Random Thoughts

Albert Schweitzer said ...

2005-12-29T00:58:00.000-05:00

"There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats."

Fortunately, I have both.

I continue to be amazed and amused by what I can do with Itunes. I'm on vacation this week, so I've spent some time expanding my collection of music and filling in some holes. Today I added a nine-CD set of "British Invasion" music from the 1960s. I've been making playlists. ("The British Invasion - History Of British Rock" from Rhino.)

This reminds me of the 1960s, when "playlists" involved reel-to-reel recorders, real-time recording, vinyl albums, time, and frustration. If I wanted music for a party that I expected to last 4 hours, it took me at least 8 hours to create the tapes. Today I can schedule 18, 24,
or 36 hours worth of music in a few minutes. I can download the playlist to my (aging) Ipod for use at the office.

But today has been a time warp. I've heard music that I haven't heard in 35 years ...

I'm A Man (Spencer Davis Group and The Yardbirds) - not the same tune.
Black is Black (Los Bravos)
Do Wah Diddy Diddy (Manfred Man, et al.)
Fire (Arthur Brown) - OK, I've heard this one a lot over the years.
Georgy Girl (Seekers)
Ferry Across The Mersey (Gerry and the Pacemakers)

And a couple of Beatles selections I'd forgotten about ...

Ain't She Sweet (is this the same group that did the White Album?)
My Bonnie (with Tony Sheridan)

Geeze, I sound like an old fogey! But I may still have to rip my 45 of "I Love Onions" (Susan Christie) if I want that on my Ipod. ("Onion is a tuberous vegetable, and is a member of the genus Stinkus Delicioso. It was highly prized by the ancient Egyptian pharaohs and their friends and cousins. It causes watering of the eyes and rubifaction of the skin but it is very, very tasty.")

As for what I have from the 1960s ...

Name	Artist
A Groovy Kind Of Love	Mindbenders, The
A Man With Money	Wild Uncertainty
A Summer Song	Chad & Jeremy
A Well Respected Man	Kinks, The
A Whiter Shade Of Pale	Procol Harum
A World Without Love	Peter & Gordon
Ain't She Sweet	Beatles, The
All Day And All Of The Night	Kinks, The
All Night Stand	Thoughts, The
All Or Nothing	Small Faces, The
Atlantis	Donovan
Baby, Now That I've Found You	Foundations, The
Baby, Please Don't Go	Them
Bad Time	Roulettes, The
Bad To Me	Kramer, Billy J & the Dakotas
Before And After	Chad & Jeremy
Black Is Black	Los Bravos
Build Me Up Buttercup	Foundations, The
Bus Stop	Hollies, The
Carrie-Anne	Hollies, The
Catch The Wind	Donovan
Colours	Donovan
Come Tomorrow	Mann, Manfred's Earth Band
Concrete And Clay	Unit 4+2
Conquistador	Procol Harum
Dance In The Smoke	Argent
Dear Eloise	Hollies, The
Desdemona	John's Children
Diane	Bachelors, The
Do The Freddie	Freddie and the Dreamers
Do Wah Diddy Diddy	Mann, Manfred's Earth Band
Don't Throw Your Love Away	Searchers, The
Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying	Gerry & the Pacemakers
Downtown	Clark, Petula
Everyone's Gone To The Moon	King, Jonathan
Everything's Alright	Mojos, The
Ferry Across The Mersey	Gerry & the Pacemakers
Fire	Brown, Arthur
Flowers In The Rain	Move, The
For Your Love	Yardbirds, The
Friday On My Mind	Easybeats, The
From A Window	Kramer, Billy J & the Dakotas
Funny How Love Can Be	Ivy League, The
Game Of Love	Fontana, Wayne, and the Mind Benders
Georgy Girl	Seekers, The
Gimme Some Lovin'	Spencer Davis Group, The
Girl On A Swing	Gerry & the Pacemakers
Gloria	Them
Go Now!	Moody Blues, The
Good Golly Miss Molly	Swinging Blue Jeans, The
Have I The Right?	Honeycombs, The
He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother	Hollies, The
Heart Full Of Soul	Yardbirds, The
Hello Little Girl	Fourmost, The
Here Comes My Baby	Tremeloes, The
Here Comes The Night	Them
He's In Town	Rockin' Berries, The
Hippy Hippy Shake	Swinging Blue Jeans
How Do You Do It?	Gerry & the Pacemakers
Hurdy Gurdy Man	Donovan
Hush	Deep Purple
I Don't Want Our Loving To Die	Herd, The
I Don't Want To See You Again	Peter & Gordon
I Go To Pieces	Peter & Gordon
I Know A Place	Clark, Petula
I Know I'm Losing You	Rod Stewart With The Faces
I Like It	Gerry & the Pacemakers
I Love You	Zombies, The
I Only Want To Be With You	Springfield, Dusty
I Remember When I Loved Her	Zombies, The
I Think Of You	Merseybeats, The
I'll Be There	Gerry & the Pacemakers
I'll Keep Holding On	Action, The
I'll Keep You Satisfied	Kramer, Billy J & the Dakotas
I'll Never Find Another You	Seekers, The
I'm A Man	Spencer Davis Group, The
I'm A Man	Yardbirds, The
I'm Alive	Hollies, The
I've Gotta Get A Message To You	Bee Gees, The
I'm Gonna Love You Too	Hullabaloos, The
I'm Telling You Now	Freddie and the Dreamers
In The Hall Of The Mountain King	Sounds Incorporated
It's Gonna Be All Right	Gerry & the Pacemakers
It's Just A Little Bit	Fontana, Wayne, and the Mind Benders
It's Not Unusual	Jones, Tom
It's All Right	Faith, Adam
Just Out Of Reach	Zombies, The
Keep On Running	Spencer Davis Group, The
Kites	Dupree, Simon & The Big Sound
Knight In Rusty Armour	Peter & Gordon
Lady Godiva	Peter & Gordon
Lalena	Donovan
Little Children	Kramer, Billy J & the Dakotas
Long Cool Woman (In A Black Dress)	Hollies, The
Look Through Any Window	Hollies, The
Love Is All Around	Troggs, The
Love Potion Number Nine	Searchers, The
Make It Easy On Yourself	Walker Brothers, The
Making Time	Creation, The
Marie	Bachelors, The
Matthew And Son	Stevens, Cat
Mellow Yellow	Donovan
My Bonnie	Beatles, The (with Tony Sheridan)
My Friend Jack	Smoke
My Love	Clark, Petula
My Mind's Eye	Small Faces, The
My White Bicycle	Tomorrow
Mystic Eyes	Them
Needles And Pins	Searchers, The
New York Mining Disaster 1941	Bee Gees, The
Nights In White Satin	Moody Blues, The
Nobody I Know	Peter & Gordon
On A Carousel	Hollies, The
Painter Man	Creation, The
Pamela, Pamela	Fontana, Wayne, and the Mind Benders
Pay You Back With Interest	Hollies, The
Pictures Of Matchstick Men	Status Quo
Poor Man's Son	Rockin' Berries, The
Pretty Flamingo	Mann, Manfred's Earth Band
Rainbow Chaser	Nirvana
Reflections Of My Life	Marmalade, The
Road Runner	Pretty Things, The
San Franciscan Nights	Animals, The
See See Rider	Animals, The
Sha La La	Mann, Manfred's Earth Band
Sha-La-La-La-Lee	Small Faces, The
Shapes Of Things	Yardbirds, The
She's Coming Home	Zombies, The
She's Not There	Zombies, The
Shout	Lulu & The Luvers
Silence Is Golden	Tremeloes, The
Sky Pilot - Pt. 1	Animals, The
Smashed! Blocked!	John's Children
Smile A Little Smile For Me	Flying Machine, The
Some Other Guy	Big Three, The
Something In The Air	Newman, Thunderclap
Sorrow	Merseys, The
Stop Stop Stop	Hollies, The
Sunshine Of Your Love	Cream
Sunshine Superman	Donovan
Take A Heart	Sorrows, The
Teenage Failure	Chad & Jeremy
Tell Her No	Zombies, The
Telstar	Tornados, The
That's Why I'm Crying	Ivy League, The
The Ballad Of Bonnie And Clyde	Fame, Georgie and the Blue Flames
The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)	Walker Brothers, The
This Strange Effect	Berry, Dave
Tip Of My Tongue	Quickly, Tommy
Tired Of Waiting For You	Kinks, The
To Know You Is To Love You	Peter & Gordon
To Love Somebody	Bee Gees, The
To Sir With Love	Lulu
Tossing And Turning	Ivy League, The
Trains And Boats And Planes	Kramer, Billy J & the Dakotas
True Love Ways	Peter & Gordon
Universal Soldier	Donovan
We Are The Moles	Moles, The
When I Was Young	Animals, The
When The Night Falls	Eyes, The
Whenever You're Ready	Zombies, The
White Room	Cream
Wild Thing	Troggs, The
Willow Weep For Me	Chad & Jeremy
Winchester Cathedral	New Vaudeville Band, The
Wishin' And Hopin'	Springfield, Dusty
With A Girl Like You	Troggs, The
With A Little Help From My Friends	Cocker, Joe
Woman	Peter & Gordon
Words	Bee Gees, The
Yeh, Yeh	Fame, Georgie and the Blue Flames
Yesterday's Gone	Chad & Jeremy
You Don't Have To Say You Love Me	Springfield, Dusty
You Really Got Me	Kinks, The
You Turn Me On	Whitcomb, Ian
You Were Made For Me	Freddie and the Dreamers
You're My World	Black, Cilla
You've Got To Hide Your Love Away	Silkie, The
You've Got Your Troubles	Fortunes, The
Zabadak	Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich

How we use music today

2005-12-26T21:27:00.000-05:00

This evening I created a music playlist in Itunes. If I owned a radio station, this is the kind of music I'd play – and nobody would listen. This playlist is nearly 260 songs and about 16.5 hours worth of music.

Rock, zydeco, country, folk, 1-hit wonders, swing, jazz, easy listening, blues, soundtrack, big band, and bluegrass. You name it and it's there.

I really love Itunes and the way it allows me to use my music.

'Round Midnight (Monk, Thelonious)
14 Shades of Green (Stamey, Chris)
50 Ways To Leave Your Lover (Simon, Paul)
52nd Street Theme (Gillespie, Dizzy)
96 Tears (Question Mark & the Mysterians)
A Well Respected Man (Kinks, The)
A Whiter Shade Of Pale (Procol Harum)
Abraham, Martin, And John (Dion)
All the Things You Are (Taylor, Billy)
American Idiot (Green Day)
American Life (Madonna)
Animal (DiFranco, Ani)
Appalachian Spring, concert s (Copeland, Aaron)
Art Tatum - Tiger Rag (Jazz Messengers)
Au Privave - With Miles Davis (Parker, Charlie)
Backtrackin' (Nashville Bluegrass Band)
Bedlam Ballroom (Squirrel Nut Zippers)
Birth of Shaft (Hayes, Isaac)
Black Magic Woman - Gypsy Quee (Santana)
Black Mountain Blues (Scruggs, Earl)
Black is Black (Los Bravos)
Blinded By The Light (Springsteen, Bruce)
Blues Is The Road (Snowy White)
Bo Diddley (Holly, Buddy)
Boogie Woogie (Professor Longhair)
Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (Midler, Bette)
Both Sides Now (Mitchell, Joni)
Bottle of Wine (Fireballs, The)
Bring It Down To Jelly Roll (Fogerty, John)
Bus Stop (Hollies, The)
Cannon (Galway, James)
Captain Jetter (Sims, Zoot)
Catch Us If You Can (Dave Clark Five, The)
Cecilia (Simon & Garfunkel)
Chain Gang (Cooke, Sam)
Chanson D'amour (Mauriat, Paul)
Chantilly Lace (Big Bopper)
Charade (Main Title) (Mancini, Henry)
Chattanooga Choo Choo (Miller, Glenn)
Cheater (Uriah Heep)
Cheeseburger in Paradise (Buffett, Jimmy)
Chimes of Freedom (Byrds, The)
Choo Choo Ch'Boogie (Chenier, Clifton)
Choo Choo Ch'boogie (Haley, Bill and the Comets)
City of New Orleans (Guthrie, Arlo)
Classical Gas (Williams, Mason (& Mannheim Steamroller))
Cut to the Chase (Rush)
Damaged People (Depeche Mode)
Danny's Song (Murray, Anne)
Davey's Stung (Matthews, Ian)
December '63 (Oh What A Night) (Four Seasons, The)
Democracy (Fogelberg, Dan)
Desolation Row (Dylan, Bob)
Desperado (Eagles, The)
Devil With A Blue Dress On & Good Golly Miss Molly (Ryder, Mitch & the Detroit Wheels)
Diamonds Are Forever (Bassey, Shirley)
Diddy Wah Diddy (Beefheart, Captain & His Magic Band)
Different Drum (Stone Ponyes)
Dill Pickles Rag (Waldo's Ragtime Orchestra)
Down South Jukin (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
Drinkin' My Baby Goodbye (Daniels, Charlie Band)
Durham Town (Whittaker, Roger)
Edelweiss (Sound of Music Cast)
Elenore (Turtles, The)
Energy Vampires (Four Bitchin' Babes)
Eve Of Destruction (McGuire, Barry)
Fat Cat Keeps Getting Fatter (Squirrel Nut Zippers)
Fire (Crazy World of Arthur Brown)
Fire And Rain (Taylor, James)
Flim Flam Man (Nyro, Laura)
Forever Young (Baez, Joan)
Gentle on my Mind (Campbell, Glen)
Get off of My Cloud (Rolling Stones, The)
God & The FBI (Ian, Janis)
Good Vibrations (Beach Boys, The)
Goodbye Earl (Dixie Chicks, The)
Graet Balls Of Fire (Lewis, Jerry Lee)
H2Ogate Blues (Scott-Heron, Gil)
Happy Organ (Cortez, Dave 'Baby')
Happy Trumpeter (Kaempfert, Bert)
Haunted House (Simmons, Jumpin' Gene)
Have A Nice Day (Bon Jovi)
Heaven Right Now (Proclaimers, The)
Hello City (Barenaked Ladies)
Hello Goodbye (Beatles, The)
Here's That Rainy Day (Sinatra, Frank)
Hit Me With Your Best Shot (Benatar, Pat)
Hooka Tooka (Checker, Chubby)
House At Pooh Corner (Loggins & Messina)
How Can I Be Sure (Springfield, Dusty)
How Sweet It Is (Gaye, Marvin)
I Ain't Marching Anymore [Ele (Ochs, Phil)
I Am I Said (Diamond, Neil)
I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire , 21 Aug 1941 (Ink Spots, The)
I Shot The Sheriff (Clapton, Eric)
I Started A Joke (Bee Gees, The)
I Wish You Love (Bertone, Brune)
I'm A Worried Man (Feat. Toots Hibbert) (Nelson, Willie)
I'm in the Mood for Swing (Carter, Benny)
If I Were A Rich Man (Mostel, Zero)
If You Leave Me Now (Chicago)
In Spanish Harlem (Stamey, Chris)
It's Good to Be King (Petty, Tom)
It's Only a Paper Moon (Cole, Nat King)
Je Crois Entendre Encore (I Still Hear Her Sweet Voice) (Washington, Jr., Grover)
Jennifer Juniper (Donovan)
Jimmy Mack (Martha and the Vandellas)
Jump Monk (Mingus, Charles)
Jumpin' At The Woodside (Red And The Red Hots)
Last Train To Clarksville (Monkees, The)
Leaving Las Vegas (Crow, Sheryl)
Let It Go (Def Leppard)
Letter from America (Proclaimers, The)
Ligntnin' Strikes (Christie, Lou)
Lil' Red Riding Hood (Sam the Sham and the Pharohs)
Lisa, Listen to Me (Blood, Sweat and Tears)
Listen Yo What The Man Said (Wings)
Lonesome Fiddle Blues (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band)
Lookin' Out For No.1 (Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO))
Lookin' Out My Back Door (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
Love Potion Number Nine (Searchers, The)
Lucille (Everly Brothers)
M.T.A. (Kingston Trio, The)
MacArthur Park (Richard Harris)
Makin' Every Minute Count (Spanky & Our Gang)
McNamara's Band (Jones, Spike)
Mercedes Benz (Joplin, Janis)
Mercy Mercy Mercey (Adderley, Cannonball)
Michelle (David & Johnathan)
Miracle (Foo Fighters)
Mockingbird (Simon, Carly)
Mood Indigo (Byrd, Charlie)
Morning Has Broken (Stevens, Cat)
Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter (Herman's Hermits)
Muskrat Love (America)
Muskrat Ramble (Firehouse Five Plus Two)
My Guitar Wants to Kill Your (Persuasions, The)
My Rainbow Race (Seeger, Pete)
My Sweet Lord (Harrison, George)
Nashville Cats (Lovin' Spoonful, The)
National city (Joiner Arkansas Jr HS Band)
Never Been To Spain (Three Dog Night)
Never My Love (Fifth Dimension, The)
Nightfall (MezzoForte)
No One is Alone (Into the Woods Original Cast)
No Particular Place To Go (Berry, Chuck)
Nobody's Here Anymore (Fogerty, John)
Nothing To Say (Soundgarden)
Oh Pretty Woman (Orbison, Roy)
One (Starr, Ringo)
One O'Clock Jump (Basie, Count)
Ooh Child (Lewis, Ramsey)
Our House (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young)
Over The Rainbow (Garland, Judy)
Paint It Black (Animals, The)
People Get Ready (Impressions, The)
Perdido (Ellington, Mercer)
Pinball Wizard (Who, The)
Pink Panther (Galway, James And Henry Mancini)
Pirate Jenny (Collins, Judy)
Private Eyes (Hall & Oates)
Queen Jane Approximately (Dylan, Bob & the Grateful Dead)
Radio Ga Ga (Queen)
Ramblin' Man (Allman Brothers Band)
Red Rubber Ball (Cyrcle, The)
Rhapsody In Blue (Gershwin, George)
Rhiannon (Fleetwood Mac)
Rich Girl (Feat. Eve) (Stefani, Gwen)
Riders On The Storm (Doors, The)
Rikki Don't Lose That Number (Steely Dan)
Ring Of Fire (Cash, Johnny)
Ring Rring (ABBA)
Rocky Mountain High (Denver, John)
Roll Over Beethoven (ELO (Electric Light Orchestra))
Route 66 (Cole, Natalie)
Rubber Biscuit (Blues Brothers)
Run, Run, Run (Third Rail, The)
Russian Lullaby (Coltrane, John)
S Wonderful (Conniff, Ray)
Sahra Cynthia Sylvia Stout Wou (Silverstein, Shel)
Same Old Song and Dance (Aerosmith)
Say Somethin' Feat. Snoop Dog (Carey, Mariah)
Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) (Bowie, David)
Secret Agent Man (Rivers, Johnny)
Seven Rooms of Gloom (Four Tops, The)
Sh-Boom (Freberg, Stan)
She'd Rather Be With Me (Turtles, The)
Silver Threads And Golden Needles (Ronstadt, Linda)
Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay (Redding, Otis)
Skinny Legs and All (Tex, Joe)
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes (Randolph, Boots)
Snow Queen (King, Carole)
Snowbird (Atkins, Chet)
Song Of Love (Stills, Stephen)
Soul Finger (Bar-Kays, The)
Spanish Harlem (Mamas and Papas, The)
Stardust (Shaw, Artie & His Orchestra)
Stickwitu (Pussycat Dolls, The)
Stoney End (Streisand, Barbara)
Stranger Here (Hopkins, Lightnin')
Stranger On The Shore (Bilk, Acker)
Stuff Like That (Jones, Quincy)
Summer Fling (Spyro Gyra)
Sweet Georgia Brown (Goodman, Benny)
Sweet Little Angel (Howlin Wolf)
Sweet Talking Guy (Manhattan Transfer)
Swingin' Salute to Frank Sinatra (Dunlap, Joe)
Take Five (Brubeck, Dave)
Take The Money And Run (Steve Miller Band, The)
Take the A Train (Ellington, Duke)
Take the A Train (Hampton, Lionel)
Tell It Like It Is (Neville, Aaron)
That Lucky Old Sun (Charles, Ray)
The Boy From New York City (Ad Libs, The)
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face (Flack, Roberta)
The Gambler (Rogers, Kenny)
The Girl From Ipanema (Getz, Stan)
The Jack-Ass Song (Belafonte, Harry)
The Little Black Egg (Nightcrawlers, The)
The Meek Shall Inherit Nothin (Persuasions, The)
The Pusher (Steppenwolf)
The Shadow of the Cat (Barbieri, Gato)
The Thrill Is Gone (King, B.B.)
The Way We Were (Fried, Paul)
The Wedding Dance (2:32) (Katz, Mickey)
The White Cliffs Of Dover (Righteous Brothers, The)
The Wizard Of Menlo Park (Chumbawamba)
Theme From A Summer Place (Lettermen, The)
Theme From The Dukes Of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys) (Jennings, Waylon)
These Eyes (Guess Who, The)
Thirty Thousand Pounds Of Bananas (Chapin, Harry)
This Diamond Ring (Lewis, Gary & The Playboys)
This Train Don T Stop There Anymore (John, Elton)
Tijuana Taxi (Alpert, Herb & The Tijuana Brass)
Time In A Bottle (Croce, Jim)
Topsy Part II (Cole, Cozy)
Torn (Imbruglia, Natalie)
Travelin' Man (Nelson, Rick)
Uptown Girl (Joel, Billy)
Venus (Shocking Blue)
Walk Away Renee (Left Banke, The)
Walking Through New Orleans-Vocal (Fountain, Pete)
Walking To New Orleans (Domino, Fats)
Wasted (Underwood, Carrie)
Watermelon Man (Hancock, Herbie)
We Can Be Together (Jefferson Airplane)
What I Am (Brickell, Edie)
What You Do To Me (Jarreau, Al)
What a Wonderful World (Armstrong, Louis)
What the World Needs Now (DeShannon, Jackie)
Whatever Gets You Thru the Nig (Lennon, John)
When Fine Society Sits Down To Dine (Chumbawamba)
Where Have All The Flowers Gone (Montgomery, Wes)
Who By Fire (Cohen, Leonard)
Who Let In The Rain (Lauper, Cyndi)
With A Little Help From My Friends (Cocker, Joe)
Yesterday Once More (Carpenters)
You Don't Know My Name (Keys, Alicia)
Young Boy (McCartney, Paul)

The Sony "rootkit" fiasco

2005-11-20T19:37:00.000-05:00

Was everyone out to lunch on the day Sony came up with this brilliant plan? The v.p. for public relations must not have been around because anyone in that position would immediately ask how such a system would be perceived by the company's clients. The v.p. for technology just not have been in the office that day because anyone in that position would have pointed out the dangers inherent in the scheme. The v.p. for legal affairs must have been home sick because anyone in that position would have immediately recognized the liability the company would face.

In the past, I've purchased quite a bit of Sony hardware and some of the company's CDs. Although I won't say that I'll never purchase anything with the Sony or BMG name on it, I do know that it's going to be quite some time before I even consider it.

When will companies learn that copy protection inconveniences high-volume pirates not at all? When will they realize that schemes such as this one hurt only the people who have chosen to play by the rules and buy the company's products?

Making the kitty appear to have a big butt

2005-11-20T12:44:00.000-05:00

You may have been wondering how to make it appear that your kitty has a big butt so that when you take his (or her) picture kitty will be embarrassed.

It's easy.

First, it's a good idea to choose a cat that actually has a big butt to begin with.

Next, position the camera so that the kitty's big butt is as close to the camera as possible and kitty's head is as far away as possible. Using a wide-angle lens is a good idea, too.

This is Tangerine. To see a larger version of the picture, click the image.

Liberal commie pinko freak cop hater?

2005-11-11T17:58:00.000-05:00

Not exactly.

Today my brother-in-law called. My niece wanted to go home to Wheeling from Columbus, but had no gas money. Would I meet her at a gas station and fill the car with gas? Sure. I'd been planning to leave work early, anyway, because the allergy that causes my nose to run every year about this time was operating in full force today.

Background: The niece and her boyfriend have a 4-month-old baby. The guy (I had never met him) seemed to be overly controlling and somewhat manipulative.

I called my niece, Monica, and we arranged to meet at a gas station near her apartment.

I went to the gas station. No niece. 20 minutes later, no niece. I drove to her apartment. The car was there, but wasn't packed. I knocked on the door. Silence. I used the cell phone to call. No answer.

So I called the Columbus Police Department. They sent 2 officers, who arrived within about 20 minutes (not bad for a non-emergency call). I noted that one had an "intervention" insignia on his shirt. I described the situation to them and noted that the "male half" (police lingo) had had some run-ins with the police.

I also noticed that one of the officers had donned sunglasses so that I couldn't observe his eyes. That made me look to the sky when I talked to him.

The officer with the intervention insignia knocked on the apartment door. No answer. He tried the door. It was unlocked. Both officers entered, guns at the ready. (Neat trick: Finger over the peep-hole so the person inside can't see who's outside, but I always thought that the officers stood off to the side, not in front of the door. I stood off to the side, behind a brick wall.)

My niece was at home. Her boyfriend was at home. We now had two police officers, my niece, the guy, the baby, and me inside the apartment. As if on queue, the rental agent showed up to see if any help was needed. It wasn't. She left.

The officers handled the next 20 minutes with outstanding class and style. The niece wanted to leave but the boyfriend, a world-class control freak, played mind games flawlessly while holding the baby.

The officers explained the law to the boyfriend, who continued to play mind games. Eventually they gave the guy an ultimatum: "Give her the baby. Give her the baby now." He did. When he realized that he was losing the mind game to people who had real minds, Derrick tried verbal abuse; then he switched back to the "poor little me" approach. Then, "How can she take MY baby?" and finally, the "I'll be good" approach. He was trying every chord he knew, but they were all sour.

One of the officers asked the genius "What part of 'the mother has full custodial rights' was unclear to you?"

The niece packed and left, giving the mind-control freak all the money she had and her cell phone in the process. The guy left.

Then he made the mistake that is so common to boneheads: He came back. Why do they always talk themselves into going to jail?

So that left the bonehead headed for jail and, at long last, the niece headed for home with the kid. The money and the cell phone Monica had given the jerk was back in her possession, along with both apartment keys.

Before she left, the officers explained to the niece that the guy was simply playing mind games. That he was a controller. They also explained that if they had to come back, Children's Services would come along, too, and that nobody would like the outcome of that because the kid would be taken away from them.

This is a situation that could have become far uglier than it did. It's the kind of situation that could have ended with somebody injured or worse.

The two Columbus police officers worked well together -- explaining, cajoling, being understanding, and threatening as was appropriate -- to resolve the situation peacefully.

Liberals don't dislike the cops and I'm not sure why anyone thinks we do. Today two officers from the Columbus Police Department did what needed to be done. They did it well. And I'm not at all reluctant to thank officers John Wish (badge 2266) and Darren Egelhoff (badge 1843) for what they did.

As of this evening, the niece is back in Wheeling and even smiling occasionally. Chalk up one for the good guys!

Follow-up from Sunday, November 13

Monica and her father came back to Columbus today to take the first load of her belongings back home. They've given the apartment manager 30 days' notice. Between Friday and Sunday, there's been a remarkable change. There will be another trip to get the larger things and challenges remain, but everyone is more optimistic now that the storm has passed.