This year, my holiday season, like most of yours, I presume, is filled with finding perfect little gifts for the perfect little people of our lives...no pressure, of course. And try as we may, it usually ends up the case that we either: a) don’t get all of our shopping done until the last minute or b) we put such fierce stress on ourselves from Black Friday on in, that we freak out and buy out costco.com’s online clearance before Saturday. In either case, it can’t be good so it certainly can’t be healthy. As much as we want to make the situation all about the giving with love, even the most mall-savvy shopper can become beleaguered by the quest and find it hard to motivate to action.
So, I’ve taken a moment, right here, right now to show to you a few items i’ve encountered this holiday season. When I’m feelin’ worn down from the endless googling, when i just can’t seem to flip through the pages fast enough, I will inevitably find something so curious that I can’t help but to stumble into laughter. From Best Buy to Campmor, Target to L.L. Bean, I’ve scoured the catalogs--i know, but they just keep coming--and I’ve surfed all the sites, i’ve even braved a few local retail shops. The search for my psychological freedom has been close. But until I do find release, I can bask in the delight of having found these precious treasures. And now you can too.
My first find is apparently the “original” Snuggie. (Don’t laugh, we’ve all thought it was a good idea at least once.) But, this is not a Snuggie, it’s a Slanket. I bet you’re saying, now, besides the usual cheesiness, what’s so fab about a Snuggie? Well, my friend, the best thing about this Slanket: it travels. Oh. Wait, what? That’s right. Travel Slanket. This one can be put in the car, carried on the train, tucked under the arm for a walk, or taken on the aero-plane...unlike the orignal Slanket that cannot travel, for it is afraid!!!! Seriously? Travel Slanket? What the gees?!? I get the Slanket: you sit, you get cold, you get warm with Slanket, you wanna be able to channel surf without getting cold again. It’s brilliant. But it’s downright gimmicky to promote a product that is only minutely smaller than its orginal counterpart--i mean, it’s still full body length--no matter how cute it’s travel bag. You be the judge.
The second item I found was less than eye catching. You see, for many who do not know, I practice the skill of carpentry in addition to songstry. So safety glasses are pretty much a given for me. However, where the weirdness really starts to feel special, where that fine line between clever idea and bad joke really begins to blur is when the front of the catalog reads “Sur la table”-- not “Lowe’s”, not “Sears”--a kitchen store? For these were not safety glasses that I gazed upon; these were onion goggles. These ridiculous eye protecting goggles shield our sensitive eyes from the tears of green onion, red onion, yellow onion, white onion and even shallots! Yay. No more tears... just like Johnson & Johnson. Terrific. I still find it difficult to believe, though, that this is on someone’s wish list. Really?!?! Should I expect my brother-in-law to see these goggles at a New Year’s Sale at Kohl’s and wonder why no one thought to give a pair to him? Is it that tough to keep a candle nearby. “No, wait, honey, the onion goggles go on the top rack.” I have one word: wow.
What else, what else. Oh course, I’m drawing a blank as I sit and type, but you get what I mean, yes??? Duluth Trading Company has another good one, milk crates. Remember when you were a kid and you’d find those milk crates tucked in the corner of your garage with the words “Property of” such-and-such dairy, and then you’d wonder why they were in your garage. Well, Duluth has now saved us all. They are offering real-deal milk crates! The best part is, of course, that they can be legally yours.... for almost $15 a pop. You’ve never been so excited. Tell me, why would you ever *pay* for a milk crate, when you can just snag one. Really. No, I’m serious. Why pay?
Dear, oh, dear. In any case, this is just a snippet of how my season is floating by thus far. I do hope you have found some holiday relief in these few passages. The season is too short to spend it in distress!
I will try me bestest to be a better blogger in the upcoming months and years. It’s been too long. I’ve missed you. And let's be honest. I sometimes have a lot to say.
As for music, keep your ears open.... And to all a happy holiday time. Sweet.
Pema and I attended an Indigo Girls concert last night at The National, a revived theater here in downtown Richmond, Virginia. While I was there taking in the intoxicating harmonies of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, I began to think back on my initial introduction to the duo’s music and just how their influence shaped my life, both musically and personally.
It all began back in the 8th grade. A new educational television network called “Channel 1” had recently been delivered into every classroom at my middle school back in Borger, Texas. One day during Earth Week, Channel 1 featured bands whose musical message spoke to that of resource conservation and whose activism included earth-friendly overtones. I believe it was on the Tuesday of that week that I first saw the Indigo Girls flash across the classroom TV screen. Riding the heels of the their most recent release Nomads * Indians * Saints, they appeared in the talking box for only a couple of minutes…. but it was just long enough for me to hear a sampling of their sound – “Hammer and a Nail” was the song – and to find intrigue in their presence. It was my best friend Marie, however, who gets credit for following up. She – musical guru so ahead of her time in that small town – went out and purchased their self-titled album and slipped it to me for a more thorough listen. And there it all began.
“Closer to Fine” became the background on my answering machine, the album Strange Fire became a mainstay in my stereo, and a few months later, when Rites of Passage – arguably the pinnacle of their discography – was released, my entire world felt a shift. I, in fact, remember the very night I purchased the album. I was in Amarillo with my parents doing some last-minute shopping in preparation for a school trip to Washington, D.C. On the ride back to Borger, I sat in the back of our Pontiac Transport and listened intently to Amy and Emily as they quietly, but carefully, introduced me to “Three Hits,” “Galileo,” “Ghost,” “Joking,” “Jonas and Ezekial,” etc. I was in awe. I knew at that moment that there was something more to what my own music could be. I knew then that my guitar held so much more potential than what it had shown me previously with the lines of the Christian music I was all too familiar with.
My love for the Indigo Girls started to turn to an obsession – but one that I needed as a young teenage girl struggling with the charged socio-political atmosphere of a small town in Texas. I loved their music and heard it with fresh ears upon every listen. I watched Live at the Uptown Lounge like it was an after-school special until the tape began to furble. Shortly after the beginning of my freshman year of high school, my buddy Cam told me that they were gay... and I was taken aback and secretly relieved all at the same time. What I didn’t know was that this news would hit all too close too home within the next few years as I began my own coming out process. For some reason, I felt that my situation was made easier with the knowledge that two people, whose music I could relate to, now shared something even more personal with my station in life. It was nice to know that I could escape to a safe place just by listening to the warm acoustic stylings of my favorite group.
(more to come...)
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On another note, be sure to check out all the new stuff on the website... including:
T-Shirts and Ringtones!
There's more to come so keep checking in!
Ciao,
andy
if you’ve been wondering just where the heck i’ve been for the last year, read on! if you haven’t been wondering about my whereabouts, you might consider reading on for the sheer joy of reading. reading, much like singing, is a therapeutic endeavor that helps one digest after large meals, postulate ridiculous theories of space/time travel, and freshen up beautiful flower gardens.
my virtual disappearance began last march (2007) when i somehow mysteriously got roped into a t-ball coaching job. imagine me, little ol’ andy, surrounded by twelve 4-6 year-olds, each one special – very special – in his or her own special way. hmm. special in a special way, i say. my team was like the bad news bears… but much smaller and younger… and with red uniforms, not yellow. we managed to pull out a few wins in our ridiculously long and drawn out schedule, but honestly, if i didn’t love baseball as much as i do, i don’t think i could have seen it thru to the end. my motivation waned a bit when my players’ parents were more interested in getting their child to that nascar event, rather than to our game. so t-ball ran thru to the beginning of july... me clutching my sanity to the very end.
then there were august and september: the months of getting to know new friends, spending a weekend in ocean city, maryland, and t-ball recuperation. i know it doesn’t seem like much, but if you’ve ever been introduced to super stellar people in the middle of a life event (in this case, the eventful and time-consuming task of coaching small children), the actual “getting to know you” part of friendship-forging tends to get put on hold. so these months of late summer madness were put to good use in the company of several most excellent new peeps. between the trips the river, awesome games of catch phrase and the weekend construction of one attached backyard deck, august and september flowed seamlessly by… melting into a pool of good beer, yummy food, and a diet of engaging conversation and bouts of guitar hero. it was like a vacation without the dread involved in knowing that very soon you must return to work.
upon the arrival of october, i was caught somewhat off guard in knowing that one of my favorite days of festing – namely, halloween – was only a few short weeks away... and much to my dismay, i had not yet completed my awesome costume that i was supposed to sport the previous year: i was to be gaara, the most skilled and fierce of the kid ninjas from the sand village. many of you may be familiar with the anime series naruto from its airings on cartoon network. what you may not know is that my goal for the past couple of halloweens has been to recreate gaara in the flesh. much of the month of october was to devoted to finishing the creation of my costume, complete with paper mache sand gourd and authentic-looking mock ninja shoes. i finished the gourd on the 30th only to come to face the impossible task of consoling my new friends on the loss of their new dog on halloween afternoon. it was very sad. so gaara must wait another year.
when the month of november struck, it felt as if my life was in fifth gear. it felt like all was smooth sailing into the end of the year. i took a trip to chicago to meet up with an old friend, and almost instantly fell in love with the city. i’m not sure what it was about that place. it was the first time i had really had the opportunity to tourist around the city and in the company of a close friend… it was amazing. we went to the lincoln park zoo (I love zoos!), braved the top of the sears tower, and walked the pier. all in all, it was a great jump start to the month of turkey. i returned to richmond only to leave it a few days later when i ventured up to ohio to lay down a few background vocal tracks on eric himan’s upcoming cd, which i’m super stoked about! eric and i spent a few days together – i tried not to give him my sickness during that time – and then we parted ways to get ready for that time of giving thanks. that next week, pema’s folks rolled into town and it was family fun for everyone. by that weekend it was the end of november… and december was only moments away.
with the arrival of december, there are always many holiday functions to attend. this year was no different. one weekend in particular, we busted out three full parties complete with drinks and snacks. what a great flippin’ weekend! i’m not a huge party person… but any time i can pull off the consumption of yummy food with good drink to wash it down, i certainly cannot and do not complain. and thus, mid-month had come and gone. by the end of december, pema and i were gearing up for our trip to visit my family in texas. we arrived on friday night and didn’t sit still again until we had boarded the plane to return to richmond on christmas day. that saturday was doggie rescue day (long long story!!), sunday was last-minute-shopping-and-recuperate-from-doggie-rescue-day day, and monday was use-your-fat-stores-from-eating-so-much-to-open-your-gifts day. it was a great trip! always awesome to see mom and dad (love you!). and then… the end of december, new year’s with the richmond peeps… and here we are to the present.
january 2008.
i failed to mention that during my months-long hiatus, i have been playing occasionally, writing and working, and thinking and scheming. now, i’m currently in the process of getting a new EP together called “5 in common.” the goal is to get the disc done by mid-march. what you’ll hear is previously unreleased material that is paving the way for a new full-length cd due out this year. excited?? i am!
in the upcoming weeks, you’ll see new points of interest on the website, especially on the “store” page, and new shows on the up, so keep checking back. until the next update, i’m andy, and you’re not. ☺ ciao.
p.s. now you should go check out your garden!!
we hit the road a little after 7pm on friday evening. I-95 – my least favorite highway in the world – was clear of standstill traffic, so we thought for sure we’d cruise into jersey without a hitch and call it a night at some trendy roadside inn. our final destination was ultimately the great city of providence, but we weren’t expected there until late evening saturday. so we took our time making the drive… heaven forbid we have to travel 9 hours in a single day… all hours occupied by bloody I-95.
just past baltimore, my cell phone sounded out it’s funky ringtone beat. hello?! it was our friend ellen up in connecticut: how are you? how’s the drive? i heard your show was cancelled. is it true?
uh… wtf?
i could hear the squealing brakes in my head. don’t panic, andy. just make a few calls. i asked ellen to check my email. any word from the venue? nothing. rats! um… I called john at the venue. nothing. rats! um… i handed the phone to pema, who quickly dialed our buddy darth todd up in concord, mass. after slaloming thru dead end websites for any venue information – pema and i were now coming upon delaware at this point – todd finally found our nugget of truth: yes, indeed, the venue was closed for the weekend because of frozen waterlines.
boy.
i always knew that gig contracts carried the “all agreements are final pending an act of god” clause, but holy bejeezus. i never realized that it actually happened… the act of god, that is. yes, i’ve had shows cancelled before for numerous reasons: change of management, sickness, et cetera. unfortunately, most last minute show cancellations are even unbeknownst to me until only hours before the scheduled gig time. in fact, on more than one occasion, i’ve found myself frantically calling peeps or searching online trying to get to the truth because a friend of a friend of a friend heard that some guy said there was a 43% chance the show might be cancelled. so, in this particularly act-of-god case, i’m glad that it was god who was responsible for the cancellation… and that it was his gossip train that got word back to me. go god.
back to my point. pema and I were now faced with the challenge of making a weekend out of our now-in-the-middle-of-jersey reality. enter: the ever-beloved i-cut girls. Our wonderful friends in seymour, CT and their gang of buddies. they said we could crash at their place, so crash we did!
we drove into the night. just after 2am saturday morning, we arrived at the home of jenn, ellen, tamrah, and 4 fine cats. we drank, we ate, we played redonkulous games, (we bought golf shoes!) and we simply had a blast that weekend… even without getting paid for the drive! :) just goes to show you what good peeps can do! we didn’t leave until sunday afternoon, just in time to avoid the superbowl and stupid bad traffic all the way home to richmond. freakin’ i-95.
andy
So i had an experience last night that i wasn't going to write about at first... but then i just figured that it was too good to pass up. And despite the fact that the story and setting seem mostly contrived, i don't think it'll hurt to write about it.. mostly because it's all real. heck, i don't even have to change names to protect the innocent. :)
I went to a "pickin'" last night. a real, down to earth, redneck, complete-with-PBR-and-potato-salad pickin'! now, most of you may not know what a pickin' is-- i know i didn't until it was explained... and then it all made sense. a pickin' is essentially a community get together featuring some sort of bluegrass band, set in or around a barn or some kind. it features booze, music, food, and all sorts of profanities.
my experience last night, featured a small four piece: Al, Trampus, Bernice, and Billy the Banjo guy. Al, the 70-year-old front man and the son of a bluegrass legend (Bill Monroe), lives only 4 miles up the road from the venue site with his 10 coonhounds and a mule named Jenny. His incredibly cool custom-made western style boots were purchased in El Paso, TX back in the 70s for a staggering $250-- that's a lot for boots back then! And in 1974, Al recorded a album at the Rounder Records Studio in Somerville, MA. (I used to drive by that studio when i lived up in Boston!) His mutton chops were as white and fluffy as any mall santa's beard... and then he started hitting on my partner. wow. you go al!
Trampus was a younger guitar picker. a big boy, he was. and he has a great voice, with just enough twang to get yer attention... but not so much that you can't understand what he's saying. :) Trampus likes to record albums in his home studio. I'm not so sure that his home recording label goes thru all the necessary legal proceedings to be able to sell noted hits such as "knockin' on heaven's door" and "heart of gold"... but at least he's out there playing the gigs and makin' the music he likes to make. you go, too, Trampus!
Sorry bernice (upright bass) and billy (banjo), i don't know so much about y'all.
I think the real getter was when we first arrived to the scene. I believe the words out of one guy's mouth were:"they are so lost!" at which point, we knew we were in the right place. my friend doug, who had invited us to the pickin' had warned us that it would be very "country" and that we would probably be some of the yougest people out there. Doug was right. thanks for the warning, Doug. :)
All in all, it was a blast. And only here in Virginia have i ever been able to experience this. I feel truly blessed. really. i think.
See, Virginia isn't only for lovers!
andy
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