Two Pictures are Worth 2000 Words

 From A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale):

"A couple of years later, the boys reached sign-making Nirvana. For the final game in 1989, Danny rigged up a fancy rotating letter system to honor two departing seniors, Herman Harried and Sherman Douglas, and junior Derrick Coleman. He cut and pasted black letters on large orange posterboard, and the boys lugged them up to section 315. Danny and Johnny duct taped another posterboard on the wall to their left that just said MAN.

Pete and Leslie, two other season ticket holders that sat next to the guys, eagerly agreed to help. They were all set. Whenever one of the three players scored a basket, Danny barked out instructions. Following a Coleman basket, Danny yelled, “C-O-L-E! ”and Pete held up the “C,” Leslie the “O,” Johnny held up the “L,” and finally the “E” was Danny’s job.  Derrick was honored with a black and orange COLE-MAN for all to see.

Herman Harried didn’t see much action, but he did score a couple buckets. “HER!” said Danny (Pete got to stay seated for that one). HER-MAN, section 315 boasted.

Photos, presumably, taken by Pat, Dick's wife (Dick is the man in the white baseball cap) two great people who sat directly ahead of us in lofty section 315. Steve and I referred to them as the Nixons. Of course. And thanks to my main established man, Steve Heller, for unearthing these pics.

Go Tell it On the Mountain

Not necessarily the mountain, unless you see people up on the mountain* who would like to read a great review of A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale).

I am delighted with the critical response to the book so far. People come to me and quote parts from it and that really makes me happy. And no, smart guy, I didn't pay any of them to say nice things.

Though I'm not above it.

But in this early stage, word-of-mouth means a lot, so tell your friends, or friendly enemies, about BFATT. (I don't know about that acronym, though.) 

Remember to support your local independent bookstore. Here in Syracuse, that means Parthenon 
Books on S. Salina Street (https://www.parthenonbookstore.com/)

It just so happens that yours truly will be part of their local author showcase from 1-4, Saturday, September 7th, 

But taking the extra step and writing just a teeny review on the website of the bookseller of your choice helps a lot.

*I will personally pay the first person to post a picture of A Breath of Fresh Air from the top of Mount Everest the sum of TEN DOLLARS. No joke. Ten bucks. First picture only, please.

Song of the...Blogpost?

20 Three-Ring Binders Later...

In my bedroom, tucked away on a shelf reserved for that purpose, are 20 three-ring binders. Each binder represents a year of painstakingly recorded vital signs. Cleveland Clinic told me "Be sure you bring your binder to each appointment! Very important! Here's a few extra !!!!!!!!s to use in case you forget!"

Naturally, the first (and second, and third, and so on) times I had an appointment they never looked at the binder.

But I kept them anyway, for two reasons. One, in case they changed their mind (they didn't) and two, for me. Recording blood pressure readings and blood sugar results, temperatures and daily weight readings and PFTs into a binder for easy retrieval meant that I would be more diligent in keeping them, and I was.

Today is the 20th anniversary of my double-lung transplant, and not coincidentally, the official release day of A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale), a novel inspired by my life and centered around the transplant. If you're a regular reader of this blog, or of my Facebook page, you have certainly been pummeled with hype about that, so I won't say any more.

Even though I almost never look at any of those binders or their contents, I treasure them. They represent the last twenty years in granular detail.

One last thing: if you are the praying kind, say a prayer for the donor's family. I never met them but they are always in my thoughts, especially on anniversaries, this one most of all.

Now, let's do another 20 years!

Come annnd Get It! (Shameless Plug Number I Don't Know What in a Series)

After three years (not counting nine months of sloth) my novel A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale) will be in my hot little hands sometime tomorrow. Actual release date is August 26th.

As those who have been bludgeoned by these posts know, the book is inspired by my life with cystic fibrosis and centered around my double-lung transplant in 2004. It's less than 360 pages,* so a quick read.

Since I am thoroughly sick of me by now, I will pass on reading it, for awhile. But I hope you're not sick of me and I hope you read it.

Remember, autographed copies are yours for the asking, priced at just $19.99** (please add $5 for shipping if you need it mailed.)

Either text me or Facebook Message me with your address and we can figure out payment and stuff.

Alternately, you can support your local independent bookstore and order it directly from them (here in Syracuse, that is the marvelous Parthenon Books on Salina Street https://www.parthenonbookstore.com/ in the heart of downtown.)

You can also get the eBook for just $7.99 from Amazon, or wherever you get your eBooks.

On Friday, September 6th, I will be appearing on the popular morning talk show, Bridge Street on channel 9 here in Syracuse, to chat about the book. My biggest fear is temporarily choking on a sip of water on live TV.***

One last thing—if you like A Breath of Fresh Air, I hope you'd consider writing a review, on Amazon, Goodreads, or Bookmarks.reviews. And if you love it, tell your friends.

I'm excited. 

Thanks for reading,

Dave

* Not much less

** Let's call it $20. I will grudgingly give you the penny change if you ask.

*** I do that frequently

Song of the Day: 

https://youtu.be/unsQSNQYERI?si=q_MKkk8E5Kzr2M2s

Woman Sawed In Half

I'm going out on a limb here, but I think this is the best song ever recorded about a woman being sawed in half.

I am willing to hear alternatives in the comments, though.

Shameless Plug (Number Four in Possibly an Eternal Series)

 I will be making my television debut (at least, this century) on colorful channel 9. I will be chatting about my book (perhaps you've heard of it) A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale) on the talk show Bridge Street, live, and presumably in color, at 10 AM the morning of September 6th. Old friend Tim Fox came through for me, as he did THIRTY THREE years ago when I was hyping my previous book, House Training Your VCR: A Help Manual For Humans. Tim is a delightful man.

Then I have my 50th high school reunion that evening. Yikes!

Shameless Plug (Number Three in a Series)

A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale) is finally finished and off to the printer. Release day is August 26th, which just so happens to be the TWENTIETH anniversary of my double-lung transplant.

This is a work of fiction (wink-wink) about Danny Martini, a man with end-stage cystic fibrosis who is on oxygen 24/7 and desperately in need of a double-lung (BOGO) transplant. Spoiler alert: he gets it, but not without lots of thrills and chills along the way. Danny's story, from his tumultuous childhood, through his foolish 20s and 30s (and, sometimes, his 40s) is a wild roller-coaster ride that I hope you'll enjoy reading.

If you want to buy a paperback copy directly from me (that I can sully with a scrawled autograph), let me know. I should have books in hand by the launch date. The price is only $19.99 but you'll probably give me a $20 and I won't give you the penny back. 

If you want to buy it from a bookstore, may I suggest shopping at our only remaining locally owned bookstore, Parthenon Books  https://www.parthenonbookstore.com/  located downtown on Salina Street across from the Landmark Theatre. 

E Book version of A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale) will be available on August 26th, just about anywhere you get your e Books, for $7.99.

You can also ask any bookstore of your choice to order a physical copy.

I hope to be showing my pretty face on TV in the next few weeks. If I have something booked I'll let you know.

Thanks for reading this and I hope to see some (all? Nah, not all) of you in the next few weeks.

Dave Murray

Song of the Day (or is it Week? I forget)

https://youtu.be/gX6g6KHvxwU?si=fpmfcZ9iGpA2ChNp

Grab Ahold of Your Baby and Hold Her Tight

Today is Mike Price's birthday. Younger people in the Syracuse area know him, if they know him at all, as the sometimes wacky, always fun features correspondent for channel 9.

But people around my age (old) know that Mike Price's alter-ego, Baron Daemon, was a pop-culture colossus in the mid to late 60s. The Baron was a campy, fun and decidedly un-menacing vampire on channel 9. He hosted late-night movies and an incredibly popular kids' show, Baron and His Buddies, that I was lucky enough to, just once, sit in the audience for. He was about 18 feet tall, as I remember, and in full, glorious color, as opposed to how he looked on our 15" black and white TV at home.

But he might best be remembered for a song in 1963 called "The Transylvania Twist." Far, far superior to the Halloween-themed song and certified hit by Bobby "Boris" Pickett, "The Monster Mash," the Baron's song, meant only to be a promotional record for his shows, instead became a Syracuse NY smash hit. It remains the biggest selling local record in Syracuse music history.

I told you all that to tell you this:

I was at Baskin-Robbins in Shoppingtown (R.I.P.) in the early 80s, getting a cone, when who do I see standing next to me but Mike Price.

"Mike Price!" I said, because that was his name.

"Hello," Mike Price said with a smile.

"I used to watch your show all the time as a little kid! I loved it! You were so funny," I gushed.

"Oh, now you're making me feel old," he said, mock-embarrassedly.

"I don't suppose I could get you to do The Laugh, for old times' sake?" I asked him. His mock-sinister vampire laugh, a BWHAA HA HA HA, was his calling card and something every kid I know tried, poorly, to imitate.

He put on a little face and said, "Oh, no, no I don't do that anymore." I felt like a jerk. The poor guy just wanted some ice cream and here I wanted him to put on a show. 

"Oh, that's okay, Mike. Nice to meet you, anyway," and turned my attention back to the matter at hand.

Then, I saw him slink off to the corner of the display, between the cooler and the wall, make a big, exaggerated look left and right as if he wanted to be sure nobody was watching, and then he did the laugh: "BWHAA HA HA HA!"

"Oh, that was so great! Thank you so much, Mike, uh, Baron!" I said.

"Thank you," he said. "It's just nice to be remembered."

I know he genuinely meant it, but if anyone from my childhood is memorable, it's Mike Price.

Happy birthday, Baron.

https://youtu.be/9NlFIi00zyE?si=6K8epptyoBgPM5Ub