​Despite it all, I side with the old guy holding that sign by the road in "Close Encounters," encouraging the aliens to "Stop and Be Friendly." It could happen.

If you're looking for a compelling summer read, I want to give a shout-out to my partner and mate, Pamela, who just published a memory from her childhood in a new blog, "My August Anguish." Her first post,  "The August When I Was Nine," is both  nostalgic and emotional, and will stay with you long after you finish that last sentence. Find it here.

Someone asked me recently if I had any advice on becoming a writer. It really made me think about my own journey, and my interest in writing that started very early-on. So much so, it  inspired a new blog, "INK, BITS and BYTES: So You Want To Be a Writer." 

If you read it -- it is a work in progress -- you'll find out one of my early passions was poetry. And when Forest Oak Junior High in Fort Worth, TX., held a literature competition, I eagerly entered with a long opus entitled, "The Talk of the Frenchman." It took up almost two pages when the winning entries were printed by the school newspaper, The Acorn.

Even though I only garnered Honorable Mention in the 9th Grade category, I was proud to see my name in print. Thanks to my school friend, Joe Cartwright, who retained a PDF copy , here it is in all its long-winded glory. 

Forbidden Planet, the sci-fi classic released in 1956, ushered in a new age of space movies that set the stage for "Star Wars," "Star Trek" and countless others that followed. The film, starring Leslie Neilsen, Anne Francis, Walter Pigeon and Robby the Robot, and based on Shakepeare's "The Tempest," set new standards for special effects, music and use of animation. The pre-CGI special effects hold up even today, 70 years later.

If you haven't seen it, the story revolves around a rescue mission to a distant planet, Altair IV, where a rouge scientist (Pigeon) and his daughter (Francis) research a long extinct alien race known as the Krell.  They left behind technological wonders, and an enduring mystery:  After surviving a million years, they vanished in a single night.

Employing one of their machines that boost brain power, one of Commander Nielsen's men finds the answer. The Krell's ultimate achivement was a "Great Machine" that could change a person's thoughts into physical reality. But despite all their knowledge, the Krell "forgot one thing-- monsters from the id."  In Freudian terms, the id represents the most primitve part of our minds, where our most basic urges and desires operate without reason or morality. Unwittenly, the Krell had unleashed the demons that lived in their own subconscious minds.

While our own technology hasn't reached a point where we can materialize anything we can think of, there are some parallels to what befell the Krell. 

Whether they come from the id or not, humanity's own demons are on full display via social media. Thanks to technology, every person is now empowered to espouse any prejudice or hateful rethoric without fear of repercussion or accountability. Despite all its power to connect, enlighten and educate, has the Internet unwittenly unleased our own "monsters from the id"?

If so, the real question becomes can we control what the Krell could not.

By GERRY BARKER
North Palm Beach Life

When we bought tickets to see "Ride the Cyclone" at the Maltz Island Theatre in Jupiter, we weren't sure what to expect. We just wanted to treat our 12-year-old granddaughter, who has her own keen interest in performing on stage,  to a live production before school kicks off.

Presented by the Goldner Conservatory August 2-3, and featuring high school students, the caliber of talent and production blew us away.

The play, billed as a "quirky, dark comedy musical," lives us to that description, telling the story of six teens from Uranium City, Saskatchewan, who died in a roller coaster accident and are given a chance for one to come back to life by Karnak, a mysterious, mechanical fortune teller straight out of a "Twilight Zone" episode. Karnak assigns each victim a catchphrase that encapsulates their persona as they compete to be the chosen one in song.

There's humor and pathos in equal measure as we learn each teen's backstory. We meet the self-assured Ocean (Natalie Mammolito), the gay dreamer Noel (Chase Luttenauer), bad boy Mischa (Mack Fernandez), sweet wallflower Constance (Amy Dominguez), super hero wannabe Ricky (Joseph McDonald) and amnesia-striken Jane Doe (Khloe Vargas). Karnak is played by Lew Barski.

Backed by an ensemble cast, solid choreography and an engaging musical score, the cast performed a lot more like seasoned professionals rather than high schoolers. If "Ride the Cyclone" is any indication, theater will be alive and well for many years to come.

Are you familiar with the song, "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down on the Farm (After They've Seen Paree?)"?
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Published in 1919, after the end of World War I, its core message for the returning soldiers -- who wants to go back to farm life after experiencing Paris -- still rings true today. Just not in the same context.

All you need is an update on the lyrics: "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Streaming (After They're Watched Shows With No Ads?)"

Let's be honest. The biggest reason we all flocked to Netflix and Amazon Prime was watching content with no intrusive ads popping up every few minutes. Wasn't that why we bought DVDs, and before that, VHS tapes, and before that, recorded shows on a Betamax and hit fast forward through the commericials.

Now, one minute you're caught up in a scene where the killer is about to strike and suddenly there's a happy couple extolling the virtues of a new pharmaceutical that will rid you of itchy skin, but not without side effects too long to list. That's not why I bought streaming.

But wait. No, you don't want to watch ads at all? Just pony up more money for their premium, no ads service. Let me get this straight: You want me to pay to watch advertisers that are paying you outrageous sums to run their ads? Don't they call that double-dipping, or maybe even bait and switch?> I don't think so, thank you very much.

When all this started, Netflix was pretty much the only game in town. Remember back in the beginning, when it was mailing DVDs? Pretty cool. Then over time, streaming took over. Content on demand -- a Mother lode of entertainment options for consumers. That started the streaming Gold Rush, as more channels joined the fray. Amazon Prime, Hulu, Apple TV, Paramount Plus (anything with "plus" applied means ka-ching), Disney and on and on.

As lovers of British TV and programming, we discovered Acorn and Britbox, which opened the door to a whole wealth of quality shows and programming from the UK. Thankfully, they are still offering all their content sans ads. Another service still ad-free, as far as I know, is HBO and their companion service, MAX. 

So what's the upshot of all this? One thing could be a resurgence in DVD sales. In fact, we have spent time recently retrieving our DVD collection, which had been stored and collecting dust for a number of years. 

Just like the old song, we have seen "Paree" and have no desire to go back to the "farm," as it were. 
​

It's March,  a month designated as a time to honor women and the roles they play in the world.  

According to Wikipedia, "the earliest reported Women's Day event, called 'Woman's Day,' was held on February 28, 1909, in New York City -- organized by the Socialist Party of America." The following year, the movement gained steam, as "100 delegates representing 17 countries" endorsed the idea as a means "to promote equal rights and women's suffrage."

Then, in 1911, more than a million people in Europe paraded, marched and carried banners at the first International Women's Day, demanding "the right to vote, hold public office and protesting job sex discrimination."

Here in America, President Jimmy Carter designated March 2-8, 1980 as National Women's History Week. Later, Congress declared March as National Women's History Month in perpetuity in 1987.  

It's been a long, hard fight, marked by remarkable heroism, bravery and sacrifice. Much has been achieved in the last 100-plus years, but sadly, much remains to be done in what is a never-ending struggle for equality and justice.

As a man who believes deeply in equal rights, I stand with them.

Throughout my lifetime, I have been blessed to be among strong women, starting with my mother. Some would call her hard-headed, but she made her own decisions and stood by them. Likewise my mother-in-law, who loved to laugh but was tough when she needed to be, as was my sister-in-law, who was really more like the sister I never had. Then there were the educators, particularly my journalism teacher, who set me on my career path and called me out when I needed it.

But the strongest, most resilient woman in my life is my soulmate and partner, my wife, Pam.

Gentle, kind and caring, with a ironclad commitment to fair play and doing the right thing. Those who know her also will tell you she's fiercely loyal, fiery and passionate in her beliefs. Friends can trust her with any secret, because they know it will never pass her lips. If you decide to challenge her, better bring a lunch. I've never seen her shy away from a fight.

A voracious reader, smart and savvy, she can hold her own in any setting, and would be right at home  with writer Dorothy Parker at the famous New York Algonquin Round Table, or sharing cocktail banter with Hemingway and company in 1920s Paris.

In short, she not only well knows the importance of this month, but also takes her  place on the front lines as women once again have to fight to preserve the hard-won rights gained by so many before them.

The website for International Women's Day says it:

"Imagine a gender equal world. A world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. A world that's diverse, equitable, and inclusive. A world where difference is valued and celebrated. Together we can forge gender equality."

Of course, I'll never truly know what it's like to be a woman, to be relegated to second class status, to fight for things men take for granted as  a birthright. 

What I do know is I take tremendous pride and have undying admiration in all Pam does for women's rights, and the fight for common decency everywhere. There's one thing I always want her to know:

I have your back.

​You know what I love? Finding new desserts.

Like when I discovered kolaches in the small, North Texas town of West. Originally from the Czech Republic, these sweet dough pastries with fruit in the middle would send me to sweetness heaven.

As Fat Tuesday approaches, Pam and I always celebrate Mardi Gras in our own way by going to Publix for a traditional King Cake. This year, while strolling the bakery isles, we saw a new confection by the King Cakes: Paczki.

They looked like big donuts. As we are also fans of donuts, and intrigued by the name, why not give them a try?

One taste and it was another expressway ride to sweetness heaven! I had to know more about paczkis, so of course I clicked over to the trusty Wikipedia:

They come from Poland, and have been around since the Middle Ages. A paczki is "a deep-fried piece of dough shaped into a flattened ball and filled with confiture or other sweet filling. . .Although they look like... jelly doughnuts, pączki are made from especially rich dough containing eggs, fats, sugar, yeast, and sometimes milk. They feature a variety of fruit and creme fillings." Ours had a custard filling, and was much denser than regular donuts.

While Poland marks Fat Thursday (the last Thursday prior to Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent) with paczkis, in America, Polish communities celebrate Paczki Day on Fat Tuesday (thus the connection). It even goes on to say some Paczki Day celebrations are larger than St. Patrick's Day festivities, especially in a Polish community near Detroit. It is likened to the Mardi Gras of the Midwest. Who knew?

Thanks to Publix, the Barker household now has a new tradition: King Cakes and paczki. If I could just find some kolaches around here, we could make it the Fat Tuesday Trifecta.

Social media has long needed a new sheriff in town, and one has arrived.

It's called Blue Sky, and millions of users are making the switch to try it out.

Of course you can still find us on Facebook and Instagram, but please visit us over at Blue Sky as well. You can find Pam here and Gerry here.

Welcome to the party, Blue Sky, and we'll celebrate with a little music --

In June of 2022, we took our granddaughter, Cate, on a cruise to Mexico to celebrate the end of school. On our port stop in Cozumel, we all went on a shore excursion that centered around Mayan culture. Among other things, it included a re-creation of the Mayan ball game, Pok-Ta-Pok. 

I shot several videos of the game, which are posted on our YouTube Channel.

Much to my surprise, a year later I was contacted by a Korean TV show, Talkpawon 25hrs, asking my permission to use the Pok-Ta-Pok video in their show. I said sure, just give credit to North Palm Beach Life.

I didn't think too much more about it until recently, when I checked our usage stats on YouTube. For context, most of the 500-plus videos posted there get views in the dozens, some in the hundreds, and on occasion, the thousands. Imagine the shock when i saw the Pok-Ta-Pok video had logged 91,847 views!

More recently, I was contacted by Brian Ross, who requested use of the same video for a new series about the history and archeology of various cultures around the world. You can view the result below, along with the original Pok-Ta-Pok game video.

​As Brian notes in his video, we really are all connected in this universe of ours.