Democratic Forum Debate Tweets from Winthrop U (1 of 3): Live from Rock Hill, SC, it's Saturday Night Live........

Welcome to those of you in Greece where perhaps tourists heading to Turkey, my late father's country, have decided to stay put following the re-election of ultra right wing President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, perhaps they will join Syrian refugees who have decided not to head north to Serbia!

Tonight's Democratic Party Forum at Winthrop U in Rock Hill, SC, is perhaps just over now, but we got some tweets from the debate including one from Bakari Sellers, a former Democratic state legislature from Denmark, SC, who was at the debate himself (he is a contributor to CNN; yet he slams the media in his tweet).

Our images are of Democratic Party front-runner Hillary Clinton (top), a bald eagle (center, since Winthrop's mascot is an eagle), and Dale Earnhardt Jr., since the band Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. (now Jr. Jr.) was playing gig at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, where everyone not watching the debate in the nation's capital were probably gathered.

Here are the tweets:

1) Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC, newspaper, earlier in the day): "Rand Paul talks about Keystone XL while stumping in Spartanburg." (the GOP candidate Paul later went to Rock Hill).

2) Overheard in Newsroom (not about the debate, but we thought it was amusing): "Those pesky interns with their creative impulses and their hope."

3) Shane Goldmacher (Politico): "So Marco Rubio is asking for Scott Walker's endorsement."

4) Ken Rudin: "Ben Carson, accused of making things up and not being truly informed, announces he would appoint Judge Reinhold to the Supreme Court." (This is a joke, Judge Reinhold was a teen movie actor in the '80s).

5) Jack Miller (Clinton campaign): "Hillary Clinton supporters loud and proud! Turnout is amazing!"

6) Martin O'Malley: Hillary Clinton wants to go after Jeb Bush for making excuses on guns. But, she did the same thing in 2008."

7) Washington Post: "Amid national coverage about race, Yale acknowledges failing its minorities."

8) Shannon Greene ("Rock Hill Herald" reporter): Meet Hillary "fangirl," Madison Kimrey, the first in line for the debate.

9) Bakari Sellers: Mainstream Media....there is one reason your Bernie is making a comeback like in '08 is really off, Bernie is not Barack Obama. You're welcome.

http://www.930.com

No Blog Entry Today as I'm Sick as a Cat

Since I am under the weather today, we will feature this image of a Siamese cat roaming the streets of Sofia or Varna or some other Bulgarian city. We got this image from googling 'Cats in Bulgaria.'

We also want to mention that the great '80s independent rock band Big Head Todd and the Monster, which we believe are from Athens, Ga., will perform at the fabled 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, on Sat. Jan. 18th; the concert costs $27.50, which costs as much as a parking lot ticket in the nation's capital. Somehow, we can't imagine that Congs. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and Bob Goodlatte (R-Va) will be there???!!!

Speaking of Goodlatte, though we are opposed to him politically, he is from my hometown of Roanoke, Va., as is cult film director Charles Cullen, who turns 50 today. His film "The Day the Whole $%#&*@ World Blew Up" is clearly influenced by the films of Akira Kurosawa and Ingmar Bergman (yes, we are kidding!).......but, Charles Cullen of Roanoke, Va., should not be confused with the other Charles Cullen.

The other Cullen, who is just three years older than our Charles Cullen, is the most notorious serial killer in New Jersey history!

http://www.930.com

http://www.bigheadtodd.com

http://www.catchannel.com

http://www.cullenstudio.net

DC Diary- I Want to Go to the Holocaust Museum

We conclude our diary of the family trip to Washington, DC, with some tips on how to get your voice heard when traveling to any part of the United States, the world or The Milky Way, with members of your family or even your friends.

When traveling with groups, one of the main disadvantages is getting your voice heard, especially if you make considerably less money than anyone in your party. (I would not advise taking a trip with the Kardashians, and I'm not saying that because I'm Turkish and they're Armenian!).

Reverse psychology is one possibly effective method which could work though I did not try it myself.

A few trips back, I actually went to The Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC, to see an exhibit about the infamous 1936 Berlin Olympics, which turned into a propaganda outlet for Adolf Hitler (this was before the museum guard was tragically murdered at the museum some two years ago). The museum itself is very fascinating, but of course, it is quite depressing. As much sympathy as I have for the Jewish people and what they went through, I realized I could never go back to the museum again.

So, of course, it is a place that I would say I wanted to go to if in a group of more than four people. You will inevitably have one person say: "I want to go to the Smithsonian," or The Textile Museum or The National Zoo, so if you tell the Kim Kardashian of the group that you must, absolutely, positively must go to The Holocaust Museum.

Then, everyone will say: "Hmmm...that's too depressing, can we go somewhere else?" That's when you say The National Building Museum or the Folger's Shakespeare Library (yeah, I may be the only person in a group of 20 who would choose those places). And, amazingly enough, you might just get your way.

Since, Washington, DC, has quite a lot going on, there were indeed several places, we didn't get to visit and a few places that I hope to visit some time in the near future.

They include the 9:30 Club where a band called The Virginia Coalition performs on Jan. 15 (yes, I think it sounds like a lobbying group that should be on K-Street too), the Politics and Prose bookstore where "Washington Post" music critic Anne Midgette talks tomorrow night, the Studio Theatre which is getting set to perform "Marcus, or The Secret of Sweet" and two Turkish restaurants: Cafe Divan and Meze.

I must profess that I was very intrigued when I glanced over at Meze's web site (mezedc.com) and saw that they offer Saturday and Sunday brunches with beef sausage. I can imagine this might be confusing to some Anatolian villagers from a place like Yozgat, Turkey, who would seemingly paranoid that all sausage products must come from Porky Pig!

PS_ The image above is from the acclaimed 1985 documentary "Shoah" about the Holocaust. It lasts nine hours long, but it is said to be one of the best films about the subject ever made.

DC Diary- No Need for a Taxi Tonight

Since I managed to seriously lost and meander around aimlessly through Northwest DC on Wednesday night, my family who was eagerly awaiting my impending arrival on Thursday night (day four of our excursion) was delighted to see me arrive at our home away from home at 10:04 p.m. that evening.

If things had gone exactly according to my sincerest desires, I would've been dancing at the Gogol Bordello concert that night at the 9:30 Club. But, the show was sold out, and assuredly if I had gone, I would have not come back to the temporary residency until circa 2:00 a.m.

So, I opted to see the Finnish film "Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale," which is about how an archaeological expedition to Antarctica yields the discovery of a Santa Claus who has been frozen stiff for eons.

When I first heard about the film, I thought it might be a bit of a subversive take on Christmas, which I would not have objected to (I am a Festivus kind of a guy). But, in actuality, it is merely a quirky comedy that is perhaps just slightly more "A Christmas Story" than "Bad Santa" though the distinctive Scandinavian sense of humor which one can see in films like "The Kitchen Stories" (Norway) and "Together" (Sweden) would probably be lost on most American audiences.

So, as it was, since I got home in time, there was no need for the friendly Indian or Pakistani taxi driver who had bailed me out the night before!

SIDEBAR: We love this tweet from comic book artist/cartoonist Chris Eliopoulos, who is always a hoot: "My wife made lobster mac and cheese ensuring that I will die of a heart attack b4 I'm 50."

DC Diary_ How I (Almost) Went to GWAR

Wednesday night, I almost went to see the speed metal band GWAR at the famed 9:30 Club on V Street in Washington, DC. It was something I considered as compensation for the fact that I would not be able to see the Russian-emigre punk band Gogol Bordello, a band I am actually familiar with and adore.

As for GWAR, I still don't know that much about them. On the Internet, they have been described as 'a Power Rangers cover band' and ' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on LSD' because of their over-the-top costumes which look like they came from the set of a "Hellraiser" sequel.

Their music is also quite distinctive as one can gahter by simply glancing at their song titles: "Bring Back the Bomb" (1994), "Sick of You" (2009) and "Meat Sandwich" (1998). Though they apparently have a conventional side, since they have covered Alice Cooper's vintage anthem "School's Out" (which I found on vinyl today!).

According to Wikipedia, GWAR has made songs which focus on both socially and politically taboo themes, and since they have made fun of both Al Gore and Sarah Palin, they seem to have no particular political agenda.

Amazingly enough, the band formed in the conservative city of Richmond, Va., which is about four hours east of my hometown of Roanoke, Va., in 1984. They are still going strong after 25 years of existence and their new release "Bloody Pit of Horror" is being sold on their web site for $9.99.

One person who was at the show last night at the 9:30 Club said: "'Expletive' bloody good show in DC last night....," which has to make the band feel good since a concert they were supposed to give over the weekend in Vermont was canceled due to heavy snow.

As for Gogol Bordello, they perform at Terminal 5 in New York. Like their DC shows, I would expect the show for the increasingly popular group is already a sell-out.

But, one can go half-way around the world and see them perform at The Barby Club in Tel Aviv, Israel, for two shows on Feb. 28 and March 1. Of course, an El Al Airlines official might think you are insane for flying to Tel Aviv just to see Gogol Bordello.

As for me, I opted not to go to GWAR, but instead, I saw the new Jim Carrey movie "I Love you Philip Morris," which has nothing to do with tobacco executives in Winston-Salem, NC, (the film is ironically now playing at the Apeture Cinema in Camel City as well), which was an ok flick. I was curious to see the film, which is also reportedly playing in Istanbul, Turkey, at the moment because it has been released in much of the world except here in America even though it's an American film. Surprisingly enough, according to NPR, it was a big hit in Estonia.

On the way back from the E-Street Cinema, I somehow managed to get lost on the way back to the place where we were staying. The reason for this was because I had written down the address for the 9:30 Club in my pocket along with the place where we were staying. I was talking obliviously to V Street when I realized something was wrong.

Thankfully, an Indian or Pakistani taxi driver found me and bailed me out. Amazingly enough, I had walked right by 'the correct address' without even realizing it. A Christmas tree-of all things- had thrown me off.

SIDEBAR: Like many of you, I am staying at home tonight on New Year's Eve, mainly due to fatigue though these blog entries I've been posting have caused me to neglect The Marx Brothers marathon on TCM tonight (I think I'll pick it up with "Duck Soup" at 12:30 a.m.). But, some folks are having fun tonight even in zip codes where one might not expect much to be going on.

Such was the case in the industrial city of Wheeling, W.Va., tonight where the hometown minor-league hockey team the Wheeling Nailers defeated the visiting Gwinnet Gladiators from the Atlanta suburb of Gwinnet, Ga., by a 4-1 margin. Of course, residents of that town who are Gogol Bordello fans will probably have to wait for the band to play in Pittsburgh, and then they will have to drive two hours to see them!

At the Cat's Cradle- Southern Culture on the Skids

Southern Culture on the Skids, the Chapel Hill, NC-based band, which is one of our personal favorites, will be performing on home turf when they give a concert at Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, NC, on Dec. 4.

The wild band known for throwing fried chicken and Little Debbie oatmeal pies into audiences will be givint the concert as part of a benefit for the Carrboro Food Pantry. The band will also perform at the Hnadlebar in Greenville, SC, (on Nov. 17), the Visulite Theatre in Charlotte (Dec. 3) and The Soapbox in Wilmington, NC, (Dec. 17).

In other concert news, '80s pop diva gives a concert at The 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, on Nov. 27 at 6:00 p.m. (warning: tickets are $45?!), while the band Railroad Earth, which has a loyal following, plays the same venue on Dec. 10. And, one of our very favorite bands Gogol Bordello performs at The 9:30 Club for a pair of shows on Dec. 30 and Dec. 31.

And, in our hometown of Roanoke, Va., The Kirk Avenue Music Hall hosts Nashville-based rock singer Megan McCormick on Nov. 30 and the Athens, Ga.-based Beatles tribute band Abbey Road Live on Dec. 3. I saw ABL at Cat's Cradle earlier this year; they give an awesome show!

SIDEBAR: Kudos to Prince William as he is now engaged to Kate Middleton, who is also 28. According to the BBC, he proposed to her while the couple was on vacation in Kenya and he gave her Lady Diana's ring (awwww!).

At the 9:30 Club in DC, Drive-By Truckers on July 23

The Athens, Ga.-based band Drive-By Truckers will be performing at the fabled 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, on July 23 (tickets are $30). The band will also be opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers later this summer.

The Drive-By Truckers has a new documentary film about them called "The Secret to a Happy Ending" will be shown in Seattle at the Northwestern Film Forum which runs from Aug. 13-15.

The band is noted for their 'three axe attack' which includes three guitars with bass and drums. They are perhaps most-known for their 2002 album "Southern Rock Opera."

The Drive-By Truckers will also be performing at the Jupiter Bar and Grill in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Sept. 16 and the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh, NC, on Sept. 19.

The 9:30 Club has another interesting act on Aug. 14 when the legendary and highly-political rap band Public Enemy (tickets are $35) takes the proverbial stage.