The Oracle of Delphi

The Pythia and Sybils of Delphi could prophesize the future, and may have looked like Angelina Jolie in these images from Alexander (2004), where she plays his seductively powerful mother Olympias. It's worth a watch just to see her in such gorgeous attire, spangles and all. Plus the snakes. Surely few women besides Angelina and Helen of Troy have walked the earth with such great blessings from Aphrodite and Athena.

As for oracles, these days there are a lot of things to wonder about, and we could use the heads up with the help of the Pythia and nearby sybils, whether they look like Angelina or not.

One of the best developments of late is that my sister, the former Vickie Charabati, is now Vickie Stavish. I'm pleased to announce that she married Michael Stavish in Las Vegas last Friday night. They just moved into a new house in New Britain, Pennsylvania. I'm very happy for them and wish them a fun and prosperous future.

Too, the Detroit Pistons are doing well after a few tired patches and are in a strong position for the rest of the season. Go Pistons! They're playing right now. . . . .

Detroit needs the boost. In Troy, Michigan, the bankrupt Delphi Corporation may cut its substantial work force by two thirds via a mix of layoffs, buyouts (one lump sum of $35,000 per eligible worker for voluntary early retirement), and flowbacks to Big Daddy GM. Each of the Big Three is hurting, with more downsizing (and flailing about) to come. Pawnshops, though, are doing well these days.

Famous Detroiters are suffering, too. Eminem (or Marshall Bruce Mathers III) and his wife Kim are getting divorced a second time; the rap star, having held a fanciful wedding at Meadowbrook Hall in Rochester Hills this past January, filed for divorce last Wednesday. Unless this is amended or pulled, they could be formally re-divorced in June. But far worse, Eminem's close friend and fellow rapper Proof (Deshaun Holton, Best Man at the latest wedding) was shot and killed in Detroit last night during an argument -- allegedly by one Mario Etheridge -- right after Proof shot and badly wounded an Iraq War veteran, Army Sgt. Keith L. Bender, Jr. Apparently, Proof took two shots to the head and two in the back. As the oracles tell us, nothing is as it seems; more will be revealed.

Be careful out there, my friends, whether you're in Detroit or Baghdad -- or Ontario, which had its own murders recently, gang related. A bunch of dudes from Toronto were shot and left for dead on a fellow biker's farm, details pending.

Let us consult the oracles and pray. Peace be with you. . . . .