bd

2011-11-03T23:16:00.001-04:00

2011-11-03T22:58:00.000-04:00

2011-04-01T21:32:00.001-04:00

2011-03-30T16:43:00.001-04:00

Screeching Ben Weasel & the Last of the First World Manifesto

2011-03-24T16:11:00.005-04:00

Oh cruel, cruel modern world. Oh dear, dear stupid Ben Weasel…

Punk Rock has over the past forty years or so served on opposite sides of the great divide of the thrust of progress. That is, one can find in punk all manner of thought, ideology and action. Each genre of punk tends to align somewhat with the overarching ideologies of its adherents, but that is a loose connection.

Wikipedia claims punk has 27 subcategories, including: Mod Revival, Psychobilly, Alien Kulture, Celtic Punk, Hardcore, Punk Jazz, Skate Punk, Street Punk, Melodic hardcore, Pop punk, Riot Grrl, Rock Against Communism, Konsrock, J-Ska, Bandana thrash, Gunk, Punk Pathetique, New Wave, No Wave, Grebo, Garage, Taqwacore, and Trallpunk.

These tend to be woven together by the common threads of a sense that authorities should generally be questioned strickly, and music should largely be played on some scale as to be considered at least somewhat fast and aggressive. A matter of scale in all cases, but this should encompass roughly everyone in the scene.

Each of these insanely specific genres listed above has within its group of listeners men, women, children, et al and each individual person brings to the collective a tiny slice of their mentality to make up what ends up constituting the general scaffold of an image of what that particular brand of music ‘is’ and ‘means’. In this way, and in so many other ways, the relationship between musician and listener is symbiotic and duel-dependent.

So it’s not really appropriate to paint with broad strokes, even when those strokes probably wouldn’t actually fall too far outside the lines. You could say things like ‘hardcore kids like to fight, are more aggressive, and perhaps, more likely to be a bit misogynistic.’ This of course would be completely unfair. Some hardcore kids fall under this umbrella, while others are probably Rhodes Scholars. Some may be Rhodes Scholars who also happen to hate women. It takes all kinds.

Punk Rock’s relationship to the internet is similarly ambiguous. Some folk took right too it and used it in the early days in ways that were revolutionary and groundbreaking, and served as a template for Internet 2.0 in many ways. Other folk detract it to this day, viewing it as an ominous specter of a dystopian future void of privacy or human interaction.

Some bands have used the net to thrive, while others had to be dragged in kicking and screaming. The net is so synonymous with music today that to have a band but not a website is a diagnosable symptom of insanity.

In the middle of all of this over the past 25 years was Screeching Weasel. Screeching Weasel stood across these great divides, drawing a stark line in the sand, dividing the different worlds of punk and pop-punk with their arrogant, aggressive Ramones-core sounds, goofy, at times semi-mean lyrics, and a brazen regard for black leather jackets and Mosrite guitars.

Ben Weasel has long been a lightning rod in the punk community, spurned on by his extravagant columns in MaximumRockandRoll and his penchant for Making Friends and Irritating People. Is Ben a fuck? I dunno, never met the guy. But if I had to take a guess, I’d say no, he’s probably an alright dude. That being said, my man Ben has done a good job of creating the idea out there in the world that he’s a bit of an asshole. And that’s OK.

So in the course of like 3 weeks, the roof’s been ripped off the whole thing. This all starts with the official streaming and subsequent unofficial leaking of the new Screeching Weasel record. Let’s focus for a minute on that.

God damn! Like I said above, in these days of disparate sounds and ways of thinking, it is super difficult to ‘define’ anything. On a broader scale, for instance, what would one characterize as ‘dance’ music today? You could run the gamut from Gaga to Atom & His Package to Abba. Similarly disparity reigns.

To that end, as Phil Donahue so famously asked the Mr. T Experience… what is punk? Furthermore, today, WHAT the FUCK is pop-punk? You could grab 27 pop punk teenagers from the mall and ask ‘em their favorite pop punk band, and you’d get 27 different answers, no doubt ranging from The Queers & MTX to Pennywise & NOFX to god only knows amongst the extensive list of abhorrent drivel that exists within the genre today, as well as the few spectacular roses rises from amongst the shit. I listened to The Queers, MTX, & Screeching Weasel, but not so much NOFX or Pennywise. My friends who listened to those bands were less likely to listen to MTX or the Queers, but they did listen to Screeching Weasel. Hmmm.

If you asked me, today, what is punk? What is pop-punk? I’d pretty much have to hand you the new Screeching Weasel record and walk away. It’s kind of awesome. And it plays right into my point. There are some amazing songs on the record, and there are some stinkers. But I have seen people agree on this point, only to then characterize the other’s favorites as the stinkers. So even the bad songs are pretty great, and you’ll probably love the jams I think are only so-so.

This is SW’s first record in eleven years, and it is their best since 1994’s How to Make Enemies and Irritate People. It’s really good. And no one is ever going to hear it.

If you don’t know by now, Screeching Weasel is, at least in the short term, kaput.

After the awful and unfortunate events that took place at SXSW last week, in which Ben Weasel totally lost his cool and did some very uncool things, the other members of the band have unanimously left the band. Ouch.

The whole thing breaks down like its own little SW song.

Poor dumb Ben got himself in way deeper than he could have imagined, and to be fair, he’s in way deeper than probably deserved. I in no way advocate violence towards women. But this incident raises interesting questions regarding women’s progress towards equality within punk and in the greater world.

I have heard more than one person, including women, make the case that if the girl deserved to get punched, she deserved to get punched. I don’t necessarily accept this premise, but it must be addressed that this incident was not one-sided. The poor guy is up there trying to do his thing, despite his acknowledged social phobias, getting pelted with ice and no doubt other random bullshit. Then this girl, after admitting to throwing the ice, spits beer in Mr. Weasel’s face.

I think it is a good time to reiterate that violence towards anyone, especially women, is to be avoided at all cost.

But have you ever been spit on?

This brings me to another point. Imagine back to your worst moment. Maybe you were drunk and causing a ruckus. Maybe you got frustrated in line at the WalMart and cussed out an old lady. Now, imagine, as you collect yourself from losing your cool, you look up to see thirty kids with video cameras live streaming that shit to the internet.

Everyone knows Ben Weasel is an asshole. Again, it’s kind of his thing. Had this incident occurred ten or twenty years ago, it would have percolated through the scene via accounts in MaxRock or early versions of the Pop Punk Message board. It would be an issue, but it would be filtered enough that Ben and the band could likely get through it if they so chose.

However, it is not 1994. Everyone has a pretty good video camera in their pocket, and for chrissake, you’re standing on a stage with a band, so you are going to be a target of attention.

So when you lash out violently at a woman in front of 500 people, and then you turn and punch a second women in the ribs as she tries to subdue you, it’s gonna be available for everyone in the world to see via the internet.

It needs to be said that what that girl did was not cool. Fucking with a band while they are playing isn’t a big deal, but it’s stupid and can certainly become frustrating for the band, who are trying to focus on their performance.

Secondly, I hope, and I pray, that Ben mistakenly punched the second girl thinking she was a man (because she came up from behind like a bouncer). Then again, this is giving Ben the benefit of the doubt significantly, considering he had literally just punched a different girl, thereby indicating that ‘not punching girls’ was not something he was particularly focused on at the moment.

Still, it also should be mentioned that the second girl wasn’t too bright either, in that the first rule of fight and crowd management is that you do not get involved unless you planned to get punched.

However, Ben, dude…. You’ve been in a fucking band for like 30 years…. Get used to it! People gonna be throwin shit at you! Keep yo’ cool, man! The fact is, had Ben punched two guys like that, it would have been an interesting tidbit, but it would not have caused the uproar, black-listing, and band disintegration that it did.

I’m not sure how I feel about this. I am a 100% peaceful person who tries to avoid violence at all costs. But I can’t help feel that poor Ben is a victim here, as ridiculous as that sounds. His biggest enemy is himself. He created this whole thing, and could have very easily avoided it. And as awful as what he did is, I don’t think it can be particularly equated with the psychological and physical devastation that is the scourge of domestic abuse. Still, the brutality with which Ben strikes out at the woman is unnerving, and should only help to remind folk of the fact that violence is never, in fact, the answer… ever.

Ben Weasel is not Chris Brown. He’s not Mel Gibson. He also ain’t Nelson Mandela. He's kind of like Axl Rose... But like Axl, Mel, and Chris, Ben’s got himself some anger issues. That is no way for a grown man with children to act. But look at Chris Brown now. He’s out there, doing it, trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to make things right. Ben’s just gotta get shit straight in his head, so this is just a speed bump, and years from now he is playing shows and/or doing well. If he doesn’t get his shit straight, he’ll be throwing chairs through windows backstage on Carson Daly.

But AGAIN: This is Ben Weasel we’re talking about here. Being an asshole is kind of his thing. I don’t blame the band at all for walking away. And I don’t blame the bands that backed out of playing with them in Chicago. What Ben did was abhorrent, vicious, reprehensible.

But I can’t help feeling like I don’t know what all the fuss is about. Ben Weasel punched some people? OK. That sounds about right.

What I find absolutely adorable and hilarious is Ben’s quote about taking it all back:

“Whatever my feelings are about fans crossing the line like that, I wish I could have that moment back and deal with it in the same spirit as I did the preceding 60 minutes.”

I find this hilarious because, as video indicates and from everything I’ve heard, he had spent those preceding 60 minutes, as well as the previous show, rocking the fuck out quite excellently, while also being a whiny, arrogant little bitch. But again, kind of par for the course, right?

It’s easy to kick someone when they are down. Ben’s a fuck, but who didn’t know that? He’s also awesome, and a punk rock icon for good reason. I understand those who felt compelled to just turn their backs and walk away, but kudos should also go to those who are standing by his side. It’s a tough situation.

The new Screeching Weasel album is fucking amazing. Really, really good. It’s a fine-tuned 14 song killer that puts the band firmly back in its place at the forefront of relevant punk. Or at least it did last week.

Buy this album, or at the very least, steal it. Either way, Come and See the Violence Inherent in the System and definitely blast that shit.

“Don’t you dare call me a clown! I’ll have my lawyer shut your website down.”

2010-11-15T00:42:00.000-05:00

2010-04-25T14:09:00.000-04:00

2010-03-07T14:35:00.001-05:00

The White Mountain from charles on Vimeo.

2010-03-06T15:07:00.000-05:00

2010-03-01T10:16:00.001-05:00

View the vancouver2010.com medals' table

2010-01-27T21:40:00.000-05:00

2010-01-16T15:37:00.001-05:00

2010-01-16T15:33:00.001-05:00

2009-12-27T04:43:00.000-05:00

good song!

2009-12-22T02:55:00.002-05:00

December Blizzard 2009 from NASA's Earth Observatory

via the Huffington Post

2009-12-17T03:00:00.004-05:00

Before we get into the utter excitement that should be and has been sweeping the Philadelphia area over the past few days, a moment of silent respectful mourning is in order.

On July 29 of this year, the Phillies traded four prospects from their farm system for the Cleveland Indians venerated, 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner Clifton Phifer Lee. Mr. Lee took the mound for the Phillies days later, pitching six innings of no hit ball on his way to a complete game win. This performance set the bar high for Cliff, who took the momentum and carried it straight into the postseason, where he went 2-0 in the World Series, becoming the first pitcher in history to pitch a complete game in the Series with 10 strikeouts, no walks, and no earned runs. His two wins were the only two wins for his team in the World Series, who went on to lose the Series in 6 games.

Lee's no-nonsense, cavalier attitude, coupled with his take-no-prisoners approach to pitching and his notorious hustle to and from the dugout between innings quickly earned him the moniker of 'fan-favorite' in a town oft-bedeviled for their harsh treatment of players on both sides of the aisle. Lee's composure was evident through the season. He embraced the city, and Philadelphia fully embraced him.

When the Lee deal went down, it was universally regarded as a stroke of utter genius on the part of GM Ruben Amaro Jr. All indications pointed to a deal being done to obtain Roy Halladay, widely regarded as the best in baseball (with Cliff Lee coming in close second). Everyone wanted Halladay, and Amaro was on that boat. However, the Blue jays insisted on scoring Phil's top pitching prospect Kyle "son of Doug" Drabek in the deal, along with other potential aces like J.A. Happ and others. The Phillies were unwilling to jeopardize their future in this regard, especially considering that Halladay would be a wide open free agent only a season and a half later, at the end of 2010.

So Amaro called the Blue Jay bluff and walked away from the table, unwilling to toss away the future for one man. In the back channels, only two days before the trading deadline, Amaro moved to score Lee, and did so through a deal that could only be characterized as a steal for the Phils. Utter brilliance.

Here we are five months later. Mr. Lee earned his Phillies pinstripes, but burning a hole in the back of everyone's minds (especially the Phil's front office) was the fact that Cliff Lee's contract expires at the end of next season, and despite his expressed love of the city and team, this had to be weighed against his stated desire to score BIG money on the free agent market, vis a vis CC Sabathia.

The Phillies faced a worst case scenario. Come the end of the 2010 season, they could be without their man Lee, out of the game in a Halladay bidding war, and facing the doldrums of a moderately (though not extensively) depleted farm system. Of course, Lee could res-sign. But money talks, and initial indications implied Lee would be willing to walk for the right number, which is well within his rights as a premiere player.

In the face of this, the Phillies acted boldly. We all know what happened over the past week. Historic trade. Nine players. Two Cy Youngers. et al.

The Phillies have brilliantly locked in Roy Halladay, the "best pitcher in baseball", through at least the 2013 season. In doing so, they were forced to heavily deplete the deep bench, trading away dreamy Kyle Drabek in a package of three minor leaguers. Interestingly, the Phillies were able to pull this off without touching Lee at all. In this way, it is interesting that this is being characterized as a four team, nine player deal. In reality they are almost all separate deals.

The need (or desire) to trade Lee arose because of the stark pain that trading such potential gems as Drabek and outfielder Michael Taylor exacts on the Phillies future. Even with Halladay, the Phils could have held onto Lee and acquiesced the loss of money and prospects for one year of beautiful greatness where your top three starters are Halladay, Lee, and Hamels. This is in part likely why they were out there shopping Blanton somewhat earlier in the week, and whoever else they could throw into a deal to get some equity.

In the end, I suppose, no such deal was attainable. No one bit hard enough on Blanton et al. Additionally, one could make the argument that two years of Blanton is better than one year of Lee, and also that we could always deal Blanton in the future for additional prospects or help.

I wonder as well if they were also considering the development of Cole "Chinadoll" Hamels in the equation. Being unable to trade him for a solid deal, they likely still see him as the future of the team, a player who had an off year but will come back strong and confident. But with him in a Phils uniform, at the #3 spot, could deal a harsh blow to his occasionally tender psyche. Probably not.

But this BEGS the question. Exactly WHAT is the Phillies' projected 5 man rotation going into Spring Training??? Halladay, Hamels, Blanton, Happ, Kendrick? That is pretty strong. But I almost feel, that for next year, we have weakened ourselves: a.) because a five man rotae with Halladay and Lee is unfathomable and also b.) b/c previous to these trades, our 'wild card' potential sixth man seemed to be the Young Drabek, at some point in the season when injury or performance begs a change. Was Drabek deemed unready for this task? Has new recruit Phillippe Aumont developed to the point of MLB performance?

In reality, Drabel nor Aumont will be ready this year, I suppose.

In either case, fans, drop from your consciousness names such as Drabek and Taylor and embrace Aumont, J.C. Ramirez and Tyson Gillies as the potential future of the organization.

I'm thrilled and excited to have Halladay, but I can't help feeling like there wasn't a better way to replenish the coffers. Cliff Lee was a class act, and in his short time here he earned a space as one of my favorite Phillies of all time. I would love to have seen the dream rotation, if only for one year, and I will miss Cliff Lee. I know Halladay is a right hander, MC Ben. And I am utterly floored that he will be our pitcher for the next three or four seasons.

For me, the price is fair, and logical, but almost too high. I would have held Lee. Trade Blanton midway through the season if necessary, or Werth, or someone else with a big payday on the horizon. I get it on every level, and i absolutely love it, but I can't help but admit that it hurts a little.

2009-12-16T01:06:00.002-05:00

from forthesound.com

Against Me!

The Original Cowboy

One could argue that Fat Wreck Chords' sort of re-release of Against Me!'s exceptional and pivotal album As the Eternal Cowboy, as a companion piece of sorts called The Original Cowboy, is a cynical tactic designed to drum up nostalgic dolla bills for a label who has not had the privilege of releasing their more recent, less exciting efforts. Hmmmm......

It is presented as a demo version of the final copy, in the vein of: "[we recorded these demos as a preliminary attempt at molding what would become the final record, but we kinda almost like these original versions better, almost.]"

The album contains about 80% of the songs contained on As the Eternal Cowboy, in 2003. There is a slight change in song order, and the record does not open up with the quintessential "The party's over... the CD's skippin..." vocals. Also, there is some song edits and additions that did not appear in the final cut.

If you are some kind of weirdo, and have somehow not heard of Against Me!, then I would advise against making it your first venture into the band. Go with Reinventing Axl Rose or the originally released As the Eternal... Go see them live, or get their DVD.

Don't get me wrong. This is an excellent record. I thoroughly appreciate the revelation of the artistic process by way of this newly released record. The original, that is, the Eternal Cowboy was very, very good, so it is hard for new Original Cowboy to go wrong. However, there is not a whole lot of difference in the sound, overall, except I suppose that this is a tad bit grittier and loose. To the Against Me!'s credit, the final version they originally released maintains this sense of looseness and grit, and is part of the reason As the Et. Cowboy is such a seminal release in the punk rock soundscape.

To those who would say this venture by Fat & Against Me! is cynical and revenue driven, I say, in the end, nay!! Records like this are good for the collective mental environment. This record is cool, and is the kind of thing that I like to see from artists. But Against Me! was too good the first time around for their own good. Fan of the band? Audiophile? Get this, you'll enjoy it.

Otherwise do as previously instructed.

2009-12-05T03:57:00.001-05:00

2009-12-04T14:48:00.002-05:00

"Mr. President...

at our college we've been studying some criminology..."

i totally love how the dude wants to legalize "non-violent crimes"

2009-12-04T01:40:00.001-05:00

stay classy, Philadelphia.

2009-12-03T22:58:00.002-05:00

BILLY FROLIC

WORLD TOUR!!!

Catch me, acoustic style throughout the month of December

MONDAY 12/7/09:

Showcase @ Mojo 13 (Wilmington, DE)

WEDNESDAY 12/9/09:

@ Homegrown Cafe (Newark, DE)

w/ Hot Toddy & the Wilmington Wastoids

MONDAY 12/28/09:

@ the Note (West Chester, PA)

2009-12-02T01:00:00.002-05:00

coming to a city near you...

TIT PATROL

DECEMBER TOUR:

12/11 Baltimore, MD

12/12 Shepherdstown, WV @ Shepherdstown Train Station

12/13 Virginia Beach, VA @ Custom Made Music

12/14 Chapel Hill, NC

12/15 Rock Hill, SC @ P.A.F. House

12/16 - 12/19: Recording the much anticipated follow up to

"Gets Less Worse" @ Monster Zero Studios w/Joe King!

2009-11-29T04:57:00.001-05:00

2009-11-29T04:41:00.000-05:00

2009-11-19T02:13:00.002-05:00

2009-11-15T02:44:00.003-05:00

Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the show on Friday night @ Mojo 13. The other bands were great, and the crowd was super nice and fun. Extra points to Jerad for spectacular sound engineering. And a special thanks to Ally for typically excellent camera work, as evidenced below:

2009-11-13T15:19:00.003-05:00

Starry Eyed Virginians

2009-11-13T15:09:00.003-05:00

I know I've gone WAAAAYYY over my Pearl Jam limit of late, and i promise, it will subside.

But this is pretty cool, so dig up on it.

Pearl Jam / Austin City Limits TV Taping / Time Lapse from Jonathan Jackson on Vimeo.

2009-11-10T03:14:00.002-05:00

from DANTHOLOGY:

MOST PLAYED ARTISTS
Week Ending 11.08.09

1. Destructors666
2. Jonny Manak And The Depressives
3. Fed Up
4. The Pivot Foots
5. The Chuckies
6. The Headies
7. C.D. Truth
8. Pinhead Gunpowder
9. The Rogue Nations
10. Yesterday's Ring
11. The Dick Panthers
12. Werevilsdare
13. Dirty Boulevard
14. Ellen Degenerate
15. Ese
16. My Son The Bum
17. North Lincoln
18. Revenge Of The Mormons
19. Skinny Dick Jones
20. The Bomb
21. A.F.S.
22. Control
23. Disassociate
24. Fanshen
25. Kamikaze

That is correct! Two Madison Underground artists in Hussiskunk's Top 25, with Tit Patrol coming in at 35 and climbing! (I hope!) Congrats to my fellow Headies (21 spins last week) and Skinny Dick Jones (18 spins last week)! And, most importantly, drop Hussieskunk an email (request@hussieskunk.com) and request your fave Maddy tracks and help us reach the top! May I suggest The Headies - "Super Booty." Thanks everybody!

2009-11-09T02:00:00.000-05:00

2009-11-07T15:19:00.001-05:00

2009-11-06T18:43:00.001-05:00

BRIAN MCGEE & THE HOLLOW SPEED

LIVE

November 7, 2009

@ MOJO 13

w/ My Friends

2009-11-06T10:15:00.000-05:00

2009-11-06T02:33:00.001-05:00

2009-11-05T02:39:00.002-05:00

One Great Show: Three Great Fliers!

2009-11-05T00:35:00.006-05:00

THE GOOD IRISHMAN!

We've all known for quite some time that Delaware's Mr. Kevin Murphy is an Class A gentleman and model citizen. But our man had to take it to the next level last night.

Dateline: Wilmington, DE

(courtesy Wilmington NewsJournal)

story by Terri Sanginiti

Woman robbed, Good Samaritan beaten in Wilmington

A 31-year-old Wilmington woman was robbed at gunpoint and a neighbor who attempted to help her was assaulted early today in Wilmington’s west side.

The incident occurred about 12:45 a.m. in the 500 block of S. Harrison St., said Wilmington police spokesman Master Sgt. Steven Barnes.

The victim told officers that she was standing outside her home when two men walked up.

She said she tried to get inside the door, but the men grabbed her and pulled her back outside and demanded cash.

The victim said she handed over what cash she had, when two residents on the block attempted to intervene.

The assailants, one of whom was armed with a black semi-automatic handgun, beat the 30-year-old man in the face and tore the 28-year-old woman’s purse from her arm.

The two men then ran south on Harrison Street and out of sight, Barnes said.

Police are asking anyone with information on this robbery to call detectives at 576-3620 or Delaware Crime Stoppers at (800) TIP-3333.

Paraphrased from the man himself: "I got off of work and went to the bar with some friends afterwards. When I got home, I noticed a neighbor being robbed by two guys. I went up, knocked the gun out of the one guys hand, tussled with him a bit, and then they ran off. Sure, as the newspaper reported, I got punched in the face and have some scraped knuckles, but I hit him twice in the head with a bottle of Löwenbräu, so I think he got the worse end of the deal...."

Murph, you truly are a modern hero! Three cheers for Murph!

2009-11-05T00:03:00.004-05:00

THE DAILY SLOUGH

It finally comes out where Jon Stewart's ardent hatred of Philadelphia comes from. He tells his guest, later in this episode, of a time, as a boy, when he came to Philly for a sports event wearing a Giants hat, which was promptly knocked off his head and stolen as a band of ruffians took him to the ground, beating him up. Fair enough, Jon.

However, I must take issue with one of the clips in the tableau below... the shot of the crowd of guys wearing green and white chanting "T-I-T-S Tits! Tits! Tits!" is implied to be Eagles fans. I remember when that happened, and those guys are totally Jets fans at a Jets game. However, the Eagles bus shown with the moniker "show us your tits" clearly painted above the Eagles logo is genuine, I'm sure.

Great, hilarious video though. And we may be bigger douches, but NY fans are bigger prigs, no?

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Clash of the Cretins

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Political Humor

Health Care Crisis

2009-11-03T23:01:00.000-05:00

2009-11-03T02:23:00.008-05:00

2009-11-03T02:23:00.006-05:00

2009-11-03T02:08:00.003-05:00

2009-10-27T14:37:00.000-04:00

2009-10-27T11:47:00.000-04:00

2009-10-27T11:13:00.001-04:00

I'll try to say this as pleasantly as I can: FUCK THE YANKEES

2009-10-26T13:52:00.000-04:00

Bobby keeps them coming with this absolute gem:

GO PHILS!

2009-10-25T22:58:00.000-04:00

2009-10-25T22:48:00.002-04:00

2009-10-23T15:40:00.001-04:00

2009-10-22T20:24:00.001-04:00

2009-10-21T12:05:00.002-04:00

GO PHILS!!!

This link was provided to my attention by Brendan and James via facebook via youtube. Larry Anderson is wonderful. Speaking of wonderful, did you, like me, happen to miss the Sports Illustrated story on Charlie Manuel from this past summer? I had caught the segment about him on Real Sports with Bryant Gumble awhile back, but managed to have not read the SI story. The Real Sports segment was spectacular, and the SI article, which I finally got around to reading, is even better. Speaking of even better, have you SEEN this pictoral series Mr. Bobby Campbell has been putting out? I put up his Ryan Howard recently, and you can see his entire series @ Bobby's website. GO PHILS!!! Let's close this out TONIGHT!!!!!

2009-10-21T01:34:00.002-04:00

2009-10-18T23:31:00.000-04:00

2009-10-15T17:08:00.003-04:00

from our man Bobby Campbell over at www.bobbycampbell.net

2009-10-11T02:22:00.001-04:00

2009-10-09T11:58:00.001-04:00

2009-10-09T01:53:00.001-04:00

2009-10-09T01:20:00.001-04:00

2009-10-08T10:38:00.004-04:00

Sometimes, it takes me a good 20 or so listens to really get into a song. Such is the case with this Supersonic track on the Backspacer record. I liked it enough at first, but didn't love it. Now I am down. To help you get down, here are the lyrics as well as a chance to listen to the song twice, via two different videos from the same London show a few weeks back, where the song was played for the first time. Originally, I posted four different videos of this same performance, but decided to replace these with videos of other songs from the new record being performed live. Have fun with it!

Yeah I been dreaming of getting along
Now I’m awake, dreaming keep it on keeping on
I catch a break, then a punch to the head
I smile big with a toothless grin.

Supersonic gone & took my soul
I caught the rhythm but the clock was slow yeh
Supersonic, truth be told
I don’t need you to live, but I’ll never let you go

Yeah I been thinking, I already know
Nothing bout nothing, or so I have been told
I’m not the paper, I’m more like the fold
Cut the crease & put the shit in the whole

Supersonic, gone & took my soul
I caught the rhythm but the clock was slow yeh
Supersonic, truth be told
I don’t need you to live, but I’ll never let you go

Supersonic, gotta feel it now
I need to hear it, need to feel it loud yeh
Supersonic, truth be told
I wanna live my life with the volume full

Got Some:

Just Breathe:

The Fixer:

The End:

Gonna See my Friend

2009-10-08T09:21:00.003-04:00

FINALLY! A girl who meets my exceedingly high standards! I'm a take her out for burgers.

2009-10-06T02:19:00.001-04:00

head on over to Dr. Frank's What's-It for all the news that's good to print

as well as a picture of yours truly, in exploration mode...

2009-10-02T15:55:00.004-04:00

Tom's getting lost in Collingdale today has me feeling even more nostalgic than usual. This has lead to the discovery of the MacDade Mall Wikipedia page, amongst other things :::

MacDade Mall is an indoor shopping mall located in the Holmes section of Ridley Township, Pennsylvania.Coordinates: 39°53′55″N 75°18′10″W / 39.8986°N 75.3027°W / 39.8986; -75.3027 At present, the mostly empty mall features only two anchors (Acme-Sav-on and Kmart and two other tenants within its walls (Citizens Bank and Fashion Bug). One of the most recent departures, a Dollar Tree store, has led to a law suit by Dollar Tree against the mall owners. [1]

MacDade played host to many events throughout the years including job fairs, concerts, food festivals, spelling bees, and the Little Mr. and Miss MacDade Mall competition. It has been over ten years since management last freshened its appearance, and reports indicate mall management is choosing not to renew leases at expiration.

In December 2007, MacDade Mall played host to the set of The Lovely Bones, the adaptation of the Alice Sebold best-selling novel starring Mark Wahlberg, Susan Sarandon, Stanley Tucci and Rachel Weisz. The production transformed the mall into a 1970s shopping mall for the project. Some set decorations and mosaics remain.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

I could show you info on the Springfield Mall as well, but that is less interesting,

save for THIS on one Ms. Sylvia Seegrist.

2009-10-02T08:33:00.002-04:00

Wherever the Olympics end up, enjoy these videos from the potential host cities...

2009-10-02T01:32:00.004-04:00

Your 2009 NL East Division Champions!!!

Two years ago, when the Phillies clinched the National League East Division Championship for the first time since 1993, I was there. It was one of those classic experiences. In order for the Phils to clinch, a number of things had to go right. First, the Mets would have to have a end of season monumental collapse of atomic proportions (the likes from which they have yet to recover, three seasons later), the Phillies would need to win this, their final game of the season, and the aforementioned Mets would need to lose one more time, on what was in fact the final day of the regular season.

All of this came to pass, and it was wonderful. To be there was magical. The scoreboard in right field kept the fans updated on the Mets activities, and the players on the field demonstrated consistently their will and commitment towards getting the job at hand done.

Throughout that game, cheers would be heard in pockets of the stadium, where cell phone updates would pre-empt the scoreboard with changes in the score in New York. The final inning came, and the Mets game was not yet finished. Just moments before the game ended in Philadelphia, word came over the elctronic messaging systems that the Mets had done their part and rolled over. Shortly thereafter, Brett Myers did his job (of closing) and shut down the game in terrific, excited style. The place went ballistic, and after 14 years of subpar baseball and 24 years without a major championship, the excitement was well deserved. I must admit, my eyes teared up in joy at the realization that we had finally cleared this enormous hurdle.

It didn't take long for the Colorado Rockies to thwart the Phillies and the city's dreams.

Last year, our boys plowed their way through the season admirably, and when I went to the stadium for the final game of the season, the Division had already been wrapped up nicely the night before. We were treated to animpressive game full of bit and bench players. The playoffs ended beautifully last year, offering up for the city its first parade in 25 years.

Last night, the Phillies made it three in row, clearing out the opposition a full four games before the season's end. Where tears greeted the first achievement in this trilogy, a calmer, more determined self faced down this celebration, well aware that the task at hand involves a month of very hard work and focus before any true celebration can begin.

The Phillies know this too, but after a long, arduous season spent sloughing through with a target on their back, the catharsis that was last night's celebration was well earned. They know they need to focus. They know what needs to be done to get back on the parade route down Broad St. All of this made last night celebration all the better. The Phillies deserve to take a deep breath, and they are going to need it if they hope to repeat in theWorld Series.

While no tears of joy were shed (by me) last night over the clinching of the Division (old hat), a few tears did well up over the images and sounds provided via the television of one Mr. Harry Kalas, who passed away just months after making the call of his life: "The Phillies are the 2008 World Series Champions!" Harry singing "high hopes." Harry calling 2007 & 2008 Division clinchers. It is all bittersweet, as it always is upon the death of such a human, iconic figure. It was especially touching to see a group of the players head out towards the outfield as the post game celebratons wound down, in order to pay tribute to the 'K,' by placing their hands on the giant HK banner that was pasted to the outfield, and even spraying it with some beer and champagne.

As for the game itself last night, it provided healthy fodder for ruminations on the post season to come. Kyle Kendrick has been pitching like a man possessed, and did so last night, offering up three important, scoreless innings. The offense was on fire, lighting up the board as the often do not: through 'small ball' instead of monster home runs. Raul Ibanez fixed all that with a second decker late in the game, but by that point small ball had already won the day. Lastly, Coach Uncle Charlie Manuel, seconds away from clinching his third consecutive Division Championship as the Braves handed the game and their season over to ubiquity, walked slowly out to the mound to savor the moment and to hand the ball over to 'Mr. Perfect' Brad Lidge, in an attempt to better align his pitcher against the 'stros final batter, but more importantly to instill a modicum of confidence into the man who pitched so unbelievably well last year, and who has spent the majority of his encore season impressing with his ability to be so unimpressive.

The Phillies stand on the precipice of history. Consecutive World Series victories are increasingly rare in this modern game, and have never been achieved in the brotherly loves' city.

As is stated and known, there is a long journey ahead. The Phils will likely face the hated Rockies in the initial round of the playoffs, and though they bested us two years ago, we should be able to shake them off our backs in short order. Next up will be a more difficult foe: either the St. Louis Cardinals or the Los Angeles Dodgers. Either team will prove difficult, but both are well within our capabilities. I see the Cardinals pulling out the series against the Dodgers, and the Cardinals are also my preferred foe. I hate the Cardinals WAY more than I hate the Dodgers, but also, they don't carry a revenge monkey on their backs over our defeating them in NLCS last year (as the Dodgers do) so that lack of an emotional edge should serve us well.

After suprising the country by easily disposing of all NL Playoff opponents, the question arises: who will our beloved Phillies face off against in their second consecutive WS appearance?

Popular sentiment aligns them against the hated Yankees, who with the best record in baseball gloat about being the team to beat throughout. Whatevs, Yank-os!

We shall see. A turnpike series would be exciting, and the Yanks would certainly be a formidible foe. I wouldn't count them Angels or Tigers out just yet either, although I would agree with the general perception we'll probably be seeing the Yankees in November. However, they do LOVE to shit the bed in the playoffs, and if they have yet to do so by World Series time, what better time could there be for them to embrace old patterns?

I'll be saving my tears this year for a WS repeat, but believe you me, I'm greasing them ducts!

Go Phils!!!!

2009-10-02T01:21:00.001-04:00

2009-10-02T00:27:00.002-04:00

I heard about this via a glimpse of the television show tosh.0 which i haven't given a fair shake yet so can't really express an opinion about, other than to say that guy can be funny in a priggish sort of way.

But this, this is incredible, if only in that it has garnered 41,134,438 views. (In the twenty or so minutes where i stopped writing this it jumped by like 2000.)

It's funny enough, but that just seems like a LOT of views, to me. I mean, I average like, uh, (about) half of that....

2009-10-01T14:29:00.003-04:00

CLOUD COMPUTING

2009-10-01T13:37:00.004-04:00

I did not write this. I wish I had? esp. the line about causing 'further' injury.

How to Show Emotion While Performing in a Rock Band
from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

In a rock band? Boring? Well, Steven Tyler of Aerosmith showed lots of emotion. That was how Aerosmith were successful. Here are some tips one how to show emotion on stage.

Steps

Don't be afraid! If you feel angry, show your anger. If you feel happy (Not recommended for rock gods) then show that you are happy.
Anger. Stomping round the stage, letting out devil screams is all you need to tempt the audience. Recommended for Metal and Punk bands.
Happy. Skipping round the stage, showing a cheeky grin. (Recommended for Mika).
Sad. Be a plonker and don't go on stage.
Watch videos of Steven Tyler watch his emotion.
Show no fear. Fear is not an emotion conducive to a good rock performance.

Warnings

Dancing on stage may cause further injury if you have any back or leg injuries.

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Show Emotion While Performing in a Rock Band. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

2009-10-01T11:52:00.004-04:00

Furthering the subtle "time: does it exist or not?" thread of the past couple of days, enjoy this fascinating article discussing the lengths a stellar traveler could reach using fantasized future technologies.

If one were to travel far out to the edge of the universe, travelling at a smidge under lightspeed, it would take 30-50 years to get as far as one logically could reach. They could make it back just in time to reach the end of their lives, theoretically. However, due to relativity, the time that would have passed here on earth over this lifetime would be an astounding 70 BILLION YEARS. The sun would be burnt out, and humans and life as we know it would be long, long, loooong gone.

2009-10-01T09:15:00.003-04:00

photo credit: not me

2009-10-01T08:33:00.002-04:00

2009-09-30T15:38:00.002-04:00

ffffffffffffound.kizzom

2009-09-29T23:29:00.003-04:00

[as will be the case moving forward, music reviews such as this will be posted here and also on forthesound.com]

In each of their four albums, The Riverdales approach their self-stated genre of "Ramones-core" with the same attitude and knowledge: they are the best in the business. The field has gotten more crowded since 1995, when Ben Foster and Dan Schafer released their first Riverdales record. That record was a smash, and could be considered 'unparallelled' were it not for the utter brilliance of the two additional records that followed, 1997's Storm the Streets and 2003's Phase 3. Where the original record gave the Riverdales plenty of cred (as if these two well known veterans needed that), the two follow ups provided their live set with a full, rich collection of punk hits to rival any classic live band of this era.

Blood on the Ice, Riverdale Stomp, Countdown, Dyna-Mole, Party @ the Beach, I Believe in You and Me and I don't wanna go to the Party are just some of the songs that make Storm the Streets and Phase 3 soooo good, and worthy follow ups to the genius that is the first record.

Five years after the release of Phase 3, the Riverdales have returned with another instant classic, Ivasion USA, having traded the art of creating the song title for the art of creating songs based on titles taken from the archives of MST3K. What fun! Let's take a look one song at a time...

Agent for H.A.R.M.
Great way to star a record. Maximal aural energies complimented by the silken tones of Dan Schafer. He builds the momentum by repeating the "I won't give up!" vocal line until he brings it to a point where he can send his voice into a whole other register.. "I won't give UP!"

Gemini Man
Ben follows up track one with some quality lead vocals of his own, with Mr. Schafer providing solid backing..."18 wheels on the ground... you can't stop me cause I'm on a roll."

Heart out of Season
Mellowing down for the third track, the Riverdales turn to their tried and true method of punk rock melodeering, with a ballad for the ages, reminiscent of other Riverdales classics. If you've never heard the song, you can likely imagine Dan singing out "Tonight, tonight, our world sighs...Tonight, tonight, we'll say goodbyes... Tonight, tonight, my heart is out of season" without having heard it. Still it is worth the listen, as this is definitely the strongest of the mellower tracks on the record.

Red Zone Cuba
Back to the bop on track 4, kicking out with what is likely the hardest track so far on the record. Weasel takes the mic again, providing vocals which highlight one of the best parts of this record: the WAY the boys sing. Ben lets out a "Red Zone Cuba GO" throughout the song, but on a couple of occasions he sings GO like a man possessed. Possessed with a spirit of clever iggy-esque theatrics, that is.

Squirm
The boys maintain the tag team vocal approach here, with Vapid back in the saddle. "What is he saying?" your mom might ask from the driver's seat as she takes you home from soccer tryouts... "He wants to watch you squirm, mom."

Prince of Space
This one maintains the energy, whilst also presenting us with a Riverdales staple: the spoken word lyric welded to the rock behind it! "You think I'm a bum baby? Is that what you think? I'm some kind of bum?" It only gets better from there.

Rocketship X-M
Back to the mellower groove on this track, this song could certainly serve as the "hit single" on this record, were the Riverdales attempting to achieve a certain level of commercial success they generally seem to avoid (Angus aside ;) Also, one of the lengthier tracks on the record, this comes in at just under 3 minutes. Man, is Dan Schafer NOT one of the premiere vocalists of our time?

King Dinosaur
This song might as well be on every Riverdales release ever. Take away the specific lyrics, and it probably is. This is by no means a bad thing. This song is the Riverdales doing what it is they do best: hard driving, guitar driven, drive shaft punk rock. As has been mentioned, the lyrics and song titles of this record are in each case taken from old Sci-Fi B-movie titles, in order to give the boys a backdrop of inspiration for creating the grooves that make up the album. The lyrics, while referencing the titles, are rarely, though occasionally, about the movies themselves. This was employed due to a general sense of writer's block and a desire to create a certain ambiance around the record as a whole. You can see this idea falling off the cliff of failure in the wrong hands, but the Riverdales are very much the right hands.

Castle of Fu Manchu
"In the castle of Fu Manchu the emperor's in the nude, and I need to break out!" need I say more? This song is good.

Time of the Apes
To me, this song does two things which would seem to be mutually exclusive. First, it seems to be the most likely candidate to potentially inhabit a Screeching Weasel record instead of "Invasion USA." At the same time, it comes off to me as the most Ramones-esque of the group.

Atomic Brain
Just another great song with fun vocals and top notch vocals. Vapid is just sooo good at pushing the limits of his voice to places that leave the listener simply dumbfounded. "...In my atomic brain!"

Crawling Eye
This is another prime candidate for a Screeching Weasel record, though it fits in quite nicely here, of course. Anytime Ben takes the mic, it is difficult NOT to sound like a SW song. Still, the bands have always overlapped just so nicely in a punk rock ven diagram of goodness. This record is no exception, nor is this song.

Teenaged Strangler
The new Eminem record is pretty good rap record, and at some point I may review it as such. One problem I have with that record is the absurd lengths he goes to present himself as a murderous villain, complete with violent visual imagery of blood and blood lust. This song makes me just a mite uncomfortable for similar reasons. In the end, a song about spending your teenaged years secretly strangling the girls of your town to death just rings of misogynist objectification, for some reason. It maintains a modicum of respectability here, due to the fact that it is clearly based on an old b-movie of the same name, and therefore just invites the subject matter upon itself. Also, it harkens back, thematically and musically, to the excellent song Plan 13 from the Riverdales eponymous debut of 14 years ago. Still, it gives me a bit of the heebie jeebies, rocking out to a song about murdering girls. That being said, this song has the best vocal line of the record, and likely one of the best vocal lines of all time. Schafer sings the line "I am a teenage strangler, lurking in (ah-in) the shadows, yeah." Two things about this: first, every source I found on the internet for these lyrics quotes the line as "looking in the shadows" but to me that makes a lot less sense than "lurking" so I'm gonna go with "lurking." Second, the way that Dan Schafer sings that "ah-in" is so unique and piercing as to make me wanna stop the song mid track and just listen to that 2 second piece of genius over and over again.

Werewolf One
This, the last song on the record, is in many ways the most melodic of all. The chord progression is aces, with a solid chorus and really, really great vocals from Ben.

I have read it elsewhere, but I believe it to be true as well: this record showcases Ben and Dan at the absolute height of their vocal prowess. Each song is sort of better than the last, and when they hit on all cylindars, they really, really hit. The clever, aforementioned vocal tricks employed in Teenage Strangler, Red Zone Cuba, and throughout the record are subtle and unique, and highlight the fact that these guys not only know what they are doing, but they have known what they are doing for a long, long time. The songwriting is as strong as ever, and the production is powerful as well. Buy this record. Go to a Riverdales show if they are ever playing within 200 miles of your home, and consider yourself very, very lucky to inhabit a universe in which the Riverdales are a band.

2009-09-29T13:48:00.004-04:00

[the two articles below will be in the Action Unlimited Resources newsletter in October, once they are edited and self-edited to be business appropriate. I like these versions better.]

Sleep tightly....
(the bedbugs bite nightly)

By all accounts, the 1950's were a simpler time. "Leave it to Beaver" aptly symbolized the cultural zeitgeist, and there were not yet highly visible long haired hippie rock and rollers out to unweave the tightly threaded conventions of polite society. A woman's place was still generally considered to be in the home, and DDT was still the pesticide of choice.

Despite its carcinogenic, toxic effects on humans and the environment, DDT is a highly effective pesticide, able to kill a wide variety of arthropods on contact. One such insect that fell prey to the powerful force of DDT was the infamous pest the bedbug. Bedbugs had become a significant problem by the 1930's, but in 1939 the pesticidal benefits of DDT were discovered, and it began to be used in agriculture, and in homes for the eradication of mosquitoes, lice, and bedbugs. Over the next 20 years, bedbugs were largely eradicated in the United States.
This status quo remained in place until recently. But over the past decade bedbugs have made their resurgence, and are currently thriving in many areas of the country. There are many reasons the bedbug has been able to gain a foothold in modern America. The popularity of international travel has carried individuals and their bedbugs to every corner of the globe, and areas that were once bedbug free have now been re-inhabited. They are discreet creatures, and their bites are often mistaken for mosquito bites, allowing them to further expand their empire unimpeded. Additionally, today's bedbug is a better breed than that of 50 years ago, having developed resistance to some pesticides.

Modern pest control practices are much more targeted than past practices. In 1950 one might fumigate a room with a DDT pesticide in order to kill bugs and mosquitos. Today's pest control experts utilize targeted chemicals designed specifically for the pest in question. For instance, a pest may be encouraged to carry poisoned food back to the nest to share with the brood, killing all in relatively short order. Such an approach proves highly effective for killing a specific pest, but it allows different insects in the same general area to continue their infestation, uninhibited.

The bedbug resurgence has hit hard in New York City, and a quick look at http://bedbugregistry.com indicates the problem is spread throughout the country. Still, the Northeast corridor is the locus of the problem, and Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware are no exception. Wilmington, Delaware's firestation #2 was recently closed for two days for bedbug extermination.

Hotels, motels, and apartments are the most likely victims of bedbug infestation, although private residences are also susceptible. The primary indication that bedbugs may be present is the development of red bumps and rash-like appearances on the skin, reactions to the bugs' bites. Brown spots on bedding and sheets could be remnants of bedbug fecal matter, and the bugs themselves may be visible in crevices of bedding, on the underside of a mattress, and along baseboards.

If you suspect you or one of your customers is the victim of bedbugs, turn to Action Unlimited Resources for the solution! Our experts can provide you with additional information on discovering the pests, and best practices for eradication. We offer a line of highly effective products designed to eliminate the problem and prevent it from resurfacing. Do your part TODAY to bring us back to the halcyon days of the 1950's!

2009-09-29T13:45:00.005-04:00

Importance of Winter Preparations cannot be Overstated

As we move ever closer to the singularity, time continues to compress and our perception of the passage of time grows ever more acute. As such, time passes, or seems to pass, more quickly.

Hence: WINTER is fast approaching, and will be here in the blink of a statistician's eye. Have you prepared for winter yet? Preparing for snow and ice is paramount to any business' continued success. Businesses which do not prepare properly leave themselves open to maintenance nightmares, frustrated employees, and lawsuits.

Action Unlimited Resources is well equipped to assist you in all of your winter preparation needs. The most important aspect of outdoor winter maintenance is proper use of ice melt and consistent shoveling. Action carries a broad line of salts and ice melts for all applications, and we can help you determine which is best for your situation. Action also carries winter accessories like ice melt spreaders, shovels, window scrapers, and ice picks.

Another important aspect of winter prep is proper matting. Mats do a spectacular job of keeping dirt, detritus, and corrosive salts and chemicals off of your floors! Without mats, the salt and chemicals spread on the sidewalk will end up on your expensive floors, corroding them and forcing you to spend excessive amounts of money in maintenance and restoration. Let mats save the day! Keep them clean and in good shape, and they will work overtime for you, protecting your floors from needless wear and destruction.

Scientists and philosophers will continue argue whether or not time exits. But in either case, time will not stop, and it will not slow down. Act NOW before you wake up in the middle of a blizzard unprepared..

2009-09-28T13:27:00.002-04:00

Lady Gaga being cool, before she was cool.

The haters over at Gawker and elsewhere present this as evidence of Miss Gaga being less than cool. My disagreement is wholehearted! This only adds to my level of being impressedness.

2009-09-27T12:57:00.001-04:00

WHOOPS!

2009-09-26T00:05:00.000-04:00

2009-09-25T15:55:00.001-04:00

Whoaaa! WTF!?

PITTSBURGH, 9/24/2009: This video totally gave me chills, and I just stared at the screen, mouth agape, for like 30 seconds. Assuming that the jaggoff apprehended was responsible for the smoke you see at the end of the video, he likely shouold have been arrested. But I am pretty damn sure that the US military is NOT ALLOWED to serve that function, whatsoever. It is highly illegal for US military to act in domestic policing whatsoever, no??????

2009-09-25T11:50:00.002-04:00

::: THE WORLD IS LISTENING :::

Kudos to you if you made it through my lengthy review of the new Pearl Jam record Backspacer, still available below. Haven't had a chance to read it yet? Why not give it a go elsewhere?
The review, in its awkward, glorious entirety, is available now on the excellent For the Sound website. This is the first in what will hopefully and likely be a long tradition of my posting reviews, interviews, music news, and the like to For the Sound.

Keep your eyes and ears posted.

2009-09-25T01:18:00.001-04:00

2009-09-24T11:07:00.003-04:00

THUNDER STIX!

Do you like baseball??? I KNOW you do... who doesn't?

Well, this love of baseball may come from days or years of intently watching your favorite team, or it may just come from your fond memories of playing the game in your youth.

In fact, I still have a suprising number of friends and acquaintances who remain involved with the game to various degrees of impressiveness. A couple of folks in the minors, a couple involved in intense club leagues, a couple involved in coaching. Well done, guys!

Baseball is awesome. And it will only get better in the coming weeks, provided Mr. Lidge and company can figure a way to duct tape the leaky hose that is their poor attempts at closing. Go Phils!

But this entry is not about the Phils, and it is not, so much, about me. This despite my nagging fantasy of writing a short novella detailing my attempts to get back into shape over the coming months in a desperate misguided attempt at trying out as a pitcher for a minor league team before I turn 30, ahem, I mean, 20, next May.

I really do want to do this, and while there is essentially less than a zero percent chance I would be able to garner interest from said minor league team's coaching staff, there is a good chance that I could get myself back into what I would consider a "respectable" form of throwing around upwards of 70mph with a presentable (and, sadly, QUITE hittable) slider. My curve and changeup ain't nothing to write home about, but if I could manage my control issues, it would certainly be fun to go out and TRY, and get a good piece of writing out of it to boot. Also, of course, would be the added benefit of a strong motivation to get back in some semblance of "shape."

Unfortunately, I fear that in order to do this properly, I would inevitably need to get surgery on my shoulder. When we had the Madison Underground Baseball league a few years back, I pitched the few games I pitched in relative pain, as 9/10 throws were accompanied by a click in my shoulder. The pain, and click, would go away somewhat once I got in a groove, but it was always at least minimally evident. These days, an attempt at a hard, over the shoulder throw of a tennis ball, baseball, or other object is often accompanied by relative extreme, if somewhat short lived pain. I attribute this to making these throw attempts without any semblance of a proper warm up. But still. My dream, of course, is to go into shoulder surgery for a minor repair, only to have them accidentally tighten the tendons and ligaments up there, leaving me with an inexplicable ability to throw a baseball @ 95mph+. Unlikely.

But without a regimen in place yet, and without a catcher willing to spend hours helping me hone my craft, I am lost at sea.

Do other people, those who have played baseball, golf, guitar, or any other hands and arms related activity get the urge throughout the occasional day to swing something?? Sometimes, without warning, I am struck with the strong desire to swing a baseball bat, or pick up a guitar and strum out some big power chords. I recently went to the golf ball driving range to avoid embarrassing myself during an upcoming golf expedition. My success was limited to the fact that I did not end up embarrassing myself completely, and this singular trip to the range was enough to secure this fact, barely.

A few weeks ago, I was struck with the desire to swing something, and the golf ball driving range popped into my head as an appropriate destination. However, the driving range is well out of my way home from work, and in the end, do I really want to go back to doing something at which I am no good, only to be easily frustrated and annoyed in the end.

My thoughts quickly turned away from the skinny silver sticks toward the sticks of a shorter, straighter, thicker nature.... BASEBALL! I would love to go to a batting cage, thought I. But the closest one is Vince's in Newark, even further out of my way than DelCastle driving range. What to do? What to do?

The internet is often helpful for such things! So I took a look to see if there are any batting cages in the Wilmington area. Sure enough, Wilmingtonians, you have a BRAND NEW Batting cage and sporting complex, directly across from the Lowe's & DMV on Rt. 13, just outside of the city! How exciting is this???

So that day, I went to check out Thunderstix. They have four cages each of which offers baseball or softball pitching, from slow pitch action to upwards of 70mph baseball pitches. The system is newly purchased, and definitely the nicest one I've seen. Also, they have three batting/hitting tunnels, which look great.
For me, this new complex is perfect, because it is literally directly on my way home. So I made my initial stop there at 5:08, having left work @ 5. I went in, played three rounds of hitting, and made it home about 15 minutes later than I might normally arrive. Perfect!

When I got there, I was the only customer, which is just how I like it. Robert Banner, owner of Thunder Stix and head coach of A.I. DuPont softball, is a very nice gentleman, who seems dedicated to providing a quality experience from batting cages, lessons, and areas to practice pitching.

I have been back once since, and hell, I may go back today! On my second trip, I jumped my speed up from 60 to 70mph, and I must say, I am hitting now better than I have in my whole life. This can be attributed to: a.) a pitching machine is easier to hit than live pitching for many reasons; and b.) my hitting has always been notoriously horrendous, such that any level of acceptable contact would qualify as "better than ever." Still, I am happy to be able to go in there and make contact and let off some steam. I could never, in a million years, try out for a minor league team for any position that requires hitting without being cruelly laughed off the complex. Should I go through with trying out as a pitcher, I will be politely asked to leave, quickly. But the laughing won't start until after I've left (I hope).

I took an extra round of swings, and then the aforementioned owner was kind enough to give me a free token. I wanted to say "Thanks Rob, but I am already exhausted!" But my pride took over and I accepted the token in gratitude and took my additional swings.

Overall, this is a great place and you should definitely take the time to check it out! Patronize the establishment, and help ensure its success. Wilmington needs a good batting cage, and now we have one! Get to swinging. Play ball!

THUINDER STIX Baseball & Softball Academy
Batting cages & Quality Instruction

4060 N. DuPont Hwy
New Castle, DE
(302) 562-1883

www.hitwithstix.com

2009-09-23T11:31:00.010-04:00

NEWSJOURNAL:
Small Businesses Prepare for Flu Season

...

"One of the employees said that a lot of people just wash the palm of their hands not thinking that a lot of bacteria can be on the back of your hands and on your fingertips," he said. "That's one of the things we came up with, that we're all going to do that because of the flu and because it's good hygiene in general."

Ioannoni encourages his staff to get flu shots. He is also ordering hand sanitizer and sanitation wipes in bulk from Action Unlimited Resources of New Castle. The cleaning supply company in New Castle has seen a 400 percent uptick in product orders related to the prevention of swine flu.

The orders have "come in two waves, just like the virus," said spokesman Bill Dougherty. "When it first hit, we got a huge run on Purell because no one really knew what was going to happen. Obviously, now with the threat being higher and everyone being made more aware about it, we've seen another increase."

Many small businesses are telling employees that coming in when they're sick will do more harm than good. Ioannoni has instructed employees not to return until at least 24 hours after the symptoms have passed.

...

2009-09-23T01:23:00.002-04:00

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

This is pretty funny. And as message content goes...

I support the public option!

However, the two questionable points seem to be that a.) most kids should be covered now, via CHIP, right? Also, I don't know how solid that 80% support claim is. I know the # is high, but 80%??? 80% solidly, verifiably support the public option? I've heard this claim before, and I know where it comes from (one survey, I believe) but if that # is accurate, and we still can't get something done, well that just shows how frighteningly effective 20% of a population can be when armed with their own indignant, self-righteous obnoxiousness and hundreds upon hundreds of millions of dollars in lobbying and advertising dollars.

Its an interesting thing to observe, as it seems like the public option, should it be offered, would be b-b-bad for the insurance industry (not necessarily the medical industry though) while health care reform that lacks a public option would lead to a boon for the insurance agencies unlike anything we have ever seen, even.

2009-09-22T09:40:00.005-04:00

PEARL JAM. PEARL JAM, AGAIN.

About a year ago, the members of Pearl Jam sponsored a turtle, Backspacer, in the great turtle race held in (where else?) the pacific northwest. Pacific leatherback turtles face the threat of extinction, and the race is designed to raise awareness for their plight. Backspacer, Esteban, Billy, Grembo Jones, Cali and 6 others made their way south along the Pacific coast, taking part in what was, for them, a epochal tradition, practiced by their ancestors as far back into antiquity as one might venture to wander. Despite having started the race “further back than any of her competitors," on April 27, 2009 Backspacer crossed the finish line first!

On that very day, as Pearl Jam was in Brendan O’Brien’s Atlanta studio putting the finishing touches on their aptly titled new record, bassist Jeff Ament and a couple of crew members were mugged and robbed of more than $7,000 in cash and assets. Ament was left bleeding from the head and I believe he required medical treatment. Goodness gracious!

This record did not come easily. After 17 years and seven records with Sony’s Epic label, and a one-off, one shot self titled record on J Records, Backspacer marks the first time that the band can claim to be truly out on there on their own.

What Pearl Jam have managed to do with this, their ninth studio album, is something quite extraordinary, indeed. Sort of. From a business and logistical standpoint: fascinating. Musically: pretty damn impressive, two listens in...

The first news of the new record, save for rumblings of being “in the studio” from the band’s website, came in the form of a secret concert held in a small Seattle venue, where one Mr. Cameron Crowe was said to be in attendance, directing video recording of the band performing to an intimate crowd, for three purposes. The film would be used to create the video for the first single from the record: The Fixer. Additionally, footage would be used for a forthcoming video release celebrating and documenting 20 years of Pearl Jam. Lastly, it was mentioned, the video would be used to create a commercial for Target, Pearl Jam’s new business partner dujour.

Wait. What? Did you just say that Pearl Jam, railers against all that is greedy and dark in this world and the next, have teamed up with TARGET, exclusively, with this new record??? There must be a mistake! Alas, there is no mistake, and legions of fans, eager for new music from the band, did a double-take and tilted their heads like confused little puppies.

Upon considering the deal that was made, and seeing exactly what it meant for the band and fans alike, I would venture to guess that most die hards accepted the deal as being savvy, wise, necessary, and impressive. Pearl Jam maintains their publishing rights, of course, and their exclusivity with Target only goes as far as the other big chains are concerned. So no, Johnny Guitar, you won’t be able to pick up Backspacer at the local Wal-mart, or Best Buy, or, I bet, even @ Border’s or Barnes & Noble. However, if you want to swing by Bert’s or Rainbow Records next week, the album should be there for your grubby little hands.

So the deal lines up that Target is the exclusive big-box, and the record is available at any and all interested mom and pop, local record stores. PJ is able to sell the record through iTunes and similar places apart from the Target deal, and also they are able to sell hard copies of the album directly through their website. From Target, they receive promo, national big box distro, and an unheard of $5/disc. When on Epic records, the band likely received somewhere between 50 cents and $2 per record, to put this # in context. Staggering.

This new found freedom from record label fiefdom has allowed the band to do other interesting promotional runs. Last week, as the album's release drew near, the band, via Twitter, posted a number of pictures of independent record stores, in which the first person to present themselves there would win a free limited edition Fixer 7" on orange vinyl. Weeks ago, the band released their album artwork via an online contest, in which participants were encouraged to scour the internet for the nine Tom Tomorrow images that make up the cover artwork. Once these nine images were assembled (from sites such as Rolling Stone & Spin, Yahoo, Wired, and elsewhere) one could view the artwork as a whole, as well as download a demo of Speed of Sound, from the new record. This is a good choice of demo, because the solo acoustic demo sounds much different than the studio version done by the full band, and hence, provides an interesting juxtaposition and an insight into the song crafting process.

The next big swing in the pre-release promo buzz came with the release of the first single, The Fixer, and subsequently its aforementioned video. Critics had a field day detailing the song as Pearl Jam’s happiest, most optimistic groove ever, and it is difficult to argue the point. The previous winner in this category, in my mind, would be Riot Act B-side “Down” which is a spectacular number, but is, after all, titled ‘down.’

This raises an interesting issue. For the past ten years, every Pearl Jam release has been met by a gaggle of reviewers eager and anxious to compare their latest offering to their initial one, 1991’s seminal and groundbreaking classic Ten. In most cases, at least with the last three records, reviewers have breathlessly panted their belief that the band has finally returned to form, and has turned over a new leaf in terms of their relationships to music, their fans, and each other.

The occasional casual observer continues the lament that no Pearl Jam record has ever equalled the spectacular magnitude of Ten. I would disagree with both of these assessments. Ten is in no way the best album put forth by the band. And although I don’t know which album I would personally award the honor of being considered ‘best’ I would say that Ten likley does not break the top five. It has some great songs, including the three songs (Alive, Evenflow, Jer'my) which catapulted PJ to the vaunted position they maintain today. But that record is thick and heavy, and remixing the album for the deluxe reissue could only do so much to soften the unseemly, reverbish metal sound brought forth by initial producer Rick Parasher.

Vs. is utterly magnificent, shoving the words ‘sophmore slump’ straight down our negative little gullets from the first chaotic chords of “Go” through the violent wailings of “Drop the Leash!” and finally through the soft dark ruminations of “Indifference.”

Vitalogy is a bit of a hodgepodge, the result of intraband turmoil that left much of the record to be fleshed out by Mr. Vedder on his own. At times, this makes for great music. At other times, it makes for Bugs. Of the first three albums, this has been recognized as Danny's least favorite. Highlights in rock include: Last Exit, Spin the Black Circle, and the Whipping. Highlights in soft balladeering include: Nothingman, Immortality. And the mega-hit highlights: Betterman & Chordoroy. With so many quality grooves, it is hard, in the end, to disparage this record too much. But many, most even, might mark this as the point at which the point of departure for Pearl Jam begins.

The boys followed up a couple of years later with No Code. This is definitely the apex of Pearl Jammian experimentalism, with the first single, Who You Are, sounding as if it was procured directly from the dinnerplate of Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn. Of course, this is meant as one of those sly, backhanded compliments... but still. The record has fantastic songs like Sometimes (Timmy’s favorite), Hail Hail, In My Tree, Red Moquito, Lukin, and even more!

Yield was next, in 1998, and this marked the time when I officially got “back into” Pearl Jam. I had strayed a bit, as it took until about 2000 or even later before I could truly come to appreciate the utter genius that was No Code. Our paths had diverged, as I delved into punk rock in the mid nineties, just as they took their turn toward experimenting with organic loops and soft convoluted ruminations. With Yield, it all came back together. Brain of J starts off this record in true rock form, and I even got Sandro to admit that it sorta rocked, minus, of course, the guitar solo, which turned him off. The next song on the record is the beautiful ‘faithful.’ It is slow and seems kinda boring at first, but it was this song that really locked me back in with Pearl Jam. I remember listening to the record for the first time, and upon hearing this second song, with its initial verse, extensive chorus breakdown, and second verse, I thought to myself “god damn they better end this song now” and sure enough they DID!

I expected them to kick into another chorus, which would inevitably be boring for a song so long. But they avoided this brilliantly and in that moment, kept me as a fan. Well played, gentlemen.

Next up, a different kind of experimentation, with Binaural. The record was an attempt to use Tchad Blake’s unique recording style and blend it with the Pearl Jam sound. I don’t think the band was particularly thrilled with how things turned out, turning to Mr. Brendan O’Brien for a last minute remix. Still, the songs are top notch, with rocker’s like Evacuation, Grievance, God’s Dice and Insignificance. The slower numbers do the job as well. The highlight of this album for me is its utter prescience. It plays like the first post 9-11 album, released 5-16-2000. I think this record was the first to attach itself to the “Pearl Jam is back!” meme that persists through the newest release. (Although, as I just read on wikipedia, Yield "was proclaimed as a return to the band's early, straightforward rock sound." So it started even earlier...) Still, Binaural highlights an emerging pattern that has been present since the release of Ten. With every Pearl Jam record, there are songs that are fantastic, and then there are a couple that just fall a bit flat. Sleight of Hand is definitely my least favorite song on this record. Its slow and trance-like machinations just don't do it for me, and serve as the poster child for exactly what it is about Pearl Jam that does not thrill me. Still, the lyrics are good, but overall it just doesn't mesh.

I want to call 2002's Riot Act my least favorite record, but when I go back and look at the track list and the # of songs I like, it is easy to make an argument that it should be one of my favorites. Green Disease is one of my favorite Pearl Jam songs of them all, and there are other gems like Thumbing my way, Save You, Love Boat Captain, I am Mine, and Cropduster. Lacklusters include: Help, help; 1/2 full (this song is sort of awesome but just lacks something....can't put my finger on it); You Are, Bushleaguer. This record was recorded almost completely live, which gives the overall sound a sense of loose urgency, which may work against the great songs to produce a weaker product. Perhaps.

“The Avacado” record, Pearl Jam’s self titled release of a few years ago, is a strong performance from a group of guys who wear their collective experiences on their musical sleeves. Or, rather, they are a band that SOUNDS like they’ve been together for 15+ years. I really liked this record when it came out, and I still do. But it does fall victim to the same fault that is the achilles heal of any Pearl Jam record: great, great songs padded with a couple that just don’t live up, at least in my eyes. On every record, there are 2-5 songs that just don’t quite do it for me, completely. I like them fine enough, but if push came to shove, I would leave ‘em, not take ‘em. The greats from this album: Comatose, WWS, Severed Hand, Marker in the Sand, Come back, Unemployable, Parachutes, Big Wave. For an album with 13 songs, this is a big list of good songs. But a couple of the others don’t quite measure up in my eye. Lyrically, these weaker songs are sort of wonderful, but musically and overall they don’t cut my mustard.

So this brings us to September 20, 2009. Initial sense: typical, and brilliant. The record really does shine with the beautiful optimism of a band that no longer feels tethered to the viscous political wranglings of the past eight years, or the formal fiscal responsibilities of a mammoth record label. As with every Pearl Jam record, there are some great songs here. The first single, The Fixer, is as bright, cheery and poppy as critics have suggested, and you’ve likely heard it somewhere already, whether it has been on WMMR or some similar station, the credits of the MLB All Star game, or elsewhere.

The second song on the record “Got some” seems to tie the game of dealing musical rockers to the game of dealing drugs. This is an apt metaphor, highlighted by the laments of the protagonist in the albums opener “Gonna see my friend.” You may remember “Got Some” from Pearl Jam’s June 1 appearance on the opening night of the new Tonight Show. They rocked it there, although the vox seemed a little low and it wasn’t their greatest performance ever. Still, it was good, and the version on the record hits hard and keeps hitting. Gonna See My Friend is another solid rocker, starting the album off right with pounding drums and bouncing guitar, all overlayed by them vocals Murph has come to love so much. ;)

Johnny Guitar rounds out the opening salvo as track 4, and does so with a swing kick groove reminscent of some real swooner punk rock. It's a little slower than a punk number, per se, but has enough energy to keep the kids boppin, generally. "I had my disappointment 'cause for years I had been hoping that when she came she would come for me."

The band stops to just breathe after this, with a very, very aching song called Just Breathe, pulling the heart strings with lamentations on the shortness of life and the suddeness of death, and the gaping hole left in between. Usually for me, it is these slower songs that leave me dissatisfied on a PJ record. There are definitely some of them found here. But Just Breathe is slow and sad and utterly beautiful, and just might be the best song on the record.

In 1996 when I was 16, I got my driver’s license and hit the road! In one of those early days I drove down the road, and put on WYSP 94.1 in the middle of a song I did not know. It was Red Mosquito from the as yet unreleased No Code record. Before any lyrics were sung, I said to myself “this is a new Pearl Jam song!” I could just tell by the sound of the guitars and the overall taste of the music, despite it being a bit different than your typical PJ song.

This same type of thing is true with Just Breathe. As soon as you hear it, you know: this song was written alongside the songs Mr. Vedder wrote for the Into the Wild soundtrack. It just has that sense, that sound. And this is a good thing. It fits right in, and as I said, it is brutally heartwrenching.

I was, of all places, at Target over the weekend last week. I had some purchases to make, and I waltzed on past the music section, where they were selling the Fixer 7” single. Despite having heard the song numerous times over the internet, and despite knowing I would have the entire record to listen to quite soon, I just couldn’t help myself, and bought it for the ole vinyl collection, and for the B-side Supersonic, which I had not yet heard. Brought it home, dropped the crooked arm, and liked what I heard. Much like the Fixer, the Pearl Jam that performs Supersonic is a cheery Pearl Jam indeed. THIS is likely the most optimistic, happy Pearl Jam you’ll ever hear, and it makes for good music. The Fixer is top notch, despite its differentness. Supersonic is tolerable as well, awesome even, but it is just strange to hear PJ going in this direction. I like it, overall, but it is gonna take a little getting used to. They really put the pedal to the perky!

When I first listened to the album's last song, The End, I was struck with its awkwardness, and had a similar reaction to the aforementioned situations with Yield's Faithful. The song end's with Vedder softly squealing a series of rhyming couplets in a way that is pushing the boundaries of cool. That being said, just like in the past, they win you over immediately with one of their best album endings ever, as Vedder sings away: "I'm here... for not much longer" the song ends for the rest of the band @ "I'm here" leaving just the vocals to whisper "for not much longer." No clever outro's, no histrionical flares, just a man breathing out his final lines as the world falls silent around him.

Pearl Jam has, with this ninth album, done something different, and that is commendable. They've simplified their sound, and they've brightened up a little. That being said, in terms of themes, the last few albums have focused heavily around the concept of love, whether it is in Riot Act's Love Boat Captain where we hear that while it has "already been sung, can't be said enough: love is all you need. All you need is love..." or on the Binaural's opener (Breakerfall) "There's a girl on a ledge she's got nowhere to turn cause all the love that she had was just wood that she burned... but only love can break her fall" and lastly, on their self titled offering, Parachutes offers "and war,.... Break the sky and tell me what it's for
I'll travel there on my own... and love, what a different life had I not found this love with you."

With many other examples of this overriding leitmotif available, I stop where I am. But my point is, it is hard to describe a band that is so caught up in love as a "dark" or "brooding" animal. And in that regard, this newest record, along with its most recent counterpart, carry a heaviness with them that comes not from some dark, angry, megalomaniacal place, but rather, comes from an aching and longing over lost friends and death that is palpable. The last record was dedicated to one Mr. Johnny Ramone, amongst others, and his absence in the world is felt heavily on this record as well. The subject of love is still evident through the thread of the lyrics, and a new relationship and children has given Vedder even more reasons to sing about it. But sometimes, when I am alone with my thoughts, I let out an audible sigh as I consider the lost memories stolen by lives cut too, too short. I can hear that same sigh in the buried in the crevices of many of these new songs.

The new album rocks, where it rocks. I can't get enough of "Got some" with its lyrics like "Precipitation: which side are you on? Are you drying up? Are you a big drop? Are you a puddle full of detrimental?" And the Fixer, which I have already heard ad naseum, has not quite gotten old yet, and lyrics like "when something's old I wanna put a bit of shine on it. If something's lost I wanna fight to get it back again!" keep me coming back. Where it is slow and contemplative, it scores big points as well. Just breathe is one of the best slow and contemplative PJ songs ever, and The End is a great song, with a great ending and a great set of lyrics, as well. But the record falls short where so many PJ records before have as well: the mid tempo ballad. Some on this record are already starting to grow on me, such as Speed of Sound. But these songs bleed together, and the album feels like it could use one more "rocker" towards the end of the record, despite the excessively upbeat Supersonic as track #8. I like this record a lot, and the live show will no doubt strengthen this sense when the band visits Philadelphia for 4 nights in October to close out the Spectrum. If I am lucky, I will get to go to one of these shows, and I will no doubt be singing along fervently to the new songs, rockers and mid-tempo ballads alike.

bd

Ten: A- Best tracks: (Porch, Once, Oceans)
Vs.: A+ (Animal, Leash, Small town)
Vitalogy: B+ (Last exit, Spin the black circle, Nothingman)
No Code: A+ (Hail, Hail; Lukin, In my Tree, Present tense)
Yield: A (Given to Fly, Do the Evolution, mini fast car, In Hiding)
Binaural: B+ (Grievance, Insignificance, Soon forget)
Riot Act: B (Cropduster, Green Disease, Save You, I am Mine)
Pearl Jam: A (Comatose, Severed Hand, Parachutes)
Backspacer: B+ (Got some, Just Breathe, The Fixer)

2009-09-18T14:44:00.002-04:00

2009-09-18T14:36:00.000-04:00

found this through Drudge... maybe we should be having Andy Richter read us the news....

2009-09-18T10:37:00.000-04:00

Luigi is very sick. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers. He is strong and will hopefully pull through, but at this time his situation is tenuous. We've got your back Luigi!

2009-09-15T02:59:00.000-04:00

awkward!

and Jay is brutal! Welcome back, Mr. Leno.

2009-09-13T04:45:00.004-04:00

dear ants,

you really are spectacular creatures

with a fascinating society

and i am sorry to have to kill you (en masse).

with flies, mosquitos

it's different

it is war

perhaps, under different circumstances

we could be friends, you and i, even.

but your very ordered appearance

indicates a disorder on my part which is unacceptable

and can not stand.

yet just now, one of your brethren made its appearance on my arm known

tickling my skin

and snatching him up between my pinched fingers

i took his life.

he is on the edge of my thumb dead, essentially

and the occasional twitches of his legs have long ceased

giving me hope of a potential recovery

i did not wish to kill you friend.

i have gladly sprayed legions of ants

as they trudged along doorways, sinks, and elsewhere over the years, each fulfilling their integral, menial tasks

in rank sharp enough as to make Patton prowd

the twitching has stopped now (he just twitched again though)

and i feel i ought give my friend a proper funeral

complete with fire and prayer

replete of family, friends aghast and stricken

whiskey.

ashes to dust we must

and burn.

2009-09-11T16:38:00.003-04:00

Take a moment and listen to Max Blumenthal discuss the far right's attempts to discredit President Obama. eye-opening. He made the above video, which I have not yet watched. But click HERE for Terri Gross' incredibly enlightening and frightening interview.... [update: i finally watched the video and it is not as inflammatory as I had hoped, what with most of it being well worn material, and only some of it inflammatory at all.... clicking on the aforementioned link to the Fresh Air interview is much more worthy of your valuable time]

2009-09-11T13:32:00.002-04:00

... from MoveOn.org

Dear MoveOn member,

Yesterday, ignoring the calls from leaders within his own party, Rep. Joe Wilson refused to apologize on the House floor for shouting out "you lie!" during President Obama's big health care speech.¹

In fact, he recorded a new YouTube video defending his attacks on Obama's health care plan and requesting donations for his re-election campaign!²

This is the kind of disrespectful and dishonest behavior we've come to expect from right-wing mobs and talk radio hosts recently—but it's simply unacceptable for a member of the United States Congress.

Fortunately, we've got a great opportunity to replace Joe Wilson in Congress. Rob Miller is a Democrat and an Iraq war veteran, and last year he won 46% of the vote against Wilson despite raising half as much money.

Grassroots progressives are teaming up to help Rob Miller take on Joe Wilson, raising over $750,000 in less than two days. They've set a goal of raising of $1 million—can you chip in $20?

https://pol.moveon.org/give/miller.html?id=17214-9914109-zknm1mx&t=3

While Wilson initially apologized to the White House for his outburst, by yesterday he was already backpedaling. He refused calls from leaders of both parties to apologize on the House floor and claimed that he had been "overwhelmed" with supportive phone calls.³

And the conservative media is defending Wilson. Rush Limbaugh said on his show yesterday that Wison shouldn't have apologized.⁴ Sean Hannity, who had Wilson as a guest on Fox News, told him, "You're right and the president is wrong," and urged viewers to donate to Wilson's campaign.⁵

This is mean-spirited right-wing politics at its worst—and we've got to fight back. As President Obama said Wednesday night, "I won't stand by while the special interests use the same old tactics to keep things exactly the way they are. If you misrepresent what's in this plan, we will call you out."

Let's help Rob Miller take on Joe Wilson. Click here to chip in:

https://pol.moveon.org/give/miller.html?id=17214-9914109-zknm1mx&t=4

Thanks for all you do.

2009-09-11T13:19:00.002-04:00

new weezer coming in october. rad!

2009-09-11T09:33:00.002-04:00

THE GREATER BRANDYWINE VILLAGE HAPPENING

Friday, September 11, 2009

Art Show and open houses from 5:30 - 8:30 | Live bands from 8:30 - 1:30.

HELP US RAISE MONEY TO KEEP THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY EFFORTS OF 1908 N. MARKET ST!

5:30 - 8:30: Open to the public - all ages until 8:30.

8:30 - 1:30: Open to the public - 18+ / 21 (ID a MUST) to drink. Beer will be served, but BYOB is also OK for 21+.

Join us as we celebrate everything happening in Greater Brandywine Village at the Spot!

WHO: DECO Multimedia, DECOmmunity, the Spot, Urban Bike Project
WHEN: Friday, September 11, 2009

5:30 – 8:30 - Deco & The Spot host The Wilmington Art Loop (featuring work from 20+ Deco artists) and Live Graffiti Expo

8:30 – 1:00 – After-party with live local bands

WHERE: the Spot, 1908 North Market Street, Wilmington, DE 19805

WHY: Raise funds to keep Delaware Collective, the Spot, and Urban Bike Project alive!

Live Music

· The Headies

· Unlocked

· Glad Hearts

· Dod da Komma & Kru

· Rant and Riot

· Carl Sagan Group

· 1/4" Crash

WHAT: Meet Deco / Spot / Urban Bike Project – Wilmington Art Loop - Live Music – Live Graffiti Expo- Food & Drinks

Donations accepted at the door, but are not mandatory. Usual donation is $5 - $10.

The Greater Brandywine Village Happening! Held at The Spot, 1908 N. Market St, the Greater Brandywine Village Happening is a stop on the Wilmington Art Loop, to build awareness of the community efforts of The Spot, and the organizations based there. Join us to celebrate and learn about the work of Deco, the Urban Bike Project. The Spot is also an art gallery and musical venue, and will feature a jazz ensemble during the Art Loop. We will also have a live graffiti arts expo, as Wilmington graffiti artists paint a mural dedicated to the community efforts of The Spot, DECO, and UBP.

The organizations of The Spot, the Urban Bike Project and DECO, are always looking for volunteers and artists, and the Happening will include opportunities for interested people to sign up. The Happening is also a chance for the Urban Bike Project and the Delaware Collective to raise funds to continue their non-profit mission: to revitalize the Greater Brandywine Village community.

We hope to see you at the Happening. We hope that you’ll help spread the word, and support the organizations that are doing so much to help the community. Join us for an evening of art, music, community, and entertainment at the Greater Brandywine Village Happening.

This Happening is an opportunity for people in and around Wilmington to recognize and celebrate the grassroots efforts of artists, non-profit groups, and small businesses working together to improve the cultural visibility of Wilmington. The Greater Brandywine Village Revitalization, Inc will also attend with information on their continuing effort to improve the Greater Brandywine Village community.

The Delaware Collective will discuss both sides of their work, DECO Multimedia, a start-up multimedia and design business, and DECOmmunity, their non-profit efforts to bring outstanding communications and marketing to local non-profits and charitable organizations.

Volunteers from The Spot will be available to provide more information on the progress that they have made into turning a once-vacant building into a place for the local community to host art shows, music shows, fundraisers and other community-minded projects.

Representatives of the Urban Bike Project will discuss their work in reclaiming bicycles, educating the community on bicycle repair and maintenance, and bicycle distribution for a healthier, greener Wilmington.

The organizations of The Spot, the Urban Bike Project and the Delaware Collective, are always looking for volunteers and artists, and the Happening will include opportunities for interested people to sign up. The Happening is also a chance for the Delaware Collective and the Urban Bike Project to raise funds to continue their mission - to revitalize the Greater Brandywine Village and community. Through fundraising efforts during the Happening, including a lottery and donations, the organizations hope to raise money to continue and assist the efforts of the organizations.

The Happening officially begins at 5:30 PM. A live graffiti expo will be held outside as local artists build a mural to the community efforts of The Spot, Delaware Collective, Urban Bike Project and the Greater Brandywine Village community. The Wilmington Art Loop (Art on the town) will come through to see creations of over 20 DECO artists, and there will be a live jazz performance followed by a DJ during the Art Loop. Local food will be provided by The Rebel Restaurant and other local restaurants.

At 8:30pm, as the sun goes down and the volume goes up, there will be several local musical acts taking to the stage, including bands, hip hop performances, and DJs. Musicians will perform from approximately 8:30 - 1:30am. Beer will be served, and this portion of the event is also BYOB (21+, Valid IDs required).

We hope to see supporters of Wilmington's artistic, cultural and non-profit community attend, as well as representatives of Wilmington news and media to share this event and the efforts of these organizations with the greater area. We hope you'll join us for an evening that will be a truly unique demonstration of our community’s talent and dedication.

DECO Multimedia

Delaware Collective, or DECO, is a multimedia and design group with a focus on cutting edge technology and creative design.

The folks at DECO also direct the efforts of Decommunity, a non-profit enterprise to bring outstanding multimedia and web site design to non-profit and charitable efforts around the world. DECO works closely with Greater Brandywine Village Restoration, and many other local Wilmington initiatives to preserve Wilmington’s history and expand Wilmington’s culture. We have come up with a win-win method for students, artists and volunteers and local area non-profit organizations in need of design work. By accepting local student-interns that have a focus on art and design, grouping these aspiring artists with Deco's experienced designers, we are able to offer exceptional quality design and media services to non-profit groups for little or no cost at all. Our goal here is to strengthen the local arts and culture community by providing young, local artists with real-life experience, and to strengthen our entire community by providing media for positive initiatives throughout the city.

The Spot

Born in 2007, The Spot is Wilmington’s place for local music and arts. Our venue is managed and staffed by volunteers dedicated to bringing more live and visual art to downtown Wilmington. Our multipurpose space is home to Gallery 1908, a showcase for local artists and is part of Wilmington's art loop. The Spot also oversees the entire property of 1908 N Market, and assists the Urban Bike Project, the Delaware Collective, and any interested local artists and musicians in their efforts to revitalize Wilmington.

Urban Bike Project

The Urban Bike Project is a small non-profit organization based out of Wilmington, Delaware. We are currently located at 1908 North Market Street, in the basement, accessible around back. We now have, thanks to invaluable help from the community, not only our 501(c)3 status with the IRS and insurance, but also a wonderful shop and a loyal and wonderful number of core volunteers.

UBP's mission is to serve the community's needs by educating and promoting cycling as a safe, practical, cost-efficient mode of transportation. Our facilities provide a means for the public to become more self-sufficient both in bicycle maintenance and transportation. We work to foster a greater sense of awareness in motorists, pedestrians, and the community at large.

ARTIST OPPORTUNITIES:

Both Deco and Decommunity are actively seeking local artist, writers and digital designers to assist with both paid and non-profit projects. If you are interested in learning more about joining our collective, we will have questionnaires and portfolio reviews at our information table.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL IAN NADEL - 302.423.4412 | 302.222.1852 | 302.543.7396 ian@delawarecollective.com

1908 N. Market St.
Wilmington, DE 19802

2009-09-11T09:31:00.001-04:00

VMA Excitement!

2009-09-11T09:23:00.003-04:00

2009-09-10T14:00:00.000-04:00

2009-09-10T11:11:00.006-04:00

UPDATE:

S P H BORN 12:56pm 9/10/2009 1276 lbs. 11oz. 4800 inches
Congratulations Huffmans!

2009-09-09T16:04:00.003-04:00

we love the champion

2009-09-09T00:26:00.002-04:00

WARNING:

NOT FOR GENERAL CONSUMPTION

ALL CITIZENS AGED UNDER 18 YEARS

AVERT ATTENTION

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

2009-09-09T00:14:00.004-04:00

IMPRESSIVE

I wanted to show the video of Sen. Al Franken drawing a map of the US by hand, but Brendan already shared that on Facebook, so what is the point? This is equally as good. Almost better, but Sen. Franken's feat is pretty impressive. Oh, what the heck, I'll post it anyway...but I'll post the one from the campaign...