My Little Corner of the Web

Random Thoughts on the Transformers Movie, or, I'm Still a Nerd at Heart...

2007-07-07T19:51:00.000-04:00

So, after a couple of years of anticipation, some disbelief (over the character aesthetics/designs), tension of waiting, and general geeking out, I finally saw the new Transformers movie on July 4th. What better way to celebrate the nation's independence than by watching giant frickin' robots blow up or destroy large parts of it? Okay; here's my skinny on it.

It's a Michael Bay film, which means that you shouldn't go in expecting the same depth and cinema that you'd get from Pulp Fiction or A Touch of Evil or Lone Star--but considering it's from the guy that gave us Armageddon and the two Bad Boys films, it's actually one of his better endeavours. Shia LeBeouf is actually pretty good as Sam Witwicky, the main human character, and doesn't let himself get buried by the special effects, or try to out-act them (which bodes well for his upcoming turn in the fourth Indiana Jones film). The dialogue is surprisingly snappy for the most part, but still appropriately cheesy enough, given the subject material. Bernie Mac has a great bit as the used car salesman who sells Sam his first car--the Autobot Bumblebee, in his '74 Camaro mode. John Turturro doesn't just chew the scenery as the head of a secret government agency--he positively consumes it. Hell, you can practically see the look of hunger in his eye when they're at Hoover Dam.

But who cares about the humans, right? I was there for the robots, and I'm pretty sure that most people were too. Here's the REAL stars of the show.

1) Optimus Prime--leader of the Autobots, and turns into a Peterbilt longnose truck cab. In a way, he's the real treat of the movie--the producers brought in the original voice of the character from the cartoon, all those years ago, to do him. Yes, I nerded out appropriately when I heard him say "Autobots, transform...and roll out!"
2) Bumblebee--turns into a 1974 (and then a 2009) Camaro. Another iconic character in TF lore, although he's best known as his first incarnation as a VW Bug.
3) Jazz--turns into a Pontiac Solstice. Has a VERY bad day by the end of the film.
4) Ratchet--turns into a modified Hummer H2 rescue vehicle. The Autobots' medic, and sounded pretty close to the voice from the original cartoon as well.
5) Ironhide--turns into a GMC TopKick truck. Carries big honkin' launchers on his arms. Nuff said.

And then there's...

1) Megatron--leader of the Decepticons, turns into a Cybertronian jet. Badass all around, as he should be. Voiced by Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith from The Matrix), who pulled it off pretty well, I thought. Spoiler alert--Megs tears Jazz in half when Jazz gets a bit too cheeky with him.
2) Starscream--turns into an F-22 Raptor jet. Hugely iconic character, although his trademark treachery was pretty lacking here. Maybe in the sequel...
3) Bonecrusher--turns into a Buffalo Minesweeper Vehicle. Lots of potential, but takes a sword through the brainpan, courtesy of Prime, before he could cause TOO much destruction.
4) Barricade--turns into a Saleen modified 2007 Ford Mustang police car. All kinds of cool...and fitting for a cop car to have the motto "To Punish and Enslave" on it.
5) Frenzy--turns into a CD player. Can't say much about that...but he's actually pretty entertaining on screen.
6) Blackout--turns into a Pave Low helicopter. Throws tanks around. Wicked bad. Comes with... 7) Scorponok--he's a scorpion...loses his tail, and is pretty much Blackout's drone/robo-tool.
8) Brawl--turns into what I believe is a modified, tri-barrel Abrams tank. Doesn't do much in the film, except cause mayhem.

I really only had two gripes with the movie. First--some of the Decepticons didn't do enough in the film. Bonecrusher and Brawl are probably the best examples of this, in that they're done in in relatively short order. Granted, Bonecrusher takes out a bus and gets in a hellacious open-field tackle on Prime before getting his radical lobotomy, and Brawl gets to show off some of his decent firepower...but I didn't get enough sensation of the Autobots in peril as I'd have liked. Second--I'm not fond of the thought that human weaponry, albeit some pretty powerful stuff, is able to damage the robots. I mean, c'mon--these are gigantic, alien robots who MIGHT feel something if they stepped on a car. Josh Duhamel's heroic motorcycle slide under Blackout to get a shot at his chest was a cool sequence...but I'd have liked to see Blackout brush it off and put some REAL hurtin' on the uppity human, like when he levels a military base in Qatar at the beginning of the film.

And Megatron's battle with Prime was as arse-kickingly intense as it should have been. I was on the edge of my seat in anticipation of that one.

Big up to my lovely girlfriend Becky, who went to see the movie with me, knowing full well that my nerd quotient would be through the roof. She and Mom had a good time commiserating--but I think they enjoyed themselves for the most part too.

Random Shiznit About Me

2007-07-07T19:49:00.000-04:00

Actually, I wasn’t tagged, but I stole this from Becky’s blog. And since it’s another boring morning at work, I figured I’d do it for the hell of it…

…so here’s seven interesting things about me, for those of you who never asked.

1) I can’t read music. I’m self-taught as a musician, and despite playing guitar for 16 years now, and professionally for 13, I can’t read a note of music. I know the difference between a bass and treble clef, but that’s about it. I primarily play by ear (and I’m blessed with excellent relative pitch), or by reading tablature, which is a numeric correspondence transcription for guitars and basses.

2) I’m adopted. Mom and Dad, for whatever reason (as I recall, Dad’s vasectomy reversal didn’t), couldn’t have children naturally, and applied for adoption in 1974. I was born in February of ’75, and arrived at their home on April 15 of that year—as they put it, I was their “little tax deduction.” I’ve actually known I was adopted ever since I was old enough to understand the concept, and when the question of whether or not I knew (or want to know) my birth parents invariably comes up, I always respond with a polite “No”. I’ve got no reason to know them or want to know them, and I’ve never even considered trying to find them. What little we do know of them was that they were Mexican or Mexican-American, in their late teens when they had me, and one worked in a factory while the other only had a 7th grade education. Honestly, my biggest pet peeve about someone asking me about my adoption is when someone asks if I knew my “real parents”. Pisses me off—Mom and Dad are my real parents, and nothing will ever change that.

3) Wallyball—this is a sport, invented in the late 1970’s, that I got hooked on in 1993, and have been playing ever since, primarily with a group of close friends through BGSU. Wallyball, for those not familiar with it, is a surprisingly intense, fast-paced game that’s essentially volleyball played on a racquetball court. Bumps, sets, spikes, and other basics of volleyball are intact, with the exception that players can drive the ball off of one side wall. I won’t get into all of the rules, but the use of that wall means that balls can travel with a lot of precision and velocity, and it takes a while to get the precision down to handle both driving and fielding them. Modesty aside, I’m pretty damned good at the game, despite some injuries which have slowed me down. Matt, Andy, and I mostly play with BGSU undergrads during the year, some of whom are new, and some aren’t. We enjoy having good, fun, competitive games both there and in the tournaments we do from time to time, and it’s great exercise. Becky, after seeing how sweaty I was the first time I came home from playing, has a standing rule that I have to shower before going to bed on those nights…

4) Work—currently, I work as an editor for a mystery shopping/market research company called Corporate Research International. I sit and edit mystery shopping reports all day, and that’s about it. It’s not mentally challenging or rewarding, pays next to nothing with no benefits, a little over 35 miles from home, and offers no future to speak of. I took it as a stopgap measure back in December, until I could find something better. Almost seven months later, unfortunately, I’m still looking, with no concrete leads in sight, and fighting a daily feeling that a part of me is being whittled away, somehow.

5) I was an uncle at the age of nine. Because my dad was married and had kids before he met my mother, I’m the youngest of four kids, all of whom are significantly older than I am (Mathew is 50, Kim is 47, Maria is 46, and I’m 32). I’d always wondered about the age discrepancy between us, to the point when I asked Dad—when I was about eight or so—why Mom had Mathew when she was only 12 (Mom’s 63). Dad and I were driving to Napoleon, and he laughed so hard that we almost went into a ditch. Kim and her first husband, about a year later, had my niece Nicole; I remember going to school the next Monday, and when the teacher asked each of us in turn what we did over the weekend, no one quite believed me when I said that I became an uncle. Nicole’s since had a child, my great-nephew Killian, which REALLY makes me feel a little old, but in a good way…

6) Scuba diving—I’m an avid scuba diver, and have had my certification for about 12 years now. Honestly, it was something that never interested me until I was about 16 or 17, and even then, I think it was because I thought it looked cool in the James Bond flick Never Say Never Again. I was working in the marine biology lab at BGSU; one day, a woman named Kim Marshall walked in and asked if I knew anyone who wanted to learn scuba, and I damn near fell over. We got certified late that fall, and I’ve loved it ever since. I’ve mostly gone diving around the NW Ohio quarries, but I’ve also gone diving off of the Florida Keys, something that I’d love to do again. And, of course, scuba was the second date that Becky and I had, and when she fell in love with it too, I was thrilled. It’s a good physical workout, but relaxing at the same time, and hellaciously addictive.

7) I love cheese. Seriously—it’s beyond an addiction at this point. Anything from a good sharp cheddar, to Blue Stilton, to Provolone, to Battenburg, to Muenster, to Colby, to Brie, to Leiceister, to Wensleydale, is fair game. With the exception of a blueberry-infused goat cheese I tried once, I haven’t come across a cheese, or form of cheese, that I haven’t enjoyed. I’m not really sure where I get it from, either…Dad’s a blue cheese fan, but not ragingly so, and Mom’s indifferent towards cheese, and that’s about it. Becky’s helped me get at least a little better about not overdoing how much I take in at one time…but man, cheese ALWAYS tastes good. I know I’m not feeling well when it doesn’t entice me.

Random Thoughts on the Canadian Crippler

2007-06-26T18:34:00.001-04:00

From the time I was a kid, up until I was 23 or so, I swore up and down that I’d never watch professional wrestling. I knew, even then, what it fundamentally is—a bad soap opera with sweaty, muscular guys in tights rolling all over each other (in my younger years, I hadn’t even HEARD of the word “homoerotic”). Or, as one guy I knew once put it, “white trash dinner theater”.

I found myself eventually starting to watch it, and even enjoying it, however, largely due to the influence of my best friend and his two brothers. Sure, we marked out huge for the really big athletic spots, cringed when someone came within inches of compressing their spine, and admired the admittedly grand spectacle of it. That, and we also had fun ridiculing a lot of things—especially the silliness of the beast, and the fact that we were watching it to begin with.

One wrestler that always stood out to me, though, was a guy named Chris Benoit. Not the tallest wrestler, or even perhaps the most muscular, but man, he was intense. He was stockily built without being thick or bulky, but could move quickly. He was known as one of the best technical wrestlers out there, in terms of his training and athleticism, and even now, I’m inclined to believe it. He wasn’t the best talker when it came to doing interviews (“promos”), but the fans always loved him—every time he came out, the crowds went nuts.

Unfortunately, it was announced yesterday that Benoit, his wife, and seven-year old son were all found dead in their Atlanta home; although I’m not sure if it’s been officially announced yet, the leading theory seems to be that Benoit killed his wife and son over the weekend, and then killed himself sometime on Monday. WWE’s Monday night program, Raw, was a three-hour tribute to Benoit and his career, and had some pretty heartfelt commentary from his fellow wrestlers.

What’s going to be disappointing for me, and for a lot of his fans, is that his amazing career and body of work is going to be soiled, for lack of a better term, if the suspicions about him are correct—which, as I just peeked at the internet for the press conference transcript, seems to be confirmed now. It sounds like they believe he strangled his wife on Friday, did something similar to his son on Saturday, and then hung himself on Sunday. Also sounds like they’re looking into the potential that at least part of this was brought on by steroid rage…and WWE, whose website was plastered with Benoit pix and testimonials yesterday, has not only removed almost all of them, but has also removed all of Benoit’s merchandise from their online shop.

It’s a damn shame…all the more so because his wife and child are gone too.

iPod Shuffle—Finest Work Songs again…

Cream: “Sitting On Top of the World”
Rising Lion: “Lion Band Dub”
Gorillaz: “Every Planet We Reach is Dead”
Booker T and the MG’s: “Green Onions”
Michael Burns: “The Ambience”
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones: “Don’t Know How to Party”
The Allman Brothers Band: “Stormy Monday”
Stevie Ray Vaughan: “I’m Leaving You (Commit a Crime)”
B.B. King: “When Love Comes to Town”
Live: “All Over You”
Glenmore Brown: “Leggo the Herb Man”
Orange 9mm: “Gun to Your Head”
Public Enemy: “Terminator X to the Edge of Panic”
Gladys Knight and the Pips: “I’ve Got to Use My Imagination”
The Phantom of the Opera: “Angel of Music”
Rancid: “Gave It Away”
Guns n’ Roses: “It’s So Easy”
Queen: “Bohemian Rhapsody”
Smashing Pumpkins: “Snail”
Van Halen: “Running With the Devil”
Leftfield: “Phat Planet”
Dean Fraser: “Johnny Was a Good Man”
311: “Tribute”
Eric Johnson: “Cliffs of Dover”
Rage Against the Machine: “People of the Sun”
Jimmy Page: “Custard Pie/Black Dog”
Keb Mo’: “Remain Silent”
Marvin Gaye: “Sexual Healing”
The Doobie Brothers: “Listen to the Music”
Skankin’ Pickle: “Rotten Banana Legs”
Matisyahu: “Beat Box”
Bruce Springsteen: “Old Dan Tucker”
Juno Reactor: “High Energy Protons”
Bobby “Blue” Bland: “Let the Good Times Roll”
Oceanlab: “Satellite”
Creedence Clearwater Revival: “Fortunate Son”
Space Ghost and Brak: “I Love You, Baby”
Blues Traveler: “Hook”
Jimmy Page/Robert Plant: “The Battle of Evermore”
Everclear: “Santa Monica”
Red Hot Chili Peppers: “Behind the Sun”
Pink Floyd: “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. II”

A Low Queue...

2007-06-20T18:34:00.000-04:00

…means that I decide to write another entry. Since this gulag—pardon me, company—that I work at is web-based, all of the jobs that we edit gets dumped into an electronic queue. Depending on the time of the month, there can be upwards of 3000-4000 reports in there that need to be done, but as of writing this paragraph, there’s a grand total of 320. Honestly, I’m kind of expecting—and hoping—that we’ll get sent home early. My stomach’s been feeling a little weird today anyway (but not as bad as Becky’s was last night), and I didn’t sleep that well last night…so an early trip home would be fine with me.

I’ll probably try to continue going through my old dissertation work tonight, to see what’s still usable. I’m guessing that, if I’m lucky, at least half of my old proposal, as well as my Master’s thesis, can be recycled and built upon.

The gratifying thing about it so far is that I still remember almost all of the information that I researched for both my thesis and my old dissertation proposal. I’ve fallen out of touch a bit with the union that I’ll be documenting, due to the fact that I don’t live in BG anymore (the union’s in Toledo), but the mental rust that I was worried about hasn’t reared its ugly head yet. That said, though, when it comes to researching and explaining my qualitative methodology again, it’ll probably be another story.

(later, after lunch)

…and it appears that we’re getting our coffee machine back up here again, along with our hotpot. Back when we had the big reorientation on the second floor, we were told that we couldn’t have a coffee machine or hotpot up here. People were understandably cheesed, in that the only coffee machine available for use is a Flavia pay machine downstairs. Apparently, they got yanked due to cleanliness concerns, but someone convinced TPTB that we could get them back again. Just got back from carrying an extra filing cabinet down from the third floor that we’ll use as a platform.

It’ll be kind of nice, in that, while I’m not much of a coffee drinker, I do enjoy cocoa and tea…

iPod Shuffle—finest work songs?

Rage Against the Machine: “Down Rodeo”
311: “Flowing”
Curtis Knight: “Drivin’ South”
Taj Mahal: “Coconut Man”
Cygnus X: “Superstring (Rank 1 Remix)”
Bob Dylan: “Tangled Up in Blue”
Gorillaz: “Stop the Dams”
Peter Broggs: “Jah Voice is Calling”
The Kitchen Band: “Christian’s Train”
Pink Floyd: “Not Now John”
Smashing Pumpkins: “Siva”
Ratty: “Sunrise (Here I Am)”
Red Hot Chili Peppers: “Warped”
311: “Cali Soca”
Tekken 3 Soundtrack: “The King of Iron Fist 3”
NWA: “A Bitch Iz a Bitch”
Dread Zeppelin: “Living Loving Maid”
Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers: “Clodhopper”
Jimmy Page/Robert Plant: “Wearing and Tearing”
Traveling Wilburys: “Tweeter and the Monkey Man”
George Thorogood: “I Drink Alone”
Nirvana: “Love Buzz”
Charlie Chaplin: “Cool the Violence”
Aerosmith: “Sweet Emotion”
Afro-Rican Ensemble: “A Love Supreme”
Bob Marley and the Wailers: “Zimbabwe”
Eric Clapton: “I’m Tore Down”
Jimi Hendrix: “Rock Me Baby”
Rage Against the Machine: “Guerilla Radio”
Gorillaz: “El Mañana”
Dr. Dre: “Deez Nuts”
Led Zeppelin: “White Summer/Black Mountain Side”
The Beach Boys: “I Get Around”
Foo Fighters: “February Stars”
Domino: “This Business of Love”
Joe Satriani: “Ice Nine”
Togo Project: “Sana Morette Ne Ente”
Led Zeppelin: “We’re Gonna Groove”
Kool and the Gang: “Jungle Boogie”
Juno Reactor: “Masters of the Universe”
Evita Soundtrack: “I’d Be Surprisingly Good for You”
Creedence Clearwater Revival: “Hello, Mary Lou”
Jaco Pastorius: “Freedom Jazz Dance”
Matthew Sweet: “Scooby Doo, Where Are You?
Ben Harper: “Ground On Down”
Digital Underground: “The Humpty Dance”

Dragging Tuesdays...

2007-06-19T20:17:00.001-04:00

YAWN

Good lord, Tuesday mornings here at work always suck. For some reason, Mondays have been flying right by, but Tuesdays drag—I haven’t fought this hard to stay awake since my Old Testament class in high school. Seriously—if you suffer from insomnia, come work as an editor for Corporate Research International. You’ll be cured in two hours, guaranteed.

Or at least since last Tuesday, I suppose.

Nerd that I am, one of my methods of combating the eventual crushing boredom at work is to bring in a couple of Transformers. Ostensibly, they’re desk decorations…but when I need to fidget or take my eyes off the screen, I’ll start converting them. Today’s entertainment consists of Barricade, an evil Decepticon from the upcoming movie who turns into a cop car; and Mach Alert, from the Robots In Disguise line, who turns into…well…a cop car. They’re cool vehicles, though…Barricade’s a Saleen-modded 2006 Ford Mustang, and Mach Alert’s a Lamborghini Diablo. So there.

I seriously don’t know how Becky can be a morning person. I got about 6.5 hours of shuteye last night, and feel like hell. Her stomach was bothering her a bit this morning, but was otherwise her usual alert self.

Speaking of whom, she’s driving back and forth between home and Columbus for the first three days of this week. Some ODOT seminar/training/thingy…we’d talked about her staying out there, but she opted for the driving in the end. It makes her a bit more tired, and she has to get up a bit earlier in the morning, but she’s okay with it. Part of the reason she didn’t want to stay out there was because of the costs of a hotel and food (and the fact that she wouldn’t have much to do out there at night)—but I suspect the real reason is that she didn’t want to go into puppy withdrawal. Think she might have missed me too? J

(later in the day)

Dear lord, it’s boring as SHIT here. Can’t seem to wake up, either. Boring to the point that my co-worker Beth and I were discussing and briefly comparing Prince’s “Under the Cherry Moon” with “Copacabana”…

Work Song Shuffle (again):

Jimi Hendrix: “All Along the Watchtower”
Nate Dogg: “Why”
Rage Against the Machine: “How I Could Just Kill a Man”
George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic: “Agony of Defeet”
Pete Moss: “Strive to Live”
Rage Against the Machine: “Bulls on Parade”
The Atomic Fireballs: “Man With the Hex”
Cream: “I’m So Glad”
Gorillaz: “November Has Come”
Rancid: “Ruby Soho”
Led Zeppelin: “Black Dog”
The Meditations: “Choice of Color”
Ted Nugent: “Stranglehold”
Michael Jackson: “Billie Jean”
Al Green: “Let’s Stay Together”
The Ark Band: “Please Wait”
Phil Collins: “In the Air Tonight”
Robert Miles: “One and One”
John Lennon: “Woman is the Nigger of the World”
Israel Vibration: “Dub In the Middle East”
Ben Folds Five: “The Luckiest”
Nirvana: “Blew”
Led Zeppelin: “Dazed and Confused”
Blind Faith: “Can’t Find My Way Home”
Neil Young: “The Needle and the Damage Done”
The Verve: “Bittersweet Symphony”
311: “Freak Out”
Pearl Jam: “I Got Id”
The Honeydrippers: “Sea of Love”
Squirrel Nut Zippers: “Lover’s Lane”
Audioslave: “Shadow of the Sun”
King Chango: “Revolution/Cumbia Reggae”
Jane’s Addiction: “Summertime Rolls”
The Doobie Brothers: “Long Train Runnin’”
Ziggy Marley: “Melancholy Mood”
Nine Inch Nails: “Something I Can Never Have”
Jaco Pastorius: “Soul Intro/The Chicken”
Pink Floyd: “Us and Them”
Ben Harper: “Heart of Gold”
Olivia Newton-John: “You’re the One That I Want”
EMF: “Unbelievable”
Nirvana: “Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip”
The Congos: “Don’t Blame It On I”
The Beatles: “With a Little Help From My Friends”
Shaggy: “Luv Me, Luv Me”
The Cure: “Love Song”
Bob Marley and The Wailers: “Natty Dread”
Dub Is a Weapon: “Insurrection”
Rage Against the Machine: “Fistful of Steel”
Rob Zombie: “Meet the Creeper”

Zachary and the Mighty Perrin

2007-06-08T18:08:00.000-04:00

I’d have probably posted this last night, but our Internet was down, probably due to some relatively decent high wind we had going. Besides, this is a good way to procrastinate again, so—here we go.

Last night, as mentioned in my earlier post, was the last obedience class for myself, Becky, Marley, and Perrin. The power was off, so it was a LITTLE bit warm in there (and I overheat easily, and sweat gallons—sexy, no?), and when everyone had arrived, we were told that we were going to have some skill-based contests among the dogs. Nothing major—just sitting, staying, coming on command, etc. All of the mutts were going to get a goodie bag, but the winner would get a bag with even more stuff in it.

First up was heeled walking without my hands on the leash. Perrin did awesome at it, and it came down to a three way tie between him, Marley, and another pooch. Next was the sit/stay test—which Perrin took with flying colors, followed by the down/stay test, which he aced as well. (Side note: Marley was kind of antsy for these, which surprised me…he’s normally pretty good about it. I also suspect that the heat was making Perrin a little more docile.) And the final event was the recall/relay race…Perrin’s team took it the first time, but lost it the second.

The funniest bit occurred during the relay. The training area was split into half, with makeshift barriers up to help keep the dogs focused. Becky’s team was on the half facing the seating area at first, and by the time it got down to her and Marley, my team was on its last dog too, although we were behind a bit because Perrin—the wimp—was kind of sheepish about coming to me. Becky was calling Marley and her team was poised to win it (Marley was galumphing down to her in grand fashion)…until he noticed the water bowl. His water instinct kicked in, and he decided to make a pit stop…which gave my team the time we needed to get our last dog in. Good Marley. J

So anyhoo, Perrin won the contest, and aside from some people being pleasantly surprised a bit (including myself), I felt pretty proud of both me and him.

The other good news came this morning, literally as I was getting ready to get on the elevator in the parking garage at work. Andy and his wife Becky had their first child, Zachary, at 6:11 AM this morning. Everyone’s doing well, although Becky’s pretty tired from the sounds of it. Zack weighed in at 7 pounds, 5 ounces, and Andy’s already getting all bubbly over him. Big up to all of them!

Song Shuffle, continued… (or, What I Listened to at Work)

Bad Brains: “I Luv I Jah”
Juno Reactor: “Conga Fury”
Ray Charles: “Georgia on My Mind”
Cream: “NSU”
Ben Harper and Toots Hibbert: “Love Gonna Walk Out On Me”
Rage Against the Machine: “The Ghost of Tom Joad”
The Jackson Five: “Enjoy Yourself”
Robert Randolph and the Family Band: “Calypso”
King Chango: “Brujeria”
Tappa Zukie: “Dub MPLA”
Sarah MacLachlan: “Building a Mystery”
Mazzy Star: “Five String Serenade”
George Clinton and P-Funk: “Dr. Funkenstein”
Led Zeppelin: “In My Time of Dying”
Eric Clapton: “Tears in Heaven”
The Matches: “Audio Blood”
Dr. Dre: “Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat”
John Brown’s Body: “Garden Tree”
The Blues Brothers: “Guilty”
The Kitchen Band: “Blues From the Kitchen’
Beck: “Pay No Mind”
Led Zeppelin: “Achilles’ Last Stand’
311: “Strong All Along”
Rancid: “Let’s Go”
Jimi Hendrix: “Killing Floor”
311: “Who’s Got the Herb?”
John Brown’s Body: “Love is a Fire”
John Brown’s Body: “Dreadnaught”
Nirvana: “School”
Eric Clapton: “Blues Leave Me Alone”
Bob Marley and the Wailers: “I Shot the Sheriff”
Gustav Holst: “Venus, the Bringer of Peace”
Israel Vibration: “Dub in the Middle East”
Jimmy Page: “Custard Pie/Black Dog”
Groovemaster: “Prophecy”
Keith Hudson: “I’m Alright (Orbiting in Dub)”
Charlie Chaplin: “Cool the Violence”
John Lennon: “Oh Yoko!”
The Squeeze: “Black Coffee in Bed”
Yoko Kanno: “Borderline”
The Black Crowes: “She Talks to Angels”
Matisyahu: “Aish Tamid”
Everton Blender: “Lift Up Your Head”
Jimi Hendrix: “The Wind Cries Mary”
Armin Van Buuren: “Burned With Desire”
James Brown: “The Boss”
New Edition: “Candy Girl”
Cream: “Born Under a Bad Sign”
Pink Floyd: “Money”
Rising Lion: “Lion Band Dub”
Bombay Dub Orchestra: “Compassion”

‘Tis the Season…

2007-06-08T18:07:00.001-04:00

…for diving. Sadly, however, I don’t know when I’ll have the extra money to actually get in the damned water.

Aside from actually traveling to the quarries, most of the cost would probably be incurred through wetsuit rental fees, not to mention actually paying to get in. I’ve got the weights, BC, reg and octo, fins, mask, and snorkel all set to go (thanks to Becky for these), but let’s face it—I’m a sissy about cold water. Granted, the quarries are warmer in the summer, but once I get past that thermocline, it can get kind of cold for me. Hence, the wetsuit woes.

Becky mentioned, a few weeks ago, that I should check with Aqua Hut in Toledo to see if they have any extra, former-rental wetsuits that they’re selling for cheap so they can make room for newer stock. I’m half-tempted to swing by there after the gig in Toledo next Wednesday afternoon to see if they might have one in the $25-50 range. The initial outlay would be more than offset shelling out money each dive for a different wetsuit.

On a different note, our gig last Saturday, aside from being a mess in terms of scheduling due to Gaylord being WAY behind in getting the equipment set, went pretty well. Since Groovemaster’s been getting less gigs, Lewie, our bass player, has started doing a lot of other side projects, so his schedule’s pretty full. With gas costs the way they are, we can’t really ask Bruce to come up all the way from near Columbus to play, so I got the nod again to play the bass.

I actually enjoy playing bass…it’s a challenge, in that I have to listen to the music differently and it tears my fingers up pretty well (and I cheat, and play with a pick), but it’s also a lot of fun to be able to lock in with the drums to give good, solid riddim. I was more worried that Ron, our newest member (guitarist), wouldn’t be up to handling the style of guitar playing by himself. Thankfully, though, I was proven wrong. He’s definitely more of a rock-style guitar player, but he locked in a lot better with what Gaylord and I were playing…we ended up doing some good grooves.

Tonight’s the last obedience class night for Perrin and I; Becky’s taking Marley to Canine Good Citizen classes starting next Wednesday. Truth be told, if the class didn’t start at six, I’d have probably done it with her, by taking Perrin. I’m not as invested in whole concept as she is, but I’ve enjoyed taking the current class with Perrin, and I like to think that, although he’s still a spoiled mommy’s boy, he and I bonded pretty well through it. If nothing else, he’s more inclined to listen to me now.

LATER….

One thing I forgot to mention about the weekend, if you’ll pardon my turn for the geekier, was that the toys for the upcoming Transformers movie toys finally came out. Now, much as part of me would love to grab all of them, just like in the old days, I manifestly can’t afford it, so I’m cherry-picking the ones that I think are the coolest. I’d allotted myself two on Saturday, and—as the releases keep coming out—I’ll probably get two more. It’s easier to resist the grab-‘em-all collecting urge, thankfully…but I will admit that the two I got are pretty damn cool-looking.

For the record, since you never asked, I picked up two Decepticons. Barricade, who turns into a Saleen-modded Ford Mustang police car, and Blackout, who turns into a Pave Low military helicopter. I’ll probably get Optimus and Megatron at some point…but not till their $50 + price tags come down.

School's In for Summer...

2007-05-31T21:22:00.000-04:00

Over the past couple of days, I’ve been in contact again with the head of the American Culture Studies Department up at BGSU, with the intent of getting the wheels turning again so I can finish my doctorate. The department head, Don McQuarie (who’s smart as hell, almost comically laid-back, my former softball teammate, and a great guy to have your back) has essentially said that things can get underway easily enough again, despite having been away for two years. We’re going over the information and items that we need, the people I need to contact, and looking at an approximate timeline of 1.5 years, maybe a little more. I’m not deluding myself in the slightest…it’s going to be a lot of hard work again, complicated maybe only slightly by the fact that I no longer live in Bowling Green. No—right now the biggest challenge is to form a new committee, and determine the new direction the document will eventually take.

My original dissertation was going to deal with a migrant farmworker/labor rights organization out of Toledo called The Farm Labor Organizing Committee, or FLOC. Specifically, I was going to take a pedagogical approach to it and analyze how they build networks among supporting members and organizations—you know, looking at the methods and conveyance of information. Fun, right?

It was an approach that I was strong-armed into by my former dissertation chair. Her academic specialties lie in the area of critical pedagogy, and while it’s a good and fascinating field of study, I had envisioned doing more of a layman’s historiography of FLOC. Something readable and detailed—really trying to enmesh the reader into what the organization DOES. Kind of like gonzo journalism, at least to some extent, to really let people get the pulse of the agency and the people it serves. To my knowledge, something like this has only been done once before (by Barger and Reza—an awesome book), but their approach was sociologically-based. It’s not a dry read by any stretch—but different enough in tone from what I want to try to do now. That, and it was published 13 years ago, so there’s a lot of new stuff that has yet to be officially chronicled.

The other blessing I can enjoy with this (I hope) is the fact that I’ve been an active associate of FLOC for years now. Not as much over the past year, due to my former unemployment and subsequent relocation, but I’ve maintained my contacts up there, and my track record of service and help—modesty aside—speaks for itself. I want to try and give a from-the-trenches style of conveyance to the stories and events I’ll write about, and having been present for a decent amount of events, mostly minor, a few relatively big, is something that I want to use prominently. Clearly, it won’t be an objective piece of writing, but I’ve never claimed that it would be, even two years ago.

I’m a little nervous about going back to this—truth be told, I’ve thought, more than a few times, of just letting it be. Ultimately, the two things that made me finally get back on the horse were: (1) It’ll be good tool to have as I keep trying to re-establish my professional career (although with my luck, it probably won’t make a difference anyway J), and (2) It’ll be nice to stop having it hang over my head.

So wish me luck, I suppose…

Doggy Drool and Obedience School

2007-05-31T21:20:00.000-04:00

Tonight’s our second-to-last outing to the basic obedience course that Becky and I have been taking Marley and Perrin to. I have to admit that it’s been more enjoyable than I thought it’d be at first, and it’s definitely helped Perrin and I become closer, at least in terms of him being only an 80% mommy’s boy now, instead of the full 100. It’s helped make walking him more enjoyable, in that he looks at me now as the authority figure, heels and sits awesomely, and has turned into an overall pleasure to stroll with. I’m not attached, though…

Marley’s come through the class being a lot better now about listening to the silly humans too. Don’t get me wrong—he’s the living definition of dopey, still walks and runs in a perpetual shamble, broke his second collar off his lead when taking off after a bird, and drools like you wouldn’t believe (especially after he takes a drink). But he’s a lot better about listening to us, and although he’s still a dopey young dog, he’s a lot more mellow than when we first got him.

And no, contrary to popular rumors, the obedience classes were not for me…

Shuffle and the Weekend

2007-05-31T21:19:00.000-04:00

Recapping the Weekend

First off, a belated happy Memorial Day weekend to all of you, if you’re reading this. It’s always one of those extended weekends that seems like it’s going to last forever…and then it ends up being busy enough that you wonder where the hell it’s gone the night before you have to go to work. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing, though…it’s a chance to relax, have fun, and—if you’re so inclined—to reflect. In the past, Memorial Day was a chance to be utterly lazy, with the exception of usually going to my parents’ place at some point for some steaks done on the grill (and my dad’s steaks are the best, bar none. In a Pavlovian response that I can’t help, every time I think about them, I start salivating…)

This past weekend, Becky and I spent the first two days away from home, by and large. Saturday was Becky’s (my best friend Andy’s wife, and yes, it does get a bit confusing at times, especially when referring to them in the third person) baby shower in Gibsonburg, so while Becky (mine) was there, Andy and I finally got to do our oft-delayed viewing of Spider Man 3. I’ve been having a slightly weird time wrapping my head around the fact that Andy and Becky are having their first child in a little over three weeks, so he and I enjoyed one of our old-time sojourns out and about. We even made two stops for Transformers, and reveled in our geekiness as we discussed the upcoming Fantastic Four and Simpsons movies.

Sunday, we went to Tiffin for a small get-together with some of Becky’s family. It was a good, laid-back time, and her stepfather, brother-in-law, and I all got to wow everyone else with our mad Aerobie-throwing skills, yo. Poor Becky got pretty tired, though; with two long days in a row, I don’t blame her. Yesterday was housework day, so we did nothing more prosaic than hedgework, mowing the lawn, sweeping, cleaning litter boxes, organizing, cleaning cars, and grocery shopping.

And today, it’s back to the brain press again...

Shuffle

Gorillaz: “Stop the Dams”
Culture: “Rastaman a Come”
Freddie MacGregor: “Push Comes to Shove”
The Kitchen Band: “Sea Lion Blues”
Israel Vibration: “The Same Song”
Macy Gray: “I Try”
Tupac Shakur: “Never Had a Friend Like Me”
The Doobie Brothers: “China Grove”
311: “Beyond the Gray Sky”
John Brown’s Body: “Eyes of the Maker”
The Ark Band: “Boom Shot”
Paul Simon: “The Boy in the Bubble”
Tekken Tag Soundtrack: “Last Boss”
Justin Hinds: “Natty Take Over”
Groovemaster: “Come Home to Stay”
John Brown’s Body: “Garden Tree”
Roland Burrell: “Johnny Dollar”
Yes: “Siberian Khatru”
John Brown’s Body: “Guvna”
Gustav Holst: “Mercury, the Winged Messenger”
Joe Satriani: “Ice Nine”
Neil Young: “Heart of Gold”
John Brown’s Body: “33 RPM”
Aerosmith: “Train Kept a Rollin’”
The Beatles: “With a Little Help From My Friends”
Bob Marley and The Wailers: “Positive Vibration”
Led Zeppelin: “Dazed and Confused”
The Castaways:”Liar, Liar”
K7: “Hi De Ho”
Rage Against the Machine: “The Narrows”
Don McLean: “American Pie”
Led Zeppelin: “You Shook Me”
Bob Marley and The Wailers: “I Shot the Sheriff”
Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers: “Clodhopper”
Bob Marley and The Wailers: “Johnny Was a Good Man”
Midnight Star: ”Freakazoid”
Led Zeppelin: “Kashmir”
Ben Harper: “Another Lonely Day”
Rage Against the Machine: “Hadda Be Playin’ On the Jukebox”
John Lennon: “Jealous Guy”
Sonny Boy Williamson: “Peach Tree”
Eric Clapton: “Layla”
Rising Lion: “New Day”
Pink Floyd: “On the Turning Away”
Gorillaz: “Left Hand Suzuki Method”
The Honeydrippers: “Sea of Love”
Bob Dylan: “Shelter From the Storm”
Stevie Ray Vaughan: “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)”
Garbage: “Stupid Girl”
Van Halen: “Running With the Devil”
Bruce Springsteen: “Old Man Tucker”

Waxing Musically, or, Missing My Old Mix Tapes

2007-05-25T21:19:00.000-04:00

Yawn...

Just for the sheer hell of it, I’m going to keep a running track of the songs that I listen to this morning, since my iPod’s set to shuffle. And yes, it’s been that quiet of a morning if I’m doing this to keep myself awake. Besides—you’re reading this already, right? J

Part of the reason I’m doing this is because I’ve finally started reading a book I got last Christmas: Love Is a Mix Tape, by Rob Sheffield. It’s a simple but sincere story and memoir of sorts, as he recalls his relationship with his deceased wife through the mix tapes they made each other. I’m not too far into it yet, but it’s an addictive read so far, mainly for two reasons (aside from him being a good writer—I’ve read some of his stuff for Rolling Stone, and he strikes me as a laid-back, music-nerd version of Hunter Thompson without all of the heavy drugs).

The first reason is because it’s been a trip to waltz down amnesia lane by reading the bands (lots of 90’s stuff, but a good dose of classic rock and others) on the tapes that they made for each other. Beth (one of my coworkers) and I were talking about how Nine Inch Nails’ Pretty Hate Machine turns 20 years old next year, and started waxing nostalgically about how the music we grew up with in high school is approaching or at classic rock status (and let’s face it, the first indication was when I heard tracks from Appetite for Destruction on a classic rock station out of Toledo). So hearing Sheffield reminisce about Belly, The Cure, L7, Pavement, Nirvana, The Pooh Sticks, The Church, The Smiths, and so forth—well, it makes me realize, and not in a bad way, that musical time has moved on. Wait until I remind my mom that this summer is the 40th anniversary of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band…

The other reason is that I’m still a fan of making mix discs (not tapes anymore, but still the same fundamental idea), either for myself or for others. Whether or not I do it well is something that’s up to others to decide, but for whatever reason, it’s fun to compile them. A lot of the albums that I’ve loved over the years or that I enjoy today (the Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main Street, Gorillaz’ Demon Days, Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, and John Brown’s Body’s Spirits All Around Us come to mind) have a cyclical, ebbing and flowing nature…like you’re being taken on a journey of sorts. That, combined with feeling like you’re reinventing the song—or the meaning of the song—by placing it in a new context, lets me feel creative in a certain way…like I’m creating a new, listenable breed of monster, of sorts. The producer Danger Mouse probably did the ultimate bit of this when he mixed The Beatles’ White Album together with DMX’s The Black Album to make—you guessed it—The Gray Album, so I at least like to think that what I’m compiling has at least some good listening gusto to it.

John Lennon: “Watching the Wheels”
311: “All Mixed Up”
Billy Joel: “Piano Man”
Maharishi: “Sonic Breeze”
Pink Floyd: “Money”
Jimmie Vaughan: “Dengue Woman Blues”
Nirvana: “Love Buzz”
Led Zeppelin: “What Is and What Should Never Be”
Traveling Wilburys: “Last Night”
Ohio Players “Love Rollercoaster”
Michael Jackson: “Beat It”
Led Zeppelin: “Bring It On Home/Black Dog”
Everton Blender: “Lift Up Your Head”
Beethoven: “Symphony #9 (fourth movement)”
Jane’s Addiction: “Three Days”
Yoko Kanno: “After, In the Dark”
Gorillaz: “Latin Simone (Que Pasa Contigo?)”
Rage Against the Machine: ”Bombtrack”
The Ark Band: “Pain and Misery”
Live: “All Over You”
Bob Marley and The Wailers: “No Woman No Cry”
Groovemaster: “1865 (96 Degrees In the Shade)”
Ohio Players: “Who’d She Coo?”
REM: “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”
George Clinton and P-Funk: “One Nation Under a Groove”
Mono: “Rise”
Stevie Wonder: “Living For the City”
Sir-Mix-a-Lot: “Baby Got Back”
The Wailers: “Cobra Style”
Skankin’ Pickle: “Hussein Skank”
Gorillaz: “Demon Days”
Nirvana: “You Know You’re Right”
Dr. Dre: “Deez Nuts”
James Taylor: “Mexico”
Seefari: “I and I”
John Brown’s Body: “Original Man”
Delbert McClinton: “A Mess of Blues”
Bob Dylan: “Lay Lady Lay”
Taiko: “Die Blechtrommel”
Booker T. and the MG’s: “Green Onions”

The Brown Dog of Kentucky

2007-03-26T22:27:00.000-04:00

Last night, Dolly bid us farewell. It was hard as hell to see her go, especially after putting up the hellacious fight that she did, but in the end, she decided that it was time to rest. She had a good home for a month, a mother that spoiled her rotten (believe me, I was privileged just to be along for the ride), and was finally given the love that she more than richly deserved.

In a strange way, as sad and as much as it hurt to see her go, there’s a sense of…I don’t know…resolution about it. When we picked her up, we knew that she had a lot of decks stacked against her. Her level of nourishment hadn’t been the best, she had a variety of worms other than heartworm, her personality and socialization had been stunted by the people that we suspect abandoned her, and we knew that, despite strengthening her gradually, she might not survive the heartworm treatment regardless. She went through a lot, blossomed like the beautiful girl she was, but decided in the end that she could afford to sleep.

In the end, looking back on it now (and I type this right after I finished looking at a great picture Becky took of her through the back door window), I think the final validation of the impact we had on her was shortly before things took a turn for the worse last night. We were sitting upstairs at our computers, and Dolly, who had been restless all day, broke the baby gate down twice to come upstairs and see us. She had come to trust us being near her because we always made a point of stooping down and saying hi to her or petting her, but had never been that aggressive in seeking us out. Becky thinks she was trying to tell us something was wrong, and I’m inclined to agree with her…and although it’s all said and done now, it’s a good feeling to know that Dolly trusted and loved us enough back to come see us like that.

It may have been only for a month, but I’m glad Becky found her and brought her to our home.

What I Need...

2007-03-21T21:52:00.000-04:00

I typed the phrase "Joe needs" into a search engine--Google, in this case--and this is what I came up with:

1) "Father Joe needs to remember that he is vulnerable to anything that gives an emotional uplift." Considering my job situation, that's very true. But what's this "father" shit?

2) "Joe needs patronising." Hmm...not so sure...

3) "Trader Joe's needs toilet training." Better him/them than me, I suppose...

4) "Stevie Joe needs more evangelists." Poor bastard must REALLY be desperate.

5) "Joe needs US reality check." I'm not sure how much I could really argue with this one.

6) "Joe needs your support." Cash, personal checks, or PayPal, please.

7) "Why Joe needs to go." From a blog. No, it doesn't refer to a lack of fiber. And people have probably been saying this about me for years.

8) "Average Joe needs help with clarifying ideologies." I'll clarify yours if you clarify mine...or something like that...yeah, that was weak...

9) "If you need cash, Joe needs you." Pimpin' ain't easy, yo.

10) "Holy Joe needs to come to Jesus." No thanks. Four years of Jesuit schooling was more than plenty.

With the Hurting, and the Pain, and the Boo-Hey…

2007-03-13T20:18:00.000-04:00

This past weekend, my usual crew of wallyball old-schoolers (myself, Andy, Matt, and Mike) went to another wallyball tournament in Zanesville, Ohio—about an hour east of Columbus. As per our usual method, Matt, Andy, and myself all drove down to Mike’s place in Columbus, where we crashed overnight before heading to Z-town the next morning. The tourney, which is organized by our friend Andy Zigo, has been growing pretty consistently, which makes for tougher competition as the depth of the playing field grows.

Which, of course, kind of works to our detriment. Granted, in any tournament we play in, we expect there to be competitiveness, but Andy’s tourneys—as well as the other ones we’ve played in elsewhere—are always fun. Teams play to win, of course, but with one exception, they’re not dicks about it. We’ve had the chance to meet a lot of other great players and get names and emails in the hopes of going and doing some games with them. Andy Z’s tourney is no exception, and we go as much for the socializing as we do the workout.

I say detriment, though, because these tournaments, especially the first time we ever went to one, remind us that, as good as we are, there’s a whole wide world of wallyball players out there that are on the next level. That sounds kind of immodest on my part, and I suppose it justifiably is. After almost 14 years of continuous wallyball play, I can say that I’m an excellent player. But…the first time I saw someone spike a ball at 70 mph plus at a tournament, well, I had to re-evaluate myself—and so did the others.

Normally, wallyball is split into four levels of play. Highest to lowest, it goes Pro, Open, Advanced, and Intermediate. At best, my top crew of players (Andy, myself, Matt, Matt, Josh, and Steve) are lower-level intermediate. And although we had a good time at the tourney this past weekend, we got our butts kicked. Don’t get me wrong—we put up a good fight and had some good games, but the combination of being outclassed in some regards of play, as well as the fact that Matt and I hadn’t played for weeks before the tourney, all meant that we didn’t do as well as we’d have liked.

Part of the issue is that we’ve reached a ceiling of sorts in Bowling Green, where we usually play. We have fun games with the aforementioned crew plus the others that show up, but—to be blunt—once the others show up, the level of play comes down. We’ve got another tourney coming up in April, this time in Southgate, Michigan, and we’ve all agreed that we’ll re-dedicate ourselves to improving our game. Ideally, we’ll have 2-3 teams of three players each, and I know we’d like to do better.

That said too, the physical stress of tournament play is something to consider. It’s no secret that I’ve got a good pair of nicely gimpy ankles, and since tourney play will go for 6-8 hours straight of near-continuous games, we definitely feel it. Even Josh and Steve, who are 11-12 years younger than me and in better shape than I’ve been in years, are spent. Josh nearly fell asleep in his salad at a pizza joint the last time. I’m not hurting as bad this time around, but Saturday night, after we returned to Columbus and were gathered ‘round my Settlers of Catan board, we sort of slumped.

Maybe Becky’s right…maybe it is my fault…at least, a little bit…

Job Update, Part the Next

2007-03-11T20:36:00.000-04:00

Not quite two weeks ago, I had a job interview in Findlay with the Hancock Regional Planning Commission, for the position of Grant Writer/Administrator. I was ecstatic when I saw the announcement, because it was the exact sort of job that I did for five years at BGSU. I was eminently qualified for it, the interview went awesomely, would’ve provided comfortable pay with benefits, and I was told that I’d hear a decision by the end of that week. So, of course, I was watching my phone like a hawk that Thursday and Friday, all the way up to yesterday—not to mention that I was checking my Yahoo email on an hourly basis during the days. If you haven’t guessed, the vibe I felt was positive.

So, of course, needless to say, I was devastated last night when I got the rejection letter from them. I really do mean devastated too…I was in tears. Honestly, that was the lowest I’d felt since my ex left me over two years ago. I was despondent, furious, depressed, bleak, and I wanted to hit something. To be blunt, I wanted to brutalize something. And then, of course, I found out that I owe $214 to the city of Bowling Green in taxes, money which I don’t have at the moment, and have to hope that I can scratch together by April 17th.

Part of what made me feel so bleak is the fact that I’m well-suited to get jobs that are in short to non-existent supply in the area where I live. I’ve got a Master’s, almost all of my doctorate completed, been working since I was 15, got good practical work experience in administration, higher education, and community service (not to mention grant writing and research), and am apparently undesirable to any job that would actually allow me to flourish professionally and personally. Not to mention the fact that job openings like that are extremely few and far between in the Lima/Findlay area. If I were a truck driver, manual laborer, food service jockey, or in health care, I’d be set. Sadly, however, Lima and Findlay have had precious little to offer in what I’m looking for. Since I’m too far away from Columbus, Toledo, Cleveland, and Dayton, Findlay’s the only city in driving distance that seems to offer, at least on occasion, jobs that I’m suited for.

Last night also drove home the fact that, ever since last May, when Adelante began screwing me over visibly, I’ve been struggling unsuccessfully to establish myself professionally. Six months of unemployment and assorted interviews that have led to nowhere mean I get to stay at CRI for my foreseeable future. And while I suppose I’m grateful to the company for SOME measure of income, it’s disheartening to consider that there’s not many options other than driving 36 miles to work for pay that’s laughable at best, carries no benefits whatsoever, and promotions are seen as death sentences. I make barely enough to keep my own steerageway against my own bills, not to mention helping with groceries and household stuff as best I can. The only redeeming aspect of working at CRI is that my immediate co-workers in the editing department are cool as hell. Since we’re all working for the same amount of piss-poor beans, it’s created a pretty good bond of camaraderie—not to mention a communal sense of gallows humor about our job status and the administration there. Disillusionment and distrust and lack of workplace loyalty run rampant here, and in our own way, we revel in it. I’m seriously considering starting a betting pool to see if one of the administrators gets on such a power trip that they soil themselves.

Seriously—the administration at CRI seems to be convinced that we, the little peon workers seemingly comparable (to them) to the browbeaten children in Pink Floyd’s “The Wall,” are stuck in the 4th grade. Email is monitored, as is our usage of the internet that’s non-work related. Our attendance system is point-based, and to keep from losing a point for an unexcused absence, we have to bring in a note or documentation of what we were doing. There are video cameras up in a few different areas so we can, I dunno, be monitored on how we’re walking or slouching during the day. The at-home editors and call center people, from what I’ve been told, are paid piece-rate—in other words, per job. If we have the CEO taking people on tours through here, we’re not allowed to have trash cans out or have our jackets hanging over the backs of our chairs. I’ve worked here for almost three months, and after reaching that point of service (on March 18th), I’ll finally have earned two whole HOURS of vacation. It’ll be hard not to use it all at one time.

The final irony is that I’ve had to take a couple of days off during the past few months to interview for the HRPC and Ohio Northern jobs…days for which, of course, I called in sick and didn’t get paid, but thought that the effort for the interviews was worth it—which, of course, it wasn’t. Now that I’ve been legitimately and badly sick for the past week, I haven’t been able to take time off for it. My soon-to-be-new supervisor said that I should go to the doctor’s office earlier this week. I looked at her and said, “And how the hell, exactly, will I pay for it?” She gave me a look that was a cross between a grimace and a sheepish grin, and said, “Oh…yeah.”

Even my doctorate, which I’d like to start work on again this year, is based on whether or not they’ll let me do any work without actually registering for the hours. I sure as hell won’t have the money to pay for it if I do. That, and I have to arrange a new committee, something that I need to start doing before the end of the month. If I can somehow get going again on it, though, I can probably have it done by August of 2008. That said, though, I’m not sure what practical job-related good it’ll do me. Sure, it’d be nice to have it done after all these years, but even if I find myself wanting to go back to teaching at college, opportunities for my field are few and far between down here still.

It’s times like this that do, however, make me more appreciative for the good things still in life. I live with the woman I love, who’s been incredibly patient and supportive. I can still play guitar, and am drooling for the next time Groovemaster plays again. My parents are healthy and vibrant, despite the fact that Dad recently got diagnosed with diabetes. Becky pulled my ass out of the fire and paid for my recent car repairs. I’m losing weight, thanks to eating fresher food and less junk. I’ve got great friends, although they live a ways away and I don’t get to see them as often as I used to, although we’re playing in a wallyball tournament in Zanesville this weekend.

All that’s left is to somehow get a better job…

Hello, Dolly

2007-02-25T07:22:00.000-05:00

...and so, after driving about 412 miles round-trip yesterday (all the way down to a bit north of Lexington, Kentucky), Becky and I brought Dolly, an admittedly cute, non-socialized (and extremely timid) Newfie/something mix back here to Lima, OH.

Becky found her listed through a rescue group (or something) online, and admittedly, although I was resistant at first, I'm glad we got Dolly...it sounds like she had what was not the best way of getting by. She was sleeping on a couch by an abandoned house somewhere around Louisville, Kentucky, and hasn't been socialized at all. She's timid and submissive to humans, essentially ignoring us in the you're-not-here-if-I-don't-pay-attention-to-you method, and I'm pretty sure she'd have bolted if she wasn't wearing the harness and leash yesterday. She tried hiding under the car when we stopped at a SuperPetz by Dayton, wheezes heavily sometimes because of the heartworm she has, her fur's dirty...hell, she sounds like an Emo kid, almost.

We picked her up and drove her to a vet's last night; a friend of ours has access to the vet's kennels, and we put her in there with some food, water, and blankets, and apparently the vet will look at her on Monday. Pending her health improving, she'll come to live here at home for a couple/few months while we socialize her and essentially just love her, and get her ready for eventual adoption. It's a challenge, but Becky, who's a softie through and through, did a great deed by bringing her here yesterday, and although I was largely along for the ride, I'm glad the mutt's here too. Pain in the ass dogs.

Winters Suck

2007-02-09T21:27:00.000-05:00

Loathe as I am to admit it, I think that Jeff Foxworthy might have been right about Ohio’s seasons of the year. He said that it’s either Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Construction.

As much as I do love Ohio (and have no real plans on leaving it), I freely admit that I hate the winters here. Yes, I know it’s not as cold as Wisconsin or Minnesota get. And yes, I know that I should be used to it. But to hell with that. After about a week now of subzero temperatures courtesy of the wind chill, it can’t turn summer quickly enough. Thankfully, however, to help indulge in the general lethargy that sets in this time of year, a certain someone that I know and love (I won’t say her name, but it rhymes with Wecky) got me absolutely hooked on Civilization III. Ironic in a way, especially considering that I used to tease her about playing Civ IV all the time. So if it’s karma, I’ll admit it: I totally deserved it.

Going Ape…

2007-01-03T06:14:00.000-05:00

Over the years, I’ve had a notorious tendency to either completely overlook—or be completely clueless—about bands that debut with a fair amount of notoriety or popularity; it’ll take anywhere from a few to several years for me to finally hear something by them, and if I like what I hear, I dive obsessively headlong into playing a game of catch-up on everything that I’ve missed up that point. Now, granted, some of that is more of a circumstantial necessity; consider, for example, my love of Led Zeppelin. I was born when they were at what was arguably their peak (1975), and was 5 when they broke up. I didn’t really discover them until I was 14 or 15, and since they were long gone, well, you see my point.

Then again, there are some groups that I’ll miss the debut of by several years, but are still around and pumping stuff out, and it takes happy circumstance for me to finally hear their music. Since I rarely, if ever, listen to the radio, god knows what I’ve probably missed. In this case, however, and this is a continuation of my previous post, 2006 was the year that I finally discovered…

Gorillaz

I’d been aware of the concept for a while—namely, that the band was completely virtual, comprised of four animated characters (Murdoc, Noodle, 2D, and Russel), and that Damon Albarn of Blur and Jamie Hewlett of Tank Girl were the creative forces behind everything. Due to the fact that they are animated, though, is what I suspect led me to overlook them…I had images of The Monkees taken to the Nth degree, with music that would be annoyingly catchy bubblegum pop (think of Christopher Cross’s “Caught Between the Moon and New York City” or Frank Mills’ “Music Box Dancer”).

It took a trip to an OSU game in Columbus with my best friend, Andy, to finally get me to hear the band. Andy, whose tastes in music are lackadaisically eccentric in some regards, had a mix CD he’d made in the car player, and during a brief lull in the conversation, I noticed that the song that was playing had a great, dub-influenced beat with a catchy vocal line in the chorus, and some good MC’ing for the verse. Andy was getting ready to mention something about our fantasy football league, but I asked him to hold a second while I turned it up and gave it a good listen. Needless to say, I was hooked—and yes, in case you, Constant Reader, are wondering which song it was, it was “Clint Eastwood”—by what I heard. I borrowed the CD that night to rip it onto my computer, and played the song ad infinitum on the ride home. Poor Andy, fearing a rehash of our freshman year when I’d play “Come As You Are” and “No Rain” over and over again, probably was glad he wasn’t living with me anymore at point, although he said he’d send me another song of theirs, “Feel Good, Inc.” Since I’m a sucker for anything that has a dub or reggae flavor to it, I probably didn’t have a chance in hell when I heard it.

Now that I’ve had a chance to listen to Gorillaz’ music and examine the concept of the band, I’ve realized that it’s a clever experiment in cross-pollination of music styles and influences, but without letting anything or anyone in particular really become the defining face or identity of the band. And since Noodle, Murdoc, 2D, and Russel are accepted and invested in by the fans and the performers as the personas of the band, it allows for a good deal of post-modernistic creative freedom and interplay. Del Tha Funky Homosapien, who’s awesome in his own right, is reborn as Del, the blue ghost rapper who inhabited Russel’s body (and was the protagonist for the videos of “Clint Eastwood” and “Rock the House”). “Double Bass,” off the first album, has a wicked dub feel—imagine King Tubby or Augustus Pablo with even thicker bass. “El Manana” has a huge trance/electronica feel to it. And that really WAS Dennis Hopper that I heard as the storyteller telling a dark fable in “Fire Coming Out of the Monkey’s Head.” There’s a surprising depth and sophistication and variety to the music that’s created, and since the artists involved are labeled as collaborators of the four actual members, there’s no real space for any superfluous ego to develop or crowd things up.

I enjoyed the back story of the band itself too…it’s cartoonish (duh), but not in the sugary, Hanna-Barbera way that I’d dreaded. Murdoc’s a sex-obsessed Satanist, 2D is dumb as hell (due to being hit twice by cars that Murdoc was driving) and loves Dawn of the Dead, Noodle is an amnesiac super-soldier, and Russel is/was possessed by ghosts, not to mention owning the ultimate beat machine, something that was referred to as the TARDIS of music. It helps give the band members depth, which in turn helps the audience invest themselves in the subjective reality of Gorillaz rather than focus on the collaborators as the actual stars.

In other words, the music’s awesome.

Just Because I Can, And For No Apparent Reason…

2006-12-28T19:25:00.000-05:00

…and considering that it’s almost the new year, I figured I’d do a breakdown, in no particular order, of some of the music (either individual artists, songs, or albums) that I’ve completely let myself get into. There’s no real rhyme or reason as to why I really do become obsessed about some of these (and I’ll replay songs and albums until the CD’s themselves become transparent), but honestly, I don’t care; music is always, and will always be, a very visceral experience for me, and each song is like a self-contained packet of exactly that.

Did that make sense? Yes? No? To hell with it—here’s the list. And I should’ve taken the time to figure out how to get images for each of these in here.

Cream: Live at the Royal Albert Hall, 2005.

For those of you who are like me and like to sink your teeth to into good guitar-driven hard rock and blues, Cream was arguably the best expression of that over the past 40 years (possible exceptions to that claim, IMHO, being Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix). Although Cream was only around from 1966-68, the trio—comprised of Eric Clapton on guitar/vox, Jack Bruce on bass/vox, and Ginger Baker on drums—lit music on fire, and are the reason I love extended live improvisational jams. Since all three members are still alive (Baker is the oldest at 67, I believe), a full-fledged reunion has always been a lingering question. Baker and Bruce are famous for getting pissed off at each other, Bruce recently had a liver operation that he nearly died from, and all have been doing their own thing for 38 years, but the real question was whether or not they could still flat-out JAM.

Sweet Jesus, did they ever. Say what you will about geezer rock, the three of them came together and blew the Royal Albert Hall right the hell up. They started with “I’m So Glad,” a classic cut by Skip James, and burned through greats such as “Politician,” “Sleepy Time Time,” “Outside Woman Blues,” “Stormy Monday,” and more. Was it different than 1968? Of course it was. The jams and musicianship maybe weren’t as frantic as they were in 1968 (listen to “I’m So Glad” from the album Goodbye, and you’ll hear what’s essentially an awesome musical tantrum), but they kicked ass nonetheless. All three, even though they’re in they’re mid to late 60’s, can play rings around damn near anyone else. Do yourself a favor and sprint, don’t run, and get this album. Now.

John Brown’s Body

Those that know me and those that don’t know that reggae music has defined a large part of my life for almost 13 years now. To paraphrase Lucky Dube, I Love It. J

Several years ago, I had the chance to go see The Wailers when they played Toledo at the Seagate Convention Center. How could I not go? I was too young to see Bob or Peter, haven’t seen Bunny Wailer yet, so this was the next best thing (or so I thought at the time; two years ago, Groovemaster got to OPEN for The Wailers, and I still remember eating egg rolls with Aston “Family Man” Barrett).

The first time I saw The Wailers, there was a band called John Brown’s Body opening for them. After some issues with the sound during the first song (guitar was too loud, then the horns were too loud, then the bass was too soft, and we couldn’t hear any vocals), they settled into it and mashed it up nice. The second song, which my friend Matt and I found out later was called “Original Man,” was one of the best tracks I’d ever heard. Wickedly catchy bass line, great one-drop beat, good horn fills, and great vocal delivery. It was crack in music form, and as soon as their set was done, I bought the first two albums.

The cool thing about JBB is that they have a very roots-and-culture style sensibility and message, but incorporate elements of R and B, rock, dub, and electronica into their music. Their studio stuff is good, but they really shine live. Check out www.archive.org, look them up, and start downloading. Recommended tunes are Original Man, Make It Easy, Garden Tree, 33 RPM, Sweet Ambrosia, Among Them, Traveling Man, Dreadnaught, and Forward Always.

Ben Harper and The Innocent Criminals

This one comes courtesy of my better half, the lovely Becky, who’s a rabid Ben Harper fan. I’d heard of him and seen pictures of him, but Ben was, until this year, an example of me having a preconceived notion that kept me from actually doing any exploring. For whatever reason, I pictured him as doing very rambling, generic, Dave Matthews-like, hippie-ish music. Thanks to Becky’s patience (and rabidity as a fan), I’ve been pleasantly proven wrong.

This isn’t to say that I like everything of his that I’ve heard, but I appreciate the fact that he’s willing to challenge his own musical boundaries in terms of the styles that he brings to the music. There’s a huge blues influence, which is always a good thing, but his reggae and funk flavors are, to put it mildly, pretty damn good. We actually saw Benny-boy on tour back in September up in Rochester Hills, MI (with Damian Marley opening, which was beyond killer), and he put on a great show. Tight but loose jams, good lyrics, solid songs, and an awesome bass player in the form of Juan (who reminds me of my bass player, Lewie). Early hooks for me were “Brown Eyed Blues” (especially Juan’s wicked funky solo in the middle), Ben’s true-to-the-original covers of Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold,” Marvin Gaye’s “Sexual Healing,” and The Wailers’ “Get Up, Stand Up” (performed with Damian), the rocker “Burn to Shine,” and the ganja-influenced “Burn One Down” (which Becky tells me is Ben’s most overplayed song).

One final note…hon, if you’re reading this, I would not be averse to seeing Ben in concert again. J ;)

Reporting In from Limaland...

2006-12-25T21:32:00.000-05:00

Yes, that's right. I'm finally updating my blog again. Blog-stalkers worldwide will be in throes of ecstasy. If they're not--well, that's probably ok too.

And, as I type this, one of the cats is yelling at me because it's hard for him to get in my lap while I type this. Scratch that...he just settled on my lap. Any typos are probably his fault. And so is the pain in my crotch, since he always lands or steps on me there when getting attention.

Anyhoo, the first big update is that, for the past two months now, I have been Lima's newest resident. For those that don't know, Lima is located in Allen County, about 60 miles straight south of Bowling Green on Interstate 75. I'm living in sin with my lovely girlfriend, and while it's not as tawdry as it sounds (but I'm working on it), it's been a good, if major, adjustment. We'd actually been talking about me moving down here since August or so, due to my then-unemployment status; she has a good job down here as a civil engineer (and will always outearn me, natch), owns a house, and is settled in very well. With things going very well between us, as well as the fact that I was no longer able to sustain living by myself in Bowling Green, I relocated down here at the end of October. It's ironic, in a way, because Lima has always had a weird sort of stigmatism about it that I've been privy too. Namely, that it was an economically depressed industrial city that's gray, supposedly has no culture or character, and with parts of the city that looked like they filmed the first Crow movie in it.

Some of that may be true, I suppose, especially the bit about economic difficulties, but I've found that I'm cool with living down here. It's like any city...there's stuff to do, places to see, good food to eat, and music to hear--as long as you know where to go. Toledo was always the same way, and I would always defend it on that basis against some of the haters out there; in a karmic sort of way, I'm finally applying that to myself in my new home. Don't get me wrong--I loved living in BG for the past 13 years, most of my friends are up there, I miss Myles Pizza and Easystreet Cafe, and if Becky and I get the chance to move up there again at some point, we'd definitely consider it. But Lima's been good to me so far, so I'm not complaining.

Big update #2 is that I'm finally employed again. After six months of going between feeling helpless, pissed off, and vaguely giddy in a free-falling sort of way, I found a job in Findlay, OH (between Lima and BG on I-75) as an editor at Corporate Research International. I'm a cube monkey again for the first time in a couple of years, and while the job doesn't really have any benefits (or pay anything near what I'd like to earn), it's something for now, at least until a better opportunity comes my way. It's a bit of a drive in the morning--about 40 minutes, which means I have to get up at 5:30 am, which sucks ass--but the job itself is pretty laid back, and my coworkers all seem pretty friendly and cool so far. Essentially, since the company is a mystery shopping firm that's largely internet-based, I edit the reports that shoppers file with us before we send them on to the stores themselves.

In a way, it's like I'm teaching again, in that I forget some of the absolutely abysmal grammar and spelling that many people are content to use in their dubious command of the English language. On the other hand, I've also edited reports that almost have the length of and read like masters' theses. Makes for some interesting information about companies I've heard of, and some that I haven't. Based on some of what I've read, I can say that if I ever go to West Virginia, stopping at a restaurant chain called On the Border sounds like a safe bet for good chow. Ditto stopping at a casual dining chain in North Carolina called Brixx' Wood-Fired Pizza. On the other hand, some of the other places I've read about (from department stores to donut joints to parking garages) sound like they're ripped from one of the levels of Dante's Hell. If nothing else, some of it makes for entertaining reading.

And, of course, another Christmas has come and gone. Becky and I spent it at my parents' place; we took our Rufus, our Newfie, who--as predicted--got doted on and spoiled rotten by my folks. Lots of good food was had by all, and Becky and I both got spoiled pretty well in terms of our respective hauls. She's no longer allowed to give me a hard time about me being spoiled at Christmas, either.

Hard to believe it's almost 2007, in a way...but like the song says, the future is comin' on.

Songs I've Been Grooving To:

Ben Harper: "Brown Eyed Blues"
Ben Harper: "Burn One Down"
Gorillaz: "Rock the House"
Gorillaz: "Fire Coming Out of the Monkey's Head"
Cream: "Born Under a Bad Sign"
Cream: "Outside Woman Blues"
John Brown's Body: "Garden Tree"
Lucky Dube: "We Love It"
The Congos: "Row Fisherman"
Damian Marley: "Welcome to Jamrock"
Peter Tosh: "No Sympathy"
Justin Hinds: "Botheration"
Led Zeppelin: "In My Time of Dying"

I'm so tired...

2006-10-17T15:48:00.000-04:00

Not only is the title a reference to a really good Beatles song, it's also the most succinct way I can describe how I feel right now. Granted, the gray, rainy October weather isn't helping, but that's merely icing on the cake. Today was definitely not one of my better days mood-wise, although it didn't start as such necessarily.

You see, I woke up determined to get another round of follow-up phone calls for job apps that I'd sent out as far back as the middle of July. I'm well aware that the fact that I hadn't heard back from some of those older ones was probably all the answer I needed, but I prefer to be thorough, especially when it comes to trying to get a goddamn job. I made 10 calls, and one by one, I got nine no's (the last call, a job I'm really hoping to get, saying that I won't hear anything for at least another week, if not more). My reactions upon hanging up the phone got worse and worse and more profane; I still can't believe that I never heard BACK from some of these places. If I don't have a chance in hell of getting the position, at least tell me so. Even a form letter would do. By the time of the last "no" phone call, I was ready to choke the bitch on the other end of the line.

It drove home even further the point that it's been almost four months now, with damned little, if anything, to show for it. I worry endlessly now about my ability to not only get a job, but also how I'm going to provide for Becky, for myself, and essentially for my future. I resent myself a lot now, especially during the week, I worry that others are starting to resent me because I can't seem to find a job, I hatefully resent my last place of employment for putting me in this position, and I seethingly resent all the places that won't hire me. It's making me question, on a fundamental level, all the accomplishments I've had, and everything that I've even dreamed of doing. And this is to say nothing of the beating my self-pride has taken.

I'm tired of all of it, and it drives me to enjoy what escapism I have left that much more, especially wallyball and weekends. And even then, more often than not, I can still feel it nipping at the corners of my mind.

I'm 31 years old, I have good skills and training, I have a good work ethic, I like to think I'm an overall decent person, and I like to think that I haven't deserved any of this.

October already?

2006-10-08T10:46:00.000-04:00

Man, that's hard to believe. Despite being jobless for three and a half months now, the summer, in its own way, really did fly by. Ohio falls tend to be really glorious affairs...sunny, brisk, and full of flying colors. It reminds me, though, that winter is definitely coming, and they're as gray and blah in all the ways that summer and fall are not. I have a suspicion that I have some mild Seasonal Anxiety Disorder...I tend to get more morose sometimes in the winter months. Ironic, in a way, considering that I have a really high resistance to cold temperatures. I freely admit that it comes in handy in the upcoming season. :)

The job hunt continues on, with at least a couple of possible leads now. I was in Lima last Wednesday for an interview at the Ford Plant; the job itself would be as a life-skills trainer for the plant workers, sponsored by both the union and Owens Community College. The pay would be excellent, I'd get to go back to teaching after a fashion, and it'd be sweet to relocate to Lima with a job in hand. The interview itself went really well--well enough that they called me Friday and asked me to come back in on Tuesday to do a teaching demonstration. Now, however, I have to think of something to teach.

I also had an impromptu brief interview at the Lima YMCA, for a position that's opening up by the end of the month. I think it went well too, and it'd be something I'd be happy doing as well. As always, the fingers are crossed...

Tomorrow I go to Toledo for a second interview with The National Exchange Club. I applied for the Director of Club Development position, which would mean (if I got it) that I'd essentially help set up new Exchange Clubs nationwide, and shore up existing ones. The clubs themselves are civic-service organizations, the likes of which I've been involved with since I was 18, and I'm qualified for it. The worry, however, is that I'd have to be on the road traveling more than I'd actually be in this area itself.

My concern is twofold. First, I'm terrified of flying, so god knows I'd be a wreck about having to do that on a regular basis. Second (and this is the big one), I really don't want to be always on the go. I've developed into a homebody over the past few years, and cheesy as it may sound, I'd rather stay around here with Becky and my friends than live out of a suitcase again. Weighted against these is the fact that, well, I need a job. Needless to say, my fingers are REALLY crossed about the two Lima positions.

One downside to the fall is that Groovemaster's slow season is coming. I keep my chops fresh by practicing damn near everyday, as well as learning new songs or working on music of my own, but I'm hopelessly addicted to playing onstage. As I'm 95% sure that I'm relocating to Lima now (regardless of what happens with the positions I mentioned in the preceding paragraphs), I've heard that there's an open blues jam every first and third Wednesday that I'm itching to get in on. Just...something that'll let me play out. Groovemaster will always come first, of course, but the playing jones is something I can't deny at times.

October also means that I'm probably done with outdoor diving till spring. The ingrained cold water-sissy in me is telling me that I'd rather not freeze my arse off, and I'm inclined to agree with it. Becky and I did get invited to an underwater pumpkin carving on Oct. 28, but I think even she's starting to reconsider it.

Yesterday, Andy and I went to see BGSU get beaten by OSU. Makes for a unique fan experience, I can tell you, balancing my life-long fanaticism about OSU against the school that I got all my degrees from. In the end, though, especially since I'm pretty sour about BGSU not hiring me for all the positions I applied for (not to mention not even being considered for the AD position at my old office), I was fine seeing OSU win 35-7. Besides, it was nice to go on a road trip again with Andy, something we haven't done in a while...it was good to chat and catch up more again. Now, if we can only convince the Beckys to go to BotCon with us someday...

...and Columbus traffic sucks my ass, I can tell you too.

Songs I've been grooving to:

The White Stripes: "Seven Nation Army"
Dubconscious: "Under the Weather"
Elliot Martin: "Dreadnaught"
Gorillaz: "Clint Eastwood"
Lynyrd Skynyrd: "Simple Man"
John Brown's Body: "Full Control"
Jah Works: "Fear of a Dub"
Fastball: "The Way"
Red Hot Chili Peppers: "Blood Sugar Sex Magik"
George Clinton and P-Funk: "Flashlight"

Who's this Ben Harper guy?

2006-08-31T17:05:00.000-04:00

Got a busy weekend again...which, thankfully, I'm looking forward to. Since there's still shit in terms of job prospects, my usual bout of weekend escapism is much needed and required.

Tonight, after sacrificing my body and ankles to the mighty wallyball god again, it's off to Lima. Becky and I are going to go see Ben Harper tomorrow somewhere north of Detroit, with Damian Marley opening the show. I'm honestly not that familiar with Harper's work, but I like what I've heard, and word is that he puts on a killer show. That, and he's Becky's favorite artist out there...since we're in the front row, if she gets within jumping distance of him, I suppose I'll understand.

I'm curious to see how Damian puts on a show too. I've heard Welcome to Jamrock, and it's a decent album, but he's not quite rootsy enough for what I usually look for in reggae. Then again, when your father is Bob--who can blame him for doing more of his own thing? It'll be good to see a reggae show again, though...something I haven't done in a while.

We're staying at a hotel up near the concert and driving back on Saturday, the rest of which will be spent relaxing, hopefully. Sunday is Groovemaster's gig at Oak Openings Park (the Mallard Lake area), followed by a get-together at my parents' place, and then back to Lima. Monday I'll spend most of down there too, and then back to my usual not-so-happy grind up here.

With all the running around between Toledo, my parents' place, BG, and Lima the past week, I've been forced to eat more fast food than I've really wanted to. It's funny; I used to swear that I'd never lose my taste for it, but after having McD's and BK in a short stretch of time, I wonder how the hell I ever survived my undergrad years. Then again, even back then, I always broke it down by the following:

McDonald's--best breakfast sandwiches (steak, egg, and cheese bagel), and best fries.
Burger King--best burgers.
Rally's--awesome seasoned fries.
Wendy's--best chicken nuggets, and the almighty Frosty.
Arby's--favorite overall, and best chicken tenders out there.
Taco Hell--available only when absolutely desperate for something.

Pizza, of course, remains a perennial favorite too, but I find that if I have too much of it, I start getting really bad heartburn. But now and then, a pizza from Myles is awe-inspiring. Honorable mention goes to Campus Pollyeyes' stuffed breadsticks (grilled chicken, cheese, and mushrooms).

Tonight, however, since I'll be heading south directly from playing wallyball, dinner will probably be a protein bar and Gatorade. :p

The Wilds of Henry County, and some Fantasy Football

2006-08-24T17:19:00.000-04:00

Starting tonight, I get to head out to my parents' place for my seemingly annual house-sitting escapade, which will last until next Tuesday. Two distant cousins of mine--Greti and Franci--came from Belgium for an extended visit with my parents (who saw them in Europe last year), and they took off today to see my stepbrother and his family in Minnesota. The last time I saw Greti was over 20 years ago, so it's pretty neat to see them again, as well as being a nice reminder that there's still part of my extended family overseas. Greti, if you were wondering, is the daughter of my great-uncle Josef, the man I was named after, so it gives me a good sense of history to see her again after so many years. Becky and I went to visit them and my parents last Sunday and, along with my stepsister Kim and her family, went to see the Toledo Mudhens get spanked by the Columbus Clippers. Kind of a wacky, busy day, but fun overall.

House-sitting, however, means that I primarily get to take care of Samantha and Felix, my parents' cats. It's nice to get away for a while too, considering I still haven't found a job and am alternately feeling depressed or dejected as I continue my job hunt. Mom and Dad have a huge ten-acre spread in Henry County and a really nice house, and I alway see it as a kind of refuge from whatever shit I'm dealing with at the time.

Aside from that, it'll be another kind of busy weekend. Gonna see Becky on Friday and probably Sunday, and Saturday will be spent with some friends doing a live draft for our fantasy football league. After acting macho and talking smack for several hours (and eating tons of bad food--Doritos, donuts, pop, etc.), we're heading to the German-American Festival in T-town as our night out. I'm looking forward to Andy Mack possibly getting drunk, personally.

And we've had a surprisingly busy gig schedule too. We've had about 5 gigs in the past three days, which is another welcome method of blowing off steam and having fun. We've even got a new member in the band--Ron Edwards, who brings it live on lead and rhythm guitar. I won't lie; he's still adjusting to the rest of the band as well as the style of music that we play, but it's great having another instrumental layer again. This way, he and I can trade solos and phrases without having to sacrifice the rhythm part at any given point. And maximum respecx go out again to the Mad Doctor, whose Marshall amp has been filling in nicely for my still-in-the-shop Fender amp.

So that's it for now. Come check out the band at Oak Openings Park (out west of Toledo towards Swanton) on Sunday, September 3rd from 1-4 pm. We might even livicate a song to you. :)

Groovemaster Setlist--from recent shows:

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
Running From Jamaica/Jump Nyahbingi
So Much Things to Say
No Speech, No Language
No Woman No Cry
Real Situation
The Heathen
Jah Live
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Johnny Dollar
Prophecy
Solidarity
King David's Dance
96 Degrees In the Shade
My Number One
Such a Business
Waiting In Vain
Natural Mystic
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Hill and Gully Rider
Righteous
Keep On Moving
I Shot the Sheriff
Three Little Birds
Jammin'
Night Nurse
Jah Voice Is Calling

Satan Got Hitched

2006-08-06T11:14:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Andy's wedding, and cheesy though it may sound, it was pretty damn cool (and just a bit touching) to see him that happy. I was honored to be his best man, and aside from sweating my ass off while wearing a tuxedo for the first time (no to mention troubles with the waist clasps on the pants), I enjoyed myself. Mom and Dad and Becky were there too, so they've got definitive proof that I DO actually clean up well. The wedding made me kind of nostalgic too; it's hard to believe that it's been 13 years since he and I met as freshmen in college, and I never would have thought at the time that he'd become the best friend I ever had. Kudos to him and Becky, and I wish them all the happiness in their shared future.

And yes, his wife's name is also Becky. She and my Becky are already planning on ways to keep Andy and myself contained and well-behaved--something about "the power of Beckyness," I think it was. Not bloody likely, says I.

Other than that, not much to report. I missed two gigs yesterday due to the festivities, so I'm wondering how those went. Not much on the docket for today except for taking the tuxedos back to the store, and then helping out at the Jaycees foodbooth at the county fair for a few hours.

So there.

Music, Car Crashes, Melting Pavement, Marshall Amps, and More Diving

2006-07-31T16:51:00.000-04:00

E-frickin'-gad. I stopped by Bowling Green Music and Sound this afternoon, after running some other errands, to pick up my Fat Strat, which had gone in the shop on Friday for some maintenance and repairs to the input jack. When I left my apartment around 1:30 or so this afternoon, it was 98 degrees out, and god knows what the heat index was when factoring in the humidity. I'm in the shop for about 10 minutes, talking guitars and gear as I am wont to do, and when I step back out into the blast furnace that we call the end of July and get back in my car, the dash thermometer greets me by saying that it's 101 degrees outside. That, and I strongly suspect that the car next to me was almost hubcap-deep in pavement that was melting back into hot-top.

The Fat Strat was, unfortunately, one of three victims of gear mishaps that I had befall me last week. Two Saturdays ago, when we were playing Ottawa Park, something happened that I think fried my trusty Digitech Whammy pedal. During the same gig, I notice that my Fat Strat's input jack is going bad...if I moved it even a bit, I'd lose my signal. And finally, of course, I think my reliable amp blew a speaker or two, as diagnosed by the buzzing and crackling that comes out of the clean channel, especially when the bass settings are anywhere past three.

All of these kind of came to a head Tuesday night when, after feeling suddenly and strongly unsure about my equipment's playability, I plugged everything in and sure enough found out that, well, nothing was producing any sound. So I called the Mad Doctor, and he heroically loaned me his Marshall Valvestate combo amp for use at the gig in downtown Toledo the next afternoon. Definitely different from what I'm used to using, but it fit in nicely, and since my amp's in the shop in Toledo, it's going to be another soldier of Jah. No worries, Mike; the reggae vibes I leave in it won't outshadow any DBT you've cranked through it. :)

Speaking of which, we had a great show outside the main library in downtown T-town. Really big crowd too...over 100, I'd say. Only complaint, aside from the heat out, was that we only played an hour; as much as I love playing, I enjoy the longer shows because we really get a chance to dig into the music.

Friday I went back to Lima to see Becky and spend the weekend with her again; we temporarily satisfied our scuba jones by doing Long Lake in Lima on Friday evening, and Portage Quarry on Saturday morning. Aside from that, it was mostly a quiet weekend of bumming around, which we both needed.

That said, at some point Saturday evening after we went to bed, we woke up when we heard this weird-sounding noise outside...not so much a crash, but more like someone had closed a car door with a trash can (best description I can think of--sue me). The dogs weren't barking, and I didn't hear anything else, so we fell asleep again.

Becky was downstairs first Sunday morning to grab some breakfast--our big activities that morning were weeding and general housecleaning. She's sitting outside on her porch when I come out on the porch, and points out this white Honda Civic that's parked the wrong way on her street, right where I normally park my car, and mentions bemusedly to take a closer look at it. So I do, and this is what I notice:

--that the car apparently used the big tree in front of her house as its braking system, and has completely fucked its front driver's side. Torqued axle, flat tire, bent door frame at the joint, caved in hood, and a nice head-shaped indentation in the windshield where the driver's head actually pierced the safety glass layers. Thiis isn't to mention the bloodstain on the driver's door, of course, not to mention the complete lack of skidmarks anywhere.

--the airbags thankfully deployed, although probably weren't any help to the driver's head. I'm assuming that this upstanding individual, whether he/she was sober, drunk, drunk and scared into being sober, or drunk and scared shitless, wasn't too hurt by the accident, since they removed the license plates and stereo from the car. They, however, forgot to remove the ID tag from the local college down there that they attend, which I made note of.

--that it WAS a nice car, until that bastard of a tree apparently jumped in front of it.

So we called the cops, who showed up promptly, gave them as much information as we could for their report, and chatted idly about the fact that it WAS a nice car until the tree won that little pugilistic bout. And thank god I didn't park in my usual spot because, all things considered (especially in terms of how much my amp repair is going to cost me), getting my car blasted to hell is NOT something I need nor can afford right now.

Other than that, and other than being jobless still, it was a good week and weekend. I've also got a spot of hope job-wise now too (and I hope to hell I'm not jinxing it by mentioning it here), but apparently I'm one of the final candidates for the position of Director of Multicultural Programs at Adrian College in Adrian, Michigan. I had a good phone interview last Tuesday, and I was invited to interview in person and visit the campus this coming Wednesday, so send me all the positive vibes you can. I'm actually not nervous about the interview; I know I'm qualified for the position, it'd be something I'd enjoy doing (although I'd have to move up there--Adrian's about 40 miles from Toledo) and it's in higher ed administration, which is what I've been wanting to get back to. Hell, I'm more nervous about still not having a job, and about how hot I'm going to be in my suit if the heat holds up through Wednesday. If this for some reason doesn't pan out, I'm 95% sure that I could get a job as a United Way Loaned Executive again starting in August, but that's only a three-month position, and I'm kind of tired of always seeming to be job-hunting.

Oh yeah...Andy/Satan's wedding is this Saturday...and I get to finally wear a tux, not to mention step all over the maid of honor's feet...

Groovemaster Setlist--Wednesday, July 26th

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
96 Degrees in the Shade
Natural Mystic
Prophecy
Keep On Moving
Roots
Jump Nyahbingi
Hill and Gully Rider.

Heat still sucks...and so does not having a job...

2006-07-18T20:39:00.000-04:00

Still nothing on the job front, although I put three more apps in the mail yesterday. I'm hoping that, if worse comes to worse, I can get the same three-month job with the United Way that I had last August-September. Problem is that the position wouldn't start until mid-August (and I'm 90% sure I could get it again), and I kind of need money like, well, right now. Honestly, with all the apps I've sent out, I'm starting to wonder if I've somehow put a line in either my cover letter or resume saying that I'm going to set fire to random children. I'd like to think that I'd have had at least a contact by now...

Hell, I even put in an application to Wal-Mart. Yes, yes, I know; they're evil. I tend to agree. But I need money, dammit.

Looking forward to the weekend again at least, though. Aside from spending it with Becky, Saturday is the Ottawa Park gig (which is always a lot of fun...absolutely one of my top five favorite places to play each year), and then Sunday we're going diving again. And I even think I'm getting some of my own gear too. :)

What I've Been Listening To Today:

Twilight Circus Dub Sound System: "Wareika"
Ben Harper and Toots Hibbert: "Love Gonna Walk Out On Me"
Keb Mo': "Remain Silent" and "Tell Everyone I Know"
311: "All Mixed Up"
Robert Randolph and The Family Band: "Calypso"
Aerosmith: "Sweet Emotion"
Joe Satriani: "Hordes of Locusts"
The Wailers: "Bend Down Low"

Mellow Vibe in Woodland Park

2006-07-14T09:10:00.000-04:00

After having rain/thunderstorms come through the area on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, I was worried that our show last night in Perrysburg would get the same treatment. Not the case, I'm pleased to report...it was a perfect evening for playing music and, in the words of the Honorable Robert Nesta Marley, creating that mellow mood. It's more challenging for me right now, since Rasta isn't with us for a while, but I like to think I'm up to it (and I only made a couple of miscues last night).

Still applying for jobs, too. I put in applications to the University of Toledo, Adrian College, Bittersweet Farms (which sounds like a location reject from Friday the 13th to me), and St. Ursula Academy.

Busy weekend, but in a good way again. Becky and I are going out to dinner with her co-worker and his wife tonight (and she's convinced that he and I are going to misbehave. Such slanderous accusations...), and then we're going diving again on Saturday and Sunday mornings. I think her sister is hitting the water with us on Saturday at Gilboa, which should be cool...she hasn't been to that one yet, and there's a ton of cool stuff to see at 35-foot depth. Becky and Jen both are really turning into natural divers underwater, faster than I did, I think. Jen especially tends to outswim us, except for when she gets bubbles in her wetsuit. :)

Groovemaster Setlist--Thursday, July 13:

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
96 Degrees in the Shade
Hill and Gully Rider
My Number One
Prophecy
No Woman No Cry
Running From Jamaica/Turn Me Loose

Still On the Market...

2006-07-12T15:05:00.000-04:00

I've noticed two things about myself now that I've been jobless for a couple of weeks, and now that money is getting REALLY tight.

1) I hate feeling unproductive. Not to sound like a grizzled old bastard, but I've been working since I was 15, and I've grown accustomed, rightly or not, to always having something substantial to do and get accomplished during the day. This isn't to say that I've been sitting with my thumb up my arse; I've done more job-searching today, and put more apps in the mail. I just don't feel fulfilled, somehow, especially knowing that I've got excellent, marketable job skills, yet can't seem to find anything yet.

2) It's been nice having a break of sorts. One mild, fringe-benny upshot of being between jobs is that I've been able to give myself kind of a break when I'm not searching or playing gigs. I'm a firm believer in allowing myself to be lazy from time to time, and it's good kind of cool to catch up on my sleep somewhat, read a few more books, practice guitar more, and so forth. I do feel kind of guilty, however, about the circumstance I'm in, so being slothful is kind of few and far between.

Summer of Ups and Downs, cont.

2006-07-10T23:19:00.000-04:00

On the upside of things has been the fact that I'm seeing someone again. I'm aware that it may sound overly mushy, but to me, it's something I'm delighted to be a part of again. It's a good sense of karma to even mention it here, since I started this blog in large part because I needed to vent about my ex leaving me a year and a half ago. All I'll say is that she's cute, patient with me, loves music, and is willing to put up with my shit.

I also got her hooked on scuba diving. Granted, that's not a sport that most might associate with northwest Ohio, but there's actually a pretty active scuba scene around here. This part of the state is home to three really good quarries for diving (Portage, Gilboa, and White Star), and now that Becky's certified, we're diving pretty much every weekend. It's a sport I've been part of for almost 11 years now, and after spending a few years out of it, it's good to be in the water again. For those of you that want to try it out, call Jeff or Ian at Aqua Hut in Toledo (419-531-4655), and ask about a Discover Diving session. They'll hook you up, and you won't be disappointed.

Groovemaster, of course, continues to bring the righteous reggae vibes to the bredren and sisdren of the area. If you want to check us out, here's a few shows for you to consider:

Thursday, July 13: Woodland Park, Perrysburg, 7-8:30 pm
Saturday, July 22: Ottawa Park Amphitheatre, Toledo, 6:30-8:30 pm
Wednesday, July 26: Brown Bag Lunch, Toledo Main Branch Library, 12:15-1:15 pm
Saturday, August 5: Ribs On the River, Promenade Park, Toledo, 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
Saturday, August 12: Bronze Boar, downtown Toledo, 9:30 pm - 1:30 am
Friday, August 18: Levis Commons, Perrysburg, 12-1:30 pm
Thursday, August 24: Bronze Boar, downtown Toledo, 9:30 pm - 1:30 am

All shows except Ribs on the River and the Bronze Boar are free. Give me enough advance warning, however, and you can be my guest at them. Gotta buy me cranberry juice if you come out, though. :)

A Summer of Ups and Downs

2006-07-10T19:35:00.000-04:00

Honestly, this has been a summer that, so far, has taken me on a hellacious rollercoaster ride, both mentally and physically.

Adelante confirmed my worst suspicions about them, in regards to the professionalism (or lack thereof) of the management. They fired me about two weeks ago, and I still have no clue as to why it happened.

It had been building, perhaps, since May 12th, when I got into a big argument/debate/discussion with my now-former supervisor, Sophia. To make a long story short, I made a few mistakes. Were they dumb? Overall, I'd say yes; a decent-sized brain fart. Do I know for a fact that others there have done the same thing, only moreso? Why, yes they have. Whatever. In addition to finding out that I'm a stupid bastard, apparently, I also heard that damn near everyone had some sort of issue or issues with me. Apparently I chewed my apples too loud, was reticent about helping out if someone asked (and I'd like you, Dear Reader, to take note of that one), apparently gossiped about others behind their backs (which is what everyone seems to have done to give my former supervisor the LIST that she was reading from to me), and other sundry things that I've forgotten. I thought they were going to say that I was taking a piss too loud, too. The bottom line of this enlightening and thrilling interaction with Sophia was that I was being cut to part-time hours starting the following Monday, and that I had to get my shit together. This was on top of being told that I was also no longer a candidate for the Deputy Director position that I was once told I was a leading candidate for, and the reason I took the job up there to begin with.

I'll say that the apple accusation might have been correct. See, when I eat apples, I tend to only eat red delicious. They're crunchy and firm, sweet, and a hell of a lot quicker than fixing myself breakfast. I'd grab one on the way out the door, and if I didn't eat it in the car, I'd eat it when I got to the office. So yes, I suppose I was eating apples that might have made some noise when I bit into them. Did I run around and mash them down caveman-style in people's faces? No. Did I gossip about others? Honestly, not that I can recall--and considering that's what everyone else does in that office, it'd be par for the course. Was I ever pissy about helping out? No. There were a few times when it did kind of inconvenience me, but I always lent a hand if I could. This ranged from covering other peoples' groups, driving routes, going to help pick up food from the food bank, proofing other documents (and, modesty aside, most of the people there are balls-out DUMB when it comes to putting something together that's even halfway legible or spelled correctly).

Okay, fine. I ate crow, became part-time, and started job-searching, which I'm still doing as of this writing. Not the best situation to be in, but I've made the best of it, and had some awesome developments in my personal life, which have helped more than I can say.

Alongside all this was the issue of Groovemaster having a couple of lunchtime gigs coming up. I'd mentioned this sometime before, and at the beginning of May, I sent an email to Sophia and Sonia, the director, giving the dates, times, and other info about the two shows I had coming up in June and July. The gigs themselves started late enough that, as I explained to them, I could cover my pickup routes for the kids, drop them off, go get my car, go and play the show, come back, get the van, and take them home. Never heard a thing about this. So a little over a month ago, I reminded them again. Nothing. Explained to Sophia again about a week and a half before the gig how it could logistically be done. She said "Good to know." And that was it. So finally, trying to cover my own bases, I asked a coworker if she could cover my route that morning. She said yes, and I emailed Sophia explaining that I had coverage. I get a bitchy email back from her saying that we had agreed on doing it a certain way already, and that my group was my own responsibility...this from the woman who, as you'll read in the next paragraph, had me cover her group the day I got my letter of termination.

It was after I got back from dropping Sophia's group of kids off at home that she told me there was something on my desk for me. I head for my desk, open the envelope that's waiting there, and find out that I'm being terminated a week from that day. No reason given, but I got the whole "I regret to inform you..." and "...wish you well..." bullshit. And that was pretty much that. I worked the last week (but was still able to play the gig--I would have done it anyway, what were they going to do, fire me?), went in for an hour that Thursday to finish my last paperwork and turn in my key, and got the hell out.

Overall, after seven months with that company, I feel used by them, in a way that makes me feel both tired and a bit ashamed that I let them do it for that long. With a few exceptions, that company is a sinkhole of moral lassitude and professionalism. I was told I was the first choice candidate for the Deputy Director position a year ago, heard nothing about it until December, took the other job with them on the promise that I was still a leading candidate, and got fired without even being told why. Even if they'd told me, I don't think I'd believe anything they say to me. A word of warning to you, Dear Reader, if you have to do business with Adelante at 520 Broadway in Toledo: don't trust them. If they tell you that the Detroit Tigers are a baseball team, don't trust them. And if someone from that office--maybe Alex--finds this blog again, tell Sophia and Sonia that hardcore lifers in prison don't get fucked up the ass as well as they did to me. If I see those bitches caught in a building or housefire, I'll charge admission for people to watch, and turn it into a spectator event.

You know, that felt good to vent. More later--positive stuff next time.

Heat sucks...

2006-05-30T12:42:00.000-04:00

Hey, whaddaya know--it's my first post in almost 4 months. That's right; I'm not dead or melted yet.

And my god, it's fookin' hot as hell outside. I think we hit 93 degrees yesterday, which is a record for this area during this time of year. Sunday was pretty rough too, especially since I was outside playing sand volleyball in the middle of the afternoon. I was gross by the time I got home. Just a grim reminder that, despite the fact that summer's my favorite time of year, I don't handle excessive heat well.

More later.

2006-02-09T22:22:00.001-05:00

Back at home on Thursdays...

2006-02-09T22:22:00.000-05:00

So our almost two-month stand on Thursdays at Pub St. George came to a not-entirely unexpected end last week. The upside of this? I won't struggle through work on Fridays with only 3 hours of sleep (my hands were shaking pretty badly last week before I got my second wind--AFTER I left work, of course). The downside? I want to play. Hell, I always want to play, both as something I love to do as well as a means of escape. Summer can't get here soon enough.

Over the past month or so, Chris, the owner/boss of the pub, had been getting kind of moody and shifty, for lack of a better way of putting it. Easily frustrated, alternately looking like he was having the time of his life, or like he was contemplating someone's murder. Sounds like me, I suppose.

The real start of the end, probably, was about three weeks ago when Lewie had to go out of town for a couple of weeks to South Carolina--something about training for work, I believe he said (for the record, he's a parole officer, slightly ironic when we play "I Shot the Sheriff"). Rasta Dave and most of his bandmates had been coming to our shows, and we asked if they'd be willing to take the next two Thursdays, if Chris was up for it. They said sure, so Gaylord, Rasta Dave, Chris, Rasta, Lewie, and myself all worked out an arrangement where Dave's band, The Crucials, would take our spot for a couple of weeks. It was a win-win situation; we'd get a bit of rest, Rasta Dave would get a couple of gigs, and Chris could keep his Reggae Thursdays going. That said, however, when we were packing up that night, Chris asked if we would be back the next week, with Dave's bass player sitting in. We said no, politely reminding him of the arrangement we'd hammered out about an hour and a half earlier.

Last week we went back to the pub to play, feeling good and recharged (and Janelle, one of the barmaids, said she was glad to see us back; she's become a Groovemaster fan, I believe--I think Dave's style was too dancehall/raggamuffin for her). So we plug in and start playing about 15 minutes late due to some trouble with mic cables, and everything's going ok. During the first intermission (around 11 pm), Chris stopped by to say hey to us, and mentioned AGAIN that he didn't remember us making the deal about The Crucials. If he'd been drunk either of these times, I'd be able to write it off, but he was sober when we made the initial agreement, and during the time I just mentioned. Maybe his memory was abysmally bad...but after years of doing this, my instincts--as well as the rest of the band's--were really starting to twitch.

Like I said, the two weeks off did us good...we were absolutely on fire last week, having a blast and really expanding our material (and my favorite guitar strap broke near the end of "Stir It Up"--I was lucky I didn't drop my Strat). Our last set, which was about 55 minutes, consisted of three songs, each one clocking in around 18 minutes, and the crowd loved every bit of it. We played 15 minutes extra to make up for the time that we started late, and bid everyone good night.

Chris, on the other hand, had different ideas. He came up to Gaylord and Rasta and told us that we had to play until at least 2:15-2:30 in the morning, both because of our starting late, and because he wanted the crowd to stay as late as possible until closing--but without paying us extra. Gaylord absolutely refused, and it pretty much degenerated into a shouting match from there, with Chris even trying to get Gaylord to "go outside" and threatening to withhold our fee from us completely. And that pretty much was that.

I've been doing this more than long enough now to understand that yes, as a businessman, Chris should feel obligated to make as much money as possible, and that his behavior was by no means unique among club owners, but I really think he might have shot himself in the foot with this one. We'd been bringing in bigger crowds each week, we'd been enjoying ourselves, but he hadn't started increasing the money we were making, as he'd promised. I'm curious to see what happens...Rasta Dave and his crew are taking Thursdays now, I believe, and I wish them well. I might stop in there again in a month or so and see what it's like.

But like I said, it was fun while it lasted...

Groovemaster Set List--2/2/06

Jah Voice Is Calling
Stir It Up
Prophecy/Rastaman Chant
Hill and Gully Rider
96 Degrees In the Shade
Waiting In Vain
Natural Mystic
Jammin'
Exodus
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
No Woman No Cry
One Love/People Get Ready
Johnny Dollar/Reggae Train
Get Up, Stand Up
Dub In the Right Way
Such a Business

Because You Never Asked...

2006-01-17T22:58:00.001-05:00

Saw this on Wendy's blog, and figured I may as well continue it here. Random bits about me, just because no one's curious.

Four jobs you have had in your life:
--Stockboy at the Swanton Food Town
--Dock Loader for Roadway Package System
--Grant Coordinator for BGSU's Partnerships for Community Action
--Loaned Executive for the United Way of Greater Toledo

Four movies you could watch over and over:
--the original Star Wars trilogy
--Pulp Fiction
--Fight Club
--Fear of a Black Hat

Four places you've lived:
--Bowling Green, OH
--Liberty Center, OH
--San Jose, Costa Rica
--Guadalajara, Mexico

Four TV shows you love to watch:
--WWE Raw
--Scrubs
--The Simpsons
--Family Guy

Four places you've been on vacation:
--Marathon Key, Florida
--Toronto, Canada
--Cary, North Carolina (for all the wrong reasons, sadly)
--Miami, Florida

Four of your favorite foods:
--Cheese (pretty much any kind)
--Kristy's Pizza
--Watermelon
--Huevos con chorizo

Four websites you visit daily:
--Reggae Train
--Yahoo
--Seibertron
--Pro Wrestling Torch

Now wasn't that fascinating?

I'm very glad to have received my Fender "Fat Strat" Stratocaster back from the shop yesterday. Nothing major was wrong with it; just took it in for maintenance and a thorough cleaning. Since it's the guitar I tend to use the most, it goes through a lot, and I'm always worried that the electronics will go bad on me someday. Right now, though, I'm always trying to find new sounds to wring out of it--currently, I'm trying to tweak my overdrive tone a bit more so it has a warm but still clear tone to it.

I also received a Musician's Friend catalog not that long ago, and now that I have a steady source of income again, my wandering eye is trailing lustfully over the instruments and equipment that I still want to get. And yes, instrument catalogs are essentially porn to me. Says a lot about both my dedication and love of music, as well as the sad mental state of affairs that I live in.

So far on my purchase/wish list consists of:

1) Epiphone Bob Marley signature series Les Paul. Yes, it might seem kind of cheesy, but it's a gorgeous guitar, and it plays and sounds great. Rasta has one, and it handles like a dream. Looks cool, too...check it out here:

Link

2) Paul Reed Smith Custom 24. One of my holy grails of guitars. I've been wanting a PRS for years now, but the price ($3500 and up) holds me back.

Link

3) Fender Jazz Bass. I'm not a bass player primarily by trade, but I can play it at least competently...and there's something really satisfying about hearing a good bass rumble. Plus, owning one would let me continually practice my bass playing and help me with music that I write, so I figure it's a reasonable investment. The only reason I've held off on buying one so far is that I'd have to spend close to $1000 or more...figure on at least $400-$500 for the instrument, and at least another $500 for amplification (probably by either Fender, Hartke, or Epifani). Ideally, I'd like to get the Victor Bailey signature series bass, but a standard J-Bass would be awesome too.

Standard J-Bass

and

Bailey J-Bass

Of all these, the Epiphone guitar is probably the most attainable right now, if nothing else than because it'd be easier on my finances (especially if I want to take a vacation to Florida this year). Hopefully, I'll be able to get one before the start of our busy season in the summer. If anyone wants to front me the money, I won't turn it down...

2006-01-17T22:58:00.000-05:00

I Hate Mornings, or, It's Not As Easy As It Used to Be, Part II

2006-01-13T22:43:00.000-05:00

Nothing better, I tell you, than having three hours of sleep to last me through a full day of work after a night of gigging. Now, if this were taking place when I was in my early to mid-20's, I'd be fine. Hell, I'd be awake for another 40 hours. Not anymore.

My lack of sleep--and my hands shaking sporadically during the day--at least were a good reason to stop by Panera on the way to work for an IC Spice. I'll agree with my friend Matt that coffee is indeed ass in liquid form, but there's a couple of drinks out there that taste far enough away from coffee that I'll have them on occasion. I was also hoping for the caffeine to help keep me going, but I don't think it worked.

Side note: I forgot how much it hurts when I don't have my glasses. Faithful comrades that they usually are, they broke Wednesday night in wallyball, and I couldn't get them fixed until today. Made driving VERY interesting, and kind of scary in a way; on the way to the gig last night, not only was it dark out, but I had no real depth perception (I'm nearsighted), and the lights from the oncoming cars--and tailgaters--kept blinding me. Hell, I'm amazed I survived the drive. If I go, I go--but I'd like my guitars to at least survive me.

Speaking of the gigs, they've been going awesome...good crowds each night. We kept having mic trouble last night, so we started about a half-hour late, but ripped it up in mad fashion--especially on our 15 minute workout of "Hill and Gully Rider."

Lewie's going out of town for the next two weeks, though, so we'll have some time to rest up a bit. Rasta Dave and Drippy Spliff will be covering for us; I'll probably go check them out and maybe sit in on a couple...but it'll be good to recharge the batteries for a bit. And get my guitars worked on too...my Fat Strat needs a serious wipe-down and fret-dressing.

More later...my eyes are starting to cross.

Groovemaster Set List (from the past couple of weeks)

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
96 Degrees In the Shade
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Johnny Too Bad
Prophecy
Redemption Song
Such a Business
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Waiting In Vain
Melancholy Mood
Big Ships/Roots Rock Reggae
Natural Mystic
No Woman, No Cry
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Rastaman Chant (traditional)
Hill and Gully Rider
Righteous
Solidarity
Real Situation/Jump Nyahbingi
Jah Live
No Speech, No Language
The Heathen
Keep On Movin'
Running Away/Crazy Baldhead
Three Little Birds
Rumors of War
One Love/People Get Ready
Johnny Was a Good Man
Night Nurse/Run For Cover
Kinky Reggae
Shine Eyed Gal

Rock and Regg' Thursdays Continue On...

2005-12-31T12:06:00.000-05:00

As I've said in earlier posts, one thing about winter that I never look forward to is the fact that, as a band, we tend to get less bookings. I suppose that's expected in a way; not many people equate reggae music with Ohio's gray, generally drab winters, as well as the fact that most club owners have been in a trend the past few years of hiring younger, less-established bands who are willing to either pay to play, or play for the door. As a result, most of the gigs we get this time of year--from November through March--tend to be private functions.

That's one of the reasons that I (and my band as a whole) have been enjoying the shows we've been doing at Pub St. George on Thursdays for the past month, and apparently will continue doing so for a while still...the owner told me that as long as the crowd digs us and has fun, we'll keep coming back. The crowd was definitely into us a couple of nights ago, and we had a good time. We even had Rasta Dave, a friend of ours from another local reggae band called Drippy Spliff, come up and do a couple of numbers. Dave brings more of a early dancehall, Eek-a-Mouse style toast and boast, which is always fun to play.

Yes, you did read that last paragraph right. Believe it or not, Toledo has had something of a reggae scene in the past, and while Groovemaster is pretty much at the top of the scene (modesty aside), the other bands--most of whom I've either played with or am good friends with--have mashed it up inna reggae stylee. These have included:

Ras Riddum: This is the band that's been around for almost as long as Groovemaster has, although they've unfortunately been inactive the past few years due to injuries. Led by their drummer Jay Williams (who's so tall that standing next to him is like an eclipse), as well as their bass player Ed Malone (who everyone calls Buddha) and their awesome lead guitarist George, they delivered a sound that was more rockers in flavor...think Steel Pulse or later Third World.

Drippy Spliff: This group appears and disappears for stretches at a time, but they've always delivered good shows. Fronted by Rasta Dave, their music has more of a dancehall riddim to it (think of early Eek-a-Mouse or some of Beenie Man's later stuff), and there's always ganja around somewhere. :)

Iration: Another group that tends to appear and disappear, this group was actually a combination of members from Groovemaster, Ras Riddum, and Drippy Spliff. Rasta, Lewie, yours truly, Rasta Dave, Buddha, and George have all played in this band at one point or another. We did everything from dub (which I love to play live), lovers' rock, dancehall, to roots, and it was a blast.

Honorable mention also goes to The Kind...although they were more focused on rock (kind of like the Doobie Brothers or Steve Miller Band), they would occasionally do a couple of reggae numbers to good effect.

Groovemaster Setlist--12/29/2005

Stir It Up/Jump Nyahbingi
No More Trouble
96 Degrees In the Shade
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Prophecy
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
No Woman, No Cry
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Hill and Gully Rider
Solidarity
Jah Live
The Heathen
Wa Do Dem
Shine Eyed Gal
Three Little Birds
One Love/People Get Ready

On to 2006...

2005-12-27T21:46:00.000-05:00

So 2005 is on its way to becoming a memory, and overall, I'd say I probably won't shed too many tears to see it go. Lots more downs than ups this year, I'd say, and while I won't go into them here (the few of you that read this blog likely know what they are anyway), I can only hope that '06 doesn't have any repeats of them.

Christmas with the fam was enjoyable as always, and I got a pretty good amount of cool but small swag. In no particular order, my Christmas haul was:

*A new leather wallet
*Charles Cross' biography of Jimi Hendrix
*A book by Nick Hornsby
*Pecan and chocolate bark
*Chocolate-covered cherries
*A new Bob Marley shirt
*A new Henley-style shirt
*Two jars of really fancy fruit preserves (one wild blueberry, the other flavored with cabernet)
*A new pair of binoculars
*Batman Begins
*Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels
*Walker's shortbread
*A couple of mugs
*A cool incense bottle in the Rastafarian colors
*A hand-held Frogger arcade game
*Some hemp-based soap
*Other sanitary products like shower gel, etc.
*A check for $200
*A Transformers Alternator called Skids (turns into a Honda Scion)
*A cool framed photo of my nephews from their karate class (it looks like a Tekken promo)
*and tons of gift cards--AMC theatres, Blue Pacific Grill, Borders, Barnes and Noble, GameStop, Bob Evans, Finders Records, Meijers, and Krogers.

I usually don't ask for much for Christmas anymore, so I was honestly and pleasantly surprised to get all of this. The Krogers card went for new groceries, and the Finders card nabbed me a Bob Marley concert DVD. The Meijers card helped me get a pretty nice brown leather jacket that was already marked down to half-off, and since I needed a new jacket anyway, I figured, why the hell not?

Thursdays at Pub St. George with the band are going great so far...the crowd was REALLY into it last week, and we're definitely hoping to have more piss-drunk but happy people there this Thursday, so it's all good so far. And they've got really good fish and chips...if you're so inclined to check us (or at least the food) out, the show's at 1701 Adams Street, Toledo, OH.

Anyhoo, more after the new year, probably.

Groovemaster Setlist--12/22/2005

Keep On Moving
Righteous
Solidarity
Jah Live
The Heathen
No Speech, No Language
Real Situation
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
No Woman, No Cry
My Number One
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Stir It Up
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
96 Degrees In the Shade
Johnny Dollar
Three Little Birds
One Love/People Get Ready

Groovemaster at Pub St. George, or, It's Not as Easy as it Used to Be

2005-12-10T20:34:00.000-05:00

Tuesday night, I got a call from Gaylord (our drummer), asking me if I was free for a gig yesterday evening. Not having much of a life, I of course said yes, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was a club/bar gig. This time of the year is our slow season, especially when it comes to those types of gigs, so it was definitely something to look forward to. Plus, bar/club shows usually run about 4 hours or so, which isn't too much longer than our average show, so we get a chance to really jam out.

Pub St. George, by the way, is a pretty cool bar/pub above Manos Greek Restaurant on Adams and 17th near downtown Toledo. My PSA for the evening.

The show definitely went well. I suspect that not quite as many people came as the owners would have liked due to the weather, but the crowd that was there definitely was digging the music. So we're going to play there for the next three Thursdays, and see what might develop in terms of bolstering business. The only downside...that I'll probably get about 5 hours of sleep those nights tops. Like it says in the title, it's not as easy as it used to be...but playing will make up for it.

Groovemaster Setlist--12/9/05

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
Kinky Reggae
96 Degrees In the Shade
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Rumors of War
Prophecy
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Rivers of Babylon
No Woman, No Cry
My Number One
The Heathen
One Love/People Get Ready
Three Little Birds

Bring Out the Gimp...again

2005-12-04T23:46:00.000-05:00

So anyway, this weekend was one that I'd been looking forward to for a few weeks. As the three or four of you that read this blog may or may not know, I'm a die-hard, avid wallyball fan (American Wallyball Association). Been playing for a little over 12 years now and, modesty aside, I'm pretty damn good.

A few years ago, I registered myself on wallyball.com with the hope that I could find other players in Ohio. It took 3 years, but it finally paid off...a pretty cool dude by the name of Andrew in Zanesville invited yours truly (as well as my friends Matt, Mike, and Andy/Satan) to play in a tournament down there this weekend. Since Mike lives in Columbus, we ovrnighted there last night, and headed to the tourney today. Good as my friends and I are, the players down there are awesome...honestly, probably the best we've yet encountered. Competitive, but like ourselves, they believe in having good, fun, hard-fought games, and it was shaping up to be a good day.

That is, until I screwed up my left ankle...you know, the one that was the healthier of my two (I've injured my right ankle badly twice now, once when I was 14, and once about a year ago). I went up to block a spike, and although I'm pretty sure I was on my side of the net, my left foot came down on the other guy's foot across from me, and it rolled. And by "rolled," I mean that it made a sound somewhere between a pop and a crunch. It started swelling almost immediately, and although it hasn't gotten worse, it looks like I have a golf ball surgically implanted in my ankle. The discoloration isn't as bad as when I got hurt a year ago, and the pain isn't as bad either (plus I can put SOME mild pressure on it), but it was bad earlier. Bad enough that I had to lean on Mike and Matt and Andy, while hopping gamely on my good foot. I still have my crutches from a year ago, so I've renewed my acquaintance with THOSE wonderful and comfortable pieces of wood, but still...

Going through my morning routine, not to mention even getting to and through work tomorrow, should be interesting to say the least. And probably painful too.

Songs I've Been Grooving To:

311: "Stealing Happy Hours"
Fatboy Slim: "Knight Rider Theme"
Ash: "Orpheus"
The Stranglers: "Golden Brown"
Foo Fighters: "My Poor Brain"
Nirvana: "On a Plain"
Robert Miles: "One and One"
True Form: "Forbidden Colors"
Stevie Ray Vaughan: "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)"
Cream: "Born Under a Bad Sign"
Jimi Hendrix: "Manic Depression" and "Spanish Castle Magic"
Blue Oyster Cult: "Godzilla"

Finally Off the Job Market, or, So Much For Extra Sleep

2005-11-22T17:08:00.000-05:00

Wow; it's been a while since I updated. I know, I know...I should be better about posting. I'll try not to go another two months till my next one. Big props, though, to Dan "Dark One" and Mike "Mad Doctor" for the words of encouragement from my last one--I certainly did need them.

After nearly a month of being jobless, I'm pleased to announce that today I accepted a position as Youth Program Coordinator at Adelante, Inc., in Toledo. They're hoping that I can start by the middle of next week, so it'll definitely be nice to starting earning some bank again.

The slight irony of my new position is that this is my second application to Adelante. Back in July, when I was getting ready to leave my BGSU position, a friend of mine in Toledo (Bob Torres, who just got elected to the Board of Education--big shout, Bob) forwarded my resume to Sonia, Adelante's director. I went in to interview for the position of Assistant Director, and I can honestly say I've never had a smoother or better job interview. She told me flat out that I was her first choice for the job, and that pending her advisory board's approval at the end of July, I should be good to go.

So the end of July came and went, and Sonia, who does enough work for ten people, finally called me and said that the board wanted her to work out a new position description, budget, and wider search for the AD post. Since I was still in the running, I took my job at the United Way for three months, and kept my fingers crossed.

Nov. 4th finally arrived, which was my last day at the UW, and it was kind of scary, I admit, realizing that I didn't have another job lined up. One thing led to another, and after I touched base with Sonia again, she confirmed what my suspicions were...namely, that her advisory board had stepped in more than she had intended for or wanted them to in the AD search. So I interviewed with her for the position I just accepted (which she had also mentioned back in July), but she did mention to me that I'm one of the top three choices for the AD position still, which would be my preference if it comes down to it. I'm kind of curious to see how I do working with inner-city junior high and high school kids; it's not my first time doing it (I've done a fair amount of volunteer work with kids, and was a Site Director for the Toledo Youth Commission 11 years ago), but I'm a bit worried that I might not be as patient in some respects as I used to be. Time will tell, I suppose.

I'll also admit that part of me enjoyed being kind of slothful this past month. If nothing else, being jobless was worth it just for catching up on my sleep for the first time in years. I got a few more things done around my apartment, enjoyed relaxing somewhat, and even joined the Bowling Green Jaycees (I also took the position of Newsletter Director for them). Don't get me wrong--I'm glad to get a job again (Sonia said it'll start around 30K a year), but I'll kind of miss catching up on reading comics. I'm going to try to draw at least once or twice before I go back as well, to see if I can still do anything in that regard.

First, though, I have to get through Turkey Day. Normally, it's a pretty small holiday for me, since I go visit my parents and my aunt. This year, however, we've got a small menagerie coming for dinner, which means that Dad and I will be in the kitchen pretty much all day (except for watching the Lions game). My step-brother Mathew, his wife Becky, and my nieces Claire and Emily are all coming; so are my older step-sister Kim, her husband Ed, my nephews Aaron and Trevor, my oldest niece Nicole, her boyfriend/reprobate/lush Shannon, and my great-nephew Killian. God help us all, it should be chaotic and at least somewhat enjoyable. It'd be even more so if I give in to my impulse to choke Shannon until his tongue hangs out.

Ah well. Happy Turkey Day, everybody.

Songs I've been grooving to today:

Stone Temple Pilots: "Interstate Love Song"
Yes: "Siberian Khatru"
Skankin' Pickle: "Hussein Skank"
Sublime: "Santeria"
Roger and the Gypsies: "Pass the Hatchet"
Triumph the Insult Comic Dog: "30 Seconds of Magic"
Burning Brides: "Heart Full of Black"
Alex Chilton: "What's Your Sign Girl"
J.J. Cale: "After Midnight"
Cream: "Spoonful"
Led Zeppelin: "White Summer/Black Mountain Side"

Lonely Stranger

2005-09-21T23:36:00.000-04:00

It's rare that I'll ever do an entry like this, but I really need to vent about my frustration with women.

One thing I've always prided myself on in the past--and am starting to seriously reconsider now--is the fact that I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve. Yes, that means I can be an unabashed romantic, and have been in the past. Yes, that means that sometimes I can be a bit too much of that. But it's always been the real me...I've never tried to hide or change who I am in that regard. In the past, I've believed that love and good, intimate companionship were things to hope and strive for.

Now? I really don't know anymore. I've had my heart broken more times than I care to count. I've had my hopes raised and dashed. I've been in love and I've been engaged, only to find that it was a sham at best, and that it's easy for women to discard me for whatever reason and whims serve their purpose.

Is this a reactionary post done in a fit of spur-of-the-moment frustration and venting? Yes. But at the same time, it's something that I've been feeling for years now, getting stronger everytime I find myself left behind romantically again. I'm tired of always trying to feel happy for everyone else, and listening to the usual "be patient" spiel. Just for once, I'd like to feel happy for myself, and know that not only is it genuine, but that it'll last. I find myself growing resentful of others that look so fucking happy and content with each other; there are more and more times now when I find myself wishing out of sheer spite that most of them, some of whom I know, fall apart and distintegrate.

I so want to be proven wrong on all these counts, but any hope I had of that is nearly gone now. I sometimes tell people--only half-jokingly--that I'll just keep buying guitars as compensation. More and more, that seems like a safer option to me.

Wallyball Kicked My Arse Again

2005-09-13T22:24:00.000-04:00

As much as I love to play wallyball, I have to admit that I'm pretty beat up by the time I get home from playing. I think my ankle's swelling, and my right elbow is feeling nice and spongy from serving hard.

"You ass," some people might say, "Why don't you stop playing?"

Well, there's a couple of reasons I won't, at least not for the foreseeable future. First, it's a hell of a lot of fun. Good wallyball should be fast-paced and competitive, but we stress simply having a good time in the group of people that I play with. They're mostly undergraduates (which really makes me and my friend Mike feel old), but good people, so that helps.

Secondly, it's a great workout. Pretty much the entire body gets work, and despite the fact that I'm somewhat stocky and a bit heavier than I'd like to be, I can still move with the best of them. I'm also pretty flexible, which helps too, at least for some of the harder-to-reach balls.

This past weekend was, among other things, BG's annual Black Swamp Arts Festival. For a smaller town that likes to think it's more bohemian sometimes than it really is, the fest is pretty good. Lots of national, regional, and local artists come out and show their wares, and lots of live music is here as well. I actually played the fest years ago with my old band, which was a blast. I'm still not sure why Gaylord doesn't actively pursue getting an evening slot at the fest on Friday or Saturday...we'd tear that place up and leave them wanting more.

I mostly go to the fest for the music, although Mom and Dad and I have a tradition of meeting at our favorite restaurant (Easystreet Cafe...do yourself a favor and check out their french onion soup), which we did this past Saturday with our friends Ruthann and Leland. Friday I went to check out Sleepy LaBeef...great, Johnny Cash-flavored rockabilly; guitar geek that I am, I believe he was playing a late 60's Gibson ES-335 with P-90 humbucking pickups and Heritage Cherry finish. :)

Saturday evening was spent watching the OSU-Texas game with my friend Matt (and no, we weren't happy with the finish. Tressel should have started Troy Smith instead of Justin Zwick at QB), and Sunday afternoon I went to Buffalo Wild Wings with Matt, his wife Lina, and Andy to watch the Cleveland Browns game. As diehard Cleveland fans, they weren't happy to see all the Steelers fans there...Matt really can get worked up about it, which amuses me to no end.

No gigs, unfortunately. September is usually the start of our slower season, and although I have no plans on leaving Groovemaster, I'm going to see if I can find other bands or musicians out there that can help me satisfy my jones for playing shows.

A Trip to Dayton and the Labor Day Weekend

2005-09-04T21:46:00.000-04:00

God, I can't believe it's Labor Day already. It's almost sick how fast the summer flew past. Granted, I was a little busier than normal, but still...I'm always a bit sad to see the summer go. Sure, the nice weather will stay around for another month or so, but it's my favorite time of year, and means that I'll have to wait another year before it's here again.

It's been a fairly busy weekend for me too. Yesterday I went home to see Mom and Dad for a bit, and we whipped up some good eats while we were at it. Brats, burgers, oven fries, corn on the cob, Halloumi cheese (do yourself a favor and try some. It's freakin' awesome), and blueberry cobbler for dessert. I'm amazed my seatbelt fit around me by the time I left to come back to BG.

Today was one of the highlights of Groovemaster's summer concert season. Every year in Dayton is the Dayton Reggae Music Festival, which our friend Tom "Seefari" Carroll helps put together (you can check him out at www.seefari.com). We play there every year, and although we only play for an hour, it's a great gathering of music and peaceful vibes. I left around 11, and got there right as the first band started playing. The schedule was as follows:

1:00 PM – Groove Therapy
2:00 PM – Demolition Crew
3:00 PM – Groovemaster
4:00 PM – Rob Dread and KMA
5:00 PM – Dougie Simpson backed by KMA
6:00 PM – The Ark Band
7:00 PM – Seefari

Check them out if you get the chance...you won't be disappointed. Part of the fun of the festival is that I get to see musicians that I don't get to hang out with as often as I'd like (including my old bandmates in The Ark Band), and there's always a lot of mutual respect between everyone there. The crowd's also always really into the music, and people are always up and dancing. Like the song says, "Who feels it, knows it, Lord." Truer words were never spoken.

After the festival, I drove Rasta and his wife Nettie home to Toledo, came back to BG, grabbed some dinner, and here I sit. Gonna go put some laundry in in a minute. Tomorrow I grab brunch and the movie The Brothers Grimm with my friend Sue, so that'll be a nice cap to the overall weekend.

Groovemaster Setlist

Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
One Love/People Get Ready
Three Little Birds
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Prophecy
96 Degrees In the Shade
Righteous
Keep On Moving

I'm Finally Back

2005-08-28T11:54:00.000-04:00

Man, has it been a crazy couple of weeks. Gigs, switching jobs, housesitting for a bit again...I'm not sure what it is, but my summers always seem to be packed. If nothing else, it helps make sure they go by quickly, but since summer's my favorite time of year, I wouldn't mind having a bit more time to savor it. The gigs, of course, I don't mind, but I swear that each summer since I turned 19 have flown past. Hard to believe that it's already almost Labor Day.

We've been having a good amount of gigs again, which has been fun, although because Gaylord is so busy with the pools during the summer, he sometimes forgets to tell us until the last minute. Case in point: this past Wednesday, we played an island-themed pig roast at an assisted-living facility in Toledo. Granted, I know they're not our usual clientele, but we've done the gig for three years in a row, and they really seem to enjoy us, so that's all that matters to me. What made it tricky this time was that Gaylord completely forgot to tell me about it until about 5 hours before showtime. Thankfully I didn't have to work late that day, but still...

Last night when I got home, a car full of kids (read: undergrads) pulled up next to me and asked if I knew where another apartment complex was. I pointed them in the right direction, at which point they promptly asked me if I had any drugs. I was too tired to think of anything wittier to say than "no," but it definitely confirmed my belief that kids nowadays are REALLY getting shallow in their perceptions and activities.

And yes, I can say that, having done that sort of thing myself back in my day. :)

Sounds like Mom and Dad are planning their annual bonfire for October 8th, which will also be a celebration of Dad's 70th. That's still kind of weird for me to think of. Mom and I still aren't sure what to get him, either.

And there's only three weeks until something else that I'm looking forward to. More later. :)

Groovemaster Setlist (agglomerate from the past few gigs)

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
96 Degrees In the Shade
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Johnny Too Bad
My Number One
Prophecy
Redemption Song
Such a Business
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Waiting In Vain
No Woman No Cry
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Hill and Gully Rider
Righteous
Solidarity
Real Situation
Jah Live
No Speech, No Language
The Heathen
I Shot the Sheriff
Running Away/Crazy Baldhead
Keep On Moving
Three Little Birds
Jammin'
Rumors of War
One Love/People Get Ready
King David's Dance
Smoke On the Water
Happy Birthday
Rainbow Country
Rastaman Chant
Jump Nyahbingi
Jah's Word

The Jeep Picnic and Why I Love Playing Outdoors

2005-08-01T11:17:00.000-04:00

I love playing gigs outdoors, and the weather this past weekend was tailor-made for it. Sunny skies, nice breeze...in other words, ripe for a gig, which we delivered at the big picnic that Jeep throws in downtown Toledo's Promenade Park every year. I think people had a good time, and since I always feel a bit more invigorated when I see people dancing, it helped us not feel the fact that the stage isn't covered. The weather was nice, but moving around on stage with a guitar strapped to me for two or more hours gets pretty exhausting. I always know I'm getting too much sun when I have a headache afterwards.

I was pretty hungry when we were done playing too, and I decided to try these interesting and tasty little things called mac and cheese wedges. Essentially, they're little triangle-shaped wedges of mac and cheese that have a light coating of batter and are deep-fried. Someone somewhere actually figured out how to make mac and cheese even unhealthier than it already is...but, of course, I admit that they did taste good.

Groovemaster Setlist

Solidarity
Stir It Up
96 Degrees In the Shade
Prophecy/Rastaman Chant
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Righteous
No Woman No Cry
Three Little Birds/Jump Nyahbingi
Keep On Moving
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi

Finally returning to BG...

2005-07-26T14:17:00.000-04:00

At long last, it looks like my tenure of housesitting is finally coming to an end...I go to pick up Mom and Dad in a couple of hours, and take them home. I've enjoyed being out there, but like I said before, it's been pretty tiring always driving between there, BG, Toledo, and anywhere else I've had to go.

Speaking of which, I'm hoping to hear on a couple of job offers in the next day or so. I'm in an odd balance of being somewhat tense about it, and being very laid-back at the same time. Mostly, I just know that I need a better-paying job.

Groovemaster played a private gig up in Ypsilanti, Michigan this past Saturday...a wedding and wedding reception. My continuing pessimism about weddings and love aside, I have to admit that it was a nice, small, private ceremony, despite frowning the entire ceremony. The only real downside was that we were playing outside, with no shade whatsoever in the shade area. We were seriously hurting by the end of it, all the more so because we always put a lot into our shows. Ah well...for the chance to play, it's worth it.

Groovemaster Setlist

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
96 Degrees In the Shade
No Woman No Cry
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Hill and Gully Rider
Countrytime Jam
Show and Tell
Pass di Kutchie
Keep On Moving
Three Little Birds

Samantha and Felix and House-sitting...Oh My...

2005-07-20T16:00:00.000-04:00

Hey, how about that...I'm finally back. Not that I'm the most constant poster on here, but it's been a pretty hectic past couple of weeks for me. Lots of driving, too, and worrying about money and finding a job, and all that.

The big change recently has been that my parents went to Europe a couple of weeks ago, and they're coming home in a little less than a week. It's pretty cool that they got to go, especially for Dad...it's his first time back since he emigrated here in 1947. They had planned on going to London at some point, but recent events there made them change their minds. They've been in Belgium visiting some cousins, I believe, and I know they went to Luxembourg at one point as well to visit some relatives there. I'm really curious to hear if Dad's languages came back to him; I've always felt bad that he hasn't had a chance to speak any of them (Czech, Flemish, German, French, and Polish) since my grandmother passed away 11 years ago.

So, whenever they're gone on a trip, yours truly gets to house-sit for them, which really means that I take care of their two cats, Felix and Samantha. I love the cats dearly, but good lord, they're spoiled. Polar opposites in terms of personalities, too...Samantha is haughty and kind of princess-like, while Felix is completely audacious in wanting attention and being friendly. So, of course, they don't get along, and I have to be careful to keep them separated, like the song says.

It's nice being at home again, but it's also a good bit of extra driving for me too, since I still work in BG for the moment, and have gigs. Not to mention that I drove to Akron on Monday for my second interview with a company out there. I love driving as a leisure activity, but I think I'm finally burned out on it for a while.

I think I might actually get offered a couple of jobs, which I'm praying for at this point...money's REALLY getting tight. Gonna keep my fingers crossed, especially for the Toledo position that I really want. More on that later.

Last Friday, Groovemaster got to play one of our favorite gigs, the It's Friday concert series at the Toledo Museum of Art. We had a slightly reduced roster that night, since Lewie and Rasta were both out of town, but we had an absolute blast playing. Something about that place always makes us play that much better, and the crowd always seems to love us, so we simply dig in and have fun.

Now that I think about it, backtracking a bit, one of the biggest side effects of Mom and Dad being gone and me house-sitting is that I feel even lonelier than usual. There's sometimes out there, in that big house on all that land, where I really start to hate being where I am socially. I'm ready to be with someone again...and find myself feeling even more cut out than ever. That's why I practically salivate every time we play a gig...for the time I'm on stage, I get to transcend myself. I'm addicted to that feeling of euphoria, and every time I find myself dejectedly looking through online personals sites, it makes me resent--and myself, as well as a certain ex-someone whom I hate all the more--doing it.

Groovemaster Set List--Toledo Museum of Art show

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
Johnny Dollar
My Number One
Johnny Too Bad
Prophecy
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
No Woman No Cry
Three Little Birds
One Love/People Get Ready
Keep On Moving
T-Town Soca
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Hill and Gully Rider
Righteous
Rivers of Babylon
So Dey Ride
Jah Voice Is Calling

Luna Pier, Good Desserts, and Falling Into Keyboards

2005-07-04T12:21:00.000-04:00

It's never really a 4th of July weekend for me unless we have a gig in Michigan somewhere. Seriously; in the nearly five years I've been with Groovemaster, we've always had a gig over this weekend somewhere in that state. Now, their taste in college football teams might be questionable (I'll die a Buckeyes fan), but that certainly doesn't stop us from putting on a good show.

Luna Pier apparently turns into one big rummage sale/block get-together during this weekend, and we were hired to play a big cookout, which seemed to get bigger and bigger as the day went on. That was fine with us...it was sunny, a temp in the high 70's with a nice breeze, and a perfect day for playing. And they fed us too, which was really nice (and something we don't take for granted)...someone made an insanely good strawberry/blueberry/whipped cream/angel food cake dessert that was off the hook and had Lewie and I going back for seconds. So much for my rule about not playing on a full stomach.

Invariably, people kept drinking, and it's always been an interesting observation that people dance more often and more amusingly the drunker they are (and tend to request more Bob Marley songs). This occasion was no exception, and during our second break, a few people came up to Gaylord and Bruce and said that they wanted to have a limbo contest. We offered to pony up a free CD of ours as the prize, and it was off to the races (limbo contests usually mean we play "Hill and Gully Rider" for about 10-15 minutes). I even think they used a tape measure as the limbo stick. Lewie, Alfred, and myself usually bring extra percussion instruments in case people want to come join us on stage, and since people were drunk and having a lot of fun, this one (very cute) young woman grabbed a shakare, and popped onstage between Alfred and myself.

Here's our stage layout when we have all six people playing:

Bruce Rasta Alfred Joey Lewie

Gaylord

Now, when we play "Hill and Gully Rider," to give it more of a soca flavor, I use my wah-wah pedal, which means because I'm always manipulating it with my right foot, my balance pretty much rests on my left foot. This fine young lady, really feeling the music, decided to start bumping my left hip pretty decisively, and since I wasn't expecting it, I went right into Lewie's killer-looking double-keyboard stand. To his credit, he didn't laugh hard enough that he messed up what he was playing, but I sure as hell did. And she gave me several good shots like that again before (and kind of regretting it; I knew I should have bought an auto-wah pedal) I had to tell her that she had to be gentle with me. Sigh...

Groovemaster Setlist:

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
War/No More Trouble
Hot Like a Melting Pot
96 Degrees In the Shade
My Number One
Prophecy/Rastaman Chant
Hill and Gully Rider
Johnny Dollar
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
No Woman, No Cry
Three Little Birds
Keep On Movin'
Righteous
Bend Down Low

A Night at The Bronze Boar

2005-06-28T22:50:00.000-04:00

About a month ago, we got a booking for a bar in downtown Toledo called The Bronze Boar. I was pretty excited, since we don't do club shows as often as we used to anymore, and although it's harder than it used to be to stay awake that late, they're a lot of fun to play. So we played there this past Saturday, and I think it's safe to say that they're still feeling the after-effects of the music we laid on them.

At first, I was a bit dubious about it. Not only was Saturday in the middle of yet another 90+ heat wave (by the time Gaylord and finished unloading our sound truck, I was dripping), but the space inside isn't really all that big. Now that our roster has expanded somewhat again, it was a bit of a concern, but since Bruce wasn't able to make the show, we thankfully didn't have to fit Lewie's keyboards in, so I think we did ok.

Gotta give credit to the people at the bar too...very friendly, they know what they're doing, and they seem to have a good rapport with their regulars. And since the Mudhens had just finished playing a home game across the street, and the regulars were all drinking steadily, we had a hot crowd to work with. We played for about 4 and a half hours, and like I've said before, the longer we play, the happier I am. Rasta and I even had fun on our closer just tearing loose on the guitars for a while, getting all rock/reggae god-ish. The band was tight as hell, crisp vox, and we had a blast.

God, I love playing in a band. This coming weekend, we go to Luna Pier, Michigan to play some sort of block party or something for 4 hours, so I'm looking forward to that. I'm betting we'll be the only sober ones there.

Groovemaster setlist:

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
No More Trouble
96 Degrees In the Shade
Crazy Baldhead/Running Away
Roots Natty Roots
Such a Business
Solidarity
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Hill and Gully Rider
Keep On Moving
Righteous
No Woman No Cry
I Shot the Sheriff
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Rastafari Is
Hot Like a Melting Pot
Three Little Birds
Prophecy
Roots Rock Reggae
The Heathen

Playing at Maumee Bay, or, Drunk Academics and Schoolteachers Are Fun

2005-06-15T22:10:00.000-04:00

As I've said before, one of the great joys of summer for me is the fact that Groovemaster has more gigs, and Tuesday night was no exception as we rolled into Maumee Bay to mash it up.

What happens is that every year around this time, teachers from East Toledo Junior High (where my drummer teaches too, natch) have a professional development seminar up there for a few days, and after a long day of sessions, what better way to unwind than getting drunk as lords and listening to live reggae. And given both Gaylord's and my own involvement with East Toledo, Groovemaster is only too happy to play up there. And since the crowd is always friendly and willing to dance all night, we're all the more inclined to step our show up even more.

We were playing with a slightly reduced roster too, which was kind of cool in a nostalgic sort of way. Bruce and Rasta both couldn't make the show, so Gaylord, myself, Lewie, and Alfred did our thing pretty well. Having two bass players is cool and kind of challenging, because it changes some of the basic undertone to our sound. Bruce is more jazzy in his playing, while Lewie is more funk-trained, and one of my guilty pleasures with Lewie on bass is doing our version of "I Shot the Sheriff." Like I think I've mentioned before, when we do it like that, it takes on a more funk-rock edge while keeping the reggae flavor, and damn if the crowd didn't eat it up. Plus, it lets me channel a bit of Hendrix, since I get to stretch out on my solo more, and try to get some more freaky squonks out of the amp.

All in all, a fun night. Drunk teachers and academics make for a great crowd, I always say.

Groovemaster Setlist:

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Stir It Up
Waiting In Vain
Rumors of War
No More Trouble
Running From Jamaica/So Much Things to Say
Johnny Dollar
No Woman No Cry
Righteous
I Shot the Sheriff
So Dey Ride
Hill and Gully Rider
Rastaman Chant Nyahbingi
Keep On Moving

Summertime Rolls...

2005-06-03T22:58:00.000-04:00

One thing I'll always say for those uneducated fools that say that Ohio's weather sucks: they clearly haven't been here in the summertime. Today was gorgeous, and although it looked like rain was pending, the clouds blew away.

Today was an errand-running day for me, largely based off the fact that I have a job interview in Akron on Monday. I figured I may as well use it as an excuse to buy some new dress clothes, and (feeling vaguely like a tool) decided I may as well visit my hairdresser to get a trim. If anyone who might read this is searching for a hair stylist, I recommend Flo at the Charles Paul Salon on Secor Road in Toledo...I've been going to her for a few years now, and she's got a great, caustic sense of humor. And she does great work.

I hate clothes shopping with a passion, but it's something I'm getting more used to as I get older, especially for dress or business-casual clothes. The last couple of dress outfits have been dark grey, and I wanted to go with something different. I always feel like a misfit when I go clothes shopping, but I like the outfit I bought today...black coat and pants, with a blue shirt and blue silk tie with red highlights. Still haven't tried it on here at home, though, so I hope like hell I don't have to return it.

Last night after playing some sand volleyball for a few hours, our drummer called me and said that a friend of ours who's running for Toledo School Board asked if the band could play his rally in the late afternoon. Gig whore that I am, I said I'd be there. Got to play bass today for the first half too, especially since our regular bass player couldn't make it due to the short notice. But the crowd totally dug it, and we had a blast as always. I'm not the best bass player, but playing bass for reggae is challenging due to the precision and emphasis on the backbeat, and I love it. Sooner or later I'll buy a bass guitar (probably a Fender Jazz Bass, although I'd love to get a Warwick bass) and work more specifically on the style and my playing...but as long as I don't suck completely live, I'm happy for now.

Groovemaster Setlist:

Rumors of War
Solidarity
One Love/People Get Ready
Waiting In Vain
Hill and Gully Rider
No Speech, No Language
No Woman No Cry
Keep On Moving
Three Little Birds
Hot Like a Melting Pot

Songs Listened to Today:

Doobie Brothers: "China Grove"
Lynyrd Skynyrd: "Sweet Home Alabama"
Taj Mahal: "Queen Bee"
David "Honeyboy" Edwards: "Crawling Kingsnake Blues"
Muddy Waters: "Going Down Slow"
John Brown's Body: "Original Man"
King Mellowman: "Hell Is Not My Home"
Mystic Revealers: "Space and Time"
Peter Tosh: "Till Your Well Runs Dry"
Peter Tosh: "Rastafari Is"
Weezer: "Buddy Holly"
Ben Folds Five: "The Luckiest"

Carolina Blues

2005-05-26T12:41:00.000-04:00

This week has been somewhat odd for me, emotionally speaking. Up until the end of January, this was the week that I had planned on relocating south to North Carolina to live with my ex-fiancee.

It may seem like I'm belaboring something that shouldn't be dwelled on, but I honestly don't think I am. Emotionally, I'm over her; cruel though it sounds, she's dead to me, and I wish her nothing but the square of the pain and misery that she put me through by dumping me out of the blue. No, the significance of the week still seems poignant because I can remember the promise that it held for me once upon a time. It's like I can look at myself before things went sour like I'm looking through smoked glass; the memory isn't crystal clear, but it's clear enough that I can remember the anticipation I used to have for this week. It's been four months now, but I remember what this week would have meant to me if things hadn't gone the way they did.

Raw is Joe and Lita is a Ho'

2005-05-25T10:14:00.000-04:00

One of the guilty pleasures in my life is that I watch professional wrestling. Ironically enough, this is something that I swore I'd never get into, but about 7 years ago, I went to watch a Wrestlemania PPV at a friend's house, and after that...well, you can probably figure out the rest.

So, based on this, a couple of years ago, I started hosting weekly viewings of Raw (Monday nights) and Smackdown (Thursday nights), both of which are shows put on by World Wrestling Entertainment. And before anyone says anything, yes, I'm aware that the shows and matches are scripted. Yes, I'm aware that it's generally trashy entertainment. Yes to pretty much any other casual but probably derogatory observation you might make. So there.

Anyhoo, I usually have a few friends over for these viewings (mad props to Mike "Mad Doctor" Dubose, Jim "Iowa Thunder" Davis, Dan "The Dark One" Nawrocki, Andy "Prince of Darkness Aelker, Sarah "Jar Jar Girl" Veselka, and others), which for me at least elevates the enjoyment of the shows. Since we're all basically pop culture nerds anyway, it's fun, especially when Jim and I start doing our own unique brand of ringside commentary while the matches are going on. And since we all like to try and keep abreast of real-life news, current events, and drama inside the culture machine that is WWE, it adds a nice dimension to what we're seeing on the box.

Case in point: the love triangle between Lita (Amy Dumas), Edge (Adam Copeland), and Matt Hardy, three wrestlers on Raw. To wit: Matt's knee required reconstructive surgery back in August of 2004, which of course kept him from wrestling. Now, at this point, Matt and Lita were madly in love with each other in real life, and although Lita was still going on the road to events, Matt was staying at home.

Fast forwarding a few months to this past January, Lita was defending the Women's Championship against Trish Stratus at a PPV called "New Year's Revolution," in a feud that was pretty good. One thing led to another, and Lita, while diving outside the ring, landed badly on her knee and jobbed it pretty well, eventually leading to her having to take time off from wrestling. I imagine that Matt, while probably feeling bad that she got injured, was probably also happy to have some quality time at home with his girlfriend. It was after Lita was sidelined that Matt found out that she had been having an affair with Edge while Matt was injured (I don't remember the exact circumstances of how he found out). Making it even better, Edge, of course, was married to the sister of another Raw wrestler named Val Venis.

So, Matt pretty much goes ballistic--can't say I blame him--and spills the beans of the situation through his website, which the wrestling world and fans pick and up and run with. And, to make a long story short, Matt is ultimately dismissed from WWE while Edge and Lita are still employed there.

Now, the cruelly interesting thing here is that, before and after Matt was let go, WWE was pushing Edge as a contender to the World Heavyweight Championship as a bad guy ("heel"). Lita, in terms of the scripted story, was still "married" to another wrestler named Kane. Once the whole situation with Matt went down, wrestling fans everywhere would cheer and chant his name, and essentially poop all over Edge and Lita. So, two Mondays ago, in a storyline move that imitates real life, Lita turned on Kane for Edge, and this past Monday, cut a promo (speech) that, although it had Kane's name in it, could easily be just about Matt. And man o man, did the crowd let them have it. Osama bin Laden could wrestle Edge and Lita now, and he'd be cheered as the good guy.

Having watched the promo and having had time to digest it, I still suspect that the powers that be in WWE were breaking their collective feet off in Matt Hardy's ass while he was down and out. In a way, it makes sense...Edge and Lita will probably never be cheered for again by wrestling fans, so the script is making use of that momentum. On the other hand, though, you could practically hear Matt throwing his entire living room set at his television, especially when Lita was looking right into the camera while giving part of her promo, something that wrestlers are normally encouraged not to do. In the recent past, when they've had Edge and Lita interact backstage on the air, even if Edge was making a serious point, I could never take him seriously. Now the fans are REALLY going to be pissed at them, especially since the two of them seem to be licking and sucking on each other's faces on camera fairly often now. Granted, they've had a lot of practice, but now they're getting paid to do on air what they were doing in private before.

Who says wrestling is always dull?

May Rolls On

2005-05-15T00:10:00.000-04:00

Whew...just got back about an hour and a half ago from a gig up in Perrysburg, a semi-private affair that's a benefit of some sort and is always a fun show. Kind of a different line up for us tonight in a way...Lewie and Bruce (we're the only band in the world with too many bass players) weren't able to make it, so Tom "Seefari" Carroll, who's pretty much our seventh member, filled in on bass. We were only on for about an hour, but it was still a good show. If you're really interested, I'll start indicating our setlists at the end of these entries. :)

For those of you who might not know him, Tom's a pretty successful reggae musician from Dayton. He's amazingly versatile (he plays guitar, bass, keyboards, and can sing and do dancehall with the best of them), blends social consciousness and positive vibes with roots and culture reggae and dancehall, and is one of the nicest people I've ever had the fortune to meet in my years in the business. Big ups to you, Tom...you help us take our shows to the next level. Do yourself a favor and visit his website (www.seefari.com), and check him out sometime.

The weather's been unsure if it wants to be sunny or rainy up here. Today started out really gray and drizzly, and finished by being very sunny, but with a slight spring chill in the air. Tomorrow I'm going to go take part in the Toledo Humane Society's Walk for the Animals. I think it's supposed to be a bit chilly out, but hey...it's a good cause. My aunt volunteers up there, and she's giving me a $100 sponsorship, so that certainly helps too. And, aside from all that, despite the fact that I've become a lot more caustic in the past few months, I still have a weak spot for furry critters. The walk's only a mile and a half, so my ankle should be ok, at least, and I've updated my Ipod with some new walking tunes.

Peace out to all. I'll be back again at some point.

Songs listened to today:

Oceanlab: "Satellite"
Phish: "First Tube"
Ornella Vanoni: "L'appuntamento"
The Heptones: "Jah Bless the Children"
John Brown's Body: "Eyes of the Maker"
Bob Marley and the Wailers: "Ride Natty Ride"
Tekken 5 soundtrack: "Formless Like Water"
Togo Project: "Sana Morette Ne Ente"
Pink Floyd: "Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2"
Cream: "I'm So Glad"

Groovemaster setlist:

"Guess Who's Coming to Dinner"
"Stir It Up"
"96 Degrees in the Shade"
"No Woman No Cry"
"My Number One"
"Waiting In Vain"

Live at the Technicolor Ball

2005-05-07T23:44:00.000-04:00

One of the things I enjoy the most about summer is that Groovemaster's gig schedule picks up quite a bit. The money doesn't hurt, of course, but for the life of me, there's nothing quite like playing a show and totally losing myself in the music and having fun.

Tonight's show was something that we've done the past few years...the Toledo Arts Commission's Technicolor Ball fundraiser. I don't know the particulars of it, but I do know that it's usually a fun event where other musicians get the chance to play as well, and where bands actually get to eat (more on that another time). We were on from 8:30 until about 9:45, and I think I can safely say that we tore it up. Aside from our drummer/singer starting in the wrong key briefly during a song, and our bass player forgetting the line to another for a bit, we did great. We get to do it again tomorrow, since we're playing a friend's graduation party in Perrysburg from 1-3 pm. That one's going to be an outdoors show, which makes the experience--at least for me--even more enjoyable.

For the record, here's my band's lineup (the first instrument indicated is what we play live). Groovemaster is:

1) Gaylord "Drummie" Richardson--drums, lead vox, saxophones, guitar, percussion
2) Lewis "Uncle Lewie" Simpson--bass, keyboards, drums, backing vox, percussion
3) Joey "Gitsy" Swora (yours truly)--guitar, bass, backing vox, percussion
4) Bruce "Bassie" McLaughlin--bass, keyboards, percussion
5) Tim "Rasta" Hunter--guitar, keyboards, lead/backing vox, bass, percussion
6) Alfred "Bongo" Nicholson--percussion, moves

If anyone ever reads this, check my profile for my contact info, and if you're in the Northwest Ohio area, come see us play. I promise you you'll get a good show and some uplifting music.

Songs listened to today:

Maharishi: "Sonic Breeze"
Smashing Pumpkins: "Rhinoceros"
Smashing Pumpkins: "Bullet With Butterfly Wings"
Weezer: "The Sweater Song"
Ini Kamoze: "Trouble You a Trouble Me"
Maurice Ravel: "Bolero"
10 CC: "Dreadlock Holiday"
Bob Marley and the Wailers: "So Much Things to Say"
The Meditations: "Babylon Trap Them"
Triumph the Insult Comic Dog: "Little Roundworm"
Triumph the Insult Comic Dog: "Blackwolf"
Muddy Waters: "Goin' Down Slow"

The March of Dimes, T-Town, and Snow in Late April

2005-04-24T23:02:00.000-04:00

Every so often, a few friends and I will get together for what we call Guys' Weekend, and pretty much give ourselves a weekend of doing absolutely nothing except chillin out, catching up, and anything else that catches our fancy. Despite the title, it's not as macho as it sounds...we usually end up playing a LOT of a board game called Settlers of Catan, watch sports (in this case, we watched the NFL draft, and were all surprised when the Lions took Mike Williams), eat lots of Doritos, and play some wallyball if we can. There's at least 4 or 5 of us that do this every few months or so, and someone different hosts it each time so we get a little location variety too.

This weekend, we were staying at our friend Matt's place in Toledo (T-Town to us locals), which was extra-convenient for him, since he has a family (and a VERY patient wife named Lina for putting up with our troll-like laughter all weekend long). Aside from some excellent games of wallyball on Saturday morning, we were also all participating in the March of Dimes walk that took place this morning at 9 am in downtown. Matt and Lina's son Ethan was born almost 4 months early, and despite some dicey early times, he's doing awesome, and raising some money and participating in the walk seemed like a good way to spread some positive vibrations to others.

Little did we know that, despite it being April 28th, we were going to nailed with a snowstorm, of all things. It was cold and rainy when we got to Matt's on Friday, and the temp kept going down from there. When I woke up this morning, there was several inches on the ground, and the temp was about 34 degrees or so. Makes a 3-mile walk in downtown Toledo all the more fun. Cold really doesn't bother me that much, thankfully, but the wind wasn't fun, and my ankle went gimpy on me about halfway through it. It's all for a good cause, though, and Matt and Lina are dear friends to me (had I gotten married, Matt would have been one of the groomsmen), so it was all good. I was glad to get off my feet, though. Here's hoping that I don't get sick from it. :)

Songs listened to today:

James Taylor: "Fire and Rain"
Harry Chapin: "30,000 Pounds of Bananas"
Everlast: "What It's Like"
Maroon 5: "This Love"
Sly and the Family Stone: "If You Want Me to Stay"
311 and Shaq: "Psycho"
Gordon Lightfoot: "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"
Faith No More: "Woodpecker From Mars"
Pearl Jam: "I Got Id"
REM: "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?"
Chronic Future: "Time and Time Again"
The Blasters: "Dark Night"

ABD at long last...now what?

2005-04-18T19:03:00.000-04:00

After 11 months of extremely painful effort, sacrifice, and losing my mind, I finally passed my dissertation proposal around 12:40 pm today.

The defense was actually pretty low-key, and not as intimidating as the experiences that other friends of mine have gone through. For those that might be unfamiliar with the process, before I can start writing my dissertation, I had to defend my proposal to my committee, essentially answering any final questions they have on the study and methods that I'm planning on doing. Now that I've gotten past this, I'm considered ABD (All But Dissertating) and an official candidate for a doctoral degree. I wasn't as nervous going into it today as I thought I might be, although I attribute this largely to the fact that I've stopped caring for the most part about the document and degree.

Now I really am at a crossroads of sort. Those that know me are well aware of the fact that I'm giving serious consideration to throwing in the towel on my Phd, and that it's taken a pretty heavy toll on me in a lot of ways. Some have raised a valid argument that I've come this far and may as well finish it. Others have said that if it's not really fulfilling me on a personal and practical level anymore, it might not be worth it. Sometime in the next few weeks I'm going to have to decide exactly what I want to do.

I'm also enjoying my first case of the hiccups in years. They're strong enough that some of them actually kind of hurt, and I'm trying desperately to remember what the remedies are.

Songs listened to today:

Dire Straits: "Six Blade Knife"
Glenmore Brown: "Leggo the Herb Man"
The Mighty Diamonds: "Pass Di Kutchie"
Rage Against the Machine: "I'm Housin'"
The Doors: "Roadhouse Blues"
George Clinton and P-Funk: "Flashlight"
Twilight Circus Dub Sound System: "Wareika"
Peter Broggs: "Jah Voice is Calling"
Rising Lion: "Who Feel It"

Finally updating...

2005-04-13T22:15:00.000-04:00

How about that...I'm back at long last. Part of my intention when I created this blog was to have a good outlet for me to procrastinate with...and then I go and try to be hard-working again. How about that...

Today's been one of those days where I feel like I'm standing on the threshold of something new, some new direction, something along those lines. This isn't really a revelation to me...on May 7th, I'll be leaving my current job at the University due to the funding for my position not being renewed, so I'm digging through the job market again. I'm hoping to get my dissertation proposal defended sometime in the next week or two. I'm finally emotionally over my ex-fiancee, but unhappy at being single again.

One thing I'm definitely glad for is sunnier weather...I sometimes think I'm mildly reactive to seasonal weather changes, and my demeanor is always better in late spring and throughout the summer. Today I was outside a lot, helping out at a youth rally in Toledo with an organization I'm a proud affiliate of (the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, or FLOC, http://www.floc.com/), and I was catching up with some old friends that I see infrequently, and not-so subtlely pimping my job skills while seeing if they knew of any openings I'd be interested in. I actually did get some good connections and leads to follow up on, which I'm grateful to them for.

But all of this led to an almost tangible feeling of some unknown but new chapter waiting for me right around the corner. It's not a scary thought, and not completely daunting either...but still an awareness that commands my attention nonetheless.

Enough rambling for now...I'm pretty sore and tired from wallyball tonight--all the more so since I got sucker-punched by an ex-girlfriend during the game. She didn't mean to get me like she did, but it certainly sucked nonetheless.

Songs listened to today:

Queen--"Bohemian Rhapsody"
Led Zeppelin--"The Ocean" and "Living Loving Maid"
The Allman Brothers--"You Don't Love Me"
Cream--"I'm So Glad"
Daft Punk--"Around the World"
Rage Against the Machine--"Know Your Enemy"
Buckshot LeFonque--"Some Cow Fonque (More Tea, Vicar?)"
Armin Van Buuren--"Burned With Desire"
Matthew Wilder--"Break My Stride"

Music, part the second

2005-03-06T20:56:00.000-05:00

One of the fondest memories I have of my early days with a guitar was my intent on proving myself to be one of the club, even if my playing skills weren't really that good. In other words, I wanted to at least SOUND like I knew what I was doing, and at the same time I was teaching myself the instrument, I set about learning the jargon with a passion. I'd pick up issues of Guitar World, Guitar Player, and pretty much any guitar catalog so I could start learning names and characteristics of styles and brands of guitar, what electronics would do what, what certain types of wood sounded like, and so forth. I have to admit that doing all that actually paid off, since being conversant with the intricacies of buying and playing and maintaining instruments is something I'm fairly good at now. :) I'm the proud owner of 5 gorgeous guitars now, along with a pretty good amp and some groovy little boxes to help me get some cool squeaks and squonks out of all of it. Here's my obligatory list of what I have:

1) 1990 Fender Concord II acoustic guitar, named "Jimmy": this is my aforementioned first guitar, named after Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. Thankfully, I didn't emulate his lifestyle habits too.

2) 1996 Estrada nylon-string guitar, named "Minerva": I got this groovy little guitar for $20 at a market in Guadalajara, Mexico, and it's actually a good-sounding instrument, considering the price. I bought it largely because I wanted another guitar, and also because the person I was rooming with on the trip (the son of the professor that led the 2-month trip there) started seeing one of the girls traveling with us. They were spooning and incessantly cute and cuddly ALL the damn time, so the guitar helped me ignore them; if I got annoyed with them, I just started playing badly.

3) 2001 Fender Standard Stratocaster, named "Wallace": Before I bought this guitar, I'd had to trade in my old Stratocaster for a Samick, which I didn't like at all. Figuring that I may as well upgrade my equipment now that I was in Groovemaster (and we play more than enough shows to have my instruments pay for themselves), I bought this instrument. It's got an insanely warm tone to it both clean and overdriven, and I tend to use it more for blues/R and B stuff. I had my tech modify with extra switching, which gave it even more killer tone, and it's got a cool dark blue finish that looks purple under certain lighting. Poetry reference alert--since it's a blue guitar, I named it after Wallace Stevens, who wrote a poem I like called "The Man With the Blue Guitar."

http://www.geegaw.com/stories/the_man_with_the_blue_guitar.shtml

4) 2002 Fender "Fat Strat" Stratocaster, named "Jennifer": As much as I love my Standard Strat, it didn't quite have the crisp tone that I really wanted for playing reggae, so I went back to the store and bought the Fat. This guitar is my main axe live, especially with Groovemaster; it's got a very crisp, clean, clear tone, and is perfect for reggae. On the occasions I get to satisfy my jones for playing funk, this is the instrument I go to as well. I had this one modified with the same extra switching as the other Strat, and had new, hotter pickups installed, and revel in the tone to this very day. As for the naming reference--well, I still think fondly of my first ever girlfriend Jennifer, and although we parted on good terms and I haven't seen her in years, I still hope she's doing well. Naming a guitar for her seemed like a nice tribute from myself.

5) 2005 Fender 1960's reissue Telecaster (no name yet): About a month and a half ago, when my ex-fiancee dropped the bombshell that she was breaking our engagement (completely out of the blue), I felt lower than I'd ever felt before--and truth be told, I'm still getting over it somewhat. When we were engaged, one thing I'd always liked the thought of was the fact that I was going to turn 30 in February and enjoy the prospect of getting married at long last. When that ended, I was fortunate enough to get a full refund on what I'd paid on the ring so far, and I figured that with my birthday approaching, I'd get a new guitar as a birthday/consolation present for myself. Hence, my new Telecaster. I like to think that if it turns on me, I'll at least have some awareness of when it's coming and why.

6) 2001 Fender Ultimate Chorus combo amplifier: I got this amp at the same time that I got my blue Stratocaster, and have never regretted it. Good sound and surprisingly warm tone considering it's a solid-state amp (tube snobs take heed of this), and it's taken a beating but kept on playing in my four years of ownership.

7) My effect pedals: I've accrued an ok amount of pedals over the years, mostly because I'm forever tweaking my sound and trying to figure out new flavors and textures that I can work in to Groovemaster's music, as well as other stuff. I've got, along with the three-effect box that came with my amp, a Digitech Whammy pedal; a DOD stereo chorus pedal, a Seymour Duncan decibel booster pedal, a Dunlop Crybaby wah-wah pedal, and a Danelectro 7-band EQ box.

And there you have it. Since I'm self-taught, I'm definitely not the most technically proficient guitar player around, but I like to think that I'm ok at what I do. Most of all, I always have fun playing, and always put forth my best effort to ensure the audience enjoys what they hear. And if they don't......actually, my lawyer said I can't discuss that. :)

A bit more about me and music...

2005-03-03T21:29:00.000-05:00

Music has become something so meaningful to me that it's almost frightening, whether I'm playing with my band Groovemaster (check my links and click on Tiny Lion Music...that's our little record label) or just listening to something. In recent days, this has become especially true, as I try to pull myself back together emotionally after my now-ex-fiancee broke our engagement out of the blue about a month and a half ago.

I've been playing guitar for about 15 years now, although I wanted to be a drummer first, and I'd been raised with music as a constant presence in my life. My father was/is a professional classical musician, and has forgotten more about music than I'll likely ever learn. Cool note about my dad...he even played with the Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler, and got to share a stage with Victor Borge once (and if you don't know who these two entities are, run, don't walk to a good record store and have a listen). His primary instrument is the double (upright) bass, although he could play at one time pretty much everything I could think of. From him, I grew up hearing lots of classical--my first music memory, now that I think of it, is Beethoven's 5th Symphony, and not from the use of it in Looney Tunes, either. Lots of classical, with some old big band as well...Charlie Parker, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Glenn Miller, and other great groups.

My mother doesn't play an instrument, but her enjoyment of music isn't any less than mine or Dad's. Mom came of age during the rock and roll boom, however, so her tastes are kind of far apart from Dad...through Mom, I heard lots of 50's and 60's rock and roll, and a good dose of folk as well. At home, the rule was that you don't insult The Rolling Stones or Bob Dylan within earshot of my mother. So I'm a rock junkie as well.

Like I said, I wanted to be a drummer, which came to me when I was about 14 or so, and watching Led Zeppelin's movie The Song Remains the Same. By the time John Bonham started his 20-minute drum solo "Moby Dick" (which, for you trivia buffs, was a tribute to Cream's drummer Ginger Baker and his solo "Toad"), I was convinced that I wanted to be a drummer. So I went up to Dad, figuring he was the logical first choice to tell about my newfound instrument, and when he heard I wanted to learn drums, he said, "No way in hell." Although I had visions of myself being a funky version of Gene Krupa or Buddy Rich, he didn't want the noise in the house. Now that I'm older, although I hate to say it, I can see where he was coming from.

Chastened, the urge to start playing guitar didn't come about for another few months, until--naturally--I was watching The Song Remains the Same again. This time, however, the epiphany was different, and I can still remember when it occurred...sometime around the 4-minute mark in the band's 27-minute version of "Dazed and Confused," when Jimmy Page ripped into his first solo.

So back I went to Dad, convinced that I'd found the instrument I really wanted to play. To my surprise, he said yes, although rather than buy me the cheap electric and amp I thought I could learn on, he said I would have to learn on acoustic, so I could train my fingers and my ear better. For Christmas that year (1990), I got my first guitar, a Fender Concord II acoustic that I still own and play, and although it's taken a beating, I still love it.

Part two of this entry coming up in a bit.

Doing what I love to do...play music live!

2005-03-03T20:09:00.000-05:00

Playing a gig at Howard's Club H here in BG with my band, Groovemaster. This is actually from a couple of years ago...I'm pretty camera shy, and the only time I don't really mind it is when I'm playing with the band. This, of course, infuriates my mother to no end.

This show was a benefit for a talented and frighteningly gifted friend of mine named Gabiel Marquez, who was badly injured in a car crash. In what was an amazing show of support and love for him, several people put together a benefit show at Howard's to help defray his medical costs, and to send him some positive vibrations. Gabiel continues to heal, and we continue to wish him well.

For the record, I'm pretty sure I'm playing an inversion of a G major chord in this picture.