This streak is over...

March 23, 2007- December 10, 2010 Not as long as my other previous streak, but a long time nonetheless. Still tired and sore and wondering if it was flu, bad food, or a bad mix of medicines. And wondering if other people go these long periods without puking?

The 20 Hottest Conservative Women In The New Media

From Right Wing News

I don't see how Ann Coulter is that high. She's alright looking, but there have got to be more attractive conservative women out there. At least Sarah Palin wasn't on there. I still say Christine O'Donnell is more attractive. She looks like she shouldn't be allowed in bars...

10/21 Bob Dylan Concert Review

Last night was my third time seeing Mr. Dylan in concert, this time at Chaifetz Arena on the St. Louis University campus. My dad is still working the fields and I couldn't find anyone else to go, so I wound up going with my mom(surprisingly she didn't mind the show, except the standing) . Chaifetz seems pretty cozy for a b-ball arena, though I guess it made for a better concert view, if you were stuck afar...
We got there really early and had to wait over an hour for scheduled start time, which ended up being about 8-10 mins after 8. I got floor seats in the eighth row the first two seats on the far side of Bob. They were pretty good seats and we thought better than the first row where you couldn't see anything sitting. The most entertaining pre-show activity was the drunken guy, singing Subterranean Homesick Blues at the top of his lungs from the other side of the arena.
I knew not to expect nothing out of the ordinary or radical, the best I was hoping for was an extra song in the encore or one of my faves in the rotating #2 surprise slot. I wound up getting neither...
Set List

Leopard-Skin Pillbox Hat
Senor (Tales of Yankee Power)
I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
Just Like a Woman
The Levee's Gonna Break
I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)
Honest With Me
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall
Cold Irons Bound
Love Sick
Highway 61 Revisited
Nettie Moore
Thunder on the Mountain
Ballad of the Thin Man
-------
Jolene
Like a Rolling Stone

Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat and Senor were good, and I enjoyed seeing I'll Be Your Baby Tonight again, though it was very bluesy sounding rather than country-fied, when I saw it with Larry Campbell playing steel. The intro jamming to Just Like A Woman was a strong point of the night. The way Bob and the band layed out the sound and melody was beautiful. Bob even relented halfway though to allow the audience sing along. We did end up standing the whole night, at least all of us on the floor did, which was a little surprising. Bob seemed to be a in good mood, grinning and bopping around all night...
The first seven numbers and really everything except Hard Rain and Nettie Moore, were hard rocking in sound. I guess this is the influence of Charlie Sexton. This was my first time seeing him. The lanky Texan just seems to be ready unleash his guitar maelstrom at any moment. And most fans seem to love this version of Bob's band and sound. I'd have just preferred a little more subtly and intricate numbers throughout the night like the two I mentioned were. Donnie Herron's steel guitar was lost in the mix. Personally, I think Bob has one too many band members up there, at least with this hard rocking sound Charlie brings in addition to his organ sound...
One thing I liked was the sort of alternating backdrops on the curtain behind the band. They had some kind of overhead wide shot camera, which every few numbers was seen on the curtain. But I liked it more when the altered the lighting, and you could see their, mostly Bob and Charlie's silhouettes on the curtain as they were playing.
Cold Iron Bounds was another stronger number, Highway 61 was sort of blah, until they cranked it up speed wise during the jam and then it took off. This was followed by Nettie Moore, which was one of the clearer sounding songs to me.
Probably the best song of the night? The rocking Ballad of a Thin Man, go figure. I've seen it both other times I've seen Bob and knew it was coming. But the light settings and background on stage, seemed to fit with the mood of the lyrics perfectly and the hard rocking guitars, plus it was Bob's best harp playing of the night.
After the smoke break, I mean encore break, they come back out, George with a cigarette hanging from his mouth, and delivered Jolene, which was okay. There was a big rush over by us to the side of the stage. After that it was "Thank You Friends..." and band intros and then the obligatory Like A Rolling Stone, which made me and everyone else happy. The band did the line up and left, it stayed dark for a few minutes. I was thinking we might get one more, or if this was just to distract us while the guys were already heading down the interstate. But lots of people were already leaving and the crowd was pretty low-key to begin with, so there was not much to entice them to come back...
It was good show, a little over an hour and a half. A few minor complaints, only one song on guitar and he didn't play Tangled Up in Blue, which he's played at most every other show. But it was a Bob show unique in its own way and I got 8 songs I hadn't seen yet and a venue I'd never been to.

Here's the Post's Review of the show and the Riverfront Times Review

A Dream and Proverbs

A week or two ago during one of my dreams, I had someone telling me to pay attention or something about a verse from Proverbs. I couldn't remember if it was Proverbs 8:5 or Proverbs 5:8. A lot of my dreams are partially surreal. Things are never exactly like they are in real life, there is always some details which are different. And I tend to jump from one setting to another out of nowhere.
But I did end up remembering that dream the other day. I think the person telling me, was a guy I work with, who hadn't started on my line yet. But I went and looked up the verses, first 8:5, "You who are simple, gain prudence; you who are foolish, gain understanding." I like to think I've got a pretty good handle on that...
For 5:8, "Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house," which after reading the heading at the start is about adultery. And the metaphor is pretty clear. And I think I have an even better handle on this one....or at least I hope so....

Hey, Let's Lower the Voting Age to 8!

Obama wants to expand the school year for kids? Holy hell, is he trying to screw the youth vote against Democrats for the next ten years? I know his intentions and meanings are in the right spot, but in this case I'm glad I'm not young anymore. Not to mention, it would piss off teachers who'd lose their three consecutive(in theory) months off, who tend to be liberal too...

Pearl Jam is Okay and God Bless Bob Dylan

I went on Pearl Jam's fan site and was wanting to buy a cd of the St. Louis concert I went to this May. I tried buying it from their store, but it said I had to register. No Problem, I did. But then when I tried it again, it came up "Access Denied." After some looking I figured I have to pay $20 to join "Ten Club" so I can buy their stuff. You do get some stuff with the membership, a newsletter or something, and first access to tickets(which is kind of pointless since they probably won't tour in the next year or be anywhere near me...)
But I'm confused, who they're really screwing over. It's pretty stupid to me. Someone like me who just drops by and wants to buy something from them, I have to pay $20 just for that right? So, they're milking their true fans for everything? And by not selling directly I'm going to go to eBay and buy it from someone who buys multiple copies and jacks up the price?
I guess my choices are to pay $37 (plus shipping I'd imagine) to buy from Pearl Jam or buy on eBay from someone who bought multiple copies for about ten dollars less. As a conservative I think I'll take the cheaper route.
If I'm wrong about this and fouled something up, I'll gladly buy a ten club membership.
But God bless Bob Dylan. Many of his fans complain about his doing anything for money and having high price deluxe editions. But you know what he charges for his fan club ticket pre-sales? Nothing.


ADDENDUM: Well, I did some checking on message boards and was told that site frequently has "hiccups." So, I tried again and was at least able to get an order through to get processed. So, Pearl Jam is alright, apparently it's just technology that is bad.

8/10 Jackson Browne Concert Review

I went and saw Jackson Browne with David Lindley at the Fox Theater in St. Louis last night with the old man. It was sort of a hit and miss affair overall, or lack of hits to be precise.
The show was scheduled to start at 7:30, but didn't get going til about quarter after. At the beginning it was just Browne and Lindley, the stringed instrument virtuoso for the first five songs then, Lindley by himself for a couple this was about 50 minutes total. They opened with a Warren Zevon cover followed by Springsteen cover, both were well done. And Lindley was masterful in his playing. I wish I was a bit closer to the stage. We were about 20 rows back tilted right. After Browne left and Lindley performed two songs, the second of which when he started I thought was sounding like Steve Earle's Copperhead Road, which it turned out to be. Another good version and Lindley does have a nice voice as well. Come to think of it, Lindley sort of looks like Earle these days as well and Earle plays the bouzouki too, when I saw him last fall. Then came a fifteen minute break, in which Browne returned with a full band for around an hour and forty minutes worth of songs.
Here's the overall set list, as best I can piece together. I couldn't find an exact total list, but pieced together from the Post Dispatch's Review and from the KC Star's review of the Kansas City show, which did have a review.

Seminole Bingo
Brothers Under the Bridge
For Everyman
Looking East
Our Lady of the Well
What Is the Soul of a Man?
Copperhead Road
-----------
Off of Wonderland
Giving That Heaven Away
Just Say Yeah
In the Shape of a Heart
Your Bright Baby Blues
Fountain of Sorrow
The Pretender
For A Dancer
My Problem Is You
Too Many Angels
I'm Alive
Doctor My Eyes
Rock Me on the Water
Running on Empty

------------
Mercury Blues
I Am Patriot

I would have been happy with songs between just Browne and Lindley acoustically, but I know it was about to put dad to sleep. Heck I was too after the first couple of songs with his band. It's not that they were preformed bad, but I'm more of a casual fan. So, I was waiting for more familiar songs with long gaps between In the Shape of a Heart and The Pretender. And I think the rest of audience as well, there were all kind of beer runs and lots of lots of chatter I heard throughout. I'm probably not enough of a moderate Browne fan to enjoy his so-so known songs...
Browne did mention how he'd always loved St. Louis and tried to remember where they used to play before the Fox and I think someone shouted out Kiel Auditorium, which jogged his memory. He had a little banter, talking about songs and their inspirations in the first few in the electric set.
The energy finally picked up on the last three songs in the main set, which got the crowd on its feet. There were catcalls all night with song requests, which Browne continuously replied "We'll get to that one later," whether they did or not. I knew not to expect all of his hits Somebody's Baby, Take It Easy (which he did play in KC), Boulevard, but I most expected to hear The Load Out/Stay, with Lindley on tour with him. Lindley is the one who has the high falsetto voice on the original recording. That was probably the most disappointing thing for me and the song I was most looking forward to hearing. Oh, those singer/songwriters....
Though it had a period of lull, it was enjoyable by the end. For his age, Browne still has a great sounding voice and an attitude that he actually enjoys being there playing for people.

ADDENDUM: The Riverfront Times Blog, had a review and set list which confirmed the order of what I had. Their reviewer had similar thoughts to mine, that the real enjoyment was watching Browne and Lindley up there alone. Except for a few moments, when Lindley joined the band a lot of his playing was lost in the mix and more subtle.