The following are some random thoughts I posted a group of friends in May 2006.
1. I surfed through the channels and bumped into American (shiftless when) Idle. In short, Taylor is a double-chinned, bland-faced, gray-haired, no-discernable talent except SINGING! (cue John Lovitz) mirror-star and has no stage presence whatsoever except to be able to mince back and forth aimlessly while glancing scared at the camera in a stiff/forced effort to "make eye-contact." Didn't see the girl except her pic on USA Today: pretty (like millions of others).
2. James B. Johnson, III, you are the best.
3. Bob Rupe's new outfit, Horsehead, has a new CD out. I don't have it yet. Butt-kissing review to follow.
4. I'm reading a 2005 Babe Ruth book currently. It is good but not required reading.
5. Eddie O'Brien and I agree that Phillip Roth's Great American Novel is close to just that.
6. Eddie, Bobby Tak, Ian/Rusty Hammond, and I drove to Tallahassee. So did Jeff Schweir, Karen Wideen, and Ian's girlfriend. Ian barbeque-d for most everyone. We played some songs. Ian, Eddie, and Bobby played very well--covering up the fact that I sucked (and hogged the microphones). Bobby did an amusing James Brown cape/wrestling-like trick with a guitar. I did some not-amusing, ugly, unfortunately, mostly scripted, stage patter. Didn't notice that my amp was on 3 and 1/2 volume until next-to-last song. Even more mad at myself. Bizarreness happened before, during, and after the show. (Is it possible for events to be bizarre and banal at the same time? 'Cuz this was). Everybody was nice to me. "And that's all I've got to say about that." Forrest Gump.
7. Mets got Orlando Hernandez. Hope he has a good year. His curve ball sure does move.
8. Jill DeFinis: If you decide to go to The Supersuckers, I will see you there. Going with my boss, his wife, and Penny. Romantics--white pants--Ha! Does anyone remember Coz Canler of Tight Squeeze? He is still in the Romantics, I believe.
9. Bob Mascaro: You are the best, too.
10. Ford Excursions really do roll over folks. We saw one Sunday. Ugly. Stuff from inside the SUV strewn all over the ground--looked like a yard sale smacked by a sudden windstorm--clothes scattered every which way. The Excursion--purely bad--they might have survived and they might not have. I like Fords but not that one.
11. Went to Boston area with Ty's safety patrol group about three weeks ago. With our NY-centered group (Jill D excluded), it is easy to overlook the birthplace of the American Revolution. Your life WILL NOT be complete until you go to the north bridge at Concord and reflect on the courage of the Massachusetts farmers who poured out from their comfortable homes on the early morning of April 19, 1775 to risk their lives and fortunes fighting the most formidable army in the world for freedom and independence.
12. Also got a tour of Fenway Park where those despicable Bosox conduct their obscene rituals. Longest ball hit there was by a fellow named Ted Williams. ??? Longest grandstanding-admiration-of-homer was by M. ("Mr. ADD") Ramirez.
13. Eddie, Tak, and I discussed contemporary political and social issues for approx. 15 hours this past weekend at Expedition House. White paper to follow in short order. Eddie will be filing a dissenting report on Les Pauls through Marshalls.
14. One bright moment of Tallahassee debacle: I babbled into the mic that, whoever could identify the original "author" of the lines I pilfered for In The Wilderness (the line, "Let us cross the river, rest up in the trees"), would get $500 from the barmaid. Once guy shouts out, "Stonewall Jackson's last words!" Right. Only in the South. The barmaid welched though.
15. I got two Delta Moon CDs. Atlanta band. Purported to be bluesy (and artful at it). They suck--insufficient testosterone. Next up, Drive-By Truckers based on Lindahl's recommendation. I looked at their packaging--real cool cartoons of zombies, graveyards, alcohol, low-rent debauchery, etc. But they appear to be involved in the always-fatally-flawed three-guitar lineup, a bad sign.
16. Stopped and saw brothers, Jack and Frank, last weekend on the way to Tally. Jack married young and had two kids. Then divorced and married a lady with three kids (total five). Then her sister died (in March 2006) and they've taken in her four (total nine kids). Their house is about 1,300 sq. feet "under air." Yeow! Bros. are building onto the gun shop and building a spec house. Expanding Jack's house is next, they say. Dragged Eddie, Bobby, and Ian into Newberry to meet two of my "most worthy" brothers. Carl was not there--doing the good deed of driving Dad and Mom to Ohio.
17. Dad's lung operation was pretty rough. The recovery too. But he is getting better and he and Mom are back up in Ohio for the summer. I plan to go up to Jorma's long-weekend guitar camp in early fall. David Lindley's class was filled up so I might go back to re-take Guy Davis's Piedmont blues class (that I failed last summer). If you want to puruse (sp?) it, punch "Furpeace Ranch" into the internet.
18. "Don't try out nice guitars" is rule 279b of the Modern American Male Guidebook. I unwisely challenged that rule in early April and succumbed to a 57 Custom Shop Les Paul Goldtop. Put it on layaway when times were good.
Then April 15 came and brought with it a $6,000 tax bill/payment. I eventually diverted enough money from my paycheck away from wife Penny's ever-vigilent eyes to pay the guitar off (total, about $2,775 w/sales tax), then found out that I can't play it at volume (read, wide-open loud). The sustain never stops and each string's volume seems to be "equal" so I have to dampen strings with the palm of my right hand to slow them down or make them stop. I love the rest of the guitar though; deep neck, beautifully exact intonation and fret-touch and finger-feedback. Thought I'd have great fun with it, but so far, not. Maybe it's my of-late pissy attitude in general.
19. Food for thought: Kevin McIver is the only constant between the beautiful work of The Bobs and DT Martyrs (latter lineup). Hmmm.