I Heard it Through the Grapevine

Haired it? Hoid it? Heired it? However John Fogerty's singing it. Whatever. It's all good. All eleven minutes.

Wait. Steve is attempting to figure out how he actually says it in the song.

Huheed, apparently. You hoid it hear first.

But! That's not why I'm posting. I'm posting because I've not posted since the last time I posted which was sometime last week, I think. And I refuse to let this valuable bit of web space go to waste. That's reserved for my website, which I really should, I dunno, do something with. I mean, I am paying for it and all. But that's another post.

I don't really feel like posting about Christmas. Not because I had a bad time. On the contrary, I had a most wonderful time. I just don't really feel like doing a blow-by-blow recount of the weekend. I imagine my week off has contributed mightily to my overall feeling of laziness. I do enjoy being a slug, but I have to say, it saps the drive to do much of anything else pretty well.

In fact...I lost my train of thought. Steve put a penguin movie in, and my will to finish posting is gone. Year in review, maybe, possibly, if I feel like it later. When I get around to it. Or not.

Posting is quite hard when your brain won't work. I apologize for the lameness of this "update." I'll be personally apologizing to everyone, so watch your doors.

pppbhhhhhhhh,
Dave

U2 pictures? U2 pictures!

Yes, I'm stealing a phrase I never really use. So there. Apologies to any dial-up folks out there besides myself.

This is your life!

Describe yourself using one band and song titles from that band
Choose a band/artist and answer only in song TITLES by that band::	U2
Are you male or female::	Pete the Chop
Describe yourself::	The Wanderer
How do some people feel about you::	A Different Kind of Blue
How do you feel about yourself::	Even Better Than the Real Thing
Describe your ex girlfriend/boyfriend::	Lady With the Spinning Head
Describe your current girlfriend/boyfriend::	Two Hearts Beat as One
Describe where you want to be::	In God's Country
Describe what you want to be::	Things to Make and Do
Describe how you live::	One Step Closer
Describe how you love::	Always Forever Now
Share a few words of wisdom:	Some Days Are Better Than Others
Take this survey | Find more surveys You've been totally Bzoink*d

"Any secrets you'd like to confess, Larry Mullen, Jr.?"

So I know you're all sitting around wondering to yourselves "when's he gonna post about the U2 concert?

How about now?



I don't know if it's one of those old saws or not, but I imagine a lot of people, after waiting a long time for something or other, can build up pretty high expectations in their mind, and whatever it is may not live up to them. The risk is especially high in my case, considering I've been listening to recordings of the tour from the day afer it started up until my recent month-long exile. There's a lot at stake, expecially considering how much it costs to attend a U2 show.

With that said, I'm happy to report that when one is dealing with U2, one's expectations are rarely let down. 'Twas a wonderful show, complete with some golden oldies like 'Gloria,' side-project track 'Miss Sarajevo,' and my new favorite, 'Original of the Species.' At no addtional charge to us, the audience, we even got a cover of John Lennon's 'Instant Karma,' which was surprisingly good. Part of me would have liked one of their own songs, say 'Crumbs From Your Table,' but I don't think I'm going to complain. I think it'd be too easy to nit pick about what was played and what wasn't instead of simply enjoying the show for what it was.

I will admit, though, that on a purely emotional level, this show didn't compare to the Chicago show of 2001. But on an overall level, this might have been better, maybe because the new material is a lot stronger. The house was full, the band was on, save for a timing mishap during 'Bullet,' and all was well.

And the light curtain is very drool worthy.

Did I mention they played 'Original of the Species?' Man, I love that song.

Lots of cool moments during the show: the light curtain, especially suring 'Vertigo,' Bono going ape-shit on his little drum during 'Love and Peace,' the little kid Bono brought on stage during 'Sunday Bloody Sunday,' the "old geezer" playing piano on 'Yahweh,' and Bono and Edge sharing a mad dash* around the stage during 'Until the End of the World.'

One thing I was worried about was that after waiting so long just to get to the show, it would fly by in a blink. Thankfully, it really didn't seem to zip along too fast, so I was able to soak in every moment.

Even better, the seats were dynamite. Pretty good, considering I let the Ticketmaster website do all the hard work.

The only real downer is that now I've got no U2 to look forward to. For the past nine months, it was always there, waiting in the wings. Now that the show's over, it's created a bit of a void. Thankfully, we've got back-to-back 'Tones shows and a couple of Mouth shows early next year.

And hey, more recordings of U2 to look forward to!



She loves you yeah, yeah, yeah
Dave




*Odds are good that Bono would have caught up with Mr. The Edge if Edge hadn't stopped behind Larry's drum kit. Still, I've never seen him up there, and having the entire band clustered together at the end of the song around the drums was pretty snazzy.

Inside Out

The nice thing about posting this way is that I barely have to think of anything new to type. I'll just let my own words do the talking for me! It's like this thing wrote itself, almost. I thought about using ALA style for Janice's sake, but decided not to.

Anyways.

January
With Steve's successive viewing of The Princess Bride, I think that leaves me as one of the few people on earth who have yet to watch it.

February
Is it possible to lose your train of thought before you've even started thinking?

March
Many thanks to all the submissions for Miss MaxRes 2005.

April
According to mum, who never lies; ever, all baptized males are eligible to be elected Pope.

May
Finally getting to the third point I meant to get to at some point last week.

June
I have just discovered that iTunes, the service, is pretty cool.

July
I have two words to describe my recent Holiday of the Month: On weeeeeeed!!!

August
Good friend Tom has this poster in his basement.

September
Calvin and Hobbes is back in newspapers.

October
Well, despite Isringhausen's best efforts to give all of St. Louis a massive corronary, the Cardinals are up 1-0 after dispatching the Fathers of San Diego 8-5.

November
If memory serves, today marks the eighth anniversary of seeing U2 for the first time back on the PopMart tour.

December
One of the the great things in life, I think, is hearing a song on the radio you haven't heard in many a year, and remembering how cool it was back in the day when it was new.


So if, in some odd way, this was the only set of memories I had from 2005, what would I have to say about this year?

On weeeeeeeeed!!!!

Yeah, yeah. That's it.

U2 in two days. Excellent.

I have coined a new term: ninjosity. Essentially, how much ninja-ness a person may or may not have. Stupid, yes, but lots of fun to say. Try it!

Finally: if you need tomatoes, please ask, as I have recently acquired a few cans of them.


You say tomater, I zader matermorts.
Dave

Third and Ten

My neighbor, who shall remain nameless, because I can't remember his name, has one of those fancy-type-fountains-with-the-flowing-water in his back yard. That's all fine and dandy. He also has it running constantly right now, and at last check, it was cold enough to freeze your Winnebago outside. I'm not complaining, but it does seem silly. Or maybe he likes sitting on his patio in his boxers with temperatures covering around freaking cold degrees.

Janice and I attended our first Rams game today, respectively. Her first and my only one so far. Thanks to the proper connections, namely her aunt, we scored a couple spots in the Post-Dispatch luxury suite, which was, pardon the pun, pretty sweet. Free food and drink, and a nice view of the on field goings-on. I refrain from using 'action,' because there really wasn't a lot of it. Not for us, at least. Some dumb penalties cost us at various points, and the defense was good, when they weren't letting some player from the Redskins run through us like a freight train through a saltine. I didn't get too upset though, as I have no real emotional attachment to our football team. Maybe it's the nature of the game itself, but football and I have never really set well. Not quite oil and water, but not quite sugar and water, if you will. I usually get bored with a game by mid-second quarter when I watch at home. It might have something to do with the rather sporadic nature of the action, or the innumerable commercial breaks, or how the last minute of play can often last as long as The Ten Commandments. Whatever the case, it just ain't my thing. That said, I still had a good time and if free seats come up again, I'm all for going.

I went to a Baptist church service this morning for a NorCo Journal shoot. It was about what I figured: lotsa singing and clapping, lively church-goers, a really loud, intense, etc. pastor, and a somewhat loose structure. Or it felt loose, at least. I guess after the fairly heavy structure of Catholic mass, it seemed a little different. Not really the way I like my church, but for those who like it, more power to them.

Oh yeah, the church was located in a refurbished McDonald's. Weird, huh? I was disappointed at how well they rennovated the building. The outside was obvious: the building was painted white, and featured an added-on steeple, but the inside showed no signs of its former life. Half of the interest for me was trying to find a shot that showed how it was and how it is, but, alas, I was outta luck. Still, I got a pen out of the deal, so I s'pose it was all worth it. But at 2+ hours, the service was a bit more than I could take, mostly because I needed to leave to get to said football game.

Doris Kearns Goodwin is coming to SLCL HQ on Thursday. Please, hold yourselves back. And don't ask me for tickets. We're all out. But, for a small fee, maybe I can sneak you in for the hoity-toity soiree before hand with all the suits.

Hike!
Dave

Miscellaneous Music Musings

One of the the great things in life, I think, is hearing a song on the radio you haven't heard in many a year, and remembering how cool it was back in the day when it was new. Such was the case a few months ago, when I heard one of my favorites from my Point days while driving home from the store on 93X. As is often the case, no one told me the name of the song when it ended (That seems to happen a lot to me. Same thing happened with Joe Walsh's 'Life's Been Good.'). And, unfortunately, my tried and true method of catching a lyric fragment and googling it to find the song was no use, as the only thing I could make out was "just like" repeated at the end. Still, I gave it a go, but to no avail. For whatever reason, I decided I'd give it a go again yesterday. I tried the Google approach, and ever several variations (no boolean operators, though), got fed up and switched to Yahoo. Much to my surprise, and delight, the second search result yielded what I was looking for. The name of the band, long lost in my mind, but not entirely forgotten, is Spacehog, and the song is 'In the Meantime.' Thanks to iTunes, it's now in my library.

Yay internet!

I think it's about time to address one of the greatest issues any rock and roll fan has to come to terms with and decide on: Van Halen or Van Hagar*? I used to be a firm supporter of the original Van Halen, mostly because the Hagar years seemed, well, kinda sissy. I mean, 'Dreams'? 'Why Can't This Be Love'? Keyboards and synths? What happened to Dave, the spandex, heavy guitars, and 'Hot For Teacher'? 'Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love'?

Thanks, but no thanks. After getting to know the Red Rocker a bit more, muscially, I started warming to the Van Hagar material a bit more, and decided it wasn't that bad, and, maybe, just maybe, it was what I preferred. In the end though, I gotta go with Van Halen. There's an unmistakable attitude running through that stuff that's really hard to top. It's loud, in your face, and there aren't any wimpy synths anywhere, except for 'Jump,' which isn't sappy at all, so it can get away with it.

And, really, I think Dave pulled off the tights better than Sammy did. But that's just me.

Another dilemma that I've yet to answer: if I'm forming a band, do I take Vic or Stu?

After almost 9 months, the U2 countdown stands at just about a week and a half. Self-imposed U2 exile has worked pretty well, mostly. I've had no contact with websites to spoil the surprise, and, although unplanned, I've not listened to much actual music, so the experience should be as fresh as possible.

Also cool: March 24, Cowboy Mouth. March 31/April 1, Flecktones.

Woot.


All in all, we love the all of you.
Dave

I'm choosing to ignore the short-lived Gary Charone era, since it kinda sucked.

Thanks, Mr. Narwhal

A few points:

1.) Elf = good.
2.) Ditto Bob Newhart.


Also: Beavis and Butt-Head. What's the appeal? I watched a few minutes of it last night, and couldn't stop laughing at it. For all intensive purposes, nothing happens on that show. Hell, there's barely ever any actual dialogue. Just that very strange laughing. So there's no real plot, no particularly witty dialogue, no zany cast of characters, and yet the show is sometimes quite funny. I don't get it. I remember thinking it was funny "back in the day," but I can chalk some of that up to being a teenager. Now that I'm (supposedly) older and wiser, I can't, for the life of me, figure out what makes that show funny. granted, I can't watch for more than five minutes or so before the premise gets old, but I do laugh during that time. I'd like to think there's some deep meaning behind it all, but the odds of that are in the slim to none category. So I sure don't know. I know the MST3K-style video commentaries are a hoot. The movie was funnt. Shoot, I even liked the semi-RPG game for the Genesis. PC Gamer rated the B&B computer game one of their all-time favorites. So the show's got something going for it. And, lest we forget, if it wasn't for that show, we wouldn't have Daria. And Mike Judge made Office Space, too, so there you go.

In conclusion: That was cool.


Dave

Maverick!

So.

I'm listening to the 'Top Gun Anthem,' which, for an '80s insturmental-type piece of music, isn't too bad. Steve Stevens, he of the lazy parents and Billy Idol guitarist, played the piece. And, being '80s metal, it has copious amounts of tapping and speed for speed's sake. But it's still a pretty good tune.

But what about the movie? Back in the day, before I knew who Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer were, it was one of my favorites. Probably some kind of 'guy thing.' Planes, fast cars, explosions, and what not. And when Dr. Green died because of a faulty ejector, I was just as sad as Maverick. Poor Dr. Goose. And James Tolkan is still cool in my book.

And then I got to thinking: if I sat down tomorrow and watched the movie, would I still like it? Or would the sheer '80s nonsense and its Jerry "ka-boom" Bruckheimer inanity overwhelm it? It seems to happen a lot with things I liked as a kid: Voltron, Transformers, and the like. Watching them now, it's amazing how goofy they were. Then again, they were, essentially, 30-minute commercials. And, since I still buy the occasional Transformer, they were pretty good ads.

And what if the inverse is true: since things I liked when I was a kid turned out to be a bit goofier and maybe not quite as good as I remember, what if things from the last ten years or so that I hated turned out to be good. What if it turns out that, shudder, Wing Commaber is actually.......good?

I'm not sure I could take that.


No. No. Wing Commander has, and always will, suck. Lots.


Dave

There's bugger all down here on the earth

So.

No one bothered telling me this, but it seems that Tom Hanks, Steve Martin, and Eric Idle have united in a weird sort of acousticy, bluegrassy trio of epic proportions.

Why didn't anyone tell me they had one of those...things?

As if I needed another reason to like those guys. Jerks.

Note: I researched a bit, and the "Too Warm Trio" was formed for this event. So maybe it's not something coming to a City Near You.

But still.

Note 2: If I ever meet the person what stapled, yes stapled my carpet padding down, I will give them one heck of a smack on the head.


Dave

But ol'man river, He just keeps rollin' along

Is it Christmas already? I suppose it's pretty close, although some stores/TV shopping channels seem to think the 'season' started somewhere in mid-July (I'd like to think I'm exaggerating a bit, but I'm probably not, sadly).

That said, it sure felt like Christmas today. Coldcoldcold. Nice, but cold. Good night for using the electric blanket. But then it's hard to get up in the morning. Too warm and toasty. That and the fact I just wanted to stay in bed today. Work didn't seem too important or exciting. In the end, it was only slightly boring, as opposed to a total drag. Maybe it's the ho-humness of the slow period our department hits this time of year. Or maybe it was grandma's funeral. You know how that can be on one's psyche. If I had something more eloquent to say, believe you me, I'd say it here, but I can't seem to come up with anything, so it may be best to leave it alone for now. But Fr. Marco's homily yesterday? Pure genius. He was a little here, a little there, but it didn't really matter. The random St. Louis history was odd, but a nice bonus.

I don't necessarily think I took it for granted that she'd always be around. I tried to keep in touch, and she was usually my first call when cooking issues came up. Maybe it's just human nature to think that you didn't do enough when someone dies. And it's probably not wise to dwell on things like that, since I know we all do as much as we can with the time we have. But everyone gets so busy sometimes, it can be hard to step back and keep in touch. But that's some social commentary that will have to wait. For...when I feel like it.

So, in the end, I guess the best thing to do is to sit back, crack open a Miller Lite, and tell the stories. Or share the pictures.

And figure out how the hell to read a barometer.

Anyways.

I'd like to think that I'm a fairly level-headed person most of the time. When it comes to U2 though, I think I may be, well, a little off. The concert is in less than a month, and, to ensure as much surprise as possible, I've instituted a "U2 Exile," effective today. That means no obsessive checking of the previous night's setlist, no reading the various websites in case a rare song gets played, and listening to as much U2 as possible. Ideally, the band will change a few things in the next 3+ weeks, and I'll have as fresh an experience as possible. I've got way too many shows from this tour downloaded, so I have a good idea as to the sound of the show. The look, though, is still mostly a mystery. I've got some idea of the basics from a few pictures, but for the most part, no clue. I'm doing my best to keep it that way, but I broke down and bought the DVD of the tour filmed earlier this summer in Chicago. I broke down evern further, and watched a little bit of it (three songs, I think). I made sure, though, to watch what I figured would have as little give away as possible. I think I did okay, and probably got enough of a fix to hold me over until show time.

Back to the start: maybe it's the QVC/HSN I've been watching, or maybe there's just more of it this year, but the rampant commercialization of Christmas seems to be getting at me more than usual this year. I wouldn't call it disgusting, but it is a bit unsettling. It's a shame, really, because I enjoy the whole gift thing, but it's hard to get into it after the constant bombardment. Yeah, I know, I'm probably setting myself up for a lot of it. "Just turn off the stupid TV," you say. And yet, it's hard to look away. I like to shake my head in disgust and complain, but I just keep watching. So there you go.

I'm making up for my lack of posting with the longest post in the world, for anyone keeping score at home.

Speaking of: the Blues won last night! And Pujols got the MVP! Carp the Cy Young! The Rams..um...are still playing football!

And...that's all I got. Time to go play N.


I'll be marching around in gold pants in no time!
Dave

"You must have me confused with Tom Jones"

No, not likely.



It's not everyday that the King stops by work. Lots of fun, actually. Although, if I make it 25 years here at work, I want a U2 tribute band for my party.

My favorite bit: "If there's anything you've been wanting ot ask me in the 28 years since my death, now's a good time."

Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has left the building.


Just a hunka hunka burning love.
Dave

New York, London, Paris, Munich...

Everybody talk about Pop Muzik.

If memory serves, today marks the eighth anniversary of seeing U2 for the first time back on the PopMart tour. Not only that, I do believe it was my first 'real' concert, unless you count seeing the Spin Doctors on the parking lot of Union Station. Mmm, the good 'ol days when the Spin Doctors were huge.

Wait. I don't think they were ever huge. But they are still around, mostly. But I digress.

Back in '97, I wasn't quite as U2 obsessed as I am now, so there was little time spent surfing the 'net trying to find pictures of the stage or setlists or anything like that. I knew they were coming and I had tickets (thanks to dad's bottomless cups of change. Really. Who has $143 worth of coins in their house?) waaaaaaaaay back, as they were playing the then TWA Dome. Tickets were bought in March of that year, I think, on a chilly Saturday morning from Schnucks near mom's work. I remember doing the whole line ticket business and hoping hoping hoping they didn't sell out.

Turns out the tour was being as well received stateside as originally thought, so there was no danger of a sell out. Even better, we actually got to move down a couple sections since there were maybe 30,000 of around 70,000 seats sold. Worked for me.

I'd never been to the Dome before, but I knew it was a pretty spacious building. So to walk into the seating area and see this filling every inch of the floor was unbelievable. Our seats were pretty dead center in the back, so I had an excellent view of that monstrosity.

Third Eye Blind, back when people sort of cared about them, opened the show, thus beginning the trend of me not caring one iota about 75% of the opening acts I see. It had to be 45 of the dullest minutes I've experienced at a concert. The only highlight was the fact they used sound and music from Godzilla as they came on stage. Finally, they wrapped up, and the interminable wait for U2 began. Finally the intor music started, and there was the band, coming onstage through the crowd: Edge in his 'disco cowboy' gear, Bono shadowboxing the whole way, Adam in the haz-mat suit, and Larry as, um, Larry. The intro to 'Mofo' gets going, and once Edge hits the whammy pedal for the 'airplane noise,' the stage just lights up and proceeds to blow me back in my seat for the entire song. I couldn't find any pictures that did justice to that moment, suffice to say, it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen. Once the opening notes to 'I Will Follow' started, the initial shock and awe wore off, and I was able to enjoy every moment of the concert: the classics like 'Streets,' 'New Year's Day,' and 'Desire.' New stuff like 'Discotheque,' 'Gone,' and the song that really turned me onto the band, 'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me.'

There was the 40 ft. lemon, which turned into a giant disco ball for the first encore, taking the band to the b-stage. And each moment was bigger than the next. Wonderful stuff.

I imagine this would be a more fitting tribute with some more time, or maybe not 8 years later. Better pictures, maybe. Oh well.

Just about a month from now will be U2 show #4 for me. It's all a bit smaller now, but I imagine the emotion will be just as big.

In other news, the 'Tones new album is due out January 31. It's called 'Hidden Land.' Here's to hoping for a couple dates in the area.


Try some buy some fee-fi-fo-fum, Talk about, pop muzik
Dave

Ear Candy

I don't listen to KDHX all that often, but maybe I should pick it up. They just finished playing the suite from the original Godzilla, which earns them about 47,000 cool points in my book.

Also let it be known: my somewhat vague, let kinda cool, pumpkin carving of Bono, circa 1997, won the coveted "What the Bleep is That?" award at last night's Newman pumpkin carving contest. I'll try and load a picture if I can. And feel like it.

I'm going to Six Flags tomorrow for Fright Fest. Good times? Probably. I've never been.

More to come after the long weekend, assuming the dentist doesn't kill me on Monday.

Dave

Head and Shoulders

Knees and toes.

Knees and toes.

I'm not too sure what to make of it, but go here, and, um, enjoy. Then try and get the images out of your head.

I'm pretty sure I like it.

The 'Green Week' video is pretty amusing, too.


Eyes, and ears, and mouth, and nose
Dave

Soul Meets Body

Before I talk about anything else, I must mention something of grave importance. Someone gave her a job with this show.

Her parents must be so proud. Vanna White, watch out!

For anyone who may come looking for me this Saturday, word on the street is that I'm going to be kidnapped. Normally, I might be worried about this, but since it's just Janice, I should be alright. I'll admit I was a bit concerned when she said she was going to blindfold me to keep the element of surprise in tact, but she backed off that last night. My bet is that she didn't want to listen to be whining for an hour about how boring it was not being able to see anything. Come to think of it, that might be my ace in the hole if an actual kidnapper ever nabs me: whine enough and hope he/she goes insane and lets me go.

Also on this show last night, someone spelled out "d-o-i-n-g" and rhymed it with "boing."

Ummm... Did you just say "doing"?

What? No. Doo-ing. I said, "What are you doo-ing?"

Oh. Well, you spelled it the same.

Let it also be known that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Dead! Dead, I tell you! And I barely understood a lick of it. Blame someone at DeSmet, who decided we didn't need to read Hamlet.

Blah, blah. Nothing seems worthe talking about, save for the dream I had last night wherein Steve was abducted by aliens (they looked like the ones in The Abyss, if you were wondering), and then returned the next morning. Maybe we was whining a lot. Also of interest was that when we were searching for him, the area was near Grandma Moore's old house. It was, um, sorta weird. Especially the part when we were stargazing, and the stars were blinking between low and high beams. Odd. Must have been the Cocoa-Puffs.

K. Work now. Bye.

Dave

I'll second that.

PUJOLS!!!

Is it possible for something to be more than home run?

Wow.

Red Fever Pt. Deux

I was originally going to complain about everyone's obsession over Houston's "Big Three" in there starting rotation, but then I decided not to, mostly I got lazy. And, come on, does anyone really expect FDR, Stalin, and Churchill to be any match for the likes of Pujols, Walker, and JEdmonds?

I think not.

All joking aside, though, it does seem as though a lot of people just assume there's no way on earth we're going to be able to beat Houston just because of pitching. But, as is often bandied about here in the office, that's why they play the games. And, if we lose, we lose. But I don't think we're going to lose.

I think, instead, I'm going to talk about something even more relevant than Houston's pitchers: playoff superstitions. I'm not normally prone to such things: black cats, ladders, mirrors--bah, I say. Just a bunch of hoo-ha. But come playoff time, all bets are off. To wit: I wore my Cards jersey to the penultimate game of the season, and we won (9-6). I wore it all through the first round, on days we had games, and the Cards swept (by scores of 8-5, 6-2, and 7-5). So not only did we win those games, but we averaged 7.5 runs a game when I wore this thing. Obviously, this leads to two conclusions: 1.) Wearing this thing on game day is essential, and 2.) whatever mojo this thing is carrying right now is pretty potent, so washing it is a big no-no, until we lose. Ideally, I don't wash this until the end of the month, if you catch my drift. Yeah, it's smelling just a bit, but damn it, these are the freaking playoffs! These are not times to be messing with good mojo.

But what about "freshening up" the jersey? Would running it in the drier with a fabric sheet ruin any power this has? What about Febreeze? Could a couple sprays lead to bullpen issues? Scary stuff, indeed, which is why I don't mess with it.


See? One little playoff series and I go all wacko on gamedays. Just like the morons at Fox, who gave the Angels/ChiSox game the slot on the network, while our game is being bumped to FX. Good thing I get cable. This time last year, I was cableless, and listened to the games on KMOX, which is really a better way to go.


I woke up at 7 this morning, and heard two things: 1.) someone on the radio telling me that the tornado sirens were going off, and 2.) said siren shutting down. There were no tornadoes or air raids, o it must have been a goof. Or a really sneaky way to get me out of bed, which I may have needed to do, but sure didn't want to do. In the end, responsibility won out, and I got up, and now I'm here at work.

And that's that.


Taking the vowels out of words doesn't always make them cool.
Dave

Red Fever

Well, despite Isringhausen's best efforts to give all of St. Louis a massive corronary, the Cardinals are up 1-0 after dispatching the Fathers of San Diego 8-5.

In honor of the victory, enjoy some pictures from the A-B family day at Busch from Saturday's 9-6 win over the Reds. It should be noted that Izzy loaded the bases in that game before closing it out, and then went 1-2-3 in Sunday's season finale. So, assuming he pitches Thursday, he should be fine.

Anyways.

Yady.

Soup.

Reggie.

The Gooch.

MattMo.

Eck.

I hope to have some shots of the stadium up in a few days, once I get the prints and scan, and yadda yadda. Until then, go Cards!


Dave

Get up baby, get up!

So I'm sitting here, listening to the Cards on KMOX, and I'm getting all choked up. No, I'm not crying over Busch Stadium. I just had some tacky bread dough stuck in the back of my throat and I can't seem to swallow it.

There, that's better.

So yeah. I'm not all that worked up about Busch going the way of Crystal Pepsi. I mean, I'll miss it, but I just don't have any strong bonds with a place. Maybe because I wasn't there more than 5-6 times a year. And, after all, it's just a building. Everyone and their brother around here is calling up their 'favorite memories of Busch,' and I can't seem to come up with any. I was there for the first Interleague series way back when against Cleveland. I was there for Ozzie Smith collector's ball day. I was there for Darryl Kile's memorial service, which was a surreal experience. I was there last year for Game 1 of the NLCS against Houston. Fine moments, all, but nothing that brings a tear to my eye.

And, as I sit here listening to the game, I think what I associate more with memories are the way Mike Shannon calls a game. Yeah, he can go waaaaaaay out there sometimes, but when he's on, he's on, and I don't think you can beat it these days. To wit: Reggie Sanders just hit a double with two on. One run is in, and Pujols is trying to do the same. "Here comes Albert. Here comes the throw. He is...saaaaaaafe!!!" I love the way he calls those plays. And if you've heard enough on KMOX, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. And can probably think of a few more.

So Janice and I are heading to the game tomorrow for A-B employee day. We get to hit the field before the game and do the photo-op/autograph thing. It'll more than likely be my last trip to Busch. Until next season, when I go to...Busch. See? It's not really going anywhere. My cameras are coming with me, so there will be pictures. I'll try and post some of them later on, assuming they don't suck.

I don't get to just "go shoot" much anymore. It's either work for the Journal or library stuff. Weddings too, and a reunion. To my knowledge, the last time I just shot for the sake of shooting was back in April when I was at Diane's. That's way too long. So I need to do that soon. I don't know if baseball games count. They do, in a way, but it's not quite the same as just aimlessly wandering with a camera. I really need to keep one with me at all times, because Lord only knows when an opportunity will present itself.

I loved the weather this week. I've had the windows down since Sunday, and it's been absolutely wonderful outside. It's an extremely pleasant 71 degrees in my house right now. In closing, I love fall.


Dave

Playing with Pink Noise

Bullet-point style post today, I think.


-What's the etymology of 'mnemonic'? My first guess is Latin, but I don't know of too many Latin words that have an 'mn' combo right up front. It's not Polish, since there aren't enough Zs involved. Hmm...

-Turns out it's Greek, actually. I could have searched before that last point, but I wanted an excuse to type 'etymology.'

-Right underneath 'mnemonic' on my search page, though, was this. Please use it in a sentence and then tell me how to pronounce it.

-Speaking of Latin: does anyone not actively teaching or learning latin or involved in science actually speak it?

-I really have a hankering to sit down and make my own crossword for submission to the NY Times. I fear this may send me head-long into the realm of uber-nerd, from which there is no escape. Oh well.

-There's a signed poster from Mary Engelbreit on my desk. I'm not entirely sure what to do with it, since I have no interest in her line of cutsey whatever. The character wearing glasses, but with no visible eyes behind them kinda turns me off. I dunno, maybe I can sell the thing on e-bay.

-Yesterday was close to being one of my favorite days weather-wise. That's the "stereotypical fall day:" cloudy, rainy, cool, but not too cool. Nice for sitting at the table and looking out the window. The only bad thing is that it's not far enough into fall yet and most of the trees still have their leaves. For the day to truly work, the leaves need to be yellowing and on the ground. But we're close.

-U2 is driving me nuts right now, playing really good (and varied) shows, and our show is still 3+ months away. Not fair!

-My growing fascination with hurricanes was only strengthened when I realized they spin counter-clockwise just like the water in the terlet! The opposite for both is true south of the equator.

-Yes, I know that probably seems really silly, but you'll just have to deal with it.

-I am completely out of ammo. That's never happened to me before.*


BLUE SOCK! BLUE SOCK!
Dave



*That sentence was hard to properly stress.

CSI-270

A few quick hits:

-Despite her best intentions, it's probably for the best if mom stays as far away from mysteries as possible for awhile.

-I need a crown on my tooth. I'm now accepting donations.

-One of the perks of my job is the occasion to do something totally ridiculous, yet have full approval from the powers that be. When I finish what I'm working on, I'll try to get it posted. It may very well be the dumbest thing I've ever done, but it sure has been fun to work on.

-I was a bit disappointed to look at the list of names used for tropical storms and what not, and not see any 'Q' names. Granted, the only one I could think of was Quint, but that is a name, is it not?

-If it weren't for the massive amount of headaches caused by hurricanes, they might just be one of the most fascinating things to watch.

-I'm currently a Milwaukee Brewers fan, since a series victory will put them ahead of the Cubs for third place.


whoa, that's better than chewing tin foil!
Dave

Tomorrow is a Long Time

With last week's birthday goings-on out of the way (note: five belly dancers are waaaay too much), I settled on the task of making the most of the money bestowed upon me by people who are probably too lazy to wrap anything. Slackers. Anyways, I headed over to Kohl's, home of the perpetual sale and picked up some new threads, including, but not limited to, new underwear. No, I don't expect anyone to care, but it's my post, so you have to take the good with the bad. I also got a new shirt, which I wore to work yesterday. No less than three people commented on it. Not "nice shirt, Dave" or "wow, Dave, that shirt makes you look 15% sexier than usual*." No, they just said "I see you're wearing a new shirt," or words to that effect. Apparently the old wardrobe is getting a bit stale. No one mentioned my new pants, though. Thankfully, no one mentioned the new undies. The new jacket was at home, so no comments were made.

I bought tickets for the Blues' home opener. Good times ahead. The Cardinals clinched a playoff spot against the Cubs. More good times ahead. Fall is (eventually) going to be here, and, well, you know.

Yesterday was Talk Like a Pirate Day, and I failed to say one pirate-y thing. I am sorry. As a cop-out, I offer this and hope it will make up for my laziness.

U2 kicked off leg 3 of their tour just for my birthday last week in Toronto. Night 4 was Saturday, and featured the return of "Discotheque" and the Pop Muzik intro from the Popmart tour, which, after hearing it again, cements it in my mind as one of the coolest intros for a concert I've seen. Looking back, that whole tour was probably one of the coolest tours ever, although it wasn't too big at the time on this side of the pond. Maybe bigger in Europe, but still not big enough to keep the band from ditching the experimental phase, Oh well. But I digress. At said show in Toronto, Mr. Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam joined the band on stage to sing some of "Old Man River." Bono then joined PJ on stage last night in Toronto to sing a bit on "Rockin' in the Free World." EV also added some lines from "Bad," "Yahweh," and "A Sort of Homecoming" during the show. I never thought I'd see those two bands join forces, even if they had toured together back on the Zoo TV tour. They just seemed too different: U2 is more of a "theatrical" type band with their shows, whereas PJ just goes on stage and rocks for a few hours. Getting them together is a very cool thing, and I'm curious to see if U2 takes anything from them (like shaking the set up, if just a bit). We shall see. The tour resumes tonight in the City of Big Shoulders. It makes me wonder why they had to wait until December to come here. It's not as if anyone's using Savvis at the moment.

And there you have it.


Ah-ha ha ha! You're deep-dish! Ah-ha ha! And you've got extra cheese! Ah-ha ha ha ha! Oh, pepperoni!
Dave


*Usual sexiness rating is somewhere bewteen 6 and 7, with 1 being Paul Reubens and 10 being Popmart-era "Mr." The Edge.

for what it's worth

Special birthday greetings to Mr. Neil Peart* of everyone's favorite Canadian power trio, Rush, who turns something-odd years old today. Keep on rockin'.

Retroactive apologies to mum who had to wake up earlier than she'd planned 24 years ago.

On the one hand, 24 years seems like a hefty chunk of time. I mean, a person can get a lot done in that span, even if the first 6 to 10 years are mostly learning the ropes. Of course, you can also get a lot done over the course of a single weekend if you try hard enough, but I digress. So yeah, looking back, 24 years seems like a fairly long time. Hours and days may seem to fly by, but I think I can look back and say I've been around. That said, looking ahead**, I plan on living to 100, as I may have mentioned before. In regards to that, 24 years is just a drop in the bucket. Shoot, I'm not even 1/4 of the way there. So, assuming I get what I want in this case, I've got a looooong way to go. Of course, you can't always get what you want. But, if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.

I do hope that when I'm as old as Mick, Keith, and those other guys I know better than to parade around in leather pants and tight shirts. I don't even do that now, although I'd like to think I have pretty good reasons. I'm just not sure I could handle the constant wave of ladies throwing themselves at my feet everyday. I'd need a separate ring of bodyguard-types to keep me safe. I bet I'd even have to keep the dudes away from me to. They'd be all around me, asking for my secrets,and I'd be all like "back off, dudes," and then I'd, and um, and then....

Weddings!

I like 'em. Congrats to Kara and Karl, who got themselves all hitched up Saturday. All for Neil, I'm sure. Very fun wedding. Anyone who can work They Might Be Giants, Megadeth, and Outkast on the CD of music from the wedding is okay in my book. And lots of good pictures. I might have outshot my last wedding, but I haven't done a count yet, so I'm not sure.


Okay, I think I've rambled enough. Time to work.


I've been around
Dave





*That's Peert, not Pert,

** Dave's Book of Lame Poems: in stores September 2008

three and five-sixteenths

Can someone explain to me why this country is still measuring in standard? I mean, yes, you can be awfully precise with the increments on a ruler, but come on; how often does the average person need to measure something down to 1/32 of an inch? Contrast that to standard, where everything is in nice increments of 10, with no fractions more annoying than 1/2 or 3/4 to mess with. See? Easy. Plus, we could get together with, oh, the rest of the world, in terms of measuring. As was pointed out to me, though, the government's multi-million dollar push back in the '70s to switch didn't go so well, so the odds of any such idea working now are slim to none. Oh well.

Maybe if I wasn't such a weenie about subtracting fractions this wouldn't be such a big deal.

Post #427

Calvin and Hobbes is back in newspapers. Yes, they're reruns of the original strips, but isn't that better than a lot of the nonsense and non-funny going on in the comics these days? So go enjoy it now while you can, assuming your paper is carrying it. Maybe it's just our paper, but I can't really see the Post as being that ahead of any other paper out there. Except maybe in photography. We do have some nice photographers here. Like that Chris Lee guy. He takes some okay pictures here and there.

Jerk.

And I mean that in the nicest way. I just want his job is all, so you can see where that little outburst came from. Or not.

I have just under one week until I hit 24. It's a shame the producers and high-ups over at Fox decided to go with that other show by the same name instead of doing a real-time show about me turning 24. Shoot, I might have even watched it. Then I could have made $many and bought myself a new stand-up mixer for the kitchen. And then have racing stripes painted on the side.

Just because I can, I decided to "map out" my life cycle, making noted of any high points I hit as I get older. And, also because I can, I'm going to share it with all of you.

Birth: seems important enough. Without that, there'd be no this.
2: beginning of "the terrible twos." I don't know if I was terrible or not, nor do I know why 'two' is plural. Is it so bad that it actually runs over multiple years, delaying the onset of three?
10: double digits. Woot.
13: onset of the teen years. Puberty sets in, and everyone is miserable until age 35 or so.
16: driving. Hot times.
18: voting, tobacco, porn, and, even better, suing. Hot, legal action! Actually, Good Friend Tom, on his 18th, went out and bought some smokes and a Playboy, simply because he could. Not to sure whatever happened to the items in question. We were originally going to sneak the PB into Anthony's book bag one day and see what his reaction would be, but I don't think we ever got around to it.
21: booze, legal adultness. I'm still not sure what all the hoop-la is about.
24: Janice informs me I can rent a car now. Or, soon, in my case. Groovy.
25: car insurance rates go down "appreciably," according to gramV. Very cool.
35: running for elected official. President, senator, dog catcher. Stuff like that.
40: over the hill. It's all down from here, baby!
55: AARP comes a callin'. Bring on the coupons and discounts.
65: retire? maybe?
100: I plan on getting here for a few nerdy reasons--a.) gotta make it to the tricentennial, b.) gotta see Haley's Comet, and c.) why not?

So there you go. All the good stuff in an average life span. Oh sure, there might be some stuff in between worth doing, but come on. Can anything top an AARP card?


Ed good, Rocko bad!
Dave

Babe the blue ox is biting my ankle!

Ha! I kid my readers. He's actually nipping at me bum.

So. Band scramble was Saturday night. We had a few final run-throughs of our set Fridat night and Saturday afternoon, just so we all knew what the hell we were supposed to do come set time. Friday night' practice was, um, a bit shaky and maybe a tad sloppy. My end especially, I think, although maybe I'm being hard on myself. Maybe everyone else thinks that about their performance on any given night. I'll have to ask musician types if they always feel like they're messing up. But I digress. Cut to Saturday afternoon, for our final rehearsal. Whatever got into us Friday night was gone, and we had what was probably our best practice as a band (why didn't we tape it!?). All fears are gone. Once we got on stage and did our thing, I think we were almost as good as at practice. There were a few goofs, but nothing too serious. There were only five groups total, so it wasn't a terribly long affair. I thought our chance of placing high were really good. I knew we weren't going to take first, simply because the band I figured would win (and win they did) had, in the irony of all ironies, a dancer who actually danced, who then went on to play guitar on the next song, and then washboard for the final song, lovingly titles, "I Cheated on You With Your Mom." How is anyone going to compete with that? The group got a huge reception from the crowd, which, of course, is a big player in the judges' decision. Still, I figured we could take second.

No, we took fourth. Out of five. What gives? We had a good, tight set, good crowd reception, hell, we even threw ice cream in the crowd during our opener, "Ice Cream." Second place went to a band called Shit Sandwich, who, while not sucking, wasn't as good as us (and yes, I'm a bit biased). Third went to a band called Marrinol (sp?), and see the above statement.

Still, we played really well, so that's something to be proud of. I saw people grooving to our songs, including the dancer/washboardist of the winning band, and we had a number of people tell us we did well, which is nice. The drummer from S.S. told us we'd be great if we stayed togather, so I guess that counts for something. Plus, our one woman horn section got an honorary slot in first place, because she was quite quite good.

Also, our drummer was asked to contribute a song or two to a compilation CD of regular open mic'ers at Frederick's, so he asked the band to help him record the material in a couple weeks. So the Unnecessary Apostrophes live on for a bit longer.

While we were setting up our gear, our singer was introducing all of us, and when he got to himself, he said "and my name's unnecessary, so I guess these are the apostrophes." Heh.

Despite the stagelights being really freaking hot, it was loads of fun. Performing on stage is a blast, and I got a real good group for a band. I think being with the last group which, well, wasn't so hot in spots, made this band all the better. Pictures would be forthcoming, but we only got two taken before my camera battery died. I'll see about scoring some others, though.

Not much else happened this weekend. Four day weekend coming up. Huzzah!

What? Can't a guy look ahead to the end of the week?


Straight ice cream? That's so traditional!
Dave

Hit me! Groove!

I remember, back in the day, when the Urge released Receiving the Gift of Flavor, and it got pretty good airplay around here, especially on the Point. Also back in that particular day was dad's attempt at staying hip, cool, or whatever. All i can really remember is the listening to of whatever Steve and I wanted and maybe asking us every so often if we thought whatever he was doing was cool. It's been awhile, so the memory is a bit hazy. Anywho, one of the singles was "All Washed Up." Said song has the refrain "hey you're all washed up/would you please shut up/take a walk that way" followed by a mighty "HUUUUUHHH!" Your spelling may vary on that, of course. Dad decided that the guy was probably getting kicked in the crotch everytime he yelled, and continued to refer to the song in some manner as the "crotch-kicking song" everytime we heard it. He'd probably still call it that if I played it for him today.

I now have my new* computer at work, and it's very nice. Finally have Photoshop 7 after asking for it basically since I started. Of course, the two new-new computers the office got have Photoshop CS on them.** Anything else to be said about the computer is of interest only to me, so I'll save you from hearing my ramblings about Classic on these damn Macs. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

I start giving guitar lessons today. Not sure how that's going to work out, as most of what I know how to do is just sort of second-nature to me at this point. Trying to find a way to make it understandable to a beginner should prove interesting. Or agonizingly difficult for all parties involved. That would, of course, be followed by the smashing of guitars over each other's head. That, of course, is why I have three guitars.

I feel like I wanted to say more, but nothing springs to mind, so I guess I'm done.


Fear not, townsfolk! Famine is no doubt right 'round the corner! And gross bugs and rats sleep in our beds! Isn't that great?
Dave







*By new, of course, I mean third-hand, but new to me. Almost all my stuff at work is used: computer, desk, chair, etc. The camera and scanner are new, which is fine, but considering how often they go buy new uselss crap (like Nickelback CDs), couldn't I at least get a new chair after two years?


**See? Even when I get upgraded I'm still behind the times.

Now this is something worth looking into in this country. Just think how nice our lives would be. The guy may be a few peas short in some other areas, but still, I can cut him a little bit of slack.

-Band scramble is Saturday. The Unnecessary Apostrophes are poised to rock the stage like no other. At 11:00 p.m. God forbid we have a normal set time.

-Mark "The Truth is Out There" Mulder is now 14-1/1.88 during night games and 1-7 during the day. Isn't that just a little bit weird?

-As per Ed Roland's request: I saw Collective Soul. Thank you.

-PatientlyPatientlyPatientlyPatientlyPaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaatiently waiting on a new computer at work sitting right across the room from me.


I got your instant move
Dave

The baseball post

Atteneded last night's Cardinals/D-backs game sort of, but not really, for free. In the end, it probably doesn't mater. The Good Guys won 5-0, with mark "Don't Call me Agent" Mulder throwing a complete-game shutout. Nothing amazing, but he got about 47 ground ball outs, so I'm not complaining. At one point, 5 of 6 outs were ground balls to third base. Honestly, I think Abe Nuñez deserves about 1/5 or so of that win.

Being at a game, as opposed to watching on TV offers a lot more to take in than normal. Such as:

-seeing exactly where the pticher stands on the mound. I usually just assume they're standing on the middle of the rubber, but Mulder was standind way on theright side, and the D-backs starter was over on the left, as were the relievers.

-watching the defense realign themselves depending on who was batting. The D-backs' third basemen was playing in on just about everyone who batted, it seemed. "That's Just So" taguchi came up with two out and no one on at ne point, and he was playing in as if the Gooch might be bunting or something. He moved back after a couple pitches, but it was still weird. Concede nothing, I guess.

-hot dogs. I don't care what anyone says, but a hot dog cooked on those roller things at the ballpark is better than any other way of cooking them. Almost $11 for two of 'em and a soda, but it's one of those little things that make a trip down there better.

-new ballpark is looking mighty fine. I really hope they have a pitch count meter, along with the usual strike out board.

-I wonder if there are really intense fan keeping score in notebooks even when they're at home. I really like doing the scorecard thing when I'm at the game, but I never know what to do with the things when I get home.


No more Scott Rolen this season, apparently. Am I wrong for not being all that worried right now?


Get your head in the game, the Chort! The Cheat is wide open!
Dave

Dripping Yellow Madness

I wonder how long it took some of today's (and yesterday's) big bands to come up with a name for themselves. I know U2 went by 'Feedback,' 'the Hype,' and, of course, 'the Larry Mullen Band' before settling on U2, but how long did it take them to arrive at that decision? Were there hours of heated debates between larry, Bono, and Edge? Adam, of course, was too cool for any of that, He probably just sat around looking rather disinterested underneath his 'fro, maybe smoking a cigarette until it all blew over.

I only wonder this because my group for Son of Band Scramble came up with a name within an hour or so during our first practice Friday night. It all started with a discussion of our birthdays and what the traits were for each sign (or what is suppposed to be a trait). Virgos (me) are, apparently, more anal than most, to which I repliedI didn't think I was all that anal, except when it came to unnecessary apostrophes. I pointed out the case of "Autograph's Plus," the ill-fated store formerly of the Mills Mall, which closed a few months ago. I think it had everything to do with poor grammar. Anywho, the rest of the band decided that a.) my grammar obsession indeed made me anal, and b.) "Unnecessary Apostrophes" would be a good name for the band. So that's us. And we had the core of our three songs by the end of the first practice. By the end of practice two, the three were coming along quite nicely. It's a very good group, I must say. The lead singer(s) don't suck, and our "other" gal plays actual insturments--sax, bari sax, and flute. It's like having Jeff Coffin in the same room! And she plays them really well, so all the better. August 27th, friends, at Frederick's Music Lounge. You of the 21+ type have no reasons not to attend.*

Other quick hits:

-flat tire: I think 'flat' is too light a term. I backed over a raised sewer, and had a hole large enough to stick my hand through. Anyone with a better term for that is wlecome to suggest it.

-branch on the roof!


Eh....I lost interest. Now I'm too lazy to even wrap this up properly.


Cool tapes are cool, and we like it like that!
Dave





*In case you've missed the other plugs for the show. I never claimed to be subtle.

Ground control to Major Tom, come in Major Tom

So I woke up this morning, and for some reason I couldn't place, I felt like a little piece of me was missing. Something didn't feel quite right.

Then I looked down at my leg and remembered the huge chunks of skin missing from diving all around during soccer last night. Playing goalie will do that to you, you know. Hopefully, the quality of my game isn't directly proportional to the amount of my body I sacrifice to the turf. I'm not willing to suffer skin grafts just for a shut out. AS it is, I was on the ground a lot last night, and we lot 7-2, so I'm thinking it's just the opposite. Oh well, live and learn.

Band practice numero uno is tomorrow night. Our bassist's name is Ozze, so I think we're in good shape, eh? Also: we have another 'other' gal this time, but much to my delight, she plays an actual instrument or three. One of them happens to me sax, so if we take advantage of that, I see no reason why sweet victory can't be ours. Hopefully no one recognizes me as "The Guy from the band with the crappy lead singer."

What else to say...


Canoes are your friend, as is Janice's grandma's roast beüf. Yum.


NOIBN,
Dave

Big hits from small guys

Here's how to make a Cardinals fan extrmely happy:




You might also try this:




What more could you ask for?

Just Do It.

Really.

Go here, poke around a bit, and let me know what you come up with.

A few for me:

Dave Moore - Your personal entertainer.
Don't play with fire, play with Dave Moore.
Don't forget your Dave.
World's finest Dave.

Routine 27 - Yabba Dabba Duh!
Routine 27 is your safe place in an unsafe world!
Routine 27, pure lust.
I'd walk a mile for Routine 27.

Wouldn't we all?

Good friend Tom has this poster in his basement. I think it may be one of the collest posters around. I imagine the rest of the band would feature Peter on bass and Thomas on drums.

I confess to not knowing any of the other apostles off the top of my head at the moment, save for Judas, and would you really want a guy like that in your band? Especially in a crucial slot like the rhythm section.

What if you had to open for that band?

Speaking of bands, the next Band Scramble is August 27. You of the +21 crowd can come watch. I may have mentioned that a few posts ago, but I'm mentioning it again, since I've gone and signed up and the bands will be drawn this week. It's safe to say I'll be mentioning it again, so be prepared.

I don't really have much to say now, but I hate not posting, because it seems like a waste of valuable web space.

So why doesn't he go update his website?

Well, that would take more time than I care to use up right now. But update I shall, someday. Really.

And I could go on about sleeping in twice last week (8:38 and 8:18, thank you very much). or the ants in my kitchen last Wednesday (Operation: Kill the Six-Legged Bastards was a total success), or locking my keys in my car yesterday (but I got to work 10 minutes early, thank you), but anyone who needs to know alreayd knows. And, really, I just told you all anyways. Just not in great detail.

It is interesting though: I generally will not kill anything. I'll go out of my way to get a bug out of the kitchen and back outside. I don't run over already dead critters because it seems a bit of an, um, overkill. But those ants in my kitchen? Dead like no one's business. Sprayed like no tomorrow. Ex-ants, if you will. Something in me snapped, I guess. Maybe I don't take kindly to invasions. One or two, no problem, but this was an entire squadron.

Also interesting: I have no qualms about letting the cats do their thing with bugs. I guess it's "what they do," so it's fine. They get some exercise, too.

Also also interesting: I have no qualms about eating a cheeseburger or some chicken. I don't try to rationalize it. It's just how it is.

Speaking of cats...




That would be George. I apparently don't have a picture of Chip on my computer at work, so you all have to wait. For now, bask in the glory that is Morris redux.



What does a redneck man call a dead possum, lyin' in the middle of the road? Ba-ha-ha-haa! Probably sushi!
Dave

Oh, yeah! That definitely deserves a record!

And, for as hot as it's been, it's still not a record. The record is somewhere around 111, I think, which must have been sort of unpleasant, what with the heat index and all the extras they like to factor into the weather these days.

"And with the heat index, local property tax rates, and the position of Uranus, today's high is somewhere between 97 and 130."

Shut up. It's early, I don't have to be that funny.

I guess working in a basement has its advantages, when one doesn't have to spend too long out in The Heat. But, I sometimes woulnd't mind, so long as it meant not havig to spend all day in said basement with no windows to the outside world and dull flourescent lighting instead. I do have a nice little fan next to my desk to simulate a breeze though, so it's a start.

Off topic, but no less interesting:

-I heard a story on NPR this morning about an 81-year old lady who sits in a park in Paris with a sign that says "talk to me," or words to that effect. And people will come up to her and start talking with her and each other. I think that's cool. And if people think she's a bit nutty? Well, she said the world is crazy enough already, and so she conisders it a compliment to be called such. I don't remember the exact quote, but it was kinda funny.

-I'm all signed up for the band scramble. August 27 now, so all you 21+ types can come watch. So out of our readership, I think that means you, mom.

-New Strongbad DVD. Woot.

-I have no idea who's on the ten dollar bill. Someone should give me one.



buttdance again, like the rhythm's down your pants now,
Dave

Whatever happened to Gloomy Gus?

A few snippits from dreams I had last night:

--Apaprently, mum, Mike, Steve, and myself were all living in the same house. I think Mike was there. Hard to recall exactly. For some reason, we were letting a bird live in the house with us. For the dream, it was a canary, although it was far removed from the actual look of a canary. regardless, the bird turned out to be, um, evil, as it would utter menacing phrases in a deep voice, and it apparently was altering everyone in the house save for me. I noticed this when, for he second night in a row, everyone had taco meat with a side of Fritos for dinner. I opened the door, the bird flew out, and everyone was okay again.

--I was canoeing on a river, when, lo and behold, there's Alton Brown in a little motor boat just ahead of me! I keep following him and don't really look up much. When I do, I notice someone disappear just ahead of us. Whoops! That's Niagra Falls just ahead of us! Alton stops(!) just as he hits the egde, but I can't and go over, although I manage to steer myself (in the air) to one of the small pools just to the waterfall's left side. Then I'm sitting on a couch, trying to collect my thoughts, when AB comes walking through, and starts turning off lights or something, I guess he's getting ready to leave. I announce myself and explain what happened. Then he sits next to me (turns out he's a bit heavier in person) and we're talking about...stuff. Then we're in a truck, I think, and he's driving me home in the rain, and there's Anne from work in the truck with us, and I'm thinking that Janice is going to wonder why I haven't called, since it's going on 9:30.


So, yeah. Your guess is as good as mine on that stuff. Real post to follow later if I can tear myself away from Half-Blood Prince long enough.


It's raspberry,
Dave

It's wonderful to be here, it really is a thrill

Because these are the sort of things I think about when I have too much time on my hands, I offer you this pearl, pulled straight out of my head.

Much to my horror and dismay, Gwen "No Doubt" Stefani released a solo album with the current radio favorite, "Hollaback Girl." Bad grammar aside, the song grates on my ears like a box grater. It's like....well, at the moment, I can't find the words. It's indescribably bad. It barely seems to constitute an actual song, as far as I see it, since it hardly contains any actual melody. Maybe it did at one point, but it was all stripped out in the end. The only remaining music is the acoustic giutar riff (what is it with hip-hop and acoustic guitars?) played over the 'this my shit' refrain. Tangent: radio can't play 'shit,' of course, so all you get is 'this my,' which, if you listen right, sounds like 'DeSmet.' Maybe it's just me. End Tangent And, really, it's kinda stupid lyrically in the first place. I guess someone was steppin' on her turf or something, I don't know.

But!

The worst part, I think, has to be this part:

Let me hear you say, this shit is bananas
B-A-N-A-N-A-S
this shit is bananas
B-A-N-A-N-A-S
Again, this shit is bananas
B-A-N-A-N-A-S
This shit is bananas
B-A-N-A-N-A-S

I'm sorry, but in the future, can we have a rule that lyrics must be written by actual lyric writers? Or something? Please? Jeez.

Okay. Sorry to complain so much, but I really don't like that song. I will admit to having listened to it before, mostly because I was awestruck at the sheer badness of it all.

It did, though, somehow, remind me of a lyric from an old 311 song, 'Omaha Stylee,' off the 1994 album 'Grassroots.' It may be my favorite of theirs. Musically, I think it's their strongest, and since a lof of 311 lyrica are either a bit too...metaphysical for me, or sometimes just silly, I don't count them as much in the final thought process. But I digress. Again. In the above song, there's a line that goes:

and I say know no critical border cause we do what we want
got more funky styles than my laser jet got font
not one to get over sounding like the norm
friendly to the radio, all that shit is corn
all we coming with is a little bit of swing
and we go on like it ain't no thing, and I say

Apparently, shit and fruit/vegetable comparisons are really big in the music business. Or, Gwen is ripping off 311.

Also: if you're a fan of H.B. Girl, I apologize. I still think that song is pretty, well, shitty, but if you like it, that's peachy. Or corn. Something like that.

Also also: I think we need a motto for Florissant. Maybe something like Florissant: Have We Told You About Shandi Finnessy Yet?



there's much power in anger, but loves a bigger banger
Dave

Come Fourth on July!

I have two words to describe my recent Holiday of the Month:


On weeeeeeed!!!

Yep. Fireworks: on weeeeeeed!!! Hats: on weeeeeeeed!!! So sayeth the drunk guys on the "boat" out on the lake. And hey, if you can't trust drunk guys on a sinking pontoon boat with no engine and no means of getting to shore, who can you trust?

I also rained. Heavily. For a while. Then it stopped and the humidity got our chips a bit soggy. But! I did have fun. On weed or not, I always like fireworks. I enjoy shuffleboard, even when I stink. And little kids bes cute. So there.

On weeeeeeed!!!

One of the things I often bemoan is the fact I can't see some of my favorite bands in their hey-day. A lot of acts are still touring (Rush, Stones, Blue Oyster Cult, Moody Blues, Deep Purple etc), but it's more than likely not the same as seeing them when they were, well, not quite so old. And, in some cases, still with the original members. Lynyrd Skynyrd, for example, has, I think, not one member of the original lineup left. And no one seems to mind, for some reason. Rush, though, seems to be getting better as they go, which is almost as odd as how Geddy Lee can sing like that.

Out of all the "old" groups, I most missed getting to see Pink Floyd when Roger Waters was still in the group. The classic* lineup hadn't toured since 1981, when they did The Wall, and I wasn't quite born yet. I saw Roger Waters' solo tour back in '99, and figured that would have to suffice, since the Floyd, as they were, hadn't toured since '96, and were more or less defunct, I imagine. But, as I mentioned in the last post, Bob Geldof managed to get them talking and together again for the Live 8 concert in London on Saturday. For twenty wonderful minutes, there they were: Roger, Rick, Nick, and Dave, on stage for the first time in 23 years (as long as I've been alive!), playing Breathe, Money, Wish You Were Here, and Comfortably Numb. MTV/VH1, for some reason actually showed almost all of the performance without interruption. The easily-forgettable talking heads they employ came in towards the end of CN to talk about how cool it was the Floyd were together again, which anyone watching probably knew already. They went back as Dave Gilmour played his solo, but decided to go to commercial before the song ended. Of course. I did find a video of the whole segment online, so it's okay, but still. The less said of MTV/VH1's "coverage," the better.

That said, you should all go here or here and add your name to the lists. It's quick, and it won't cost you a dime.

And that ends my socio-political segment to the post.

I think it ends my post, too.



On weeeeeeed!!!
Dave




*I can't say original, since that would require Syd Barret in the band, and not Dave Gilmour.

Comfortably Numb

Not sure how I've managed to not mention this yet, but I might as well before it's too late.

This weekend marks the return of one Bob Geldof to the Massive Concert for Chairty scene with the Live 8 shows. Since one show was too puny, I guess, Sir Bob plans on having eight shows (simultaneously, I think) around the world. Very cool, I think. U2 is going to be doing a set in London before heading to Vienna for their own show that night. Apparently, the ban will be coming out with Paul "Safe Superbowl" McCartney, dressed in the Sgt. Pepper outfits, and playing said song. Kinda silly, I think, but then again, this is the same band that spent over a year doing shows with a 40 ft. lemon/mirrorball, so who am I to argue?

But even cooler, I think, is that somehow, someway, Saint Bob mam=naged to get Roger Waters back with Pink Floyd to do a set later that day. I don't know what he did. or how he did it, but I'm glad he did. For anyone not in the know on all things Floyd, Waters left the band in 1984, and it wasn't a pleasant split. Much name-calling and general unpleasantness ensued. So I'm glad all differences have been put aside, for a day, at least, and we can hear The Floyd* together, if only for a little while.

There. Now I've posted and can make all of you stop scrolling down past that huge gap just to read the comments on that last post.


Dave









*Yep, it's so cool, I'm giving the band their "the" back, which they hadn't used since like, 1969 or something, I think.

Life's Been Good

I can't complain, but sometimes I still do.

Fantastic news arrived in my e-mail this afternoon, announcing that "Band Scramble Returns." I shall henceforth refer to it as "Son of Band Scramble," unless I forget and call it something else. But that's as may be. I've been itching to to get back on stage since the last Scramble. Time hasn't really let me pursue the open mic night approach, so this is good. Here's hoping my band does slightly better than last time out. And by that I mean "not last out of last." I sat down to watch the DVD of the last performance to get an idea of the drums for one of our songs I was trying to re-record. As I was watching, I was struck with how much our lead singer, um, wasn't really good. Or, to better state it, very unprepared. It wasn't the lyrics on paper that was it; at least two other singers had the lyrics scrawled down for ease of use. No, it was more of a sense that the lyrics were jotted down about 45 minutes before we started. Since the lyrics were iffy at best, he decided to make up for it by gadding about like Bono circa 1992. That worked for Zoo TV, but not quite in our setting. Sorta like Liberace singing with the three tenors, maybe. Or something. You get the idea.

I should mention I saw an SUV with the license plate "ZOO TV" last week on the way to bowling. It was far more exciting than my performance that night.

Back on task: Frederick's Music Lounge, August 27 will be the Son of Band Scramble. Woot. Assuming you're of the > 21 crowd, bring yourself, friends, enemies, and grandmothers for some kinda music.

I would also like to have a moment of silence for Kelly's car.







Yeah, that was a good moment.


I'm not feeling too inspired to write anything at the moment, so....I think I have to go...place.



Dave

Illinois Nazis. I hate Illinois Nazis.

Today, friends, is the 25th anniversary of The Blues Brothers. Wear a suit with a thin tie, wear your sunglasses in the dark, or maybe drive like a madman through a mall.

And just for today, everyone can be 106 miles from Chicago.


Oh, we got both kinds: country and western.
Dave "Guitar" Murphy

In Your Honor

I'm only a day late in my less-than-official-but-more-or-less-the-norm-now weekly post, but it feels like it's been two weeks since I posted last. Taking a week off from work will do that, I guess. I'm pretty sure it's Wednesday, but I'm so out of my normal routine, that if someone told me it was Friday, I probably wouldn't put up much of a fight. I only know it's Wednesday because I had bowling tonight. The less said about that, the better.

I don't really have a topic, though, since I've been all over everywhere the past few days, so I guess I'll fall back on an "update of events" post. Since we last met...

Saturday--Wedding for Steve Edler, better known in certain circles as "The Ass-Kicker," and in a smaller circle, "the guy who should be drumming for The Fifth Statement, but decided to do something else instead, like teach." I think he's afraid of the awesome repsonsiblity of being in a band with Tom, but what do I know? Um, yes. Wedding. It was a nice, if short, wedding, and it was good to see the friends again. Seeing as how I have a wedding to shoot Saturday, it was a good time to study the photographer Edler used. I think I mentally yelled at them more than anything because they didn't do things like I thought they should. Anywho, congrats to Steve and Beth, and maybe when they finish the honeymoon he can start drum lessons.

Sunday/Monday--Time for the second annual "Torture the Cats Weekend with a Trip to the Vet." Much less yelling, bleeding, and screaming than last year (on my part, at least). I can't say either cat enjoyed being locked in a kitty karrier for a 2+ hour car ride, but they survived. Shots were administered, and everyone seems fine, or as fine as my cats can be. Sandwiched around the trip to the vet's was a nice time with the Walls, in which lots of nasty made-from-scratch food was forced onto us. It was all Janice and I could do to hold out until Monday afternoon when we could hit McD's for some real food.

Tuesday--Spent $254 on gear for Saturday's wedding shoot. Thank God for being paid a portion of my fee up front. New Foo Fighters album was released, to much joy on the part of me (and the guy in front of me at Target, who got the album as well). I had a hunch it was going to be good, based on the first single, and I'm pleased to report it's very, very good. Like, Go Buy it Now kinda good. Finally, the Guitar God Trifecta (Satch, Vai, and EJ) concert series was completed with a show at Mississippi Nights by Eric Johnson. A good, solid show, although it didn't do it for me like Joe or Steve. I decided it would be fun to hand out some awards for the three shows, so let's see what I can remember.

Best Show: Joe
Best Guitar: Joe
Best Cover: Joe, for "Sleepwalk"
Best Hair: Steve
Best Drummer: Joe/EJ
Best Bassist: Matt Bissonette, with Joe
Best Rhythm Guitar: Dave Weiner, with Steve
Best Off-the-Cuff Remark: EJ's "Beefthra" bit.
Best Singing Voice: EJ
Best Opener: Kaki King, with EJ
Best Move: the EJ "up on the toes"
Best Encore: Joes, with "Always With Me" and "Satch Boogie"
Best Dressed: Steve
Best Outfit: Steve's "cyber-man" look complete with light-up guitar

More were awarded, but I forget the rest. Looks as though Joe is the winner overall, but that doesn't take anything away from the other two guys, of course.

Today--Photo shoot with Kelly Lynn at Forest Park. Odd being on the other side of the lens for a change, but it was fun. Apparently Janice and I are good in front of a camera. We'll be selling autographed 8x10 glossies soon, so get your orders in ASAP before they're gone. Many thanks to Kelly for putting up with a couple goofballs. Follow that up with some crappy bowling, and you're more or less caught up with everything.

For the rest of the week: VI Flags tomorrow and a night at mum's, yard work or bowling practice Friday, and a wedding to shoot on Saturday. Sunday closes with dinner at dad's. Whew. I may need a week off from my week off. Not much is happening at work, apparently, so I see no reason to go back just yet. Maybe in August or something for a few days. We'll see.

No topic came to me in the course of writing, so I guess I'll call it quits.


What's mine is yours and yours is mine. There is no divide.
Dave

Shove it, brother, just keep walking

I have just discovered that iTunes, the service, is pretty cool. As an audio player, I'm not as keen on it as Windows Media Player. There are a few little details the one does better than the other. Also, my version at work doesn't like CDs too much. They play fine, but if I leave a disc in too long without ejecting it, or keep pause on too long, the disc starts skipping for no good reason and I have to restart my computer. But the music downloading part, on the other hand, is pretty cool. It's very handy for a case of "well, I like that song, but I don't want the whole album."

My list so far:

"Ooh La La"--the Ditty Bops
"Decent Days and Nights"--the Futureheads
"Just Keep Walking"--INXS
"Mansized Rooster"--Supergrass
"Lady With the Spinning Head"--U2

So I have a blugrass combo, two British bands, an Irish band, and an Australian group. Nice and diverse, I think.

I must exercise caution, since it's so easy to download a song. Point, click, hey! Only $1! Gotta keep an eye out though, or those dollars could add up in a hurry. Good thing I'm off work next week.

Thanks to Janice "Eagle Eyes" Koziatek I now have my own copy of Godzilla: Save the Earth for the PS2. I can go about being even nerdier than usual now.

Have I mentioned I can identify any critter from a Godzilla movie based solely on the noise it makes?



Let's talk kids for a moment. I think they're quite fine. Cute, even. I wouldn't mind having some one of these days. But in my line of work, they can be a bit of a drag. Shooting for the Nor Co Journal, they just eat that stuff up. want to get something published? Just send them a picture of a cute kid and you're in. Annual Report here at Ye Olde Library? Let's get as many cute kids as possible! It'll appeal to the suits! (Note: I highly doubt anyone, save for our auditors, really do anything with the AR. And they skip right to the hard data) I think all of the stuff I shoot at work falls into two categories; author visits and cute kids.

Aside: I have just been told I'll be shooting an 80-year old volunteer for a poster we're going to be doing. He speaks like 5 languages and translates materials for our Special Collections department.

Kids: it's kinda easy then to fall back and just go with what the people want. The trick then, is to keep myself sharp and try to shoot something that isn't cute, precocious kids, especially with the Journal. What good is my portfolio if I have a majority of kid pictures? My new rule is to only shoot kids if the opportunity is too good to pass up. With the library, it's hard to avoid, since we have so many kids' programs. I just have to deal with it. And, as my boss pointed out, "for someone who generally eschews shooting kids, you've got a knack for it." So it'd be silly not to play to a strength. I just can't let myself get lazy. Look for fresh angles and new ideas.

It doesn't come up much round here, but the Cardinals are really good. If I were better at writing about sports I might discuss it more often, but I can't get into it much. I did attend my first game of the season last night, a 7-1 triumph over the BoSox. Complete game by MattyMo, excellent defense by Grudz, a suicide squeeze, and some timely hitting from the bottom of the order. Most amusing moment: the scoreboard showed a news item that "Prior to the game, the Cardinals disabled Roger Cedeno." I know he's been a bit off (read: pretty awful) this year, but man, did the team have to go to such extremes? Did they hire a hit-man to come and break Rog's kneecaps? I give Cedeno a lot of crap for sucking, but I'm more than willing to eat some grilled crow if he comes back and starts performing.

It was interesting, at one point, watching David "I'm Such a Jett" Eckstein slide into third with a two-run triple. In the Grand Scheme of Things, what happens on that field doesn't matter. A bunch of guys get paid $many to play a kids' game, and for some reason, we like to watch. Maybe it's some sort of "community" thing. Or not. I don't know, really. And yet, I realized I don't care. I do know, though, that I was happy to be there watching the Home Team win.



Rooster!
Dave

Into the Heart

Back in the day, some readers may recall a feature they used to do on the Point (KPNT) called, aptly enough, 'What's the Point?'. I think that was the title. Anyways, someone would send in a list of seemingly random songs, but upon closer inspection, sharp listeners could detect a way all the songs were related. I was never too good at it, but I did start in on a list of my own:

1.) Pretty Noose--Soundgarden
2.) Revolver--Rage Against the Machine
3.) Monkey Wrench--Foo Fighters

10 points to anyone who can get the theme and another 10 points to someone who can add another asong or two.

A few things I've always liked about Soundgarden:

1.) Matt Cameron--drummer extraordinaire
2.) Kim Thayill--good guitarist, creepy looking dude
3.) Spoonman--come on! a spoon solo, for crying out loud
4.) Chris Cornell--specifically, his vocal chords

Cowboy Mouth was Sunday. A good time was had my all, including our first-timers who were apparently going as nuts as any veteran of nearly 15 shows. Not that I know anyone like that...I'm too lazy for a show recap, but I can say this: the new material is as good as anything they've done in a loooong time. It's nice to see that the band as a whole seems to be contributing new material. Fred introduced 'Disconnected' with a little "uno, dos, tres, catorce." Fred rocks. As do Paul, Griff, and Sonia.

I can't decide if Tom Morrello's weird approach to guitar soloing is really cool or God-awful annoying. It varies on my mood, I guess.

One annoying thing about the guitar is how I can go from thinking I sound great to not being able to play a single note I like. I think I tend to hit ruts, and everything I play sounds (to me) pretty crappy. Or at least too similar to what I always play. The trick is to learn enough new songs to keep the idea well from going dry. I'm the first to admit I don't do that enough, so I think I'm going to take some time to learn a few new songs. I worked on some Collective Soul songs to much success last night, so we'll see what the week brings. Lessons were good for that, so I'm actually going to have to do it on my own this time. Jeez...

Does anyone know anything about the Futureheads? I heard a song of theirs yesterday and thought it was pretty good stuff.

'Half-Blood Prince' has been reserved. Should be good times ahead. Personally, I think it's Snape...



Oh, I don't know. Make something up.
Dave

Collision Course

Hold on to your butts.

Well, at least we got a nice Scott Joplin tune out of the whole ordeal. What's scary, though, is that I'd probably be more than willing to pony up a few bucks for something like this, minus the injuries, of course.

What's also amazing is that 40,000 people showed up for the first one. In 1896! That's like...well, it'd be a heck of a lot more today.



Buckle up for safety,
Dave

25 years of service, and what do I get? A clock?!?!

I don't give much of a hoot about 'American Idol.' Less than a hoot, really. Maybe an "ot," but even that is pushing it. I can't really use just one letter, as it wouldn't make much sense. So "ot" it is. But I have happened across one bit of news concerning said show that is so...perfect, I must report it to you, my readers. I get periodic e-mails from my friends at Ticketmaster ("A Lifetime of 'Convenience' Charges or Your Soul: Your Choice") telling me about shows I shouldn't miss. Usually (always) nonsense, because I either don't care about the bands, or I've already got tickets. I'm pretty sure the e-mail about U2 came out a few days after tickets went on sale, which, in that case, meant almost all were gone. But I digress. Last week, I got an e-mail about the upcoming 'American Idol' tour, with all the poor souls who didn't make it to the end. I don't pretend to know who they are, save for Ozzie Smith's son. Anywho, said "tour" is sponsored by....



PopTarts.


Moving on.


I was trying to remember when I first saw 'Star Wars.' I couldn't remember, but I do know that the original three (the first will always be 'Star Wars' to me. Not Episode IV, not 'A New Hope.') are quite enjoyable. I saw Episode I when it came out, and haven't seen it since. I don't recall being too enthralled by it, although I do have a Darth Maul action figure in my room. He was cool. I never bothered with Episode II until Sunday, when it was on TV and I caught the last half or so of it. I think I was just as well skipping it. I didn't catch much of the much bally-hooed awful dialogue, but the effects were oddly not all that hot, considering ILM is supposed to be so high-end. Considering how well the effects were in, say, Fellowship of the Ring, it's sorta weird. Plus, I never really cared about what was happening to anyone on screen. When Jango Fett got his head lopped off (what is it with Lucas and dismemberment?), right in front of his son, the scene got no more emotional impact then when some big alien critters got killed. Consdering Boba Fett is a reasonably big player later on, wouldn't it make more sense to give the scene, which presumably fuels his drive later on, more screen time?

So now I have to figure out if I want to see Episode III. I might, eventually, but I'm in no hurry. I've got my fill of it from the God-awful commercials lately. That Burger King spot with Darth vader staring down that hideous statue of a king is funny once, then sort of creepy every time after. All these dumb commercials seem to cut down on the movie's integrity. For me, at least. I will admit to almost buying a Darth Vader action figure, though.

I really want to talk about the Cardinals a bit, but I can't think of enough to say, other than "I really like the Cardinals," or "the Cardinals are doing really well this year." And, since I said that, I guess I don't have to go any further. Maybe after I've been to a game I can say more.

I've come up with the greatetst song name EVER. I can't tell you yet, because I haven't written it, and I don't want someone else to beat me to it. So give me some time and I'll let you know.


Not for the feint of butt
Dave

On the road again, again.

As much as I often will complain about radio around here, specifically KSHE, I will admit that every so often, they do something really cool. Last month, not too long aftet Easter, maybe, KSHE did one of its very cool no-repeat weeks. Two wonderful bonuses from this: 1.) it cuts down on the amout of crap like Nickelback and Creed I have to here, and 2.) I might actually get to listen to some cool new song I might only get to hear at obscure times or special programming on when I'm at work or asleep (i.e. the Sunday morning Classics show). Such was the case on the way home from bowling one evening when I heard a song with a nice funky/'70s rock feel to it. The riff was not unlike "Play that Funky Music White Boy." And, of course, because I really wanted to know who wrote it, they didn't tell me who it was by. Natch. So I had made myself remember a lyrical bit just in case that happened. Otherwise, I would have had to call in and ask what song they played at X:00, just after "Plush" and hope they knew.

My effort to remember paid off, and I was able to track down the song, "Remember the Good Times," and the band, Paice Ashton Lord (PAL), a side-project for Ian Paice and John Lord of Deep Purple fame, and...someone Ashton (Tony, maybe), of some other fame. I was also lucky to nab a copy of the CD last weekend at a used CD place. A very good album, although it was the only album they released. So, 10 points to KSHE for that.

But how did Janice and Steve know the song from somewhere or other when I'd never heard it before? Some classic rock fan I turned out to be. Sheesh.

The Point also has a nice feature every Wednesday when they play some early/mid-nineties stuff for a few hours in the evening. A lot of "I remember that song kinda stuff. Not without its share of clunkers, though. This week I had the misfortune of hearing "You Make Me Feel Like a Whore" by Everclear. Mmm. Wonderful title, that. And even if the lyrics weren't lame, the song features what may be one of the worst solo-type things I've heard in a rock song (and I'm counting my songs). It seemed out of sync with the rest of the song and even a little out of key. Bleah. One thing about Everclear I don't like is that all their songs more or less sound the same. They just sound like and Everclear song, and to me, 'tis not a good thing.

On the music horizon:

-Cowboy Mouth concert
-Eric Johnson concert
-new Foo Fighters
-new Audioslave
-new Nickel Creek
-only 7 months til U2

Things are lookin' up.



This is your most ambitious album to date!
Dave