To Blog or Not To Blog

That is my question.

I need your help out there. Does this blog still seem interesting to you? Is it too slanted with my own musical stuff that I love? Would you rather I write more about day to day stuff?

Please let me know what kinds of things you like about this blog...and some things you would like to see.

I know its a blog that is created by me and for me. But.....I would like to make it more fun for the 3 people out there that read it.

SPEAK UP!

Or else!

(or else, I will write more about govt mule!)

Leave a comment please.

Thanks

Hot off the Gov't Mule presses.

10.31: THE HOLY HAUNTED HOUSEIn the spirit of the holiday, this year's Halloween show at the O'Shaughnessy Theatre in St. Paul, MN will be entitled GOV'T MULE'S HOLY HAUNTED HOUSE. The band will be joined by longtime friend and collaborator Audley Freed for this very special night of music.Tickets are available now through Ticketmaster.


Hmmmmm should be a great night!

VAN HALENS FIRST REUNION SHOW

Well, they have one under their belt....from all reviews it sounds like it delivers the goods. Check out the Pic and the setlist ( notice, no Sammy...all classic Dave era VH. Niiiiiiiiiice!)

The group's setlist was as follows:

01. You Really Got Me

02. I'm the One

03. Runnin' With the Devil

04. Romeo Delight

05. Somebody Get Me a Doctor

06. Beautiful Girls

07. Dance the Night Away

08. Atomic Punk

09. Everybody Wants Some

10. So This Is Love?

11. Mean Street

12. Pretty Woman

13. Drum Solo

14. Unchained

15. I'll Wait

16. And the Cradle Will Rock

17. Hot for Teacher

18. Little Dreamer

19. Little Guitars

20. Jamie's Cryin'

21. Ice Cream Man

22. Panama

23. Guitar Solo (incl. "Women in Love" intro, "Cathedral", "Eruption")

24. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love------------------------

25. 1984

26. Jump

Mikes Musical Calendar

Its a crazy couple of months of music coming up in the Twin Cities ( Van Halen, Bruce Springsteen etc...) full of concerts with high $$$$ ticket prices. While I would love to see the high $$ shows...I will save my $$ for the DVD. Instead, I have the luck of having a good friend that has some ties to a local promoter that gets him primo seats for el-cheapo ( no that is not my nickname!)

Anyone that has read this blog for any amount of time knows that "Mike likes the Black Crowes and he LOVES Gov't Mule!.

I have tickets for both shows in October.

Oct 16th Black Crowes @ The State Theatre. Its been 2 years since I saw them across the street @ The Orpheum. A lot has changed since that memorable night ( Still in my top 3 greatest shows list), original members have left ( Marc Ford and Ed Harsch) and new members have joined. They have a new CD ready to be released in the spring and have drifted from the Jam band that they were in 05, back to the straight rock and soul band from its glory days.

As much as I loved that show from a couple of years ago, I am very excited to see them again....from the 2nd row! I hope to get some good shots from the orchestra pit! Opener is a group called "Buffalo Killers", dont know much about em.....

Oct 31st Gov't Mule @ St. Kates

Great place to see a show....if you remember ( all 2 of you) my review from last year...I thought this place was almost TOOO nice and clean for this band! I am of course ready to have my mind blown again by these guys. You never know what you are gonna get set wise from them....but you DO know its gonna be great! Plus its Halloween! So.........could a night to remember! ( thanks Steven for letting your Dad celebrate Halloween!) I am in the 5th row for this one! Grace Potter and the Nocturnals open...another new artist to check out!

The little white armored car!

Ouch! The picture below is what I AVOIDED!!! On my way home last night...the radio blared that there was large diameter hail in the area. I cringed as immediately the sounds of chunks of ice hit the coveted FIT with thuds. I then smartly roared into a gas station that had a cover.... only to be greeted by 50 other cars that had the same idea! I got under a tree and rode it out....no dents...no troubles! :-)

Isn't this blog fascinating! ( I need some ideas for some topics!)

for doubters.

Eddie can still play eruption....
David Lee can still kiiiiiiiiiick ( Immmmmmmmmmmmmmmm 50!)
And still give me a little bit of a goosebump when they kick into "aint talkin bout love" at the end of this clip!

Fun little toy to play with on blogger

click in the link below ( might have to cut and paste..link isnt linking!) and get a slide show of all of the most current images that are being loaded onto all the many blogs around the world. Some strange stuff.....of course I have no control over what you may see! So no legal action towards your humble author! :-)

http://play.blogger.com/

commercials the way they used to be!

Check out pre Wacko Jacko Michael J and his bros hawking cereal!!! Yes, I do remember asking my mom to buy me a box of it

Welcome back Ms. B!

I usually dont do requests....but I have a old visitor making her way back to blogland.

Enjoy Ms. B. The Cheese of KC! :-)

A week of music and pictures

The above picture is of the first concert of the week. Los Lobos @ the Minnesota Zoo. I enjoyed the concert in parts, some of the music moved me ( mostly the blues numbers) and the opening act "the lee boys" was full of energy. But there were some spots of the show that didn't really hold me. Still a fun night in the open air! C+

Derick Trucks

Warren Haynes

3 nights later was the show I was anxiously awaiting. The Allman Brothers Band w/ Robert Randolph. I am a big fan of The Allmans and love the current version of this band with Derrick Trucks and Warren Haynes on guitar. A light rain fell most of the day....I was hoping the music gods would smile on us !



Robert Randolph had a solid opening set, he truly showed why he is creating such a buzz with his unique style of guitar playing. Very unique sound and very upbeat. His songwriting needs to get a little better and get past just groove type music. Don't get me wrong, I love a good groove...but your mind has to follow too! :-)



The Allmans came out....and for 2.5 hours held my rapt attention. Gregg Allman sounded very good, even though he didn't sing as much as I would have liked to have heard. Warren and Derrick traded guitar duels that left me with a big smile! This is what guitar fans paid their $$$ for! A light mist fell throughout....it kinda added to the atmosphere.



Gregg, Warren and Otel ( bass player) came out for the first song of the encore. Gregg on acoustic and warren on lead, they played a stunning version of "Melissa". It was a moment I don't hardly ever experience in a live setting. The goosebump factor. Great stuff. Great show!

Even better, they recorded the show. Better than any dang T-shirt! A souvenir that I have played several times in the last few days!

A+

UPDATED- SETLIST with links to lyrics

1.
Revival
2.
Done Somebody Wrong
3.
Midnight Rider
4.
Woman Across The River
5.
Come and Go Blues
6.
Every Hungry Woman
7.
Who's Been Talking
8.
Anyday
9.
The Same Thing
10.
Jessica
Encore
11.
Melissa
12.
One Way Out
with Robert Randolph, pedal steel

Rev. Al Green Etta James

Last night: Etta James, Al Green, BB King ( sorry no pics of BB)

Wow. Etta James. She rolled out in a little rascal ( electric cart) and my first thought was, uh oh. I couldn't be more wrong. She got out of that chair and did about 1 hour of the most raunchy emotion filled music I have heard in a long time. This is a woman that has battled some very serious health issues in the last few months and it was great to see the love she has for performing. She looked weak...but sure as heck didn't perform like it. Powerful stuff.

After a short break, it was time for the man I have waited 20 years to see again. Al Green. Always one of my favorite singers and also notoriously a frustrating performer. If Al isn't feeling it...you will get a spotty show. Well, Rev. Al was feeling it, and so was I! Sadly, most of the crowd sat on its butt throughout, but I didn't. I danced and sang my way through the hour and change that he performed. This woman half my age behind me told me to sit down....I feigned a hearing problem! :-) I paid my $$$$ I was gonna enjoy this! I took a ton of pics and got up near the stage for a couple.....Great night of Al. The rest was gravy!

BB came out a little later. He is 81 years old now. Spends most of his show talking about his life...and throws in some music in between. But when he places Lucille in his hands ( the name of his guitar for those that don't know) the sound is one that you will never hear again. Powerful and strong. When he sings, same thing. You forget he is 81 and feel the shiver in your body. He closed with his classic, " The Thrill Is Gone". I love that song so much and it was a perfect capper to 4 hours of great music. Etta B+ Al A+ BB (what else....A B!)

A great week of music!

Big week for music coming up

As I noted in the previous post. I am seeing Los Lobos tonight, although I am looking forward to it....I am really excited about the 2 shows I am seeing this up coming week @ The Minnesota State Fair

Tuesday 8/28 The Allman Brothers Band-
How can I not be excited..2 of my fave guitar players on the planet on one stage ( warren haynes,derek trucks!)and then add in Gregg Allman....whew!







Thurs. 8/30 BB KING (the legend!), Al Green ( my fave!) and maybe Etta James ( she has been ill)
( check out this great recent Al clip. His music just moves me.)

Should be a memorable week....Allman Bros show will be recorded for purchase...yeah I will have one please! :-)

Los Lobos tonight 8/25

Tonight I am going to the Minnesota Zoo to see a great band. Los Lobos. Yeah...its weird to go see a band at the zoo,but its the only open air amp theatre in the Twin Cities. We need to do something about this! :-)

Marvin & Tammi

These 2 had chemistry. I love this song.. they don't write em like this anymore. ( yeah...I am a romantic!)

Reggie Does it!

Wow what a day! I am so proud of my Dog ! As the above picture shows....we were flying around the course!

We took 2nd place out of 50 dogs in our first ever competition run in jumpers ( hurdles!)! I was in shock and also all smiles as we took a nice red ribbon home. But there was still was another run that I had signed up for . Tunnelers ( yep you guessed it....the dog goes through tunnels!)

We sat through 6 hours of cold and rain to get to our 2nd run of the day ( nice planning Mike, pick the first and last events of the day !) for tunnelers. I thought hurldles were a challenge....this was another story. The ground was mud and the turns required to get to the right tunnel, were very sharp.

Reggie and I aced it! We finished 1st place out of 50 again! I guess I know what it feels like to be a coach that watches his young player become a star! :-)

He did great!

Agility ! Nice Pic By My Son!

My young lad Steven took this nice pic last night at agility training. Reggie is just coming out of the chute ( the yellow thing behind him) and I am guiding him towards the jump ahead ( and gasping for air!).

We have our first formal competition this upcoming Sunday ( 8-19). Should be fun! I have a feeling he will do pretty well.

Today is Aug 16. 30 year anniv. of the death of the King. Where were you when you heard the news? I was getting ready for a camping trip with my best bud Jeff and I saw a neighbor come running out in tears crying " Elvis Presley has died!" Was a bit startling ....but gave me a idea how much he meant to so many. I later became a huge fan myself.

In honor of Diamond Dave back in the band!

Van Halen back together! I really hope they stay together with David Lee Roth...but the train is now on the track..and a wreck is always a possibilty!.

DAVID LEE ROTH 8/13/07 "We are stereophonic with a Hi-Fi additude!" ( gotta love dave!)

Just what all of you have waited for....more car stuff!

Here is what I saved my birthday $$$ for ( one of the things!). A new hood deflector...makes it look meeeeeeeeean! ( for a car 2 people could lift!)

New seat cushion's....and seat belt sliders ( gotta really strap in when you are getting 40mpg!)

Rear Bumper Guard!!!!!

Decals!!! (Blurry!!) I have em on both sides...adds to the mean machine look!

I only have 3 things left on the car and I am done! I have a center console storage box on order...some sport gas and brake pedals on order.....and last but not least....a chrome exhaust tip ( $20) to get in the future!

As you can tell....I am really loving dressing up this car. Its been very reasonable...in fact the most expensive thing I have purchased is the hood deflector. I had to source that from Canada, since they don't make em for US versions for some reason. Thanks to web sites like http://www.fitfreak.net I am able to find most of this stuff at very reasonable prices!

So....do you think I am going through some mid life crisis??? If I am....I am sure enjoying it!

check out this cool movie of the car I drive!

Yeah...this might be a bit modified....but it shows how fun it is to drive!

Randy Savage Interview

maaaaaan I miss the man who sold slim jims!!!! Dig it! Total gibberish for ya!

the bar kays son of shaft

this is very funny and funky at the same time....check out the dude that prince stole some of his stuff from..and the the guy that looks like a huge q-tip!

some pics of me and reg!

I am trying like mad to get some clear pics of Reggie and I doing agility......the egotistical thing to say would be "well...we are moving too quick for the human eye to catch". I think its more of a lighting issue.....but we do move really quick! :-)

How does this happen?????

I am still in shock that a bridge that I have traveled over hundreds of times collapsed all at once like this. I feel so bad for the people that lost lives, were hurt and also just had to go through this terrifying experience. There have been many blessings during this tragedy, the main one is.....

LIFE IS SO FRAGILE, EMBRACE EACH DAY LIKE IT IS YOUR LAST.

new goodies for my car

I have had the car for little over a month and I have added some little goodies via my trusty friend the internet!





Here is the list.....with some pics

1. new floor mats ( thanks Walmart)


2. Elvis TCB rearview mirror medalian ( check out the pic baby)


3. Honda Fit running board plates ( ebay! baby!) pic above

4. Window louvers ( $30! makes it look niiiiiiiiiiiiice) pic above

5. Decals ( temple of Vtech....and Fitfreak.com) Add a nice touch! pic above




Still to come....





Bumper pad......( will uh protect the bumper!) :-)


Magnetic mount for my Sirius radio. ( $4 solution!)





Yeah....this has become my Mid life Crisis mobile. Only Mike can pick out a car that get 40 mpg and make it his tiny hot rod! :-)

Memphis

After a week back, and many many attempts at starting to write about the trip and not completing....I will finish! Promise!



We loaded up the new car ( hey got about 37 mpg for the trip!) and headed down to Stl bright and early. As we made our way south ( Minn, Iowa.......) I spotted a site that my wife would enjoy...Swedesburgh Iowa! Yep, it was a museum about Swedes! My wife said we could pass it by....but I thought " This trip is gonna be heavy on Mikes Music weirdness, so I better find some stuff that would make her happy!" So I made a swift U-turn and pulled into the mecca for fair skinned people :-)


It was a very nice little place with a very enthusiastic elderly lady showing us around, we had a nice break looking at the history of the swedish people and its early immigrants to the region.


Here is a pic from the stop















We made our way through Missouri and into STL. We spent the night in a town on the outskirts of STL , right by Six Flags Amusement Park. We spent the next day battling the heat, the rough looking fellow park goers ( more tattoos and missing bicuspids in one location than I have EVER seen) and a water park that had no room to move around. That being said, we had a good time. My son and I battled the rollercoaster "Mr. Freeze" and won! He was so proud of himself that he actually rode this very scary coaster, and told about everyone within earshot!

We departed for Memphis the next day.

Yep, down at the end of Lonely St. Thats Heartbreak Hotel! And that is where we stayed for 3 days. The hotel itself isnt really anything that wonderful, but it does provide 24 hour Elvis and a Heartshaped Pool. We were just across the street from Graceland and surrounded by gift shoppes.



I have been a Elvis fan since I was 12 and know more about him than about any other musical figure, but I have never been a huge fan of all the cheesy marketing crap that goes with him. Its always been about the music for me, and I wanted to make this trip more about that than just buying souvenirs.



Day One: We went down to Beale St. Memphis Blues central. Its where Elvis learned some of music influences and bought his clothes from Lanskys. We hung out there and looked at all of the interesting shoppes,clubs, live music and soaked in the atmosphere while we waiting for this thing called "The Memphis Haunted Walking Tour". I really cant do this tour justice with the printed word. Lets just say we were led on this 90 minute tour by a guy that admitted he was just making it up as he went. It was hilarious to me as I made a mental bet with myself when I thought my Wife would finally pop her cork and we would be outta there. ( 64 minutes!). We "disappeared " like one of the imaginary ghosts and headed back to Heartbreak Hotel. A fun first



Day Two: We had Tickets for Graceland in hand as we were the 2nd tour through the music gates and up the driveway. I have had a mental image of this place for many years, and of course it was much smaller than I ever expected it to be.

I found the place to be quite a humble place for a man that was on the top of the music world . Sure, it was a timecapsule back to 1977 and was not ever gonna make Better Homes and Gardens best list for taste. But it was very interesting to me.








What I enjoyed the most was all the costumes and stage clothes that they had on exhibit. Besides the usual ( 68 black leather, and 73 Aloha jumpsuit), they had a exhibit of over 100 of his other jump suits. Most of those suits I had seen in pictures at one time or another, but to see them all lined up...was curiously interesting to me!

After touring the airplanes, cars, etc.....and more gift shoppes. We headed down into the down and dirty non tourist area of Memphis and took a tour of Stax .

So much musical history was created at Stax. Otis Redding, Staple Singers, Booker T and The MGS, Isaac Hayes etc (Elvis even did some recording here. Its a shame that they tore down the original Stax in the 80's. They rebuilt it and recreated what it really was like. I was like a kid in a candy store as I thumbed through CDs of great soul music that I couldnt get my hands on in the upper midwest. ( I purchased the 1971 Isaac Hayes gem "Black Moses" to the irritation to the rest of my traveling companions, who had to listen to it most of the trip back home!) . I loved seeing all of the history of this building and also liked that we were looking at something that many seem to bypass when being in Memphis.





I caught the fever of this "off the beaten path" type of touring and decided to find Royal Studios. This place was not on ANY brochures and I know hardly anyone knew about it. But I knew the street and I knew it wasnt far from Stax. So, I loaded my terrified family into the little white bullet and found my way to the place where Al Green and Willie Mitchell created some of the best soul music ever made. It was located in a very rough part of town and surrounded by very run down housing and people. But it sat there all spruced up as I hopped out of car and took some snaps. Another cool moment for me , but I am sure to most it would have been a head scratcher! :-)





We then headed back down Elvis Presley Blvd. I then began my search for Al Green's Church. Again, rough part of Memphis and nothing to get crazy about, but I was loving it!

Day Three: We toured Sun Records! The place where Elvis recorded his first sounds. So, what do you think I was gonna do? Yep. Record a song! I have from time to time recorded a Elvis song at a state fair recording booth. But, this....was different. I got to record in the same place that Elvis sang! I picked one of the first songs he ever cut " I love you ( because). ( look it up on I-Tunes). I think I did a pretty good job, but it really didnt matter because I loved the moment!



We also toured the Rock and Soul Museum and the Gibson Guitar factory. Both were also very fun in its own way! Very cool to watch a guitar get made and then get rejected and cut apart on a band saw because of a slight inperfection!

We had a great trip. It will never win any awards for stunning beauty and scenery. But, as all good trips provide.....lots of memories and stories!



Ps- thanks to my understanding Wife and Son for letting me go on this journey. I wont forget it!

Pss. Did I tell you that Steven went on Mr. Freeze????? :-)

The White Stripes-Icky Thump

Tuesday the Cd came out for this band of 2. Jack and Meg White have created perhaps their best work to date.

Although I wouldn't call their music commercial or mainstream , it does have a sense of melody that most hard rock music today is sadly missing. What I love about this band is its sense of history ( delta blues,country,psychedelic) and its influences blend into a sound that totally unique and their own.

Early faves for me are

You don't know what love is ( you just do what your told)- A great lyric about settling into something safe and convincing yourself that its "love". Plus the guitar hook is great!


Icky Thump- great weird little song!!!!! Click below for great little weird video



The rest of the Cd is full of surprises, even a cover of a 1950's Patti Page song called "Conquest" That features a great guitar/trumpet duel! I mean, how many CD's of this era can feature stuff like that!!!!


Check out this CD....its a strong contender for my fave of the year!

Stay tuned, I have Memphis stories!!! And tacky pictures! :-0

An unexpected addition to the family!

No, I am not announcing that I will be a proud new papa. But, I am a new car owner.

As the decieving title splains, it was not planned.

The above vehicle is a 2007 Honda Fit. It is replacing my long loyal a very rarely problematic 1996 Honda Accord. We had planned on replacing it about a year from now when we paid off our other car. Well, plans dont always seem to go as planned.

In the last month, my flawless Accord was pelted by hail and yesterday blew a transmission. It had close to 200,000 miles on it, so it had a good life ( play taps here).

I began my car search about 2 months ago, I am one of those kind of people that like to REALLY know alot about what I am gonna buy. Yeah it seems kinda unlike me, but it is a little known fact ( see, isnt it worth it to come here and read this valuable kind of crap!). I bought my copy of consumer reports and studied all of the most reliable cars and of course in the time of $3.00 gas, what got the best gas mileage. The Honda Fit was exactly what I wanted!

So, I decided to get a test drive. I was told that there is a waiting list for this car and that there would be no chance for a test drive. I walked away a bit irked! I wasnt gonna ever buy a car without test driving it. So, what did I do? I happened to see one that day and went up to the lady that was driving it, and asked if I could see her car! Good thing she didnt have mace or a good knee to the groin because I know I must have freaked her out! :-) Not really, she was very nice and understanding. In fact she said that she had lucked out herself when finding her FIT. They just happened to find one the day they stopped at the dealer. So, she let me sit in the driver seat and get comfy. I knew I liked this car....but was concerned that I might not get a shot at one when the time came.

Well the time came alot sooner than I expected. After this mornings news that it would take about $2100 to fix my Accord. The time was now. I was a bit freaked out by the thought of having to find a car in such short notice. I really dont like to rush these things. So, I decided to call my local dealer that I have used since I was 18. ( no jokes about that being in the kennedy administration....make sure it was Reagan that you refer to!) and check if they had any Fits ( yeah....I am having a hard time with that name also...) thinking it was a total stab in the dark. Well, my stab came up with one. I was forced to take white ( I am a black car guy by nature) for a color but everything else on the car had what I wanted!

I got to take my test drive, and it confirmed that I loved it. 3 hours later, and cramped hands from signing so many documents....it was ours.

Now, I know that it looks like a glorified asprin and that I wont have many motorheads wanting me to pop the hood!!!! ( I included a pic for all of you Booogity Boogity types!) But its a cool little car!

Finally. We are heading off for our Summer Vacation in a few days. We are heading to Memphis Tennesee by way of St. Louis . I am excited to soak in all of the music culture ( Elvis, BB, Al Green, Stax Records, Sun Records etc) and Steven is excited to go to Six Flags in St Louis!

But what should be really exciting will be the looks I get from the southern folk with my lil rice burner! Yep....yeeeee haw! :-)

Minnesota State Fair Concerts

Every single year we go the "The Great Minnesota Get-Together". We see the cows and the pigs and the food that takes years off your life and have a great time. Personally I enjoy people watching, how many "Im with stupid" t-shirts I can count and how many people I can count that have a mouth full of teeefers. Its always fun!

:-)

This year, in addition to my little people watching games...I have a couple of great concerts to go to.

AUGUST 28th- Allman Brothers- w/robert randolph band .

I commented to some of my music buddies that this would be one show that I would have to see if they came to the Twin Cities. You all know about my Gov't Mule thing...and Warren Haynes does double duty for the Mule and the Allmans...so its the best of both worlds for me. Also, Derek Trucks is one of my fave. young guitarists. He is also in this band. They put on great shows at this stage in their career and they will have my rapt attention!

UPDATE: Purchased tickets this past weeked row 26 in front of Mr. Haynes!

AUGUST 30TH- B.B King, Al Green, Etta James

I love Al Green and have seen him once before in the late 80's and have yet to have the pleasure of seeing Etta and BB live. How can you go wrong with this lineup! 3 legends that can still deliver and not make you cringe. I am in the 15th row center for this one! Cant wait!

Agility Video. ( this one is less clinical)

Last video on syncronized dog chasing. I have to admit, this video makes this sport look kinda cool. It must be the White Stripes song Orchid ( one of my faves) and of course the sheltie. They do look like they love doing this.....that is why I enjoy it so much also.

Agility Video

For all of you that have wondered what I was talking about when I referred to my Agility Training with Reggie. Here is a video of a Sheltie doing it the right way, Reggie and I are not quite as smooth as this pair...but we are getting there!

MEMORIAL DAY

This photo was taken at the Vietnam War Memorial last year. Lets hope this war ends soon and all of the people that are putting their lives on the line for us return home.

The Jackson 5 - Who's Loving You

michael as I like to remember him.

Tired Of Being Alone - Al Green

One of my favorite Al songs...check out the suit!

Alice Cooper Elected

Alice at his peak!

alice eighteen- 1972

love this video. Alice is drunk ( duh) but captures the angst of the song very well! A classic... kiddies!

TOM JONES- WITH THESE HANDS 1965

I am a sap for a good love song. ( dont tell anyone!)

I have been listening to this song since I was a wee lad! Enjoy!

MORE COWBELL!

Love this! Yeah its been played to death, but still funny!

1st video post

Black Crowes Cursed Diamond

I posted lyrics to this a few months back. Removed them because they seemed a bit too heavy :-). Now you get the pleasure of getting to hear and see the song!

I am going to be posting more of my musical faves!

Hope you enjoy!

To All Mothers:

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

A retraction

Please note:

In my last post I reported that Kyle Petty had not finished in the top 20 all year. After many phone calls and angry emails, I must print this retraction. Jeff, I am sorry. I was waaaaaaay out of line and must extend my most heartfelt apology.

Kyle Petty finished in the top 20 earlier this month. Today he finished 25th. But that is beside the point. :-)

Mike The Painter

Ok, I am not that kind of painter, ( Remember this guy from PBS???? ) but I did have a semi fro back in the day.

This weekend the weather was great, and I had a opportunity to get some much needed house improvements done. ( Hey, I am not just the talented writer and very entertaining guy that lures you here for stunning entertainment!) please laugh at that last statement!

I was able to ( with the handy help of my Wife) paint our faded front door and finish the majority of our weathered deck.

Its funny how these little projects make me feel "valuable". I am not one of those guys that you will see constantly building stuff. I can hold my own when it comes to fixing the usual stuff....but you wont see me building a 5 room treehouse for the kids to roam in. ( geez I can only imagine the carnage that would result from my handiwork!). It makes me feel good to improve my house feel like king caveman and sit back and enjoy the result.

I just love this time of the year. I feel like the dark cloud of winter ( Have I told you that I dont like winter!) is finally gone, and the sun is shining again in my little part of the universe.

Ps. Dropped cable tv over the weekend. I am now a Dish Network guy. More HD channels and DVR ( digital recording! more commonly known as TIVO) and cheaper than my cable bill. Love it so far....will write more about it soon!

Pss......I promise Maggie that I will post more often ( I have been spotty lately in my posts) I dont want you to stoop to American Idol websites for your entertainment!

Psss- Gopman....Will Kyle Petty ever finish in the top 20???? comeon maaaan....I am actually watching NASCAR and kinda rooting for the guy for ya! It brutal when he never close to the pack! ( but I am sure you get enough of this from others!) . Also....Moss traded to the Pats for a 4th rounder!!! Told ya he would break your heart! :-)

Pssss- That is all!

Its spring....its baseball!

http://www.ootpbaseball.net/index.php

I need to oil that door, because its creaking from the opening of the closet with the skeletons. I am about to share with you loyal readers one of my most geeky passions ( besides this blog thing). I like to play simulation baseball games. Ok I have admitted it to the public, its a good first step. The following paragraphs will expose the story behind the nerdyness ( is that a word?).

I have always loved baseball and the history behind the game. The statistical history going back to the late 1800's is fascinating to me. To compare a Ty Cobb with a Rickey Henderson, a Babe Ruth with a Hank Aaron, a Walter "Big Train" Johnson with a Tom Seaver, or even a Scooty Babbitt with a Mario Mendoza, occupied many a afternoon for me. One of the first gifts I received that was related to this passion was the 1977 Baseball Almanac. Yes, keeeeds this was pre-internet and you actually had to have reference books around to get this kind of info. I loved this book and wore the pages out thumbing through the long history of the game.

My first step into simulation baseball began with Strat-o-matic baseball when I was about 14. It was a game that had a card for each player in a certain season ( my first season was 1977) a board that had 3 dice and a stack of split cards. You would roll the dice, look at the white die for the collumn, and add the 2 red dice together to get your result on the card. If your result required a split card ( ie 1-15 hr 16-20 2b) you would draw a card. ARE YOU STILL WITH ME???

I loved this game. I spent hours and hours with pencil and paper and calculator keeping my own stats and running a solo league. It was great fun for me and made me a expert on players from that era of baseball. I played strat for about 8 years and used to mark my calendar for when each new season of cards would come out! It was geek heaven!

As the years passed and technology has evolved, I migrated to computer simulation baseball. Gone were the pencil and paper and the board and cards. Now there was stats kept on your hard drive and even the ability to run the financial part of baseball. Much more involved of a process. Its amazing how in depth these games have become, it has got to the point that I have to turn off some of the features because it gets so involved and intricate, that I dont have the time to do 45 adjustments to just play a game. That doesnt mean that I dont love the depth....but hey...I have a job to do and a kid to raise!!!

If you look at the link above...you will get a taste for what baseball sims have become....I love it...but I do miss the days spent waiting for the mail to get my geeky x-mas present of Strat cards!

New features, movie reviews, and old pics!

The above pics are of the 22 inch snow storm we recieved a couple of weeks ago. The creative measuring stick pic shows the 15 inches we recieved the first 6 hours of the storm.....and the other pic shows what my driveway looked like when I opened the garage door. ( I got to snow blow!!!! very fun !)

Blades of glory was very funny! Didnt let me down in the least! Check it out!

If you look to your right....you will see a new feature! A video bar! The videos are random....but the artists are not....I have chosen the artists! Hit refresh and be entertained or repulsed!!! :-)

Enjoy!

You gotta see this!!!!!!

I am a closet TOM JONES fan. Loved his show when I was a wee lad

Click on the link and see some wacky manic Tom Dance moves!!!!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=mVIJFptl0sg

Gotta love it! Maybe Will Ferrell can spoof this! :-)

Blades of Glory!

Ok.....I am exictied about this movie coming out. Yeah I know that Will Ferrel movies are not everyones cup of tea, but he always makes me laugh. What can I say, I like over the top humor ( Steve Martin, Jim Carrey) and movies that spoof topics that are ripe to be skewered!

This latest movie will be taking on Ice Skating. As a guy that appreciates the skill involved with a quality skater, I am also a guy that watches because he likes to see a good fall!!! In the past, Ferrel has messed with TV ( Anchorman) and Nascar ( sorry Jeff, Talladega Nights was hilarious!) and even Santa ( Elf!). I cant wait to see the results!

In other news, the sun has finally peeked out in Minnesota. We hit a balmy 60+ degrees today! You will never see a happier guy in the world than yours truly sweeping his dirty garage out on a bright sunny day!

Yeah, Minnesota will drive you insane like that! :-)

Till the next post!