110 Years Ago Today...

...soldiers in trenches initiated a <Joyeux Noel>. 

There was nothing formal or official about this temporary cease-fire, nothing negotiated at the top of the food chain by the leaders of the nations at war.

It was just a spontaneous act on the part of men away from home, engaged at the very beginning of what would come to be known as "The Great War" and "The War To End All Wars".

Those were misnomers of course, and this brief interlude in the insanity of mechanized slaughter on a scale previously unknown to mankind did not, could not last.

But for much of that Christmas Day 110 years ago, men laid down arms and put aside differences, met each other in the middle, shook hands...

...exchanged small gifts and enjoyed a welcome if too brief respite from the insane business of death.

It did not last, of course - nothing man made can or ever will last - but it did capture, however briefly, the essence of this holiday.

God sent His Son for our salvation, and the day will come when "the government shall be upon His shoulder".

In that time, yet future, there will be peace on earth, good will to men...The Prince of Peace will make it so.

Until that day we soldier on in this broken world, seeking solace and peace wherever it may be found, however briefly.

I hope you and yours were able to gather on this holy day and experience the peace and hope of God and the blessings of friends and family.

Merry Christmas, mcm fans...

Ladies and Gentlemen...

art work by Wayne Wirgau

...allow me to present...the Mid Century Modern Power Couple that never was.

Yep, that's Elvis and Marilyn gracing our mid century modern garage, but Elvis is still a work in progress...we decided he needs to be bigger, so I'll have follow up pics of the completed portrait next week.

Marilyn, on the other hand is both finis and spectacular..

...and here she is, all lit up at night...

...pretty darn cool.

Marilyn and Elvis were the biggest stars in their professions, contemporaries, but never romantically involved.

They did meet briefly - according to Joe Esposito, one of Elvis' posse - in June of 1960.

They happened to be on the same Paramount Studios movie lot and bumped into each other near their dressing rooms.

They exchanged pleasantries and a hug and that was that.

No torrid love affair, no one night stand...just a friendly hi how are ya between the 2 biggest superstars of the day.

So there you have it - the mid century modern power couple that never was - now together on our garage.

Might have to add one more mcm icon to our collection...

Ol' Blue Eyes, anyone?

It was 4 years ago this weekend that Karen and I did some Metro Cruisin' with Mr. T...

I know what you're thinking...

...nothing like kicking it old school in a 1923 Model T.

...how does an old guy like him get a young beauty like her?

It's the car, boyo...beautiful women dig beautiful cars...

Good times.

Cloudy day on the links...

...but a very enjoyable round, and I saved the best for last...

...when I dropped that 9 footer for birdie on #9.

As the saying goes, even a blind squirrel finds a nut now and then...

...because the rest of my round was the usual mix of bogeys...

...and their uglier siblings, double/triple bogeys.

Even so, it was a pleasant stroll through the countryside chasing that little white gutta percha.

Can't wait to tee it up again next week.

Karen and I have been watching another PBS / Walter Presents series, In Vlaamse Velden (In Flanders Field)...

...the story of a family in Belgium and their struggles during WWI.

We're enjoying these European series about historical events for the different viewpoints than we sometimes get here in America.

In World War 1, Germany attempted to execute their "Schlieffen Plan", which called for a sweeping attack through Belgium and down into France...

...and Belgium was seen as little more than a useful bridge on their road to victory.

History records it didn't quite work that way, and the Flemish people of Belgium suffered tremendously.

Besides the brutality of the occupying German army and starvation due to food shortages - with a tip o' the hat to Herbert Hoover's Commission for Relief in Belgium efforts -

- this series explores the internal conflicts between the Flemish and the French - allegedly allies in the war.

For most Americans, that's probably a lost subtext but to the Belgians it was a major affront that compounded their anguish during this awful time.

So expand your horizons a little and tune into this series on PBS...part of a number of efforts created to remember the 100th anniversary of WWI (1914 - 1918).

Seen here and there...

Larry's back at his cottage for a week of work and vacation...

...enjoying beautiful sunsets...

...and glorious moonlit nights like this...

our courtyard fountain in the sunshine

a couple of pals dropped by the command center this week

looking for one of these in my size

did I use this one recently?  well I'm using it again...I like it...

I know - I can't believe it either - but it's that time again...

What?  Heck no, not that!   This:

I can't really jump that high, but we're packing it in anyway for another week here at the Atomic Monster Cafe.

But don't worry, we'll be back next week and remember...as the great Joe Louis said...

...you can run, but you can't hide...

later, mcm fans...

In The Warming House...

...children lace their skates...

From the poem "Ice", by Gail Mazur ( read it here )

In the little scene above that graces our living room coffee table there is no warming hut...just a pretend fire in a barrel to the right of the stone pillars, where two skaters warm their hands.

I often sit in our living room at night...

...enjoying the ambiance and the warmth of the fire, thankful I'm able by God's grace to live indoors on cold winter nights.

Not everyone can...a reminder as we approach year's end that organizations like Mel Trotter Ministries do good work with the homeless population all year 'round and need our support.

Another great ministry that could use your year end gift is Forgotten Man Ministries   They work with jail inmates here in Michigan, helping them find hope, purpose and direction again during a time of crisis in their lives.

For many people, a stint in jail can either be the spark to a reformed life or the stepping stone to prison.  Forgotten Man Ministries stands in the breach, offering a spiritual path back to productivity and usefulness for those who have stumbled onto the wrong side of the law.

However your passion for helping may express itself, may we all be generous...as we're reminded in Luke 12:48, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required..."

And as Mr. Dickens points out in his timeless classic, A Christmas Carol...

"We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices."

Merry Christmas, y'all...

Our bathrooms in this home have sunken showers...you step down into them...

...and our master bathroom also has a skylight, same as in our kitchen.

So imagine you're buck naked, about to step into the shower when you hear something above you.

In this day and age of drones, it's not outside the realm of possibility someone could decide to take a little unauthorized peek.

You quickly cast your gaze skyward...and what to your wondering eyes should appear...

...but a view, overhead, of your cat's furry rear...

...here's a little closer look whether you want it or not...

...this is why you should have dogs, not cats...strange doin's over at the Castle Frankenstein..

Been thinking about WWI lately....almost 2 million Americans fought in the Great War...

...and many of them returned home physically and psychologically wounded...suffering from what's known today as PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

It's been informative to research archival photos and film from that era.  The changes it ushered in all across the world were truly transformative as the entire European continent cast off functioning monarchies and switched to more representative forms of government.

It was of course the silent movie era...

...and I've come across a scaled down, inexpensive, modern day equivalent...

...the Lomokino 35, a hand cranked movie film camera that uses 35mm file.  Interesting concept and something I may pursue as a hobby.

10 days, folks...

...you've already missed the narrow window of opportunity when you could have legitimately panicked...now it's simply too late and all is lost...if you haven't bought gifts, sent out cards, sung carols, communed with your inner Santa, eaten figgy pudding, suffered an allergic reaction to mistletoe, decked the halls and cursed the 1,000th repetition of "We Wish You A Merry Christmas", there's only one reasonable course of action left open to you...

...buy a pair of Groucho Glasses and assume a different identity.

It's easy and it's foolproof; I do it all the time.

Whenever I need to skirt some important deadline I've missed due to circumstances completely beyond my control (how was I to know time would pass and I'd be expected to actually DO something?) I just don my Groucho Glasses and voila!

No one recognizes me and I'm off the hook.

Definitely a winner; and it's your only hope of having a Merry Christmas after screwing things up so badly.

No need to thank me; it's tidbits of wisdom like this that keep you coming back to The Atomic Monster Cafe.

later, mcm fans...