MrB's B-day

Wishing MrB a happy birthday today! Treehugging, cat-loving, vegetarian, Obama-supporting, organic gardener.

Some other birthdays today: Eddy Arnold, who died very recently. He was known for his velvety voice and many sad love songs, like "Make the World Go Away," but the one that most people are familiar with is "You Don't Know Me," made most famous by Ray Charles, written by Eddy Arnold and Cindy Walker.

It's also the birthday of Wavy Gravy; activist, legendary counter-culture figure, and the inspiration for a flavor of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. He and his Hog Farm fixed my brown rice breakfast several times back in the 60s at rock festivals. We also met him in Austin a couple of years ago when he was here for a gallery event and peace march. He gave us a red foam clown nose (which has since rotted) and autographed my Wavy Gravy B&J shirt. He's a very cool guy, you just gotta love him:

L. Frank Baum, the author of “The Wizard of Oz” and the rest of the related Oz series books that I loved as a kid, was born on May 15. Libraries can be wonderful things. Ralph Steadman, the artist closely associated with the works of Hunter S. Thompson, was born on May 15. His work is so intertwined with HST’s that it’s hard to think of them separately. These days, Steadman’s work can be seen in the tasty beverage cooler of your grocer as the illustrator for “Flying Dog” Brewery. Watch him work: