Meanwhile, Back Over On The New Site ...

Hey, how about that? Looks like I'm still able to log into Blogspot. Well, before someone at Google unknowingly changes my password and freezes me out, I might as well take advantage of the situation and share a few links to some of the new content that's up over on The Part-Time Buddhist Pop Culture Guru.

I guess I didn't really consider it while I was secretly plotting out my next move behind my readers' backs all those years, but, as several friends and acquaintances concerned about my well-being and/or self-esteem have been pointing out to me, my new essays are kind of ... long? It's probably inappropriate for me to even describe the new site as a "blog"; it's more like an unpublished collection of non-fiction essays, with each "post" acting as more like a chapter in an imaginary book.

I dunno. I like to read long essays. I like to write long essays. Maybe it's not for everybody. Maybe this should be a podcast instead. Maybe my new site is more in the realm of a "personal project" than something that is going to appeal to the TikTok generation. Maybe I'm just exorcizing my "frustrated English professor" demons for all to see on the internet, you know, getting it out of my system. Maybe it's is the thing that I work on while I figure out the thing that I really should be working on (but isn't that what I kept telling myself while spending 10 years posting about '80s music on Cosmic American Blog?).

Whatever. Since I already have the drafts of about eight other essays more or less in the can, I might as well spruce those up and throw those online at some point.

A couple of other bits:

1) Given that my new essay-publishing rate is roughly every six to eight weeks, instead of the old two to three weeks (hard to believe that, once upon a time, my publishing rate on this blog used to be once every five days!), I've added a "Subscribe" feature at the bottom of the site's home page, so that anyone who subscribes will receive an email notification every time I post a new essay. Look at me with all the technology.

(Wait, Zrbo's new blog has a "Subscribe" feature too? God damn it.)

2) Here's how you know I've truly gone "professional" with this one: behold the Part-Time Buddhist Pop Culture Guru's Instagram and Twitter (aka "X" aka "Ex-Lax" aka "Professor X"?) accounts. Nothing like that "circa 2015" social media know-how to send my readership skyrocketing. To paraphrase Genesis, follow me and I'll follow you.

The real news, of course, is that the countdown has begun. If you'd prefer to skip the long versions of the essays, here are the short versions - but the short versions might pique your curiosity and induce you to check out the long versions? I've already made it quite a ways past #9 on the countdown already, but ... I'll post those links some other time.

10. The Wild Bunch (Peckinpah, 1969)

Q: Can a western be gory, grisly, rude, crude, barbaric, depraved … and heart-warming?

A: In the case of The Wild Bunch, my 10th favorite movie of the ‘60s, the answer just might be “Yes.” To paraphrase Pike Bishop: “If they move, rank ‘em!”

10. Sweetheart of the Rodeo (The Byrds, 1969)

Q: What happens when some unknown, drunken pipsqueak from Florida takes over one of the premier American rock bands of its era?

A: My 10th favorite album of the '60s is what happens.

9. 8 1/2 (Fellini, 1963)

Wait, you mean to tell me that this perplexing, fragmented, hallucinatory, self-referential European art film ... is a comedy? Is it possible that my 9th favorite film of the '60s was so named for the number of times one might need to view it in order to fully understand it? Ciao!

9. The Doors (The Doors, 1967)

"Meet me at the back of the blue bus!" Uh, actually Jim, I'm getting off at the next stop, but thanks anyway. Come on baby take a chance with my 9th favorite album of the '60s, before you slip into unconsciousness, ideally. The indie hipster Millennials don't know, but the ... little girls understand?

What the World Needs Now, is Blogs, Sweet Blogs...

A door, with hinges long since rusted, creaks loudly as it opens. A sliver of light shines through the now opened portal. A figure walks in, towards a cloth covered object in the middle of the room. Pulling at the cloth reveals an old microphone underneath. The figure steps towards the microphone and grabs it. After adjusting some knobs the squeaky sound of feedback briefly fills the air. The figure approaches the mic and speaks:

Hey, uh, oh wow, I wasn't really expecting anyone to still be here. I just came here to tell ya... well, to tell ya that I've moved on from here. I mean, I'm still doing the same old blogging thing, just, well, not here anymore. You might have heard that the other part of this duo also recently left to start his own site. I think if you look around on this site you can find a link to it. Something to do with Buddhists and pop-culture. I dunno, you'll have to go have a look for yourself.

As for me. Me? Well I started over at one of these modern sites. What do they call it again? Substack? Yeah, that's the fancy name they gave it, "Substack". Actually it's zrbo.substack.com. Well, anyway, I'm over there now. Not doing a whole lot, but I think there might be some album reviews coming soon. Maybe I'll see you over there, huh?

I gotta admit, I didn't expect to find anyone still here. The bar closed a while ago, the chairs are up, and I thought everyone had gone home. Why don't you go find a new home too, ya know? I just gave you two great places to go check out.

As for me being here? Well, honestly, I just came 'cause I never received my last paycheck. Was kinda hoping to maybe find it around here. Maybe it was left in one of the tills? I dunno, but once I find it I'll be leaving here and I don't got no plans to come back. Anyway, been good knowin' ya and all those great conversations we had... So uh, hopefully we'll cross paths again, and it's been great to getch to know ya. But for now, goodnight and goodbye.