Old Rockers and Old Ministers – just never die!

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Today’s Blog Post
Old Rockers and Old Ministers – just never die!

Jerry is an old turkey that has been famous in days gone by. His long, stringy, gray hair. He has lived a full and rather famous life in the Rock and Roll bands of yesteryear. He was once famous and did gigs all over the world – in famous places before absolutely packed out venues. One such place he said there were about 10,000 jammed into the place they played that one night.

Oh the glory and the fame that he achieved. People pressed in around the guys as they exited the theaters and pushed to get autographs. What a rush… that fame and fortune way of living! And their group did make a name and make bundles of cash that they rolled in and rolled away.

Jerry lives not far from us and walks his dog from time to time. He is in the grocery store sometimes buying the bargains that I buy as well. His attempts at Marriage failed – a couple of them actually… and he has no one.

I told a young Rocker about my knowing Jerry… the famous Rocker and Guitar player. The young guy gave a disgusted, “Hummph… that old guy is nothing. Most guys I know could play circles around him today. He is a has been!”

The young rocker makes a lot of noise in his apartment and hopes one day that he will make a CD of the noise he creates.

Jerry is maybe a “has been” – but is now being rated by a “wanna be”.

It is a life moment that is too good to be true.

I sat in a church service not long ago. The folk didn’t know us – right off. We were kind of incognito – under cover of sorts.

At the end of the service a person shook my hand and asked my name. I told him it is Murray Lincoln.

He replied, “Murray Lincoln, Lincoln, Lincoln… I know that name… you used to be…” Then his words stopped in mid sentence… waiting for me to tell him – how he might know me.

I started to form the words and tell him that I once pastored a number of churches, with the one in our city being the most recent… in fact that covered 35 years of work and ministry… raising all kinds of money, starting dozens of community programs… and appearing in the newspapers many times over. I wondered if he would know me from my intense days of serving our country and the Church Denomination in South East Asia, learning to speak Cantonese and read/write Mandarin? I thought maybe he would have seen my on TV one day in the past… one of the programs that had featured what I do so well…? Maybe he knew me as an editor of three magazine and a cartoonist… Maybe?

Then he chirped in… “I know now… you are that old guy that my friend saw climbing that tree to cut it down. She was so concerned about what you were doing and suggested that we call some one to get you out of the tree before you fell! She said your name was Murray Lincoln!”

My Executive Brothers in our District Office of our Church Organization did remember me lately. They haven’t called or stopped by for a long time…(two years in fact) and suddenly the letter arrived informing me that I have not given enough money to a fund that they collect from all ministers in our District. It seems that someone in their great wisdom… made a rule and demanded that ministers (working or retired) are to be sending 5% of their income to the Church’s head office… and they had not seen any come in from me.

When you retire you cannot send as much as you had to(or were able to) when you were famous!

This letter arrived at about the same time that the Ontario Government has laid on to us the 13% HST tax… dinging me for my haircuts and my funeral expenses… and then the Ontario Government also nailed another fee that was hidden and never announced – to the things like light bulbs that they say they need to get rid of the light bulb!!!!

Jerry told me the hardest part is that he has to keep paying into a Musician’s Union of some sort(I think that is what he called it).

You know… I have come to realize that Old Ministers are a lot like Old Rockers… they are “has beens”.. something from another era and another dinosaur age.

Sheesh!

I have decided that I will send my reply to the Church Organization in Chinese… well written and corrected for errors… and when they can read it I might send them the $5.00 that they deserve.

Jerry and I will meet for coffee sometime soon. He needs a friend too.

In a recent article – written in Oct 19, 2006 – Pete Townshend was 61 years old then. His comments are funny to read… about Old Rockers…
Quote…
The 61-year-old rocker says he wouldn't pay money to go and see Dylan or any of his other contemporise from the decade play live, and insists he wouldn't even go and watch his own band if he was a fan because they are past it.

Townshend - who has just completed a world tour with his original The Who bandmate Roger Daltrey - fumed to Britain's Daily Express newspaper: "I don't think the big bands are going to be able to do this much longer, I really don't. I don't want to go out and see Bob Dylan. I don't want to go and see The Stones. I wouldn't pay money to go and see The Who, not even with new songs. It all makes me sick and I mean that in an ageist way.'

Townshend claims he very rarely sees many teenagers at Who concerts and insists the band only still manage to sell out stadiums because of their loyal older fans who grew up with them.

He explained: "People say, 'Oh I went to see The Rolling Stones concert there were lots of young people there.' But it's not young kids. Once. They come once. There are a lot of people who come and see bands like The Who once just for the experience.'
End Quote (reference below)

Granted there are some old ministers and old sermons that I don’t want either… yikes – we are alike!

~ Murray Lincoln ~
http://www.murraylincoln.com/

Source:
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/music/news/article_1212555.php/Pete_Townshend_attacks_old_rockers

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Still+sexy+at+sixty%3B+As+those+old+rockers+go+on+tour+again,+one...-a085811512

Special Note From Our Government - and in particular "Grahame" who kindly provided the following information about the HST - that I referred to in the article above.  Thanks Grahame.

From an Email... July 21, 2010
Hello Murray
My name is Grahame from the Minister’s Office at the Ontario Ministry of Revenue and I read your blog post referencing the Harmonized Sales Tax. With the recent implementation of the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) it is important to learn about how the HST will affect people in Ontario. Based on the focus of your blog, I thought this might be helpful information to provide your readers.

This is about creating jobs and putting people back to work. Within 10 years our comprehensive tax package will create nearly 600,000 new jobs, attract $47 billion in new business investment and increase wages.

The HST is part of this comprehensive tax package that will see 93 per cent of Ontarians receive personal income tax cut. With these cuts Ontario now has the lowest provincial tax rate in Canada on the first $37,106 of taxable income. In fact, 90,000 low-income Ontarians will no longer have to pay Personal Income Tax.

To help families we have introduced a permanent $260 Sales Tax Credit for low- and middle-income adults, children and seniors. In total $4.2 billion in transition payments will be delivered to help Ontarians adjust to the Harmonized Sales Tax. It is important to remember that every $100 in tax relief is equivalent to the 8% tax on $1250 in newly taxed items.

We are exempting children’s clothing and footwear, infant and child care seats, diapers, books, food under $4, newspapers, and feminine hygiene products, from the provincial portion of the HST.

Please find more information on the tax breaks for people here: http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/en/taxchange/families.html

Another helpful document is a list of what's taxable under the HST and what's not: http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/en/taxchange/pdf/taxable.pdf.

For more information about the HST please visit www.ontario.ca/taxchange.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions regarding the HST or the government’s tax reforms.

Thank you,
Grahame
Grahame.mor@ontario.ca
www.twitter.ca/riversgr