Bonus! Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, "Simmer Down" from the Ska-core, the Devil, and More E.P. (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: Is this the end of the SKAfter Party? It's been a full month, but the SKAfter Party never has as clear cut an end as SKApril or SKAugust. Tune in tomorrow to find out.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' Memorial Day

Paul Roebling, Jay Unger & David McCullough, "Ashokan Farewell/Sullivan Ballou Letter" from The Civil War: Original Sountrack Recording (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture: Feast of the Visitation — Stand By

The Popish Plot
"The History of the Catholic Church in Korea"

'Tis the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The Explorers' Club, № DCCCXX

Operation AXIOM: The Space Race—The 50th Anniversary of Mariner-Mars '71, Part II
30 May 1971: The Mariner-I probe (also known as "Mariner 9") lifted off from Florida's Cape Kennedy Air Force Station atop an Atlas-Centaur rocket; Mariner-I was identical to the destroyed Mariner-H probe & carried both ultraviolent & infrared spectrometers, an infrared radiometer, other sensors, & a visual camera vastly improved from the flyby Mariner-Mars 69A & 69B probes (Mariners 6 & 7).

Commentary: Mariner-I was now in a race with the Soviet Mars 2 & Mars 3 duo to be the first probe from Earth to orbit another planet; earlier interplanetary probes had performed flyby missions, but not orbited. Stay tuned: the trio arrived at the Red Planet in November 1971.

Bonus! Song o' the Day: Mariner-I
The Skatalites, "Trip to Mars" from Greetings from Skamania (Space Cadet Mike Papa Whiskey)

Semper exploro.

Saints + Scripture: Most Holy Trinity — Please Stand By

'Tis the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Lord's Day: Trinity

Sufjan Stevens, "Holy, Holy, Holy" from Songs for Christmas (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

Commentary:

"Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty,
All Thy works shall praise Thy name
In earth and sky and sea,
There is a sign at the sight of Thee,
There is none beside Thee,
God in three Persons,
God in three Persons,
God in three Persons,
God in three Persons,
Blessed Trinity!"

Bonus! Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Oreskaband, "Carnival" from the Carry On! E.P. (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture — Please Stand By

'Tis the Saturday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Potshot, "Radio" from Pots and Shots (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

The Planet Smashers, "She's So Hot" from Attack of the Planet Smashers (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture — Please Stand By

The Popish Plot
"Saint Damien of Molokai, Saint Marianne Cope, & Servant of God Joseph Dutton"

'Tis the Friday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time.

The Explorers' Club, № DCCCXIX

Operation AXIOM: The Space Race—The 60th Anniversary of Kennedy's Speech to Congress
25 May 1961: Special Message to the Congress on Urgent National Needs—Twenty days after Alan Shepard became the first American in space (Freedom 7), & one week after receiving N.A.S.A.'s initial Apollo feasibility study, President John F. Kennedy proposed before a joint session of Congress the goal of landing men on the Moon & returning them safely to the Earth by the end of 1969.

Bonus! Song o' the Day: Special Message to the Congress on Urgent National Needs
They Might Be Giants, "Destination Moon" from John Henry (Space Cadet Mike Papa Whiskey)

Semper exploro.

Saints + Scripture — Please Stand By

'Tis the Thursday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Suburban Legends, "Zanzibar" from Rump Shaker (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Bonus! Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Johnny Socko, "Full Trucker Effect" from Full Trucker Effect (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture — Please Stand By

'Tis the Memorial of Saint Philip Neri, Priest.

Operation ÖSTERREICH: Easter Aftermath Edition

Weekly Wednesday Weigh-in
Last weigh-in: 346.4 lbs
This weigh-in: 344.2 lbs.
Difference: -2.2 lbs.

Bonus! Lied von ÖSTERREICH
Oreskaband, "Carry On!" from the Carry On! E.P. (Rude Boy Mike Papa Watercress)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Pain (as The Neptunes), "Jabberjaw (Running Underwater)" from Cartoon Network Groovies (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: YouTube-link.

"Me and my friends get no respect,
What does Scooby do that we neglect?
We be puttin' all our foes in check,
But me and my friends get no respect.

"So what? Who cares?
We're doing it how we like,
I'm singing into my mic,
A special underater mic!

"Who's gonna save the world? Who's gonna save the day?
From mayhem, crabs who steal, and evil eels with evil rays?
Who's gonna talk like Curly, since Curly isn't here?
Who's gonna chase down villains and then turn around and run in fear?
You know who I'm talking about,
He's fat and short, no brains,
And I do not mean Captain Caveman,
I mean Jabberjaw!

"Try to further justice without making waves,
And to impress the ladies, but in subtle ways,
Get lost between the sediment and water mains,
'I will never date you 'cause you smell like bait.'

"So what? Who cares?
When a suppervillain plots?
Send an army of lots of bots
To tie you up in sailors' knots?

"Who's gonna save the world? Who's gonna save the day?
From mayhem, crabs who steal, and evil eels with evil rays?
Who's gonna talk like Curly, since Curly isn't here?
Who's gonna chase down villains and then turn around and run in fear?
Who's gonna stand for justice when bad guys break the law?
You know who I'm talking about,
With Clam and Shelley and Bubbles and Biff,
(Unintelligible)
Jabberjaw!"

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, "The Killing of Georgie (Pt. III)" from When God Was Great (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: A year after the killing of George Floyd, have we made any progress? One of his killers has been convicted, a positive sign that the criminal justice system can still work. But I tend to think that overall race relations have gotten worse: On our elite college campuses, racially segregated housing is back in vogue, at the instigation of critical race theory-indoctrinated minority students. This resegregation of America is utterly antithetical to Dr. Martin Luther King Junior's dream of judging individuals not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I'm old enough to remember the Rodney King riots, & King's desperate plea for peace, & idealistic enough to ask the same question: "Why can't we all just get along?"

Saints + Scripture — Please Stand By

'Tis the Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time.

The Explorers' Club, № DCCCXVIII

Operation AXIOM: The Space Race—The 59th Anniversary of Mercury-Atlas 7
24 May 1962: Mercury 7 lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, carrying Scott Carpenter aboard the Mercury capsule Aurora 7 atop an Atlas rocket; the three-orbit flight plan was packed with scientific experiements & Carpenter couldn't stay on schedule; the Aurora 7 splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, hundreds of miles off target, & was recovered by the U.S.S. Intrepid.

Bonus! Space Race Song o' the Day: Mercury 7
The Aquabats!, "Doing Science!" from The Aquabats! Super Show! Television Soundtrack: Volume One (Space Cadet Captain Thumbs Up!)

Semper exploro.

Saints + Scripture — Please Stand By

The Popish Plot
"Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month: St. Lorenzo Ruiz: Accidental Martyr"

'Tis the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church.

Bonus! Narwhal Song o' the Day

Aaron Burnett, "Narwhal" from Canadian Critters (Mike Papa Whiskey)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Suburban Legends, "Up All Night" from Rump Shaker (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture: Solemnity of Pentecost — Stand By

'Tis the Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday.

Narwhal Day XXI

Tempus fugit: Narwhal Day is old enough to drink.

After a year of sympathizing & preparing, 'tis Narwhal Day once again! Yes, Narwhal Day, that great & glorious day when all & sundry reflect on & sympathize with the narwhal, the very oddest of whales, far-famed for its curious "horn" (in actuality a tusk) that in times past was oft displayed as a unicorn's horn in cabinets of curiosity (Wunderkammer). The existence & persistence o' narwhal remains transcendent proof that truth is indeed stranger than fiction.

The Ancient & Proper Observance of Narwhal Day
First, the wearing of gray attire;
Second, the hearing of "Sympathy for the Narwhal" by D.J. Seaghost, an ally of The Aquabats!;
Third, the swearing of "The Oath of Narwhal Day."

The ancient & proper observance need not be observed in any particular order, though it is probably advisable to don gray attire so as not to observe the ancient & proper observance naked. The wearing of gray is an invitation to others to experience their own sympathy for the narwhal.

The hearing of "Sympathy for the Narwhal" is a communal act, for Narwhal Day is as much a day of celebration as it is as day of sympathizing; the narwhal will frolic & so should we. For many years, this communal celebration was hamstrung by the limited availability of "Sympathy for the Narwhal," but that obstacle has been overcome (see below).

The swearing of the oath is a highly personal act, though it can be done in community; one swears the oath as a jest or a lark only at one's own peril, for one is only as good as one's word. It is in sympathizing with the narwhal that Narwhal Day finds its highest purpose.

The Oath of Narwhal Day
The narwhal is a noble, pitiable creature,
A magnificent, monstrous visage.
An asymmetrical tooth for a horn,
Or sometimes two, or sometimes none,
Half again as long as the beast.

I swear my sympathy for the narwhal.
I will not lie and convince it all is well,
But I will be a friend to the narwhal.
The mocking dolphins and the snobby manatees
Will get their well-earned comeuppance,
And the narwhal will frolic all day.

I dream this dream of the narwhal
And celebrate it in all its oddball, improbable glory,
On this the twenty-first Narwhal Day.


the Narwhal (Monodon Monoceros)—also narwal or narwhale

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' Narwhal Day!
D.J. Seaghost, "Sympathy for the Narwhal" from The Aquabats! and Horchata Records Present Rice Capades Music Sampler, Vol. 1 (Captain Thumbs Up!)

Commentary: "Sympathy for the Narwhal" via the YouTubes: Seaghost-link.

Also, a "Creature Report" from the children's television series The Octonauts: Octonauts-link.

The Wayback Machine Tour of Narwhal Day
Narwhal Day '20 / Narwhal Day '19 / Narwhal Day '18 / Narwhal Day '17
Narwhal Day '16 / Narwhal Day '15 / Narwhal Day '14 / Narwhal Day '13
Narwhal Day '12 / Narwhal Day '11 / Narwhal Day '10 / Narwhal Day '09
Narwhal Day '08 / Narwhal Day '07a & Narwhal Day '07b / Narwhal Day '06
Narwhal Day '05 / Narwhal Day '04 / Narwhal Day '03

Bonus! Song o' the Lord's Day: Pentecost

Audrey Assad, "Spirit of the Living God" from Fortunate Fall (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

Bonus! Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Slow Gherkin, "In Love with Moviestars" from Run Screaming (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Bonus! Narwhal Song o' the Day

David Polansky, "Narwhal" from Animal Alphabet Songs (Mike Papa Whiskey)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: SKAfter Party

Less Than Jake, "The Science of Selling Yourself Short" from Anthem (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary:

"Let the meaning slip away,
Lost my faith in another day,
Self-deprication seems O.K.,
I never thought I'd make it anyway…"