DIRTYBENNY WRITES

One of the scariest places I ever visited was New Orleans.  My girlfriend at the time booked our stay at an old traditional second floor house in the French Quarter.  The first night, I kept hearing ominous noises....someone coming up the steps, voices.  I demanded that we leave the next am and we moved to a  Hilton.  Something is very creepy about that place.  It does not surprise me that AI would be rolled out there to a greater degree.  New Orleans is testing just how much Americans are willing to trust artificial intelligence when the stakes are considerably higher than writing an email or ordering dinner,   according to the New York Post . The city has begun allowing an AI system to field certain 911 calls, apparently making it the first major U.S. municipality to put a bot directly between emergency callers and human operators. The idea is largely about volume. New Orleans' emergency communications center receives more than 1,000 calls on a ...

Today was one of the few days of the week that I venture off the compound...today, by necessity.  I was trying to make an online purchase with my debit card.  I called the customer service line and they told me that my card was deactivated.  No notice, no reason, just deactivated. I went to the local branch and all of the ladies were sympathetic to my plight and helped me out.  It is a Portugese community and they have empathy for the elderly.  One of the girls remarked about the troubles with 2 point verification for somebody who doesn't have a cellphone such as myself.  There was the flicker of humanity in these ladies, drowning in the technologic marass.  I then went to the local Polish deli.  It is truly a throwback to the past.  The owner is behind the deli cases, slicing up ham and cheeses for the customers in the long line.  Despite the delay, there is incredibly good cheer.  The lady in front of me speaking fluent Polish, sm...

Here we go again...

I have been going through a lot of Rick Beato's interviews with songwriters and performers.  This one was especially of interest as a musician.  Rick reviews the complexities of the chords, harmonies, and recording of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody.   I posit that there is no way that this is of human origin.  In the "song" itself, Mercury tells the tale of murder and "nothing really matters."  This is overlooked in the discussion with Brian May....I believe purposely.   These layered chords and harmonies are beyond even the most gifted jazz musicians.   

I totally forgot that they did a cover of My Funny Valentine which ended up one of my favorite Chet Baker tunes... How is that for beyond a synch?   Not to mention that another one of my faves, Elvis Costello covered the Chet Baker version.

 Aside from all of my physical ailments, this reality is a never ending series of tortures. In the midst of another 90 degree heat wave, the one room that I have air conditioned had water all over the floor, damaging artwork and the bamboo floor.  After 2 hours with a repairman tonight, the condenser is cracked and the unit needs to be replaced. I have amazon Prime, still, the earliest delivery is Wednesday...So I have to struggle through 2 more days of 90 plus degree temperatures with no A/C. Then I come home from the flea market and get my mail...my mailbox is filled with wasps who are desperately attacking my car. Just make it end.

Outstanding interview with Billy Joel focused on how he writes songs, the structure of some of his greatest hits, and the role of classical music in his life.  Extremely enjoyable. As someone who has played musical instruments since my teens, I find both Billy Joel and Paul Simon to be totally believable as to their song writing process.

This post was inspired by a comment from Brian from Ohio asking about my personal experiences with celebrities.  I have previously shared a list of the celebrities that I have met.  https://dirtybennywrites.blogspot.com/2025/05/famous-people-that-i-have-met.html I saw Blondie at Avalon in Boston in the early 2000's.   As usual, I collected autographs so I came prepared with a Blondie LP to be signed.   After the show, there were about 30 people waiting by the tour bus for autographs.   Debbie came out the stage  door surrounded by bodyguards.  She walked directly up to me, took my album and went on the bus.  2 minutes later, a roadie brought out my album signed.  The people around me were dumbfounded at how lucky I was to be chosen.  Maybe there is more to it.  Did she read my energy?  Did she know that this one would eventually be able to see?  Who knows....it was unusual in all my years of autograph collec...

  Shannon Rowan, the "WiFi" refugee & geopolitical author-researcher joins Dr. Lando to discuss her most recent book " The Red Shoes: Our Devil's Dance with Technology and How We Can Stop it,".