How To Be A Star

Fall gracefully down from the Heavens
and show your brillance in Life
as the Star that you are!
Share your light
as you guide the way
for others to follow.
Return to the Source
from whence you came
when your glow begins to fade.
And,as you have for ages
light the night sky of past,present and future
with your celestial presence !

Soul Food ?

As a fictional hoboclown detective,there isn't much that I miss.Afterall,I have a fictional reality.But this morning,I hopped off the train at the Market-East gallery in Philadelphia,PA USA and saw some unbelievable sights in the ordinary human world.While seated at a breakfast table sipping hot coffee and eating a piece of cornbread,I noticed two young women approaching the fast food counter.One was seated in an arm-powered wheelchair and the other was pushing her.The woman who was seated was talking a lot.As the pair got closer, I noticed that the woman pushing the verbose wheelchair-bound lady had a white cane with a red tip on her right wrist as she used both hands to push her friend in the wheelchair.Then, I noticed that she was gazing upward, a little to the left as she precisely navigated a right turn toward the restaurant ordering counter.She was visually-challenged but her wheelchair-bound companion was sighted and was giving directional verbal commands.'Wow!',I thought.I took a quick bite of cornbread and a quick sip of coffee as now my attention was riveted on the pair.After they paid for their purchases,the pair exited the restaurant.But something was different! While exiting,the wheelchair-bound passenger was now moving her own wheelchair,using both arms.The visually-challenged woman has transferred her cane to her left wrist while she pushed the left wheelchair grip with her left hand.Her right hand now contained a foam cup of coffee as she merely rested it on the right wheelchair grip.Their roles were almost reversed.The wheelchair-bound lady was now silently leading the visually-challenged woman to their destination.Was this triumph over adversity? Or,
an ingenious re-balancing of two different challenges? Immediately,it became obvious
that some major strengths that the two women had in common were PATIENCE and non-judgmental TOLERANCE which equalled not only PRACTICAL PROBLEM-SOLVING but a big morning boost of COURAGE and SELF-ACCOMPLISHMENT .This brief image added nourishment to my morning coffee and cornbread.It takes someone special to make a meal like
that !

The Holiday Spirit

Wishing everyone a Holiday of Laughter,
Prosperity, Miracles
and FUN!

Season’s Greetings!
From,
Flash Mc Cool

Survival and A Prayer

This Saturday November Morning in 50 degree weather and a cool drizzle of rain,I left my cave and headed about three-quarters of a mile to the outskirts of Philadelphia,PA USA.This is my usual Saturday morning trek for brunch at one of my favorite spots.
Along the way I was greeted and entertained by the brightly-colored splendor of Fall and the approaching Christmas Holiday Season: Fallen piles of yellow,brown,gold and crimson leaves showed off their brilliance amidst green pine tree needles. A lone, bright orange pumpkin stood vigilance on a old porch,several feet from a large woodpile.Several windows of a colonial brick-styled apartment complex were blushing with bright red velvety christmas bows and ribbons.
I reached the fast food restaurant,ordered my brunch and sat down to eat.In came a
little old white- bearded man with a Jamaican accent.He placed his order.When the
clerk asked if he wanted," Grilled,baked or ..", the man explained,"I don't care.It doesn't matter.I'm broke as a dog.I just want something to eat. Whatever you have for five dollars.Just give me that.I'm just hungry".The clerk looked at the man as he rustled up a platter of food and said,"What kind of work do you do?" The old man replied, "I am a hack (unlicensed taxi) man.Things are slow.I'm just trying to get to the next job.The clerk smiled,gave the little man his platter and wished him a good day.I thought about mutual survival here.The clerk could have insisted that the man stick to the precise menu and costs as some merchants do, But he did not. The clerk made a sale.The man got a meal and both survived for another day.
I left the restaurant feeling good about what just transpired and as I approached
another old man who was walking ahead of me,he heard my footsteps,turned around,looked me in the eye and said,"God loves you sir.Have a great weekend!"
I immediately replied,'You too'.
As the man walked further ahead of me,I noticed that he had no socks on.Instead, he had a red and white neckerchief tied on each foot covered by his pair of white sneakers.Now,this may not mean anything to you but I immediately wondered,who is the clown here? Me or this old guy? Who could really authentically tell me that God loves me besides another clown? I interpreted this as a brightly-colored prayer,custom- designed especially for me.

The U.S. Health Insurance Reform Debate?

Hi Guyzs! My K-9 skills have been deployed again to assist in the raging debate of
Health Insurance Reform in the United States.I did smell around the battleground of the debate and located some tasty Man-Made morsels of information. If you wanna know more about the history of Health Insurance in the United States and the various and numerous types of Private and Public Health Insurance plans that exist now,go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_insurance_in_the_United_States
At this spot, excellent,well-meaning and reputable think-tanks have contributed to this wikipedia article.
I am still hunting for an entry by Mother Nature,that discusses any non-Man Made,Global system that maintains,promotes and restores the physical and spiritual health of all living organisms.I am sure the fossil bones have some clues! When I return from the digs with some interesting clues,I will be sure to bring them to you!
Until then,beware of the tale that is wagging the dog!

The Value of Competition

'Winning and Losing are States of Mine and Mind.Last night, the New York Yankees
won the 2009 World Series Title from the Philadelphia Phillies.Congratulations to
the Yankees and Phillies! Winning and Losing can be both taxing and enriching.
Both teams have contributed enormous wealth to the Land of Imagination. '
~Flash Mc Cool

The Baseball Recipe

We dogs will play with anything.My boss,Flash Mc Cool, told me that," baseball is a man-made game".I wanted to see if the game was only made of great smells like popcorn,peanuts,pretzels,
beer and hot dogs.So I ran off to the past to fetch a quote that described what baseball was made of. Here are the real ingredients right from the horse's mouth,
" Baseball is ninety percent mental.The other half is physical".
-Yogi Berra

The 2009 World Series Rumble:Phillies vs Yankees

Yo,Yo, Yoooooo! Flash Mc Cool, you are a fictional hoboclown detective,my friend and my boss.I love you but you are such a softy! The Yankees and Phillies are about to rumble in the 2009 World Series.Now, if you have History going up against Momentum you're definitely going to have a big collision!

Don't get me wrong,I luv New York and I'm patriotic but I'm a Philly Dog from North Philly and now I live in a cave with my best friend, a clown.Woof! Pardon my french, but Junk yard dogs don't mess with me!

When you and your clown hommies get to New York and the Big Apple says,"Bite Me!",

bite and ask questions later!

Yo, I got your back! Leave the fire hydrants to me !!

The Phila Sophism

Regarding the 2009 World Series,I predict that either the Yankees or Phillies will

win or lose...maybe sooner or maybe later!

Since my bicycle is down,I, old Flash Mc Cool, will be taking the Chinatown Bus to New York.

Now, a word of caution to my fellow old head corner clowns from North,South,West,NorthEast,Germantown,Oak Lane,Overbrook,Fishtown and Kensington.

When you reach New York,beware of the New Yorker's travel directions.

Don't take the jive from that left hand upside the wall stuff!

Two lefts don't make a right!

When you're wrong, you're wrong.

And when you're right, you're right!

Fantasy Baseball ?

Hey Guyz! I'm Butterflypup,the deft K-9 buddy of fictional hoboclown detective,Flash Mc Cool.

As the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees were gearing up for this year's World Series,two haggard witches,flew over our cave on their way to a Halloween Party near the Edgar Allen Poe House in Philadelphia,PA. Somehow one witch dropped some of her mischief stardust near Flash Mc Cool.After a whoppingly healthy sneeze ,Flash concocted a wild story about the old days of baseball back in the woods,

"A long time ago..let's say Yesteryear, Mother Nature hosted championship critter baseball games in Wissahickon Park,Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Once a team of racoons,called the

Philly Bandits, competed against the Upstate Skunks. The Bandits's favorite players were:Snatch,Grab and Swindle.They were good players!Snatch and Grab were aces at catching.Swindle was the base stealer.

The Upstate Skunks favorites were: Stinky,Stanky,Funky and Outhouse.They occasionally won but generally stunk! Outhouse partly got his name because he could knock a ball right outta the park.

Miniature baseball bats were custom-made by Buck and Downy,a local beaver and woodpecker partnership. Old flattened tree stumps were the bases: First base was a slightly beveled pine tree stump.Second base ,an axe- worn oak tree stump and third base was a finely finished maple tree stump.Home plate was just that;a piece of flat stoney plate from the creek.The pitcher's mound was a small compost and dirt pile. Small black bears sold kegs of cider and the squirrels sold the nuts. When they weren't competing themselves, the Cardinals,Bluejays and Orioles flew overhead to watch the critter baseball games. When a hawk appeared, the tiny critters scrambled for cover in the trees and bushes. Obviously, when the skunkboys were playing,the best seats in the house were not downwind! My favorite seat was on my giant rock above the field.Some critters would watch from the low hanging branches of large trees.

Just when the bases were loaded,the crows would drop nuts and dumpster trash on the crowd below as they noisily feasted on their scavenged goods.

After the game and harvest party,I'd take a long snooze in the cave.This year I'm going to go up to New York and watch two world class teams,the legendary New York Yankees and the current

spunky world champion Philadelphia Phillies, pitch some fast balls and send some into orbit!Maybe one will hit that old witch that dropped that annoying stardust on me!"

When Flash gets to the Big Apple,I'll be right there on Broadway making my fantasy pitch to

New York's fabulous fire hydrants! Go Yankees! Go Phillies! Go NYFD!!

Pay Me Now!

This morning as I left my cave,I was scolded and fussed at by some young juvenile squirrels.You see,there was a friendly wager made with the young squirrels by this ole clown.I heard them yelling,"There he is with his big old red bobo shoes and big red nose!!".Actually it was all in fun and the young squirrels were tossing their sour grapes comments because I bet on the Phillies and they bet on the LA Dodgers.Well, by now you know the Philadelphia Phillies won Game 5
of the National League/Championship Series, Phillies 10, Dodgers,4 .The Phillies will go on to their 7th time in the World Series and this year is second in a row.Last year,I paid $15 for a Phillies 2008 NLCS Pennant.I think I was had because this year a major sports' store is selling a 2009 Phillies NL Champion's Pennant for $4 . I don't mind that but a nice Phillies NL Champion's locker Room Cap would cost me $30, while a nice winter weight,cozy, Phillies
NL Champion's Hoody would cost me $55. Since the woods gets cold,I would like to get one of those Hoodies . Now, the juvenile squirrels must pay up with a bushel of wild nuts that I can sell to the old head squirrels to raise more play money to buy my 2009 Phillies souvinirs. Juvenile squirrels are surly and tough but so is old Flash Mc Cool. I don't remember who said it but as the saying goes," You can pay me now or pay me later but you gonna pay me!!". Way to go Phillies!!!

Masquerade Party Invitation

You are cordially invited to Flash Mc Cool's on line Marathon Masquerade Party at http://www.scribd.com/FlashMcCool

Stop by the site between now and October 31,2009 to say hello and show us your costume.

Remember: No lewdness, no offensive material,no lewd nor offensive photos. Just clean FUN !

This is not a contest.There are no prizes or giveaways.Share your photos,articles and poems!

Have FUN !

USA Reforms October 2009

Hello humans!I'm back!My boss,Flash Mc Cool ( fictional hoboclown detective) told me to retrieve some famous quotations that might help his "real people" friends understand the USA
approach to reform.Now,I'm a Papillion and not a Retriever but I can get into tiny places that the big dogs can't.It's usually the tiny,well hidden and forgotten spaces where useful treasures are hidden. Flash Mc Cool told me that he got it from a "confidential source" that "business as usual approach" will not serve the US as a nation.I get to nibble on any crumbs I find near any useful quotes.


Near my corner of the cave,I saw a newspaper about the Gettysburg Address,something about ,
"...government of the people,by the people,for the people".Flash told me that these words symbolize "Democracy" .Flash let me smell,"Democracy" but he wouldn't let me eat it!Flash then
sent me over to the site of his friend, Gabriel Robbins, at www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/quotes.html .I'm finicky with my food for thought,so I separated


out the most appetizing and relevant tidbits. Here's what I fetched:


Some Relevant Quotes on some US national issues:


" The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them"


-Albert Einstein (1879-1955)


"It has been appallingy obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity"


-Albert Einstein (1879-1955)


"Denial ain't just a river in Egypt"


-Mark Twain (1835-1910)


-"Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly,while bad people


will find a way around laws."


- Plato (427-347 B.C.)


"Many wealthy people are a little more than janitors of their possessions"


-Frank Lloyd Wright (1868-1959)


"You may not be interested in war but war is interested in you"


-Leon Trotsky (1879-1940)


"Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance"


-Will Durant


"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers"


-Thomas Watson (1874-1956),Chairman of IBM, 1943


"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home"


-Ken Olson,Chairman and Founder of Digital Equipment Corp.,1977


Some tasty quotes, relative to solutions:


" Knowledge speaks but wisdom listens"


-Jimi Hendrix


"You gotta be careful if you don't know where you're going because you might not get there."


-Yogi Berra


"If you're going through hell,keep going"


-Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)


"I never let my schooling interfere with my education"


-Mark Twain (1835-1910)


"A pint of sweat saves a gallon of blood"


-General George S. Patton (1885-1945)

Well, now that my job is done I can turn my fetches over to the big dogs and nibble on my

crumbs...

The Bones of Contention Tale

My boss,Flash Mc Cool,lets me dig for bones in my spare time.I heard about this thing that you humans call "Health Reform" and decided to dig around some historic ruins to locate some tasty artifacts on the matter.I picked up a scent under a written quotation of Edward Kennedy,"For all my years in public life,I have believed that America must sail towards the shores of liberty and justice for all.There is no end to that journey,only the next great voyage.We know the future will outlast all of us,but I believe that all of us will live on in the future we make." Under that quote,I found another Edward Kennedy draft, "The work goes on,the cause endures,the hope still lives and the dreams shall never die."One spot in the dig looked like a battle site where I found a quote by Franklin Roosevelt," Put two or three men in positions of conflicting authority.This will force them to work at loggerheads,allowing you to be the ultimate arbiter."Beneath that was another Franklin Roosevelt quote," To search a port,we must sail,not lie at anchor-sail,not drift."I began to dig furiously and found this Roosevelt gem," There are many ways of going forward but only one way of standing still." I wondered what kind of place had such an assembly of old, recorded and passionate writings.What did they mean?With my doggy curiosity charged up, I dug into the rubble of the ruins some more and found a quote by Martin Luther King,Jr.," In the end,we will remember not the words of our enemies,but the silence of our friends". Then, beside that was another quote by Rev. King,"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." Next to that was a smaller quote by Dr.King," We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools."Since I was really salivating,I dug further down and found a stack of quoted stuff by various people:Mohandas Gandhi,"It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver."Plato," Attention to health is life's greatest hindrance."Benjamin Disraeli," The health of the people is really the foundation upon which all their happiness and all their powers as a state depend."William Menniger," Mental Health problems do not affect three or four out of every five persons but one out of one".What was this place I came upon? A writer's convention site? A debate hall? A meeting place? One thing was for sure; these were bones of contention and now they're mine....

Digg it

" No Imagination = No Growth "
Flash Mc Cool

"Dream baby Dream!

Fetch it to your Mind's eye!!"

Butterflypup

Deja Vu !

Hey everybody! Did you see what I saw? The World Champion Phillies beat the Colorado Rockies last night, 5-4 . This is the second straight year the fantastic Phillies will face the

LA Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, starting Thursday in LA !

Philadelphia citizens had a very rough summer this year but the joy of the Phillies' outstanding

winning performances put a great big smile on some very worn faces ! Go Phillies!

Lunacy ?

Figments of imagination like myself often share reasons for their existence.In my case,I (Flash Mc Cool,imaginary hoboclown detective) came from the confusion and contradictions, pervasive in the world of real humans.Nature is full of opposites and contradictions that ordinary mortals often cannot comprehend or bear.This past week's events are cases in point: Movie mogul film maker,Steven Spielberg (for compassion and humanitarian work) is awarded the Liberty Medal at the Philadelphia,PA, USA National Constitution Center by former President Clinton, after producing a series of movies about the Holocaust,World War II and slave ship mutiny on the Amistad. President Barack Obama receives the Nobel Peace Prize (amidst the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars) for calling for new international diplomacy for peace. The Pennsylvania 101 day marathon state budget crisis(that financially and emotionally maimed countless dependent non-profit workers and constituents)finally grinded to a halt last night.This sad situation was counter-balanced by the good news of the world champions Phillies playing again in the National League Division Series.This was a breath of fresh air and a naturally safe sedative for the frayed nerves of the Philadelphia,PA citizens. However, along with the soothing calm of Indian Summer and the Fall harvest festivities of the month of October came the NASA shooting of the moon.All of Nature's constituents (human, animal, plant) were nervous about that. I have known of other clowns who hid in bushes in the moonlight to shoot moons but that's a different order of things! So, imaginary characters like myself come along to help mortals keep a healthy and safe perspective when conditions look their worse.Flash Mc Cool, imaginary hoboclown detective is here to remind you that Nature's Law of opposites is around to pull you through hard times!

Nobel Peace Prize ?

Hi Humans ! I'm Butterflypup, the deft K-9 assistant to the great bumbling fictional hoboclown detective, Flash Mc Cool. My boss,Flash Mc Cool, is such a clown ! He saw two people fighting about Barack Obama's receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize and sent me to sniff around the Internet to pick up a scent of truth about the matter.

As a fictional doggy assistant to a fictional clown,I still done good! I decided to get it right from the horse's mouth.You kinda learn these things from Nature! After I found out that people get the Nobel Peace Prize for somehow preserving the peace,I dug around and learned that US President Jimmy Carter,Jr. received the Prize after he left office as President. I sat down after that! At the Nobel Prize.org website,Geir Lundestad, secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee (1990-15 March,2001) wrote that US President Theodore Roosevelt received the

Prize for, " successful mediation to end the Russo-Japanese War ...and for his interest in arbitration." Geir also wrote that, "The Secretary and advisor of the Nobel Committee at the time were highly critical of an award to Roosevelt." Geir also wrote that US President Thomas

Woodrow Wilson received the Prize ," for his crucial role in establishing the League of Nations."Geir also noted some controversy in Wilson's award of the Prize.I laid down after I found that bit of information!

Then, I chased down a scent and fetched a tidbit of information at the Nobel Prize Internet Archive; that Barack Obama had received the Nobel Prize for his," extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples". I rolled over after

retrieving that bit of information!

If I can get this information back to Flash Mc Cool, maybe he'll be so happy he'll give me

a big juicy bone ! Well, I'm easy! I'll settle for a pat on the head if it will help to keep the Peace!

Elderly Tree Saves Sleeping Couple!

After I left my cave early this rain slick morning,I took my hoboclown stroll along Washington Lane in Philadelphia, PA USA . I rounded a corner and saw a husband and wife in their pajamas, thanking their lucky stars that a tree had deftly displaced a wayward car, headed toward their home as they slept. A loud crunching sound had awakened them.When they emerged from their home, they saw a small station wagon overturned on its roof.The driver had crawled out of the car after his air bag had deployed. When I arrived, an ambulance crew already had the driver in the stretcher compartment.The car's left front wheel was torn off with tie rods strewn about glass,tire rubber,a ruptured wheel rim and a ripped off front bumper. The keys were still in the trunk. The radio still playing music while the wipers continued to run.

The police were enroute to meet and assist the ambulance crew.The driver was alive and the

man and woman in pajamas cited the tree as saving their bacon and their home. As the gathering crowd peered at the accident scene,I took stock of the enforcement of the Laws of Nature. You see, without a court order, badge or martial arts maneuver, an elderly Sycamore tree, standing guard in front of the targeted house, exercised passive restraint.According to the homeowner, the aged tree deftly kept the careening car from crashing into their home. While the cops took the names of the human parties involved, I took the name of the old tree.I thought the tree's name was Ralph (like a big burly friend of mine) but the tree insisted that I call him,"Woody"...obviously an original name! Woody explained that his prime job was to stay rooted to the ground beside the house to protect it from the rain,snow,sun and wind; to clean the air and to be a playground and home to the squirrels and birds. Woody was old but still quite buff . He was about 50 feet tall and had a massive trunk of five and one-half feet in diameter . The humble tree said he never flinched when the car slid toward him and he merely "displaced" it using the laws of physics.Woody said that gravity assisted his efforts and he is greatful that he didn't lose any branches.

With the ambulance,police and the crowd of on-lookers gone,Woody resumed his humble job without fanfare or recognition. I was tempted to carve the old couple's names into Woody's bark but somehow I thought that Woody didn't want all the attention that the carving would bring.

Maybe that's why old Sycamore trees routinely and naturally shed their outer bark ??

Flash As The Halloween Dude

Halloween is coming and I decided to get duded up! How about this outfit for trick or treating ?

Butterfly-Pup's Leg Up Award

The Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Budget Crisis of 2009 led me and my pal,Diogenes the critic, to lead a daylight search for the elected State and City officials and legislators who deserve to be re-elected during election time.The following list of honorable and honest elected officials are being awarded my 'Leg-Up Award' and should be re-elected:

What? You don't see any names? Don't look at me.I didn't eat the list !

Senator Edward Kennedy 1932-2009

Hello everybody!This lazy August morning I emerged from my cave to see a kitten chasing its' tail and two airliners gliding through the clouds.The morning news reported that Senator Edward Kennedy had died .I remembered watching a Presidential motorcade of his brother,John F. Kennedy, driving past my elementary school in Philadelphia, PA in the 1960s.
I recalled shaking his brother's (Robert F. Kennedy) hand when I met him in New York City in the same decade. I never met Senator Edward Kennedy.But somehow I felt close to him.
As a fictional hoboclown,I believe that the spirits of some people who die get transformed into stars in the heavens. As a fictional character I can imagine and dance about a world, the likes of which real people have never seen!
As a young hoboclown I remember the stories about our ancient parents, who navigated their
travel routes on land and sea by the position of the stars.Now, air travel and space travel navigation take into account the position of the heavenly stars.I can almost hear the sailors
yelling to steer port-side or starboard to avoid a hazard,a tempest or a sea monster or
to find a lost legendary island or buried pirate's treasure.I can almost hear the warnings to
turn the bow around to avoid sailing off the edge of the world.The sailors and other great travelers (land,sea and air) studied the stars to guide them safely through their journeys.
What a great and appropriate place for Senator Edward Kennedy to be - a new star amongst a
constellation of greatness that preceded him. I imagine the Stars to be legendary beacons
of transformed lives that traversed the earth, made mistakes and yet great strides among mortal men and now guide us all along our paths of destiny ! Shine on Senator Edward Kennedy
1932-2009 . You are now a beacon to be well-studied!

The Stranger

Hey everybody! This morning I disembarked from the R8 Commuter Train at the Market East
stop.I wore civilian clothes,having left my fictional clown's garb back at the Cave .Note that I now have a full well-trimmed, salt and pepper beard and cut a striking image as I stepped onto the Market East Gallery platform.As I got to the top of the escalator (on a whim) I decided to ditch having breakfast at Mickey D's at 10th & Market Sts. because their loudspeaker music system was down. I like to dine by music. I stepped off the escalator and decided to have breakfast at a fast food chinese Juice Bar & Breakfast.The breakfast spot is in the Gallery,surrounded by round and square cafe'-styled tables. Music is piped in overhead.I ordered bacon,scrambled eggs,white toast and coffee and was deliciously tempted by the counter display of fried chicken breasts, wings & mac & cheese side orders which I did not buy...at least not yet! I think the salesman knew I was a first time customer & he really loaded up the platter with a healthy serving.I paid a bargain, economical price and sat at an empty four seat table.Around me were nearly some 30 or 40 such seating arrangements. Two seconds later, a stranger appeared and sat at a two-seater round cafe-styled table about five feet in front of me. There was one empty table between us. The stranger was an older black male ( around 80 to 85 years old) who sported a fully white beard and an intensely black beret with an authentic French-styled crush. He looked like he could have been my father.The facial features were uncanny! As I warily gave him the once over,a cute little blond passed through the table area thoroughfare.She looked at the old man, then at me and then made eye- contact with me and gave a warm smile. As I studied the old man, I was convinced that he had been a real resident of Paris,France .He had an old briefcase (which I surmised, could contain some sheet music and a will). He had no teeth and his breakfast was a fresh banana and a can of Coke. He seemed to wince with every swallow of the Coke. While the blond had looked directly at me,he did not make eye contact. He perused a Metro newspaper and occasionally looked worriedly past me. He had that old person's 'lost look' in his eyes. Was he looking back to the past or forward to a bleak future? I wanted to chat him up but was reluctant to invade his personal space . He looked like he could be an understudy of a character who plays my father in a movie that I am currently cast in . I wanted to get his card and perhaps contact him later.Then, I backed off as I thought,' Is this my angel or am I his messenger?' By now the Gallery Mall security guards were walking through and taking up their various posts outside the gated department stores. I felt secure that the security guards were now watching over the two of us as we had breakfast in the nearly deserted area. The old man read his newspaper and it reminded me that I had to buy mine . I gave one last glance at the old stranger, who I was now fond of and got up as I wondered about the chance meeting. Then, in the same instance,I wondered who was my angel,the old man or the cute little blond who gave the two of us that warm smile ??

The Infamous Quote !

As an insignificant fictional hoboclown detective and observer of world chaos and current events, I can only conclude that,' If the sky is only falling in my backyard, then it's time to move in with the rest of the world'.

Presidents' Jefferson and Obama's Teachable Moments

As an old hoboclown detective,I decided to investigate the recent arrest of professor Henry Louis Gates . Oddly enough, my investigation lead me to my own 2007 blog archive and my post ,'July4th Reflections' . In that post, it is obvious that Professor Henry Louis Gates was not
around when President Jefferson had a teachable moment .It is fair to say that President Jefferson (as is President Obama and Professor Gates) was a scholar and rendered numerous
thoughts about a variety of issues affecting mankind. When I looked into the matter of the arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates I actually found President Jefferson's writings, on
much larger issues and I am republishing them in this blog post :
July 4th Reflections
Hi Everybody,I'm Hoboclown.Flash Mc Cool has been in his cave searching for evidence that Thomas Jefferson was a serious student of Nature.Here's what Flash has to say," As the american revolution was uniting the colonies and as the newly- formed government was in its infancy,Thomas Jefferson demonstrated that he was a student of Nature,when he said,"Under the law of nature,all men are born free,every one into the world with a right to his own person,which includes the liberty of moving and using it at his own will.This is what is called personal liberty and is given him by the Author of nature,because necessary for his own sustenance"-Thomas Jefferson:Legal Argument: 1770 FE 1:376. Thomas Jefferson has also said the following,"I have sworn upon the altar of God,eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man." Jefferson frequently talked about the condition of man in the world," An equal application of law to every condition of man is fundamental"(Thomas Jefferson to George Hay,1807. ME 11:341). A similar quote was, " To unequal privileges among members of the same society the spirit of the nation is with one accord,adverse."(Thomas Jefferson to Hugh White,1801, ME 10:258 ). Likewise, Jefferson stated,"When one undertakes to administer justice,it must be with an even hand and by rule;what is done for one,must be done for everyone in equal degree." (Thomas Jefferson to Benjamin Rush, 1803, ME 10:420). The following quotes were also recorded: "I have supposed the black man in his present state might not be (equal to the white man) but it would be hazardous to affirm that equally cultivated for a few generations, he would not become so."(Thomas Jefferson to Chastellux,1785.ME 5:6,Papers 8:186). Lastly,"Nothing is more certainly written in the book of fate than that these people(blacks) are to be free.Nor is it less certain that the two races,equally free cannot live in the same government.Nature,habit,opinion has drawn indelible lines of distinction between them."(Thomas Jefferson:Autobiography,1821.ME 1:72) . Yep, just when I thought I was the only one kept awake at night by old Mother Nature I concluded that she kept Thomas Jefferson up many a night as well, pondering about the fundamental questions of mankind. As night falls on Independence Day will you have a little insomnia from nagging thoughts ?" _____________ Happy 4th of July ! Love, Hoboclown Copyright,2007
Well, I guess teachable moments will always occur as long as there are scholarly reflections on important matters !

The Contract Maker

It's a warm overcast day in Philadelphia,PA USA. I,Flash Mc Cool,hoboclown detective, spent the last two days pondering a legal matter for a young attorney. You see,there were two contracts that appeared to be the same but were being upheld and enforced differently by the local municipality.As the matter was an open civil case,the young lawyer decided to petition a judge to do a plain reading of one contract.After I investigated the case a bit,I suggested that the
attorney petition the judge to rule on the difference (if any) between the two contracts.This morning,at my usual spot in the woods to board the train, a stillness in the air rattled my awareness.I turned around and looked toward the trees.In the eerie calm there were two slight movements.One was a beautiful blue cardinal perched on a branch. The other was a vermilion cardinal nervously twitching on a branch several feet away. As I turned my gaze to savor their manificence,both flew off to an apparent safety zone atop higher tree limbs. Although of a different color plumage,they were functionally equivalent. Both were skillfully crafted, artfully adorned and obviously protected by their Maker, who enabled them to whisk away to safety from my visual and discerning scrutiny. The insight came to me. These were the live manifestations of the two bothersome contracts that have eluded me for the past two days! I concluded that both contracts are functional; do what they are intended to do and are equally protected by the Contract Maker. Later this morning, I will telephone the young attorney to advise her that everything will be fine !

Quack Quack Butterfly-Pup's Leg-Up Award

Today's Butterfly Pup's Leg-Up Award goes to the critics of US President,Barack Obama's recent overtures to relax tensions with Cuba, Venezuela and Iran.I'm just an internet dog and best friend of fictional hoboclown detective,Flash Mc Cool, but I know a duck when I see one! My boss,Flash Mc Cool said that someone once said," If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck..." Flash Mc Cool also told me that those who criticized Obama's move to thaw relations with Cuba, Venezuela and Iran are all quacked out!Flash says they forgot about the Glasnost period,initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev (former Soviet leader) in the latter part of the 1980s and how then US President, Ronald Reagan seized on Gorbachev's perestroika movement ( re-structuring of the Soviet economy) and on June 12,1987 (at the base of the Brandenburg Gate near the Berlin Wall) told Mr. Gorbachev ," ...tear down that wall".The rest is history! Flash also told me about Muammar al-Gaddafi, "who in the mid 1980s was viewed as a major financier of international terrorism. Ronald Reagan (on 4-15-86) ordered bombing raids against Gaddafi in Tripoli and Benghazi. In March,2004 then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom,Tony Blair, publicly met with Gaddafi to help thaw the strained relationship with Libya. On May 15,2006 ,the US State Department restored full diplomatic relations with Libya once Gaddafi declared he was abandoning Libya's weapons of mass destruction programs. Soon, the US State Department removed Libya from the list of nations supporting terrorism.In September,2008 , then US Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice, met with Gaddafi, as no US Secretary of State had met with Gaddafi since 1953. Again, the rest is history." I keep looking for history but I'm just a dog and cannot find it. I wonder if my boss will put some History in a can for me and feed it to me! It might go well with duck sauce!

Of Presidents and Pirates

While I usually blog in the morning after meditation,I find myself curiously blogging this evening.With a televised Harry Potter movie playing in the next room of my cave, I listened
with both ears to the soundtrack while reading about the short history of the city of Philadelphia,PA (USA).Amidst all the recently televised drama of the Somali pirates attacking ships on the high seas,I learned from this evening's readings that four of Captain Kidd's pirate crew were arrested and tried in Philadelphia. Susan Coolidge wrote," In 1699 Captain Kidd was a standing menace to all sea-going people." Coolidge also wrote," In 1717 and 1718 the equally infamous "Blackbeard" was plundering off the coasts of the Middle and Southern States.He is said to have made repeated visits to Philadelphia, and to have been countenanced and abetted by men in respectable repute...On his capture some months after the date of these letters,papers were found on board of his ship which incriminated both the Governor of North Carolina and his accessories in his infamous trade...Their booty was openly sold,the Governor sharing in the spoils."
Since I was now captivated by these accounts,I continued to read Coolidge's work and learned that Ben Franklin was," elected twice as the President of Pennsylvania ". Are you as curious as I am by now? Read about it.Check out this public domain book, A Short History of The City of Philadelphia from Its' Foundation to the Present Time (1880) By Susan Coolidge.
As a mentally-fatigued fictional hoboclown detective, I think I'll now drift off into some imaginary sleep.Who knows what treasures I'll find in dreams ?

G-20 London Summit Much Ado...

Hello world! As a fictional hoboclown detective in Philadelphia,PA USA,I conducted my own surveillance of the G-20 London Summit and found much ado! Firstly, Mother Nature was not on the official registry but nonetheless surrounded the event and naturally embraced everyone.World leaders and diplomats posed and strutted in between genuine talks to move toward a global policy that could help stabilize the world financial markets to help re-start economic growth.Some G-20 attendees and outside spectators opined that better regulatory methods might have a more effective impact on their ambitious goal to right the world economy than an economic stimulus package, proposed by the United States.Secondly,as I watched Mother Nature,She seemed amused by the whole event.She told me that over the ages She spent a greater wealth of energy on getting the Sun up every morning and the Moon and stars up at night just so the ancestors of the G-20 Summit leaders could have light under which to draft their sovereign constitutions.Thirdly,She was also tempted to remind them that She was and still is the largest and often unappreciated realtor of the world powers and developing countries. Yet, She said She is still committed to sharing her wealth and abundance with all of them, regardless of politics and differing monetary systems.Finally, Mother Nature then said She would offer herself up as a role model for the G-20 world leaders but declined as She is a little bit camera-shy !

Philly-Style March Madness!

Sometimes it's natural for all creatures and critters to be driven by biological imperatives.This morning (in Philadelphia,PA USA) it's foggy with the high temperature heading up to 63 degrees. As an imaginary hoboclown detective, I am preparing a special breakfast: cheese biscuits and applesauce.You see, I am investigating the big ritualistic doings in the area.The human-kind in Roxborough have blocked off Port Royal Avenue ( a small highway) for the frog crossing! Its seems like the frogs have to cross the highway to get to the reservoir area to sow their wild oats.It's sort of a wild mating game! All the chipmunks,squirrels,groundhogs,moles and a few feathered friends are peeking from behind the bushes to see this great spectacle! Meanwhile, all the critters and creatures (including the human-kind) are rooting for "Nova Nation" as the Villanova wildcats have advanced to the final four! It's a mad time! I'll share my cheese biscuit crumbs with the partying critters but the salivating human-kind with the V tatoos on their cheeks have to keep their distance!

Spring Ahead?

In Philadelphia,PA, USA it's 47 degrees, heading up to 66 to 70 degrees.Spring is in the air and is about to spring,so we can say that it has sprung when it sprang.Do you feel springy? Do you have a spring in your step? Tonight, we will enter Daylight Savings Time as we spring the clock ahead one hour.Now, here's a small test for all Mensa applicants: Go to your local poultry market and ask the butcher for a spring chicken.If you get a civil answer, you advance in academic standing.
Also, open your mouth wide and say, ' Boinnnggg!'. If you succeed, you move to the head of the class.If not, take comfort in the fact that you are now a runner-up to the class clown! Lastly,
find your honey and give her or him a springalicious kiss!Now spring along and enjoy your day
before Flash Mc Cool springs something else on you !

Economic Stimulus Money & New Cities?

Let there be no doubt that President Obama's economic stimulus package has gotten many USA entrepreneurs salivating about new job opportunities to be found in re-building the USA
infrastructure. As an imaginary hoboclown detective,I have travelled back in time to the 1700s and 1800s to see what the state of the art in city-construction was like.Did you know that horses once pulled rail cars or that the US government previously purchased shares in local Philadelphia banks to get the economy going?
You can travel back in time too and see how Philadelphia's streets were planned or how bridges ,
waterways were constructed with the technology of that time.Yes, in order to build the future, you should re-visit and understand the past !
Get into an authentic, documented, published and public domain book- designed time machine to get ideas from the past to make a buck today! Be thankful and read the following book by
Arden Press of Philadelphia
http://www.libertynet.org/ardenpop/applist.html
<>A Short History of the City of Philadelphia, From Its Foundation to the Present Time (1880)
By Susan Coolidge
(**The following non-fiction work is in the public domain.**)
Summary This book, originally published in 1880, provides a comprehensive history of Philadelphia from its earliest settlements in the 1600's all the way to 1880, the year of the Centennial Exhibition.
Table of Contents Original Dedication Chapter 1 Early Settlements Chapter 2 The Quaker Colony Chapter 3 The Founding of Philadelphia Chapter 4 The Successors of Penn (1701-1766) Chapter 5 Old Philadelphia (1701 to 1766 continued) Chapter 6 The Gathering of the Storm (1766 to 1776) Chapter 7 The Revolutionary War (1776 to 1783) Chapter 8 Philadelphia as the Capital City (1783 to 1800) Chapter 9 Growth and Development (1800 to 1876) Chapter 10 The Centennial Exhibition Chapter 11 Philadelphia in 1880
Title: A Short History of the City of Philadelphia, From Its Foundation to the Present Time (1871)
Author: Susan Coolidge
Published: 1887
Copyright: 1887 by Roberts Brothers Publishers
Publisher: Roberts Brothers, Boston, Massachusetts
If an old fictional hoboclown detective can read this document, so can you !

His Eloquence ?

Woof! Since I am a dog, my boss,Flash Mc Cool, fictional hoboclown detective, told me about the guy who said ,"Beware the ides of March." Also, since I can't read, Flash Mc Cool told me about Russ Limbaugh,"Hoping that US President, Barack Obama, fails". So, I decided to give the first March,2009 Butterfly-Pup Leg-Up Award to His Eloquence,Russ Limbaugh.In the United States of America,Mr. Limbaugh's freedom of speech is protected by the First Amendment to the U.S, Constitution,whereby criticism of the government is allowed. With so many people in the United States unemployed,Russ Limbaugh may as well have said ,'Let there be light...'You see,Russ Limbaugh is very entertaining and he has a profitable job displaying his eloquence.If I didn't know better I might think he was a better clown than my boss!

The Currency & Coin-Free World Economy

Hi Fans! Recently,as a fictional hoboclown detective,I met with the most powerful World Economy Chief Executive Officer to discuss the USA 800 billion dollar economic stimulus package.The World Economy CEO literally took me to school. She called the 800 billion dollar economic stimulus package, "chump change".
Not reading about her attendance at any of the global economic summits,I questioned her remarks about the 800 billion dollars as " chump change".Then, I questioned her credentials as a CEO. She presented me a dossier indicating her name and title simply stated as, "Mother Nature".
According to Mother Nature,
"Wealth not only happens, it is!. Abundance is achievable for all without the need for currency! Some species have unions and some do not,yet they all work in some capacity for survival .The Human species works for wages or salary income , awarded with various currencies within various economies.In my Animal Kingdom, the animals work for survival (for services in kind) instead of for currency or coins.As a result, many work to benefit others,which guarantees their survival without artificial financial (currency,coin,banking or credit) systems.
The economies are contained within ecosystems. For example, crows and pigeons have no need for man-made mortgages or ATMs and do just fine year after year . Many animals become excellent engineers,technicians or health practitioners (without the need for training from formal man-made training institutions). Another example, is the honey-bee colonies and the inherent wealth of their natural honey product ( a food, a tonic and a medicine) . Time and the forces of Nature contribute to the development of long-term investments that result in naturally abundant and self- sustaining wealth ( such as precious stones like diamonds or oil wells)."
Mother Nature summed up our conversation telling me that Man should not make much do about nothing and should look to her example as a CEO to get the man-made world economies back on track .Somehow, after our discussion I felt that I could get a sound night of fictional sleep !

Does PHEAA Garnish SSDI Checks ?

Hi Everybody.Today's Butterfly Pup's Leg- Up Award goes to PHEAA (The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency ).It's tough for the canine pet of a fictional hoboclown detective to get real people news but I'll bet Flash Mc Cool's play money that you may not have a friend in Pennsylvania!

I sniffed around and learned that PHEAA may be garnishing the SSDI check of a legally blind woman who is the co-maker on a delinquent Stafford Loan.The problem is that the legally blind woman (post 3 craniotomies) is dependent on her SSDI checks to cover her mortgage payments for her home mortgage.Is PHEAA going the way of Freddie and Fannie ?

I went to the Wikipedia site to smell around and follow the trail. Over there it said that in October,2007 that the PA Auditor-general released a report accusing the agency of giving excessive bonuses and incentives.Now they wanna throw momma from the train! Wikipedia

also stated that the AES/PHEAA's Board of Directors does not have an appointed representative or ombudsman for student/borrower interests nor a financial aid professional as a formal member. Why do us dogs have to dig up the old bones ?

Obama:The Kool Brother In The White House

Hello World! By now you know the news! In the United States of America there's a neighborhood brother in The White House! His name is Barack Obama.As the 44th President of the United States of America, power is his game and his name is his fame! As for me,a broke fictional hoboclown detective,sometimes I'm so down and out that my shadow won't even walk beside me! But for Barack Obama, he is so kool that when he walks out into the sunlight, his shadow jumps up and gives him a high five! Some of you may not know enough about the brother but you can read all about his Inaugaural Speech at CNN.com.The CNN article about the speech can be found at http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/20/obama.politics/index.html

As a neighborhood brother,"Obama (according to Joseph Williams,Boston Globe Staff,November
16,2008) Lifts ceiling of dreams for black men" .Check out this article written from Baltimore, Maryland,USA. Baltimore, like many cities worldwide has a neighborhood, including a ghetto plagued by poverty, crime and despair. Ghettoes exist worlwide and are places where sometimes survival means making the most out of nothing but raw talent(s),persistence,creativity and a bold spirit. These four main ingredients can come together in a powerful combination to foster survival or certain destruction. More often than not these same four main ingredients produce the byproducts of great artists,inventors,politicians,community leaders and teachers. I believe they helped Obama's single mom to produce the man he is today! Take it from me, an old fictional hoboclown, if you wanna power-up your life, harness these four main ingredients and aspire towards greatness in any endeavor! Joseph Williams article breaks it down in real time by interviewing real folks in his article. You can check the article out at http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/11/16/obama_lifts_ceiling_of_dreams_
for_black_men Oh,say hello to the brother in The White House !

Happy Inauguration President Obama!

Hello world! Today is the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday in the USA! Today, to celebrate the contributions of Dr. King my community service (as a fictional hoboclown detective) is to acknowledge the growth and triumphs of the United States of America citizenry in electing
Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States.The historically documented blood,sweat,tears,hopes,dreams and aspirations of negro slaves, abolitionists and more recent civil rights activists ( through their standard-bearer,Martin Luther King,Jr.) has reached a
previously unimaginable goal: the election of an african-american to the high office of the Presidency of the United States
As a fictional hoboclown detective,I already observed Mother Nature and Old Man Winter's
departure to Washington,D.C. for Barack Obama's Presidential Inauguration.They have donned their finest winter attire and have been assisted by the four winds in reaching their destination.
Without baggage checks,TSA searches nor delays in landing, they have already arrived and are waiting for the miliion masses of human celebrants to arrive. A small diplomatic delegation of avian friends from the Philadelphia Wissahickon Parks area will shortly take flight for Washington,D.C. Doves,owls,hawks,pidgeons,starlings,woodpeckers, sparrows, crows and cardinals are preening and fluffing their finest feathers for the momentous occasion.They are particularly exhuberant about Obama's policy on Green Technology and are going to express gratitude.The flight plans of this motley avian squadron have already been approved by Mother Nature and the Winds are already at their backs to speed their arrival! Their tiny little hearts will beat in cadence as they chirp to the musical rendition of Hail to the Chief,while they soar in formation high above the crowds!
Curiously, as I promote this historic event, Mother Nature's secret service has released a declassified report: " Despite the large ears and confident stroll,Barak Obama is not a vulcan and not listed in the Official Registry of Clowns ". But don't hold that against him folks-as Obama's smile is contagious.That's gotta be good for any country!

Of Clowns & Men

Hi everybody.Happy New Year!As a humble hoboclown I decided to send my opinion of how I think the Obama-Biden Transition Team can make things better for the USA and its' citizens. I submitted my opinion in the form of my September 23,2008 blog entitled, Fat Cats & The Economy.My submisson drew a reply from John D. Podesta,Co-chair of The Obama-Biden Transition Team. John thanked me for my opinion and invited me to view the Change.gov/Plan video on the American Recovery & Reinvestment Plan. I viewed the video today and was impressed.
As a hoboclown detective I decided to see who John was and digged up a July 2,2001 New York Times.com article entitled, Public Lives;No Affinity for Trees,but a Nature Crusader Nonetheless, by Katharine Q. Seelye. To put it briefly, through this activity I learned that Barack Obama has surrounded himself with many able and committed people who have our country and the globe's best interest at heart. I admire John Podesta for having been referred to as a " Nature Crusader".John is no clown but I don't think I'll hold that against him !