{"id":179709,"date":"2026-01-18T16:36:33","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T16:36:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/?p=179709"},"modified":"2026-01-18T16:36:33","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T16:36:33","slug":"more-thoughts-on-my-birthday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2026\/01\/18\/more-thoughts-on-my-birthday\/","title":{"rendered":"More thoughts on my birthday"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>I did a simple thing but it made me happy: I transcribed my latest song so I have a lyric and lead sheet. It took about 30 minutes so I shall do this with some of the other songs  I have recorded with the intent of torturing people at OMs and Folk singarounds. I have suffered for my art and so should you&#8230;  A small thing but a step forward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" allow=\"autoplay\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/soundcloud%253Atracks%253A2248757792&#038;color=%23400e0e&#038;auto_play=false&#038;hide_related=false&#038;show_comments=true&#038;show_user=true&#038;show_reposts=false&#038;show_teaser=true\"><\/iframe><div style=\"font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/dianastone\" title=\"Diana Stones Glasscage\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\">Diana Stones Glasscage<\/a> \u00b7 <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/dianastone\/no-more-excuse\" title=\"No More Excuse\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\">No More Excuse<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Noon January 20, 1961. In his inaugural address, JFK spoke of the need for all Americans to be active citizens: &#8220;Ask not what your country can do for you\u2014ask what you can do for your country.&#8221; He asked the nations of the world to join to fight what he called the &#8220;common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.&#8221;He added:<br><br>&#8220;All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.&#8221; In closing, he expanded on his desire for greater internationalism: &#8220;Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you.&#8221;<br><br>Or <br><br>&#8221; They were farmers and soldiers, cowboys and factory workers, steelworkers and coal miners, police officers and pioneers who pushed onward, marched forward, and let no obstacle defeat their spirit or their pride. Together, they laid down the railroads, raised up the skyscrapers, built great highways, won two world wars, defeated fascism and communism, and triumphed over every single challenge that they faced.&#8221; <br><br>Yet what we see Trump doing with the ICE thugs is clearly fascism. I really don&#8217;t understand how US politics works. My greatest fear is that the wannabes (Farage and his unspeakables) in this country might get into power at some point in my lifetime.  <br><br>What a contrast. Obviously JFK was far from perfect, if he had lived would we still have a man like Trump eventually come to power. I guess the answer is yes because &#8216;Mostly Old White Men&#8217; and a few of their young rich disciples seem pretty much unstoppable. <br><br>Everything is fucked now.<br><br>A thought at reaching 69: I don&#8217;t seek death but I am aware of its presence at least in the mirror in the distance. Something glimpsed in the shadows. I am not an optimist. All we ever have at best within reason is another day if we are spared. I find it easy to live that way as I have gotten older. Your welcome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized is-style-rounded\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"544\" height=\"1024\" data-attachment-id=\"179729\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2026\/01\/18\/more-thoughts-on-my-birthday\/place_the_woman_in_an_early\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?fit=1009%2C1901&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1009,1901\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"place_the_woman_in_an_early\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?fit=544%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?resize=544%2C1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-179729\" style=\"aspect-ratio:0.5312594798819669;width:261px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?resize=544%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 544w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?resize=159%2C300&amp;ssl=1 159w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?resize=768%2C1447&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?resize=815%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 815w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/place_the_woman_in_an_early.jpeg?w=1009&amp;ssl=1 1009w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 544px) 100vw, 544px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-rounded\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"604\" height=\"1007\" data-attachment-id=\"179733\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2026\/01\/18\/more-thoughts-on-my-birthday\/book-signing\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?fit=1536%2C2560&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1536,2560\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Book signing\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?fit=604%2C1007&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing-614x1024.jpeg?resize=604%2C1007&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-179733\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?resize=614%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 614w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?resize=180%2C300&amp;ssl=1 180w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?resize=768%2C1280&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?resize=922%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 922w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?resize=1229%2C2048&amp;ssl=1 1229w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Book-signing.jpeg?w=1536&amp;ssl=1 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 604px) 100vw, 604px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I did a simple thing but it made me happy: I transcribed my latest song so I have a lyric and lead sheet. It took about 30 minutes so I shall do this with some of the other songs I have recorded with the intent of torturing people at OMs and Folk singarounds. I have &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2026\/01\/18\/more-thoughts-on-my-birthday\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">More thoughts on my birthday<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":179724,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-179709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-musings"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/death-and-chessmen.jpg?fit=365%2C273&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6NRDR-KKx","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1425,"url":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2012\/10\/02\/no-fanfares-or-plagues-of-frogs-so-far-which-is-a-good-thing\/","url_meta":{"origin":179709,"position":0},"title":"No fanfares or plagues of frogs so far, which is a good thing.","author":"diana Stone","date":"October 2, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"No fanfares or plagues of frogs so far, which is a good thing. A couple of minor niggles with odd behavior from someone I have been doing a bit of work for though, which put me in a bad mood. I built and maintained a website for a music magazine\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Musings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Musings","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/category\/musings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":38876,"url":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2016\/04\/16\/be-careful-what-you-wish-for-revised-version\/","url_meta":{"origin":179709,"position":1},"title":"Be careful what you wish for revised version.","author":"diana Stone","date":"April 16, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Indeed. Today I have been aching a bit. That \u00a0happens as time passes. \u00a0Played a gig a venerable old school south London boozer last night. That was OK though not the most mind blowing gig ever, but folks seem to be enjoying it. \u00a0I am \u00a0always fascinated watching the punters\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Musings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Musings","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/category\/musings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Railway Hotel Southend on sea","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/WP_20160409_17_50_23_Pro.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/WP_20160409_17_50_23_Pro.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/WP_20160409_17_50_23_Pro.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/WP_20160409_17_50_23_Pro.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/WP_20160409_17_50_23_Pro.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/WP_20160409_17_50_23_Pro.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":50437,"url":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2016\/08\/11\/time-will-tell\/","url_meta":{"origin":179709,"position":2},"title":"Time will tell","author":"diana Stone","date":"August 11, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"I suppose when you get to a certain age, its very easy to get into the mindset \u00a0that everything was really much better before and things were more reasonable. \u00a0Except of course that analysis tends to lead us to quite the opposite conclusion though our romantic notions of a soft\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Musings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Musings","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/category\/musings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Diana Stone arriving at the Motorcycle Hotel ","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/27342739914_a73e0b8990_k.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/27342739914_a73e0b8990_k.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/27342739914_a73e0b8990_k.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/27342739914_a73e0b8990_k.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/27342739914_a73e0b8990_k.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/27342739914_a73e0b8990_k.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":177296,"url":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2024\/05\/09\/i-have-a-lurgy\/","url_meta":{"origin":179709,"position":3},"title":"I have a Lurgy","author":"diana Stone","date":"May 9, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I have a cold\/flu type thing and I am a feeling really shit. It came on after the gig. The last thing I had was Covid in July 2022 and I have not had anything since then, so it's been a couple of years. I will test to see if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Diana Stones Songs&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Diana Stones Songs","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/category\/diana_stones_songs\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20190405_211742_002-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20190405_211742_002-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20190405_211742_002-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20190405_211742_002-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/20190405_211742_002-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1131,"url":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2011\/10\/07\/october\/","url_meta":{"origin":179709,"position":4},"title":"October","author":"diana Stone","date":"October 7, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I am still feeling quite rough at the moment, my body seems to be doing its best to repair itself, but I having some very rough days. Today seems to be one of them though and my mood is not good. The meds that I have to fix the problem\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Delta Ladies&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Delta Ladies","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/category\/delta-ladies\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":510,"url":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/2009\/11\/02\/gestalt-prayer\/","url_meta":{"origin":179709,"position":5},"title":"Gestalt prayer","author":"diana Stone","date":"November 2, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"The \"Gestalt prayer\" is a 56-word statement by psychotherapist Fritz Perls that is taken as a classic expression of Gestalt therapy as way of life model of which Dr. Perls was a founder. The key idea of the statement is the focus on living in response to one's own needs,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Musings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Musings","link":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/category\/musings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=179709"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179709\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":179734,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179709\/revisions\/179734"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179724"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=179709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=179709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glass-cage.com\/dianas_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=179709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}