Oh well, here it is, the last day of my first (of three) vacation of 2005. I must admit that it didn't fly by too fast. It was nice being able to relax without driving my usual 700+ miles in a week.
Had a nice little Memorial Day get together at my mom's yesterday. I took some impromptu photos when we took a walk by the lake. Those photos can be seen here. Mostly nature photos. A few with friends and family in it, but frankly the lake pics are better. :-)
In fact, one of those pics can be seen (for now) at the top of this blog page.
Now that I have a decent camera, I need to make a concerted effort to dabble a bit more into that hobby. I really enjoy capturing "moments".
I can't wait to try out my camera at a live show. The next one is Frogg Café/Proto-Kaw on June 11th, then I might go check out the Mike Keneally Band along with the Alex Skolnick Trio in Sellersville on June 18th, and of course there's Nearfest on July 9th and 10th (which also kicks off my next vacation)!
Anyway, back to the daily grind tomorrow.
NP: Van der Graaf Generator - 5/6/05
One month, two weeks, two days
1837 cigarettes not smoked, saving $413.46
Life saved: 6 days, 9 hours
Monday, May 30, 2005
Saturday, May 28, 2005
Bootlegs Save the Music
Here's a great article. It's so true, and a real eye opener for those who think commercial music is "real". It also helps to show that talent and popularity rarely, if ever, go hand in hand.
Bootlegs Save the Music
By Ian Rice
Arts and Lifestyle Editor
The music industry has been in a definite slump for at least the last five years, if not more. Where at one time true artists gathered to give people beautiful songs to soothe their souls and create good vibes; now all you get are mechanical backbeats, sampled loops and trite, generic lyrics. For the assumed benefit of distracting the public from this mediocrity, you are also treated to big breasts covered by just enough clothing to sneak by the FCC’s increasingly watchful eye.
But some of us aren’t fooled for a second. We see today’s music for what it is: disposable garbage out only to make a buck for a roomful of record company executives. Speaking for myself, I’d rather have someone chuck razorblades dipped in hepatitis at me than hear one bar of Britney Spears’ latest release. But I do tend to border on the extreme from time to time.
So what do we, the masses yearning for good music, do? After all, there are only a limited number of good bands still active these days. Most of the greats hung it up years ago or moved into the province of lame and boring (Rod Stewart, anyone?), leaving behind a back catalog that while impressive in quality remains limited in quantity. When you’ve bought all the essential titles from the past, where do you go next?
The answer is simple: bootlegs. That’s right, bootlegs. The music industry hates bootlegs, as they provide free to listeners something that the suits could be lining their pockets with. I understand completely why record companies panicked over Napster and file sharing. After all, it costs money for a label to release an album; if you download that album for free, they can’t heat their swimming pool that year. But the bootlegs are a unique entity, one that remains separate from the legal repercussions of downloading commercially released music. The bootlegs belong to the people.
Many of today’s “working bands” (bands consistently on tour) allot the privilege of taping to fans attending their shows. The Black Crowes, Gov’t Mule, The Dead and Dave Matthews Band are just a few of the artists that hold an “open taping” policy at their performances. The bands also maintain an unwritten agreement with the tapers to use the shows for personal means and not make a profit from them. Trading between fans, however, is perfectly acceptable.
Record company disapproval has deterred many bands from instituting an “open taping” policy. But the artists that do permit performance recording see it as nothing but positive and pay little mind to the suits who frown on it. “We don’t care what the record companies think,” Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson said in a Relix magazine feature. “It’s for the people who are really into the music and who’ve supported us…If someone wants to come tape our show and take it home with them, I mean, it’s their evening too – then that’s cool.”
Indeed, Robinson’s statement mirrors the sentiment of many tapers and traders. Concertgoers have, in essence, paid for the music by purchasing a ticket to the event. If they want to take home a recording of the evening’s performance, who are they hurting? As long as no financial profit is made, where is the harm? After all, record companies will still make their cash, as loyal fans will still purchase albums no matter how many bootlegs they possess.
I personally have over 3200 hours of music on bootleg discs, either traded or given to me over the years. Of those 3200 hours, 1600 of them are Black Crowes related. Now, if you took a look at my shelves full of commercially released CDs, you’d notice I own every Black Crowes album. Why? I mean, I undoubtedly have all their songs in my vast library of bootlegs. Why purchase the albums? Well, because I, like countless other music fans, support the artists.
Supporting the artists, by the way, is something that the record companies don’t do. In fact, they do just the opposite. In the over-inflated corporate world known as the music business, you’re only as good as your last million units sold. As it stands right now, if a release doesn’t shift a million or two copies immediately upon its release, it’s considered a failure. And what do artists get in return for selling at the platinum level? Well, in most cases they get less than a dollar per sale. So, to sum up, the artists do the work and the record executives reap all the benefits. If the artist fails to line the record company’s pockets with a release, they will most likely be dropped from the label. How’s that for loyalty?
Case in point is a band called the Spin Doctors. You may remember them: back in 1993, they were riding a multi-platinum album (Pocket Full of Kryptonite) and the year’s biggest single (“Two Princes”). But when they released their second album the next year, it fell flat. To their credit, Epic Records did give the Spin Doctors a second chance (most likely based on the sheer commercial viability of their debut) and the band got to work on their third album. But since their sophomore effort was considered a dud, the new album hit the stores with virtually no marketing and zero promotion. So, when said album failed to get much further than gold status (500,000 units sold), the band was dropped from the label. Never mind that their two “flops” were huge strides for the band from an artistic standpoint or that Epic Records dropped the ball in terms of promotion – the band was sent packing. Nice, huh?
Given this information, it’s no surprise that many bands are flocking to smaller labels when their deals with the corporate pork run out. Although smaller labels can’t offer acts the same financial clout the big names are able to, they still posses many more attractive and artist-friendly features. The most notable of the aforementioned perks is that smaller labels allow bands to record the material they want to record. Big labels will often pressure a band to produce at least one “hit” track per record and will even go as far as requiring song approval during the recording process to secure a chart-topper’s inclusion. With the smaller labels, the band’s can finally give you the songs they want you to hear.
The sheer lack of understanding and loyalty on the part of record labels regarding their signed artists is a big part of the reason bootleg recordings are on the rise in terms of popularity. The added benefit of the Internet is also an essential element. With a decent Internet connection, the right software and a little bit of patience, music fans can download and share an endless number of live shows via peer-to-peer networks. In fact, for once in the history of music, the fans are winning. They’ve figured out a way to legally circumvent the corporate pigs and get what they really want: the music.
Want to join in on the bootleg trading but don't know where to start? Check out these helpful links:
Etree.org - An Online Trading Community
Bit Torrent Explained
What You'll Have Access to Once You Get Involved
NP: Porcupine Tree - On The Sunday Of Life...
One month, two weeks, 18 hours, 48 minutes
1791 cigarettes not smoked, saving $403.05
Life saved: 6 days, 5 hours
Bootlegs Save the Music
By Ian RiceArts and Lifestyle Editor
The music industry has been in a definite slump for at least the last five years, if not more. Where at one time true artists gathered to give people beautiful songs to soothe their souls and create good vibes; now all you get are mechanical backbeats, sampled loops and trite, generic lyrics. For the assumed benefit of distracting the public from this mediocrity, you are also treated to big breasts covered by just enough clothing to sneak by the FCC’s increasingly watchful eye.
But some of us aren’t fooled for a second. We see today’s music for what it is: disposable garbage out only to make a buck for a roomful of record company executives. Speaking for myself, I’d rather have someone chuck razorblades dipped in hepatitis at me than hear one bar of Britney Spears’ latest release. But I do tend to border on the extreme from time to time.
So what do we, the masses yearning for good music, do? After all, there are only a limited number of good bands still active these days. Most of the greats hung it up years ago or moved into the province of lame and boring (Rod Stewart, anyone?), leaving behind a back catalog that while impressive in quality remains limited in quantity. When you’ve bought all the essential titles from the past, where do you go next?
The answer is simple: bootlegs. That’s right, bootlegs. The music industry hates bootlegs, as they provide free to listeners something that the suits could be lining their pockets with. I understand completely why record companies panicked over Napster and file sharing. After all, it costs money for a label to release an album; if you download that album for free, they can’t heat their swimming pool that year. But the bootlegs are a unique entity, one that remains separate from the legal repercussions of downloading commercially released music. The bootlegs belong to the people.
Many of today’s “working bands” (bands consistently on tour) allot the privilege of taping to fans attending their shows. The Black Crowes, Gov’t Mule, The Dead and Dave Matthews Band are just a few of the artists that hold an “open taping” policy at their performances. The bands also maintain an unwritten agreement with the tapers to use the shows for personal means and not make a profit from them. Trading between fans, however, is perfectly acceptable.
Record company disapproval has deterred many bands from instituting an “open taping” policy. But the artists that do permit performance recording see it as nothing but positive and pay little mind to the suits who frown on it. “We don’t care what the record companies think,” Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson said in a Relix magazine feature. “It’s for the people who are really into the music and who’ve supported us…If someone wants to come tape our show and take it home with them, I mean, it’s their evening too – then that’s cool.”
Indeed, Robinson’s statement mirrors the sentiment of many tapers and traders. Concertgoers have, in essence, paid for the music by purchasing a ticket to the event. If they want to take home a recording of the evening’s performance, who are they hurting? As long as no financial profit is made, where is the harm? After all, record companies will still make their cash, as loyal fans will still purchase albums no matter how many bootlegs they possess.
I personally have over 3200 hours of music on bootleg discs, either traded or given to me over the years. Of those 3200 hours, 1600 of them are Black Crowes related. Now, if you took a look at my shelves full of commercially released CDs, you’d notice I own every Black Crowes album. Why? I mean, I undoubtedly have all their songs in my vast library of bootlegs. Why purchase the albums? Well, because I, like countless other music fans, support the artists.
Supporting the artists, by the way, is something that the record companies don’t do. In fact, they do just the opposite. In the over-inflated corporate world known as the music business, you’re only as good as your last million units sold. As it stands right now, if a release doesn’t shift a million or two copies immediately upon its release, it’s considered a failure. And what do artists get in return for selling at the platinum level? Well, in most cases they get less than a dollar per sale. So, to sum up, the artists do the work and the record executives reap all the benefits. If the artist fails to line the record company’s pockets with a release, they will most likely be dropped from the label. How’s that for loyalty?
Case in point is a band called the Spin Doctors. You may remember them: back in 1993, they were riding a multi-platinum album (Pocket Full of Kryptonite) and the year’s biggest single (“Two Princes”). But when they released their second album the next year, it fell flat. To their credit, Epic Records did give the Spin Doctors a second chance (most likely based on the sheer commercial viability of their debut) and the band got to work on their third album. But since their sophomore effort was considered a dud, the new album hit the stores with virtually no marketing and zero promotion. So, when said album failed to get much further than gold status (500,000 units sold), the band was dropped from the label. Never mind that their two “flops” were huge strides for the band from an artistic standpoint or that Epic Records dropped the ball in terms of promotion – the band was sent packing. Nice, huh?
Given this information, it’s no surprise that many bands are flocking to smaller labels when their deals with the corporate pork run out. Although smaller labels can’t offer acts the same financial clout the big names are able to, they still posses many more attractive and artist-friendly features. The most notable of the aforementioned perks is that smaller labels allow bands to record the material they want to record. Big labels will often pressure a band to produce at least one “hit” track per record and will even go as far as requiring song approval during the recording process to secure a chart-topper’s inclusion. With the smaller labels, the band’s can finally give you the songs they want you to hear.
The sheer lack of understanding and loyalty on the part of record labels regarding their signed artists is a big part of the reason bootleg recordings are on the rise in terms of popularity. The added benefit of the Internet is also an essential element. With a decent Internet connection, the right software and a little bit of patience, music fans can download and share an endless number of live shows via peer-to-peer networks. In fact, for once in the history of music, the fans are winning. They’ve figured out a way to legally circumvent the corporate pigs and get what they really want: the music.
Want to join in on the bootleg trading but don't know where to start? Check out these helpful links:
Etree.org - An Online Trading Community
Bit Torrent Explained
What You'll Have Access to Once You Get Involved
NP: Porcupine Tree - On The Sunday Of Life...
One month, two weeks, 18 hours, 48 minutes
1791 cigarettes not smoked, saving $403.05
Life saved: 6 days, 5 hours
Winding down
Ever want to get a bird's-eye view of your house (or anywhere else)?
Check out Google maps.
Well, another vacation has just about flown by already. Day 8 today, with only 2 days left. Of course I didn't get nearly as much done as I had hoped, but this was partly due to the fact that for the last 4 days I've experienced a great deal of discomfort with my right ear being swollen (to the point of blocking my ear canal) caused by a skin condition. I finally went to a doctor yesterday. All I was told was what I already knew. A waste of time and money....I don't know how hypochondriacs don't go bankrupt. It's getting better today. I've been taking Tylenol and aspirin. A lot cheaper than a doctor visit.
One month, two weeks, 8 hours, 56 minutes
1774 cigarettes not smoked, saving $399.35
Life saved: 6 days, 3 hours, 50 minutes
NP: Frogg Café - Fortunate Observer of Time
Check out Google maps.
Well, another vacation has just about flown by already. Day 8 today, with only 2 days left. Of course I didn't get nearly as much done as I had hoped, but this was partly due to the fact that for the last 4 days I've experienced a great deal of discomfort with my right ear being swollen (to the point of blocking my ear canal) caused by a skin condition. I finally went to a doctor yesterday. All I was told was what I already knew. A waste of time and money....I don't know how hypochondriacs don't go bankrupt. It's getting better today. I've been taking Tylenol and aspirin. A lot cheaper than a doctor visit.
One month, two weeks, 8 hours, 56 minutes
1774 cigarettes not smoked, saving $399.35
Life saved: 6 days, 3 hours, 50 minutes
NP: Frogg Café - Fortunate Observer of Time
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Faster than a speeding bullet....
It's amazing how fast vacations go by...even if you're not doing anything particularly fun. It's day 4 of my vacation and I feel like it just started.
Anyway, took my mom to see Star Wars last night. Great movie.
It was by far the best of the newer trilogy, and IMO ranks right up there with the older trilogy.
I don't go to movies much (last one before this was The Day After Tomorrow...well over a year ago if I recall), but there are some movies that just have to be seen on the big screen. For me, Star Wars is one of them.
Saw a couple of previews that looked pretty cool. One was the Fantastic Four. Not so sure the story will be anything special, but the effects look pretty cool.
The other is War of the Worlds. That one looks loaded with action and special effects.
We had our "fun night" at bowling last night. It's where we get our prize money and awards and stuff. We ended up in 6th, which really sucks. We took home $217 each for that (keep in mind that we pay in $648 during the season).
I won high average with a 198 (actually low for the high avg winner). That was $50 and a patch. For all intents and purposes, I actually won most improved average as well (from a 182 to a 198), but because of a stupid rule that says you can't win more than one "money" award, it went to some guy that improved by 6 pins.
Anyway, between the prizes and the 50/50 prizes that we won, I guess I walked out of there with about $293. Kind of like a Christmas club. Someone holds your money and you get it back without interest. :-)
What else?
For the past few days I can't stop listening to the new Porcupine Tree CD "Deadwing". It is easily my favorite album of the year so far. I've seen the song "Shallow" being referred to as a "single". Is this actually getting airplay? I wouldn't know....I avoid commercial radio like the plague. Wouldn't surprise me though...Shallow is probably the "pop-iest" track on the CD. Not that it sounds like "pop" (it's much heavier than that), but it has a catchy guitar riff that anyone can wrap their mind around.
I do know they are getting a lot of airplay on XM radio.
Someone came across an interesting blog. Fair warning though...I guarantee that this will remind you of yourself or someone you know...or both. And if you have any mistrust with those close to you, then reading this won't help matters.
You can check it out here.
Trying to reformat my PC this week. What an incredibly daunting task it is. I'm still in the process of getting stuff off my drive and backing things up before I can even start. It's amazing how much of your life you can accumulate on a hard disk.
One month, one week, three days, 4 hours, 43 minutes
1607 cigarettes not smoked, saving $361.77
Life saved: 5 days, 14 hours
Anyway, took my mom to see Star Wars last night. Great movie.
It was by far the best of the newer trilogy, and IMO ranks right up there with the older trilogy.
I don't go to movies much (last one before this was The Day After Tomorrow...well over a year ago if I recall), but there are some movies that just have to be seen on the big screen. For me, Star Wars is one of them.
Saw a couple of previews that looked pretty cool. One was the Fantastic Four. Not so sure the story will be anything special, but the effects look pretty cool.
The other is War of the Worlds. That one looks loaded with action and special effects.
We had our "fun night" at bowling last night. It's where we get our prize money and awards and stuff. We ended up in 6th, which really sucks. We took home $217 each for that (keep in mind that we pay in $648 during the season).
I won high average with a 198 (actually low for the high avg winner). That was $50 and a patch. For all intents and purposes, I actually won most improved average as well (from a 182 to a 198), but because of a stupid rule that says you can't win more than one "money" award, it went to some guy that improved by 6 pins.
Anyway, between the prizes and the 50/50 prizes that we won, I guess I walked out of there with about $293. Kind of like a Christmas club. Someone holds your money and you get it back without interest. :-)
What else?
For the past few days I can't stop listening to the new Porcupine Tree CD "Deadwing". It is easily my favorite album of the year so far. I've seen the song "Shallow" being referred to as a "single". Is this actually getting airplay? I wouldn't know....I avoid commercial radio like the plague. Wouldn't surprise me though...Shallow is probably the "pop-iest" track on the CD. Not that it sounds like "pop" (it's much heavier than that), but it has a catchy guitar riff that anyone can wrap their mind around.
I do know they are getting a lot of airplay on XM radio.
Someone came across an interesting blog. Fair warning though...I guarantee that this will remind you of yourself or someone you know...or both. And if you have any mistrust with those close to you, then reading this won't help matters.
You can check it out here.
Trying to reformat my PC this week. What an incredibly daunting task it is. I'm still in the process of getting stuff off my drive and backing things up before I can even start. It's amazing how much of your life you can accumulate on a hard disk.
One month, one week, three days, 4 hours, 43 minutes
1607 cigarettes not smoked, saving $361.77
Life saved: 5 days, 14 hours
Saturday, May 21, 2005
Sound of Muzak indeed...
Went to see Porcupine Tree last night at Irving Plaza. What an ass-kickin' show it was! These guys really shine in a live setting. It was a very cool climax to an otherwise unnerving evening. I didn't get home from work until about 5:45, and had just enough time to grab a quick shower and run out to pick up my buddy Bill in Frenchtown. I actually didn't get there till about 7. My online EZPass account indicates that we got to the city shortly after 8:30. The next hour or so was spent looking for a place to park. The good news is that when we finally found a spot, it was directly in front of the venue. Anyway, we missed all but the last song of the Rudess/Morgenstein Project. Not that big a deal, but it would have been nice to check out more of them.
PTree took the stage at roughly 10:15 and played till just about midnight.
Here's the content of this sold-out show:
Deadwing
The Sound of Muzak
Lazarus
Halo
A Smart Kid
Hatesong
Arriving Somewhere, but Not Here
Fadeaway (John Wesley on lead vox)
Shallow
Mellotron Scratch
Blackest Eyes
Even Less
=encore=
She's Moved On
Trains
Also picked up a few CDs at the show....Voyage 34, Warszawa, and the Porcupine Tree Sampler 2005.
They said they're coming back in October with possibly some *new* songs to play. I'll be looking forward to that. Great band, great show, great night.
NP: Porcupine Tree - Voyage 34
One month, one week, 7 hours, 37 minutes smober
1492 cigarettes not smoked, saving $335.86
Life saved: 5 days, 4 hours
PTree took the stage at roughly 10:15 and played till just about midnight.
Here's the content of this sold-out show:
Deadwing
The Sound of Muzak
Lazarus
Halo
A Smart Kid
Hatesong
Arriving Somewhere, but Not Here
Fadeaway (John Wesley on lead vox)
Shallow
Mellotron Scratch
Blackest Eyes
Even Less
=encore=
She's Moved On
Trains
Also picked up a few CDs at the show....Voyage 34, Warszawa, and the Porcupine Tree Sampler 2005.
They said they're coming back in October with possibly some *new* songs to play. I'll be looking forward to that. Great band, great show, great night.
NP: Porcupine Tree - Voyage 34
One month, one week, 7 hours, 37 minutes smober
1492 cigarettes not smoked, saving $335.86
Life saved: 5 days, 4 hours
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Mobile Blogging
Here's something interesting. I can now blog from my cell phone. This might be fun...or not.
--
Mobile Email from a Cingular Wireless Customer http://www.cingular.com
Greetings from the middle class
Interesting article in the NY Times today. A somewhat in-depth poll of how Americans view class and where we all fit in. According to this, I border between middle and upper-middle class. There are 4 factors that determine this, each holding seemingly equal weight. Occupation, Education, Income, & Wealth. Two surprises for me were that my education (Bachelor's Degree....very common I thought) puts me in the upper echelon, and my income (quite modest, IMO) puts me comfortably above average (well into the upper-middle class) in that category. My occupation is just about dead center, and my worth borders on lower-middle class.
Anyway, click here to check it out. If you can't view it, you may have to register at the site (it's free).
Yes, still smober!
One month, one day, 4 hours, 35 minutes
1247 cigarettes not smoked, saving $280.72
Life saved: 4 days, 8 hours
Anyway, click here to check it out. If you can't view it, you may have to register at the site (it's free).
Yes, still smober!
One month, one day, 4 hours, 35 minutes
1247 cigarettes not smoked, saving $280.72
Life saved: 4 days, 8 hours
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Get organized
For those who might not check out Pogue's Posts (Other Blog links at right), check this out here. Looks like there's a new craze sweeping the blog community. It appears to be a very handy tool/site for organizing this and that.
Check it out!
Check it out!
Sunday, May 08, 2005
Happy Mother's Day!
Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there. ;-)
Yesterday was interesting. I got up and got out early to bowl in a tournament that I signed up for about 6 months ago. We get there, we're waiting, and I decide to look at the list of bowlers to see what lanes we're on. Mark Clark...Kara Cook...Mark Clark...Kara Cook....hmm....funny, I don't see either name there. There is a perfectly good explanation for this....you needed to qualify for the tournament, and WE DIDN'T! Great, so now it's either drive back home for a few hours and come back, or stay in Dover all day long. My lazy ass opted for staying. Anything but more driving. So I hung out with Donna at her mom's garage sale for the better part of the day, then we all went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. The food was outstanding, but it is a pricey place. With the tip, came to about $205 for 5 of us. That included one mixed drink and one beer. Of course, we had to try some cheesecake while we were there too, no? I had the German Chocolate Cheesecake. Incredibly rich...almost to the point of nauseating. I tried a bite of the plain old cheesecake, and I must admit, it was not what I would expect from a "factory" of such. Not bad, but not the best I've ever eaten. In fact, the main food was better than the cheesecake in my opinion. I had a skirt steak...tender, tasty...mmm it was the best meal I've had in a long time.
It killed the better part of the night though. We left the house around 6 (way too late), and got home around 10. Waited about 80-90 minutes for a table.
It was nice to try something different, but too expensive to frequent.
What else....oh, if you haven't heard about them yet, you gotta check out this High School percussion band performing Emerson, Lake & Palmer's Karn Evil 9! This is pretty amazing for a bunch of kids!
http://www.poteetpirateband.org/video.htm
It's at the lower left-center of the page. You'll need RealPlayer to view it.
Still Smober!
Three weeks, three days, 15 hours
985 cigarettes not smoked, saving $221.64
Life saved: 3 days, 10 hours
Yesterday was interesting. I got up and got out early to bowl in a tournament that I signed up for about 6 months ago. We get there, we're waiting, and I decide to look at the list of bowlers to see what lanes we're on. Mark Clark...Kara Cook...Mark Clark...Kara Cook....hmm....funny, I don't see either name there. There is a perfectly good explanation for this....you needed to qualify for the tournament, and WE DIDN'T! Great, so now it's either drive back home for a few hours and come back, or stay in Dover all day long. My lazy ass opted for staying. Anything but more driving. So I hung out with Donna at her mom's garage sale for the better part of the day, then we all went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. The food was outstanding, but it is a pricey place. With the tip, came to about $205 for 5 of us. That included one mixed drink and one beer. Of course, we had to try some cheesecake while we were there too, no? I had the German Chocolate Cheesecake. Incredibly rich...almost to the point of nauseating. I tried a bite of the plain old cheesecake, and I must admit, it was not what I would expect from a "factory" of such. Not bad, but not the best I've ever eaten. In fact, the main food was better than the cheesecake in my opinion. I had a skirt steak...tender, tasty...mmm it was the best meal I've had in a long time.
It killed the better part of the night though. We left the house around 6 (way too late), and got home around 10. Waited about 80-90 minutes for a table.
It was nice to try something different, but too expensive to frequent.
What else....oh, if you haven't heard about them yet, you gotta check out this High School percussion band performing Emerson, Lake & Palmer's Karn Evil 9! This is pretty amazing for a bunch of kids!
http://www.poteetpirateband.org/video.htm
It's at the lower left-center of the page. You'll need RealPlayer to view it.
Still Smober!
Three weeks, three days, 15 hours
985 cigarettes not smoked, saving $221.64
Life saved: 3 days, 10 hours
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
Bowling for dollars
Gettin' down to crunch time in my bowling league. We dropped from 5th to 6th place, and last night we only won one point (out of a possible 7) because we tied one game. The next two weeks are "position" nights, and will decide where we end up. The best we can do is 4th.
I bowled better last night than I have the past two weeks, although still not that great. The first game I had a 198 with one ball left to throw. Just keep it on the lane and I have a 200 game right? In a perfect world maybe, but I went and threw it in the gutter. In any case, I threw a 198, a 198, and a 204, for a 600 on the nose. I had a 201 average at one point. Now I'm down to a 198. I should still win high average as well as most improved though.
Still not smoking!
Two weeks, five days
762 cigarettes not smoked, saving $171.51
I bowled better last night than I have the past two weeks, although still not that great. The first game I had a 198 with one ball left to throw. Just keep it on the lane and I have a 200 game right? In a perfect world maybe, but I went and threw it in the gutter. In any case, I threw a 198, a 198, and a 204, for a 600 on the nose. I had a 201 average at one point. Now I'm down to a 198. I should still win high average as well as most improved though.
Still not smoking!
Two weeks, five days
762 cigarettes not smoked, saving $171.51
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