A little about Vince Gill

Vince Gill must have a great sense of humor ..... listened to him a little on NPR this morning ......

He said he wrote a song, "It's Hard to Kiss the Lips that have been Chewing Your Ass Out All Day"

Another great line, "Paul McCartney once told me to never be a name dropper."

He plays a lot of golf, and to maintain his "squeaky clean" image, he hired a "designated cusser." When asked where he found one, he replied, "They're everywhere."

I wish I had recorded the whole interview, very witty, and he sings well.

Interesting comment .... in comparison to the last entry ....

Listening to NPR on my way home and they were talking about being abroad and traveling, and how during his travels abroad he always tries to "listen" to the local people and hear what they are saying, especially about our country.

Overheard somewhere, "I don't want to move to America, I don't want my daughter brought up like Britney Spears."

Interesting perception of our country.

Tuning In Space Noise For Sounds Of Life

by NPR Staff

Earlier this month, NASA's Kepler Mission announced it had found 54 planets orbiting stars in so-called "habitable zones" in our galaxy, where the climate could be suitable for liquid water.

After the planets were found, NASA alerted the SETI Institute (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) of their locations. The institutes's scientists started listening to those planets, and while they haven't heard any intelligent life yet, there's plenty of other noise to be heard in space.

Few people know more about sounds in space than University of Iowa physics professor Don Gurnett. He's been collecting sounds using instruments on satellites and space explorers for more than 40 years. Here's some of what he's heard.

SETI chief Jill Tarter says the Institute is not listening for the kind of sound you hear with your ears.

"What we're doing is using sensors that are sensitive to electromagnetic radiation," she says.

Electromagnetic radiation — like the energy in your microwave or from your reading lamp — is just another name for energy that travels in wave form. Radio signals are also a form of wave energy. So when SETI "listens" to the cosmos, the institute is actually receiving electromagnetic radiation.

"And then, just the way your radio does, that energy can be used to make audible sound," Tarter says.

Public Broadcasting Funds Caught In Budget Battle

As Congress and the White House clash over the federal budget, House Republicans hope to include the $430 million currently slotted for the Corporation For Public Broadcasting among the cuts.

Three-quarters of that appropriation supports public television, with the final 25 percent designated for public radio. And while most of that funding goes directly to approximately 1,300 television and radio stations around the country, federal funds make up about 10 percent of NPR's budget, either through competitive grants or indirectly from member stations that pay fees to carry NPR programs. CPB also provides funding to many specific programs, such as Nova, PBS Newshour, Sesame Street and Story Corps.

Public broadcasting has been targeted for spending cuts several times in the past decade, but in the face of record deficits — and pledges from both political parties to cut spending wherever possible — many in Washington think the proposed cuts have a strong chance of passing Congress as part of a continuing budget resolution.
 
I don't think I am entirely comfortable with a government funded radio or TV network. I do listen to NPR, however, more listening, less commercials. I am personally sick of radio "talk show" hosts who  are nothing more than entertainers who have, for some reason, gained an audience. TV Anchor persons nauseate me. They take on a self importance that they do not deserve. So, what does that leave? Not much. I still like those announcements, though, "Bank robbery, at eleven." 
 
Generally, here at Coventry, in our apartment, I turn on the TV, go to Easy Listening, and that is what is on almost all day. "Oldies and Goodies"