In case you saw the previous post and were confused:

Is George really a woman most skilled at teaching you, his faithful blog audience, how best to apply lip-liner?
Does anyone know what he really looks like, is he a computer algorithm built solely to assign music, tv shows, and films grades on this site?

Katie and I are here to clear up that mystery.
Here’s Mom and Dad on their wedding anniversary this past December. Look how real they are!

So Happy Birthday Dad, so excited to see you in July.
Love, Katie and Patrick.

If you’re a Rod Stewart fan, this new Rhino collection will be a must-buy because of these 58 previously unreleased live recordings. The bulk of Rod Stewart’s hits are here along with various surprises. These live performances span over twenty years of tours. I prefer the old Rod Stewart songs: “Maggie May” and “Reason to Believe.” What is your favorite Rod Stewart song?

TRACK LIST:
Disc 1:
1. Three Time Loser (Live – Leicester, England, 12/4/76) 4:05
2. You Wear It Well (Live – Leicester, England, 12/4/76 4:41
3. Big Bayou (Live – Leicester, England, 12/4/76) 3:58
4. Tonight’s The Night (Gonna Be Alright) (Live – Leicester, England, 12/4/76) 4:05
5. The Wild Side Of Live (Live – Leicester, England, 12/4/76) 4:57
6. Sweet Little Rock ‘N Roller (Live – Leicester, England, 12/4/76) 8:46
7. I Don’t Want To Talk About It (Live – Newcastle, England, 12/17/76) 5:07
8. The Killing Of George (Part I And II) [Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76] 6:17
9. Maggie May (Live – Newcastle, England, 12/17/76) 8:38
10. Angel (Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76) 7:15
11. Get Back (Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76) 4:43
12. (I Know) I’m Losing You [Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76] 5:21
13. This Old Heart Of Mine (Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76) 6:08

Disc 2:
1. Sailing (Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76) 4:54
2. Stay With Me (Live – Leicester, England, 12/5/76) 8:03
3. Born Loose (Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 6/21/79) 5:29
4. (If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don’t Wanna Be Right [Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 6/21/79] 5:11
5. I Just Want To Make Love To You (Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 6/21/79) 4:33
6. Blondes (Have More Fun) [Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 6/21/79] 5:35
7. Medley: (I Know) I’m Losing You / It’s All Over Now / Standin’ In The Shadows Of Love / Layla [Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 6/21/79] 10:08
8. Medley: Twistin’ The Night Away / Every Picture Tells A Story (Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 6/21/79) 4:50
9. She Won’t Dance With Me (Live – Wembley, London, England, 12/6/80) 4:30
10. Passion (Live – Wembley, London, England, 12/6/80) 6:22
11. Gi’ Me Wings (Live – Wembley, London, England, 12/6/80) 5:47
12. Hot Legs (With Tina Turner) [Live – Forum, Los Angeles, CA, 12/19/81] 5:13

Disc 3:
1. Tonight I’m Yours (Don’t Hurt Me) [Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84] 4:14
2. You’re In My Heart (The Final Acclaim) [Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84] 4:30
3. (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay (Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84) 2:53
4. Hungry Heart (Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84) 2:30
5. Bad For You (Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84) 6:50
6. Some Guys Have All The Luck (Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84) 6:03
7. Rocke Me Baby (Live – San Diego, CA, 11/5/84) 4:19
8. Infatuation (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 5:21
9. I Ain’t Superstitious (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 3:10
10. Every Picture Tells A Story (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 4:23
11. Lost In You (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 8:28
12. Forever Young (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 7:11
13. Da Ya ThinkI’m Sexy (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 4:12
14. Crazy About Her (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 2:45
15. Try A Little Tenderness (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 5:38
16. You’re In My Heart (The Final Acclaim) (Reprise) (Live – Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 8/11/89) 1:02

Disc 4:
1. Downtown Train (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 4:43
2. This Old Heart Of Mine (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 4:21
3. Stay With Me (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 4:12
4. Sweet Soul Music (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 3:12
5. Mandolin (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 4:54
6. Highgate Shuffle (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 3:43
7. Baby Jane (Live – Wembley, London, England, 5/5/91) 5:11
8. Baby Please Don’t Go (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/21/93) 3:14
9. Cut Across Shorty (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/20/93) 3:34
10. (Find A) Reason To Believe (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/20/93) 3:37
11. Handbags & Gladrags (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/20/93) 4:08
12. Having A Party (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/20/93) 4:44
13. People Get Ready (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/21/93) 8:15
14. Have I Told You Lately (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/20/93) 4:37
15. Medley: Twistin’ The Night Away / Chain Gang (Live – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, 10/20/93) 6:27
16. Cigarettes And Alcohol (Live – London, England, 5/19/98) 4:03
17. Rocks (Live – London, England, 5/19/98) 4:45

Would you like to drop your blood pressure 5 points easily? Just drink a 4 to 6 ounce glass of V8 juice each day. The blend of vegetables will cause your systolic number (the top number, which is also the higher of the two BP numbers and measures the pressure in the arteries when the heart beats, i.e. when the heart muscle contracts)to go down. Your diastolic number (the bottom number, which is also the lower of the two numbers, measures the pressure in the arteries between heartbeats, i.e., when the heart muscle is resting between beats and refilling with blood) could also go down a few points. V8 comes in several flavors and sizes. I prefer the V8 Spicy Hot Juice (Low Sodium). If you buy the regular V8 with more sodium, the effect will be less.

This 2 DVD collection features four film noir classics from the Columbia vault: The Killer That Stalked New York, Two of a Kind, Bad for Each Other, and The Glass Wall. The “Bad Girls” are Evelyn Keyes, Lizabeth Scott, and Gloria Grahame. Each of these films was restored and re-mastered. Special features include the original theatrical trailer for each of the movies and Terry Moore discussing Two of a Kind. This box set provides 313 minutes of noir at a reasonable price. If you’re a fan of noir, you’ll want this set. GRADE: B+

George Packer’s The Unwinding won the 2013 National Book Award for non-fiction. He deserves it. Packer uses a format similar to the one John Dos Passos used in his U.S.A. trilogy by alternating stories to trace the decline of the U.S. economy and culture from 1978 to 2012. Tammy Thomas, auto parts worker, finds her middle-class job destroyed as General Motors and Delphi head into bankruptcy. Jeff Connaughton, a Washington lawyer, sees the political process become more dysfunctional. Dean Price, an entrepreneur in a tobacco state, finds his businesses ruined by the real estate and banking crisis. Peter Thiel, a billionaire, sees the U.S. sinking fast. I usually finish reading a book in a day or two. The Unwinding took me a week to read. I had to take “breaks” to stem the depression this book causes. Our country is in deep decline and The Unwinding shows how it happened. GRADE: A

Wes Anderson’s quirky romp, The Grand Budapest Hotel, has more cameos than March Madness has upsets. The main storyline features Ralph Fiennes as an amorous concierge of the Grand Budapest Hotel. One of the wealthy guests of the hotel dies and leaves the concierge a valuable painting. But the greedy son and daughters frame the concierge and send him to prison. The concierge has an ally in a Lobby Boy named Zero (played wonderfully by Tony Revolori) who assists in some wacky shenanigans. The concierge manages to escape from prison, but he’s hunted by an assassin played by William Dafoe. If you’re in the mood for an unusual movie with plenty of surprises, you might give The Grand Budapest Hotel a try. GRADE: B+

Divergent is based on Veronica Roth’s YA novel of the same name. Divergent is set in a dystopian future Chicago after a ruinous war. Chicago is a walled city where a caste system of “factions” keeps the peace. Sixteen-year-old Beatrice “Tris” Prior, played convincingly by Shailene Woodley (George Clooney’s daughter in The Descendants), chooses to join the warrior Dauntless faction. But Tris learns that she is “divergent” which means she’s really casteless and in terrible danger. Divergents are executed when discovered. Tris’ mentor, Four (Theo James), trains Tris to be a cunning warrior. But Jeanine (Kate Winslet), head of the scientific faction, plots to alter the government. If this sounds a bit like The Hunger Games, you’re right. As our local movie reviewer wrote: “Divergent is halfway between Twilight and The Hunger Games.” Fair enough. But Divergent held my attention and interest for 2 hours and 19 minutes. I’ll go see the sequel. GRADE: B

(click, and then click “All Sizes” above the photo to see it really big.)

My son Patrick decided he would take at least one photograph each day of 2009. Patrick achieved his goal and then asked his friends to pick 365 favorite photos from the thousands he took. They did and this is the result. I think it is extremely cool.

Merry Christmas.

I didn’t get you anything physical, this year I got you something digital.

It’s a website. I got GeorgeKelley.org because everything else was taken. But we could get you something else later. It is set up as a blog. As in, you can keep writing things, and they will go in this space, where I am currently writing. I could write a lot of things, but really, that is what you are meant to do here. So, I am going to leave you to it. 

The header (up there) I made. It is inspired by early pulp fiction books. Hence the cheap price and the terrible red and yellow covers. If you want changes I will think about it. While some early versions had smutty women, I removed them. You will have to talk to mom about that.

Yes, you are allowed to delete this note.

I will show you how to use this tomorrow.

Your lovely son,

Patrick.