Chasing Miracles by Rhett Butler

I have a new update on what is going on with Dallas guitarist Rhett Butler. Click HERE to read all my postings (just scroll down after you hit the link) about Rhett and about Rhett's quest to help his little brother, Ashley. Unfortunately, Ashley lost his battle with cancer this past spring, but Rhett is continuing to try to help others so they won't have to suffer like Ashley and his family.

--CD cover for Chasing Miracles (the CD also features accordionist Joel Guzman)

Rhett has sent an update to his email list and the following is an excerpt:

Back in early March, I took Ashley on a cruise while he had a break from his treatments. We were sitting in the cafeteria having a hot tea when I had an revelation. He was starting to get very sick and I could feel something bad was coming. I remember sitting in front of him at the table praying for God to help me find a way to help him. I looked down at the table and saw the tea bag sitting on a napkin. I picked it up and thought immediately about a cancer study that I had read about in Science/Transitional Medicine last December. (I have spent a thousand hours reading cancer research.)

This study, conducted by Harvard University produced a cancer vaccine that eliminated distant bulky tumors in lab animals. This is the first time this has ever happened. Until then, vaccines were only effective against minimal disease (no tumors). CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT IT.

Instead of injecting the subjects with the vaccine (made of the subjects cancer cells), they implanted the vaccine under the skin of the animal on sponge type device. This created a more persistent threat to the immune system which in turn created a 60 times greater response and the elimination of tumors! Brilliant! I thought to myself, this is exactly how a tea bag works. The tea stays in one place, the water gets the information it needs and the longer the bag stays in the water, the darker the tea.

When I got home from the trip, I called the head investigator, Dr. Robert Mooney. I asked him when they were going to start trials in humans. He told me late 2010. I then asked him if Ashley would be eligible and he said no. Sarcoma would not be studied for at least three more years.

I then thought about Dr. Slavin, Ashley's doctor in Israel. In 2007 he had created an experimental clinic to offer customized vaccines and other immunotherapies - www.ctcicenter.com I wondered if he knew about Harvard's results. In April, after researching it thoroughly, I worked up the courage to travel to Israel to propose my idea to him. Now you have to understand, this is the same man who created the treatment for the Bubble Boy syndrome. I was going half-way around to world to give a biology lesson to one of the fathers of immunotherapy.

I told him about the tea bag, gave him a print-out of the study and summarized it. He agreed that creating a sustained immune response was the goal of immunotherapy in relation to cancer. He also noted that to this point, the failure of immunotherapy was the treatment of large distant tumors. As I continued the presentation, Slavin kept saying, "That's a good idea", over and over.

The doctor then asked me to come back the next day so he could have time to read the Harvard study. He was very impressed but was not convinced that Harvard’s sponge was the best solution for an implant. He explained some other designs that he came up with that night.

Slavin asked me what I was proposing. I told him that I wanted to help him make this technology available. He then told me that he wants to start research immediately.

This summer, I started a corporation to fund the research and development of Slavin’s designs. Between a few investors and the money that I raised with “The Kid from Kilkenny” Box set, Multiple Antigen Platforms Corp. has $150,000 of the $350,000 that Slavin feels it will take to complete the first round of research and publish the results. I hope to begin later this year.

So now I have another project that I am working on for Ashley. Unfortunately, my brother will never have his shot at this treatment but we have been fighting for so long that stopping now is unacceptable, even if we can’t have our reward. This is Ashley’s legacy and his assignment to me. I will be keeping you up to date on our progress.

This why the last CD was named “Chasing Miracles”.

 

So, how can we help Rhett complete his assignment? We can purchase his music, especially Chasing Miracles and The Kid from Kilkenny boxed set, knowing Rhett will try his best to bring this treatment to those who need it.

 

Some of us have been affected by cancer more than others, but no one today is left unaffected by this disease.

Texas Book Festival, October 16-17, 2010, State Capitol Building, Austin, Texas

Click HERE for the list of authors that will be at the Texas Book Festival.

Sharpe's Trafalgar by Bernard Cornwell

I have just started the eleventh (chronological) Sharpe series book by Bernard Cornwell entitled Sharpe’s Fury. I am finished viewing all of the British TV series of Sharpe and have begun viewing The Video Diaries of Rifleman Harris created by actor Jason Salkey who played the educated Harris in the series. At this time, Sharpe’s Trafalgar (the fourth book chronologically) has been my favorite. I think there are at least a couple of reasons. The first reason is that Mr. Cornwell wrote this book as one of the seven prequels to Sharpe’s Eagle, but he wrote it in 2000. This was after he had written the majority of the series and I really enjoy his later writing style (not that it was not good previously, however). The second reason is that Richard Sharpe leaves India to go back to England and he has not yet fought in Portugal and Spain. The change of scenery from India and the hot battlefields and learning about one of the most important sea battles between the British Navy and the French and Spanish fleets was exciting. My hero, Sharpe, is leaving India to go back to England to join the Rifles, a new unit of skirmishers and marksmen. Lo and behold, on his way back, he gets embroiled in the famous Battle of Trafalgar.

The setting for Sharpe’s Trafalgar was aboard a couple of ships as Sharpe was traveling “home.” Home is a relative term for Sharpe, being as he is an orphan. Before finding and boarding the ship he chartered to take him home, Sharpe saved the life of a certain Captain Joel Chase. Sharpe had been taken advantage of by some shady Indian businessmen who had charged him to store his belongings and take them to the ship and then lost them in a “fire.” He had to buy more gear and was suspicious of the merchants. Chase also smelled a scam and went to the Indians’ home to confront them at the same time as Sharpe. Sharpe saved Chase’s life and became fast friends with Chase. Sharpe was sailing on the transport ship Calliope and Chase was the captain of the Pucelle. Later, the Calliope was “taken over” by a French warship, the Revenant, and then Chase and his ship later encountered the Calliope and saved Sharpe and others. I used the term “taken over” lightly because the captain of the Calliope, Peculiar Cromwell, really was in cahoots with the French and steered a course where the ship could be captured. (A side note: Mr. Cornwell, the author, was adopted and grew up and lived with a religious group in England called the Peculiar People. I believe that has something to do with the name of his Calliope captain.)

Before the actual battle, Sharpe fell in love with Lady Grace Hale, one of the passengers on the ships. She was a beautiful lady married to Lord William Hale, a higher up in the political scene in London, who was a stuffy, cold man. Sharpe and Lady Grace managed to have a secret relationship throughout the journey. Of course, Sharpe had to take care of a blackmailer. However, Lady Grace’s husband did find out about the relationship and tried to pay them back during the battle. Not smart with Sharpe aboard.

The battle itself and the strategies involved concerning the British versus the French and Spanish were very enlightening to me, someone who knew virtually nothing about this time period. Admiral Nelson makes an appearance in the book before his tragic death. Mr. Cornwell provided an excellent map of the positioning of the ships just west off of Cape Trafalgar at the start of the battle. There is also a diagram of a typical ship from the time period, denoting the different decks and quarters.

--Rear-Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson, 1758-1805, Lemuel Francis Abbott, Oil on canvas, 63.5 x 76.2 cm (25 x 30 in), National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, England

It is amazing that Sharpe seems to turn up in every important battle in India, Copenhagen, Portugal, Spain, and at the most important sea battle where Admiral Nelson meets his end. That is ok by me, but you have to know the total improbability of it. But I enjoyed seeing Sharpe out of his element aboard ships on the sea, in love with a well-placed woman of society who loved him despite his lower status, and yet still fighting and making a difference for England and King George.

Since this novel was set aboard a couple of ships, I learned some new nautical words. Here is a sampling:

cutlass: a short curving sword forermly used by sailors on warships

forecastle: forward part of the upper deck of a ship
futtock: one of the curved timbers scarfed together to form the lower part of the compound rib of a ship
grapnel: a small anchor with usually four or five flukes used especially to recover a sunken object or to anchor a small boat
halliard: a rope or tackle for hoisting and lowering something (as sails)
hawser: thick cable or rope used in mooring or towing a ship
lubber: a clumsy seaman
matelot: sailor
mizzen: a fore-and-aft sail set on the mizzenmast–the mast aft or next aft of the mainmast in a ship
orlop deck: the lowest deck in a ship having four or more decks
sutler: a civilian provisioner to an army post often with a shop on the post

Thanks for reading more about my current obsession: Sharpe. And stay tuned.

Worldless Wednesday: It Finally Rained in Dallas and Broke the 100-Degree Spell

Monday Meme

Thomas at My Porch posted a meme last week that I enjoyed so I decided to copy his . . .

1. A favorite childhood book?

Smoky: The Cow Horse by Will James. I was into horse stories and I read and reread this book many times. 

2. What are you reading right now?

Sharpe's Escape by Bernard Cornwell is the tenth Sharpe book by Mr. Cornwell that I have read and can't seem to stop . . .

3. What books do you have on request at the library?

Sharpe's Fury by Bernard Cornwell

4. Bad book habit?

Forgetting to renew books from the library and/or turning them in late.

5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?

Sharpe's Escape by Bernard Cornwell

6. Do you have an e-reader?

Yes, but I am noticing how much I avoid it because I just like real books better. I have barely downloaded anything except for some free classics and some Agatha Christie books. What a waste of money for me.

7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?

One at a time.

8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?

Not too much, and I don't write about every book I read.

9. Least favorite book you read this year (so far?)

Under the Banner of Heaven by John Krakauer. This book was well written and interesting but very depressing. Reading about religious zealots who murder remind me why I like to read Christopher Hitchens' writings.

10. Favorite book you’ve read this year?

The first book I read this year was The Help by Kathryn Stockett and it is my favorite. I might have to get the audiobook and listen. I hear that a movie is being cast.

11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?

Not too often. Sometimes I am surprised by what I like. I can read everything from classic literature to James Patterson. 

12. What is your reading comfort zone?

I enjoy historical fiction or literary fiction or biography and memoir more than most nonfiction or any other fiction I call "fluff."

13. Can you read on the bus?

I can read on the train, but I don't work on the train line anymore and have to drive. Taking the train was an awesome time for me and lasted about 3 years until my company changed locations. I read every day to and from work when I had a seat or if I wasn't sitting with someone from work. It was lovely getting to and from work with little stress.

14. Favorite place to read?

I like to read in my office at lunch. My computer is handy to look up anything. I also like to go to the SMU library and go into the older stacks where I am surrounded by really old books. 

15. What is your policy on book lending?

I borrow and lend. Some I don't care if I ever see again. I don't lose anyone's books that I have borrowed and always return them, albeit slowly.

16. Do you ever dog-ear books?

Rarely. 

17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?

Never. 

18. Not even with text books?

I always thought about resale value with textbooks and was always annoyed with other people's highlights and notes in used books.

19. What is your favorite language to read in?

English, my only language to read in.

20. What makes you love a book?

A good story that I can't get out of my mind for the whole time I am reading it and that I think about for a long time afterwards.

21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?

I will recommend a book if I personally enjoyed it or if I think someone else will gain some enjoyment. If someone asks me for something to read, I usually have a recommendation or stack to share.

22. Favorite genre?

Historical fiction.

23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)

Science fiction. 

24. Favorite biography?

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson. I learned so much about Ben and his story, especially about his overseas travels.

25. Have you ever read a self-help book?

Of course! 

26. Favorite cookbook?

I don't have a favorite cook book. I do use recipes from Lean Bodies Homestyle Helpings by Dr. Cliff Sheats and Cathy Coker more than most of my others. Those church cookbooks made to raise money always have some good recipes.

27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?

Angel Time by Anne Rice. I usually can't put down Ms. Rice's books and her new character Toby O' Dare is quite interesting. I know she is working on a sequel and can't wait to read it. 

28. Favorite reading snack?

Popcorn.

29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.

The Secret by Rhonda Byrne

30. How often do you agree with critics about a book?I

I try to read the actual book and then read reviews about it. Of course that cannot happen all the time. Most of the critics can tell if the a book will be worthy of reading or not. However, there are exceptions. Usually I have forgotten what the critics say by the time I get around to reading a particular book.

31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?

I tend to only review books that I really like and want to share, a flaw of which I am aware.

32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose?

French.

33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?

The Baltimore Catechism

34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?

Ulysses by James Joyce

35. Favorite Poet?

Shakespeare

36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?

Two to four. I am really getting into having books sent to my library instead of driving all over town to another branch. 

37. How often have you returned books to the library unread?

Many times. If I buy or borrow a book that is more interesting to me then I return whatever I checked out. 

38. Favorite fictional character?

Right now it is Richard Sharpe, a soldier under Lord Wellington in the Napoleonic wars, created by Bernard Cornwell.

39. Favorite fictional villain?

Javert in Les Miserables.

40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?

Mystery fluff like Stuart Woods' Stone Barrington, Ed Eagle, and Holly Barker books. 

41. The longest I’ve gone without reading.

Probably a couple of months.

42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.

Kim by Rudyard Kipling.

43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?

Cats that wail until their needs are met.

44. Favorite film adaptation of a novel?

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird

45. Most disappointing film adaptation?

My Sister's Keeper based on the book by Jodi Picoult

46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?

Maybe around $70 for books all for me and not gifts.

47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?

Not too often. However, I read all the pages before Chapter 1 such as the copyright info and dedications.

48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?

If I am not enjoying a book or see no redeeming value and don't feel like I would miss anything by stopping. 

49. Do you like to keep your books organized?

Not presently, it would seem. Normally, I am very organized. 

50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?

I like to keep the ones that I especially enjoyed or have gotten signed by an author. I am annoyed when I let someone read a signed book and they never return it to me. I donate or give away all the others.

51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?

Not purposely avoiding, but there are so many classics I have not read.

52. Name a book that made you angry.

O Pioneers! by Willa Cather

53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did?

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t?

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

55. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?

Janet Evanovich. That Stephanie Plum can be funny at times and in small doses. 

ARTnews Magazine

I have been reading ARTnews magazine for a few years now but did not know some interesting facts about the publication. For instance, I didn’t realize that this gem of a magazine was begun in 1902. 1902! I also did not know that some of the articles have been written through the years by such luminaries as Bernard Berenson, Pete Hamill, Steve Martin, Francine Prose, Harold Rosenberg, and William Carolos Williams. All I do know is that I enjoy reading the 11 issues a year, I enjoy looking at the gallery ads that are interspersed throughout the magazine, and I enjoy the knowledge gained from the somewhat short, concise articles that do not take hours to read.

In the current issue, I enjoyed reading a book review of Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World’s Stolen Treasures by Robert K. Wittman with John Shiffman. After reading numerous articles about the thefts from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, I really want to read this book by a former FBI agent telling of some of the cases he worked on previously. Now Mr. Wittman is a private art-recovery specialist. The current issue also lists the top 200 art collectors in the world, of no real importance to me, but of utmost importance to many collectors, directors, curators, and scholars. One of the more amusing articles concerns the @ symbol and MoMA’s acquisition of the sign, written by Carly Berwick.

I look forward to the next issue that will include a list of artists supposedly “forgotten by art history.”

Wordless Wednesday: 3 Paintings from the Kimbell in Ft. Worth

--The Cardsharps, Caravaggio, c. 1594, Oil on canvas, 94 cm x 131 cm (37 in x 52 in), Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas, USA

--The Madonna and Child, Giovanni Bellini, c. 1465, Tempera, possibly oil and gold, on panel, 92.5 x 58.4 cm (32.5 x 23 in), Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas, USA

--The Torment of St. Anthony, Michelangelo Buonarroti, c. 1487-88, Tempera and oil on panel, 47 x 35 cm (18.5 x 13.25 in), Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas, USA

August Etcetera . . .

In case you might not have heard, a new class was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio last weekend. One of our own Dallas Cowboys, Emmitt Smith, was one of the inductees. HERE is a link to his emotional Hall of Fame induction speech.

Congratulations, Emmitt!

--from www.emmittsmith.com

**********

The Dallas summer heat is wearing me down. So many consecutive days of temperatures above 100 degrees is draining. And then it does not really cool down at night. Here is an example of what happens when you stay outside for too long (sent to me from my friend Sandra):

**********

Allie Baker from The Hemingway Project has posted another enlightening interview. HERE is a link to her current dialogue with John Hemingway, author in his own right and grandson of Ernest.

--Strange Tribe: A Family Memoir

My Sharpe Update

Who is this Sharpe character?

Richard Sharpe is a fictional character created by British author Bernard Cornwell and first introduced in Sharpe's Eagle in 1981 (the 8th book chronologically). As of today, Mr. Cornwell has written 24 books/short stories  with Sharpe as the main character. Sharpe is a British soldier serving under Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) in the Peninsular War. 

What rank is Sharpe in Wellington's army?

Since I am currently reading Sharpe's Gold (the 9th book chronologically), Sharpe is a Captain. By the time the series ends, Sharpe will be a Lieutenant Colonel. This is highly unusual, as Sharpe was born an orphan in the poor section of London to a whore and grew up in an orphanage. He was going to be forced to be a chimney sweep but he ran away and later joined the army to avoid prison. Since he is poor and can't buy rank like the wealthy, it is unusual that he has been promoted and is an officer. This is a difficult situation for Sharpe, as he is not accepted by the men (at first) as a "proper officer" and he is not accepted by the other officers as he is not a "gentleman."

Who are some of the other characters in the Sharpe books?

The most important other character is Patrick Harper, Sharpe's nemesis at first, as he is the leader of the "Chosen Men" that Sharpe is given to command. Harper is a tall, dark Irishman from Donegal. As Sharpe is promoted through the series, so is Harper. He begins the series as a Sergeant and by the time the novels end he is a Regimental Sergeant-Major. Harper becomes Sharpe's best friend and saves Sharpe's life countless times. Daragh O'Malley plays Harper in the TV series.

Daniel Hagman is one of the members of the 95th Rifles that Sharpe is deemed to command. He is a poacher by trade and is the oldest of the Chosen Men. Sharpe relies on Hagman to make his mark hit  at whatever target Sharpe needs hitting, as Hagman is the best shot of the lot. John Tams is Hagman in the TV series and co-wrote the music for the entire series.

Isaiah Tongue is one of the other Chosen Men. He is an educated man, with a great liking of the drink.

Obadiah Hakeswill is a Sergeant who truly was Sharpe's nemesis. He was responsible for enlisting Sharpe in the army on a recruiting mission and has nothing but hatred for Sharpe as he is promoted up the ranks. Sharpe tries to kill him a couple of times in the early novels but somehow Hakeswill survives. He is a nutcase who is cruel, nasty, and thinks he cannot die since he survived a hanging when he was a boy. He has special affinity for his dead mother whom he thinks gives him special protection. Pete Postlethwaite played the despicable Hakeswill on TV.

Captain Joel Chase is a Navy officer that befriends Sharpe after Sharpe saves his life in India. Sharpe serves on his ship as he is traveling from India back to England and they are caught up in the Battle of Trafalgar. Sharpe also meets with him again in Denmark and they serve together in the Battle of Copenhagen. 

Lady Grace Hale falls in love with Sharpe on Captain Chase's ship, the Pucelle, when she is returning to England from India with her husband, Lord William Hale. She is a very distant cousin to Sir Arthur Wellesley and creates a scandal by taking up residence with Sharpe in London after the Battle of Trafalgar. Her husband was going to kill her before Sharpe intervened. Her and Sharpe's happiness is short-lived, however, as she dies in childbirth, as well as her and Sharpe's son.

Louisa Parker is a young lady Sharpe saves in Spain and whose company Sharpe enjoys. She really likes Sharpe, too, but decides to marry a Spaniard, Major Blas Vivar. She will play a role in the last novel. 

There are many more interesting characters in these first 9 of 24 historical novels that I have read, but these have stood out to me thus far.

You have mentioned the books, but what about the TV series?

As I mentioned in my earlier post about Rifleman Harris, I saw the last two shows of the series when they were first broadcast earlier this year on American television via PBS' Masterpiece series. These two shows piqued my interest in all things Sharpe and so I began reading Mr. Cornwell's novels. Also, I began watching the videos previously broadcast on British television starting in 1993. I am waiting to receive Sharpe's Waterloo, the third to the last show of the series. Since I saw the last two shows first, chronologically after Sharpe's Waterloo, I will be done with the original series, I am sad to write.

Not to worry, however, as Jason Salkey, who played Rifleman Harris in the TV series, has created video diaries of the filming of the Sharpe series. After these, I really will be distraught to have my Sharpe video watching come to an end. 

The TV series has provided lots of entertainment for me. I really like the casting and the stories. They follow the books to an extent, with changes interspersed, but they have been very enjoyable. I had only known Sean Bean (Sharpe) as a Bond villain and have not seen any of the Lord of the Rings movies (Boromir). Bean was such good casting as Sharpe, it is hard to picture Mr. Cornwell's original description of Sharpe (long, dark hair). Sean Bean is Sharpe. Mr. Cornwell also admits to picturing Sean Bean as Sharpe as he was writing the many prequels to Sharpe's Eagle. 

Why do you like these books so very much?

I really enjoy reading historical fiction. Knowing almost nothing about the Napoleonic wars, I have learned a great deal by reading these novels. Before I started the novels, I did read the Rifleman Harris book so that I could read one of the many source books for Mr. Cornwell's historical fiction and am glad I did. I usually like to read the book before seeing a movie, but in the case of Sharpe, it will take quite a while to get through all of the books. I am glad that there are 24 books as compared to 16 videos. Also, at the end of each book, Mr. Cornwell provides a historical note about the certain battle and real characters, and many of the books also contain maps on the inside covers.

Mr. Cornwell's series has a hero, villains, inclusions of true stories with true characters, and writes in such a manner as to keep the reader hooked. Just like many real life heroes, Sharpe has many flaws, but usually does the right thing knowing he has to live with himself when all is said and done. He is a soldier and enjoys killing, as long as it is either in war or for a just cause. He shows great compassion for many others and is usually loyal to his country in the face of great temptation. Time after time he is set up by the officers for failure, but time and time again he prevails. 

Wordless Wednesday: From the South of France

--Photos courtesy of my friend Caryn from the south of France, on vacation from teaching at a university in Sarajevo!