Johnny Mathis

Last week the 89-year-old singer, Johnny Mathis, announced his retirement as of May 18th. Since he started performing and recording at 19, his career lasted 70 years. He had 106 albums and 113 singles, with 73 of the albums appearing for a lengthy period on the Billboard Charts. By the 1960s he not only had sold millions of records, he also had become a millionaire. His career slumped some in the 1970s but came back in the 1980s.

He was known primarily as a romantic ballad singer, but he recorded a wide range of music. For many years he was on 50 – 60 concert tours to promote his recordings. (I only have 1 “On Broadway.” I missed him when he appeared in Albuquerque in 1964, but I heard excited reports of his appearance at the gay bar after the concert. I saw him in-person in 1965 in Houston. I don’t know where he got all that energy, especially in his later years. He is a week older than me.) He was outed in 1982 and officially came out in 2006.

U.K. TV producer and narrator Alex Polizzi has several mini-series running on Amazon Prime Video. She is from a family with a long history of hotel operations. The first episode that I watched was a travelogue Secret Italy. People who have traveled extensively in Europe will appreciate that she avoids the tourist traps and covers little known sites, particularly in the eastern and southern side of the Italian “boot.” Since she is originally from Italy, she knows the country well. She has a quirky, casual, and entertaining personality that doesn’t drone on like some tour guides.

Her second one was about Spain that covered some of the traditional sites, but again she takes you to those off the beaten path. She joins in the run of the bulls. Other sites include Valencia, Andalusia, Madrid, Costa Blanca, Grenada, and then she goes to a bullfight, and ends up at the Cathedral de Santiago Compostela.

The Joy You Make: Find the Silver Linings Even on Your Darkest Days

By Steven Petrow
Viking Press 2024

In the vein of a mindset since The Power of Positive Thinking decades ago, this book takes the concept to a new level. It addresses both the psychological and physical aspects of Joy. He distinguishes this state as different than happiness, which he considers more momentary and superficial. His example: Happiness is like a sugary Twinkle, with Joy more like a whole wheat muffin. We cannot always be happy, but we can experience joy even in the middle of hardships.

The book was written in the middle of a series of personal hardships that challenged the author to deal with depression and grief. He says that you only need to look for joy to find it. Joy is not only around us, but within us. Joy is a conscious choice to respond to our circumstances in a positive and fulfilling way. We may not be able to change our circumstances, but we can change how we respond.