Posted in Uncategorized

Li’l Herb Alpert Junior

I’m scared. Really scared. Today, Junior takes his first trumpet lesson. Are you listening? Trumpet. Meaning he has to practice. In my house.

Flash back a billion years ago to the year 1976. Little Jody B went to a presentation by the music teacher about all the different band instruments available to the kids at Priest Street School. And Little Jody B chose….the trumpet. Well, I wanted to play the coronet, but the school rental instruments didn’t have one, only a slightly dinged-up trumpet. So for two years, I took trumpet lessons at school, the highlight of which was my solo performance at the annual talent show of the Carpenter’s song “Close to You.” My mom still speaks in awed tones of the brilliance of my performance, and her disappointment that we didn’t continue on with the trumpet when I moved up to junior high, because I wanted to take chorus and you couldn’t do both.

I’m still scared that a 10 year old boy will be practicing trumpet in my house. I remember what my first weeks were like 31 or so years ago. (Good Lord! 31?) It wasn’t pretty.

Share
Posted in Uncategorized

My Friend is a Prize-Winning Animator

My friend Andrea entered a contest to make a video for the Jonathan Coulton song “I Feel Fantastic” over at the PopSci (Popular Science) blog. She is not an animator, and I actually helped her out a smidge by forwarding a list of Mac animation software links. This is my only claim to fame related to her endevor.

She won the contest, and her fabulously fantastic video is available on YouTube.

Share
Posted in Uncategorized

Are You Ready for Leon?

In preparation for Leon (the anti-Noel, duh, June 25th), I stumbled upon some podcasts on iTunes of some awesomely collectible Christmas music in the form of podcasts. I’m busy grabbing as much of it as I can to burn to CD for next Christmas, on the off chance it isn’t here in 6 months.

My greatest find of the day is “Alan Parsons in a Winter Wonderland.” I don’t know if the artist is a fan or not, but I suspect he is. Either way, it’s bloody fantastic. Look up the podcast “B-Sides for X-mas” and just try to not download the whole damned lot of ’em.

I think I’m going to call my sister and ask her if she wants to have a Leon party this year. I think it could be pretty darned fun.

Share
Posted in Uncategorized

When You Have 2 Hours to Think

I had the really pleasant “2 hours to drive what normally takes 40 minutes” commute this morning. People, if you can’t drive in the snow, stay home and let the rest of us get to work. Of course, I have four new tires on my van, so I’m feeling a little better about driving in bad weather. Nothing like fresh treads to take your mind of hydroplaning. Not that I’m a risky driver; I most certainly am not. But there was nothing out on 117 today that should have caused it to back up the way it did. Someone is to blame, and when I find that person, I am going to give him/her SUCH an Indian burn!

Oh wait, is it politically incorrect to call it an Indian burn? I’m sorry. I meant no disrespect. Do tell, dear readers…what is the politically correct way to refer to an Indian burn?

So while I was stuck in the car for two hours, I had some kind of great idea for what to talk about today, but somehow I forgot what it was. I could make something up, but it wouldn’t be the great thing that I thought of. You know, the great thing that would catapult me to the top of the personal website heap. Make ME blogging queen 2007. But I can’t remember what it was. So I continue to flounder in obscurity. In 11 years of doing this, can’t I be the queen at least once?

Other ordinary stuff:
Video Game Review: Sonic and the something something for Wii: I haven’t played the game-game (sorry!) but I have played the really great bunch of party games a la Mario Party. In fact, I like them better than Mario Party 7. I’ve heard Mario Party 8 (due out soon?) isn’t what it could be. So A- for Sonic’s party games, or what I’ve seen of it so far. [Note: If you buy this at Target it comes with an exclusive DVD with a Sonic Comic book on it. We took a look and it’s not worth buying just for that, unless the Target price is lower than wherever else you shop.]

Music: John Mayer Continuum A. I love it. Mr. Dump loves it. What more do you need?

Share
Posted in Uncategorized

It’s a Christmas Miracle!

No, I didn’t get the same parking space today. That was yesterday’s Christmas Miracle. Today’s is the discovery of a website with links to some of the most obscure, fantastic and totally downloadable Christmas music EVER. You doubt me? Well, they have the Snap-On Male Chorus’s Christmas Album “Carols of Christmas”. Dude. DUDE. Do you already have a copy of Charo doing “Donde Esta Santa Claus? No? Then shut up!

http://easydreamer.blogspot.com/2006/11/christmas-audio-2006.html

Lists them by title, click the link to go to the site where you can download them. Don’t forget to come back to thank me while you’re listening to “Les Djinnes Singers – 60 French Girls with the Christmas Bell Ringers-Joyeaux Noel.”

Wow, I have some downloading to do. Foo, this post is dedicated to you.

Share