Showing posts with label local news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label local news. Show all posts
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Bill Cosby @ Nicola's Part 1: Na Na Na We're Gonna Have a Good Time
I had a bit of an adventure the other day, but that 1 will have to wait until tomorrow as I have 2 more coming up early this week before a 3rd on Wed. On Monday, I have a dentist appointment which wouldn't normally count as an adventure, but w/ this sweet sweet clip, it seems an appropriate inclusion on this post. What do I have to get done? I need to get a broken tooth fixed which could end in a root canal. I hope to avoid that, but regardless, the real awesome is to come Tues. evening as we have American pop-culture legend Bill Cosby coming to Nicola's for a signing @ 7:00. His people called the store to set up an event in Detroit but then called back & said he would be in the store instead. I'm sooo freaking excited! If you plan to come, you should know that he'll only be signing his new book (so leave your Pudding Pops box & Betamax copy of Uptown Saturday Night @ home), he won't be reading, & he won't be posing for pics w/ people. I imagine it'll be huge, but you can get a line ticket number in advance. I would think that if you have a number, you needn't get there until 6:30 or so. I saw him on Letterman a couple weeks ago, & he was still fantastic. I'll have to hit Value World & see if I can score a nice cozy Cosby sweater for the evening. Here are a few videos, the first of which is from his concert, Bill Cosby: Himself, in which he discusses dentists.Dad is Great!
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Neko & My Morning Jacket
1) Meadowbrook is pretty awesome. I need to go there more often. It's a lot closer than Pine knob & it's small & intamate.
2) Neko Case is awesome. She's smart, & beautiful, & interesting, & she has an amazing voice.
3) I wish Neko Case had been able to play a longer set.
4) Beer is better @ Meadowbrook than Pine Knob... & cheaper.
5) A thin blanket to sit on was a good idea, but a thinner one to keep us warm might have been a good idea.
6) I wish they didn't have the lights @ the top of the hill so we could have seen the stars better.
Neko played 6 or 7 songs. They came out & there were sound problems so they went back stage for another 10 minutes. When things were straightened out, she & her band rocked for a half hour or so. My Morning Jacket then came out & kind of blew us away. I'd been told by people on The Phil Zone that they might be the best live act since The Q. Well, that's a bit ridiculous, but they were definitely good. And the light show was absolutely stellar. They played for about 2 hours plus a 5 song encore (which included a duet w/ Neko on "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around"):
2. Circuital
3. You Wanna Freak Out
4. Off The Record
5. I'm Amazed
6. Anytime
7. Lowdown
8. Wonderful (The Way I Feel)
9. Slow Slow Tune
10. Lay Low
11. Dondante
12. Gideon
13. Smokin From Shootin
14. (end of) Run Thru
15. First Light
16. Touch me I'm Going To Scream Pt.2
17. Touch me I'm Going To Scream Pt.1
18. War Begun
----------
19. Wordless Chorus
20. The Day Is Coming
21. Stop Draggin My Heart Around
22. Holdin On To Black Metal
23. One Big Holiday
They can definitely rock, & Jim James definitely has a touch of the Ronnie James Dio in his stage persona. They also clearly wear their influences on their sleeves, but unlike so many hippie bands, theirs seem a lot more varied. And they are kind of dark... like the darkest moments of a YEM jam blown out for 20 minutes, or some dark Pink Floyd stuff... plus The Faces & Kiss all wrapped into one weird ass thing. I gotta say, I dug them.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Feather Bowling & Fábregas
For the b-day girls (Solstice & Elizabeth), we went out to eat @ The Cadieux Cafe last night. The food was good & the feather bowling was super fun. All 3 of my kids got the "Chicken Finger Club Sandwich," a huge bun w/ chicken & bacon. They all loved it. Seeing as it's a Belgian place, I got the Peter Paul Reuben (as did Dan). It was good, ranking maybe 3rd or 4th on my all-time list of Reubens. Elizabeth & my parents all got the all-you-can-eat mussels. They were good too. All-in-all, I'd say the drive to the East Side of Detroit would be worth it just for the food... even if they didn't have Feather Bowling. For those of you not in the know, it's kind of like curling got its chocolate in shuffle board's peanut butter. There's a long lane kind of like bowling, but it's dirt & concave. At either end, there's a feather sticking out of the dirt & the players roll cheese shaped "stones" towards it, & the closest ones get the points. We played boys v girls & since it was their b-days, we let the girls win. We're nice like that.
In other "F" news, Cesc Fábregas finally signed w/ Barcelona ending an 8 year run in N. London. He was the Arsenal captain for his last 2 years, & it's generally understood that he was given the captaincy in an attempt to convince him to stay put. Well, it's clear that it didn't work. He was great though, & he represents the rare occasion when a player leaves because he actually really wants to play for a specific team... & who can blame him. He was raised in Barcelona, he came up through their academy, & they're the current European Champions... maybe I should make a move from Verde to Barcelona. We'll see if it's in the cards. Here's a fun collection of pics from The Guardian celebrating his years @ Arsenal: Cesc Fábregas's Arsenal career - in pictures.
Making his 1st team debut against Rotherham United: 28 October 2003
In other "F" news, Cesc Fábregas finally signed w/ Barcelona ending an 8 year run in N. London. He was the Arsenal captain for his last 2 years, & it's generally understood that he was given the captaincy in an attempt to convince him to stay put. Well, it's clear that it didn't work. He was great though, & he represents the rare occasion when a player leaves because he actually really wants to play for a specific team... & who can blame him. He was raised in Barcelona, he came up through their academy, & they're the current European Champions... maybe I should make a move from Verde to Barcelona. We'll see if it's in the cards. Here's a fun collection of pics from The Guardian celebrating his years @ Arsenal: Cesc Fábregas's Arsenal career - in pictures.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Local Bookstores
For those of you living under rocks, in caves, or on the moon, here's a little piece of info you've been missing (for the rest of you, I'm sure you're aware of this already): Borders Books & Music is closing this week. They took the first steps towards liquidation last week. It's been an iconic A2 store since 1971, but 40 years on, they had overstepped their bounds. I worked there for a few years about 10 years back, & the downtown #1 store was fantastic. It was always crowded, the selection was great, & the employees really knew the inventory. I made a few friends there that I still run into around town too. It's sad to see it go, but I must admit, I hadn't bought anything there in quite a while. My recent avoidance of the store wasn't for the reasons the media has been reporting though. It has more to do w/ a general avoidance of corporate stuff like that.
The news is all about the competition from Amazon. However, no brick & mortar store will ever compete w/ a web-site so when they started trying to do that, they were setting themselves up for failure. Discounted prices, focusing on best-sellers, constant expansion, & a shift towards non-book stuff compounded to bring about this less-than-sudden change. As a Monday morning quarterback, it's easy to say, "They should've done...." but it's not that simple. We're talking about the livelihoods of a lot of people. Of course, not as many per store as when I worked there, since the staff had been shrinking over the last 10 years. Had they maintained a staff that actually knew about books, rather than a skeleton crew of automatons, they may have been able to avoid the vacant sales floors & shrinking stock. There I go w/ the Monday morning quarterbacking though.
Hopefully, this will give people the kick in the ass they need to start supporting local businesses again. Malcolm X was talking about this issue in 1964. Of course, people scoffed @ him as a fringe lunatic. Kucinich has been talking about this for years... again w/ the Fringe lunatic status though. Be they grocery stores, coffee shops, book stores or what have you, I'm gonna go out on that same lunatic limb & remind you to start patronizing the local stuff.
Here's a fun little quote from Malcolm X for you:
You and I have to make a start and the best place to start is right in the community where we live. So our people not only have to be re-educated to the importance of supporting black business, but the black man himself has to be made aware of the importance of going into business. And once you and I go into business, we own and operate at least the businesses in our community. What we will be doing is developing a situation wherein we will actually be able to create employment for the people in the community. And once you can create some employment in the community where you live it will eliminate the necessity of you and me having to act ignorantly and disgracefully, boycotting and picketing some practice some place else trying to beg him for a job. Anytime you have to rely upon your enemy for a job - you’re in bad shape.
He's clearly talking about economics from a racial standpoint, but however we look @ it, the idea of keeping money in the community is @ heart of his claims. Whether we're shipping money to Arkansas, Minnesota, or SE Asia, it's leaving Michigan. Only by keeping it @ 'round these parts will we be able to employ the people 'round these parts. It will probably mean spending a little extra on a daily basis, but in the long run (be they books, vegetables, or cars) the products we buy here keep the cash here. This is the same argument we've been making for organic vegetables, for local farming, & for local restaurants for years. Only when one of the big boys goes under, do poele start paying attention though.
Is this really just a plug for Nicola's? No, but already, I've seen Borders employees in there looking for work. And as you start shopping locally, remember that I'll be moderating a Sci/Fi panel tomorrow @ Nicola's w/ Sarah Zettel, Jacqueline Carey, & Jim Hines (Sarah live in Ypsi & Jim is an EMU English Dept. grad). I've never moderated anything before, so you can come out tomorrow night & watch me trip over my words. It should be pretty cool.
The news is all about the competition from Amazon. However, no brick & mortar store will ever compete w/ a web-site so when they started trying to do that, they were setting themselves up for failure. Discounted prices, focusing on best-sellers, constant expansion, & a shift towards non-book stuff compounded to bring about this less-than-sudden change. As a Monday morning quarterback, it's easy to say, "They should've done...." but it's not that simple. We're talking about the livelihoods of a lot of people. Of course, not as many per store as when I worked there, since the staff had been shrinking over the last 10 years. Had they maintained a staff that actually knew about books, rather than a skeleton crew of automatons, they may have been able to avoid the vacant sales floors & shrinking stock. There I go w/ the Monday morning quarterbacking though.
Hopefully, this will give people the kick in the ass they need to start supporting local businesses again. Malcolm X was talking about this issue in 1964. Of course, people scoffed @ him as a fringe lunatic. Kucinich has been talking about this for years... again w/ the Fringe lunatic status though. Be they grocery stores, coffee shops, book stores or what have you, I'm gonna go out on that same lunatic limb & remind you to start patronizing the local stuff.
Here's a fun little quote from Malcolm X for you:
You and I have to make a start and the best place to start is right in the community where we live. So our people not only have to be re-educated to the importance of supporting black business, but the black man himself has to be made aware of the importance of going into business. And once you and I go into business, we own and operate at least the businesses in our community. What we will be doing is developing a situation wherein we will actually be able to create employment for the people in the community. And once you can create some employment in the community where you live it will eliminate the necessity of you and me having to act ignorantly and disgracefully, boycotting and picketing some practice some place else trying to beg him for a job. Anytime you have to rely upon your enemy for a job - you’re in bad shape.
He's clearly talking about economics from a racial standpoint, but however we look @ it, the idea of keeping money in the community is @ heart of his claims. Whether we're shipping money to Arkansas, Minnesota, or SE Asia, it's leaving Michigan. Only by keeping it @ 'round these parts will we be able to employ the people 'round these parts. It will probably mean spending a little extra on a daily basis, but in the long run (be they books, vegetables, or cars) the products we buy here keep the cash here. This is the same argument we've been making for organic vegetables, for local farming, & for local restaurants for years. Only when one of the big boys goes under, do poele start paying attention though.
Is this really just a plug for Nicola's? No, but already, I've seen Borders employees in there looking for work. And as you start shopping locally, remember that I'll be moderating a Sci/Fi panel tomorrow @ Nicola's w/ Sarah Zettel, Jacqueline Carey, & Jim Hines (Sarah live in Ypsi & Jim is an EMU English Dept. grad). I've never moderated anything before, so you can come out tomorrow night & watch me trip over my words. It should be pretty cool.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Weekend Adventures
On Saturday afternoon, after I watched Aiden's baseball game, I headed out to Saline to enjoy the annual Saline Celtic Festival. It was smaller & attended by far fewer people than past years, but we had a good time none-the-less. There was a lot of free hooch throughout the afternoon. After a glass of Glenfiddich @ the McPherson tent, I hit the beer tent for lunch. A less-than-stellar Reuben w/ a perfectly stellar Guinness was then followed by a few pitchers of Boddingtons w/ Daye & Pete. We checked out the festival some more & Zoli got a kilt before heading back to the beer tent for a second round & some music & dancing.
Afterwards, we hit Dominick's for dinner. Oddly, there doesn't seem to be a web-site for that place. I don't get it. If anyone finds one, be sure to post a link in the comments. There's a bland facebook page, a Yelp page, & an entry on Arborwiki, but no actual home page. I think that's kind of weird. According to the wiki page, the place was opened in 1959. Something that old should certainly have a site. I don't get it. Even w/o a web-site, they make a hell of a lobster ravioli. It was sooooo good. We also enjoyed a couple pitchers of sangria & a fantastic plate of olives. I used to dislike olives, but lately, I just can't get enough of them.
After dinner, we walked down to Tom's gallery for his one night only show. It was fun, Matt (Stephanie's brother) had a photo in the exhibit, & we got to enjoy some Run & Cokes. On the way back to the car, we hit Ashley's for a couple beers. It was only gonna be one, but as we were getting ready to go, the server said her manager recognized me as his former English Prof. & wanted to buy me a beer. who am I to turn that offer down. As a matter of fact, I feel I wasn't really turning anything down that night.
I then ended up @ The Tap Room to see Gerry, Warren, Shannon, & Laurie in their new band, Wellfire. They were really good & super fun. I promise some videos as soon as Warren uploads them. All in all, a fantastic day, & if I remember correctly, I feel like I may have had a few drinks too. Then to top it all off, I woke up on time for work Sunday morning w/o even a hint of a hangover... I probably should have bought a lottery ticket.
Afterwards, we hit Dominick's for dinner. Oddly, there doesn't seem to be a web-site for that place. I don't get it. If anyone finds one, be sure to post a link in the comments. There's a bland facebook page, a Yelp page, & an entry on Arborwiki, but no actual home page. I think that's kind of weird. According to the wiki page, the place was opened in 1959. Something that old should certainly have a site. I don't get it. Even w/o a web-site, they make a hell of a lobster ravioli. It was sooooo good. We also enjoyed a couple pitchers of sangria & a fantastic plate of olives. I used to dislike olives, but lately, I just can't get enough of them.
After dinner, we walked down to Tom's gallery for his one night only show. It was fun, Matt (Stephanie's brother) had a photo in the exhibit, & we got to enjoy some Run & Cokes. On the way back to the car, we hit Ashley's for a couple beers. It was only gonna be one, but as we were getting ready to go, the server said her manager recognized me as his former English Prof. & wanted to buy me a beer. who am I to turn that offer down. As a matter of fact, I feel I wasn't really turning anything down that night.
I then ended up @ The Tap Room to see Gerry, Warren, Shannon, & Laurie in their new band, Wellfire. They were really good & super fun. I promise some videos as soon as Warren uploads them. All in all, a fantastic day, & if I remember correctly, I feel like I may have had a few drinks too. Then to top it all off, I woke up on time for work Sunday morning w/o even a hint of a hangover... I probably should have bought a lottery ticket.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Skynyrd on the 4th
I've never been a big fan of the retro-rock extravaganza, but when I heard that Whitey & the 78s were opening for Skynyrd @ Pine Knob, it was just too cool to ignore. I didn't think I was actually gonna be able to go though, but then @ zero hour, Stacey came through w/ a sweet, sweet pair of free lawn tix. I met Liz & Dan @ my parents' place for some ribs & beans, then Dan & I were off to Clarkston. We picked up Bud Tall Boys from 7-11 & then started counting Stars-n-Bars... 38 by my count, including a Sharpee drawn fake tattoo on some douchebag's arm & a ridiculous full on flag pole on the tail gate of an old yellow pick-up.
We downed the Buds in the lot then headed in right as Whitey & the boys were starting "Bad News." They played for about 45 minutes... & in my humble opinion, they rocked it. I hope they're able to parley this into some other big stuff. When Skynyrd came out, I was a bit shocked by 2 things: 1) how many of their songs I actually knew & 2) how bad they are. I've never been a fan, but wow! We took off after about 45 minutes. We heard "What's Your Name," "Working for MCA," "Simple Man," & that one about "can't you smell that smell?" Apparently, the set-list had them closing w/ Sweet Home Alabama" & encoring w/ "Freebird," but there was no way we could make it that long.
As for the crowd? Good Lord! It was like the Secretary of State office on Meth. And so many of them were taking it sooo seriously. The "skanky-ass-ho" factor made the Springsteen show I went to last year look like Sunday School. They really came out of the woodwork to hear some Skynyrd. Ironically, Whitey played the Hell out of Pine Knob while the Skynyrd fans didn't really pay enough attention. I think they were able to appreciate them though. I definitely hope they were. Maybe they sold some CDs & swag too.
Dan in his Skynyrd costume
Rocking the Tall Boys
Whitey rocking out!
Skynyrd doing their schtick
We downed the Buds in the lot then headed in right as Whitey & the boys were starting "Bad News." They played for about 45 minutes... & in my humble opinion, they rocked it. I hope they're able to parley this into some other big stuff. When Skynyrd came out, I was a bit shocked by 2 things: 1) how many of their songs I actually knew & 2) how bad they are. I've never been a fan, but wow! We took off after about 45 minutes. We heard "What's Your Name," "Working for MCA," "Simple Man," & that one about "can't you smell that smell?" Apparently, the set-list had them closing w/ Sweet Home Alabama" & encoring w/ "Freebird," but there was no way we could make it that long.
As for the crowd? Good Lord! It was like the Secretary of State office on Meth. And so many of them were taking it sooo seriously. The "skanky-ass-ho" factor made the Springsteen show I went to last year look like Sunday School. They really came out of the woodwork to hear some Skynyrd. Ironically, Whitey played the Hell out of Pine Knob while the Skynyrd fans didn't really pay enough attention. I think they were able to appreciate them though. I definitely hope they were. Maybe they sold some CDs & swag too.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Lady Gaga's Sax Player?
I've seen Bruce Springsteen twice: once during a solo acoustic performance @ an Obama rally & once w/ the E-Street Band @ the Palace when selling books for Nicola's about a year & a half ago. (Here's the old Visions of Ypsi post about that night to refresh your memory... & mine.) That night, the book on hand was Big Man by the big man, Clarence Clemons. I never got to meet him but his people were really nice... & the show was fantastic (if a little canned). Along w/ playing w/ Springsteen & appearing in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure & on an episode of Diff'rent Strokes, he plays on a couple songs on Gaga's newest album, apparently. However, I'm not certain that that's enough to have the MTV article about his stroke (he suffered a stroke yesterday) mention Gaga before Springsteen. That's ridiculous. Do their fans/readers really know so little about music that they need to open w/ Lady Gaga? Give me a break. Now, I've never been a huge E Street Band fan, but let's give respect where it's due. Speaking of music (although this band hasn't suffered any strokes recently, knock on wood) Deep Space is playing @ the Crossroads Bar & Grill again this weekend. It would behoove y'all to come out & see them. My first Deep Space Six show was in March of 1996. Maybe yours should be in June of 2011... better late than never. We'll keep the Slayrides flowing for you. Oh, & in other non-stroke related music news, Dylan is playing Meadowbrook on August 7th... he only sounds like he had a stroke. Who's in?
Saturday, June 11, 2011
An Obligatory Post? Not Quite
So often, when talking about blogging, I hear people say they feel they're letting people down if they don't post on a regular basis. I know I don't have that problem because I don't have many readers to feel let down. On the other hand, I've also heard people say when they've gone a while w/o a post, they're less likely to post again. That's never been an issue here either, but I suppose sooner or later it will be. Each post reminds me that the time will come when there are no more posts; the time will come when I'm no longer a blogger. What this really means is that each post reminds me of my own mortality & brings me one step closer to realizing my death. Sein-zum-Tode is how Heidegger would have described it... being towards death.
That means we, as bloggers, must celebrate the little things like Aiden's Little League game. He was walked his first time up today & got a force-out at third base later. Earlier this week, he & I went camping @ Bishop Lake in Brighton w/ his class. It way well have been my first adult camping experience sans booze, & I didn't expect sleeping on the ground w/o a little buzz would be easy, but I slept really well. We had a good time, but it was cut a little short due to the rain. I met some of the parents of his classmates, & they're pretty cool. He was in a skit about the Greek Gods, he played soccer, baseball, & kickball, & we played some poker @ the tent. All in all, it was a good time.
Before camping, he & I went down to Ford Field to watch the US beat the Canadians 2-0 in the 1st match of the Gold Cup Group C group stage. It was an awesome time. We had fun taunting the silly Cannucks who made the trip across the border. Based on previous tournament experiences, I imagine they were just happy to be there. Although, I would say they went a bit far when they started singing a song about Tim Howard's (the US Goalie) Tourettes. I'm not always the most PC when it comes to soccer-related taunting, but that's going a little too far. Aiden was a little concerned about our use of certain words beginning w/ "F" & "S" but I made it clear that basic societal language norms aren't followed when attending a soccer match. If I can't yell things like "We've got Clint Dempsey, the one & only Dempsey, & you've got fuck all nothing!" then, what's the point of going?
In about an hour, the 2nd match of the Group C group stage will be starting. The USA will be playing Panama. It should be a good time. Although, I imagine the game itself won't be very good. It should be a walk in the park for the USMNT. (That's the hip Internet way of writing United States Men National Team, for those of you not in the hip Internet know). Tomorrow, Verde has a game @ 3:00... come on out & cheer us on.
That means we, as bloggers, must celebrate the little things like Aiden's Little League game. He was walked his first time up today & got a force-out at third base later. Earlier this week, he & I went camping @ Bishop Lake in Brighton w/ his class. It way well have been my first adult camping experience sans booze, & I didn't expect sleeping on the ground w/o a little buzz would be easy, but I slept really well. We had a good time, but it was cut a little short due to the rain. I met some of the parents of his classmates, & they're pretty cool. He was in a skit about the Greek Gods, he played soccer, baseball, & kickball, & we played some poker @ the tent. All in all, it was a good time.
Before camping, he & I went down to Ford Field to watch the US beat the Canadians 2-0 in the 1st match of the Gold Cup Group C group stage. It was an awesome time. We had fun taunting the silly Cannucks who made the trip across the border. Based on previous tournament experiences, I imagine they were just happy to be there. Although, I would say they went a bit far when they started singing a song about Tim Howard's (the US Goalie) Tourettes. I'm not always the most PC when it comes to soccer-related taunting, but that's going a little too far. Aiden was a little concerned about our use of certain words beginning w/ "F" & "S" but I made it clear that basic societal language norms aren't followed when attending a soccer match. If I can't yell things like "We've got Clint Dempsey, the one & only Dempsey, & you've got fuck all nothing!" then, what's the point of going?
In about an hour, the 2nd match of the Group C group stage will be starting. The USA will be playing Panama. It should be a good time. Although, I imagine the game itself won't be very good. It should be a walk in the park for the USMNT. (That's the hip Internet way of writing United States Men National Team, for those of you not in the hip Internet know). Tomorrow, Verde has a game @ 3:00... come on out & cheer us on.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Gold Cup Post #1
The Gold Cup, the bi-annual CONCACAF championship tournament, started yesterday in Dallas w/ Mexico & Costa Rica both winning their respective matches 5-0 (against Cuba & El Salvador). Today, we have Group B in Carson, CA w/ Jamaica playing Grenada & then Honduras taking on Guatemala. The 2nd match should actually be pretty good. Tomorrow, we'll be going down to Ford Field for a nice Group C double header. First up will be Panama v Gaudeloupe before the big USA v Canada match. I haven't been to a US Men's Team match since the Gold Cup Final in 2007 @ Soldier Field when the came from 1-0 down @ the half to win 2-1. My other forays into USMNT support include a few matches in Columbus 10 or 12 years ago.
I have a feeling that tomorrow's match will have a slightly larger US fan base. Four years ago, we were in the vast minority, but playing Canada, a team whose best days seem to be behind them... like back in 1986... but I'm sure they're be a nice crowd from Toronto & Windsor. not to mention, our family friend, Clive, whom I haven't seen in a few years. He was a coach of mine in Petoskey & is now a big-wig w/ the CSA. There's even talk that he might be able to get us into the official Canadian Box. We'll see if they're let a few crazy Yanks in there.
I have a sneaking suspicion that many of you, dear readers, will also be attending the game. I suggest a pre-match drink @ The Elwood, say 5:00ish??? Sign up if you're up for a drink... & feel free to post your conflicting pre-match plans for everyone else to see too. For instance, if you're going to Cheli's pr something, that could always work too. I'll be picking Aiden up from school & then meeting up w/ my Dad, @ which point, we'll head downtown & meet up w/ Liz & Dan. I hope to see you all there! And be sure to check back here tomorrow for team news before the match.
I have a feeling that tomorrow's match will have a slightly larger US fan base. Four years ago, we were in the vast minority, but playing Canada, a team whose best days seem to be behind them... like back in 1986... but I'm sure they're be a nice crowd from Toronto & Windsor. not to mention, our family friend, Clive, whom I haven't seen in a few years. He was a coach of mine in Petoskey & is now a big-wig w/ the CSA. There's even talk that he might be able to get us into the official Canadian Box. We'll see if they're let a few crazy Yanks in there.
I have a sneaking suspicion that many of you, dear readers, will also be attending the game. I suggest a pre-match drink @ The Elwood, say 5:00ish??? Sign up if you're up for a drink... & feel free to post your conflicting pre-match plans for everyone else to see too. For instance, if you're going to Cheli's pr something, that could always work too. I'll be picking Aiden up from school & then meeting up w/ my Dad, @ which point, we'll head downtown & meet up w/ Liz & Dan. I hope to see you all there! And be sure to check back here tomorrow for team news before the match.
Friday, April 22, 2011
The DIA w/ Aiden's Class
I think I'm gonna have to go down there some time soon by myself. I had a great time w/ the kids & Aiden loved it as usual, but it's tough to enjoy it while also watching a group of kids... which was fine. That was the point after all. One of the kids couldn't get enough of the frames, which I thought was pretty funny. Another kids was so into it, he was always lagging behind because he wanted to see everything & really take it in. Aiden's favorite stuff was in the main hall: the armour & weaponry. They also got a 45 minute lecture about the Rivera Court. That was pretty fantastic. It must have really made an impression too because later, they wanted to go back and look at it more... which was fine w/ me.
Here are the few things that stood out:
1) I was pointing something out to the kids so we were pretty close to a painting. An elderly woman freaked out on me for getting too close (I could fall forward & hit the art). It's not like we were touching it & it was a really small painting so one had to get close to see it clearly. She then squeezed my arm as she was talking to me, I freaked out on her for touching me. What's good for the goose...
2) Looking at a fertility goddess w/ a seashell for a vulva, 1 of the boys said, "Wow... she has a big belly button." That was pretty great.
3) I noticed a couple paintings I'd never paid much attention to before: a photorealist thing by Richard Estes & Three Skulls by Cezanne. The Estes painting is really funny, but you have to be able to read the names of the films... which might be tough w/ the quality of this pic.
Here are the few things that stood out:
1) I was pointing something out to the kids so we were pretty close to a painting. An elderly woman freaked out on me for getting too close (I could fall forward & hit the art). It's not like we were touching it & it was a really small painting so one had to get close to see it clearly. She then squeezed my arm as she was talking to me, I freaked out on her for touching me. What's good for the goose...
2) Looking at a fertility goddess w/ a seashell for a vulva, 1 of the boys said, "Wow... she has a big belly button." That was pretty great.
3) I noticed a couple paintings I'd never paid much attention to before: a photorealist thing by Richard Estes & Three Skulls by Cezanne. The Estes painting is really funny, but you have to be able to read the names of the films... which might be tough w/ the quality of this pic.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
A Classy Weekend
Yesterday, my mom & I took Aiden & Solstice to the Detroit Symphony. They do a free family show about once a month. It was fantastic. I'd never seen them before, & wow... they know their shit. I shouldn't be so surprised, but I'd never see any orchestras before other than student ones. They performed for about an hour which was perfect for the kids. Next time, we'll have to plan ahead & get tix to a museum too... & maybe some Lafayette Coney Island in between. Nothing says classy like chili cheese fries. Anyway, between each piece, the conductor, Leonard Slatkin, talked to the kids about the subsequent piece, explaining what it was about & why they chose to do it. Here's what they played:
Overture to Candide - Leonard Berstein
Summon the Heroes - John Williams
"Hoe Down" from Rodeo - Aaron Copeland
Rhapsody in Blue - George Gershwin (featuring Michel Camilo on piano)
Tropical Jam - Michel Camilo
The Imperial March (Darth Vader's Theme) - John Williams
Friday, April 15, 2011
Spring, Soccer, the Symphony, & Silly Accents
With final exams nearly finished, it's time to look ahead to ze coming months... months to be filled w/ Verderiffic good times. I updated the team site so you can all follow our progress and plan your Dimanche afternoon outing. Get your Vuvuzelas and come support your local team. As always, replica kits are available for ze low price of just $30.00. Order yours today. If that's too much of a commitment, you can always just join our brand-spanking-new Facebook Group. Our first match is this Sunday at 11:00 in Canton. Come on out! Tomorrow afternoon, Stephanie & I are taking Aiden & Solstice to the DSO Young People's Concert. It should be a great time. Afterwards, Solstice will be staying w/ my parent s so she & ma mere can go the The Magic Flute (but not this version) on Sunday... it's quite a classy weekend for us.
Finaly, while taking the kids to school today, Solstice was speaking w/ her fake English accent. She loves it. I told her she had to use it all w/ her friends & teachers & everyone. I hope she's still doing it, but I doubt it. We then decided that Aiden should go through the day w/ a "hillbilly" accent, which he was doing pretty well, & then they demanded I use an elderly French accent. I'm alright when it comes to certain accents, but my French one is pretty basic. Adding extreme, toothless old age was tough. One or the other I could have done, but I can't bring them together well. They then decided it should be Spanish instead... that didn't go over any better. I went back to elderly French so you need to go back to the top & reread zis w/ a sily accent you see... while I fart in your general direction... as I said, quite a classy weekend.
Finaly, while taking the kids to school today, Solstice was speaking w/ her fake English accent. She loves it. I told her she had to use it all w/ her friends & teachers & everyone. I hope she's still doing it, but I doubt it. We then decided that Aiden should go through the day w/ a "hillbilly" accent, which he was doing pretty well, & then they demanded I use an elderly French accent. I'm alright when it comes to certain accents, but my French one is pretty basic. Adding extreme, toothless old age was tough. One or the other I could have done, but I can't bring them together well. They then decided it should be Spanish instead... that didn't go over any better. I went back to elderly French so you need to go back to the top & reread zis w/ a sily accent you see... while I fart in your general direction... as I said, quite a classy weekend.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Paul Beatty & Walt Whitman
I'm sure I've talked about him before, but I'm doing Slumberland this week in class so I've been thinking about him again. He's a pretty amazing writer. The first time I covered him was about 6 years ago. Someone loaned me "White Boy Shuffle" claiming I "had to read it... it's just sooo good." Everyone says that (I'm saying it right now), so I don't usually get around to all the books that come to me that way. When I finally did get to it, I realized, to my shock, that he was right. I was preparing it in my office one morning when Tracy, a former colleague poked her head in and asked what I was doing. I showed her the book and she responded w/ "Oh, you're teaching Paul's book!" Right, Paul... you're on a first name basis with him. Sure. Well, as it turns out, she was. She traveled Europe w/ him for 2 months in the early '90s on some sort of poetry reading tour.
Now, I'm at a Nicola's event the other night @ the library for Louis Rodriguez, a poet from L.A. During the down time, I was prepping for my class & he asked what I was reading. I showed him, & he too responded w/ "Oh, you're reading Paul's book!" I immediately thought of Tracy's response 6 years earlier and was shocked by the similarity. I told him about my other job & he went on to say that he traveled Europe w/ Paul in the early '90s on some sort of poetry tour. It turns out that he also knows Tracy. What a weird coincidence. There were 6 people on that tour, one of whom I teach all the time and 2 of whom I met basically because of the other one.
I didn't really log in here today to talk about that though. I really logged in to say that I've been having a pretty rough couple weeks. Then, as I was reading this week, I came across this fantastic passage I want to share because it just brightened everything up so nicely. The main character is asked by the woman w/ whom he's been sleeping if he loves her. Here's his response:
"I'd never been in love. I'd always though love was like reading Leaves of Grass in a crowded Westside park on a sunny Tuesday afternoon, having to suppress the urge, with each giddy turn of the page to share your joy with the surrounding world. By "sharing" I don't mean quoting Whitman's rhythm-machine poetics to a group of strangers waiting for auditions to be posted at the Screen Actors Guild, but wanting to stand up and scream, 'I'm reading Walt Whitman you joyless, shallow, walking-the-dog-by-carrying-the-dog, casting-couch-wrinkles-imprinted-in-your-ass, associate-producers'-pubic-hairs-on-your-tounge, designer-perambulator-pushing-the-baby-you-and-your-Bel-Air-trophy-wife-had-by-inserting-someone-else's-sperm-bank-jizz-in-a-surrogate-mother's-uterus-because-you-and-your-sugar-daddy-were-too-busy-with-your-nonexistent-careers-to-fuck, no-day-job-having California Aryan Assholes! I'm reading Whitman! Fuck your purebreed pedigreed Russian Wolfhound! Fuck your WASP infant with the Hebrew name and West Indian nanny! Fuck your Norwegian au pair who's not as hot looking as you thought she'd be! I'm reading Whitman, expanding my mind and melding with the universe! What have you done today? It's ten in the morning, do you know where your coke dealer is? Have you looked at the leaves of grass? No? I didn't think so!' That's what I thought love would be like. Reading Whitman and fighting the urge to express your aesthetic superiority.'"
That's pretty amazing, and transcribing it was a pain in my ass, so I hope you enjoyed it.
Now, I'm at a Nicola's event the other night @ the library for Louis Rodriguez, a poet from L.A. During the down time, I was prepping for my class & he asked what I was reading. I showed him, & he too responded w/ "Oh, you're reading Paul's book!" I immediately thought of Tracy's response 6 years earlier and was shocked by the similarity. I told him about my other job & he went on to say that he traveled Europe w/ Paul in the early '90s on some sort of poetry tour. It turns out that he also knows Tracy. What a weird coincidence. There were 6 people on that tour, one of whom I teach all the time and 2 of whom I met basically because of the other one.
I didn't really log in here today to talk about that though. I really logged in to say that I've been having a pretty rough couple weeks. Then, as I was reading this week, I came across this fantastic passage I want to share because it just brightened everything up so nicely. The main character is asked by the woman w/ whom he's been sleeping if he loves her. Here's his response:
"I'd never been in love. I'd always though love was like reading Leaves of Grass in a crowded Westside park on a sunny Tuesday afternoon, having to suppress the urge, with each giddy turn of the page to share your joy with the surrounding world. By "sharing" I don't mean quoting Whitman's rhythm-machine poetics to a group of strangers waiting for auditions to be posted at the Screen Actors Guild, but wanting to stand up and scream, 'I'm reading Walt Whitman you joyless, shallow, walking-the-dog-by-carrying-the-dog, casting-couch-wrinkles-imprinted-in-your-ass, associate-producers'-pubic-hairs-on-your-tounge, designer-perambulator-pushing-the-baby-you-and-your-Bel-Air-trophy-wife-had-by-inserting-someone-else's-sperm-bank-jizz-in-a-surrogate-mother's-uterus-because-you-and-your-sugar-daddy-were-too-busy-with-your-nonexistent-careers-to-fuck, no-day-job-having California Aryan Assholes! I'm reading Whitman! Fuck your purebreed pedigreed Russian Wolfhound! Fuck your WASP infant with the Hebrew name and West Indian nanny! Fuck your Norwegian au pair who's not as hot looking as you thought she'd be! I'm reading Whitman, expanding my mind and melding with the universe! What have you done today? It's ten in the morning, do you know where your coke dealer is? Have you looked at the leaves of grass? No? I didn't think so!' That's what I thought love would be like. Reading Whitman and fighting the urge to express your aesthetic superiority.'"
That's pretty amazing, and transcribing it was a pain in my ass, so I hope you enjoyed it.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Gettin' Older... Everybody's Gonna Wanna Doze
Stephanie & I first saw Deep Space Six in the spring of 1996. They were playing @ some bar in Novi that was called The Library Pub or some such thing. If I remember correctly, they had a lot of books around. Not good books, necessarily, not the kind of books one would actually want to read, I'm sure they were garage sale rejects & romance novels from library sales. None-the-less, it's a good thing we went because, as you know, we went on to see them a couple more times over the last 15 years.
Back in college though, when we were seeing them along w/ all sorts of other bands all the time, we could get totally wasted, go to the show & I would be able to recite the entire set-list in order the next morning. Perhaps I was just more concerned w/ that kind of thing then, but that's just something I could never do these days. I'm afraid it's an age thing. Maybe it's a concentration thing, but it scares me a bit. I remember coming home from Phish shows, Blues Traveler shows, even whole festivals & reconstructing the entire show from song to song.
Deep Space Six played a new bar on Cross Street last night (more about the bar in a minute), but my ability to remember the songs, not to mention the order, just isn't here anymore. Here's my take on the setlist:
Set I
Queen Jane
Catfish John
We Can Run
Black Peter
It Hurts Me Too
??????????
Set II
China>
Rider
Uncle John's
Eyes of the World
There was a Mighty Quinn in there somewhere & they must have played other stuff too. It's not that it was unimpressive or anything like that. In fact, over the last 15 years, they've gotten a lot better. They were really tight last night, but some of the songs are just gone from my memory. perhaps they didn't play as many because they had an opening act (Jim's other band, F.U.B.A.R, who was really fun & played 60's pop covers), but there had to be more than 4 in the second set. Maybe someday things will start coming back to me again, but I guess this can help me to live in the moment. I suppose I should pick up a Thich Nhat Han book tomorrow while I'm @ Nicola's so I can start honing my "in-the-moment spirit. Nah. I can't see that happening.
As far as the bar goes. It's nice to have another place for live music, but it was a little odd. It's really compact & there isn't much on tap. It seems like they're going to have to decide if they want to be a live-music bar or a frat bar because trying both @ the same time doesn't seem to be working. It's new though, & I'm sure they'll settle into a more consistent atmosphere. I just hope that when it happens, I'll be able to remember it.
Back in college though, when we were seeing them along w/ all sorts of other bands all the time, we could get totally wasted, go to the show & I would be able to recite the entire set-list in order the next morning. Perhaps I was just more concerned w/ that kind of thing then, but that's just something I could never do these days. I'm afraid it's an age thing. Maybe it's a concentration thing, but it scares me a bit. I remember coming home from Phish shows, Blues Traveler shows, even whole festivals & reconstructing the entire show from song to song.
Deep Space Six played a new bar on Cross Street last night (more about the bar in a minute), but my ability to remember the songs, not to mention the order, just isn't here anymore. Here's my take on the setlist:
Set I
Queen Jane
Catfish John
We Can Run
Black Peter
It Hurts Me Too
??????????
Set II
China>
Rider
Uncle John's
Eyes of the World
There was a Mighty Quinn in there somewhere & they must have played other stuff too. It's not that it was unimpressive or anything like that. In fact, over the last 15 years, they've gotten a lot better. They were really tight last night, but some of the songs are just gone from my memory. perhaps they didn't play as many because they had an opening act (Jim's other band, F.U.B.A.R, who was really fun & played 60's pop covers), but there had to be more than 4 in the second set. Maybe someday things will start coming back to me again, but I guess this can help me to live in the moment. I suppose I should pick up a Thich Nhat Han book tomorrow while I'm @ Nicola's so I can start honing my "in-the-moment spirit. Nah. I can't see that happening.
As far as the bar goes. It's nice to have another place for live music, but it was a little odd. It's really compact & there isn't much on tap. It seems like they're going to have to decide if they want to be a live-music bar or a frat bar because trying both @ the same time doesn't seem to be working. It's new though, & I'm sure they'll settle into a more consistent atmosphere. I just hope that when it happens, I'll be able to remember it.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
The Rally in Lansing
Although there was rather little notice ahead of time, Moveon.org's rallies across the country were pretty successful today. I cruised up to Lansing w/ Charles, Brian, and Abby to join about 2,000 people on the steps of the capitol building to show support for the workers in Wisconsin & to voice opposition to Snyder's attacks on state workers and unions in Michigan. Of course, there was also an air of solidarity w/ the people around the world who have been marching, protesting, & fighting over the last month. Dare I say that the feeling of revolution is palpable? I think it really is. We'll see how long it lasts though. We had a fun time & hopefully these rallies will continue; maybe next time, y'all can come along & bring a friend.Here are links to The Free Press & Lansing State Journal articles about it from today.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Presidents' Day Snow Day
In England, there are always soccer games on bank holidays, but since we don't have that as a way to celebrate our former presidents, we'll do it w/ 8" of snow & a fun little list instead. It's been a pretty rough few days in the ol' homestead, but we're surviving & I think in the long-run, things will be much better. (How's that for a cryptic sentence that raises all sorts of questions but says nothing at all?)
Here's the Official Drifting Into Deep Water Top Ten Presidents of All Time. (Of course, we are also celebrating Nina Simone's & Vince Welnick's birthdays today, but we aren't listing the top 10 "Samba in the Rain" ... that would be silly). We're basing this list on 4 things (w/ a scale of 1-10 where 1 is low & 10 is high): looking presidential, thinking presidential, acting presidential, & all around coolness. A president can score high on all around coolness like Teddy Roosevelt or high on looking presidential like George H. W. Bush, but then very low on other criterion so we'll have to so we'll have to be very careful as we come to our determination here.
10)Millard Fillmore: Score - 26
He was an asshole No-Nothinger, but his name was Millard Fillmore. How awesome is that?
9) Martin van Buren: Score - 27
He was the 1st American born president & has a fictional street gang named after him... a gang known for assaulting Kramer & George. That's pretty cool. His stance on slavery was less cool, but better than many of his contemporaries.
8) Warren G. Harding: Score - 28
The G. is for Gamaliel... pretty cool name. He worked hard on his Anti-Lynching campaign & there are rumors that he had more than a little African American and Native American ancestry & that he was all about the orgies. Of course, there's also the Teapot Dome scandal... the coolest name for a presidential scandal ever.
7) James Madison: Score - 30
He wrote the Bill of Rights, his wife was the 3rd best gas station pastry maker, Dolly Madison,and his VP was named George Clinton!
6) Grover Cleveland: Score - 32
He served 2 terms but they weren't consecutive. That's pretty cool. Plus, as his name suggests, he was probably pretty adept @ explaining the concepts of "Near" & "Far."
5) Teddy Roosevelt: Score - 34
Kind of a macho tool, but he was our macho tool... like Hemingway & Randy Savage.
4) Abraham Lincoln: Score - 36
He saved the Union & reluctantly ended slavery. Although that wasn't his main goal, he was willing to listen to Frederick Douglass & realized Douglass simply had better ideas than he did. Just think about what might have been possible if every president was willing to listen to smart people all the time.
3) John Adams / Bill Clinton (tie): Score - 37
Where Clinton often came across as a sex-crazed hillbilly, his genious was in his ability to get stuff done & help the people who needed help the most. He was a great negotiator who was able to raise our political capital around the world.
John Adams was a bad-ass. He was briliant & always looking to listen to Abigale who was also briliant. Had it been posible for her to be President, she may have made the list too.
2) Thomas Jefferson: Score - 38
He wrote the Declaration of Independence. He understood the limits of presidential power while being more than willing to overstep them when a good bargain came along, & he understood the importance of an educated electorate in order to for a more perfect union. If not for his more than problematic relationship w/ slavery (& one slave specifically) he may have scored a perfect 40. Then again, his views on slavery weren't anything more than products of his time. The vast majority of the rich white land owners felt the same way... if not much worse. Of course, that doesn't completely excuse him, but I don't think he deserves the vitriol he gets for this
1) Franklin Roosevelt: Score - 40
Beat Hitler, instigated the New Deal, & was actually willing to listen to his awesome wife... a wife who had great ideas about war, women, & the working (& out of work) poor. Plus, the dude overcame polio to rise to the Presidency. That's just Bad-Ass... Teddy could never have done that.
Honorable Mention goes out to JFK & Woodrow Wilson
Knowing full well that this is the official list, you can still feel free to post your own top 10 in the comments section.
Here's the Official Drifting Into Deep Water Top Ten Presidents of All Time. (Of course, we are also celebrating Nina Simone's & Vince Welnick's birthdays today, but we aren't listing the top 10 "Samba in the Rain" ... that would be silly). We're basing this list on 4 things (w/ a scale of 1-10 where 1 is low & 10 is high): looking presidential, thinking presidential, acting presidential, & all around coolness. A president can score high on all around coolness like Teddy Roosevelt or high on looking presidential like George H. W. Bush, but then very low on other criterion so we'll have to so we'll have to be very careful as we come to our determination here.
10)Millard Fillmore: Score - 26
He was an asshole No-Nothinger, but his name was Millard Fillmore. How awesome is that?
9) Martin van Buren: Score - 27
He was the 1st American born president & has a fictional street gang named after him... a gang known for assaulting Kramer & George. That's pretty cool. His stance on slavery was less cool, but better than many of his contemporaries.
8) Warren G. Harding: Score - 28
The G. is for Gamaliel... pretty cool name. He worked hard on his Anti-Lynching campaign & there are rumors that he had more than a little African American and Native American ancestry & that he was all about the orgies. Of course, there's also the Teapot Dome scandal... the coolest name for a presidential scandal ever.
7) James Madison: Score - 30
He wrote the Bill of Rights, his wife was the 3rd best gas station pastry maker, Dolly Madison,and his VP was named George Clinton!
6) Grover Cleveland: Score - 32
He served 2 terms but they weren't consecutive. That's pretty cool. Plus, as his name suggests, he was probably pretty adept @ explaining the concepts of "Near" & "Far."
5) Teddy Roosevelt: Score - 34
Kind of a macho tool, but he was our macho tool... like Hemingway & Randy Savage.
4) Abraham Lincoln: Score - 36
He saved the Union & reluctantly ended slavery. Although that wasn't his main goal, he was willing to listen to Frederick Douglass & realized Douglass simply had better ideas than he did. Just think about what might have been possible if every president was willing to listen to smart people all the time.
3) John Adams / Bill Clinton (tie): Score - 37
Where Clinton often came across as a sex-crazed hillbilly, his genious was in his ability to get stuff done & help the people who needed help the most. He was a great negotiator who was able to raise our political capital around the world.
John Adams was a bad-ass. He was briliant & always looking to listen to Abigale who was also briliant. Had it been posible for her to be President, she may have made the list too.
2) Thomas Jefferson: Score - 38
He wrote the Declaration of Independence. He understood the limits of presidential power while being more than willing to overstep them when a good bargain came along, & he understood the importance of an educated electorate in order to for a more perfect union. If not for his more than problematic relationship w/ slavery (& one slave specifically) he may have scored a perfect 40. Then again, his views on slavery weren't anything more than products of his time. The vast majority of the rich white land owners felt the same way... if not much worse. Of course, that doesn't completely excuse him, but I don't think he deserves the vitriol he gets for this
1) Franklin Roosevelt: Score - 40
Beat Hitler, instigated the New Deal, & was actually willing to listen to his awesome wife... a wife who had great ideas about war, women, & the working (& out of work) poor. Plus, the dude overcame polio to rise to the Presidency. That's just Bad-Ass... Teddy could never have done that.
Honorable Mention goes out to JFK & Woodrow Wilson
Knowing full well that this is the official list, you can still feel free to post your own top 10 in the comments section.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
"We're Goin' to Wembley!"... & Maybe The Elbow Room
This is neither the "royal 'we,'" nor the "collective 'we,'" but rather the "quotatative 'we.'" This is only vaguely connected to the 25th anniversary of the Challenger disaster, but related none-the-less.
As people were talking about it this week, it got me thinking about where I was when I heard about it: Mr. Harvey's 6th grade math class in Petoskey, MI. I wasn't the greatest student as a middle-schooler, believe it or not, but he was an alright guy... aside from his odd proclivity towards jamming Glenn Frey in class. I remember 1 day we had to listen to his new album, the 1 which was featured on Miami Vice w/ "Smuggler's Blues" & "You Belong to the City." WTF? Remember all the Christie McAuliffe jokes? I know they were horrible. In fact, even as a 6th grader, I knew they were a little inappropriate, but here's the 1 I just wrote. When I say "just," I mean while I was looking up how to spell her last name.
Q: Who's the only person who fell further than Christie McAuliffe in 1986?
A: Glen Frey... I mean really! What ever happened to him? One minute he's on top of the world w/ Miami Vice; the next minute he's begging Don Henley for an Eagles reunion.
Anyway, I didn't log in to take cheap shots @ The Eagles... that's too easy. I logged in to meander down 6th grade's memory lane. Other than the Challenger, the other things that stand out are WWF (we were in the heyday of Hulkamania), Garbage Pail Kids (these stupid stickers that combined the charm of Cabbage Patch Kids w/ the aesthetic of "What's grosser than gross?" jokes), & the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. As you remember, France knocked Brazil out in the 1/4 finals after a hard fought 120 minutes when the game finally went to penalties & Fernandes scored during the penalty kick shoot-out. of course, they ended up losing the 1/2 finals to Germany when the ref left his brain in the cab, causing France to go out 2 World Cups in a row against Germany in Semi-Final matches due to sub-par reffing.
In fact, & I know this will come as a shock, many of my Petoskey memories revolve around soccer...
... Which is how we can relate all of this to Wembley. The title of the post come from the chant often sung by fans of the winning team during the semi-finals of cup competitions in England seeing as the finals are held there. This only interests me because on Tuesday, those fans happened to be fans of Arsenal, which brings me to the point of this post: Jean asked why I hadn't written about this yet.
Arsenal are going to the Carling Cup Finals at Wembley on 27 February, 2011. The main reason I hadn't mentioned this yet is because it's only the Carling Cup... & they're only playing Birmingham City. They should win so they'll probably lose 1-0 which will then spell the end of their strong run as they lose confidence, crash out of the FA Cup & barely qualify for Europe. All of those other competitions are more interesting... & more prestigious. That said, it's nice to see them back chasing a trophy since they haven't done this since they lost to Chelsea in the finals of the same tournament in 2007. They lost to Barcelona in the Champions League finals in 2006. The last thing they actually won was the FA Cup in 2005. Which reminds me, it's FA Cup 4th Round weekend so enjoy... & then come on out to The Elbow Room tonight for Deep Space Six!
As people were talking about it this week, it got me thinking about where I was when I heard about it: Mr. Harvey's 6th grade math class in Petoskey, MI. I wasn't the greatest student as a middle-schooler, believe it or not, but he was an alright guy... aside from his odd proclivity towards jamming Glenn Frey in class. I remember 1 day we had to listen to his new album, the 1 which was featured on Miami Vice w/ "Smuggler's Blues" & "You Belong to the City." WTF? Remember all the Christie McAuliffe jokes? I know they were horrible. In fact, even as a 6th grader, I knew they were a little inappropriate, but here's the 1 I just wrote. When I say "just," I mean while I was looking up how to spell her last name.Q: Who's the only person who fell further than Christie McAuliffe in 1986?
A: Glen Frey... I mean really! What ever happened to him? One minute he's on top of the world w/ Miami Vice; the next minute he's begging Don Henley for an Eagles reunion.
Anyway, I didn't log in to take cheap shots @ The Eagles... that's too easy. I logged in to meander down 6th grade's memory lane. Other than the Challenger, the other things that stand out are WWF (we were in the heyday of Hulkamania), Garbage Pail Kids (these stupid stickers that combined the charm of Cabbage Patch Kids w/ the aesthetic of "What's grosser than gross?" jokes), & the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. As you remember, France knocked Brazil out in the 1/4 finals after a hard fought 120 minutes when the game finally went to penalties & Fernandes scored during the penalty kick shoot-out. of course, they ended up losing the 1/2 finals to Germany when the ref left his brain in the cab, causing France to go out 2 World Cups in a row against Germany in Semi-Final matches due to sub-par reffing.
In fact, & I know this will come as a shock, many of my Petoskey memories revolve around soccer...
... Which is how we can relate all of this to Wembley. The title of the post come from the chant often sung by fans of the winning team during the semi-finals of cup competitions in England seeing as the finals are held there. This only interests me because on Tuesday, those fans happened to be fans of Arsenal, which brings me to the point of this post: Jean asked why I hadn't written about this yet.
Arsenal are going to the Carling Cup Finals at Wembley on 27 February, 2011. The main reason I hadn't mentioned this yet is because it's only the Carling Cup... & they're only playing Birmingham City. They should win so they'll probably lose 1-0 which will then spell the end of their strong run as they lose confidence, crash out of the FA Cup & barely qualify for Europe. All of those other competitions are more interesting... & more prestigious. That said, it's nice to see them back chasing a trophy since they haven't done this since they lost to Chelsea in the finals of the same tournament in 2007. They lost to Barcelona in the Champions League finals in 2006. The last thing they actually won was the FA Cup in 2005. Which reminds me, it's FA Cup 4th Round weekend so enjoy... & then come on out to The Elbow Room tonight for Deep Space Six!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Ohhh, Rocky
I haven't been to an EMU production since I took the kids to see Jeff Duncan's Christmas Pantomime based on Peter Pan about 5 Christmases ago. it was good, but 5 years is too long to go w/o a visit to Quirk. The only other thing we'd ever seen there was a production of Amiri Baraka's Dutchman when we were undergrads. When I was working @ WCC, we scored tix to a pretty good production of Victor/Victoria, & we saw a crap production Ghosts @ Mendleson. Of all of them, I was most excited for Ghosts, & then I was subsequently most let down by it too. I don't know why we don't go to more stuff, but whatever the reason, we don't.
That's bound to change next month though as the EMU Department of Communication & Theater Arts is presenting The Rocky Horror Show in February. I have no idea how many times we saw the film in theaters (mainly @ the state in A2, but once @ Fairlane Mall in Dearborn), but we've never seen a stage production of it. I remember the 1st time I saw it, we were @ Holly's apartment in S. Lyon in the summer of '92. A friend of mine from high school was there & we ate deep fried mushrooms... Holly suggested it was like eating fried dog balls. An odd suggestion, but it stuck.I remember being pretty freaked out when Frank entered; I had no idea what it was about & I was certainly not expecting a musical. My reaction was similar about 8 years later when I saw School Daze for the 1st time & they broke into song in that too. I don't usually go for musicals (other than The Sound of Music & Singing in the Rain), but when a good one comes along, it needs to be supported. Who's up for joining us @ Rocky?
That's bound to change next month though as the EMU Department of Communication & Theater Arts is presenting The Rocky Horror Show in February. I have no idea how many times we saw the film in theaters (mainly @ the state in A2, but once @ Fairlane Mall in Dearborn), but we've never seen a stage production of it. I remember the 1st time I saw it, we were @ Holly's apartment in S. Lyon in the summer of '92. A friend of mine from high school was there & we ate deep fried mushrooms... Holly suggested it was like eating fried dog balls. An odd suggestion, but it stuck.I remember being pretty freaked out when Frank entered; I had no idea what it was about & I was certainly not expecting a musical. My reaction was similar about 8 years later when I saw School Daze for the 1st time & they broke into song in that too. I don't usually go for musicals (other than The Sound of Music & Singing in the Rain), but when a good one comes along, it needs to be supported. Who's up for joining us @ Rocky?
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Holiday Post #10: Another in the Arsenal Highlights Series
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Monday, December 6, 2010
Holiday Post #3: The Kids
As I'm sure you're aware, Solstice is in the Christmas performance @ their church. She performs as part of the children's choir for a few songs @ the end of the 1st act. They have 10 shows over the course of 2 weekends; I went on Saturday & was blown away. The production is fantastic. The 1st act is basicaly a series of traditional mid-20th century X-mas tunes. The 2nd act is an overview of the X-mas story. She's been working so hard, & they did so well.
When we got home, I took Aiden & Isaiah up to the super-cheesy tree lighting ceremony in Depot Town. They had free cookies & cocoa, plus a bunch of ridiculous, bougie, 50somethings singing carols. Aiden was bored out of his mind, but Isaiah enjoyed getting to meet a couple dogs & eat a couple cookies.Yesterday, while Stephanie & Solstice were at Solstice's evening performance, I took the boys to see the free showing of A Christmas Story @ The Michigan Theater. Aiden had been looking forward to it, but Isaiah had no idea what was going on. As it turns out, he loved it. He even laughed @ the appropriate spots. Later in the evening, I even caught him saying, "Meatloaf, meatloaf." That was pretty sweet. I think we may need to take a road trip to Cleveland to check out the Christmas Story House Museum. If we go, I suppose we could hit Tony Packo's for a coney on the way home... this idea is starting to sound better & better. Watch this space... you may get updates about an awesome day trip. In the mean time, keep submitting the nominations for The Visions of Ypsi Memorial Celebrity MILF of the Year Contest!
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