''Content'' Specialists

In this day and age, *everyone* is a specialist in this artform now; 

as people build up their own channels, networks, social media platforms 

they assemble CONTENT - to the content of their hearts! 

And they pass it on - they share it with their audience! 

Some redundancy is bound to be present - 

but it matters not! 

What matters is this: 

we share - therefore we are! 

Definitely as worthy of denotation 

as any blog... vlog... podcast and whatnot 

under the cyber sun! 

Stardust Memories

Blogs and their usage reach their uttermost paramount reason of being when they are used like this: a grieving soul sharing his or her anguish, suffering or mere thoughts on what was, what was lost and what is hoped to be seen again, one way or another...

Such is the case with the blog to denote today - Cody Rhodes' contribution to Brandi Runnels' blog, a powerful, emotional bit of blogging titled ''the last bionic elbow.''

There are those who have no idea what this title may be referring to; it refers to wrestling legend Dusty Rhodes' foremost offensive move - it was christened as such, most certainly, to sound futuristic and cool, as all of America is bound to be, assuredly.  The wrestler in question here was dubbed ''American Dream Dusty Rhodes'' after all - he had to embody all of it.  His son Cody is now known by the ring name of ''Stardust'' and recently lured into the squared circle a star of the small screen in yet another one of those cross-entertainment forays like the elder Rhodes was accustomed to. For this most recent occasion, Stephen Arnell, the star of the CW's Arrow television series, had a match with ''Stardust'' which was entertaining and unusual - the sort of thing that would have made the latter's father very proud indeed. A perennial presence of his sport for several decades, the American Dream was, after all, also an innovator of it.

But he has been gone for months now - yet, touchingly, the son's grieving continues in earnest.

It truly brings back memories here - both of the elder's battles with equally legendary members of the Four Horsemen, as most personal memories...

And it is as one ''Atlantean'' says, in a comment he left on the blog in question here (and once you click on the link, you will see the comment first, actually - scroll back up the page for Cody ''Stardust'' Rhodes' emotional blog per say) - it really is like that: our fathers are not gone. Believe this. They are up there - in the stars.  Their essence has not evaporated into the ether, no; they remain, in essence, with us - just as they ascended back where we all came from...

And we will see them again. One day. But that day is not afoot just yet... not just yet.

Fit & Tell

Bryan never sang it so well as this: ''Fit and Tell... Your body... can speak volumes! Fit and Tell... anything... will fit your contours! Fit and Tell... Fit and Tell... Fit and Tell... everything... candy for the eye... Fit and Tell... telling you... sculpt your body now!''

Shakeology helping, you too can achieve the same amazing results described on this weblog right here - believe it! Because it is going to happen: if you make it happen!

Independent Beachbody coach Antje Arnold is one in a legion of such coaches that help people shape themselves into a new and vastly improved version of themselves!

One of their programs -the ''21 Day Fix'' as it is called- promises to make you over into a near-perfect specimen, ready to hit that beach and run with the best of them ''Baywatchers'' types...!

But you gotta be willing to put in those minutes and hours and days of training now - and here is but one of a myriad possible examples of what you're looking at whenever you embark upon such a regime and way of life!  The rewards will be yours to reap afterwards, though, so, well -  just do it!

So... What Kind Of Patriot Are YOU?

The question can be asked as all of Canada celebrates their ''Queen Victoria Day'' - but one tiny province in its midst is found celebrating ''La Fête des Patriotes'' instead! Basically, three quarters or four fifths of that messy, confused so-called nation celebrates a crown (and a queen) that the fifth (estate?) counters by honoring the memory of those who fought (mostly bled to death, really; as some of their noteworthy poems say so well) that very same monarchy, trying to rid themselves of it...! (They should have taken lessons from the Portuguese and the French: two true nations that actually did get rid of the lazy-asses/profiteers that sat on the thrones! But that's another story...)

And all this exactly one week ahead of the United States' own Memorial Day...

And speaking of which...

These days, the most celebrated one unquestionably is the cheating Patriot who cheats in order to compete within a league of cheaters on the gridiron of destiny - but he cheats intelligently (at first anyways) before descending into easy subterfuges meant to take (some if not most of) the air out of his opponent; or, rather, mere obstacle standing on his way to success!

But that's another story, meant for another blog post really...

The patriot à la Mel Gibson: now, that is a honorable classic!

Granted, there were two films to choose from here: 

and I chose the one about an European hero, 

rather than this! Sue me, will ya?

Patriotism means different things for different cultures: a national hero can and should be something other than a natural at bloodshed and all-around self-sacrificial, reckless type. It an be a cultural icon: it can be a singer...

Incidentally, the ''Patriotes'' flag in Culbec looks a hell of a lot like the Italian colors - but sideways, horizontal in fact. The Gino way, one could say? But that's another story too - and another sidetrack.

When one speaks of patriotism, though, one always thinks of the USA - somehow... And since I started with the New England variety of patriotism, let's get right back into it with their favorite hero of all-time, no question about it (especially since it has been local boy Chris Evans portraying him on the big screen there, amidst all that explosive avenging action...)

Now these guys are true patriots, if you ask me...

But then there is the odd French twist on that: a patriot who went against the grain and bled to death ''so that the earth beneath his feet could thrive'' if one transliterates word for word here...

They even have a hockey team in this motif - in desperate-for-taxpaying-citizens Beauharnois...

Granted, when one says ''patriote'' and ''French'' here, it is meant to describe the oddest bunch of unrooted (déraciné) chaps there could be: descendants of first settlers who may have come from France but were, very quickly too, doomed to become a distorted version of it in no time at all: hence was born ''le Québécois'' (more on that on June the 24th... maybe!)

If you are this kind of Patriote, you will be found sipping beer on the first Monday before June 25th - every single year. You'll have some vague idea that it is about some guys who paid the price so your allegedly Belle Province became, er,  how to put it nicely... what it is today! And you will not know exactly why you have an off-day; you'll just be happy you do!

As Canada celebrates its Queen Victoria Day, one tiny part of the country has its Fête des Patriotes which is all about the anti-British crown regime there, a firm misguided stance if there ever was one in those forlorn parts, back in the day...  No wonder that country is one hell of hodge-podge of confusion populated by inept legislators that take after Clouseau more than de Gaulle; vive le Québec libre, hein? Libre... de quoi? De faire tout plein d'erreurs lamentables? But since it is always on such an insignificant scale, it goes unnoticed and, therefore, it isn't a big deal at all, so...

Anyway...!

The best blog we found that promotes patriotism would have to be this one; for it brings another extremely important dimension into the equation - compassion!

And, so, let's be compassionate and let the Culbec off the hook here, now - one more time...
(For the time being, that is!)

Let's Give It For The Boy!

Ultra Boy, that is!  UltraBoy8888, to be even more precise! I have neither the time nor the patience to do what he and several more fans have done, with their nostalgia and old comic-book collections: which is scan some (if not all) pages from it and meticulously review each issue as if their lives depended on it! Maybe I should have - but I didn't!  Hence, whenever I search for a reference to a particular book, storyline or issue that I remember, from way back, boy (!) am I glad someone, out there, did review it - and scan and upload some part of it!

Such as this page, excerpted from Adventure Comics circa 1980 -

art by the late, great Don Newton!  

Atlantis... Antarctica... Aquaman and Helga The Nazi! 

What's not to like here, eh?

A bit of s sidetrack here now, but...

(it is one of those cases where ''I would be remiss'' - if I did not!)

For the real-life Helga may have been unearthed as well...

But her name was... Maria!

Yeah, I know, I know - just a passing resemblance there... 

Plus a bit of a stretch to tie up Antarctica, Nazis, Atlantis 

plus the Black Sun and the Vril Society! 

But you must admit: how fascinating...

AND this is how one makes *luminous connections* 

- or didn't you know...

But, in closing...

Thanks, UltraBoy8888 (aka Deejay Dayton) for having made all of these treasures of pop culture so readily available! Your ''Babblings About DC Comics'' over at Wordpress have both a great banner and a great tone to them - it dispenses all you need to know about any given issue and just the right amount of criticism, too!  Some will want to go look for those back issues, now - thanks to you! Imagine that: in this day and age of digital comics - some will want to hunt down old stuff in print!  It boggles the mind, eh? Now, yours is not the only one of the kind (there are so many indeed) but it is clearly the most fun read I have ever come across.  It not only figures that a DJ Dayton would remember Don Newton - and be a genuine fan!  The genuine fandom here cannot be denied; you have got good taste, man!  And, hey, I needed the Helga of Antarctica bit for my very own ''aquamusings'' here, just now, so... Again - muito obrigado! ;-)

On the 10th anniversary of the tragic events, 

WE REMEMBER...

and we blog about it.