church, I got to sing with Mike. I might have participated in a FOCUS service or two with him, but this was the first time on a weekly basis.

You learn a lot about a person when you sing with them. Mike, a tenor, was usually present unless he was traveling. He worked hard to get his part right. When the weather was lousy, he’d sometimes give me a ride home after choir rehearsal.

I got to see him in other aspects of church life, notably on the finances. He explained to the congregation the fiscal responsibility of the use of the endowment. This could be MEGO territory, but Mike, who dealt with numbers for New York State, explained it amazingly well.

In August of 2003, he married Sue, again. They’d been married in a private ceremony six months earlier. But as the pastor noted at the time, they wanted to have a public event so their church family could be witnesses.

At the reception, Mike was discussing a nice resort in Poland Springs, ME that he thought my wife and I should go to. It didn’t allow anyone under 18. (I believed they’ve since changed that rule.) We went that very month and had a lovely time. No one knew yet that my wife was pregnant, so it was a particularly sound suggestion.

Bible guys

After I retired in 2019, I joined the Tuesday morning at 9 a.m. group of Bible Guys. But when COVID hit, my daughter’s school was remote, so she didn’t need to get up as early. The two groups then operated on something called ZOOM(?), so I ALSO joined the Thursday at 7 a.m. gathering.

Mike Attwell was in that Thursday group. He shared a lot of his personal biography, from his roots to certain difficulties in his past. I did not know this: The meaning of Attwell is “lives by the spring”, as in water, which seems apt.

Though the facilitator rotated, it was always Mike, who introduced the group to John van de Laar, offering prayer by the liturgist. I suppose if I were to pick one for Mike, who died last week, it might be this one, which begins:

In the midst of grief, we choose to celebrate,

because it reminds us of hope,

and brings comfort to our broken heart.

Rock Hall noms – who to pick?

Sweet Dreams Are Made of This

The Rock Hall noms popped up on my email feed recently. While I was pleased with many picks on last year’s ballot, I’m unclear which five to pick this time. Here’s music from each nominee. The top five finishers in the popular tally collectively receive a vote.

Beck (first-time nominee) – worthy, and I have a couple of his albums thanks to a certain party, but I’ll not vote for him because he’s newer to the music scene than some of the other nominees.

Pat Benatar – I don’t think I have any of her albums. Actually, I was won over by this CBS Sunday Morning interview that highlighted both her accomplishments and her “I don’t care” attitude. It’s also a love story with Neil Giraldo, dubbed Rock’s Romeo and Juliet, except that they’re very much alive and well.

Kate Bush – surely I don’t know enough about her body of work, though I own one of her albums.

DEVO – I voted for them last year, and I’m doing it again, at least in part because of the subsequent body of work of the brothers Mothersbaugh, Mark and Bob. I have at least four of their albums.

Duran Duran (first-time nominee) – worthy, I suppose, though I own none of their music.

Eminem (first-time nominee, first-year eligible) – clearly worthy, though I own none of his music; too new to pick. But he’ll probably get in.

Eurythmics – an easy yes, for them and for Annie Lennox’s solo stuff too, which I own, and maybe for her art.

Judas Priest – not my cuppa, but I hear they’re good.

Who the heck was Fela Kuti?

Fela Kuti – a massive international star. “Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti also known as Abami Eda, was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, composer, political activist, and Pan-Africanist.” He “died on 3 August 1997, in Lagos, at the age of 58, from complications related to AIDS.” I may not have heard of him before 2009 or so, when Fela! the musical was on Broadway. Last year, his fan base came out to vote and he ended up second in the fan vote to Tima Turner.

MC5 – I like them, have one or two of their albums.

New York Dolls – ditto.

Dolly Parton (first-time nominee) – damn, I’m hoping that she gets picked for musical excellence for her impact on the industry, for which she is utterly worthy. I bought the complete Trio albums just last year.

Rage Against The Machine – significant, not just musically, but socially; have none of their work.

Lionel Richie (first-time nominee) – I ended up voting for him, as a member of the Commodores and as a songwriter; if he got picked in the musical excellence category, that’d be fine by me. I have a Commodores’ greatest hits CD.

Carly Simon (first-time nominee) – yeah, yeah, not rock, which is true of at half of the nominees. I’m a big fan, and I have maybe a half dozen albums.

A Tribe Called Quest (first-time nominee) – Hugely significant, though I don’t own their music.

Dionne Warwick – I love her body of work and have at least two of her albums.

The easy picks for me were Benatar, DEVO, and Eurythmics. EVERYBODY else except Beck, Bush, Eminem, and Judas Priest were on my “I’d consider them.” Ultimately, I picked Richie and rotated the fifth vote.

YOU can vote for your favorites here daily until April 29th.

The titanic #1 hits of 1912

It’s A Wonderful Life

Among the titanic #1 hits of 1912 are tunes I have actually sung.

Before that, A Century of Pop Music by Joel Whitburn notes that in July of 1912, “Columbia stopped all production of [wax] cylinders.” This left “Edison as the only major company still producing the recording format that had ruled the industry only decade earlier.” All of these songs were on the Victor label, except the Burr/Campbell track on Columbia.

Moonlight Bay – American Quartet, 8 weeks at #1. Billy Murray, John Bieling, Steve Porter, and William F. Hooley. Those of you who own The Beatles Anthology 1 will recognize the song, performed on the British TV series Two of a Kind by the band and the show’s hosts, comedy duo Morecambe and Wise.

Down By the Old Mill Stream – Harry MacDonough, 7 weeks at #1. “Not the new, but the old.” It is so embedded in the culture, it’s been used by the Marx Brothers, the Chipmunks, and All In The Family. I feel I’ve always known the song.

Ragtime Cowboy Joe – Bob Roberts, 6 weeks at #1
Waiting For The Robert E. Lee – Heidelberg Quintet, 6 weeks at #1. Apparently, this was actually Billy Murray and the American Quartet, supplemented by countertenor Will Oakland. When I was growing up in Binghamton in the 1960s, we had this ancient songbook at the school, probably from the 1930s. That song must have been in the text because I remember the lyrics, specifically “There’s Ephraim and Sammy.”

Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee – Ada Jones and Billy Murray, 5 weeks at #1
Ragging My Baby To Sleep – Al Jolson, 5 weeks at #1, gold record

When I Was Twenty-One and You Were Sweet Sixteen – Henry Burr and Albert Campbell, 4 weeks at #1

My star turn

Love Is Mine – Enrico Caruso, 3 weeks at #1

That Haunting Melody -Al Jolson, 2 weeks at #1. I couldn’t find this on YouTube. So I used the Discography of American Historical Recordings, which I described here
I Love You Truly – Elsie Baker, 2 weeks at #1. When I was a boy soprano at Trinity AME Zion Church in Binghamton, I sang this song at weddings at least twice. The song appeared on various TV shows and movies. Notably, Bert and Ernie serenaded George and Mary Bailey on their wedding night in It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). The song was recorded several times after its initial release.

Everybody Two-Step – American Quartet
Oh, You Beautiful Doll – Billy Murray and the American Quartet. I know this song quite well, and it’s not from its various usages in movies and even cartoons. Did my mom sing this around the house?