As Pandora does for you automatically, tonight I started with one song that I love – and let the song guide me through the rest of my night.
At least in my mind, the prior song prompted me toward the next one. It may have been a memory from my past or a trigger within the song, but the playlist flowed naturally for me.
Here are the songs I wandered through this evening. Find the songs on LimeWire or YouTube. And make your own journey.
(The first song) Beds Are Burning – Midnight Oil
Wire – U2
Tempted – Squeeze
Tom Sawyer (DJ Z Trip Remix) – Rush
Romeo’s Tune – Steve Forbert
Shelter – Lone Justice
I’ll Be Your Shelter – Taylor Dayne
You’re Still The One – Shania Twain
Shelter - Ray LaMontagne
Shelter from the Storm - Bob Dylan
Blue On Black – Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Hope It Gives You Hell – The All-American Rejects
Ledbetter Heights – Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Riot Van - Arctic Monkeys
Supernova – Liz Phair
Cotton Fields – Creedence Clearwater Revival
Send The Pain Below – Chevelle
Woman - Wolfmother
Son’s Gonna Rise – Citizen Cope
John Lennon – Citizen Cope
Bullet and a Target – Citizen Cope
And then I stopped. I thought that song was a good spot.
Here are the videos of a few of the above tunes…
Beds Are Burning – Midnight Oil
Romeo’s Tune by Steve Forbert
You’re Still The One – Shania Twain
Blue On Black by Kenny Wayne Shepherd (an acoustic version)
I make at least one mixed CD per month – and this is how I pick the songs: I throw enough stream-of-consciousness darts at the wall and see which ones I like best.
Of all the songs I went through above, only three made it onto my May 2010 Super Mix. Which ones do you think? (Hint: I have NEVER put U2 – my all-time favorite artist - on any mixed CD ever. They just seem too personal to me to share.)
Saturday, May 01, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
Jazz Fest 2010 - Day 1
This year, Carlos and I were planning on going to Jazz Fest only one day, the "second Friday" as people in New Orleans call it - Friday, April 30. Then I found out that Jonny Lang was playing the "first Sunday" in the Blues Tent. He's been one of my favorite artists since his first album in 1995. (My blog is named after one of his songs.)
I last saw him in a small bar in Biloxi in 1996 and I have wanted to see him again ever since.
He put on a great show! I'm hoping it's one of the shows that will be available at Jazz Fest Live soon. (He has also released a live CD earlier this year.)
Jonny Lang (right) didn't play until 5:40 pm. Since Carlos and I got to Jazz Fest around 11 am, we had plenty of time to walk around and see all the other things.
On Debbie's recommendation, we first saw Miss Sophie Lee. Her boyfriend Bart plays piano with the band. (He also plays guitar, accordion, and probably many other instruments.)
We spent the next hour or so eating our way through the food booths. I started with a Crawfish Pie and a huge tea, and finished with a Cuban Sandwich.
Our friend Julie works at the company that produces the Jazz Fest posters so she was manning the poster booth. We visited with her for awhile (and got some much needed shade). Because of her job, she was also able to get us free tickets to the Fest! (For next Friday's Fest, I bought $25 tickets from my employee Pat's friend. The tickets are usually $45 to $60 plus fees.)
Carlos wanted to see one of the cooking demonstrations. (Read: Sit in the shade, drink iced tea and wait for the free taste servings of the demonstration food.) We saw the 1:30 show of [something I can't remember now] and the 3:00 show of Jambalaya.
After walking through the craft booths (in the hot sun!), Carlos had a brilliant idea: see the band playing in the (indoor, air conditioned) grandstands. It turned out to be the Imagination Movers so the audience was full of parents and kids under 5.
Carlos then wanted to make a full circle around the outside of the track, to sample all the other music playing. We heard a small part of The Levon Helm Band, Juan Luis Guerra (where we ran into our new mayor Mitch Landrieu and the new President of Honduras, smiling for photographers and surrounded by body guards), The Radiators and the Blind Boys of Alabama. We had to ask someone who the guy with Mitch Landrieu was. I told Carlos, who moved from Honduras at age 8, that I thought he should know who he was. He disagreed.
Now refreshed, we wandered over to Jonny Lang. Then, sunburned and pooped, we made our way home.
Overall, a great day.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Hobbies
Carlos and I are still cultivating our love of cooking. Last night, we made:
Shaved Raw Asparagus with Parmesan Dressing (very good!)
Mushroom Meatloaf (bland - but I have a solution for next time)
Garlic Mashed Potatoes (ditto)
We are hosting our Monthly Family dinner next Sunday (May 2) so are trying to perfect the menu. I think we'll serve all of the above, working on the seasoning. Carlos is going to come up with a nice dessert that mixes well with the other dishes.
I have picked up two new hobbies recently.
New Hobby #1 - Genealogy. During our Katrina evacuation, I bought a family tree program, but never took it out of the box. I finally did earlier this month. My dad's mom (who had 8 brothers and who died at 98 in 2003) kept great family records. I added all her research into my program.
Then I started with my mom's dad, who died in 2004. I was able to trace back to my great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather (Christophe Mequet) who was born in 1700 in France. My method: Using the relatives I already knew, I searched the internet for other people who have published family trees with my relatives included. I found my great grandfather (Hector Mequet) in this family tree.
My next goals:
1) Find out if any of my relatives fought in the Civil War.
2) Prove or disprove the long-standing family legend that my grandfather's grandparents were first cousins.
3) Prove or disprove the long-standing family legend that, along those same family lines, that we have black relatives.
4) Find pictures of as many relatives as possible.
New Hobby #2 - Gardening
I have had "Start a garden" on my To Do list for many years. This past weekend, motivated by my brother-in-law Jeff who planted a tomato garden when I was in Atlanta recently visiting, I finally got around to it. Here are pictures on Day 0 - before anything was started, and Day 1 - minutes after everything was planted.
The garden consists of:
Cucumbers
Green Bell Peppers
Red Bell Peppers
Yellow Bell Peppers
Orange Bell Peppers
According to the packaging, I'll have food in 75 days. I'll post updated pictures soon.
Shaved Raw Asparagus with Parmesan Dressing (very good!)
Mushroom Meatloaf (bland - but I have a solution for next time)
Garlic Mashed Potatoes (ditto)
We are hosting our Monthly Family dinner next Sunday (May 2) so are trying to perfect the menu. I think we'll serve all of the above, working on the seasoning. Carlos is going to come up with a nice dessert that mixes well with the other dishes.
I have picked up two new hobbies recently.
New Hobby #1 - Genealogy. During our Katrina evacuation, I bought a family tree program, but never took it out of the box. I finally did earlier this month. My dad's mom (who had 8 brothers and who died at 98 in 2003) kept great family records. I added all her research into my program.
Then I started with my mom's dad, who died in 2004. I was able to trace back to my great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather (Christophe Mequet) who was born in 1700 in France. My method: Using the relatives I already knew, I searched the internet for other people who have published family trees with my relatives included. I found my great grandfather (Hector Mequet) in this family tree.
My next goals:
1) Find out if any of my relatives fought in the Civil War.
2) Prove or disprove the long-standing family legend that my grandfather's grandparents were first cousins.
3) Prove or disprove the long-standing family legend that, along those same family lines, that we have black relatives.
4) Find pictures of as many relatives as possible.
New Hobby #2 - Gardening
I have had "Start a garden" on my To Do list for many years. This past weekend, motivated by my brother-in-law Jeff who planted a tomato garden when I was in Atlanta recently visiting, I finally got around to it. Here are pictures on Day 0 - before anything was started, and Day 1 - minutes after everything was planted.
The garden consists of:
Cucumbers
Green Bell Peppers
Red Bell Peppers
Yellow Bell Peppers
Orange Bell Peppers
According to the packaging, I'll have food in 75 days. I'll post updated pictures soon.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Recipe: Shrimp Mushroom Casserole
I made this dish for Carlos last week and we both loved it. Carlos hated mushrooms before we started dating. He’s come a long way. (He’s still not really a fan of them raw in salads – yet.)
½ onion, finely chopped
½ sweet bell pepper, finely chopped
4 shallots, finely chopped
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
1 ½ cups light cream
½ tsp celery salt
½ tsp white pepper
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp salt
Slight pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
¼ lb mushrooms, sliced
2 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp, cooked in salted water
Seasoned bread crumbs
Sauté the onion, pepper, and shallots in the butter over low heat until tender. (Do not brown.) Add the flour and mix well. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes.
Add the rest of the ingredients, except the bread crumbs. Stir together and pour into a well-buttered casserole dish. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on top, and bake for about 20 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven.
Serves six to eight people.
The recipe is from this book. This is the first recipe that I have made from this book. Once I use it more, I’ll let you know if it’s worth buying.
Bon Appétit!
½ onion, finely chopped
½ sweet bell pepper, finely chopped
4 shallots, finely chopped
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
1 ½ cups light cream
½ tsp celery salt
½ tsp white pepper
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp salt
Slight pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
¼ lb mushrooms, sliced
2 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp, cooked in salted water
Seasoned bread crumbs
Sauté the onion, pepper, and shallots in the butter over low heat until tender. (Do not brown.) Add the flour and mix well. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes.
Add the rest of the ingredients, except the bread crumbs. Stir together and pour into a well-buttered casserole dish. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on top, and bake for about 20 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven.
Serves six to eight people.
The recipe is from this book. This is the first recipe that I have made from this book. Once I use it more, I’ll let you know if it’s worth buying.
Bon Appétit!
Friday, April 16, 2010
Obama orders hospital visitation rights for gays, lesbians
Washington (CNN) -- President Obama has asked the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a rule that would prevent hospitals from denying visitation privileges to gay and lesbian partners.
The president's Thursday memo said, "There are few moments in our lives that call for greater compassion and companionship than when a loved one is admitted to the hospital. ... Yet every day, all across America, patients are denied the kindnesses and caring of a loved one at their sides."
Gay and lesbian Americans are "uniquely affected" by relatives-only policies at hospitals, Obama said, adding that they "are often barred from the bedsides of the partners with whom they may have spent decades of their lives -- unable to be there for the person they love, and unable to act as a legal surrogate if their partner is incapacitated."
When Lisa Pond collapsed during a family vacation in Florida three years ago, her partner of 17 years was kept away from her hospital room.
Janice Langbehn begged and waited for hours to stand by Pond's bedside at Miami's Jackson Memorial Hospital, but it wasn't until her partner's sister arrived that she got any information. In the end, the person Pond was closest to was relegated to a waiting room as she died from an aneurysm.
"To hold Lisa's hand wasn't a gay right, it was a human right," Langbehn told CNN on Thursday.
Obama requested that the regulation make clear that any hospital receiving Medicare and Medicaid funding, which includes the vast majority of U.S. hospitals, must allow patients to decide who can visit them and prohibit discrimination based on a variety of characteristics, including sexual orientation and gender identity.
Read the rest of the article here.
The president's Thursday memo said, "There are few moments in our lives that call for greater compassion and companionship than when a loved one is admitted to the hospital. ... Yet every day, all across America, patients are denied the kindnesses and caring of a loved one at their sides."
Gay and lesbian Americans are "uniquely affected" by relatives-only policies at hospitals, Obama said, adding that they "are often barred from the bedsides of the partners with whom they may have spent decades of their lives -- unable to be there for the person they love, and unable to act as a legal surrogate if their partner is incapacitated."
When Lisa Pond collapsed during a family vacation in Florida three years ago, her partner of 17 years was kept away from her hospital room.
Janice Langbehn begged and waited for hours to stand by Pond's bedside at Miami's Jackson Memorial Hospital, but it wasn't until her partner's sister arrived that she got any information. In the end, the person Pond was closest to was relegated to a waiting room as she died from an aneurysm.
"To hold Lisa's hand wasn't a gay right, it was a human right," Langbehn told CNN on Thursday.
Obama requested that the regulation make clear that any hospital receiving Medicare and Medicaid funding, which includes the vast majority of U.S. hospitals, must allow patients to decide who can visit them and prohibit discrimination based on a variety of characteristics, including sexual orientation and gender identity.
Read the rest of the article here.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Kitchen Painting
Carlos and I (okay mostly the "I" part) spent last weekend painting my kitchen.
Here are three before (the top half) and after (the bottom half) pictures.
Go to my Flickr page for all the pictures.
-------------
Now that I have updated my kitchen, I have renewed interest in cooking. Stay tuned for more adventures in cooking.
Empty School Video
From Urlesque:
Choosing a musical instrument is tough. For every happy trombonist in high school band, there are probably two who wish they'd chosen the trumpet.
That's what makes Maryland musician and student Ben Meyers' choice to play the entire school such a smart one. Armed with little more than an empty high school, a couple of mics, and the nicest camera an after school job can buy, Ben creates a loopy, driving jam that incorporates everything from his locker door to the water fountain.
Choosing a musical instrument is tough. For every happy trombonist in high school band, there are probably two who wish they'd chosen the trumpet.
That's what makes Maryland musician and student Ben Meyers' choice to play the entire school such a smart one. Armed with little more than an empty high school, a couple of mics, and the nicest camera an after school job can buy, Ben creates a loopy, driving jam that incorporates everything from his locker door to the water fountain.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Top 10: Led Zeppelin
In preparation of another blog entry I have planned – and because I love top ten lists – here are my…
Top Ten Favorite Led Zeppelin Songs of All Time (alphabetically):
Babe I’m Gonna Leave You
Bring It On Home
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
In My Time of Dying (For me, the best 10 minutes in rock music!)
No Quarter (The Song Remains The Same live version)
Over The Hills and Far Away
Tangerine
Ten Years Gone
The Lemon Song
The Wanton Song
Click on the songs to hear them.
--------------------
Least Favorite Led Zeppelin Songs of All Time:
Kashmir
Stairway to Heaven (just because it’s so overplayed)
Anything on Presence
Click on the songs to hear them.
--------------------
Favorite Led Zeppelin Album of All Time:
Physical Graffiti
Top Ten Favorite Led Zeppelin Songs of All Time (alphabetically):
Babe I’m Gonna Leave You
Bring It On Home
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
In My Time of Dying (For me, the best 10 minutes in rock music!)
No Quarter (The Song Remains The Same live version)
Over The Hills and Far Away
Tangerine
Ten Years Gone
The Lemon Song
The Wanton Song
Click on the songs to hear them.
--------------------
Least Favorite Led Zeppelin Songs of All Time:
Kashmir
Stairway to Heaven (just because it’s so overplayed)
Anything on Presence
Click on the songs to hear them.
--------------------
Favorite Led Zeppelin Album of All Time:
Physical Graffiti
9th Anniversary
Carlos and I met online through AOL Personals near the beginning of March 2001. Neither of us remembers who answered whose ad.
We chatted via email and IM’s for a couple of weeks, trading information and pictures. We quickly realized that we had a lot in common – including our friend Vincent.
We agreed to meet in person on Saturday, March 24, 2001 at Lakeview Harbor, a local restaurant known for their great hamburgers. The restaurant was my suggestion; I had gone there a few times with Lloyd, who used to work across the street at Coral Reef Pet Shop.
We met that night and really hit it off. At the end of the night, we agreed to meet again the next night at the Prytania Theatre. It was showing the Academy Awards, which we both loved, on the big screen.
The following night, Monday, we were discussing that we wanted to eat dinner together, but couldn’t decide the location. I mentioned that I usually did laundry and drank beer (with John) on Mondays – and asked Carlos if he would like to go with us. He readily agreed. I suggested that we eat at Taco Bell beforehand. He told me years later that was when he knew that we were meant for each other. He could tell that I was as down to earth as he was.
Carlos and I have been together ever since. Nine years this past Wednesday. Every year on March 24, we have dinner at Lakeview Harbor and reminisce about our past – and plan our future.
We chatted via email and IM’s for a couple of weeks, trading information and pictures. We quickly realized that we had a lot in common – including our friend Vincent.
We agreed to meet in person on Saturday, March 24, 2001 at Lakeview Harbor, a local restaurant known for their great hamburgers. The restaurant was my suggestion; I had gone there a few times with Lloyd, who used to work across the street at Coral Reef Pet Shop.
We met that night and really hit it off. At the end of the night, we agreed to meet again the next night at the Prytania Theatre. It was showing the Academy Awards, which we both loved, on the big screen.
The following night, Monday, we were discussing that we wanted to eat dinner together, but couldn’t decide the location. I mentioned that I usually did laundry and drank beer (with John) on Mondays – and asked Carlos if he would like to go with us. He readily agreed. I suggested that we eat at Taco Bell beforehand. He told me years later that was when he knew that we were meant for each other. He could tell that I was as down to earth as he was.
Carlos and I have been together ever since. Nine years this past Wednesday. Every year on March 24, we have dinner at Lakeview Harbor and reminisce about our past – and plan our future.
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