Weekend Open Thread: She Brought you into this World Edition…

Happy Friday everyone, and a happy Mother’s Day Weekend to those to whom it applies. Anyone else have a mother who used the above phrase?

Obviously, I have no firsthand knowledge, but this sort of puts it in perspective…

Yes. Buy her something nice…

Or do something nice at least…

At least tell her you love her…

I will need to give her a call, she isn’t into memes…

After all, I have put her through alot…

Even if you don’t listen…

You really should have…

She’s a heck of a multitasker too…

Moms are the best…

She was still a better Mother than Vader was a Father…

So do you have any big Mother’s Day plans?

There are no knife shows until next weekend…

Montana Knifemakers Association Custom Knife Show

Then a couple of more weeks off, then the Big One…Blade Show Atlanta.

I am sensing a theme…

We all know what went wrong…

Harambe was sent to save us all. Instead, the world went to hell when they killed him.

It went south for Gene Wilder earlier than that.

But we are all here now…

We should be more careful…

So, I took a break from the WOT to go see the Northern Lights with my daughter. There was a heck of a solar storm today apparently, and you could actually see them in Knoxville.

I had seen them about a dozen times before. Mostly at camp as a kid on Manatoulin Island, a couple of times over Lake Erie, and an incredible whole-sky display in Bury, Quebec one time in High School.

Texted with Del, as of this writing they haven’t made an appearance in his neck of the woods, but I imagine they will be incredible after it finally gets dark.

Pretty wild stuff. I wasn’t sure if/when I would see them again. I definitely did not expect to see them in Tennessee.

Seems like a logical choice for our musical guest this week. Well, the first video is Steve, who is every bit a professional banjo player, playing with the late, legendary Earl Scruggs, and an incredible assemblage of other amazing musicians.

Even casual music fans will recognize the likes of Vince Gill and Paul Shaffer. I don’t care if you don’t like bluegrass, it is still hard to not be blown away.

I remember those days.

Bummer. Don’t be a buzzkill. Like a vegan…

Nothing wrong with paper…

but I prefer a better breakfast…

Change my mind.

I am normally against the Death Penalty, but I might make an exception.

It is Unforgiven though.

Better than using a new knife.

Our drawing this week is an ongoing “two token” drawing for an American made CRKT Bugsy, designed by Kaila Cummings.

It is a two token drawing, which means that you need to be drawn twice to win. Steve Taylor is the first token holder, being drawn just now from last week’s comments. So he would just need to be drawn one more time to win. But the rest of you are more than in the running. Up to 5 comments or replies are your entries, and if you are new to the blog, your comments count double. Your first comments will be held in moderation until I can approve them. So please be patient, I will get to them.

Good Luck Everybody.

Ducks killed Grandma…

The good old days…

Oh Captain, My Captain…

Better than Captain Obvious…

Speaking of obvious…

I found this funny too…

The Idiot Squisher is a gift that keeps on giving.

I want one.

Dogs>Kids

Everyone made this face…

I’m not saying the aliens are laughing at us…

But the aliens are actually laughing at us.

DOn’t do it. It is a science lesson…

Get gummy worms instead…

Better than paper Cherios.

Wait until he hears about sesame seeds.

Sounds sketchy.

They are.

Pretty good representation.

Apparently it does.

Needs seasoning…

It has to be tough…

This one is for the young’uns….

You know…the ones who ate detergent…

But the administrations of so many “elite” Universities are refusing to deal with a problem of their own creation…

Seems like a good segue to the portion of the post where I, as I have every friday night since October 7th, voice my support for the State of Israel as they seek to eradicate Hamas.

Even more alarming is the vicious tone of the “peaceful” protests. Because of course Jewish college students in America are responsible. But then again the protestors are not that bright…

If it were about a ceasefire, then students wouldn’t be harassed, nor would a 20 year old Israeli singer be forced to hide behind 100 armed police in the face of tens of thousands of antisemitic protectors calling for her to be killed.

Eden Golan needs an escort of this magnitude because the people who want to harm her based on her ethnicity and national origin are complete psychopaths.

I am glad her safety is being taken seriously by local authorities. pic.twitter.com/jy7mGlfI98

— Marina Medvin (@MarinaMedvin) May 11, 2024

Eden Golan, our fellow artist, cannot leave her hotel room in fear for her life because she is Jewish. This is 2024. I call on every artist to join me in condemning publicly this despicable act of hate. This is a time for choosing. Your silence is complicit. @Eurovision… pic.twitter.com/Qi2lrAtGIv

— John Ondrasik (@johnondrasik) May 9, 2024

I might not have the following of Five for Fighting’s John Ondrasik, but I have a platform, and I will not be silent.

Our second musical is another Steve Martin banjo piece, this time with the band the Steep Canyon Rangers. They are a touring band in their own right, they are actually playing the Bijou in Knoxville at the end of the month. From time to time Steve joins them for select dates (not Knoxville). It is a great partnership however. Steve gets an outlet for his musical passion, without having to maintain a band himself. And the Rangers have certainly earned a boost to their commercial success.

One thing I find interesting in this video is Steve plays a downward “frailing” or “clawhammer” style of banjo with the backs of his fingers, which was the traditional Appalachian method of playing the instrument until 1947 when Earl Scruggs played Foggy Mountain Breakdown at the Grand Ole Opry, in the more modern “finger-picking” style. Steve is obviously a master at both.

Ok…One more…