6-22-09 Week in Review

I packed the drums up Friday and headed down for practice/gig on Saturday. I had this bad feeling the whole time but I just had to go with it. Anyhow, we got down there, setup, rehearsed, all was good. The sound guy showed up and we helped him setup and then went on to set our stuff up. Still, good. The other bands started to show up...checked the radar, storms to the north...less good but still OK. We get done with a crappy sound check....storms forming to the west...not too good but still a slight possibility we'd be OK. The other bands finish equally bad sound checks...severe thunderstorm warning and solid line of red colored storms heading at us.

Even though everyone wanted the show to go on, at this point I change from 'preparing to play' to 'preparing to save my stuff' mode. I made a plan with Jodi on what to do, got ready to get wet, and got the truck and trailer as near as I could to my stuff. About 1 song into the concert by the opening band I see lightning. Now I knew it was reasonable to ask for the show to be shut down. No worry, enter arrival of huge rain drops. Immediate panic and rush by everyone. Got most electronics and drums and cymbals under cover. Rain stops. Continue to pack up (even though some think show can go one now) As packing...arrival of severe thunderstorm, pelting rain, high winds, etc. etc.

Dry equipment, load up, drive 2 hours home. Eat at McDonald's...new tradition after crappy shows. (crappy service BTW)

Update on damage to equipment next week.

6-15-09 Week in Review

Really the most exciting event of the week was rehabbing our patio. My Dad came down and helped out. Apparently the people who built it used the wrong sand. We put in some of the right stuff, leveled everything out, and then used some polymeric sand to lock ever thing together. Looks ready for the hot tub now!

I got the iPhone 3.0 OS as well. Seems like it may have slowed my phone down a bit...of course not nearly as much as the wicked fast Edge network does as compared the the 3G I had before moving.

Wako Jako

OK, I told myself I wouldn't do it but I just can't contain myself anymore...yes, it's tragic every time a human dies, especially one deemed to be 'before their time'...just seriously!! Consider the facts!

He was very talented as a child and young adult, he was very successful and on top of his gave (almost 30 years ago) BUT
- the guy hasn't had a hit in 15+ years!
- he was spending 20-30 million more (some say 2X his income) than he was making...if the government, a corporation or individual did that we'd want them thrown in jail
- he was repeatedly accused of abusing children
- his erratic behavior seems to indicate drug abuse
- he was probably very influential to some people but not all musicians...and probably none that have influenced me
- he chose to alter his actual appearance so much, his own mother probably couldn't recognize him...nor did he really retain an 'I'm human' image

Please, can we get over it! Hopefully the sudden spike in his album sales can cover some of the money he owes to his creditors (if not, Obama will probably bail him out and send me the bill on April 15th).

I just can't take it anymore

6/8/09 Week in Review

Another 4 day week! Sweet. Got a few things marked off the list...like disposing of some concrete and the old grill. Received Avenged Sevenfold DVD...quite a show, those guys know how to rock.

Friday night the guys from Park Lane arrived....and just as they did so did the rain. We grilled out any how but ate inside. We had a great rehearsal and packed up for Bash. Bash was great. We had a good crowd and sounded good. There were a few mistakes here and there but nothing too major. Great weather for Bash too (the rain went away and it wasn't too hot). We had pizza with Dave Paris and his band afterwards. Good discussion.

I installed the outdoor speakers on my day off. Now, just to move the hot tub.

Internet update: received and installed bridge. Things work but I seem to need to reboot the router on occasion...I'm not complaining too much.

6/1/09 Week in Review

Another normal week at work, nothing too exciting...other than I had Friday off! I used the time to take photos of my kits. It was a nice sunny day. I changed the heads and polished things up for the shoot. I think I got some decent shots to submit for the kit of the month. Saturday was rainy. We got some stuff done around the house. Sunday we headed down for rehearsal and for Jodi to go to a shower. We visited our old Church. Everyone seems to be doing well. I fertilized the grass with some gypsum...hope fully that improves the soil so I can reseed this Fall.

In other news, sounds like the 'big 3' are no longer...not a realy suprise. iPhone 3GS will be avaliable soon, nice but I think I'll wait to upgrade.

Internet: ordered new ethernet bridge...hope that will fix issues

5-25-09 Week in Review

The week started with a day off...yea! We spent it getting things around the house done. I moved on to a 3 day work week because I took Friday off. The weather was great. I exercised, cleaned the trailer, and worked on my 'mini me' drum set. Quite a productive day. It wrapped up with us getting materials for our first landscaping project at the new house....much like at the last house, putting landscaping around the trees. Saturday we headed down to Park Lane rehearsal and performance. We played a battle of the bands of sorts. Again, we were a bit too old for the clientele to be a viable winner but we rocked and got decent response from the audience. Sunday we hit church and headed home.

We did try a decent restaurant, Ferrari's. It was rather tasty.

The Internet continues to be a struggle. Not sure what is wrong yet.