The Real Memphis Mike (don't settle for imitations)

I wish I was an Okie from Muskogee...you know, that place where even squares can have a ball. It seems like too many people have lost the ability to just have FUN anymore. These days, it seems like folks can't have a good time without drinking, smoking pot, snorting something, popping a pill or belittling someone else (usually someone not present). What happened? I thought that we, as a species, were evolving. Instead, it seems that we've stunted...and as 8th graders to boot! I remember when I was a kid, I couldn't wait to be 'grown up' so that I wouldn't have to deal with childishness anymore. Alas, it seems that the grown ups have all gone off and died and left the brats in charge. Everywhere I look these days, I see rampant immaturity. No one wants to take responsibility for anything anymore. Guess what, part of taking responsibility means facing up to the mistakes we make. These days, it seems that most folks would rather sweep their follies under the prover...

You could almost say I have a ghost in my own backyard! Well, not quite my back yard but at least close to home. You'd think that living close to a cemetary, I'd be telling of ghosts there but you'd be wrong! This is the story of Peter, a little boy ghost. I've heard this story for years! My family has lived in this area since the early 20th century. Up until recently, the oldest house in Allegheny county was our family homestead, but after the death of my great aunt Alberta, the house was sold. My grandmother and great aunts used to tell me stories of prohibition and all the crazy times. I wish my great aunt Ann was alive so I could get more information on this alleged 'bordello'. (she lived right up the street...but WAS NOT a working girl! LOL)Anyhoo, on with the story... BLAHA FLOWER SHOP (Etna, Allegheny County) Shop owner David Kornely relocated his flower and gift shop to Bridge Street in Etna in 1991. He had heard the building was haunted but had no secon...

I've long said that I liken creativity to psychosis...and if you really think about it, it's probably not far from the truth. The creative mind sees/hears/smells/tastes things that don't exist until we create them. As a musician, writer and photographer, I view the world with my own weird set of senses. I hear music that no one else can hear. I see images that while visible to others, are probably not perceived the way I perceive them. I have stories running through my head at all times. It can be quite a frightening mess at times! LOL But every now and then, I can get these ideas OUT of my head and transform them into something that others can (hopefully) enjoy or at least recognize. I, for years, played in rockabilly bands almost exclusivley. During the past few years, along with some serious personal issues, I found this to be severely stifling. My photography suffered from it as did my writing and composing. I found myself becoming a caricature of myself. I did NOT enjo...