Pride - In The Name of What?

June, aka Gay Pride Month is coming to a close. Thank God.

Now, before any of you point fingers at me, call me names, and set forth with vitriol, allow me to state this clearly: I am a true friend of the LGBT community, not just here but everywhere. I have close friends and family in this community and I have always been welcomed by the community. I love all people, for that is the root of my faith.

 Gay Pride is, and I hate to have to be the one to tell you this, a sham! It is just another example of the greedy exploiting people for their own personal gains.

Yes, YOU should be proud of who YOU are. Who you are attracted to or sleep with should be just one miniscule aspect of your total being. Sadly, there are those in this world who have issues with it...but, those are their issues to deal with. Not yours or mine.  We should, each and every one of us, be proud of who we are, what we do, how we do it, and who our lives touch. To deliberately stand apart from the community at large and demand to noticed for such a trivial matter as sexual preference is absurd and seperatist. It is self-segregation...and that is how those who wish to exploit want to keep it.

Pittsburgh Pride is essentially run by the Delta Foundation, whose stated mission is "to increase awareness and understanding of and improve the quality of life for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in Western Pennsylvania.”   In 2012, the Delta Foundation had no less than 44 corporate sponsors. One would assume that this, plus private donations, would cover the costs of Pittsburgh's Pride celebrations.

Sure, there are permit fees and licensing for such events. Upon researching this, I've found that the costs are very reasonable. Example, for a street fair/carnival, it's only $44 per day. There are bound to be costs involved for liability insurance, security, etc., but still, these costs are minimal and one would think covered by the corporate sponsorhips/private donations. Instead, the Delta Foundation seems to be making a nice chunk of change. Different events within the Pride program have their own costs but on top of those are these costs:

• Walking Contingent $30
• Vehicle $160
• Float $160
• Vendors:
• Non-profit Community Outreach $300
• Commercial/Business $500
• Food Vendor $600
• Additional Items:
• Chairs $20 ea
• Tables $50 ea
• Tent  $150 ea

$20 for a folding chair? Really?

Now, think how many different groups who feel their presence at this event is a must. That adds up to a nice chunk of change...allegedly being funneled back into the "community" but more likely being funneled into Delta's pockets.  (Note: this is just our local area, it could be similar or different where YOU live)

Pittsburgh Pride has been happening every year for a number of years now, yet I see no real change in the community or how the community is viewed by others. As I've said for years, most people really don't care who you sleep with. Sure, there are some with issues...but leave them to deal with it themselves.

If you really want to show pride in your own community, start at home. Be the best person you can be. If you want to make an event of it, allow me to suggest this: Rather than look for an excuse to partaaaayyyyyy,  why not do something for the community at large? Organize groups to help feed the hungry, clothe the homeless, clean up an area, paint houses for the underprivileged...anything...just don't be so damned self-serving! Serve your community! Show the world that the LGBT community is a POSITIVE force. Show that the LGBT community are GOOD PEOPLE. Show the love! By taking the time to just parade around, waving rainbow flags and getting drunk/high, all that is being done is showing the community at large that the LGBT community is nothing more than yet another self-segregating, self-serving bunch of whiners. If you want equality and inclusion, then be part of the community at large! Sure, there will always be idiots out there who don't like anyone...but they are more of a minority than anyone else. They just tend to be the most vocal.

I've wanted to write this piece for a few weeks now. I originally chose not to, until 2 seperate incidents happened this week that truly upset me.

On Tuesday, a friend who tends bar at a gay establishment, was beat up by heterosexuals. The reason? They came into his establishment, obviously drunk, and he refused to serve them. Just last night, a heterosexual friend of mine went to a gay establishment and was told by the server that she would not be served because the server "doesn't like straight people".

Both of these are truly sad incidents showing how little Gay Pride effects things. It shows that there are still assholes on both sides of the fence.

To the straight men who were denied service for being too drunk, guess what? You wouldn't have been served in any bar! And sadly for you, from what I hear, you were publicly and physically embarassed by a flamboyent gay man who is more of a bad ass than YOU!

To my friend who was denied service in the gay bar because the bartender "doesn't like straight people", have no fear. I've been told that the manager has had words with this bartender and this will never happen again.

If YOU have an issue with anyone; gay, straight, black, white, or plaid...the issue is with YOU, not them. You may well ask yourself WHY you have an issue. Don't rely on religion or politics for YOUR reasoning. You are neither a god nor a politician. You were blessed with a mind. Use it.

Be proud of yourself for who you are and what you do. As I've heard many times in life, never do anything that your mother wouldn't be proud of. Who you sleep with is NOT a reason to be proud. That's like being proud because you need oxygen to live. It's not a choice. It just is what it is.

Beat On The Brat With A Baseball Bat! Oh Yeah!

If you pay attention to the news at all, you've no doubt at least heard about the video of the bus matron being verbally assaulted by teenagers on the school bus. While the ol' gal, I thought, handled herself pretty well...the little idiots did push her to tears. This is just sick. This lady is a mom and a grandmother. I wonder how those little turds would like their own mom or grandmother being treated that way?

This brings up the age old debate over child discipline. There's the "spare the rod and spoil the child" school of thought, and then there's everything else. I agree with "spare the rod....". While discussing this video today, I remembered my own upbringing.

As kids, we knew that if we were caught doing something bad, we were going to get in trouble. This usually meant getting whacked and possibly grounded. I never thought grounding was much of a deterrent. I mean really...my room is where all of my stuff was! Records,my stero,  my own TV, my books, my smokes, my guitar...all in my room. Sure...punish me....make me stay home...in my room...with everything I enjoy! But the fear of being hit...that was a whole other story.

Given the choice, we'd have rather been hit by our mom. No...it's not that she was less deadly due to her size (a whopping 5' and maybe 120 pounds)...but we knew that if mom whacked us, it was WHAM, maybe followed by a BAM, and it was done. She got her point across. We would know that we'd screwed up big time and to not do it again. But dad, on the other hand, would give you a beating and follow it up with an hours long, rambling lecture. I mean really...how is a kid supposed to pay attention to a lecture when they're blubbering and taking a mental inventory of their own body parts, wondering if it is really possible to have one's butt broken? Either way...our parents did one helluva job disciplining us. None of this ever made me hate my parents. It never made me develop "trust issues" or any of that nonsense. What it did do, was instill in us a sense of right and wrong and actions having consequences.

While discussing this bus incident today, I was reminded of the last time my dear mum ever whacked me. I was about 12 or 13 years old. I had been getting mouthy and a bit big for my britches at the time; I do remember that. What I don't recall, was the actual crime I was accused of. Needless to say, I had either done something I wasn't supposed to or hadn't done something I was supposed to. Probably the latter. It probably involved yard work. (we had a huge yard and I seemed to have been granted the title Unofficial Caretaker of the Lawn From Hell) Anyway, it was a Saturday afternoon and I was sprawled out on the couch watching monster movies and napping. I was sleeping on my stomach. Mom was explosive that day. Having pushed her buttons one time too many for the day, she grabbed Dad's old fraternity pledge paddle (I swear that thing was 5 feet long and made of solid oak!) and came over to the couch, assumed the samurai position, and landed a serious THWACK right on my fat ass! I bounced up off of the couch and did the Barney Rubble mid-air run as mum reminded me of what I was supposed to be doing.  To this day, I get a good laugh whenever I think about that incident. Sure there were others (like the time I knew I was going to get a spanking and stuck a plate down my pants....NOT my best idea ever!) but this particular incident has endeared itself to me. Our mum died when I was 13. I was already towering over her (one of the few people outside of Billy Barty or Danny De Vito that I've ever towered over) yet I loved, feared, and respected my mum. Still do. Our dad and I had a tumultuous relationship until I was in my late 20s. That was around the time that he and I realized that what we didn't like about the other was seeing ourselves there. We're a lot alike in a lot of ways. Lucky for me, I never felt the need to wear plaid flares. Dad did. Still an embarrassing thought.

Most of the folks that I know over the age of 30, had parents who disciplined the good ol' fashioned way! Using fear as a motivator. And trust me, it works! It's been the parenting style of choice for thousands of years.  Sure, there's something to be said for reasoning with a child...provided your child is intelligent enough and capable to understand it. Children are just that; children. Their minds don't automatically develop. They need parents, and society as a whole, to help them learn. A parent's job is NOT to be their kid's best friend. The parent's job is to be the PARENT.  Sure, that means making the tough decisions and having to be the bad guy from time to time. For some, it may mean being the bad guy ALL of the time! Let's face it, some kids are just rotten little shits.

I look at a lot of kids today and see messed up little individuals who well never amount to much...unless being cruel, mouthy dickheads with amazing gaming skills ever becomes a real profession. I'm not saying ALL kids are like this...but alas, too many are. Many folks blame society, or TV, or song lyrics, or movies. Well guess what? It's the parents' job to monitor ALL of that when it comes to their children.  When I was a kid, we would watch some pretty violent war/crime movies with dad and he would always explain things to us. Mind you, dad also ruined Phantasm for me...explaining that there is no blood vessel in the head large enough to produce that amount of blood. Thanks dad. Really. One of my fave scenes from the movie...ruined by you and your damned medical school book learnin'!

I never got to be a full-time dad. I always thought I'd be good at it. I have been lucky enough, however, to help raise a number of kids. Some, to this day, consider me the only father figure they've ever known...and for that, I am grateful. They've all grown into wonderful young adults. Not a serial killer or hobo among them! I disciplined them the old fashioned way too. When possible, I would appeal to their intellect. Learning when to do which, I found, was the key.

Thinking back, my brother Bill and I may have been the only 2 of us kids to ever get hit by our grandmother. Bill, Lord only knows what he did...but me, I got mouthy. A life-long curse of mine. I often forget that people can hear my inner dialogue. Especially when I verbalize my inner dialogue.

I made some wise-crack that really riled Gram up. She taught me what old school really is! She sent me out to the yard to cut a switch. I came back with some wimpy little twig. That seemed to piss her off even more. She went out and came back with a sapling! She then lit me up with it! I'm 46 and still remember that! And I ALWAYS treated my grandmother with love and respect after that. And I still treat ALL women with respect, thanks to that.

Yes. Our parents did hit us from time to time. It didn't ruin any of us. It didn't turn us into whiners or sociopaths. It turned us into reasonably intelligent, caring, decent adults. When I see a lot of the kids today...I worry.

Spare the rod and spoil the child.

Beat On The Brat!!!!!!!!

Music Soothes The Savage Beasties!

There's too much negativity on the internet these days. Political crap, negative rants (yes, I'm guilty), conspiracy theorism, etc. I wish there were more positive posts...so as I'm a "put up or shut up" kinda guy, here ya go!

I'm sure most of you have seen this picture before:

This was the logo for the old RCA Victor label. Nipper hearing his master's voice. Iconic in it's own way.

Anyhoo, it's long been said that music doth sooth the savage beast. Let me share a personal story about just this!

I used to have 2 weiner dogs; Otis & Dixie. Otis was a pure bred miniature Red Dachshund and Dixie was a Beagle/Dachshund mix. Really two of the best pets/companions/roomies a guy could ever want.  Otis was one helluva chick magnet too! Take that dog for a walk and the women gathered round!

Anyhoo, when one has two dogs in the same house, there's bound to be all sorts of noisy moments. These two were no exception.

One day, I was in my dining room (which I tend to use as more of a workspace than actual room for eating), working on a guitar on the dining room table. The dogs were chasing each other all over the house, going nuts as usual.  At one point, they came running into the dining room, still barking and chasing and acting like four-legged fools.

I had an old boom box in the room and was listening to a 2 disc set by Les Paul. It was his output prior to teaming up with Mary Ford. Lots of Rhubarb Red and Georgia White and Les Paul Trio stuff. 

As the dogs were carrying on, the track "It's Been A Long, Long Time" came on. It was Les Paul & his trio backing Bing Crosby. Well damn it if the dogs didn't stop in their tracks at the sound of ol' Bing's voice! They stopped, looked over at the boom box, and slowly, almost reverently, walked up to the boom box, sat down, cocked their heads and just stared. It was like a 21st century version of the old RCA Victor picture!!!!! Oh how I wish I'd had a camera handy!

This was no fluke I found out. These 2 dogs just LOVED some Bing Crosby! Whenever something by Bing would come on...whether it be on a CD, the radio, TV, etc., they would stop whatever they were doing and come sit and listen. Seriously! It was a hoot!

I was still gigging a LOT back then, so I found that if I was going to be gone for anything more than 4-5 hours, all I had to do was put a disc of Bing Crosby music on continuous play, and the dogs would be well-behaved the whole time I was gone!

OK...that's pretty much the whole story. The weiner dogs are both long gone now. I miss them. My cat is pretty cool...but she's not as characterful as the weiners were. Don't get me wrong...she's a character...just more laid back.

Take good care of your pets. They're taking care of YOU in their own way.

Woof! Meow! Chirp! etc!!!!

Bullies, Bullshit, and Sharon Motherfucking Needles

UPDATED JUNE 13, 2012...CHECK AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE - MM

Pittsburgh's city council declared June 12, 2012 as Sharon Needles Day. What The Fuck?
With all of the serious business that they should be tending to, they opted to jump on a media-based bandwagon and glorify a person who should not be glorified. What a crock.

OK, before the hate mail starts (and trust me kids, I do get hate mail from time to time), allow me to state this: I've met Sharon/Aaron many times. I try to find the good in everyone. I find it difficult to find much good in this person who dropped out of school, has based their entire performance "style" on a friend's unique style (and not given the credit due), who has shown himself to be a nasty, insecure and hateful person.

Sure, "Sharon Needles" likes to think he is the new voice for bullied kids everywhere. I think that's just fucked up. If "Sharon Needles" had a tough childhood out there in Iowa, I feel for him...but...he is not the 1st person to have a tough childhood and won't be the last. There have always been bullies and there always will be. Sad but true. That said, it's how one learns to deal with life's adversities (bullies, for instance) that defines one's character. In Sharon Needles' case, he decided it was easier to drop out, run away, and pretend to be someone else. I think that's just sad.

For those unfamiliar with Sharon Needles/Aaron Coady, he is a local Pittsburgh drag performer who has been enjoying some fame and notoriety for having been declared the winner on Ru Paul's Drag Race (a reality/competition show on Logo). Anyone who was familiar with his performances prior to making it onto national TV, knows that Sharon's work has always been derivative, classless, and more often than not, in bad taste. Sharon has also been known to be racist. His use of the word "nigger" onstage at the Blue Moon, as well as dressing in Klan gear, created some minor furor in the local community. Sharon's reasoning for this and other acts is always to say it's "art" or to say he was "joking". Sorry kids...that doesn't fly. You can't unring a bell.

Pittsburghers are great at jumping on a winning bandwagon. Being the "City of Champions", we LIKE winners. Unfortunately, as is often the case, people jump on these bandwagons without knowing much about it. I remember when the Penguins were heading for their 1st Stanley Cup, and people who for years had ignored the Penguins and hockey in general, all attempted to become instance scholars on the subject. It sickened me to the point of no longer enjoying hockey. I don't like the "scenester" mentality. Never have. Never will.  What amazes me is that Pittsburgh still has a baseball team...but I digress.

OK, so Sharon appears to be trying to do some good with his new found fame. Well isn't that special. Before I continue, allow me to remind you of a national leader from the 20th century who felt that children were so at risk of social ills, that he started numerous youth programs, many based on physical fitness. It became more than a fad, it became a national way of life. That leader was Adolph Hitler. I'm sure I've seen picture of him petting a puppy too. It pays to look at the whole picture.

During the City Council ceremony today, Needles was quoted as saying, "A win for Sharon Needles is a win for every single kid in this city who's still being bullied," Again...What The Fuck? Sharon Needles spends most of his time partying. I don't see that as the most positive role model. Hey, I'll never begrudge anyone for enjoying a drink or experimenting with chemicals. In my life, I've done my share and probably yours too. That doesn't make me a role model.

If Sharon Needles is going to receive kudos and accolades for doing nothing more than stealing Veruca La Pirahna's schtick, let's give REAL credit where it's due: Local drag phenomenon Marsha Mellow, deserves more credit that she'll ever receive. Mellow doesn't call attention to her good deeds, but for sake of argument, I will. For years, Mellow has been the kindest person in the world to a local man with retardation. This guy likes to take photographs of celebrities and interesting people. Over the years, he has seen Marsha Mellow perform at different functions around town and Mellow has ALWAYS gone out of her to not only be nice to him but to BEFRIEND him. Mellow has also encouraged others to do the same. This has had an incredibly positive effect on this man's self-esteem. Mellow, while being known for her vitriolic stage persona, is actually a sweet person who if often first in line to help those in need.

Another local drag performer that I would like to draw attention to is Mahogany. If you know the local drag scene at all, you know Mahogany. "Mo", as I've long called her, is one of my best friends. Born an only child to a single mom and growing up in the projects of the Hill District, Mo knows bullying better than most. Mo has always been strong enough to overcome it. I can also tell you that Mo is probably the most caring human being you will ever meet. When push comes to shove, there is no one I would rather have in my corner. Mo has always championed the underdogs in this world. And has never asked for attention for it. It's just who Mo is.  There are many, many more stories like this, not only in the local LGBT community, but in the LGBT communities world-wide. To pretend that Sharon Needles is in anyway "special", is pure bullshit. Needles is, and always will be, a wannabe, at best.

OK, back to bullies (sorry for rambling in this post...its been a long couple of weeks for me). Bullies exist. They always have and sadly, always will. Bullies suffer from self-esteem issues. One should feel sorry for them, just as one should feel for any child who is bullied. I, myself, was often bullied as a child. I was a short, fat kid with not one but two speech impediments. I always dressed too nice (until about age 12) and was picked on, bullied, and teased. Bullies found out the hard way, that I have never been one to suffer fools gladly. I was lucky enough to have supportive parents. My mother always reminded me that I was an individual and should be proud of that. My dad taught me how to hit and hit effectively. He taught me to never start a fight, but to make sure that if one started, to finish it. Parents need to take a greater part in their children's lives. Parents need to teach their kids how to handle situations. A bully will not respond to reason. If a bully gets in trouble because of their bullying, they will most likely respond by going after their victims for revenge. So teach your kid some self-defense. Teach them how to pop a bully right smack in the nose.

Violence should never be the answer, but sometimes you have to fight fire with fire. Drop a bully to his/her knees and they tend to stop.

Sharon Needles' fame and notoriety will probably be short-lived. He describes himself as "rich and famous" now. Look back at the rich and famous stars of days gone by, and take note of how many have ended up broke, bankrupt, and futureless. Not having any type of real education, this will be Sharon Needles sooner than he realizes.  Hell, his cat even ran away. Maybe Sharon was bullying his cat...but was really just joking around.

Be careful of who you idolize. There's often much you don't know about the person.

I can't believe I just wasted the past 20 minutes writing this.......


AND HERE'S THE UPDATE!

I'm still bothered by the Pittsburgh City Council declaring yesterday Sharon Needles Day. While I mean no ill will to Sharon Needles as an "artist" or "entertainer" (and I use both of those terms very loosely), I believe in giving credit where it's due. Sharon Needles DID win on Ru Paul's Drag Race. Knowing the entertainment industry well, I believe that the producers knew full well of Needles' past and his insensitivity. I'm sure that the producers knew full well that this would keep their program in the press until the next season.

I am especially bothered that the city council wasted valuable time on this. In this current economy, it is beyond frivolous to waste taxpayer time and money on a classless, crude local "celebrity" (another term that I use loosely) who is in no way, shape of form a role model...and who does not want to be a role model. In an interview posted today, Needles stated "Sometimes I don’t give a fuck, and sometimes I feel like, God damn it, I got all these damn, fucking 16-years-olds who look up to me and I got to keep it cute." In the same interview, Needles explained his decision to cancel an engagement thusly: "Oh, I canceled it. You know, I have $100,000. I don’t really need the coin, so I won’t be attending." This is the type of person that city council feels is a ROLE MODEL for kids? So let me get this straight...if you have some money in the bank (and I'm sure that Needles has spent a large portion of his winnings already), you don't have to honor your commitments to something? Is this really something we want to teach kids? So, Pittsburgh City Council (and especially councilman Patrick Dowd) are telling kids that it's OK to be foul, crude, nasty, and irresponsible? That's what it sounds like to me.

THIS is what the city council thinks is an appropriate role model for kids. I hate to say, I do not agree. I have no issue with who Sharon Needles is or what he does. The entertainment industry thrives on shock value rather than talent these days. That's a given. But for anyone to suggest that Sharon Needles is a role model to anyone, is purely ludicrous.

(photo culled from the internet and

used under Fair Use statutes)

It may be time for Councilman Dowd to seriously consider stepping down. A politician more concerned with photo ops, rather than his actual job, is not what we here in Pittsburgh need.

Back From The Dead...Why It's Called That

Ten years ago, we were recording and mixing our best-selling CD, "Back From The Dead". From what I understand, it's still selling well.

People have always asked if there's a story behind the title, as there's no correlating song. Well, yes Virginia, there is. At the time we recorded it, we had no clue what to call it. I pushed for "The Greatest Rock & Roll Record You Will Ever Hear Because Every Other Band Except The Blasters Sucks" but that got voted down. Go figure.

Anyhoo......at the time we were working on this disc (recorded to 2" tape, all analog, at Daveworld Studios, Home of Everyday Low Low Prices and produced by James Dougherty Jr., aka Dick Dorkerty) I was also performing at a lot of music festivals, especially down south. In July of that year, I do believe, we went to Jackson, TN to peform at our 3rd (and final) appearance at Henry Harrison's monumentous waste of time Rockabilly Hall of Fame Festival. Henry started out with a good thing but fucked it up worse and worse each year, so I finally gave up. But I digress...

At this particular festival, I met a young lady who I dated for the next year or two. She was a school teacher down in TN. Well, we were just smitten...that's a given. One weekend, in August of 2002, we were going to have a romantic getaway weekend in Nashville. I had a rare weekend off from gigging, she was due at a teacher conference for a day, but we had a room for the weekend, so we were ready for fun!

On the 1st night, we went out to dinner and long story short, I had an esophogeal spasm which resulted in a collapsed lung and reactive pneumonia. In short, I stopped breathing all-together. I died. I was dead for 7 minutes en route to the hospital. Luckily, paramedics can't call a death, only a doctor can. Even luckier, once at the hospital, the docs gave one last effort and they got my heart started again. I was in a coma and they had no idea when or if I would come out of it. The other major concern was that IF I came out of it, how much brain damage would I suffer due to no oxygen reaching my brain for 7 minutes. There was a strong likelihood that I'd be a vegetable. Luckily, I had good health insurance at the time, so I was covered for a lengthy stay.

I spent a week in the coma (although, according to hospital records, I was combative...and at one point broke a nurse's nose...but I was unconscious...so what do I know?). When I finally came out of it, I was still getting over the pneumonia that had settled into my lung...but seemed "OK". My girlfriend asked the doctor if I would still be able to play guitar. The docs had no real answer for her other than "wait and see".

I suffered some pretty severe memory loss but I've been lucky...my brain has remapped itself pretty well and I got probably a good 80-90% of it back.

A month or two later, my bassist, Rob, and I were back down in Nashville to pick up the master tapes from the mastering lab. It was rainy and dreary as we drove up I-40. As we were going to have the finished product in hand, we figured it was time to name this thing (as well as put together packaging and figure out how to sell it!). We tossed titles back and forth in the car. Nothing stuck. We'd already had an eponymously titled release...so we couldn't do THAT again. Then in one of my frequent moments of smart-assery...I just looked at Rob, laughed, and suggested we call the CD "Back From The Dead". I thought it sounded cool and also darkly funny for those who knew the story. It would also go well with the logo I had been designing (the skull with the flaming pompador over crossed Telecasters). We joked that we could title every following CD along the same lines: "Not Dead Yet", "Still Not Dead", etc... Although still not officially released, we have a disc called "7 More To Go"...a take on the 9 lives of cats and my then recent heart attack. Yes...I'm a sickly self-deprecating S.O.B.

So, if you ever wondered why the disc is called BACK FROM THE DEAD...now you know. And if you ever ask me about dying...I'll tell you. I've been there. It didn't live up to the hype. That said, I'm still a Christian and my faith is as strong as ever...I just think that some of the stories are a bit 'out there'. For those who have heard about the "light" and all the long dead relatives calling you on, etc...I think for many that is self-fulfilling prophecy and hallucination. When I died...I just ended. Period. No heaven, no hell, no angels, no demons, no nothing. I just ended.

Trust me...waking up a week later and realizing that I'd lost an entire week was far mor mind-blowing to me than any thoughts of lights, relatives, angel, or demons. Most of us only get one chance at life. Live well! Live happy! Don't wait for things to go your way. Make it happen.

Hmmmm...I guess one of these days I should release "7 More To Go". Then I can record the follow up..."Ain't Dead...Just Smells That Way"..........