RUTH ETTING - "AMERICA'S SWEETHEART OF SONG"

"If I Could Be With You"

Ruth's voice was lovely; she was beautiful; and she had a great singing style, which was ahead of its time, the 1920s and 1930s. The sound in the video is poor, but you can see her perform and compare her style to that of her accompanist, who sings the song straight.

Below is another video of Ruth singing with better sound quality.



MadPriest is such an inspiration...well, about music, anyway. A few days ago, he posted a podcast of Ruth singing "The Right Kind of Man", which shows off wonderfully well her lovely voice and great style. The first time around, Ruth did not choose the right kind of man, but rather a gangster. Read all about her at Wikipedia.

JESUS RESPONDS TO RICK PERRY

Rick Perry's 'strong' campaign ad.



Jesus responds.



From Funny or Die.

H/T to Rmj at Adventus.

MEANWHILE HERE IN THE US - SHAME!

Oakland, California



From the Marine Times:

An uncle of an Iraq War veteran injured when anti-Wall Street protesters clashed with police in Oakland, Calif., said he was appalled by officers’ action.

A hospital spokesman says the 24-year-old veteran and Wisconsin native, Scott Olsen, was upgraded to fair condition and moved into an intensive care unit on Thursday.
Related reading

His uncle, George Nygaard, tells The Associated Press from Wisconsin that Olsen’s parents were heading to California on Thursday morning.

Olsen apparently suffered a fractured skull Tuesday in a march with other protesters toward Oakland City Hall. The demonstrators were trying to re-establish a presence in the area of a disbanded protesters’ camp when they were met by officers.

It’s not known exactly what type of object struck Olsen or who might have thrown it, although the group Iraq Veterans Against the War said officers were responsible for his injury.

Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan said officials will investigate whether officers used excessive force.

Atlanta, Georgia



My hands are not clean. We own investments. Still, my sympathy lies with the Occupy Wall Street protestors. The injustices are too great to brush away. The disparities in income between the rich and the working poor are too monstrous to ignore. That's not to speak of those who have no work, those who are stuck in part-time jobs, and those who are underemployed.

Why can't the protestors occupy public space and show themselves? None of the people with the power to change the sorry situation are listening. Can they close their eyes, too? Why can't the police let the protestors be, so long as they're peaceful?

"The bank is something more than men, I tell you. It's the monster. Men made it, but they can't control it." John Stinbeck - The Grapes of Wrath

H/T to Counterlight for the videos.

IMMERSION - 'BRIDESHEAD REVISITED'

Regarding blogging, I've been pretty much out to lunch, or dinner, or tea with English folks. For several days now, I've been watching episodes of Brideshead Revisited, which I've seen a number of times before, but one more time is never too much. The 1981 Granada Televison series is superb. Of course, the episodes were meant to be viewed a week apart, but I'm cramming them into several, days taking the occasional time-out away from the screen for daily life. I feel as if I'm in another world, the world of Oxford, Brideshead, London, Venice, France, and coming up is Morocco.

On the journey, I lost my way a bit, what with real life interruptions, having to stop in the middle of an episode and trying to mark my place on the DVD, and then missing out entirely on Venice and having to go back and view one of my favorite parts of the story.

The video above is of a deliciously camp lunch party in Sebastian's rooms at Oxford. If you've seen the series, you know it. If you haven't, then think about watching.

The video below is a conversation between Charles Ryder and Cara, Lord Marchmain's mistress, during Charles and Sebastian's visit to Venice. This post is mainly for those who are familiar with the series. Sorry.

THE MISSION AND MINISTRY OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH

Mark Harris at Preludium says:

All of which is to say I think we bloggers in Episcopal / Anglican land need to do more videos, even rough and ready ones, with the goal to witness to who we are and what we are about as Episcopalians.

I agree. All too often, we hide our light under a bushel basket. The video below by TECtube (The Church Center Communications folk) is a fine example of what can be done.



Mark posted several other videos worth viewing, some of which are 'rough and ready'. Check them out.

THE ROYAL WEDDING

THE VOWS



The language of the Church of England liturgy of the marriage vows is beautiful. In the splendid surroundings of Westminster Abbey, the ceremony was, indeed, impressive. The Archbishop of Canterbury's vestments were on the splendid side, too. Lapin informs me that the maker is Watts & Co. Unfortunately, the archbishop had hat hair when he removed his mitre.

THE BALCONY KISS



Kate looked lovely. Her dress and veil, designed by Sarah Burton of British designer Andrew McQueen's fashion house, were traditional, simple (for a royal bride), and beautiful. William looked....colorful. Queen Elizabeth, whom I admire for performing her duties with grace and dignity, wore an outfit the color of which I can only describe as ghastly yellow. Ow! My eyes! Sorry about the sour note, but that was my reaction. Further sour note: Camilla's hat looked as if it were swallowing her. What is it with the mostly unattractive hats worn by the ladies?

I've not seen the entire coverage of the royal wedding, only these two videos. I'll watch Barbara Walters wrap-up on "60 Minutes" this evening at a more reasonable hour.

The best commentary on the wedding so far is Fr Christian's on-the-scene live-blogging of the event at GAFCON, which starts here.

THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND - TWO VIDEOS

First from Mr CatOLick, whose video is a response to the Church of England video. You may or may not want to watch the CofE video first.





From the Church of England:




H/T to Lesley at Lesley's Blog.