Category: Zappadan

Zappy Zappadan

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 4 Comments
Give him your dirty love
Give him your dirty love on this, day 1 of the 2010 Festival of Zappadan.

Pop round to zappa.com for a holiday message from The Central Scrutinizer and relive those glorious days of yesteryear with a video mashup from A Modified Dog via Ketchup Is a Vegetable.

Then shed a tear for the kids of today who must endure what Tom McGuane calls “their stupid fucking tuneless horseshit.”

The faithful among you need no reminders as to the deeper meaning behind the Festival of Zappadan, but for the noobs, Frank Zappa was taken from us on Dec. 4 and subsequently born on Dec. 21. According to Blue Gal, The Aristocrats designated this period Zappadan — “the days of the year between death and birth, that ethereal time when there was no Frank, so we must celebrate him to keep his spirit safe until his birthday again. Or it’s just a great excuse for a party that has nothing to do with the greed and debt festival known as Christmas in America.”

This year the festivities seem largely confined to other blogs and Twitter. But that doesn’t mean we can’t all be happy together.

Happy winter solstice

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 3 Comments

Today is the shortest day of the year, though for a man condemned to keeping a cycling website interesting in the absence of actual news it could be considered one of the longest.

It’s also the conclusion of the annual Festival of Zappadan, which as all good Zappatistas know runs from the date of Frank Zappa’s death (Dec. 4) through the day of his birth (Dec. 21). Thanks and a honk from the Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny to Fried Green al-Qaedas for emceeing this year’s festivities. Burnt weeny sandwiches in lumpy gravy for everyone! But stay the hell away from that yellow snow.

Dog Breath, In the Year of the Plague

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 4 Comments

Herself and I got out and about for a bit yesterday, checkbook in hand, for a bit of the old ho ho ho.

We wrote checks to the Marian House soup kitchen, the Care and Share food bank and the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region (way too many puppies and kittens spending the holiday season in the joint). Then we treated ourselves to an orgy of consumerism in Sparrow Hawk Gourmet Cookware, buying a new Wüsthof chef’s knife and 12-inch non-stick Emerilware skillet, Emerilware basically being All-Clad Lite.

Back home, I whipped up a tureen of posole, Herself assembled a salad, and we watched an episode of “Dexter” using our new-used Sony Blu-ray player, because nothing screams “Happy holidays!” like pork products and serial homicide. Good night, Uncle Meat, wherever you are.

Meanwhile, from Joe’s Garage . . .

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 4 Comments
It aint easy bein greasy.
It ain't easy bein' greasy.

. . . it’s BummerNacht, which marks the kickoff to the 2009 Festival of Zappadan! Burnt weeny sandwiches for everyone at St. Alfonzo’s Pancake Breakfast!

The faithful among you need no reminders, but for the noobs, Frank Zappa was taken from us on Dec. 4 and subsequently born on Dec. 21. As Blue Gal recounts, The Aristocrats (as is their God-given right) designated this period Zappadan — “the days of the year between death and birth, that ethereal time when there was no Frank, so we must celebrate him to keep his spirit safe until his birthday again. Or it’s just a great excuse for a party that has nothing to do with the greed and debt festival known as Christmas in America.”

I myself have already experienced a first Miracle of Zappadan. I didn’t feel like cooking tonight, and lo, when I went to the ’fridge to see what squatted therein, like a Toad of the Short Forest there appeared to me a vast tureen of chili con carne, and the fact that I made about six quarts of this swill the other day is not germane to this conversation. ¡Que milagro!

Mark Hoback is hosting this year’s celebration at his revived website, Fried Green Al Qaedas. Go thou and do likewise, lest The Central Scrutinizer afflict thee with Stink-foot.