Thursday, November 24, 2005
Gobble Gobble
Happy Thanksgiving, y'all.
I say y'all because I'm in Montana, and with all the giant 10 gallon hats I've seen - and I've only been awake for two hours - makes me think that this tony Montana town (no, not Tony Montana...or Joe Montana...) is big on the y'alls.
-----
Well, it's Thanksgiving and I'm not in God's Country. and I'm missing it.
Big-time.
Oh sure, because of the gig, I've had holidays cut severly short or missed them altogether. But it's never bugged me like it has this last week or so.
I was Crabby Abby yesterday and today I'm Melancholy Ollie - there's no place I'd rather be than Jimmytown. No disrespect to Bozeman, Anchorage, Ames, wherever. I'm just homesick.
In the past, no matter if we were traveling right before, right after, or smack-dab in the middle of the Tryptophan holiday, it was never a problem. Home was always a 2.5 hour drive North.
New town, new gig, new rules.
Time to pull myself up by the bootstraps and get back on the horse. Well, at least, I think that would be a Montana sentiment...
-----
I've spent a good chunk of this blog pouring out the praise about the technological wonder that is the iPod.
Yesterday, beginning the Minneapolis-to-Bozeman swing, I was treated to an unbelievable five-songs-in-a-row stretch. Now, technically you're not supposed to use approved portable electronic devices below the 10, 000 foot hard deck (Maverick, call the ball...), but I do.
It drowns out all my biggest annoyances while strapped into an alumnium tube going 450 mph: crying babies or people-talking-louder-than-they-really-need-to-be-about-things-they-don't-need-to-be-talking-about-goddammit.
The five song stretch began with Paul Anka's "My Way" covered nicely by Hobeken's own Francis Albert Sinatra. In a morbid note, I want that song played at my funeral, as they wheel the casket out of the Church. I will be putting that in my will. On an even further side note, I do a great "My Way" in karaoke, a fact that many of the folks at the Backyard Pub in New Roc can attest to.
After the Sinatra standby classic came Damian Rice's "The Blower's Daughter, " which makes me think of Australia and the great three-week stay I had down there this past March and April. And, ironically enough, I brought the copy of the mover "Closer" with me to watch during some of the Bozeman down-time.
Then Johnette Napolitano - of Concrete Blonde fame - did her brilliant cover of Coldplay's "The Scientist." It is a great song, always makes the eyes water thinking of the love and subsequent loss encountered during the "A Rush of Blood to the Head" era.
Ray LaMontagne - not to be confused with sculptor Armond - is my new favorite artist right now. And while "recording artist" is an oft-overused synonym for "singer/songwriter," it fits Ray to a tee. His song "Trouble," kinda summed up my feelings about things to that point. There's not an artist out there right now that sings with as much passion as Ray does. If you've ever listened to Joe Cocker and his raspy singing voice doing "A little help from my friends," you'll get a sort of understanding of how much Ray puts into his songs.
And to cap it off? The Wu-Tang Clan's "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nothing to Shampoo Wit."
I love the Wu. Shaolin 1-0-3-0-5.
-----
On my television in Bozeman, a local ad for Joey Columbo's Pizza Village came on, with Joey himself doing the voice over. He hit me up with a "how-you-doin'?" that sounded about as Italian as Jackie Mason doing a Joe Pesci imitation. Oh, and let's not discount the old world sounds of the accordian in the background.
But then again, Bozeman seems like the kind of place that they send folks in the Witness Protection Program, so maybe pasta with marinara sauce won't be egg noodles and ketchup.
-----
Just a second later, on ESPN SportsCenter, anchor Neil Everett called Drexel head coach Bruiser Flint "Buster." Easy Alice Eyres. Either way, nice showing for the Dragons. If it ends up Drexel and Hofstra in the CAA final, it will not only be a remix of the old America East powers - back when Mike Brey tried to outcoach Jay Wright, a trend that continues even today - it will also be a tough game for me to root for. I like 'em both, for many of the same reasons.
-----
Good on Burtt, Kiril and the Gaels in Ames...JC and Da Kidds in Anchorage...and Boone, Denham and Rudy in Maui.
And good on the Bucks for beating AI and the Sixers. AI is probably my favorite NBA player, along with D-Wade, R-Gomes, and E-Brand to name a few.
-----
This year's Maui Invitational has to be the best in-season tournament in recent history, perhaps all-time... Five former national champions. Five Final Four contenders. And one of the best games in regular season history - the 3 OT Gonzaga/Michigan State contest. Adam Morrison made a name for himself, dropping 43 on the Spartans and looking like he was ready to play hammond organ with the Doors. Maurice Ager's 36 points were no less impressive.
The following night, 18 hours later, MSU went another OT to beat Arizona and UConn needed a Denham Brown Sikma-move with 1.1 left to beat the Zags and bring the big surfboard back to Storrs. Great hoops. Here's hoping they continue to stack the deck for these "preseason" exempt tournaments. It benefits the game, the fans, the schools involved.
-----
Ok, enough from me. Get off your computers and get back to a second-helping of stuffing and mashed pertaters.
And to my peeps - no matter whether you're a few timezones or a few hemispheres away - I'm thinking of you, missing you, and hope you are all doing well. A big part of all of you (or y'all) is with me here in Big Sky country.
One. (gobble, gobble)
Happy Thanksgiving, y'all.
I say y'all because I'm in Montana, and with all the giant 10 gallon hats I've seen - and I've only been awake for two hours - makes me think that this tony Montana town (no, not Tony Montana...or Joe Montana...) is big on the y'alls.
-----
Well, it's Thanksgiving and I'm not in God's Country. and I'm missing it.
Big-time.
Oh sure, because of the gig, I've had holidays cut severly short or missed them altogether. But it's never bugged me like it has this last week or so.
I was Crabby Abby yesterday and today I'm Melancholy Ollie - there's no place I'd rather be than Jimmytown. No disrespect to Bozeman, Anchorage, Ames, wherever. I'm just homesick.
In the past, no matter if we were traveling right before, right after, or smack-dab in the middle of the Tryptophan holiday, it was never a problem. Home was always a 2.5 hour drive North.
New town, new gig, new rules.
Time to pull myself up by the bootstraps and get back on the horse. Well, at least, I think that would be a Montana sentiment...
-----
I've spent a good chunk of this blog pouring out the praise about the technological wonder that is the iPod.
Yesterday, beginning the Minneapolis-to-Bozeman swing, I was treated to an unbelievable five-songs-in-a-row stretch. Now, technically you're not supposed to use approved portable electronic devices below the 10, 000 foot hard deck (Maverick, call the ball...), but I do.
It drowns out all my biggest annoyances while strapped into an alumnium tube going 450 mph: crying babies or people-talking-louder-than-they-really-need-to-be-about-things-they-don't-need-to-be-talking-about-goddammit.
The five song stretch began with Paul Anka's "My Way" covered nicely by Hobeken's own Francis Albert Sinatra. In a morbid note, I want that song played at my funeral, as they wheel the casket out of the Church. I will be putting that in my will. On an even further side note, I do a great "My Way" in karaoke, a fact that many of the folks at the Backyard Pub in New Roc can attest to.
After the Sinatra standby classic came Damian Rice's "The Blower's Daughter, " which makes me think of Australia and the great three-week stay I had down there this past March and April. And, ironically enough, I brought the copy of the mover "Closer" with me to watch during some of the Bozeman down-time.
Then Johnette Napolitano - of Concrete Blonde fame - did her brilliant cover of Coldplay's "The Scientist." It is a great song, always makes the eyes water thinking of the love and subsequent loss encountered during the "A Rush of Blood to the Head" era.
Ray LaMontagne - not to be confused with sculptor Armond - is my new favorite artist right now. And while "recording artist" is an oft-overused synonym for "singer/songwriter," it fits Ray to a tee. His song "Trouble," kinda summed up my feelings about things to that point. There's not an artist out there right now that sings with as much passion as Ray does. If you've ever listened to Joe Cocker and his raspy singing voice doing "A little help from my friends," you'll get a sort of understanding of how much Ray puts into his songs.
And to cap it off? The Wu-Tang Clan's "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nothing to Shampoo Wit."
I love the Wu. Shaolin 1-0-3-0-5.
-----
On my television in Bozeman, a local ad for Joey Columbo's Pizza Village came on, with Joey himself doing the voice over. He hit me up with a "how-you-doin'?" that sounded about as Italian as Jackie Mason doing a Joe Pesci imitation. Oh, and let's not discount the old world sounds of the accordian in the background.
But then again, Bozeman seems like the kind of place that they send folks in the Witness Protection Program, so maybe pasta with marinara sauce won't be egg noodles and ketchup.
-----
Just a second later, on ESPN SportsCenter, anchor Neil Everett called Drexel head coach Bruiser Flint "Buster." Easy Alice Eyres. Either way, nice showing for the Dragons. If it ends up Drexel and Hofstra in the CAA final, it will not only be a remix of the old America East powers - back when Mike Brey tried to outcoach Jay Wright, a trend that continues even today - it will also be a tough game for me to root for. I like 'em both, for many of the same reasons.
-----
Good on Burtt, Kiril and the Gaels in Ames...JC and Da Kidds in Anchorage...and Boone, Denham and Rudy in Maui.
And good on the Bucks for beating AI and the Sixers. AI is probably my favorite NBA player, along with D-Wade, R-Gomes, and E-Brand to name a few.
-----
This year's Maui Invitational has to be the best in-season tournament in recent history, perhaps all-time... Five former national champions. Five Final Four contenders. And one of the best games in regular season history - the 3 OT Gonzaga/Michigan State contest. Adam Morrison made a name for himself, dropping 43 on the Spartans and looking like he was ready to play hammond organ with the Doors. Maurice Ager's 36 points were no less impressive.
The following night, 18 hours later, MSU went another OT to beat Arizona and UConn needed a Denham Brown Sikma-move with 1.1 left to beat the Zags and bring the big surfboard back to Storrs. Great hoops. Here's hoping they continue to stack the deck for these "preseason" exempt tournaments. It benefits the game, the fans, the schools involved.
-----
Ok, enough from me. Get off your computers and get back to a second-helping of stuffing and mashed pertaters.
And to my peeps - no matter whether you're a few timezones or a few hemispheres away - I'm thinking of you, missing you, and hope you are all doing well. A big part of all of you (or y'all) is with me here in Big Sky country.
One. (gobble, gobble)
