I had a relationship in college that is a little difficult to characterize. I enjoyed his company, and he enjoyed mine, but we never dated. We went on a lot of "dates", however, including the TFIA concert and this week's concert featuring John Michael Montgomery in College Station. See, I was his back-up girl when he got stood up. I would say we were friends, but, um, we were more than that. Ahem. Towering over the dysnfunctional relationship we had, was this particular concert, though. JMM showed up drunk and performed much too long and poorly, as a result. I wasn't much of a fan beforehand, and that experience didn't really motivate a change there. I remember little of the actual concert except that as he finished the applause was half-hearted, and yet he came back and did a 20-minute instrumental encore that got even less applause, partly because people left during it. I also recall that he mentioned -- several times -- what a great place The Dixie Chicken was. Clearly, he had spent a lot of time there that day.
Anyway, here's what Pandora gave me for Mr. Drunk Performer.
"Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident)" by John Michael Montgomery* on The Very Best of John Michael Montgomery
"Neon Moon" by Brooks & Dunn on Brand New Man
"Friends In Low Places" by Garth Brooks on No Fences
"The Chair" by George Strait on Fifty Number Ones
"Cover You In Kisses" by John Michael Montgomery* on The Very Best of John Michael Montgomery
"Best of Intentions" by Travis Tritt on Down The Road I Go
"If You See Him/If You See Her (featuring Reba McEntire)" by Brooks & Dunn on The Greatest Hits Collection II
"Me Too" by Toby Keith on Greatest Hits Volume 1
"You Won't Ever Be Lonely" by Andy Griggs on You Won't Ever Be Lonely
"I Swear" by John Michael Montgomery* on Kickin' It Up
I have to say I was surprised at how many of these songs I knew. And if I didn't know the specific song seleted, I knew other songs by that artist. I have very little country music in my collection, I don't listen to it on the radio, and I don't have any friends that are country music fans. However, I've enjoyed dancing to country music ever since my time at Texas A&M. It's easy dancing at its, but can be flared up nicely, depending on the abilities of the dancers involved, especially the lead in my case, since I'm not a particularly good dancer. Now I'm itchin' to go dig out my Rockies and my Justins and two-step the evening away. As such, my video for this week is of the Aggie Wranglers, a performing group that makes jitterbug look like it should, and not like I'd do it (though I can do some of the simpler moves).
* Acts I've seen live
Friday, June 27, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Tiptoe Through The Tulips: Bougainvillea
This is a bougainvillea that we have in the front yard. 
I did a lot of digging to try to figure out what kind it is, but have run into a bunch of dead ends on that front. Let's look at the data we have on the three pure species that exist, and how my plant relates to them:
Leaves -- The leaves most resemble the peruviana species, with oblate, hairless, evergreen characteristics.
Brachts -- These are the colorful leaves that most people would assume are the flowers, but the flowers are actually at the center of these colorful paperlike brachts. The plant in our yard is closest to the spectablis species, with the bright magenta color and the triangular shape.
Thorns -- Yes, there are thorns, but they are deep inside the plant, and generally blunt, so I haven't maimed myself yet. Here, again, we match up to spectablis.
Flowers -- The little parts at the center of the bracht (at least before they fall off) are white, aligning best with glabra.
Habit -- This characteristic is primarily around what the plant likes to do and how it grows. Since this one blooms multiple times and grows very densely, we have another checkmark for spectablis.
So, what do we have here -- three nods to spectablis, with one each to peruviana and glabra. This would normally tip me to the leading species, except spectablis "is noted for its hairy leaves and stems" which my plant clearly does not have. As such, it is likely some sort of hybrid of these. Now there are 300 hybrids of this showy flowering plant, so my technical term for it is a big pink bougainvillea bush.
How's that for fancy? Regardless, it's pretty hardy and just blooms whenever I water it as much as I can manage. Conveniently it's in an unshaded south-facing spot, which is good, since as a tropical plant, it prefers tons of sun, too. I like it when I find another plant I probably can't kill, but with a bit of care will bloom like it's 1999.
I did a lot of digging to try to figure out what kind it is, but have run into a bunch of dead ends on that front. Let's look at the data we have on the three pure species that exist, and how my plant relates to them:
So, what do we have here -- three nods to spectablis, with one each to peruviana and glabra. This would normally tip me to the leading species, except spectablis "is noted for its hairy leaves and stems" which my plant clearly does not have. As such, it is likely some sort of hybrid of these. Now there are 300 hybrids of this showy flowering plant, so my technical term for it is a big pink bougainvillea bush.
How's that for fancy? Regardless, it's pretty hardy and just blooms whenever I water it as much as I can manage. Conveniently it's in an unshaded south-facing spot, which is good, since as a tropical plant, it prefers tons of sun, too. I like it when I find another plant I probably can't kill, but with a bit of care will bloom like it's 1999.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Craving Gone Awry
I've been wanting something sweet all week, which is odd in Heather-land, because I just don't have much of a sweet tooth. So, when I was at the grocery store today, I reached into the freezer and pulled out a carton of mint chocolate chip ice cream, my favorite. When I got home and got out a spoon to dive in, I noticed I'd actually gotten cookies and cream. Still sweet, but not what I wanted.
Now it will probably just stay in the freezer until the GB with the massive sweet tooth comes home next week and finishes it off. What a shame.
Now it will probably just stay in the freezer until the GB with the massive sweet tooth comes home next week and finishes it off. What a shame.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Friday Random Ten
My next entry in the "concert on memory lane" process is Michael W. Smith. I had gone to see Jars of Clay, but MWS was surprisingly impressive with his musicianship. It was sort of funny -- I asked my highschool DCE (Director of Christian Education) directions to the concert, and he told me not to worry -- there were two opening bands to MWS. I told him I was in town to see one of those "opening bands", and he was completely dumbfounded. I guess he didn't get that I was willing to pay MWS prices to see my little JoC folks play in a big venue. Even though I didn't go to the concert specifically to see him, I was impressed with his show. He's a great performer, and can play the piano beautifully, and all by ear -- did you know he can't even read music?
While I was impressed with his piano-by-ear ability, his lyric writing always frustrated me. I always most disliked the songs he wrote on his own without any lyrical help. He is an amazing musician, but he is not a lyricist. As such, it was important to me to find a song to share that he played piano (not guitar) in, but not that he'd written the words for. In the end, I settled on this tune, with words written by Diane Warren. This was from a concert back in 1993, which is sort of when I stopped listening to him, and therefore his 1980s-ish-persona is preserved in my brain as who he is, even though he keeps making albums and putting on concerts. Meanwhile, I sort of laughed at the little part at the beginning talking about how he composes and plays his music, so I thought you might also enjoy that little laugh. And so, without further ado, I give you "Smitty".
And now to see what Pandora gave me for my Michael W. Smith station.
"Here I Am" by Michael W. Smith* on Healing Rain
"Holy Is The Lord" by Chris Tomlin* on Arriving
"Holy Holy Holy" by Stephen Curtis Chapman on Amazing Grace
"You Are So Good To Me" by Third Day on Chronology Volume Two
"Let It Rain" by Michael W. Smith* on Worship (Live)
"My Redeemer Lives" by Reuben Morgan on World Through Your Eyes
"Shout To The Lord" by Lincoln Brewster on Let The Praises Ring
"Cannot Say Enough" by MercyMe on Almost There
"You Are A Child Of Mine" by Mark Schultz on Stories & Songs
"Freedom" by Michael W. Smith on The Second Decade (1993-2003)
It's a pretty blah group of songs, but I didn't really expect anything different with the key I gave it. There are couple of good praise songs that I like to sing in church, and that I will consider a success for this round.
* Acts I've seen live
While I was impressed with his piano-by-ear ability, his lyric writing always frustrated me. I always most disliked the songs he wrote on his own without any lyrical help. He is an amazing musician, but he is not a lyricist. As such, it was important to me to find a song to share that he played piano (not guitar) in, but not that he'd written the words for. In the end, I settled on this tune, with words written by Diane Warren. This was from a concert back in 1993, which is sort of when I stopped listening to him, and therefore his 1980s-ish-persona is preserved in my brain as who he is, even though he keeps making albums and putting on concerts. Meanwhile, I sort of laughed at the little part at the beginning talking about how he composes and plays his music, so I thought you might also enjoy that little laugh. And so, without further ado, I give you "Smitty".
And now to see what Pandora gave me for my Michael W. Smith station.
"Here I Am" by Michael W. Smith* on Healing Rain
"Holy Is The Lord" by Chris Tomlin* on Arriving
"Holy Holy Holy" by Stephen Curtis Chapman on Amazing Grace
"You Are So Good To Me" by Third Day on Chronology Volume Two
"Let It Rain" by Michael W. Smith* on Worship (Live)
"My Redeemer Lives" by Reuben Morgan on World Through Your Eyes
"Shout To The Lord" by Lincoln Brewster on Let The Praises Ring
"Cannot Say Enough" by MercyMe on Almost There
"You Are A Child Of Mine" by Mark Schultz on Stories & Songs
"Freedom" by Michael W. Smith on The Second Decade (1993-2003)
It's a pretty blah group of songs, but I didn't really expect anything different with the key I gave it. There are couple of good praise songs that I like to sing in church, and that I will consider a success for this round.
* Acts I've seen live
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Ode To the Eye
The eye is a phenomenal organ. "Organ" doesn't even feel like a good enough word to describe all that the eye does. The stomach is an organ, churning our food and sending it on to the next part of the assembly line. But the eye does so much more than a single, optimized function.
The eye protects itself in ways the other organs of the body never do. Sure, the stomach has part of a rib cage and abdominal muscles and skin keeping it from the nefarious outside world, but these hardly seem the work of the stomach, itself. The eyelids, however, are part of the eye -- its gatekeepers, if you will. The eyelids close on an instinct if any sand or dust or bright light attempts to damage the tender eye behind them. The open wider to allow more images and light in, and shrink to slits when the light is too much for the eye to handle. The eyelashes are there to help with anything the eyelids can't react to quickly enough. Primarily, though, they are there to filter out the particles in the air, so the eyelids can stay open longer to let the eye do more of its thing.
Why all the protection for these amazing machines that make up such a tiny fraction of the mass of the human body? The eyes are important for many reasons, and this is seen in the ways our poets write about them. They are "windows to the soul." The eyes are where you see death overcome a person -- almost as if they are the defining part of life. They indicate if someone is telling the truth or embellishing, such as noting that a person who looks up and to the left while speaking is lying. The eyes can show a range of emotions from surprise to shame to fury to love, and a whole lot more. A simple change in the eyebrow shape can indicate someone in deep thought who would be best undisturbed or the thoughtful look of someone who is shocked at learning something new. Clearly, a major amount of communication occurs through these complex pieces of our face.
Speaking of the face, there are lots of beaty products for the eyes. There is eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow, and eyebrow pencils, but there are also eyelash curlers, and our eyebrows must be tweezed to keep them in shape. Uncared for, the eyes can make a person look old or dumb or indicate a social outcast.
As a powerful part of a person's exchange with the world around it, it's tough to think about not having eyes. More than the eye itself, though, my fears revolve around the loss of vision. With one eye already gone and the other declining, it's a real possibility. All I can do is continue to look for good opthamologists and hope the technology beats me to blindness. In the meantime, I'll enjoy my eyes.
The eye protects itself in ways the other organs of the body never do. Sure, the stomach has part of a rib cage and abdominal muscles and skin keeping it from the nefarious outside world, but these hardly seem the work of the stomach, itself. The eyelids, however, are part of the eye -- its gatekeepers, if you will. The eyelids close on an instinct if any sand or dust or bright light attempts to damage the tender eye behind them. The open wider to allow more images and light in, and shrink to slits when the light is too much for the eye to handle. The eyelashes are there to help with anything the eyelids can't react to quickly enough. Primarily, though, they are there to filter out the particles in the air, so the eyelids can stay open longer to let the eye do more of its thing.
Why all the protection for these amazing machines that make up such a tiny fraction of the mass of the human body? The eyes are important for many reasons, and this is seen in the ways our poets write about them. They are "windows to the soul." The eyes are where you see death overcome a person -- almost as if they are the defining part of life. They indicate if someone is telling the truth or embellishing, such as noting that a person who looks up and to the left while speaking is lying. The eyes can show a range of emotions from surprise to shame to fury to love, and a whole lot more. A simple change in the eyebrow shape can indicate someone in deep thought who would be best undisturbed or the thoughtful look of someone who is shocked at learning something new. Clearly, a major amount of communication occurs through these complex pieces of our face.
Speaking of the face, there are lots of beaty products for the eyes. There is eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow, and eyebrow pencils, but there are also eyelash curlers, and our eyebrows must be tweezed to keep them in shape. Uncared for, the eyes can make a person look old or dumb or indicate a social outcast.
As a powerful part of a person's exchange with the world around it, it's tough to think about not having eyes. More than the eye itself, though, my fears revolve around the loss of vision. With one eye already gone and the other declining, it's a real possibility. All I can do is continue to look for good opthamologists and hope the technology beats me to blindness. In the meantime, I'll enjoy my eyes.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Tiptoe Through The Tulips: Aeonium haworthii
I recently became a very lucky girl on my quest to understand my garden. The previous owner of the house, we'll call her Misty, had lived in this house a long time, and appears to know everyone in town. About 25 years ago, she commissioned the garden for this house from a local landscape artist she knew. Well, he still lives in SB, and came by last week to give us some pointers on the garden. He gave me all kinds of information about what some of these plants are, what I was doing wrong with some of them, and ideas about where to place some additional plants I'd really like to add to the yard. I now have a cornucopia of information, and weeks and weeks of details that I can use in this little feature on HIAHS.
But enough about my dumb luck as I was approaching some lean identification weeks.
This is Aeonium haworthii. It's a very small aeonium, with the succulent rosettes only measuring two to four inches across. While it appears to be rare hardy and nearly invasive, it grows easily in moderate conditions without much watering or other assistance. Here is a closeup of some of the smaller rosettes:
While the leaves end up looking like a flower, there is actually a flower that can grow on this guy. I haven't seen that happen, and am not certain that my exact version will flower, so I'll just stick with the leaves-arranged-like-a-flower state that I have now.
But enough about my dumb luck as I was approaching some lean identification weeks.
This is Aeonium haworthii. It's a very small aeonium, with the succulent rosettes only measuring two to four inches across. While it appears to be rare hardy and nearly invasive, it grows easily in moderate conditions without much watering or other assistance. Here is a closeup of some of the smaller rosettes:
While the leaves end up looking like a flower, there is actually a flower that can grow on this guy. I haven't seen that happen, and am not certain that my exact version will flower, so I'll just stick with the leaves-arranged-like-a-flower state that I have now.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Friday Random Ten
I'm continuing my series on using the discovery of Pandora as a reason to go down memory lane on some concerts I've attended. Next up is Trout Fishing In America. They are an interesting pair of guys. First is the fact that they are odd to look at -- Keith is short and plays the bass while Ezra is very tall and plays guitar, so neither really looks like he fits his instrument. Then, they have very different musical backgrounds, with Keith studying music in college and starting out with jazz groups while Ezra's background is in basketball-turned-rock'n'roll. I would primarily classify them as folk, but it's their kid's music with smart enough lyrics for adults that really drew me to them. I have several of their "adult" albums, but the most fun are the crazy kid songs -- tongue twisters and odes to imaginary friends with inconvenient names and recipes for pico de gallo that are just downright catchy (you know Ohio rhymes really nicely with pico de gallo, don't you?).
The time I saw them live was in College Station, and they had arrived in a summarily low key way in their old crimson truck, Robert RedFord. They proceeded to spend the next 2+ hours making me laugh until my sides hurt. Similarly to last week, as a relatively low-key band, there aren't a lot of videos that I had to pull from in the YouTube annals, I refer you to their MySpace page and demand you to listen to "Proper Cup of Coffee". You should also listen to "Baby's Got the Car Keys", but I won't demand that one. Meanwhile, I give you this energetic rendition of "Eleanor Rigby" with poor video quality, but that's not their fault. Enjoy!
And now on to what happened when I typed "Trout Fishing In America" into the Pandora musical engine.
"Something Sweet" by Trout Fishing In America* on inFINity
"Orangedale Whistle" by The Rankins on Collection
"Slip Away" by David Leask on Tightrope of Dreams
"Common-Law Love" by Sonny Landreth on Outward Bound
"Murrell's" by Trout Fishing In America* on Reel Life
"Hard Luck Woman" by Kiss on Rock and Roll Over
"California" by Creede Williams on Something Borrowed
"Wishing Well" by Monte Montgomery on Live at the Caravan of Dreams
"That's the Smoke They're Blowin'" by DAn Hicks & The Hot Licks on Selected Shorts
"The Number of That Truck" by Trout Fishing in America* on Reel Life
I hadn't heard of many of the other acts that Pandora dished me (wait -- who put Kiss in any sort of relation with TFIA?? Oh well, it worked...somehow), but they definitely focused on the folk side of things, and less on the fun-kid-song side, even with the songs they played from TFIA, directly. I'm still not sure how country ended up in the mix, but I guess other people have different ways of classifying TFIA's sound than I do. Regardless, it was a fun and relaxing little mix that I got served up, and I enjoyed most of it (Dan Hicks couldn't get off the Pandora stage fast enough for me). I can't wait for these guys to come to someplace near SB, so I can see them in person again.
* Acts I've seen live
The time I saw them live was in College Station, and they had arrived in a summarily low key way in their old crimson truck, Robert RedFord. They proceeded to spend the next 2+ hours making me laugh until my sides hurt. Similarly to last week, as a relatively low-key band, there aren't a lot of videos that I had to pull from in the YouTube annals, I refer you to their MySpace page and demand you to listen to "Proper Cup of Coffee". You should also listen to "Baby's Got the Car Keys", but I won't demand that one. Meanwhile, I give you this energetic rendition of "Eleanor Rigby" with poor video quality, but that's not their fault. Enjoy!
And now on to what happened when I typed "Trout Fishing In America" into the Pandora musical engine.
"Something Sweet" by Trout Fishing In America* on inFINity
"Orangedale Whistle" by The Rankins on Collection
"Slip Away" by David Leask on Tightrope of Dreams
"Common-Law Love" by Sonny Landreth on Outward Bound
"Murrell's" by Trout Fishing In America* on Reel Life
"Hard Luck Woman" by Kiss on Rock and Roll Over
"California" by Creede Williams on Something Borrowed
"Wishing Well" by Monte Montgomery on Live at the Caravan of Dreams
"That's the Smoke They're Blowin'" by DAn Hicks & The Hot Licks on Selected Shorts
"The Number of That Truck" by Trout Fishing in America* on Reel Life
I hadn't heard of many of the other acts that Pandora dished me (wait -- who put Kiss in any sort of relation with TFIA?? Oh well, it worked...somehow), but they definitely focused on the folk side of things, and less on the fun-kid-song side, even with the songs they played from TFIA, directly. I'm still not sure how country ended up in the mix, but I guess other people have different ways of classifying TFIA's sound than I do. Regardless, it was a fun and relaxing little mix that I got served up, and I enjoyed most of it (Dan Hicks couldn't get off the Pandora stage fast enough for me). I can't wait for these guys to come to someplace near SB, so I can see them in person again.
* Acts I've seen live
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Parading with the Big Dogs
This weekend, we went to the Big Dog Parade. Odd phenomenon, that one. The concept is simple enough: dress up your dog and walk through the streets as part of the procession. However, that little synopsis hardly does this even justice, and that would be because there are some incredibly creative people in the world. Here is a sampling of some of my favorites.
Here, a Spuds Mackensie lookalike rides a bike in a most uncomfortable-looking position. Regardless of how uncomfortable it looks, I can attest he hung out there for at least the five minutes we could see him.
I loved the giant dog dressed up like a clydesdale, and accessorily, I loved the mini-kegs in the back of his wagon. Hee hee!
The retired greyhound group was too cute dressed as busses and RVs. Winnegreygo is a surprisingly funny word to say out loud. Go ahead and try it.
Apparently, if you don't want to dress up your dog, you can just paint him. It was a good paint job, too, since I had to do a double-take to be sure what I was seeing.
Token hot dog costume. Someone had to do it, and I'm glad they did.
One group emphasizing the need for environmental awareness wore shirts saying "Reduce your carbon paw print", and hooked up a passal of dogs to this makeshift car they named the Hounda (there were several other puns around this one, but now I don't remember them). I put more info here, because I know my picture didn't turn out that well.
Anyway, the point was that it was fun. There were a lot of zany costumes, and some where the people looked funnier than the dogs, but most of them made me laugh in one way or the other. I don't think I would be one of those people that dresses up her pets, but for something like this I could make an exception. How about you -- would you dress up your dog or cat? Any fun ideas for funny pet costumes?
Here, a Spuds Mackensie lookalike rides a bike in a most uncomfortable-looking position. Regardless of how uncomfortable it looks, I can attest he hung out there for at least the five minutes we could see him.
I loved the giant dog dressed up like a clydesdale, and accessorily, I loved the mini-kegs in the back of his wagon. Hee hee!
The retired greyhound group was too cute dressed as busses and RVs. Winnegreygo is a surprisingly funny word to say out loud. Go ahead and try it.
Apparently, if you don't want to dress up your dog, you can just paint him. It was a good paint job, too, since I had to do a double-take to be sure what I was seeing.
Token hot dog costume. Someone had to do it, and I'm glad they did.
One group emphasizing the need for environmental awareness wore shirts saying "Reduce your carbon paw print", and hooked up a passal of dogs to this makeshift car they named the Hounda (there were several other puns around this one, but now I don't remember them). I put more info here, because I know my picture didn't turn out that well.Anyway, the point was that it was fun. There were a lot of zany costumes, and some where the people looked funnier than the dogs, but most of them made me laugh in one way or the other. I don't think I would be one of those people that dresses up her pets, but for something like this I could make an exception. How about you -- would you dress up your dog or cat? Any fun ideas for funny pet costumes?
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Tiptoe Through The Tulips: Rhipsalidopsis gaertneri (Easter Cactus)
I decided I better figure out what this one was, because I appears to be trying to kill it, despite the massive numbers of blooms. Here you can see the base stems that look like they are all dying with green sections and tons of blooms at the end, despite it all.
Meanwhile, to give you an idea of scale, here are the blooms in their detail on the edges of my fingertips -- about an inch across, but very bright and happy.
While the common name of Easter Cactus is well agreed on by the various sites I looked at, no one can seem to decide which Cacti genus it belongs in. Some put it in Schlumbergera, some in the Epiphyllum group, like our orchid cactus friend, and it was previously referred to as a Zygocactus, but most seem to put it in the Rhipsalidopsis genus now, so that's where I decided to keep it. Even though they can't agree on a genus, they all have it in the species gaertneri -- backwards, I tell you! How am I supposed to figure out what they are if everyone else doesn't agree?
Anyway, I was supposed to be watering this guy up until it bloomed, and then let it get dry between waterings. I kinda did that backwards, and is likely why this guy is in such a bad state at this point, even though it is healthy enough to flower. I'm trying to do better now that I know what it is. We'll see. Man, am I glad I lucked into an established garden that I can't probably damage too badly.
Meanwhile, to give you an idea of scale, here are the blooms in their detail on the edges of my fingertips -- about an inch across, but very bright and happy.
While the common name of Easter Cactus is well agreed on by the various sites I looked at, no one can seem to decide which Cacti genus it belongs in. Some put it in Schlumbergera, some in the Epiphyllum group, like our orchid cactus friend, and it was previously referred to as a Zygocactus, but most seem to put it in the Rhipsalidopsis genus now, so that's where I decided to keep it. Even though they can't agree on a genus, they all have it in the species gaertneri -- backwards, I tell you! How am I supposed to figure out what they are if everyone else doesn't agree?
Anyway, I was supposed to be watering this guy up until it bloomed, and then let it get dry between waterings. I kinda did that backwards, and is likely why this guy is in such a bad state at this point, even though it is healthy enough to flower. I'm trying to do better now that I know what it is. We'll see. Man, am I glad I lucked into an established garden that I can't probably damage too badly.
Monday, June 09, 2008
Celebrating 3653 Days
Friday was the 3653rd day-iversary of our wedding (that's ten years for those of you that are math-limited, either by infant-induced lack of sleep, or more general math aversion). Our day was fubared because of flight delays the night before that meant we were in LA late Thursday night instead of SB, but we can make the most of messed up plans.
We spent the night in a hotel. Not a fancy one, but it was fun to be somewhere different in an unplanned trip. Friday morning, we got up and researched bike shops in the area, and went to look. Looking led to a really good deal we couldn't pass up, and now we are the proud owners of this little number:
It's a fun way to ride, and it's a way for us both to work hard and end up at the same place at the same time. We'd tried one that some friends lent us in Austin, so we knew we can actually do the whole bicyle-built-for two without crashing and burning. The difficulty, then, was to find one that would be fit right for us and be sturdy enough for touring gear to be attached to it. We had talked about a custom tandem (mostly because GB really likes to think he is unique, even though I'm the oddly shaped one -- long legs, no torso), but those buggers are seriously expensive. We also had talked about one that could come apart for traveling tandem trips, but then we found that it's possible to retrofit that functionality into a bike, so that seemed less important to have in the initial purchase. Mostly, we have been trying to greenify our lives (the high-falutin' phrase is "reduce our carbon footprint", but there is no high-falutin' here at HIAHS). This bike is one way to do that. We have big plans for biking-to-camp trips and long bike trips together, both based from here and places that are plane rides away. I'm looking forward to that. Plus, it's a true togethering present to ourselves, and crossing into the double-digits is a big deal.
Our next plan on the bike is to upgrade some of the components (derailleurs and shifters, primarily) and add carrying capacity. In the meantime, we'll be practicing our synchronous power output as captain (the one in the front who steers and shifts) and stoker (the one in the back who pedals her heart out). It's sort of an interesting metaphor for marriage, but I'm too tired from our ride yesterday to flesh it out.
The rest of the celebratory day included chili fries at Tommy's for lunch, and a nice Italian dinner down on the waterfront at Emilio's. With all the first name possessive eateries out there, we were bound to hit two in one day. Overall, it was great to take the day off work and just enjoy the life of a couple who's only just now hitting our stride. And here's to many more of those!
We spent the night in a hotel. Not a fancy one, but it was fun to be somewhere different in an unplanned trip. Friday morning, we got up and researched bike shops in the area, and went to look. Looking led to a really good deal we couldn't pass up, and now we are the proud owners of this little number:
It's a fun way to ride, and it's a way for us both to work hard and end up at the same place at the same time. We'd tried one that some friends lent us in Austin, so we knew we can actually do the whole bicyle-built-for two without crashing and burning. The difficulty, then, was to find one that would be fit right for us and be sturdy enough for touring gear to be attached to it. We had talked about a custom tandem (mostly because GB really likes to think he is unique, even though I'm the oddly shaped one -- long legs, no torso), but those buggers are seriously expensive. We also had talked about one that could come apart for traveling tandem trips, but then we found that it's possible to retrofit that functionality into a bike, so that seemed less important to have in the initial purchase. Mostly, we have been trying to greenify our lives (the high-falutin' phrase is "reduce our carbon footprint", but there is no high-falutin' here at HIAHS). This bike is one way to do that. We have big plans for biking-to-camp trips and long bike trips together, both based from here and places that are plane rides away. I'm looking forward to that. Plus, it's a true togethering present to ourselves, and crossing into the double-digits is a big deal.
Our next plan on the bike is to upgrade some of the components (derailleurs and shifters, primarily) and add carrying capacity. In the meantime, we'll be practicing our synchronous power output as captain (the one in the front who steers and shifts) and stoker (the one in the back who pedals her heart out). It's sort of an interesting metaphor for marriage, but I'm too tired from our ride yesterday to flesh it out.
The rest of the celebratory day included chili fries at Tommy's for lunch, and a nice Italian dinner down on the waterfront at Emilio's. With all the first name possessive eateries out there, we were bound to hit two in one day. Overall, it was great to take the day off work and just enjoy the life of a couple who's only just now hitting our stride. And here's to many more of those!
Friday, June 06, 2008
Friday Random Ten
I am continuing my proces of seeing what kinds of music Pandora might be able to introduce me to. As I mentioned last week, I am working through my list of concerts as a starting point. The headliners at my first Jars of Clay concert were a group called PFR. I had a crush on the drummer for nearly a year, but whatever. Great Lengths was their third album, and that was the tour I saw. They were not the best pick for the small venue where I saw them -- they were too loud and rocked too hard for that space, and I remember thinking they were going to blow speakers or something. They were fun, but were vastly overshadowed in my mind, at least, by the acoustic set of JoC, and while I bought PFR's next album, they were pretty well on their way out of the scene already then. It was sad, and I ecstatically bought their 2001 reunion album, only never to really be sucked into it. Great Lengths, however, was a phenomenal album, even though I'm sure you've never heard anything on it. Also, it's surprisingly difficult to find videos on YouTube from a defunct band that didn't have massively wide appeal. Go figure. So, while I had grand plans of spending time figuring out my favorite PFR song and posting the video, instead, you'll get the only one I found out there. It's a pretty good song off GL called "Wonder Why."
"Trials Turned To Gold" by PFR* on Great Lengths
"Wait For Love" by Not The Joneses on Not The Joneses
"Waiting for the Summer" by Delirious? on Touch
"I Will Boast" by Phillips, Craig & Dean on Top Of My Lungs
"Spinnin' Round" by PFR* on The Late Great PFR
"The Sweetest Sound" by Stereo Motion on Stereo Motion
"Love's Cry" by Roads To Rome on Love Rain Down
"Restrained" by Seven Day Jesus on The Hunger
"Faithful" by Fee on We Shine
"Pray For Rain" by PFR on The Late Great PFR
So this was an interesting foray into Pandora-land. I actually hadn't even heard of a lot of these groups, but it was generally interesting listening. Some of it was campy, but most of it was pretty good. I haven't yet been motivated to go out and purchase anything as a result of this experiment, but I can see how that could happen.
* Acts I've seen live
"Trials Turned To Gold" by PFR* on Great Lengths
"Wait For Love" by Not The Joneses on Not The Joneses
"Waiting for the Summer" by Delirious? on Touch
"I Will Boast" by Phillips, Craig & Dean on Top Of My Lungs
"Spinnin' Round" by PFR* on The Late Great PFR
"The Sweetest Sound" by Stereo Motion on Stereo Motion
"Love's Cry" by Roads To Rome on Love Rain Down
"Restrained" by Seven Day Jesus on The Hunger
"Faithful" by Fee on We Shine
"Pray For Rain" by PFR on The Late Great PFR
So this was an interesting foray into Pandora-land. I actually hadn't even heard of a lot of these groups, but it was generally interesting listening. Some of it was campy, but most of it was pretty good. I haven't yet been motivated to go out and purchase anything as a result of this experiment, but I can see how that could happen.
* Acts I've seen live
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Tiptoe Through The Tulips: Jasminum Polyanthum (Pink Jasmine)
This lovely vine doesn't technically grow in our yard. The root system is based in the neighbor's yard, but the vines come up over the fence and we get to enjoy them, so I figure they count as being plants I should know about.
Based on the lovely light fragrance, I knew it was a jasmine. Armed with pictures, I found it is called a Pink Jasmine, because of the pink bloom clusters that turn into pristine white flowers. Apparently, in some climates it can be a deciduous vine, but here it stays green all year with the flowers starting now and covering the plant in June (if I remember correctly from last year -- it hasn't happened this year, yet).
The big plus for this plant is that it's not mine to take care of. Periodically I rinse the dust and cobwebs off the leaves, but mostly it's the neighbor's plant. I like easy, and I like pretty, so this vine really does the trick.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
The Post That Shouldn't Be
This is a phantom post. I set it up to post while I couldn't physically be posting, because I'm on a plane to Texas to see the baby sister graduate from high school. Just thought it would be fun to throw that out there for you.
Lost Speculation Revisited
NOTICE: Contains spoilers from last night's season finale. Come back and read this later if you haven't see it yet. If you don't intend to watch it, then you can read or not, but mostly I would expect that you wouldn't want to.
After finishing watching season 4's finale last night, I decided to go back to the post I did before the season started, and see how I did on all this guesswork.
1. Richard -- I had decided this character was special in some way, due to his lack of aging over the decades. He is still an enigma, but we know he's more important now that this season is complete. He has been recruiting John Locke, basically since birth, and he definitely seems to be the non-figurehead leader. It's like the opposite of the Queen of England who's all for look and has little to no real power. I look for him to be very important as the last two seasons progress.
2. Mikhail -- After surviving the sonic fence and a gunshot in the back, it appeared Mikhail was invincible on the island. After his hand-grenade-in-the-underwater-station trick, though, he hasn't returned this season. Is it possible that being just off the coast of the island was enough to lose the island's protection, and he finally died? Or is he just lurking out of view for a season with a return to the show still in his future?
3. Ben -- I opined that Ben was a poser, and had never been special. However, now it seems likely that he was special at some point, and has since lost favor with the island for something. Perhaps it was as simple as the island getting John Locke, and therefore being done with Ben, or it might be that Ben did something to make the island mad, and he is now being punished. I may have to go dig for more details on this one to see what I may have missed on that front.
4. John -- He was, indeed, the man in the coffin. I was so excited when I saw that I'd gotten that right -- like maybe I've developed some kind of intuition on this story along the way. Regardless, now we have a new name for him -- Jeremy Bentham. This appears to be some sort of code name so that other people in the regular world don't get wind of the fact that this is another of the Oceanic survivors. We know he becomes the leader of the others in place of Ben, but we'll have to wait to see what made him leave the island to try to return the Oceanic 6 to the island.
5. Christian -- I had thought that maybe there was an alternate time stream where Jack's dad was still alive. That seems clear not to be the case. However, he'd had all these weird red-herring-style appearances before, and now he seems to be more and more of a player in this saga. And how is Claire now becoming a similar enigma to her dad. It makes me wonder if she died?
So, on these predictions, I turned out to be a big 2-3. Not so bad, but there are still so many questions remaining. For example:
We know there is a time differential, and not really a split. However, we we don't really know how that time differential plays into things, completely, so that will continue to be in the mix of stuff to be elaborated further.
We still don't know why Ben became the leader of the Others. His extinction of the Dharma Initiative folks was more of his proof that he was committed to the group, but it doesn't give us any idea as to why they gave him the chance. Just because his dead mama talked to him as a boy? That seems a stretch.
Are there any Dharma folks left? On this, I would say a hearty...well, mostly no. However, if Charlotte was actually born on the island, is that because she was part of the DI? Or did I misunderstand, and she's looking for some other mysterious place that she came from? Hard to say, but it's clear that will be more story, and she may be part of that Dharma thing.
That crazy specialness is also still a mystery. Now we have this idea that Hurley is "special", too, because he saw Jacob's cabin. That's certainly a different kind of special than I had identified at the beginning of the season, but maybe that's just because he didn't have a physical calamity to be healed from. Maybe the island made him mentally better, and that's why he's back in the institution after returning from the island.
Plus, the new characters are just questions for the future seasons. All very interesting, and keeping me ready for that next season, and wondering why I'll have to wait so long for that.
After finishing watching season 4's finale last night, I decided to go back to the post I did before the season started, and see how I did on all this guesswork.
1. Richard -- I had decided this character was special in some way, due to his lack of aging over the decades. He is still an enigma, but we know he's more important now that this season is complete. He has been recruiting John Locke, basically since birth, and he definitely seems to be the non-figurehead leader. It's like the opposite of the Queen of England who's all for look and has little to no real power. I look for him to be very important as the last two seasons progress.
2. Mikhail -- After surviving the sonic fence and a gunshot in the back, it appeared Mikhail was invincible on the island. After his hand-grenade-in-the-underwater-station trick, though, he hasn't returned this season. Is it possible that being just off the coast of the island was enough to lose the island's protection, and he finally died? Or is he just lurking out of view for a season with a return to the show still in his future?
3. Ben -- I opined that Ben was a poser, and had never been special. However, now it seems likely that he was special at some point, and has since lost favor with the island for something. Perhaps it was as simple as the island getting John Locke, and therefore being done with Ben, or it might be that Ben did something to make the island mad, and he is now being punished. I may have to go dig for more details on this one to see what I may have missed on that front.
4. John -- He was, indeed, the man in the coffin. I was so excited when I saw that I'd gotten that right -- like maybe I've developed some kind of intuition on this story along the way. Regardless, now we have a new name for him -- Jeremy Bentham. This appears to be some sort of code name so that other people in the regular world don't get wind of the fact that this is another of the Oceanic survivors. We know he becomes the leader of the others in place of Ben, but we'll have to wait to see what made him leave the island to try to return the Oceanic 6 to the island.
5. Christian -- I had thought that maybe there was an alternate time stream where Jack's dad was still alive. That seems clear not to be the case. However, he'd had all these weird red-herring-style appearances before, and now he seems to be more and more of a player in this saga. And how is Claire now becoming a similar enigma to her dad. It makes me wonder if she died?
So, on these predictions, I turned out to be a big 2-3. Not so bad, but there are still so many questions remaining. For example:
We know there is a time differential, and not really a split. However, we we don't really know how that time differential plays into things, completely, so that will continue to be in the mix of stuff to be elaborated further.
We still don't know why Ben became the leader of the Others. His extinction of the Dharma Initiative folks was more of his proof that he was committed to the group, but it doesn't give us any idea as to why they gave him the chance. Just because his dead mama talked to him as a boy? That seems a stretch.
Are there any Dharma folks left? On this, I would say a hearty...well, mostly no. However, if Charlotte was actually born on the island, is that because she was part of the DI? Or did I misunderstand, and she's looking for some other mysterious place that she came from? Hard to say, but it's clear that will be more story, and she may be part of that Dharma thing.
That crazy specialness is also still a mystery. Now we have this idea that Hurley is "special", too, because he saw Jacob's cabin. That's certainly a different kind of special than I had identified at the beginning of the season, but maybe that's just because he didn't have a physical calamity to be healed from. Maybe the island made him mentally better, and that's why he's back in the institution after returning from the island.
Plus, the new characters are just questions for the future seasons. All very interesting, and keeping me ready for that next season, and wondering why I'll have to wait so long for that.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Friday Random Ten
I mentioned last week that I would use the Pandora website to come up with some different music to list on this site. You start with the name of a song or artist, and it generates a radio playlist for you based on stuff that is considered to be related. I thought I'd start this little game off with the groups I've seen live over time.
This first week, I thought I'd use the first concert I went to. The opening band was a new band in the music scene, one called Jars of Clay. You may have heard me mention them before. I was one of those obssessed fans who read everything I could find about them. When I heard they were doing a concert for about 300 people just 3 hours away, I suckered three of my friends into road-tripping with me. They were a small-time band, back then, with just one album, so it wasn't too tough to know all their songs. That tour, they traveled with most of a string section, and it was a great show, the best even. A year or two later, I saw them again at a much bigger venue, and a few years back at Stubbs in Austin. I'm a big fan of these guys, in case you couldn't tell. Here's the gratuitous YouTube video of their well-known mainstream song, to remind you how you do actually know who these guys are (and to remind you that 1995 was a really long time ago -- just look at those haircuts and outfits!):
And now, without further ado, here is what Pandora gave me to go with these guys.
"Worlds Apart" by Jars of Clay* on Jars of Clay
"My Savior My God" by Aaron Shust on Anything Worth Saying
"Indescribable (Live)" by Chris Tomlin* on Live From Austin Music Hall
"Love Heals Your Heart" by Third Day on Whereever You Are
"Love Song For A Savior" by Jars of Clay* on Jars of Clay
"Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot on The Beautiful Letdown
"In Christ Alone (My Hope Is Found)" by Promise Keepers on The Awakening Worship
"Stillness" by Aaron Shust on Anything Worth Saying
"The Day Before You" by Matthew West on History
"Disappear" by Jars of Clay* on The Eleventh Hour (which I somehow don't own....hmmmmm)
Well, the randomness left something to be desired, but I suppose that's the point of the site. I'd never heard the Third Day or the Matthew West song (though I've heard others by them), and I did like them, so I think that counts for something positive learned today. Every day should be so lucky. Plus, with a visual to go with each song, I feel like I have a chance of remembering songs that go with a particular artist (I'm terrible at that particular skill -- I think it stayed in the untappable back of my brain with the audio learning that I never got either. I still wonder how I got a degree in a lecture-styled education system.).
* Acts I've seen live
This first week, I thought I'd use the first concert I went to. The opening band was a new band in the music scene, one called Jars of Clay. You may have heard me mention them before. I was one of those obssessed fans who read everything I could find about them. When I heard they were doing a concert for about 300 people just 3 hours away, I suckered three of my friends into road-tripping with me. They were a small-time band, back then, with just one album, so it wasn't too tough to know all their songs. That tour, they traveled with most of a string section, and it was a great show, the best even. A year or two later, I saw them again at a much bigger venue, and a few years back at Stubbs in Austin. I'm a big fan of these guys, in case you couldn't tell. Here's the gratuitous YouTube video of their well-known mainstream song, to remind you how you do actually know who these guys are (and to remind you that 1995 was a really long time ago -- just look at those haircuts and outfits!):
And now, without further ado, here is what Pandora gave me to go with these guys.
"Worlds Apart" by Jars of Clay* on Jars of Clay
"My Savior My God" by Aaron Shust on Anything Worth Saying
"Indescribable (Live)" by Chris Tomlin* on Live From Austin Music Hall
"Love Heals Your Heart" by Third Day on Whereever You Are
"Love Song For A Savior" by Jars of Clay* on Jars of Clay
"Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot on The Beautiful Letdown
"In Christ Alone (My Hope Is Found)" by Promise Keepers on The Awakening Worship
"Stillness" by Aaron Shust on Anything Worth Saying
"The Day Before You" by Matthew West on History
"Disappear" by Jars of Clay* on The Eleventh Hour (which I somehow don't own....hmmmmm)
Well, the randomness left something to be desired, but I suppose that's the point of the site. I'd never heard the Third Day or the Matthew West song (though I've heard others by them), and I did like them, so I think that counts for something positive learned today. Every day should be so lucky. Plus, with a visual to go with each song, I feel like I have a chance of remembering songs that go with a particular artist (I'm terrible at that particular skill -- I think it stayed in the untappable back of my brain with the audio learning that I never got either. I still wonder how I got a degree in a lecture-styled education system.).
* Acts I've seen live
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Weekly 5Ks
I signed up for an event that runs every Wednesday night from March to August. There is a 1K ocean swim and a 5k run each week, and you can do one or the other or both. I am still not brave enough to enter the frigid waters of the Pacific (currently around 55 degrees Fahrenheit), so I haven't done the ocean swim, but I have now done 4 weeks worth of 5k runs. Last night was a personal best time.
It's a really easy course, uphill for about 2k and then downhill 3k. It's so nice to have that net downhill (finishing a ways below the starting point), and that makes it easy, in my book. Plus, it's in the early evening with the calm ocean breezes and lots of people out with their dogs and kids making it busy and animated.
The first week, I ran it cold, with no training runs for a good several months prior (can you tell I was suckered in at the last minute?), and was shocked to still finish under 35 minutes. I know, 7 minute kilometers (11:30ish minute miles) is nothing to be impressed by, but I derive my happiness from small accomplishments -- I jogged the whole thing and didn't have to walk, and that counts for something in my little brain. The second week, I cratered (it was either the lack of water all day, or starting out the run too fast, or the poached egg I'd eaten that afternoon -- all of these things are strict no-nos!!!), and took almost 41 minutes to finish the little run. The third week I was back on a bit better track, but still took around 36 minutes to finish.
And then there was last night. I started out slow, forcing myself not to keep up with people around me, not to allow the speed of the group to push me faster than my little legs and heart can handle. At the 1-mile marker, I was surprised how good I really felt, so I sped up. As the downhill started, I really lengthened my stride to allow gravity to just pull me down to the finish. I know that my legs are pretty long for my height, but I don't have them trained for the right length stride for serious speed, yet. But this was a measure of what might be possible, as I careened in for a 32:18 finish. That would be my best 5K yet, and I now see the possibility of breaking the 30-minute mark before the end of the summer.
I know I'm still not fast (the fastest time last night was still twice my speed, and the fastest woman was sub-19 minutes), but I'm still proud of what I did. And now we'll see what happens from here.
It's a really easy course, uphill for about 2k and then downhill 3k. It's so nice to have that net downhill (finishing a ways below the starting point), and that makes it easy, in my book. Plus, it's in the early evening with the calm ocean breezes and lots of people out with their dogs and kids making it busy and animated.
The first week, I ran it cold, with no training runs for a good several months prior (can you tell I was suckered in at the last minute?), and was shocked to still finish under 35 minutes. I know, 7 minute kilometers (11:30ish minute miles) is nothing to be impressed by, but I derive my happiness from small accomplishments -- I jogged the whole thing and didn't have to walk, and that counts for something in my little brain. The second week, I cratered (it was either the lack of water all day, or starting out the run too fast, or the poached egg I'd eaten that afternoon -- all of these things are strict no-nos!!!), and took almost 41 minutes to finish the little run. The third week I was back on a bit better track, but still took around 36 minutes to finish.
And then there was last night. I started out slow, forcing myself not to keep up with people around me, not to allow the speed of the group to push me faster than my little legs and heart can handle. At the 1-mile marker, I was surprised how good I really felt, so I sped up. As the downhill started, I really lengthened my stride to allow gravity to just pull me down to the finish. I know that my legs are pretty long for my height, but I don't have them trained for the right length stride for serious speed, yet. But this was a measure of what might be possible, as I careened in for a 32:18 finish. That would be my best 5K yet, and I now see the possibility of breaking the 30-minute mark before the end of the summer.
I know I'm still not fast (the fastest time last night was still twice my speed, and the fastest woman was sub-19 minutes), but I'm still proud of what I did. And now we'll see what happens from here.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Tiptoe Through The Tulips: Epidendrums (Star Orchids)
This one suprised me by turning out to be in the orchid family. The flowers are so small, they reminded me of the lantana bushes from Texas. I guess that's why I was so sure they had to be nearly a weed, only pretty. Our versions are purple and orange, and you can see the long-stemmed growth in this picture.
The side view of one of the purple clusters can be seen here. The picture ended up being fuzzy, but I really tried a lot of times (darn macro setting on a tiny flower that keeps moving in the wind), and this was the best I got. Meanwhile, I'll close out with a pretty top view of an orange cluster that sat nicely for its portrait to be taken:
So, as I mentioned before, I was surprised that while investigating the boat orchids of last week, I came across a picture of these guys. Wasn't expecting to find them there. However, on closer review, the petals with the central showy beak that is common in orchids, not sure why I didn't make that connection. Oh, right, I'm a plant idiot trying to change her ways. Regardless, these are definitely Epidendrums, also known as Star Orchids, and these are nice and hardy (which should be read as Heather will likely not kill them). However, the fact that they are long and gangly in my backyard means that I'm not fertilizing them with a low-nitrogen fertilizer (no duh -- not fertilizing them at all, yet), and I'm not watering them enough. At least I know how to keep these guys going stronger in the future!
The side view of one of the purple clusters can be seen here. The picture ended up being fuzzy, but I really tried a lot of times (darn macro setting on a tiny flower that keeps moving in the wind), and this was the best I got. Meanwhile, I'll close out with a pretty top view of an orange cluster that sat nicely for its portrait to be taken:
So, as I mentioned before, I was surprised that while investigating the boat orchids of last week, I came across a picture of these guys. Wasn't expecting to find them there. However, on closer review, the petals with the central showy beak that is common in orchids, not sure why I didn't make that connection. Oh, right, I'm a plant idiot trying to change her ways. Regardless, these are definitely Epidendrums, also known as Star Orchids, and these are nice and hardy (which should be read as Heather will likely not kill them). However, the fact that they are long and gangly in my backyard means that I'm not fertilizing them with a low-nitrogen fertilizer (no duh -- not fertilizing them at all, yet), and I'm not watering them enough. At least I know how to keep these guys going stronger in the future!
Friday, May 23, 2008
Friday Random Ten
"We Are The Dinosaurs" by Trout Fishing In America* on Big Trouble
"What's In A Name" by Petra on Beyond Belief
"The Me Nobody Knows" by Marilyn McCoo on The Me Nobody Knows
"No Holly For Miss Quinn" by Enya on Shepherd Moons
"Rock 'N Me" by Steve Miller Band on Greatest Hits
"Sweet Little Loving" by White Lion on Pride
"The Joker" by Steve Miller Band on Greatest Hits
"War Child" by The Cranberries on To The Faithful Departed
"Dying Man" by PFR* on Goldie's Last Day
"Famous Last Words" by Jars of Clay* on If I Left The Zoo
This week appears to be an identity week -- we're everything from dinosaurs to unknown to a joker to a child of war to an adult at the end of life. We like rock and loving (okay, I'm stretching here to keep to the theme), but overall we may not be ready for our last words, depending on who we know. Interesting stuff, that iTunes.
Next week, I'm planning on employing Pandora for this space to see what it gives me based on my seed group or song. Should make for some interesting collections of stuff, and some discoveries, and I'm looking forward to seeing what comes of that. Plus, I need to add some new stuff to my iTunes library for future listening.
* Acts I've seen live
"What's In A Name" by Petra on Beyond Belief
"The Me Nobody Knows" by Marilyn McCoo on The Me Nobody Knows
"No Holly For Miss Quinn" by Enya on Shepherd Moons
"Rock 'N Me" by Steve Miller Band on Greatest Hits
"Sweet Little Loving" by White Lion on Pride
"The Joker" by Steve Miller Band on Greatest Hits
"War Child" by The Cranberries on To The Faithful Departed
"Dying Man" by PFR* on Goldie's Last Day
"Famous Last Words" by Jars of Clay* on If I Left The Zoo
This week appears to be an identity week -- we're everything from dinosaurs to unknown to a joker to a child of war to an adult at the end of life. We like rock and loving (okay, I'm stretching here to keep to the theme), but overall we may not be ready for our last words, depending on who we know. Interesting stuff, that iTunes.
Next week, I'm planning on employing Pandora for this space to see what it gives me based on my seed group or song. Should make for some interesting collections of stuff, and some discoveries, and I'm looking forward to seeing what comes of that. Plus, I need to add some new stuff to my iTunes library for future listening.
* Acts I've seen live
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Where Ye Be Going?
In a recent perusal of the keywords that have brought unsuspecting people to HIAHS, I found some special selections. These are generally phrases that really make me wonder how search engines work. In the "Go Figure" category, we have:
court martial for heather post -- Currently, I'm wondering if Heather Post is being court martialed, or if someone was looking for a post on the court martial of a more generic Heather. Regardless, there is no past, present or future court martial for this Heather, so you may want to move along.
green jelly -- Apparently, once upon a time, I had a Friday Random Ten that included a song by a group of this name. Never even knew I had such a band reflected in my collection. Clearly from a mish-mash CD of random stuff. Meanwhile, if you are hoping to find out about jelly made from pears or granny smith apples or grapes or jalepenos, you should look elsewhere. At least until I post the recipe for such things.
french bread varieties -- I'm no expert, but I thought there was just the one variety. You know, French bread. For more options, find someone who knows stuff.
derailleur? i hardly knew her! -- People actually put these kinds of things in search engines?
chicken marsala when you are pregnant -- I can vouch for chicken marsala being tasty, but I have no insight into how that might taste when you're pregnant.
Also, in the "Maybe I should Collegify My Vocabulary" category, apparently "um yeah" and "eh" also brought people to my blog. Of course, if that's how they are searching, I assume their expectations of the content here should be similarly low, and that could be a good thing...
court martial for heather post -- Currently, I'm wondering if Heather Post is being court martialed, or if someone was looking for a post on the court martial of a more generic Heather. Regardless, there is no past, present or future court martial for this Heather, so you may want to move along.
green jelly -- Apparently, once upon a time, I had a Friday Random Ten that included a song by a group of this name. Never even knew I had such a band reflected in my collection. Clearly from a mish-mash CD of random stuff. Meanwhile, if you are hoping to find out about jelly made from pears or granny smith apples or grapes or jalepenos, you should look elsewhere. At least until I post the recipe for such things.
french bread varieties -- I'm no expert, but I thought there was just the one variety. You know, French bread. For more options, find someone who knows stuff.
derailleur? i hardly knew her! -- People actually put these kinds of things in search engines?
chicken marsala when you are pregnant -- I can vouch for chicken marsala being tasty, but I have no insight into how that might taste when you're pregnant.
Also, in the "Maybe I should Collegify My Vocabulary" category, apparently "um yeah" and "eh" also brought people to my blog. Of course, if that's how they are searching, I assume their expectations of the content here should be similarly low, and that could be a good thing...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Recipes are Good Blog Fodder
Last week I was in North Carolina visiting my sister. I was there to go to her graduation and her commissioning as a Naval officer, and stuck around the whole week, because traveling from one coast to another and back just for a weekend seems silly. I worked from her apartment for the week while she went to work, and then we hung out at night doing various things -- chilling in bars where a guy tried to pick up yours truly, doing karaoke where another guy tried to do the same, sucking at trivia, and just generally drinking too much and being out too late. It was a good week.
Anyway, by Friday night, I was pretty tired. My sister informed me it was my job to plan our evening's festivities, and I was really itching to cook. So I did. And I even had access to recipes from home, just via an internet connection.
Isn't the internet grand?
Anyway, by Friday night, I was pretty tired. My sister informed me it was my job to plan our evening's festivities, and I was really itching to cook. So I did. And I even had access to recipes from home, just via an internet connection.
Isn't the internet grand?
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