In an alternate universe, I would wish everyone a Happy Earth Day, but today, there’s not a whole lot to celebrate.
Mother Earth is at risk and we’re not doing enough to save her. Or us.
The orange POS and his administration have been focused on reversing environmental regulations to boost domestic energy production, targeting over 460 environmental, climate, and public health safeguards for removal or weakening. Key initiatives include withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, rescinding the EPA’s Endangerment Finding to deregulate greenhouse gases and promoting “drill, baby, drill” fossil fuel policies.
California is battling federal efforts to expand oil drilling off its coast, with lawsuits filed to block the restart of Sable Offshore Corp pipelines near Santa Barbara, which were shut down after a major 2015 spill. While new drilling in state waters is banned, federal plans propose lease sales for new offshore drilling between 2027-2030, raising risks of oil spills and environmental damage.
This appalling administration is actively expanding oil drilling in Alaska, reversing Biden-era restrictions on millions of acres in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and initiating lease sales in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Projects like ConocoPhillips’ Willow and new auctions highlight a push for increased development amid lawsuits from environmental groups and support from state leaders.
Like I said, not much to celebrate. It’d be more accurate to say that we are in mourning…
I attended the very first Earth Day celebration in 1970 at Balboa Park in San Diego with a crowd of about 70,000 people. The weather was beautiful, about 68 degrees, and I must have skipped school that Wednesday.
I can’t remember who I went with or how I got there but I do recall walking from booth to booth looking for free stuff and having an unpleasant encounter with a San Diego cop, probably about being truant.
There is a vague recollection that I swore at him and he got all puffed up and intimidating, threatened to call my dad until I told him to go ahead, my dad was an attorney…and then he walked away. Miss you, Daddy, and thank you!
Video from San Diego’s first Earth Day April 22, 1970
Gaia, known as the mother goddess, was the personification of Earth. She’s described as a caring and nurturing mother figure to all of her children, plants, and other living creatures on this planet.
We’re all children of Gaia, Earth Mother, no matter where we live, and if we take care of Mother Earth, she’ll take care of us.
With this reckless administration of chaos and darkness, they seem determined to destroy as much of our environmental and animal protections as they’re doing to democracy and the constitution, so it’s not such a happy day, after all.
I’m sure you heard the news about the wolf in Wyoming, right?
To avoid inevitable nightmares, I tried not to see the photos or read the details of this horrendous crime but I felt that I needed to, out of respect and to honor this wolf’s life.
A beautiful animal should not be subjected to torture and abuse. No one should. This young female wolf did not receive justice. It’s disgusting and absolutely sickening that supposedly normal people could commit and condone torture and inhumane treatment of animals–a trait often found among serial killers. There’s something missing inside of people like this, they’re broken human beings.
I’m so sick and tired of cruelty–to animals, to children, to each other. It’s beyond depressing. What an evil, sad world we live in.
On Feb. 29 2024 in Sublette County, Wyoming, Cody Roberts intentionally struck down a juvenile wolf with a snowmobile, taped the animal’s mouth shut, then brought the injured wolf to a local bar to show off and pose for photos. Afterward, the wolf — still alive — lay on the bar floor, suffering from internal injuries, while Roberts drank in celebration of his conquest. Eventually, Roberts killed the wolf outside behind the bar. Shockingly, nearly all of these actions were legal; Roberts was fined a mere $250 for possessing a live wolf. It’s alarming that anyone could attempt to justify such behavior, but that is precisely what Jeanne Ivie-Roberts, Cody Roberts’ aunt, has done. In an interview with DailyMail.com, Ivie-Roberts stated, “How exactly do you torture a wolf? Wolves are evil animals. They destroy our livelihoods.”
I have no doubt that a mental health assessment would diagnose Roberts and people like him as zoosadists. Zoosadism is a type of sadism that derives pleasure—often sexual arousal—from inflicting pain, suffering, or death on animals. It is a form of severe animal abuse, distinct from zoophilia, and is sometimes considered a precursor to human violence. Examples include torture, mutilation, or sexual assault of animals.
This is where the crime happened: The Green River Bar, owned by Cody Roberts’ aunt (Nan Mckeough) and/or mother (not sure), located at 12963 US-189 in Daniel, Wyoming. (307) 859-8225.
Please sign this PETITION to shut down the bar. It already has gathered thousands of signatures: https://c.org/hKsGynYV96
There was a mysterious blackout in SoCal Thursday night, from North San Diego County all the way up to Orange County. More than 100,00 people unexpectedly lost power at around 7:40 p.m.
The electric company simply said it was “under investigation” with no reported reason for the outage.
Of course, there are lots of theories floating around on social media, including an attack on our power grid or an EMP (ElectroMagnetic Pulse), which is a sudden burst of energy that disrupts or destroys electronics.
“A high-altitude EMP attack could paralyze the power grid and communications”.
From Reddit: “Most likely someone hacked into the control/management system and brought down the entire system from northern San Diego to South OC.”
State officials, including Governor Gavin Newsom, have not issued any statements regarding the incident, more than 12 hours after two of California's most populous areas lost power - which is home to more than six million people. Moreover, the state's Office of Emergency Services did not even acknowledge a large-scale blackout had taken place, with the agency's website and social media accounts making no mention of the incident as of Friday morning. Despite the complete absence of communication from state officials, residents in the blackout zone captured frightening video of drivers speeding along pitch-black roads with no traffic lights or street lamps working. 'California is having a night straight out of a disaster movie,' one person said on social media. --Daily Mail
It’s a good thing I have so many candles; it was actually quite lovely to sit in silence and flickering candlelight until, suddenly, without warning, the power came back on.
Here’s the meaningless word salad response from the electric company: “Early information indicates the event originated on the regional transmission system, which serves multiple communities across SDG&E’s service area. In response to grid conditions, built-in safety measures briefly interrupted service to help protect the larger electric grid.
We are supporting the California Independent System Operator, which manages the state’s electric grid, in their review of system performance. We know outages are disruptive, and the safety of our customers, employees, and communities remains our top priority.”
None of that really answers any of our questions, and as I wonder what the REAL story is, I suggest that we all stock up on candles and generators and power banks, just to be prepared for any future eventuality.
There’s still too much ugliness in this world, so I’m going to keep my rosebud colored glasses on a bit longer…
When I realize how many songs Leon Russell contributed his magic to, how he was the secret ingredient in hundreds of popular tunes, I am continually in awe and amazed.
My mom and I used to listen and sing along to all of Gary Lewis & The Playboys songs. We loved the perfect piano playing and we never knew it was Leon. We didn’t have a CLUE but what we did sense was that whoever played the piano was special and magical. It wouldn’t be the same WITHOUT Leon’s contributions– as arranger AND pianist.
Gary Lewis once said that eighty percent of his success was due to Leon, but I believe it’s closer to one hundred percent. If you take away the piano, you’re left with nothing special.
Leon morphed from this uber quiet, short-haired clean-cut session keyboardist to the coolest longhaired sunglass-wearing sexy visionary like a butterfly bursting out of a cocoon. The magic was always inside of him.
I didn’t write the following, but it’s worth sharing. (I did however, edit it a bit.)
If you listened to pop music in the 1960s, you heard Leon Russell play. You just didn’t know it.
That piano on the Ronettes’ “Be My Baby”? Leon Russell. The Byrds’ early records? Leon Russell. Beach Boys sessions? Leon Russell. Phil Spector’s legendary “Wall of Sound” productions? Leon Russell was there, in a suit and tie, hair neatly trimmed, playing whatever was needed, and here with the Monkees.
For nearly a decade, Leon was one of the most sought-after session musicians in Los Angeles. Producers loved him because he could play anything—rock, jazz, country, blues, gospel. You could hum a melody and he’d give you the perfect piano part. You could describe a feeling and he’d translate it into music.
Producer Snuff Garrett said, “I could talk style with him and he’d do it. I’d name a record and go, ‘I like the piano on this…’ and he’d go, ‘Okay,’ and play it.”
Leon Russell was on hundreds of hit records. He was the secret ingredient in countless songs you’ve heard a thousand times.
And for years, almost no one knew his name.
Leon was born Claude Russell Bridges in 1942 in Lawton, Oklahoma with a birth injury (cerebral palsy on the right side) and began playing classical piano at age four. By fourteen, he was sneaking into Tulsa nightclubs with a fake ID, playing backup for Jerry Lee Lewis.
The fake ID belonged to a friend. The name on it was “Leon.” He kept it.
At seventeen, Leon moved to Los Angeles to chase his dream of making it in music. He studied guitar with James Burton, one of the best session players in the business. He worked constantly—sessions during the day, clubs at night, whatever paid.
And he was good. So good that by his early twenties, Leon Russell was playing on some of the biggest records of the decade.
He backed the Ronettes, the Crystals, Darlene Love. He played on Phil Spector’s famous Christmas album in 1963. He worked with the Byrds, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, the Beach Boys, the Ventures, Jan and Dean.
Herb Alpert later recalled that Leon would sit at the piano and say, “I don’t know what to play.” Then he’d “chime in with something special and affect the groove in a very Leon Russell way that was always unique.”
For years, Leon was brilliant, versatile, and completely invisible. A studio ghost. The guy in the suit playing piano while someone else got famous.
Then in the late 1960s, something changed.
Leon grew his hair long. He stopped wearing suits. He gathered a commune of musicians around him in the Hollywood Hills.
He stopped being the anonymous session player and started becoming Leon Russell—the artist–The Master of Space and Time.
In 1970, everything exploded at once.
Leon released his first solo album, simply titled Leon Russell. The musicians backing him? Eric Clapton. Ringo Starr. George Harrison. Not exactly unknown names.
That same year, he organized Joe Cocker’s legendary Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour—a massive, chaotic traveling circus of forty-plus musicians, complete with a full horn section, backup singers, and absolute mayhem. It was revolutionary. The tour became the stuff of legend, and Leon was the mastermind behind it all.
He wrote “Delta Lady” for Joe Cocker. It became a hit.
Then in 1971, Leon performed at George Harrison’s Concert for Bangladesh—one of the first major benefit concerts in rock history. He shared the stage with Harrison, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, and Ringo Starr. His medley of “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and “Young Blood” was one of the standout performances of the night. He was ON FIRE.
Suddenly, Leon Russell wasn’t just a session player anymore. He was a star.
By 1973, Billboard named him the “Top Concert Attraction in the World.”
Read that again. The guy who had spent a decade playing anonymous piano parts was now filling stadiums on solo tours. His album Carney reached #2 on the charts. He was crossing genres effortlessly—rock, blues, country, gospel, bluegrass—and audiences couldn’t get enough.
He wrote songs that became standards. “A Song for You”—a tender, achingly beautiful ballad—has been recorded by more than 200 artists, including Ray Charles, Donny Hathaway, Whitney Houston, and Amy Winehouse. In 2018, it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Another of his songs, “This Masquerade,” was covered by more than 75 artists. George Benson’s version won a Grammy.
Leon founded Shelter Records in 1969, creating wild, creative environments where musicians could live and work together. He established studios in Hollywood and Tulsa, fostering creativity without boundaries.
He produced and played on sessions for Barbra Streisand, Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, Ike & Tina Turner, the Rolling Stones. He toured with the Stones. He collaborated with Willie Nelson. He wrote and recorded hits like “Tight Rope” and “Lady Blue.”
For a brief, brilliant period in the early 1970s, Leon Russell was one of the biggest names in music.
By the 2000s, Leon was playing smaller venues. The stadiums were gone. A new generation of music fans had never even heard of him. He kept touring—because that’s what he did, that’s who he was—but he was a legend from another era that the world had moved past.
He was still brilliant. He was still performing. But the spotlight had moved on.
In 2009, Elton John decided to do something about it.
Elton had idolized Leon since the beginning of his own career. When Elton was starting out in the early 1970s, Leon was already a star. Leon’s influence shaped Elton’s sound, his flamboyant showmanship, his entire approach to piano-driven rock.
Elton had always called Leon a mentor and an inspiration. So when he saw that Leon had been nearly forgotten, he reached out and asked him to record an album together.
The result was The Union, released in 2010. It was a collaboration between two piano-playing legends—one at the height of his fame, one who’d been overlooked for decades.
The album was critically acclaimed and Grammy-nominated. Cameron Crowe made a documentary about the creative process. And suddenly, people were talking about Leon Russell again.
Elton championed him publicly. He spoke about Leon’s genius, his influence, his importance to rock history. And in 2011, Elton inducted Leon into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
That same year, Leon was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
After decades of being overlooked, Leon Russell was finally getting the recognition he deserved.
But by then, his health was failing. He’d had a heart attack. He had brain surgery, but was looking forward to another tour.
On November 13, 2016, Leon Russell died in his sleep at his home in Nashville. He was 74 years old.
Elton John posted: “My darling Leon Russell passed away last night. He was a mentor, inspiration & so kind to me. I loved him and always will.”
Leon Russell left behind an extraordinary legacy: 33 albums, at least 430 songs (probably more), collaborations with virtually every major artist of his era. He’d been directly involved with hundreds of bestselling records over a 60-year career.
But more than the numbers, Leon Russell represented something rare in music—a musician’s musician. Someone who could play anything, work with anyone, cross any genre. Someone equally at home backing Frank Sinatra in a suit or leading a hippie commune with wild hair and a beard down to his chest.
He proved you could be both the anonymous session player and the stadium-filling star. The guy in the background and the guy in the spotlight.
Leon Russell’s story is a reminder that the most talented people aren’t always the most famous—and that sometimes genius hides in plain sight for years before the world finally sees it.
He played on songs you’ve heard a thousand times without ever knowing his name.
Then he stepped into the light and showed the world what he’d been all along: a master. Curated from NoCapArchives
As someone posted on social media, “Besides beautiful Leon’s awesome talents and accomplishments, the purity of his heart shines through.” His disability didn’t hold him back; he’s an inspiration.
Check out the genius of Leon during the Homewood Sessions…it captured a priceless moment in time:
We’re still reeling from record-breaking heat in SoCal on this first day of Spring. Flowers and fruit trees are going crazy because the heat has altered their normal growth cycle.
The Spring Equinox (or Vernal Equinox) symbolizes a spiritual rebirth; marking the balance of light and dark, rebirth and renewal. It represents a shift from winter’s stagnation to active growth to encourage reflection, letting go of old burdens, and setting new intentions for the year ahead.
In a weird way, I guess this might explain the death of Chuck Norris.
I learned that Chuck Norris, actor and martial artist, passed away at the age of 86 in Hawaii.
He held black belts in Karate, Taekwondo, Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and judo. He was friends with the legendary Bruce Lee and acted as a pallbearer at his funeral.
But way before he became a loud and vocal Repub and supported that orange POS and the disgusting Obama “birther conspiracy”, I was cast in one of his films.
I spent a few days with him on set and he was a real gentleman, respectful and kind to everyone, including me.
It was a treat to watch him choreograph fight scenes. I also met some of the other stars including the veryvery handsome Ron O’Neal, with whom I was involved in a stunt that was sadly cut from the final product.
It’s a shame that Chuck chose the path he did because social media is remembering him harshly, which is not a surprise, considering the ideologies he championed are actively ruining our country. He will be judged for all of those failings, and that, I suppose, is his karma.
Happy Spring!
Peach tree photo credit to Enchanted Seashells Photo of Chuck Norris from Instagram
“When I am silent, I fall into the place where everything is music.” — Rumi
Whew, it’s definitely time for a Rumi quote to bring down sky high BP.
Today is Martin Luther King Day and that petty psychopathic orange POS removed MLK Day and Juneteenth from the list of fee-free days for our national parks and replaced them with days like Flag Day (his birthday).
My governor, California’s Governor Newsom, countered by making over 200 California State Parks free on MLK Day.
Enjoy this silent and stark tree from Mt. San Jacinto near Palm Springs, California.
The “Queen of the Tulsa Sound” is Ann Bell, a pioneering vocalist and performer instrumental in defining the unique musical style known as the Tulsa Sound alongside legends like Leon Russell, the one and only Master of Space and Time, and J.J. Cale.
Inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, Bell’s distinctive voice and deep involvement with the scene earned her that title for her significant contributions and ongoing legacy.
As a backup singer for the original Joe Cocker and Leon Russell Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour and album, she was an important part of the band and is remembered for her contributions to the “Tulsa sound” that Leon Russell helped create. She has also participated in reunion and tribute events in the years since.
I never get tired of hearing this story. I surely wish there was a recording of Leon that night….
Ann is one of the very talented backup singers here (wearing an awesome outfit), along with the GAP Band. I love this comment: “No matter how cool you think you or your band is, you will NEVER be as cool as Leon Russell and the Gap Band doing this Marvin Gaye classic.”
Sunglasses off, shirt open, those EYES...”Wait now. WAIT!” So much Leon joy…
Recorded for the TV show, Midnight Special with Wolfman Jack, “Ain’t That Peculiar” is a classic Motown song originally by Marvin Gaye, but Leon Russell turned it into something spectacular with his signature energetic performance. Watch the entire show here: https://youtu.be/19z9JSaTm8c?si=n96fSGGrQxQuer2R
Hell is empty and all the devils are here. William Shakespeare
After last night’s horrific anti-Semitic massacre at Bondi Beach in Australia during a Hanukkah celebration and the violence at Brown University in Rhode Island, at least right now, this world we inhabit is not a warm and loving place.
I spent quite a bit of time in Providence while DIL was there getting her doctorate and Angel Boy was at Yale doing the same thing. I walked around the campus and the neighborhood, even Governor Drive where there was a report of another incident which proved to be false.
When AB endured his serious medical scare, he was at the same Rhode Island hospital where the shooting victims were taken because it’s the closest trauma center. These poor kids were simply taking their mid-term exams when they were attacked.
It looks like they have a suspect in custody, but the damage is done. I read that at least two of the students had already witnessed other school shootings.
Today, October 13, 2025, is known as Columbus Day. Some states have proposed legislation to legally replace it with Indigenous Peoples’ Day, which is the only right action to take.
I don’t acknowledge Columbus Day because it’s more of the same; entitled males making unilateral decisions without regard for anything but their own selfishness.
Columbus Day has since come under fire as a celebration of a man whose arrival in the Americas heralded the oppression of another group of people: Native Americans.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day honors the truth about the American soil on which we live. It serves as a counter-celebration to Columbus Day by recognizing the perseverance and contributions of Indigenous people across the United States.
Even the Angel Kids know what this day really is all about, and good for my son/DIL talking TRUTH to the next generation.
All of this happened about a mile from my house. Until fairly recently, violent crime was mostly unheard of in my little beachy town. Now, It’s like the wild wild west around here.
Last Friday, September 19, at approximately 9:53 p.m., Carlsbad police officers responded to reports of gunfire in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 2300 block of Rising Glen Way.
Upon arrival, officers located an unresponsive adult female with gunshot wounds. Despite lifesaving efforts, paramedics pronounced the female deceased at the scene.
The female’s vehicle was taken during the incident.
Using License Plate Reader technology, the vehicle was later located by the Newport Beach Police Department in Orange County. After a short pursuit with Newport Beach Police officers, the driver, identified as a person of interest, was involved in an officer-involved shooting.
The pursuit continued to the Interstate 5 Southbound, where the suspect exited at El Toro Road. After traveling through a business complex, the suspect’s vehicle exited at Regional Center and drove northbound on El Toro Road.
The suspect stopped his vehicle in the lanes of traffic, just south of Avenida De La Carlota, exited his vehicle and immediately began firing at the approaching police vehicles. Multiple officers returned gunfire.
The suspect continued east towards the In-N-Out at 24001 Avenida de La Carlota, continuing to fire at officers. Multiple police vehicles were struck with bullets. After being struck by gunfire, he fell to the ground in the restaurant’s parking lot and continued to fire at officers.
Once the shooting ended, officers approached the suspect and began to render medical attention. He was transported to Mission Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Later, Orange County Sheriff’s Department identified the suspect as Andre Anthony Matijasevic, 31, of Rancho Santa Margarita.
The victim of this terrible random act of violence was April Moore. She was a loving mother of two and a huge San Francisco 49ers fan. That fateful Friday night, April had just gotten home from a movie. She didn’t know this person who killed her; she was ambushed in her parking lot.
This is another senseless crime that leaves behind a grieving family. We’ll probably never know why Andre Anthony Matijasevic was in this apartment complex. Did he live there? Was he visiting someone? Did he have a car? If so, why did he steal April’s car? What were his motives? There are so many unanswered questions.
A GoFundMe account was established to help with her memorial and to help her children. https://gofund.me/3de7c821b
This Information was gathered from public reports by Carlsbad, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach police departments.
Enchanted Seashells | Princess Rosebud 