Thursday Inspiration #329 Land of Confusion

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Respond to this challenge by either using the prompt word problems, or going with the above picture, or by means of the song ‘Land of Confusion’, or by going with another song by the English rock band Genesis, or another political protest song, or one that expresses frustration with ineffective world leaders, the constant threat of nuclear conflict, and the social alienation caused by those in power, or you can go with whatever you think fits.  ‘Land of Confusion’ was recorded on the 1986 thirteenth studio album Invisible Touch by Genesis and it peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #11 on Billboard’s rock music chart, and it went to #14 on the U.K. Singles chart.  The song is arguably one of Genesis’s most famous songs, its popularity driven by its groundbreaking all-puppet video by the creators of the British political satire/puppet show “Spitting Image”.  The music video won the Grammy Award for Best Concept Music Video at the 30th Annual Grammy Awards in 1988 and it features an elaborate fevered dream of Ronald Reagan.  While dreaming, the song plays out intercut with footage of puppets of various celebrities (in a parody of the “We Are The World” music video) and assorted threats to the safety of the world, as Reagan struggles to go out and confront them.  The video received heavy airplay on MTV and is considered by many to be one of the greatest videos of all time.

Following the departures of Peter Gabriel in 1975 and Steve Hackett in 1977, the remaining trio transitioned from progressive rock to mainstream pop-rock.  In June 1986, they released their massive commercial blockbuster, Invisible Touch, which spawned five U.S. top five hits, including the number one title track.  Genesis was a three-man band consisting of Phil Collins (lead vocals, drums), Mike Rutherford (bass, guitar), and Tony Banks (keyboards).  All three members of Genesis, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks were songwriters and Rutherford wrote this song.  Mike Rutherford felt that too many people were causing too many problems around the world, and he thought we should come together.  This was a tumultuous time, with the Cold War still escalating, international terrorism was on the rise with a string of hijackings, people were calling for a “nuclear freeze” between America and the Soviet Union to halt the testing, production, and deployment of nuclear weapons, and an AIDS epidemic was mounting.

There’s too many men, too many people
Making too many problems
And not much love to go round
Can’t you see this is a land of confusion?

No Tax on Tips

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Tipping in the United States is deeply ingrained as a social expectation and economic necessity rather than a strict reflection of service quality.  Historical wage structures and modern digital “tipflation” (the phenomenon where consumers are prompted to leave tips in more everyday situations) pressures create widespread ambiguity, making gratuity feel more like a mandatory social norm to avoid embarrassment.  These payment screens that ask you if you want to leave a tip are everywhere, and I am comfortable selecting “No tip” or “$0” as a tip, because I don’t enjoy throwing money away.  Tips are considered compensation, but there is no clear consensus on who should be tipped and how much that should be.  Some people feel that tipping is a choice, while others feel it is an obligation, but most people feel it depends on the situation.  I always tip in cash even if I pay on my credit card, that way nobody has to wait for the transaction to go through.  I usually leave a tip equal to 20 percent of my total bill when I dine out, but if the food was bad or the service was not up to par, I would probably just leave a 15% tip.  If someone comes in my house to do some work or fix something, I will also give them a 20% tip for doing a good job.  If I get a $30 haircut, or I get my toenails clipped at the nail salon, I will give them a $20 tip, which is a 66% tip, and that is because these people are touching me, and I feel they deserve more than a waitress.  I do tip maids if I stay at a hotel, which is usually around $3 a day, and I leave it on the bed with a note saying for maids.  I don’t have food delivered that often, but if I ordered a pizza, I would probably leave a $5 tip.  I don’t use Uber or Lyft, but I am sure that I would tip them if I did.  I am glad that people who work in the service industry are able to be compensated without having to pay tax on every tip.  This policy doesn’t eliminate the requirement to report tip income.  Tips are still taxed, but a federal income tax deduction allows eligible workers in certain occupations to deduct up to $25,000 of qualified tip income from their gross income.

Written for FOWC with Fandango – Compensation.

Criminal Forfeiture

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The government took ownership of the drug dealer’s property without compensation, because he was selling crack there.  The government was able to prove a “preponderance of the evidence” that this property was used in a crime, so they sent their guy to seize the house even though they did not have a criminal conviction yet.  12 teens that frequented this house died from crack overdoses, and something had to be done.  The government sent their man to pick this house up by its foundation which was located on a crumbling cliff edge, and he hauled it away to be sold at auction.  The proceeds from the sale will be used to fund law enforcement operations, victim compensation programs, and drug treatment initiatives.

Written for Simply 6 Minutes hosted by Christine Bialczak.

On the Threshold of the Unknown

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The door was closed, and as I put my hand on the doorknob, I felt afraid of what I might find on the other side.  I didn’t know what was behind the door because I never opened it, but something about it didn’t feel right.  A weird draft, and an odd sound, created this feeling of dread that told me to steer clear of it, but the lingering tension made me wat to investigate.  I felt this uncontrollable need to look at what was on the other side of this door that became a mental compulsion for me.  I am afraid of the unknown, and since I can’t predict what is behind the door, I tend to anticipate threats and assume the worst-case scenarios.  Overthinking makes even simple decisions like checking to see what is on the other side of this door feel overwhelming.  I was torn between an obsessive fear that something bad would happen, and my desperate need to satisfy the universal urge to unlock a mystery.  I was hoping it would be nothing more than an everyday surprise and not become a terrifying encounter.  I debated with myself about opening or not opening the door, and something in my brain said, “When the void calls, don’t answer it”, because we should only trust the things we understand.  Many perfectly sane, healthy people have experienced a sudden, intrusive urge to do something dangerous despite having absolutely no actual desire to do so, because intrusive thoughts have taken over.  I decided to resist the call of the void and not open up the door, well at least not today.  I removed my hand from the doorknob, as my willpower kept the door closed despite my curiosity.

Written for Fandango’s Story Starter #252.

Timeline Of Urban Culture

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The concrete pillar contains uncommissioned remnants of stickers and tags that were used for underground expression, possibly serving to mark territory, or this sticker art could have been left on public surfaces as a faster option than using spray paint graffiti.  People who create unauthorized street art or graffiti on public property are often driven by psychological needs for recognition, territorial dominance, or a desire to make a social statement.  The first meme was created by US soldiers in World War II and this image depicting a bald-headed man with a long nose peering over a wall along with the phrase, “Kilroy was here”, was an inspirational figure that was drawn on any place that they could find to put it.  It became a symbol of hope and a widespread morale booster for U.S. troops, symbolizing the omnipresence of American forces which were worldwide.  Australian and British troops in WW2 had depictions of the exact same long-nosed, bald character, which was “Chad” for the British and “Foo” for the Australians, but Kilroy represented America.  The popular phrase, “Kilroy was here” stemmed from the chalk signature of a Massachusetts rivet inspector named James J. Kilroy, who signed his work after he inspected ships.  Many people see graffiti as art, while others view it as vandalism.

At the bottom of this concrete pillar, there is a pink stencil art symbol used internationally to advocate for the welcoming of displaced people.  Nicolas Lampert is a Milwaukee-based interdisciplinary artist and author whose work focuses on themes of social justice and ecology.  He is involved with the Justseeds Artists’ Cooperative that formed in 2007.  I am almost certain that he is responsible for creating this “REFUGEES WELCOME” sign that shows a man with his fist raised up in the air followed by his wife who is holding on to their daughter, and I did read that people are welcome to use the graphic as is with the text or with the graphic-only in activist movements.  “Refugees Welcome” is a global movement and slogan advocating for the safe harbor, integration, and humanitarian support of people fleeing war, persecution, and disaster.  Supporting this cause can take many forms, from grassroots advocacy and local community sponsorship to direct financial or housing assistance.  The Trump administration has drastically altered the U.S. refugee program, functionally shutting down traditional refugee admissions.  The administration has frozen and indefinitely paused overall refugee processing and asylum decisions, except for a presidential carve-out prioritizing white South African (Afrikaner) refugees, and this may be due to his friendship with Elon Musk.

Written for Melissa’s Flash Fiction Challenge #378.

Defensive Moat

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During the 30 Years’ War (1618 – 1648) which was a religious conflict between Catholics and Protestants most of the Holy Roman Empire was decimated by disease, famine, and invading armies, but the Swiss Confederation managed to stay out of the direct conflict.  The conflict was catastrophic, where an estimated 20% of Europe’s total population perished, with some areas of the Holy Roman Empire losing half of their population.  For the first time in a major European conflict, the Swiss Confederation remained effectively neutral.  While cities across the continent burned and millions died, Switzerland enjoyed near-paradisiacal conditions.  Travelers moved safely, inns were bustling, and farms thrived.  Since production centers across Europe were destroyed, Swiss agriculture and manufacturing thrived by selling food and supplies to both sides.  Their strategy of remaining relatively peaceful while the rest of Europe was destroying themselves, allowed the Swiss to build immense economic stability.  The Peace of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years’ War in 1648, and it formally recognized Switzerland as a sovereign state, releasing it from the Holy Roman Empire.  The city of Zurich built massive fortifications and dug the Schanzengraben Canal as a defensive moat to protect from invaders between 1642–1677 using the wealth it accumulated during this period.  This former fortification has been transformed into a peaceful, inner-city oasis that zigzags 2 meters below street level.  The canal spans from the Gessnerbrücke to Bürkliplatz, offering an excellent escape from the busy city streets.

Written for Sadje at Keep It Alive What Do You See #346.

Not About Me

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My blog is not a personal diary, but over the course of all of the posts that I have written since I joined the WordPress community on April 23, 2017, with this being my 7,265th post, I have shared a lot about my life.  There are several ways you can find out information about me on WordPress, and that would be to go to any of my posts and click on my Gravatar Hovercard, or my About page, or my Home page, which are all located on the top righthand corner of all of my posts.  They are read only pages, so you can’t leave any comments, but you can like my About page and my Home page.  On my Gravatar page which I call my About Me page and it is longer than my About page, I talk about things I like, my parents, my career and my love for writing.  On my About page, I mention that I am both A Unique Title For Me and sometimes I am newepicauthor, and then I go into a rant about not liking onions.  On my Home page I talk about my second book which I was planning to get published.

I don’t find my present life to be that interesting, but when I was younger, I did go out and do a lot of things, and I have written about many of these events in previous posts.  I have written about my health, shared my real name, where I live, the car I drive and talked about the cats that I help take care of in other posts.  I have talked about my marriage, the fact that I never had any children, and I have mentioned some of my family in other posts.  I have discussed jobs that I had and books that I have written, and I have shared some pictures of myself.  I think some bloggers share too much, and their lives seem to be less interesting than mine.  I don’t enjoy posting too much personal information about myself and I always try to avoid writing about mundane details.  I am happy with my life and that is all anyone needs to know about me.

Written for Sadje’s Sunday Poser #291 where today she asked, “How much of your real life do you write about on your blog?  Do you share details about your life and identity online or do you prefer to remain anonymous?  Do you think it’s safe to share details online?”

So Much of Life Ahead

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The yearbook committee in my High School selected the song ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’ by The Carpenters to be the theme song for my 1971 Senior prom, and it has a nostalgic, romantic, timeless vibe to it that fits the milestone of graduating and looking forward to the future.  The Carpenters’ 1969 debut album was a commercial failure as it only produced one minor hit (a cover of The Beatles’ ‘Ticket to Ride’).  ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’ was released as the second single from their hit album Close to You, and it reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and went on to become an enduring wedding and graduation anthem.  It reached #65 on the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1970.  Close to You was the second studio album by the American music duo the Carpenters, and in 2003, it was ranked No. 175 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.  This album and its singles earned Carpenters eight Grammy Award nominations including Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Record of the Year.  Carpenters won the Best New Artist and Best Contemporary Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus for the album.  This single topped the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart for seven weeks.  It features Karen Carpenter’s distinct, rich contralto vocals layered with the duo’s signature overdubbed background harmonies.

1971 was defined by an unforgettable blend of feel-good sunshine pop, breezy AM radio melodies, and soaring soft rock.  It was an era when optimistic, sing-along hooks dominated the airwaves, which is seen in the #1 spots immediately flanking the Carpenters’ peak included the Jackson 5’s infectious ‘I’ll Be There’ and the Partridge Family’s ‘I Think I Love You’ and people just could not get enough of ‘Joy to the World’ by Three Dog Night and ‘It’s Too Late’ by Carole King.  Other mellow music around at this time included Neil Diamond’s ‘Crackling’ Rosie’, James Taylor’s ‘Fire and Rain’, and Anne Murray’s ‘Snowbird’, which were all huge hits.  I was more of an FM radio listener, and some great albums were released including Led Zeppelin III by Led Zeppelin, Abraxas by Santana, Cosmo’s Factory by Creedence Clearwater Revival, Mad Dogs & Englishmen by Joe Cocker, and Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! by The Rolling Stones, but I did like the Carpenters.

Tony Asher is a lyricist best known for his work with the Beach Boys 1965 Pet Sounds album and after that he co-wrote four or five songs for Nichols’ 1968 debut album, Roger Nichols and the Small Circle of Friends.  Nichols was hired by A&M publishing as a staff songwriter, and that is how he met Paul Williams.  Asher wrote for the Carson/Roberts advertising agency when Hal Riney the executive vice president and creative director of Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn ad agency BBDO contacted him to write a jingle for the Crocker Bank of California.  Crocker National Bank was looking for a wedding-themed television commercial that would appeal to the Baby Boomer generation.  Tony Asher had a skiing accident where he broke his arm, so he was not able to write or play the piano, and he recommended the team Roger Nichols and Paul Williams for the job.  Crocker Bank wanted a one-minute song that would go along with their little, short movie of a young couple getting married and riding off into the sunset.  Agent Riney provided the songwriters with his own slogan, “You’ve got a long way to go.  We’d like to help you get there.  The Crocker Bank”, to give them inspiration to get started.

Paul Williams came in, and within ten minutes he had written the first verse.  Williams grabbed an envelope and scribbled on the back with the first three lines of the song.  Within a half hour they had written two one-minute jingles.  After the original commercials aired, Crocker Bank executives wished to give copies of the song to their employees and asked the songwriters to make it a complete song.  Nichols and Williams finished the complete song and added a third verse and a bridge to the song.  Richard Carpenter saw the ad, and he recognized Williams’ voice on it and the potential for this song to match Karen’s voice, so he asked Williams for a full-length version to record, which they already had, but it was not used in the commercial.  Crocker Bank needed new customers for car loans and mortgages, so they commissioned this warm, storytelling ad that succeeded at touching this audience.  It worked really well, drawing in young adults who did not have the collateral the bank required for loans, so Crocker eventually killed the campaign and licensed it to other banks.  Crocker National Bank was one of California’s oldest financial institutions, but it no longer exists as an independent entity, as it was acquired by London-based Midland Bank and then they fully merged into Wells Fargo Bank in 1986.

We’ve only just begun to live
White lace and promises
A kiss for luck and we’re on our way
We’ve only begun

Before the rising sun, we fly
So many roads to choose
We’ll start out walking and learn to run
And yes, we’ve just begun

Sharing horizons that are new to us
Watching the signs along the way
Talkin’ it over, just the two of us
Workin’ together day to day, together

And when the evening comes, we smile
So much of life ahead
We’ll find a place where there’s room to grow
And yes, we’ve just begun

Sharing horizons that are new to us
Watching the signs along the way
Talkin’ it over, just the two of us
Workin’ together day to day, together

And when the evening comes, we smile
So much of life ahead
We’ll find a place where there’s room to grow
And yes, we’ve just begun

Written for Song Lyric Sunday where the theme is to find a song that relates to Dads or Grads.

Brad’s, Chad’s and Vlad’s Doodads, Fads and Pads

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Taylor Swift coined the phrase, “dads, Brads, and Chads” when she was discussing how when she attended NFL games to support Travis Kelce and she was not aware that she may have been pissing off a few of the fans, because she was always being shown on TV.  June is the month when we honor both fathers and graduates.  Since Father’s Day occurs on the third Sunday of June, it perfectly aligns with the peak of the high school and college commencement ceremonies.  Father’s Day always falls on a Sunday, so the dads do not get a day off from work on their special day, as this is a national observance not a national holiday.  I am not a dad and my father is gone, but I am sure that many dads look forward to sharing special meals with their family and getting gifts from loved ones.  The commercialized Mother’s Day we know and celebrate in the U.S. today began in 1908, but its origins can be traced all the way back to the mid-1800s.  In 1909, Sonora Smart Dodd heard a Mother’s Day sermon in Spokane, Washington and this inspired her to create a similar holiday that celebrated fathers and honored her father, William Jackson Smart, a Civil War veteran and a single parent who raised six children alone after her mother died.  She brought a petition before the Spokane Ministerial Alliance to recognize the courage and devotion of all fathers, and the local clergy liked the idea, and this led to the very first statewide Father’s Day being celebrated on June 19, 1910.  In 1972, President Richard Nixon signed a presidential resolution that declared Father’s Day to be a national observance.  The purpose of graduation is to formally recognize the successful completion of an academic program, celebrate personal growth, and mark the transition into a new phase of life or career.  Graduations are more about partying, and High School graduations are celebrated with larger parties and more fanfare than college because they mark a universal, community-wide milestone.  High School graduation signifies the end of mandated schooling, a definitive transition into adulthood, and is a time when the graduate’s entire lifelong network is still in one place.

Last week we had Recipe For Success where the theme was to find a song that includes the act of depending, leaning, relying, or trusting another.  This week the theme is to find a song that relates to Dads or Grads.  Take some time to read the posts of other bloggers who respond to this music challenge, and even better, read as many of them as you can as you will probably find many enjoyable songs and it is quite possible that you will learn a thing or two.  Share your music with others and post a video, try do some research and let everyone know something about the song that you post.  Tell everyone why you like the song, whether it was a hit, or what you think the song is about.  Show the lyrics, let’s all listen to our favorite songs and explore some new music.  Try to find a song that fits the theme, then write your post and create a pingback, or you can just place your link in the comments section.

Suggestions
• Try to use the prompt words or at least conform to a general theme, as you see it.  If the song you select does not meet the criteria, then please explain why you chose this song.
• It would be good if you could post the lyrics to the song of your choice, as this is helpful for the people that want to follow along with the music.  Warning: Bloggers make posts at their own risk, and since song lyrics are copyrighted, you may be asked to take them down from your post if you don’t have permission.  It is highly unlikely estates or artists will sue regular people (although it has happened) especially if the bloggers that do this are not making money from their site, but an artist or a publisher can ask you to remove the lyrics from your post.  I am not a lawyer and there are no rules for Song Lyric Sunday, as we are all here to have fun and hopefully get to listen to some good music.
• Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due. It would also be a good idea to give credit to the singer and the band associated with your song.
• Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be, but please try not to include too many videos as that just makes it take longer to look at all of the other posts.
• Link to the YouTube video, or you can pull it into your post, so others can listen to the song.
• Ping back to this post or place your link in the comments section below.
• Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
• Feel free to suggest future prompts.
• Have fun and enjoy the music.

This week I will be writing about The Carpenters song ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’, and next week, I will be writing about the song ‘Out in the Country’ by Three Dog Night.  The upcoming prompts will be:
June 28 – Song about enjoying the outdoors
July 5, 2026 – Song included in the “Great American Songbook” suggested by Nancy of the Elephant’s Trunk aka The Sicilian Storyteller
July 12, 2026 – Song written or performed by someone who was born in the month of July
July 19, 2026 – Song that carries a message of empowerment

Incredible Artifact

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I prayed to God and asked Him to stop the Sun, so I could grab a guilt-free, completely uninterrupted nap.  God replied, “I rested on the seventh day and made that the Sabbath, so go rest in green meadows beside peaceful streams, or I could give you this magical stopwatch that will allow you to speed time up, slow time down, or pause time indefinitely, but you may not rewind time, as all you can do is look forward, learn from the past, and make the most out of every single day.  I stopped the Sun and Moon for Joshua, but I think you will be better off taking the stopwatch.”  I took the magical stopwatch telling God that he didn’t have to twist my arm.  I took a nap while time was magically stopped and it was like nothing changed.  The universe paused, and I got the refreshing benefits of sleep without a single minute of the day actually passing by.  The time pause button on the stopwatch allowed me to see, feel, and experience an entire reality generated in my mind while I rested, and now I wanted to try the slow down button and the speed up buttons.

I was a bit afraid of the speed up button, but I did think it could be useful for bypassing unpleasant situations, and this might work out perfectly for that colonoscopy that my doctor wanted me to schedule, but this would have to wait.  I really enjoy the thought of slowing down time, as this would allow me to act consciously and intentionally, rather than on impulse, so I could weigh my options, consider the consequences of my actions, and move forward with a clear, specific purpose, as long as my brain will continue to operate at its normal speed.  I figure that since my brain’s internal processing relies on its own biological clock (where neurons fire as the result of chemical signals) rather than the external flow of time, that I would retain my regular cognitive speed while the universe around me drags on.  With this in mind, it seemed like a great time to go on an exotic vacation where I could lay on the beach and listen to the waves coming in and enjoy an incredible sunset, as the world moved in slow motion.  There was a large turning knob on top of the stopwatch, and God never gave me a manual for it and I didn’t think that I would find a YouTube video to show me how it operated, but I wondered if this would allow me to adjust how much slow time would slow down.

This was written for the Time Master/Mistress Great Minds Think’s Friday Challenge, which is hosted by Rohini and Sarah and Sarah asked us to imagine that we received a wonderful gift, a magical stopwatch that could speed time up, slow time down, or pause it, but it would not allow time to rewind.