Tales from the Corners

I’m once again getting local on this blog, but many can relate with this topic across the nation. In my neck of the woods, planners installed a well-marked pedestrian island on a busy two-lane county thoroughfare that cuts through my neighborhood. Runners, joggers, walkers, strollers and cyclists alike enjoy going up and down the sidewalks that line a good portion of the road on both sides.
For years those who use the sidewalks – I shall call them pedestrians - have been complaining that it’s tough to cross the two-lane road – even in the protected crosswalk that has been in place for years. Their complaints were heard loud and clear. This past summer, city and county leaders did something about the issue and installed an island near where the old crosswalk was located. As expected in any city no matter how small or large the project, brouhaha ensued.
It seemed like the moment the first service truck showed up to build the island, the complaints began rolling in about the project. T…

If we're serious about tikkun olam, reparing the world through peace, then we can't minimize our sins in Iraq. We must face them and hold ourselves accountable. 
by Robert J. Nebel 
Autumn 2005

"It's a bunch of guys blowing off steam," ranted conservative syndicated talk radio host Rush Limbaugh. The copycats in every market quickly followed suit and echoed America's number one neo-conservative. Before you knew it, the right convinced its legions that the detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq was one big fraternity party. 

While the government and mainstream America was asking salient questions about, "Who knew what and when did they know it," the talk masters were having a field day. Many of these programs featured juvenile mockery from the host and callers who said that it was OK to treat the detainees with mistreatment because they were terrorists and deserved it anyway. 

Callers to these talk radio shows should have made comments that said, &q…

I cannot keep up with the vegetation growth in the yard. The hot days and rains have been relentless this summer. To me, the whole thing means death to me and the poor lawn mower. The last time I mowed, the poor thing was choking on the amount of grass and weeds that the blades cut through over the course of three hours under the blazing sun. This summer, I feel like I have been living in the Brazilian rain forest. Indeed, I realize that I’m being dramatic, but I confess that I’m sick of mowing the weeds and grass in my yard. I have been mowing, weed-whacking, weed-pulling, weed-killing for more than a quarter century.
I figure that if I cannot beat them, join them. By that I mean, stop mowing the lawn. With lawn mowing, I’m well past my expiration date. I now have the craziest yard overgrowth ever seen in Suburbia, USA. I’m done Finished. Fin! Done! I’m on lawn mowing strike and quite proud of that fact.
With the lawn overgrowth, I could care less what the homeowner’s association …

I was approaching the house on another humid Atlanta afternoon when I noticed something out of the ordinary sticking out of my air conditioning unit also known as the condenser. This summer it feels like we have been living in the rain-forest so the hum coming from my condenser is music to the ears. Was it another raccoon doing whatever it took to lick the water flowing out of the overflow pipe? No, water isn’t as scarce as it has been in past summers when we experienced extreme droughts. This summer, water has been plentiful, I explained to myself.

I was in my station wagon doing my best to assess the situation. I quickly turned the ignition to silence the engine and exited the car. My heart was pounding. I tip-toed towards the condenser on the left side of my home. I heard some rustling wondering what type of activity could possibly be occurring around my air conditioning outside unit?
I turned the corner and saw two large boots moving about. As I approached, I saw a rotund white-as-…

It's summer and time to share some wildlife photos from the neighborhood.

I was delirious as the lawn mower was choking on the thick dew-stained grass under the blazing hot sun attempting to make my yard somewhat presentable. It was only a matter of minutes before I was going to crawl to the shed to get the sledgehammer so that I could put the poor mower out of its misery.  How could I possibly do this to my mower which only wishes to cut my grass, not “murder it” by taking down “mountains of vegetation.” That’s torture for anyone or anything which includes this innocent machine.
Cami intercepted me to offer a break and some water. I refused. The sounds of thunder were approaching.
“I got to get this monster lawn full of grass, weeds, tics, ants and deer droppings sliced down before the storm arrives!” I protested.
Cami gave up on me, heading back inside to the AC. Instead of reaching for the sledgehammer, I retrieved my water bottle which saved me during plenty of my insane summer runs and guzzled away, trying to save myself from a heat stroke and/or a nervou…

Now that we are here in mid-July, it looks like summer is almost over. What? That’s right. Back-to-school 2017 is right around the corner. Where did summer go? Can you believe that some schools go back in session on July 31? For education professionals, there is no doubt that they are preparing to go back to work any minute. I’m not sure when this started, but back-to-school has crept up earlier and earlier through the years, making it seem that summer pretty much ends after the last firework is out and the last Nathan's wiener is eaten by hot dog-eating champ Joey Chestnut on the Fourth of July.

So, what happened to actual summer?
Our fair state has its reasons for returning to school in late July/early August, but I could think of advantages and disadvantages with these dates. Since the schools are air conditioned, students are better off in a climate controlled environment rather than sweltering at camps throughout August. The disadvantage to going back to school in early Aug…

It’s no secret that America’s love affair with the modern-day automobile took too much of a hold on the nation from the 1970s to this day. The result was an automobile-centric culture that has been a drag on America’s communities thus building fences between individuals. We have heard about our car addiction leading to increased smog, more sedentary citizens and unsafe pedestrian conditions. Over the past decade, it’s obvious that many of us long for genuine communities where we could live, work and play. While it’s a long way to get to that goal, many of us are “taking it to the sidewalks, paths and trails.” Obviously, we cannot “take it to the streets” as the pop music group The Doobie Brothers sing so well about at their concerts.
As an avid runner, walker and cyclist, I’m encouraged by the sheer volume of people getting out on the sidewalks in “Suburbia, U.S.A.” Trust me, that is major progress. I have been living in this type of culture for nearly three decades in suburban Atl…

Believe it or not, right now, it’s spring. Indeed, we are in the last week of spring, but we are giving way to early summer. Flag Day is upon us this week. For some reason, I always must remind folks about Flag Day and I have no idea how I even remember that day.  I also remember that former Beatle/musician/composer/singer/songwriter Sir Paul McCartney celebrates a birthday this week on June 18. This year is extra special as Sir Paul turns 75. What an inspiration. Paul is still releasing new music and constantly tours including a stop in Gwinnett next month. Speaking of concerts, I had the honor to attend my sixth Billy Joel show. This time, I went backstage to interview one of Billy’s guitarists for this story:
http://ow.ly/hkDv30cvfII
‘Tis the season for outdoor grilling, camps, festivals and of course, television binge viewing. While I don’t recommend binging on streaming television programs, they’re quite riveting and honestly, hard to resist. So far, House of Cards wins for me on…

Once again, Memorial Day is upon us. What strikes me with each passing year is that we are losing members of The Greatest Generation. I am fortunate enough to remember that generation, but I weep for future ones who will not experience their presence. The positive angle to that feeling is we have technology which preserves their memory.

On this post, I'm sharing two videos related to Memorial Day. The first is a natural sound package shot at Arlington National Cemetery, titled Old Guard. The video was shot by Bob Kovach. The project was released in 2008. The second video features an Atlanta resident whose front yard is a tribute to Normandy.



Old Guard from Robert Nebel on Vimeo.

A tribute to Normandy from Robert Nebel on Vimeo.

With all of the talk about the federal budget these days and cuts to certain departments, why not do a lot more privatizing? Take the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention here in Atlanta - since they will be seeing serious cuts, I suppose President Donald J. Trump could simply take the place over as a hotel/center to watch out for diseases. The president could kill two birds with one stone. Visitors to Atlanta could stay the night and if they so choose, go looking for diseases and how to deal with them.

Back on April 28th this year, I got the chance to get an interview with Mike DelGuidice, guitarist/vocalist for Billy Joel. The result is the following feature that I put together. I hope that you will all enjoy.  Click the image below to view this video feature:

Here is another local post, but this does serve the national and even international interest. On March 30, Atlanta lost a portion of I-85 from a bridge collapse following an inferno.Thus the highway has been shut down ever since this unfortunate event. The impacts are felt throughout the metro area as commuters, local residents and business traffic find ways to deal with this event. 

As of this writing, I-85 in Atlanta should be re-opened in less than two months. With a bevy of incentives to get this much-needed road repaired and in today’s terms, “placed by online,” things look good for Atlanta’s near future.
As expected, we are feeling the pain with having this road “offline” throughout spring 2017. There have been several incidents with accidents happening on the Buford-Spring Connector which is already handicapped with one southbound lane closed – to allow construction equipment some room to rebuild the I-85’s bridge.
Unfortunate episodes already occurred since the highway’s shutdow…

Saturday, April 22, 2017 marks another Earth Day. Check out this package that I was involved with to honor this special day:

I'm always amazed with the Boston Marathon and this year was no different. I viewed the legendary spectacle on April 17th. There are some great stories that came out of the race - especially with Kathrine Switzer who was the first woman to run the course in 1967 (50 years ago as of this writing). Then there is the story of Staff Sergeant Luis Sanchez, a member of the United State Marine Corps and amputee. Sanchez carried the American flag across the finish line. Check out the story at Runners World. 

It's no secret that March 30's I-85 bridge collapse caused a traffic headache in metro Atlanta. We all knew that there would be more challenging days than others. April 17 has been one of those days. At 3 a.m., there was a mix up with a truck carrying chemicals which spilled all over the Downtown Connector thus effectively shutting down that road north and south.

To top all of that off, I-20 buckled! That explains the photo above. Okay, the alien was added for effect, but I do hope that you all get the idea. I certainly could use the comic relief as our traffic woes add up and the days get even hotter.

I'll keep on going with my traffic hacks as much as I can, but even my great patience is wearing thin. I drove into the I-85 mess on Easter Sunday. It was okay as I made my way through the 20 minute tie-up, but one must remember that it was Easter Sunday. Most days, this tie-up is far worse.

As most of us know, the March 30th I-85 North bridge collapse made challenging traffic situations even worse in metropolitan Atlanta. This vital link of roadway forces thousands of commuters and travelers alike onto the few alternative routes available thus making our already-awful traffic conditions into a nightmare of epic proportions. This debacle took over our television airwaves as viewers watched in amazement as a federal road burned to the ground. Much is being debated as to who started the inferno as well as why in the world were there materials stored under the bridge that could have accelerated the fire. “Atlanta burning” made national and world headlines once again, but the unfortunate event showed that this could happen anywhere.
I’m about to get a bit too local here, but this is the scenario taking place with I-85 out of commission. Those traveling I-85 north must exit at the Buford-Spring Connector, a four-lane thoroughfare that parallels I-85 for several miles. For me…

I recently completed my first full marathon. I have been a runner for several years, but did not start joining races until July 2015. In that time, I completed 5Ks, 10Ks, 10-milers and half-marathons since that time, but I always wanted to do the ‘full enchilada. I confess that I was pensive leading up to the marathon. The races always start in the dark and it’s typically chilly on late March mornings. What was ahead of me was quite daunting, but I broke it all down mile-by-mile. I took advantage of all aid stations, but stopping to drink and eat – something that I refused to do in shorter races. When I hit mile 23, it was a wall that I feared I would hit earlier. So, from that point, I did a lot of run-walking. I finished around the time I had hoped for and felt all right the rest of the day. The biggest casualty in all of this was my left big toe nail. I’m in the process of recovering from having it removed. Evidentially, the marathon traumatized that toe nail. Let me tell you, it’…

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Being down in Georgia means that I think about water supply a lot these days. I have seen a few droughts come and go over the years. One of the worst occurred in summer 2007. We have been back to drought conditions since last year. Quite honestly, I would be surprised if we dug out of this current drought any time soon. We might receive a stormy spring, but will that put a dent in Georgia's current drought? I certainly hope so after paying dues going through a number of bad storms - like what we had on March 21. Right now, despite those ferocious storms/monsoons, it seemed as though we would be out of this year's drought in a snap. I suppose the answer is that instead of being at that horrifying "exceptional" or "extreme" level, we are somewhere between "moderate" and "severe." Here's hoping we will improve with more steady rain without the high winds, hail and lightning.
This brings me to the fact that March 22 is World Water Day …

Here is my latest video product that I would like to share on this blog. It was a pleasure meeting and interviewing Gwinnett County's own Jay Dozer. Jay builds custom microphone stands for some of today's hottest musical acts including  Backstreet Boys, Toni Braxton, Billy Idol, Reba McIntire and countless other performers.

When he's not crafting these amazing stands, Jay sings in tribute bands.

Today is my birthday. Just like every passing year, I don’t feel any different psychologically, emotionally or physically. I didn’t wake up today and thought to myself, “Uh-oh, everything is going off the rails starting today.” Give me a break.
Birthdays are truly just a number. Why do we get worked up over birthdays and anniversaries? I’m not sure how it is in other countries or societies, but in the U.S., we are fixated on numbers and measurements. We then let those figures dictate our thinking. We would all be better off if we stopped fixating.
For me, nothing is different today. I’m still here and thankful for that fact. So what’s the huge deal? Indeed, I look completely different from my days growing up on Ohio’s north coast. When I visit these days many do not recognize me. I’m sure they walk away and are stunned that I’m a grown man. I suppose I can make a big deal out of that, but I cannot because it’s natural.
We all simply get older. So what. That’s fine with me. In many ways…

My Super 8mm original film production with legendary artist Dan Freed is certainly a 'catalog of trail and error.' I'm almost certain many ask, "Why stream these amateur shorts?" In some cases, it's for posterity and others, I just love sharing what my movie-making chums produced on shoestring budgets, imagination and the use of raw materials.

One of my favorite moments during the "Super 8 Years," is the "1980s Cold War Thrillogy" that we produced. It started with the short titled, "Comrade: X" which is a takeoff on the 1940 Clark Gable film of the same name. Our "Comrade: X" was produced when all of us in the crew still could not drive. Hence, the static automobile shots. The moving car shots featured our mothers driving the vehicles. What I find fascinating is how we were tuned into geopolitics. In this film, Stephen Harlow, a young American scientist stumbles upon Soviet plans to blow up The White House and put the U…

Proud to call @BBCJonSopel my colleague - picture of professionalism when POTUS slams BBC News, insists he answer #travelban question pic.twitter.com/lRGCJEfh6z — Julia Macfarlane (@juliamacfarlane) February 16, 2017 Thursday, February 16, 2017's presidential press conference turned out to be quite rowdy.
The link on this Tweet from BBC shows President Donald J. Trump getting into a bit of a tussle with a BBC reporter. The exchange got heated when President Trump said, "I know who you are..." That one moment reminded me of the Martin Short/Harry Shearer 1984 short film sketch about men's synchronized swimming from Saturday Night Live. In the sketch, the synchronized swimmers' coach played by Christopher Guest, showed them how to synchronize themselves with their hands with the coach repeatedly saying, "I know you, I know you" at 2:33 in the clip.

There's been some reporting that the first daughter Ivanka Trump was "swooning" over Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during his first official to the White House. I'm puzzled as to why the swooning is just reserved for Ivanka. Apparently, Justin makes everyone swoon for various reasons.

I confess that I'm impressed with the guy's gravitas. Justin just has that "it" factor that probably most of us in the US would like to see transfer over to our president. Indeed we are not holding our breath, including Ivanka.

I'm sure there are plenty of guys out there with a man crush on Canada's current prime minister, but I'm not so sure I possess that feeling about Justin. I'm just impressed with Prime Minister Trudeau's style in both his swagger and leadership skills. I was always a fan of Canada since I grew up not terribly far from that nation. In fact, I "obtained" a Canadian ID in 1986 out of my utmost respect for the …

With the brouhaha over the North Korea nuclear test and General Flynn's resignation, politicos across the spectrum are calling for heads to roll. With North Korea, President Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Abe discussed the issue in a public setting. In that case, Rep. Jason Chaffetz from Utah is calling for a probe and with the General Flynn debacle, US Senator Lindsey Graham is not exactly sure what he would like to probe, but it's widely known that he would like to probe something.

Men’s Wearhouse founder George Zimmer credits his success with smoking weed through the years. The slogan at Men’s Wearhouse been under Zimmer as, “You’re going to like the way you look. I guarantee it!” It should be, “You’re going to like the way I toke. I guarantee that and you get a free bong with every suit.” Honestly, if Zimmer went by that last line, he might be running the company these days. What a deal, right?

Or perhaps Zimmer could become president one day. Imagine, Make America Toke Again.

Apparently someone with a sharp eye caught the misspelling in the official Donald J. Trump inauguration poster. Classic. This poster pretty much sums up the sign of our times as of this writing.
Perhaps the poster is correct in the world according to the Trump folks. If so, then this is "Alternative Spelling," which maybe will "keep all of us safe from those evildoers."

Owner of the Detroit Red Wings and Tigers and Little Caesars founder Mike Ilitch passed away this week at the age of 87. Little  Caesars is the pizza joint known best for their double pizza pie offers that went by the slogan, "Pizza, Pizza!"

For Ilitch's final resting place, he will receive a special gravesite that will be known as "Headstone! Headstone!" Hey, two is better than one - what a deal.

Too soon? Well, Ilitch led a successful, productive life. We should all be so lucky. To be honest, Ilitch will need two headstones with his many accomplishments.




Congratulations to US Senator Jefferson Beauregard Sessions for his confirmation as US Attorney General. Sessions follows in the footsteps of former US Attorney General John Ashcroft who served under President George W. Bush. Ashcroft served in the US Senate representing the state of Missouri. The difference between these two fellas is that Sessions has to deal with a lot of Southern stereotypes. Not only is…

US Senator Jefferson Beauregard Sessions has been confirmed to be the next US Attorney General. What few people do not realize is that Billy Bush was confirmed to be the next US Ambassador to Romania. Some things just go so far off the radar. Talk about distractions. Nevertheless, Billy acting as ambassador could increase the production of the Sarmale. Dont' know what that is? The Sarmale is a cabbage roll and Lord knows that we have had a shortage ever since 1989. Wouldn't it be nice if we just got along with Romania more often these days? Well, now we will and thank your local deli in the future for having the option of the Sarmale.

President Donald J. Trump was a tad upset that the Nordstrom department store dropped daughter Ivanka's clothing line. The reason was not political. The clothing line was dropped due to poor performance. Still, the president was not happy and Tweeted out that Ivanka was unfairly treated. Now judging from Donald's line from Macy's, I'm sure Ivanka's clothing line was not much better. Just check this out:

The point is, stores like Macy's don't like the conflict of interest. It was anything personal with then-candidate Trump when that department store drop his line of so-called clothing including those "gorgeous" dress shirts.
There was never this much brouhaha when Dollar Tree dropped US Senator Bernie Sanders' line of BernieTies. Senator Sanders understand quite well that there was a conflict of interest.

Bear with me because this is quite local, but once again this issue can be applied to most places throughout the US. It's so sad the way cities, suburbia and exurbia have been developed since the late 1960s and early 1970s when America focused so much on the use of cars. 
It’s always inspiring to see that our local government is aware of pedestrians in the area. Since the city of Peachtree Corners was founded, more than 20,000 feet of sidewalks have been added to at least five streets including Crooked Creek Road and a much-needed one on Jay Bird Alley. While it is excellent progress that some roads have had sidewalks installed, at least 11 more sidewalk projects are coming to Peachtree Corners in the future. Sidewalks on Technology Parkway, Spalding Drive, Winters Chapel and Corners Parkway are just a few of the places where these pedestrian options will expand. What’s even more exciting is an 11-mile multi-use path. 
One of my favorite sidewalk projects happened on Buford High…

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