Actor Matthew McConaughey says he hasn’t used deodorant in 35 years, preferring to let his natural body scent take over. I’m guessing he smells like granola and bad car commercials.
He’s a long hauler. My buddy Guy Speckman, Ponder the Thought columnist on page 3, has been told that due to his battle with COVID-19 last fall, he now has permanent hearing loss in one ear. So I ask that from now on when you email Guy, please send it in ALL CAPS so he can hear you.
Please don’t color me a hero on this, I’m just humbly trying to help a brother out. Guy’s not the kind of person to ask for assistance. I got his back. I’ll be his right ear if I have to.
An update from the Platte County Health Department on Tuesday:
“The good news is that our rapid increase in new COVID cases appears to have slowed over the past week and our case rates have stabilized,” said Erin Sanders, the health department’s epidemiology specialist.
As of this writing, the health department’s web site shows the seven-day case rate at 185 positive cases per 100,000 residents, which is the lowest the rate has been since July 25.
“We are still seeing issues with reporting delays, so these rates may continue to rise slowly with time as more positive tests are reported. Our percent positivity rates also remain high and above the CDC’s threshold for the high transmission ‘red zone,'” Sanders said.
Sanders added that regionally, about one-third of all ICU beds in the Kansas City metro area are currently in use by COVID-19 patients.
As we’ve reported recently, Mary Jo Everhart, longtime director of the Platte County Health Department, is retiring later this year. Officials with the health department this week said there are seven applicants to fill the position, and the interview process is slated to begin next week.
Scott Monsees is an interesting member of the Park Hill School Board in the way that Dagmar Wood is an interesting member of the Platte County Commission.
Had a fun and informative conversation with Michael “Supe” Granda, one of the two original members of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils who is still performing with the Springfield-based band that topped the charts in the 1970s. The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, including Granda and fellow original John Dillon, will be performing Saturday night at Ameristar in Kansas City.
Granda is now living in Nashville, where he has been for 30 years. Still writing songs and doing occasional performing.
“I write a lot. I have a band called Supe and the Sandwiches. We don’t play a lot but we play often enough. We have a good time,” he said. “I write songs, record them, and I try to get other people to cover them. I let them go out on the 81 city tour and I just say ‘send a check to this address.’ My job today is to walk out to my mailbox and see if there’s a check in it,” he said. How’s that going? “It’s doing ok. I’ve made a living. Not a killing but a living. My mortgage is current, my phone is still turned on and I’ve got beer in the refrigerator,” Granda answered.
I remarked to him that one of my favorite spots in Nashville is a low-key place called the Listening Room Cafe. It’s a place where song writers who have penned well known hits for well known artists go to perform the songs they’ve written and tell behind-the-scene stories about the process of writing those hits. You go there understanding that you’re seeing/hearing writers perform, not performers perform. And I can confirm the place has a tasty Bloody Mary, or at least it did the night I was there six years ago. “I know the place. In fact I’ve performed there. You probably saw writers performing with nothing but a guitar,” Granda said, and I confirmed.
“One of the myths about Nashville: Not everybody is Keith Urban. Not everybody is wealthy like Garth Brooks. In Nashville there are a thousand of different levels of fluency. There are guys here who can’t sing a lick but are wonderful song writers. They can’t sing a lick but write beautiful lyrics,” he said. “Not only do musicians move here but technicians move here. So not only does the drummer get recognized and picked up for a road gig but a sound engineer can get recognized and hired for a gig. Everywhere you go in Nashville it sounds good. Everybody plays well and everything sounds great. When you come down here you either recognize the level of talent around you and raise your game or you turn around and head right back to the little pond with your tail between your legs. I’ve seen it happen a thousand times on each side.”
For the musicians and wannabe musicians, Nashville is not easy, Granda says. “Nashville isn’t for everyone. It’s a tough nut to crack. There are two rules: 1. Nashville pays for persistence. 2. You must be present to win.”
So how did Granda get the nickname “Supe?”
“I’ve been “Supe” for over 50 years. I couldn’t seem to shake it so I quit trying. It’s a long and boring story but I’ll just tell you the two highlights: a Superman suit and a bottle of tequila,” he told me. So did the donning of a Superman suit follow a bottle of tequila? “I don’t remember but they tell me I had a good time,” he said.
(Have a good time by emailing Foley at ivan@plattecountylandmark.com)