Ohio University – davidbruceblog #2

Open-Mic Night at Ohio University’s Baker Center: 11-12-21

Dan Canterbury and Bruce Dalzell, emcee (Right)

Sam (Samantha, Middle) and Rowan (Left) and KC (Right)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUY_OLgUYbE6vz5OL5Qvllw

https://open.spotify.com/artist/6clkrzYQKh0XHUpm1VyS30

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=bruce+dalzell&ref=nb_sb_noss

The Artist’s Ego (Brucie’s Three Steps to Creative Happiness)

Bruce Dalzell at the Front Room

Bruce Dalzell | Patriarch of Athens Music

SAD NEWS: J.D. Hutchison Has Died

Bruce D. Bruce

J.D. Hutchison: Roots Music Master — The Real Deal

Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2019

Verified Purchase

J.D. Hutchison is better than just better. In Athens County, Ohio, He is sometimes called “Lost John,” which is an odd name for such an obviously all-together guy. Maybe he got that nickname because of his self-derogatory humor (“I counted all the way up to ten once and learned all my ABCs up to M and N”). A better nickname for him would be “The Real Deal.”

This album opens strongly with his blues song “Little Legs Moan”: “‘Don’t want to hurt you’ / That’s what she said / She did not hurt me, boys / She killed me stone dead / With the little legs moan.”

These lines from “Another Fool’s Café” shows his way of poetry-izing lyrics: “There’s always an empty table or two / It’s a hill jack twilight zone / The door is always open / And the lights are always on / Ain’t no bottom to the bottle, boys / No difference in the night and day / There ain’t no hands on the clock / In another fool’s café.”

Another standout song is his “Since My Bird has Flied Away,” which has been covered by Ingrid Lucia & The Flying Neutrinos, John Kirkpatrick and Chris Parkinson, and The Local Girls. Any singer-songwriter will probably tell you that the ultimate compliment is other people covering your songs. A few lyrics: “I need to change my head around / Maybe trip out to the zoo / Take a walk downtown / Hell, I don’t know what to do / But nothing seems to matter / Since my bird has flied away.” The bird, of course, is a woman.

Readers of this review should make heavy use of Amazon’s preview snippets of J.D. Hutchison’s songs on this page. Fans of roots music (defined as various combinations of blues, folk, country, bluegrass, and whatever else the singer-songwriter knows will make the song better) will find much to like. J.D. Hutchison is a regionally famous singer-songwriter who in my humble opinion ought to be at least nationally famous — and a whole lot richer. Better late than later.

I love this album, all songs of which are by J.D. Hutchison.

By the way, all the lyrics of this album can be seen at <http://www.jdhutchison.com/lyrics.html>.

Support local music, and be aware that in the age of the Internet and the WWW, Athens County is local worldwide.

Terry Smith: “Athens music scene loses big part of its heart and soul; goodbye J.D.”

The tight-knit Athens music community took a major hit Tuesday, Nov. 2, [2021] when singer/songwriter/picker/raconteur/bandleader J.D. Hutchison succumbed to cancer. In late October as word spread that Hutchison’s time was short, tributes flooded social media from near and far. They haven’t stopped since his passing.

Like so many others, I had tremendous respect and admiration for John, both as a person and a musician. He was among the most interesting, funny, iconoclastic and massively talented individuals I’ve ever known. He couldn’t speak a line of song or sentence without injecting a dollop of his singular perspective and wit into it.

Read the rest here:

https://www.athensnews.com/culture/athens-music-scene-loses-big-part-of-its-heart-and-soul-goodbye-j-d/article_24945096-40be-11ec-bb68-cbdb7818747a.html

Tim O’Brien

We find our first mentors right beside us as we’re born and grow: fathers and mothers, older sisters and brothers. We find other mentors out in the greater world as we come of age. J.D. Hutchison was one to me. We were fast friends from our first meeting in ‘74, and he taught me so much by example, and encouraged me as an artist and musician to follow the heart.

J.D. was a true renaissance man who studied the many facets of our world and reflected upon them all as a cartoonist, actor, songwriter and musician. Despite his relative obscurity–he served as a sort of court jester of the college town of Athens, Ohio for much of his life–he influenced a great many people in his 81 years. He made us laugh as we looked deeper.

John was anti-music business and you had to tease song pitches out of him, like when my band Hot Rize grabbed “My Little Darlin’” after he sang it to me a capella just outside a honkytonk men’s room door. His performances, whether as a solo, with his bluegrass brother Robert as The Hutchison Brothers or with the rock band Hillbilly Jive, were exciting, entertaining and vital, each one a unique experience. As good as his onstage performances were, it was in conversation that he really shone. He was always engaged, interested, generous and thoughtful.

On our last meeting, Jan and I had a short but wonderful visit with J.D. — going for fish sandwiches at Miller’s, hearing new and old poems and songs played on his piano in his spartan apartment where he displayed his assortment of barometers and umpteen Scrabble sets. He was wearing a t-shirt that said “Master of the Tiles.” Love was shared as always, and that love remains now and will remain for as long as I live.

Bob Stewart

I remember Frank McDermott letting me take an accordion I was thinking about buying over to J.D. at Casa to see what he thought about it. J.D. set the case down on the floor by his booth, opened the case and immediately started playing a tune. Sherrie turned down the music in the restaurant and J.D. carried on playing like he was in his living room. Well of course, he was.

KC Waltz

Friend, mentor, bench warmer, artist, bard, and family member, J.D. was all these things to me. He gave of himself to all around him with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. He loved young folks and was always encouraging their dreams, musical or otherwise. He was my “Funkle” and I was/am honored to have him in my life. All hail The Last of the Iron-Assed Folksingers!

Steve Zarate

I feel blessed by every moment I had with J.D., first just loving his musicianship and later in fascinating conversations that left me marveling at the wise insights he so casually dispensed. J.D. treated friends like family, and I never saw him act superior to any other person, not once. He would call me Steven, and in parting company he’d make this hand gesture, kind of cockin’ it at me, and his eyes always seemed to twinkle when he smiled farewell. I’ll carry J.D.’s wonderful songs, endearing smile and twinkling eyes in my heart always.

See More Tributes Here:

https://www.athensnews.com/culture/remembering-j-d-hutchison/article_d18628fa-40bf-11ec-bfa7-6f076d9866d6.html

TUESDAY NIGHT SONGWRITER CIRCLE.

Meet Tuesdays 7pm in the 1804 Room of Baker Center at Ohio University.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgGJ0maiJtw

Ohio University Singer-Songwriter Circle On Pinterest

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/292522938273094225/

Steven Craig Carlson: Acoustic Lunch at Ohio University’s Baker Center — 10 November 2021

Bruce Dalzell (emcee) and Steven Craig Carlson

https://open.spotify.com/artist/3OBcwB7l9xEBGc0AzdRips

https://music.apple.com/us/artist/steven-craig-carlson/457127780

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Steven+Craig+Carlson&i=digital-music&search-type=ss&ref=ntt_srch_drd_B005HX7W2Y

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Steven+Craig+Carlson&i=digital-music&page=2&qid=1636576658&search-type=ss&ref=sr_pg_2

Open-Mic Night at Ohio University’s Baker Center: 11-5-2021

Dan Canterbury and Bruce Dalzell (right)

Matt Hendrix on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP67DU6dWxKY6E-Cf8YhSBw

LIBERTY BELL

MOVES

David Bruce’s Spoken Word, More or Less

Tipping the Balance—Either Way

According to the Talmud, all of us ought to consider the world as being equally divided into good and evil. That way, we will regard our own actions as important. If we act evilly, we will tip the world onto the side of evil and all Humankind will suffer, but if we perform good deeds, we will tip the world onto the side of good, and all Humankind will benefit.

Tennis Shoes and a Pink Umbrella

One book that Gilda Radner read and enjoyed was Disturbances in the Dark by Lynne Sharon Schwartz. The main female character in the book remembers that when she was a young girl, she, her sister, and her parents would go to the beach. So that the two young girls would always be able to find the beach umbrella their parents were using, her father tied a pair of tennis shoes to the umbrella. The two young girls felt safe and protected when they saw the umbrella with the pair of shoes hanging from it. The night before Gilda underwent her first chemotherapy after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer, her husband, Gene Wilder, walked into her hospital room carrying a little pink umbrella to which he had tied some shoes.

My Fellow Bums

While living in New York City, comedian Bill Hicks was shocked by the number of homeless people he saw, and he always left home with change in his pockets to give to the homeless. He pointed out, “I could have been a bum. All it takes is the right girl, the right bar, and the right friends.”

Visiting the Wounded Troops

Comedian Al Franken goes into Veterans Administration hospitals to meet the wounded troops. He thought that it would be very difficult, but he was amazed by how cheerful many of them—including a woman helicopter pilot who had lost most of her left leg and part of her right leg—are. He asked a man with one leg what had happened to him; the man replied, “I came in here for a vasectomy, and when I woke up my leg was gone.” By the way, Mr. Franken says not to thank these wounded veterans for their service to the country—they imitate all the politicians who tell them that. Therefore, Mr. Franken uses humor. When he has a photograph taken with one of these veterans, he writes on the photo, “Thank you for getting grievously wounded.”

“Paid, and Thanks. Danny”

When British comedian Danny La Rue asked fellow entertainer Larry Grayson to entertain at his club while he went on vacation for two weeks, he showed much kindness to Mr. Grayson. First, he showed him his own dressing room and asked if any alterations needed to be made. Of course, everything was excellent. During the first week of Mr. Grayson’s vacation, Mr. Grayson ran up a rather high tab, but when he called for his bill so he could pay it off, he was surprised to be given a bill marked, “Paid, and thank you. Danny.” The next time Mr. Grayson was asked what he wished to be served in his dressing room, he said, “Just a coffee, please,” thinking that he would not run up his tab because Mr. La Rue would pay for it. However, when he was informed that this week he would have to pay his own bill, he ordered what he really wanted: a gin and tonic. At the end of the second week, Mr. Grayson again asked for his bill, and again it came to him marked, “Paid, and thank you. Danny.” Mr. La Rue had known that Mr. Grayson would not order what he wanted and would not run up his bill the second week if he had thought that Mr. La Rue would pay it, so he had left orders for Mr. Grayson to be falsely told that the second week he would have to pay his own bill.

You Always Make Me Smile

When You Wish Upon a Star

The Last Time I Saw You

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=bruce+dalzell&i=digital-music&ref=nb_sb_noss

The Alchemist

Kelly and Iris Cooke: Acoustic Lunch at Ohio University’s Baker Center — 4 November 2021

Bruce Dazell (emcee, left), Kelly, and Iris Cooke (right)

Ben Davis Jr.: Acoustic Lunch at Ohio University’s Baker Center, Second Floor — 27 October 2021

Singer-songwriters Corbin Marsh (left), Ben Davis Jr., and Bruce Dalzell (Right)

https://www.facebook.com/bendavisjrofficial/

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=ben+davis+jr&i=digital-music&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

Ben Davis Jr. Turns Inward On ‘Roots’
By: Emily Votaw
Posted on:Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Ben Davis Jr. Turns Inward On ‘Roots’

Ben Davis Jr. on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv-xP-pjBWvgYxWLW5HPxLQ

Ben Davis Jr. on Bandcamp

https://bendavisjr.bandcamp.com/releases

Ben Davis Jr. Official Site (Includes Calendar of Upcoming Performances)

https://bendavisjr.net

From the moment a 14-year-old Ben Davis Jr. picked up his first guitar (a Yamaha Strat gifted by his father, for the record) he set out on a journey that would see him evolve into one of the great musical storytellers yet to emerge from his native Southeast Ohio. Ben’s honest, sharply observed, and soulful lyrics and organic yet adventurous instrumentation make for a deeply felt blend of country, folk, and rock—(in all its shapes and forms). The people, places, and memories of his home inform the heart of his forthcoming for Supersensible Records EP, Roots,.

After playing in string of local combos, Ben began immersing himself in songwriting as a member of his high school band, In The Red (formed with lifelong friend Josh Cassill). Over the years, he has played with an impressive array of regional musicians, slowly building his now impressive song catalog. His biggest songwriting inspirations come from the work of David Childers, Todd Snider, and The Avett Brothers, whose music he discovered in 2007. A high point of Ben’s career came a few years later, when he shared billing with The Avetts (along with another influence, Jason Isbell) at the 2014 Nelsonville Music Festival.

Ben’s reputation also has been burnished by both hosting and performing the Open Stage at Court Grill in Pomeroy, Ohio for several years. The friends, connections, and memories he has forged there resulted in his first two self-releases: The Day Before Payday (with the Dirt Poor Troubadours) and his first solo EP, Leaving Cincinnati.

Fast-forward to 2019, when Ben released his second full length album, Suthernahia (premiered at a live performance at the classic Markay Theater in his hometown of Jackson. Produced by Eddie Ashworth at The Oxide Shed in Athens, OH, this record breaks new ground in Ben’s music—incorporating elements of psychedelia, r&b, even 60’s era pop, to suit the diverse mood of the songs. Backed by his legendary supporting band, The Revelry, the album brought Ben to a wider audience and earned rave reviews from many media outlets.

Next on the menu is the forthcoming Roots EP. Ben has long wanted to put together a pared down, more intimate recording that puts more emphasis on his stunning song craftsmanship and voice (something that his fans have also often requested). Accordingly, the sonics and subject matter are sparse, down to basic acoustic folk instrumentation. Joined by Revelry alums Ben Ervin on guitar and Ashworth on mandolin, along with celebrated Athens-based singer songwriter Bruce Dalzell on bass and backing vocals, and longtime collaborator Chris Keesey on percussion, the EP was recorded mostly live in the studio, with minimal overdubbing, during the pandemic.

First out of the gates is a video of the title track “Roots” , in which Ben performs the song with many of the actual locations mentioned in the song as backdrops. Releasing in mid-July on all platforms, the single and video will precede the EP release, scheduled for late summer 2021. Ben will be supporting both releases with a robust, all acoustic live schedule (sometimes solo, sometimes joined by members of the recording band) throughout the summer and fall 2021.

“Simple As I Look”

“The Space You Left Behind”

HAMMER AND SPARK

WHEEL SPINNING ’ROUND

THE CORBIN MARSH BAND EP

Scott Minor Original Music

https://www.scottminar.com/music

Open-Mic Night at Ohio University’s From Room: 10-22-21

Bruce Dalzell (Standing) Introduces Riley Scott

Sam (Samantha in Red Shirt) and Rowan (Black Shirt)

David Bruce’s Spoken Word, More or Less

Halloween is coming up in a week, and I have some scary stories for you:

1) A young woman in college was going through a Goth / Punk phase, and she wore heavy, scary makeup most of the time. Sometimes, she didn’t take off the makeup even when she was going out for a run in the park. One day, she was running in the park while wearing the heavy, scary makeup, and a masked man jumped out from behind a bush, grabbed her arm, and said, “I’VE GOT YOU NOW!” The scary Goth woman said, “THE POLICE ARE AFTER ME!” Scary masked man ran away in one direction, and scary Goth woman ran away in the opposite direction.

2) A man was trying to pick up a woman, and he was persistent even after she made it clear that she was not interested in him. Finally, she asked, “May I borrow your phone?” He handed her his phone, and she looked through the contacts and saw a contact labelled “Mom.” She called that number, and when his mom answered, she said, “Your son is trying to pick me up, and I have told him over and over that I am not interested, and he is persistent even after I have made it clear that I am not interested.” They talked for a minute or so, with the woman giving the man’s mother a few details, and then she handed the phone back to the man and said, “Your mother wants to talk to you.”

3) A man was walking one way on the sidewalk, and a woman was walking toward him on the sidewalk. When they got close, the man said, “You’re a bit too thin for me.” The woman replied, “You’re a bit too thick for me.” They kept on walking past each other.

4) Two women were riding their bikes in the neighborhood when a man working on his roof began to catcall them. The two women got off their bikes, walked over to his house, knocked the man’s ladder over, and then they got on their bikes and rode away.

5) Some men are scary, obviously, but other men are not scary. A man was arguing with a woman on a bus. The man was standing up, and the woman was seated. Eventually, the man got so angry that he kicked the seat the woman was sitting on. This is, of course, an act of violence. A quick-thinking man ran up behind the angry man and grabbed the top of his sweatpants and pulled them down to his ankles. The quick-thinking man then stood between the woman and the angry man, and he stared at the angry man. The angry man pulled his pants up and walked back to his own seat. The woman thanked the quick-thinking man, who said, “You’re welcome,” and he went back to his seat and sat down. The angry man got off the bus at the next stop.

6) This story is just about a man who simply did the right thing. A woman ordered a pizza and thought she had time to take a quick shower before it was delivered, but she heard the doorbell ring as she was wrapping a towel around herself after the shower. She went to the door and let in the pizza-delivery man. She handed him her credit card, and he handed her the pizza, and — oh! my goodness! — her towel accidentally fell to the floor. Pizza-delivery man immediately turned around so he couldn’t see her, and she picked up the towel and held it in front of her. Pizza-delivery man finished the credit-card transaction and handed the woman her credit card and the receipt by holding it over his shoulder and behind his back, and he left.

7) A woman went into a coffee shop and a man there tried to pick her up. She did not want to be picked up, but the man was persistent. The woman bought two hotdogs and two Cokes. She went to a table and put down one hotdog and one Coke on each side of the table. She sat down. The man sat down opposite her. She pushed her hotdog and her Coke toward him, and then she got up and left. The man had a decision to make: Does he get up and follow the woman, or does he stay and eat? The man stayed and ate.

Please, take these stories and make videos to put up on YouTube. In the case of the pizza delivery, the woman can be wearing a two-piece swimsuit so you don’t get censored.

https://www.amazon.com/Jim-Pilgrim/e/B001LI8LUG

https://www.amazon.com/David-Bruce/e/B004KEZ7LY?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1634949366&sr=1-1

Open-Mic Night at Ohio University’s Front Room: 15 October 2021

October 15 is Bruce’s birthday. Happy birthday, Bruce.

David Bruce’s Spoken Word, More or Less

1) Here’s some good news:

Embarrassment plus time often equals comedy. Often, an incident that horribly embarrasses us at the time and makes us cringe when we remember it becomes a funny story that we tell our grandkids and grand-nephews and grand-nieces.

I remember something that happened over 55 years ago when I was a kid. At the time, you could buy shorts that changed color when exposed to heat.

You could be in the shade under a tree and then get out into the sun and the shorts would grow hotter and change color, especially the part that was directly exposed to the sun.

You could also put your hand on your thigh briefly, and when you took away your hand, you could see your handprint on your thigh.

I remember that a girl was wearing those shorts during a math class when she went to the chalkboard to solve a math problem. She was facing the chalkboard, working the problem, and her back was to the class.

No one heard anything, but everyone noticed when she farted.

That poor girl.

2) I just told a story about her, so I ought to tell a story about me.

I was in a crowd of people, and I suddenly got gassy. I knew that I wouldn’t get to a private place to fart in time, but I thought: I’ve got this. Music is playing, I know this song, and there’s a loud section. If I time the fart just right, no one will hear me. So the drums come in loudly, the singer begins to scream, and I fart.

Everyone looks at me and laughs.

And that’s when I remember I’m wearing ear buds.

3) Halloween is coming up, and I’ve been thinking about scary stories, like this one:

A woman goes into a coffee shop and a man there tries to pick her up.

She does not want to be picked up, but the man is persistent.

The woman buys two hotdogs and two Cokes.

She goes to a table and puts down one hotdog and one Coke on each side of the table.

She sits down.

The man sits down opposite her.

She pushes her hotdog and her Coke toward him, and then she gets up and leaves.

The man has a decision to make: Does he get up and follow the woman, or does he stay and eat?

The man stays and eats.

Please, someone make a video of this and put it up on YouTube.

Sam, Bernhard Debatin’s son, is in Velvet Green.

Music Recommendation: The Spiratones — “Bustin'”

BRUCE’S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC

Music: “Bustin’”

Single: This is a two-sided single.

Artist: The Spiratones

Artist Location: Ulverston, England, UK

Info:

“The Spiratones – solar-powered surf-instrumental music from the UK! Borne where the mountains meet the sea. Expect shimmering surf rhythms and Hot-Rod rock & roll.”

The other track is “Couch Surfer (Live).”

Price: Name Your Price (Includes FREE)

Genre: Instrumental Surf

Links:

“Bustin’”

https://thespiratones.bandcamp.com/album/bustin-single

The Spiratones on Bandcamp

https://thespiratones.bandcamp.com

The Spiratones on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWhTQvxX714v1PgPkbBA4Iw

Open-Mic Night at Ohio University’s Front Room: 8 October 2021

David Bruce

David Bruce’s Spoken Word (More or Less)

8 October 2021

I used to write for The Athens News in Athens, Ohio, partly to make extra money and partly to show my composition students that I am a competent writer. I once wrote a preview story for an Ohio University School of Dance performance. The only place for interviews during a rehearsal was in a closet, so Ohio University dance teacher Michele Geller told the dance students, “This is David Bruce. He is going to interview you for a story he is writing for The Athens News, so don’t be shocked if he asks you to go into a closet with him.”

I remember the first article that I wrote for The Athens News. It was about the OU women’s basketball team and appeared just after Thanksgiving in 1983. I was standing in line at a bank just behind a man who was reading a copy of The Athens News. He came to my article, read the headline, and then started to turn the page. I tapped him on the shoulder and said, “Sir, I wrote that article. Please read it.”

Open Mic Night at Ohio University’s Front Room — 1 October 2021

https://www.amazon.com/Song-Flying-Bruce-Dalzell/dp/B073F5YN85

David Bruce’s Spoken Word, More or Less:

In the 1970s, OU President Claude Sowle decided to hold public meetings at which college deans would argue for money for their departments. Of course, these were spectacular events at which college deans wore caps and gowns and argued passionately for money. At one such public meeting, Dr. Henry Lin, Dean of Fine Arts, began his remarks by saying, “Ni hao, Dr. Sowle.” Of course, he was speaking flawless Mandarin Chinese, and he continued to speak flawless Mandarin Chinese — which Dr. Sowle did NOT understand — for the rest of his remarks, occasionally using a Chinese abacus to emphasize a financial point. At the end of Dr. Lin’s remarks, President Sowle told him, “Henry, you know I don’t understand Chinese, but I’ve never understood you more clearly than right now — you need big bucks!” (By the way, Dr. Lin is the father of Maya Lin, the genius who designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.)

Artists frequently work with nude models. OU art professor John “Jack” Baldwin and his wife, Bunny, once took a vacation in Mexico, where they went to a clothing-optional beach. Bunny pointed out a particularly beautiful naked woman to Jack, who told her, “Bunny, I am here on vacation. I am not here to work.”

An OU art professor once wrote a letter in which she used as many words beginning with the letter F as possible. She called it her F-word letter.

Margaret “Peg” Cohn, Dean Emerita of the Ohio University Honors College, remembers carpooling with other mothers. On one occasion, she had a carload of children when they came across an intersection in which someone had written in large letters a four-letter word beginning with “F” and ending with “K.” Ms. Cohn’s seven-year-old carefully said each letter aloud, then asked, “Mom?” Ms. Cohn braced herself, afraid that she would have to give a sex education lesson to a carload of children, but fortunately her seven-year-old asked merely, “How did they do that without getting run over?” Ms. Cohn answered that question, happy that she had remembered “a cardinal rule for parents: Be sure what the question is before you give the answer.”

Women’s sports and women athletes have not always been respected. For example, in the 1960s (well before Title 9), Catherine L. Brown used to teach field hockey at OU on a field that was also used by ROTC cadets. Sometimes, the ROTC cadets would act as if the women athletes were invisible and march onto the field — even during games. On one occasion when this happened, the ROTC cadets were standing at attention — meaning that they could not move — so Ms. Brown ordered the game to continue, and she rewarded each woman athlete who managed to hit the legs of an ROTC cadet with the ball.

Ohio University sports publicist Frank Morgan occasionally talked at elementary schools about sports. Once he explained that baseballs are made of horsehide, and a horrified little girl exclaimed, “You mean they kill horsies to make baseballs!”

A student once wanted to interview Ohio University zoologist Scott Moody for a term paper on herpes simplex after learning that Dr. Moody taught herpetology. However, herpetologists study amphibians and reptiles, while virologists study viruses such as herpes. Still, the student’s mistake was not as bad as it may sound. Interestingly, “herpetology” and “herpes” share a common root word, “herpo,” which means crawling. As Dr. Moody explains it, “‘Herpeton’ means creeping, crawling creature. The earlier naturalists used this term for the slow sprawling terrestrial vertebrates (lizards, snakes, turtles, salamanders) in contrast with the more active terrestrial vertebrates (mammals and birds). The first herpes described scientifically was ‘herpes zoster’ or shingles. The way a shingles infection manifests itself is as an outbreak of skin rash and blisters that then spread in a linear fashion, hence crawl in one direction. The Greek word ‘herpes’ was chosen as the genus name for this group of viruses.”

Here is a story that Scott Moody tells his friends: “When I was a graduate student living in Germany collecting data for my doctoral dissertation, I often used the public bathroom at the Berlin Train Station. One of the ‘sanitary engineers’ who happened to be an older woman got her jollies by waiting until there was a long line of men urinating in the contiguous urinal stand, then she would flush real hard, spraying water everywhere, causing men to jump backwards while urinating on the floor or on themselves, displaying their shagadelic [fans of the Austin Powers movies will recognize the reference] tools, and so forth. I witnessed this several times, and it was always the same ‘putzfrau.’”

Philosophy professor Warren Ruchti studied under the famous philosopher Nelson Goodman, author of Ways of Worldmaking and other important books, at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Goodman’s intelligence was awesome, and Dr. Ruchti tells several anecdotes about him. A visiting lecturer once was busily writing numerous premises for his arguments on the chalkboard before his lecture when Nelson Goodman walked in. Dr. Goodman glanced at the columns of premises, and then told the visiting lecturer, “You have contradictory premises — look here and here.” The lecturer said, “Oh my gosh, you’re right!” Another time a visiting lecturer gave a long, involved talk at a colloquium. At the end of the talk, Nelson Goodman looked at Warren Ruchti and said, “He hasn’t got the answer,” and then walked out of the room. Nelson Goodman moved on to Harvard, from which he retired, but he has not been forgotten. The Ruchtis’ family pet was named in honor of the eminent philosopher: Nelson Gooddog.

Many people don’t regard reading, writing, and learning as working. Philosophy professor Robert Wieman decided to clean his office one day, so he got sweaty moving furniture around and throwing away heaps of old, outdated files. A maintenance worker passed by and said, “You’re the first person I’ve seen working around here.”

By the way, Dr. Wieman once told his students, “I have more children than I have fingers, and all but one of them totalled a car by their eighteenth birthday.”

Also by the way, Dr. Wieman was my main advisor when I was working on my Master’s thesis in philosophy. At a volleyball game between philosophy professors and philosophy students, I managed to score a point against him. I noticed that he didn’t look too happy about it, so as soon as I could, I let him score a point against me. I could have blocked the ball, but Mama Bruce didn’t raise her little boy Davy up to be no fool.