Jethro Tull

            Late Tuesday morning, even though it was relatively warm outside, it was so cold in the apartment that I turned the oven on to generate some heat. I left it on and rode to Freshco, where I bought a bunch of bananas, three avocadoes, a bag of frozen lima beans, a can of coffee, two cartons of vanilla soymilk and two cans of coconut cream. After paying for those items I remembered that I’d wanted to buy cilantro and so I went back and got a bunch. After paying I went to the bank machine near the exit and the cashier came after me to tell me I’d forgotten my cilantro.

            I had a salad for lunch.

            I’ve been listening to Jethro Tull’s first album, “This Was” from 1968. This was mostly a blues album but there are a few Ian Anderson songs that stand out, featuring him on flute. Apparently he had only been playing flute for two weeks when Jethro Tull was formed.

            I went through Lord Byron’s “Childe Harold's Pilgrimage" and most of "Manfred" again in the process of setting up two word files for those works out of the original pdfs.

            My eyes are still getting blurry after reading for a while.

            I made guacamole for dinner with two avocadoes, a chopped tomato, some chopped cilantro and some crumbled roasted seaweed. I had it with plantain chips and it was good but the chips were a bit heavy for my stomach after a fast.

            I watched The Rifleman. In this story three outlaws, Jake Pardee, his brother Dave and a man known as the professor ride into town and take over Hattie’s general store, holding Hattie and the marshal captive. The professor and Dave have just broken Jake out of prison where he’s been for five years. He’s apparently a famous outlaw but five years is a long time. Lucas McCain happens to be there at the time but can do nothing without endangering the lives of his friends. He leaves but his manner is fearless and the way he speaks to Jake is with contempt. It bothers Jake that Lucas is not afraid of him. He asks Hattie who he is and she says that he's just a rancher named Lucas McCain. But Dave remembers the name and the fact that Lucas has a reputation throughout the west for his speed and prowess with his rifle. Jake is afraid that prison has drained him of his nerve and so to prove himself he challenges Lucas to a shootout. But when the time comes, as they face each other in the street, Jake breaks down crying and falls to his knees. Seeing this, the professor, realizing Jake is now of no use to him, shoots him. This compels Dave to shoot the professor. Dave is not very smart and has always depended on others to tell him what to do. He stands there helplessly until Lucas gently tells him to drop the gun and he obeys.

            Jake had once been so famous that someone had written a ballad about him. Throughout this episode, from the saloon next door we hear the song being sung.

            The professor was played by Les Tremayne, who started out in radio in 1930 and by the 1940s his was considered the most famous speaking voice in radio. He played Mentor on the TV series “Shazam!” from 1974 to 1977.