THE MOOJ WEEKLY STANDARD
VOLUME III, No. 33, September 1, 1999


Written and Edited by Mujaputtia Umbababbaraba, The Billy Jack of Poetry  
First Things First.  The Mooj is very sorry that he has been neglecting his editorial duties of late.  I have been so busy lately.  In fact, I haven't even read The Mooj Weekly Standard in over a month.  (You guys probably know more about what's going on in my life than I do.)  As I travel around from town to town I often run into people familiar with this newsletter and they share with me bits of information.  For example, last night a friendly subscriber informed me that Lance Worthy was rude, yet again, last week.  (He said that Lance wasn't as rude as he usually is but that he was rude, nonetheless.)  Thus, I have a dilemma:  should I blow off my mail bag this week (which will anger most readers) or have Lance answer the mail (which would certainly anger most readers).  I cannot possibly get to the mailbag again this week so I have struck up a novel idea: why not have Lance Worthy's grandma answer the mail?  Since she is Amish I doubt she will be rude or otherwise unpleasant.
The Mooj Mail Bag
(Note: this week's mail was sorted, prioritized, edited and answered by Rebecca Stoltzfuss, Lance Worthy's Grandma.)  

Cook's Corner  
Some guy calling himself "Ghanja Gangster Ziggy" sent in a nice recipe for a Caribbean treat called "Jerked Beef." I hope you enjoy it.  Another place I recall being pretty good for Caribbean food was a place in Philly called The Jamaican Jerk Hut.  I wonder if it's still around?
Travels with Mooj  
Part V: Red Hot Memphis Nights
 
Once I had my union card I was playing juke joints all up and down the Mississippi delta.  The Mooj, or “Howlin’ Mooj,” as I was then being called by my fans, became very popular.  But something just didn’t seem right.  People coming to my shows often mentioned seeing me at places that I had never played.  Some even mentioned that they enjoyed “my interpretive dancing” while I played—something I had never done (as far as I could recall anyway).  “What could this mean?” I wondered, “Were there two Howlin’ Moojs in Mississippi?”  This was really quite puzzling.

And then one night as I walked along a dark and dusty road I heard the unmistakable sound of a ’52 Telecaster played through a vintage Fender “black face” Super Reverb Amp.  Whoever this guitar player was, he had totally mastered my sound (the ax was plugged into the second input jack, the “bright switch” was “on,” the volume dial was at 10, the treble dial was at 10, the middle dial was at 7, the bass dial was at 7, the reverb dial was at 10, the speed dial was at 3, and the intensity dial was at 10.  Also, the bottom left 10-inch speaker had been punctured with a pencil).  This person was also playing one of my most famous songs!  I approached the dilapidated juke joint where this impostor was playing and peeked through a partially boarded up window.  There I saw with my very own eyes my exact double up on stage, naked as a jay bird, playing his guitar and doing a kung-fu dance at the same time!  I was horrified!  This charlatan J.J. Bigsby had not only stolen my identity, but he was playing and dancing better than I had ever done!  I decided then and there to confront this evil twin and walked up to the stage with my guitar in hand.  Those few lucky patrons sitting at the bar and lying drunk on the floor witnessed the best “blues showdown” to ever take place in the State of Mississippi!  The dueling Moojs “cut heads” that night—both agreeing that the winner would stay in Mississippi and the loser would forever abandon the delta.  I played better than I ever played that night but my best was no match for the fake Mooj.  After it was all over I handed the fake Mooj my trusty old ax (which he broke over his knee) and then I walked away with my head hung low.  The crowd booed and threw bottles at me as I left the juke joint in shame; I would never play the blues in Mississippi again.

I had no idea what to do next.  I had no money, no clothes, no guitar, no car—no nothing!  And worse, I was being driven out of Mississippi by some deranged lunatic clone of myself.  Before I had much time to ponder my desperate circumstances I was run over by a VW microbus.  (During my deep reflection I did not realize that I was standing in the middle of the road.)  The VW microbus was packed full of hippies and luckily they stopped to help me.  Among the van load of freaks was a former Mooj Entourage member who immediately recognized me and convinced the others that I was harmless and holy.  I was then lifted off the highway and carried aboard the VW microbus (then christened “The Mooj Freedom Bus No. 2”).  At first I was uncomfortable since I had several broken bones and was squashed between two dozen people.  But soon I didn’t care.  It was nice to be ‘on the road’ again and among devotees.

In a very short time the VW microbus pulled into Memphis, TN.  I had once promised myself that I would never set foot in Memphis again.  And now, 22 years later, I was there again.  I felt incredible sorrow—for my memories of Memphis were sad ones.  From July of 1975 to August 17, 1977 I had lived in Memphis and belonged to the prestigious Elvis Presley Kempo Karate Black Belt Bodyguard Legion.  If you are a long time subscriber to The Mooj Weekly Standard then surely you recall that I have written extensively about this wonderful time of my life in earlier newsletters.  Few people were as lucky as I was back then: not only was I one of Elvis Presley’s bodyguards, I was also part of his black belt entourage.  Everywhere The King went, I went.  Those were great times for The Mooj but, alas, they were short-lived.  When The King died part of me died too.  The saddest thing I ever had to do in my life was to hang up my black velvet karate uniform and turn in my “TCB” lightning bolt necklace.  (I got to keep all my rings, though.)

So there I was: back in Memphis.  Would I return to visit Graceland again?  Maybe.  But first my new hippie friends need to take me to the hospital so I can get all my broken bones reset.

 
Ancient Indian Artifacts  
Raj Mahal of Merit, India has sent in two very witty limericks.  Enjoy them if you must:

There was this young lass from Madras,
Who had a most remarkable ass,
It wasn't round and pink,
As some of you might think,
But was gray, had long ears, and ate grass.
 

There was this belle from Bangalore,
They thought she was smart when she was four,
When she was of age,
She went to Maharani's college,
And no one thought she was smart anymore.


Closing Thoughts 
Well here ends another edition of The Mooj Weekly Standard.  I hope that sooner or later I can just sit and relax to catch up on all my poetry and song writing.  It seems like ages since I last composed one of my magical poems or wrote one of my multicultural inspirational songs.  After all these weeks of suffering on the lam I’m beginning to think that maybe I should just return to Chester County.  I miss the calmness of country living.  I also miss Tastykakes.  I had no idea you couldn't get Tastykakes outside of the Philadelphia metro area.  My, what I wouldn’t give to have one of those Tastykakes’ pies right now!
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