MM2S052: Season 4, Episode 4
By: Ken Boone It’s been almost 30 years since I last attended Franklin Plaza Day, and I couldn’t make it there this year either. I ask my friend Daryl, better known as Spoon, who was one of the event coordinators, to send my regards to the group of guys who literally saved my life! Franklin Plaza Apartments is a development of 14 20 story buildings located in the East Harlem section of New York City, on the island of Manhattan. But to me and my friends, it was an oasis in the midst of urban crazy. For almost 60 years, it has stood tall, taking on all comers and, against all odds, coming out on top. It's been over 40 years since I first ventured out on my own. The first time I came back home was when I was in between apartments in my mid 20s. The next time was when I separated from my first wife. Both times I was warmly greeted by the guys who stayed in the neighborhood. We picked up where we left off, but with kids in tow. When my mother unexpectedly passed away in December 2002, more friends from Franklin Plaza showed up at the funeral than did friends from the church I had attended and where my mother was a beloved member for decades. I don’t know how my Franklin Plaza buddies found out – they just showed up, replete with rib-bruising bear hugs and broad shoulders that absorbed the tears. I was 5 years old when I got hit with a triple whammy – my parents split, we lost our house in Queens to foreclosure and Mom made us attend a vastly different kind of church, where I had no sense of belonging. The people in that church worshiped on a different day from that to which I was accustomed. They imposed a lot of restrictions on church member’s behaviors. Worst yet, they had an unwritten, yet well-established, pecking order. I reluctantly took my place at the back of the line at the “Thou Shalt Not” church. Franklin Plaza was a new apartment complex, so we were all new kids, and thankfully, there was a strong sense of belonging there for me. That complex seemed to be part of an anthropological experiment to test the nature vs. nurture theory. We were surrounded by public housing projects, tenements that were inhabited by ethnic racial groups who resented being pushed out by urban renewal, and let us know it! We were targeted for harassment by our “neighbors”. We were bullied constantly. All of us except Vee, who became something of a legend because of his rare combination of fearlessness, loyalty, smarts, and humor. He never hesitated to go for it when someone picked a fight. We all looked up to him, even though he was shorter than most of us. I’m Facebook friends with a lot of the guys now. I got dozens of friend requests immediately after Franklin Plaza Day 2018. I don’t know who’s passed away since the last time I was there. Honestly, I don't want to know. I think I just want to keep them young in my thoughts. Big Cliff “likes” a lot of my postings on Facebook. He was always that type of guy. He, Smitty, and Pretzel made up the core of the “Big Guys” group. They were a few years older than us, so they got first dibs on the basketball court, leaving us to use the garbage cans as our hoops. Sometimes we got picked to play with the big guys. We were mostly used as placeholders until one of their crew showed up. Big Cliff would even pass the ball to us from time to time. He was clearly a hero to us. As you can see, most of us had nicknames, and most of the nicknames stuck to this day. Since it’s my blogging policy not to name names, my friends are easy to write about. Thank God for policy loopholes. My brother and I had nicknames, although they lacked imagination. He was Big Boone, whereas I was simply known as Little Boone. I’m actually four inches taller than my brother, but who’s counting? We did suffer our share of tragedy and loss. We lost friends to murder, car accidents, drug addiction, and the ravages of unchecked mental illness. But we keep marching on. Forging careers as attorneys, accountants, academicians, musicians, cinematographers, to name a few, the kids from East Harlem have done pretty well in life! I don’t remember when they began to celebrate Franklin Plaza Day. I do remember that it was always held on a Saturday, which was not convenient for me. You see, that was the day that my mother chose for us to worship. Her decision also prevented me from playing in the more influential basketball leagues growing up. There was a neighborhood music program that I couldn’t partake in. The Guys didn’t tease us. They would wave to my brother and me as we walked to the bus stop dressed in suits and carrying bibles. When we were younger, the Catholic guys would race out of mass to meet us in the basketball court on Sundays. The Baptists and Pentecostals would get there as soon as they could. Then we would play until our parents chased us upstairs to eat dinner and finish our homework. These guys weren’t like “The Fellas” I referenced in prior podcast episodes and blog posts. We came from various parts of New York City. Our pecking order was determined on ability, and assholes were shunned. Some of us came from two-parent homes. Some were raised by a single parent. Others were foster kids. Some of us went to church on a day and time when the rest sat down with a second bowl of cereal to watch cartoons. For the risk of really dating ourselves, I remember having passionate debates about everything from Tricky Dick Nixon, to our favorite athlete, comic book hero, or professional wrestler. And we all were very knowledgeable on every topic. But when it came to basketball, no one knew more than Spoon! He was Stephen A. Smith before there was even a Stephen A. Smith! And he did it without the annoying, know-it-all persona! As I said earlier, I was not able to make it to Franklin Plaza Day 2022. In fact, I may never attend another one. It's not that I don’t want to see the guys, but because I made a vow that I would never return to New York City. There are too many mixed emotions for me there. Just to be clear, I'm talking about New York City, not Franklin Plaza. Next year, I will make a donation to go towards refreshments. So, when someone pours themselves a cup of iced tea, and the pitcher says “sweet tea” on it, they’ll know it’s Little Boone, sending his warmest regards from the CLT! Today's Quote “Some days I wish I could go back in life. Not to change anything, but to feel a few things twice.” Anonymous (the most prolific sage)
0 Comments
MM2S051: Season 4, Episode 3
By: Ken Boone We're 10 months into calendar year 2022 and I'm still sticking with a number of resolutions I made at the beginning of the year. One in particular is Resolution #6 (watching less politically-based less cable news). As I told you in previous episodes and post, I replaced much of my cable news consumption with sports, sports, and more sports. While the teams I'm rooting for aren't very good at the moment, to me they're better than the elephants and donkeys, if you know what I mean! Back to my wide world of sports. I had one team from my youth that I still rooted for up until now. I still casually followed the New York Mets (baseball), probably just to check off a box. My son, who lives in Atlanta, has been rooting for the Atlanta Braves (also baseball) for over a decade. A few weeks ago, I made the decision and took the necessary steps to officially begin cheering for the Braves myself. To do so correctly, I announced that I would stick with the Mets for as long as they were still playing this year. I would officially dump them after they were eliminated. Then I would jump on the Braves bandwagon. That seemed like the right thing to do. Okay, so despite winning 101 games this season, the Mets got quickly bumped off by the San Diego Padres. I wasn't sad because I had my new team, the Braves, to keep me company. Have I ever told you that when it comes to fandom, I'm pretty unlucky? Well, I am. That's because a week after the Mets got knocked off, so did the Braves. By the Philadelphia Phillies, no less. What do the diehard fans say? “Wait until next year”. That is unless I've jinxed them as well. But it's cool. It's sport. It's only just a bunch of games meant to distract us from life's challenges. I wish I could say that the story ends there, but no can do! That's because it's election season again. And before I realized it, I found myself peeking in at cable news all over again. It was like I didn't miss a thing. The same old “we're the good guys, they're just pure evil” stuff. There's also a fair share of stuff like “they're going to take control of both the Senate and the House, and we will be forever screwed”, and there's nothing we can do about it! With a lot of distance between the previous election and now, I'm realizing that the media people on my side of the aisle like to use scare tactics just as much as our natural enemies, oops I mean adversaries. As much as I'm supposed to hate and fear the elephants, I have to admire one thing about them... they know how to stick together. As the politicos like to say... “my side falls in love while their side falls in line”. In my opinion, the media covering my side had just as much to do with the results of the 2016 Presidential elections as anyone else. Who can forget some of our esteemed journalists asking guests to talk about the “trust issue”. That made me want to scream whenever I heard those words! To their credit, the folks on conservative media always toed the party line. Whether they shaded the truth, distorted the truth, or just outright lied, they stuck together. That's because they are aware of one simple fact – it's entertainment that they do and not journalism. Especially during prime time. They don't speak to inform; they speak to persuade. Big difference! My side likes to dress up their politically tinged entertainment programs as honest journalism. I still trust some of their take on things, but I keep them on a short leash. That is, when I hear the same “Breaking News” story for the fourth time across four different shows, I turn to reruns of some mindless detective I watched in my 20s, 30s and 40s. I miss you, Lenny Briscoe! Another thing that will make me flip channels is are long-winded hosts and panelists. You know that never fails to get under my skin! Now that I got all of that off of my chest, what am I going to do about the stuff that drives me nuts? I can start by just sweeping my side of the street. Control what I can control. Nothing more, nothing less! In the world of sports, that means rooting for my teams... win, lose or draw. In baseball, I may even go to a few Braves' games with my son and granddaughter. They say the stadium is gorgeous! Basketball season starts this week. I don't expect much from my Hornets, but I love their broadcasters. Working with an obviously small budget, they make the games interesting to watch, even when they get blown out! Football season is in full swing. Although the Panthers are 1-4, they've done something to make most of their fans (including me) jump for joy. That's right... they finally fired their head coach! I'm glad he gets to keep his $62million. And I hope he gets another coaching gig, preferably in the college ranks. I'm just glad he's out of here! Who's the genius who thought that hiring him was a good idea? As for politics, I'll tune in just to learn the who, what, when, where, why, and how. I can do without most of the hyperbole and the commentary. I'm not going to get into heated debates with family, friends, and neighbors, because we can't persuade each other to come over to our side if we are at odds. The facts are out there. All you have to do is a little digging and applying common sense. I can't help you, unless you ask for my help. Not my opinion. To be honest with you, all I can do is show up and VOTE for my people and hope for the best. Today's Quote “What do you do with a mistake: recognize it, admit it, learn from it, forget it.” Dean Smith – Hall of Fame Basketball Coach MM2S050: Season 4, Episode 2
By: Ken Boone A little over two years ago, on September 19, 2020, to be exact, I published the first episode of this podcast. My original aim was to talk less and listen more. But since the show evolved into a solo venture, I'm afraid that I did all the talking. The podcast was originally categorized under “Society & Culture”. After about a year's worth of episodes, I realized that it was filed in the wrong place. Without sounding self-absorbed, the truth is that this show evolved into a “Personal Journal” podcast, which conveniently is a sub-category of “Society Culture”. The timing of that category change couldn’t have been better. That's because when I started publishing episodes, we were in the middle of a very heated general election campaign season. Some said the future of our democracy hinged on the outcome of that election. As close to the edge as we got, Thank God, we barely made it through that ordeal! We are now moving into election season again. This time it's the midterms, which usually favor the party currently out of power. Because the presidency isn't technically on the ballot, these elections usually result in low voter turnout. But this time it's different! I'll probably devote an upcoming episode to giving you my take on how we should approach this election. Or maybe not. Season 1 was mainly devoted to the 2020 Election and this country dealing with the disaster now simply referred to as COVID. Although I wasn't able to bring any guests on to the show, I received a lot of input from family and friends. I'd like to thank all of you for your generosity, especially those who appeared on my short-run podcast, “Freelancer Survival Stories”. You're the best! In Season 2, I focused on bringing to you my back story. And while telling you honestly where I came from, I began to figure who I was. Speaking of honestly, I took look at myself from a new perspective. I admitted that I wasn't perfect, and that I made plenty of mistakes. Most of those mistakes were of my own doing and would not have occurred had I learned to “JUST SAY NO”! I'm glad that I learned that lesson before check out time! After the end of that season of self-discovery, I came up with a list of 15 New Year's Resolutions, from the sensible to the ridiculous. I even allowed myself a bit of magical thinking just to keep things interesting. Season 3 was probably my best and most productive one yet. I started things off by reporting on my progress in sticking with my resolutions. I didn't expect to keep up with all of them... 15 presents quite the challenge. But what I noticed was that the music-related goals were the first to far by the wayside. That was a major surprise. What was most surprising was that I wasn't disappointed. That's because that's not who I am. In fact, I realized that I never was a musician, just an admirer who was pretty good at fake it. And that's cool. The charade was fun while it lasted! And that delusion was taking up too much space in my head. There are other things that hold my interest, that in fact, I am passionate about and have secretly been for decades. This new-found honesty has given me license to pursue those things! Entering Season 4, I will take the resolutions I've stuck with so far and cross the ones I've abandoned off my list. My mental clutter is gone for the most part. My perfectionism is under control, keeping in check my chronic procrastination. What's left is a man who speaks to you, and himself, in his authentic voice, wrapped in love, tolerance, and kindness. And, by the Grace of God, will do so every week! Oh yeah, and I'm posting on my blog again! GO BRAVES! Today's Quote “You can't start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one.” Anonymous MM2S049: Season 4, Episode 1
By: Ken Boone It was the summer of 2018 when Celia and I decided to get into podcasting. We thought we could use this medium as a substitute for Celia's her seminars on healing from depression and abuse. It could also be a way to get our music out there, in the form of a soundtrack for the show. Before I recorded our first podcast episode, I watched plenty of YouTube videos, read a lot of blogs, and spent hours online shopping for that next piece of gear that I thought I needed. I even had a name for the first show, “Songs from the Journey”. That was also the name of the CD I produced for Celia in 2010. Unfortunately, we never recorded a single episode of that proposed show! Our friends considered the idea a no-brainer. How hard would it be to talk about our experiences and getting fellow musicians to talk about their challenges and the songs that got them through challenging times. Our friend Beth agreed to record a demo episode, enlisting the help of a friend of hers to banter into microphones for an hour one Saturday afternoon. She was even kind enough to make her world-famous enchiladas for a post-session meal. The stage was set for success! Of all the best laid plans… We weren’t just jumping on the podcast bandwagon; we were all in! And we had a show name, with Celia and me sharing host duties. We planned to release the first episode for the end of October 2018. This was going to be the first of several shows the Descant Music & Media Group was going to create, produce, and release in the coming months. A website was created. We subscribed to a podcast hosting platform. Artwork was created. Content was posted on the website, podcast host, Facebook, and Twitter. On all platforms, “Songs from the Journey” was the show that was announced to drop first. But somehow, I couldn’t fully get my head around the show. Particularly, where do we start? Celia would always say “… if God has work for you to do, the walls will come down with a gentle push”. When it came to the “Songs” show, I felt like I was beating my head against a wall. It shouldn’t be that hard. Maybe I should watch more videos, read more blogs, or even sign up for an online course. That’s so not me, especially paying for lessons from someone who doesn’t know the difference between a pop filter or a windscreen. Sorry, that was so inside. Meanwhile, I listened to the playback of Beth’s demo, thought she sounded great, and asked if she would consider doing a podcast to help promote her nonprofit. She agreed, hence the birth of her show titled “Let’s Have a Conversation”. That show launched on October 29, 2018, pushing back the release date of “Songs.” So, when will our journey begin? Finding the time to produce episodes of Beth's show became challenging. Her schedule was tight, and after the novelty of recording wore off, the process became something of a drag to her. Fortunately, Celia was ready, willing, and able to step in by doing voice overs, interviews, and anything else I needed to make the show work! With a couple of weeks to go before the launch of “Songs,” I realized that Celia is very good behind the microphone! I should have known that already. I decided to create a new show and call it “ISO Peace & Healing w/Celia Boone”. I’m grateful that she agreed to do the show, because it was great! The first episode dropped November 30, 2018, pushing “Songs” back again. So, when will the damn journey begin? Notice a pattern here? All of this activity, and I still haven't produced episode one of the “Songs from the Journey“ podcast. But I did begin writing a blog. I also created and produced another podcast titled “Can I Say Something w/ Angel.” While that was fun to do, I realized that I was putting off the inevitable. And that was find a forum for me to share my thoughts and feelings, no matter how boring or bizarre! So, on May 1, 2019, I bit the bullet and released my own podcast “From Grievance to Gratitude”, same as the blog I was writing at the time. For the most part, episodes were published weekly, running between 15-20 minutes episode. Why so short? I’ll go back to another saying that Celia uses: “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” That show ran for 45 episodes, a record for me! When I completed the last episode of “From Grievance to Gratitude” September 22, 2020, I knew what my next move would be. Host another podcast, of course! In fact, three days before the last episode of “Grievance” was published, I published a three-minute teaser for my current show, “Much More to Say”! This show is a personal journal expressing my take on my life. Kind of like a "Dear Diary" so to speak. All the highs and lows of my life's experiences are on full display in a 10–20-minute format published weekly. So, when will “Songs from the Journey w/ Celia and Ken Boone” be recorded and released? My best guess, probably never! I won’t be pushing boulders up a hill, or banging my head against a wall, if I can help it. If I can't make the walls come down with a gentle push, I'm probably not interested in what's on the other side. Entering season 4 of “Much More to Say” will present a new set of challenges, or should I say, growth opportunities. I'm ready to start this new chapter. Would you like to come along for the ride? Today's Quote “Realize that if a door is closed, it's because what was behind it wasn't meant for you.” Mandy Hale, American Author |
About the HostKenneth E. Boone, Sr. is a writer, podcaster, music lover, sports enthusiast, and retired accountant. Archives
May 2024
|