Sunday, June 26, 2011

Off to the Falls


 Niagara Falls, here we come. :-)

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Summertime

Today is the first day of summer. Of course with the hot muggy weather we've already had this year it feels like summer began a while ago. Now that it's official the rest of the season will likely fly by like it always does and before we know it we'll turn around and it will be fall and then winter and brrrr I don't want to think about winter. The important thing is it's summertime now!

First day of summer 2011 backyard pics:

some sort of flower in my jungle of a backyard
I forgot what these are called but they're kinda pretty.
bright and sunshiney
Winnie, good as new after her recent surgery
Miss Lola
Lola loves her squeaky toy (watch below).

Emily's garden ;)
Emily's blueberries...if only the birds would stop eating them.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Just some songs



Just some songs...little bit country, little bit rock n roll, little bit soul, and a few good covers:

1) Paul Westerberg - Things
Absolutely love this song by Minnesota's Paul Westerberg, formerly of The Replacements.

2) Denison Witmer - Northern Sky (Nick Drake cover)
Denison Witmer from Lancaster, Pennsylvania does a great job on this sweet romantic Nick Drake song. 

3) The Moondoggies - Empress of the North
The Moondoggies are a four-piece band from Seattle. They're a serious band with a silly name that makes me think of old Gidget movies. Moon Doggie, aka James Darren, be still my heart. :)

4) The Moondoggies - Down the Well
and another from the dogs...

5) Hotel Lights - Falling Down
Hotel Lights, from Houston, TX is an American indie band founded by Darren Jessee, former drummer for Ben Folds Five.

6) Joseph Arthur - Out On A Limb
Joseph Arthur (discovered by Peter Gabriel in the mid-90's) is a singer-songwriter and artist from Akron, Ohio. Very talented artist.

7) Jim James - All Things Must Pass (George Harrison cover)
James Edward Olliges Jr., professionally known as Jim James or Yim Yames, is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of Louisville, Kentucky-based rock band My Morning Jacket. Can't wait to see Jim James with MMJ (along with Delta Spirit) in August!

8) Thad Cockrell and Mindy Smith – I Know The Reason
Thad Cockrell, the son of a Baptist pastor, grew up in Tampa, Florida and I like him plenty.

9) Rural Alberta Advantage - Muscle Relaxants
The Rural Alberta Advantage is a Canadian indie rock band based in Toronto, Ontario. I like the name of this song and the way it makes my car's rear windshield vibrate when I play it.

10) Thad Cockrell - Pride
Another pretty song by Thad.

11) Sparklehorse featuring The Flaming Lips – Go (Daniel Johnston cover)
Sparklehorse was the work of singer and multi-instrumentalist Mark Linkous, who sadly took his own life in 2010.

12) Sparklehorse featuring Thom Yorke of Radiohead – Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd cover)
Turn it up. This is an interesting cover of a Pink Floyd (Roger Waters) classic. I really really like this one.

13) Will Johnson – Tangle For Less
What else can I say about Will? Love him.

14) Thad Cockrell - A Country Of My Own
One final country-type tune by Thad (and I don't even much like country).

15) Dawes - All My Failures
Dawes, a band from Los Angeles, recently backed Robbie Robertson on live shows to promote his LP How to Become Clairvoyant.

16) Kill County - Three Bullets
A sad sack banjo picking Oklahoma-based alt country kind of band.

17) Liam Bailey – I’d Rather Go Blind (Etta James cover)
Liam Bailey, an English musician, does an interesting version of an Etta James classic. I like his version...a lot.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Father's Day

Love you dad.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

What a man

He rides a bike.
He looks good in uniform.
He is thoughtful and kind.
He has a good heart.
He makes me laugh.
He loves music.
He replaces dryer vents.

Who could possibly ask for more?
Not me. :-)

Monday, June 13, 2011

A modern day troubadour

Eric Hensley, Alton’s modern day troubadour, played at Jacoby Arts Center Friday night. His one man band is called “Names and Titles”. Check out the video below for some samplings of his tunes.



For bookings, contact:
“He’ll do whatever”

Jacoby Arts Center, Alton, IL

Names and Titles myspace:

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Look who's 10 months old today!


Love love love this little Jude bug! :-)

Saturday, June 11, 2011

diaper cakes

Well, you can't eat 'em but diapers cakes can still be cool. They're fun to make, they make great gifts, they make a nice centerpiece at baby showers, they look cute in nurseries, and best of all they're useful. The pink cake below is for Holly's little one, Leighton Ann.

Holly and Leighton in the sun

how to make a diaper cake:
(click pics for better view)
Ingredients: 60-70 diapers, a base to transport the cake (in this case a pizza pan for later use), 2 baby blankets, booties, baby socks (for making rosettes), 2 baby bottles (to hold the tiers in place), candy to fill the bottles (to surprise mommy later), rubber bands (must have lots of rubber bands, small and large), tissue paper, ribbons (wide and narrow), double-sided tape, little toys, pacifiers, or whatever else you want to add.
pizza pan wrapped in tissue paper and
strawberry malted milk balls for the first bottle
tier 1, 2 and 3 (each diaper rolled and rubber banded)
two baby blankets around the bottom tier and more tissue paper
next, pretty ribbon and sock rosettes
more ribbon, pacifiers, booties, etc
and to top it off, a bright flower and ribbon curls


Thursday, June 2, 2011

Another holiday gone by

Funny how time flies when you're having fun. My 4-day holiday weekend was fun and it certainly flew by. From staying home and watching a movie with Emily on Friday night to hanging out with Mark in Grafton on Saturday to a barbecue and time with Jude on Sunday to being lazy and relaxing on Monday, it was all fun and fast and I wish I could go back and do it all again.

Memorial Day Weekend 2011

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

June (and a new album by Centro-matic)

It's June! Yay! June always feels like the beginning of summer to me, even if it's not officially summer until June 21st. The 21st of June is also the day Centro-matic (one of my fav bands) will release their new album Candidate Waltz, their tenth release. It was recorded and produced by Scott Solter (Spoon, Mountain Goats) and Matt Pence (C-M's drummer), and I can't wait to hear it!

I've been a fan of Will Johnson, the front man of Centro-matic for some time. He's actually the front man for two bands, Centro-matic and South San Gabriel (his quieter side project). He's a solo artist. He's the new drummer for the supergroup Monsters of Folk. He's an actor in a strange little indie film called Salt Creek County. He's a lifelong Cardinals' baseball fan and he's an artist! Talk about a multi-faceted guy!

I've written about Will before and most likely will again. He's the real deal...talented, humble, and just plain nice. People, including other musicians and fans, geniunely like him. His own manager (Bob Andrews of Undertow Music) may be his biggest fan. He named his son after Will by using the first three letters of his first name and the final three letters of his last, resulting in . . .Wilson. If Wilson's anything like the guy he's named after I bet he's a pretty darn cool kid.


Will and the big painting that became the cover art for Candidate Waltz.


A behind the scenes Monsters of Folk ACL video. The song "Dear God" showcases the uniquely different and beautiful vocals of Jim James, Conor Oberst and M. Ward. (Will on drums)

One song, two sounds, decades apart:
All Night Long - Lionel Richie (80's original)



All Night Long - South San Gabriel
Will and company took the same song and turned it into something totally their own. I wonder if Lionel's heard it and loves it too.