For My Amy

How about getting back to some tunes?

So............. how's everyone doin' out there? I'm still pretty ticked off (not really) at the people, you know who you are, who come here to download, and download and download and download, without ever saying a thing, nothing, not a single one word of "Thanks."

It's pretty sad. Actually it's pathetic.

But there are those of you who speak up and whether it's one word of "Thanks" or it's a bit of conversation or an email, you are the people I want to continue posting music for. If I was a mean person I might tell the silent people to download away and then go to hell. I'm not a mean person, though... so whatever.

Those who appreciate this music, and let me know that you do, I appreciate you guys and your comments so it's you all who I'll continue to keep giving to. I listen to a buttload of music but everything else is secondary to this, almost unimportant even. These tunes make my world go 'round and I want to share 'em with people who are happy to click to download, with people who are happy to Press Play, with people who just wanna enjoy life while kicking back, listening to the music play.

Jerry Garcia Band June 23, 1977 Auditorium, Santa Rosa High School Santa Rosa, California

1st Set: does not exist
(Sugaree, Catfish John, Stir It Up, Mystery Train,
Sitting In Limbo, The Way You Do The Things You Do)

2nd Set: They Love Each Other,
Knockin' On Heaven's Door, Tore Up Over You,
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, Don't Let Go

The 15 minute long Knockin' is perfection and Tore Up is a ton o' fun! Don't Let Go, clocking in at over 25 minutes, is definitely not like it was in the 90's when I saw the Jerry Band, that's for sure. It could almost (probably) be labeled as:

Don't Let Go-> Bass solo-> Space-> Don't Let Go

Very cool stuff here and the quality of the recording (pretty remarkable for a 1977 audience source) gives it a feel of a Soundboard. Just a nearly outstanding 70 minutes of music.

Source: Master Audience Cassette> DAT> CD

Sound Quality: a good solid A, yup, A all the way!

Download It Right Here JGB 6/23/77 Santa Rosa, Set 2 - Part ONE Part 2 of JGB 6/23/77 Santa Rosa

6-23-77 aka 06-23-77 aka 6/23/77 aka 06/23/77 aka 77-06-23 setlist 320 kbps mp3 SBD download

HAAAA!!!!!

My Money, My Choice!

Part 6 -- The Grand Finale

Prepared the day before departure and auto-posted, I hope.

Part 6 -- Full Day #5

western Arkansas-> through Memphis, Tennesse Jed->
northern Mississippi-> Alabama-> through Hotlanta, Georgia->

Encore: the Lowcountry of South Carolina

6 states again.

953 miles (1534 km)

At the time this gets auto-posted I should be somewhere west of and on my way through Atlanta. I'll then be on the last leg with arrival in the heat of the Lowcountry finally sometime as the hour approaches midnight(?).* It could be After Midnight but hopefully it'll be earlier if I can get an early start in the day. I just don't know this far ahead of time.

* Tired schmired, you wanna go ahead and call me ANYTIME after 10? I might even be in at 8. Absolutely impossible to know even approximately when... but I'm making my best guess (I'll be shooting for) about 10. (Due to slowness I could even be back around 8 or 10 a.m. ... but I hate to think I'll be behind schedule. Schedules suck, I usually don't care for living by one, but eh, whatever.) I'd hate to wait until morning to talk but I s'pose it won't kill me.

Part 5 -- A Whole Buncha States

auto-posted, i hope, 'cause i'm not at the internet right now, i'm somewhere in America so please leave a beep when you hear the message...

Day 4 -- Part 5 I'll be an Okie from Muskogee...

Wyoming-> Colorado-> New Mexico-> Texas-> Oklahoma-> Arkansas

That's a buncha states!

Approximately 1,014 miles (1631 km)

Now what's the deal with Arkansas?

There's the state of Kansas, right? Kansas.

Now pronounce Arkansas. Ar-kin-saw ... or Ar-kan-saw?

Shouldn't it be Ar-kans-sez?

Hellll-lo?!!?

Wait.

Perhaps Kansas should be pronounced Kan-saw? No, how stoopid is that!?

Next week we discuss Brett Favre -- Farve or Favor?!?

Part 4 -- The Beautiful West

prepared ahead of time,
hopefully auto-posting will auto-post this...

Day 3 -- Part 4

The Plan: start the day from around Calgary, Alberta
down through Billings, Montana, still further
down the country to somewhere around Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Approximate mileage: 1,000 miles (1609 km)

due west and I'll hit Rock Springs, Park City, Salt Lake City, Wendover, Winnemucca, Reno, Tahoe, Sacramento, Oakland, San Francisco, Pacific Ocean... hmmm.... how awesome would that be?! sounds tempting but it's the other ocean I've got to start heading towards.

Part 3 -- A Day in Canada

Prepared ahead of time, testing out Auto-posting....

Part 3 - Day 2

This, I hope, will be my plan for Saturday.

From the Fort Nelson, British Columbia area
through Dawson Creek and onto Edmonton and Calgary.

(at least) 815 miles / 1311 km

Across North America - Parts 1 & 2

I set this up before I left to test out Auto-posting.

Drove out of Fairbanks sometime Thursday Night.

That nite I hopefully I made it into Canada, eh.

Friday nite I expect to be around Fort Nelson, British Columbia.

Not having a laptop and mobile internet access kinda sucks right now.

But eh, at the same time, I don't have a lot of time to be futzing around with internet on this journey. Essentially this roadtrip sucks my butt because I'm not taking my time. Driving from Point A to Point B on boring highways is so lame. Fortunately much of this trip is through GORGEOUS country so that's kinda cool... except I'm gonna have ZERO time to stop and smell the juniper. That kinda sucks. That really sucks, actually. And next time I do a trip like this -- digital camera!! Then again -- not a lot of time to stop and take pictures. No time, really. The quicker I can get from central Alaska to the southeast United States, the better.

1182 miles (1902 km)

Turning Around...

14½ hours in airports & airplanes +
6½ drive from Anchorage to Fairbanks...

A long afternoon and night it was.

Charleston -> Atlanta -> Seattle-Tacoma -> Anchorage

Should've been a quicker drive from Anchorage north to Fairbanks but someone in an RV with a Rhode Island license plate creamed a moose somewhere on what should have been the last hour or so of the drive. Why this backed traffic up for over 30 minutes I'm not sure. Just a freakin' crawl up the Parks Highway for awhile there. Thankfully this was at about 6 in the morning otherwise it would have been much worse.

My dog was so darn happy to see me. If he was a bunch of years younger he would have jumped right up and knocked me over. SOooooo excited! He's been used to me going to work for 12 hours here and 12 hours there but not away from him for like 5 days or however long it's been since I went to South Carolina. He did have someone stop by each day with their own dog to make sure Cassidy had food and water. Plus I set a timer on a TV so he could watch whatever was on for a few hours a day. He was okay. It was either leave him as I just described or bring him to dog boarding and since this wasn't for that long, I knew he'd be okay. He'd have the total freedom of being able to sleep wherever he wanted, including outside by going through his own dog door at his leisure. Pretty good compared to whatever dog boarding could offer. Not that there's anything wrong with dog boarding... some people gotta use it and it's a blessing for humans who don't have any other option. But for Cassidy for these few days, he was able to stay here and I'm sure, while confused about exactly where I was, he was more content than if confined, mostly, to a smaller space.

Anyway... I cannot spend much time on this, I have TOO much to do in too short of a time. Not fun.

I thought about posting a show up before I leave but I still can't hear in my right ear. (3½ days now.) I'm against just posting download links and saying "here you go" so a new show will have to wait. I mean, I've got to listen to it! And what I've got ready I haven't listened to yet. So it'll be awhile...

and I'm still trying to decide if only grateful people should be able to download or not. Maybe I'll protect each download with a password and only people who want to participate in commenting on shows can get the password. I just don't know yet

Yeah, Deadman, maybe I should just post shows anyway and those who appreciate the music will be very cool in commenting and those [other people] will still not give a crap.

I'll still keep on feeling sorry [those people] who can't even type "Thanks." But I suppose it would be wrong to exclude [those people] even if they are the majority.

Sometimes I just get sick and tired of it. I know the stats on # of downloads and there's probably someone downloading something right now and they're not gonna comment because they're completely inconsiderate. Just pathetic.

Anyway... I'll be back on this interweb dealie in about 6 days. Unfortunately for that whole time I'll be driving and sleeping and that's it. Seriously, nothing other than that.

To My Love

Pretty soon (but not soon enough!) I'll be where I wanna be.
Long, long way to get there but the time will come.

Sugar Magnolia
3/27/88 Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, Virginia
(it starts up @ about 1:40)

Outta here...

I've got to head to the airport in a little while -- back to Alaska. My dad's heart surgery went just fine and he'll be out of the hospital this afternoon. My brother's taking the first shift, so to say, helping my dad with everything he'll need between now and when I return to South Carolina next week. He's got to get back to work while I have more flexibility to be the one who'll be here helping out the most. Plus at this point in time it's gonna be a really, really, really, really, really good thing to be back in the Lower 48. Really! ;)

Perhaps I'll be able to have a post from Alaska tomorrow sometime but that'll be it for around 5 days, I think. Since I don't have a laptop and I'll be sleeping in by [VW] bus each night -- no internet. Not that I'd have time anyway -- drive, sleep, drive, sleep, and so on. If I had it my way, i would tear this old building down! Wait, I meant, if I had it my way, I would take my time on the road and turn a 5 day lightning fast trip into a couple weeks. Oh well. Not this time. People of such great importance that I need to get back down here for!

The times they are a-changin...

Onward.

The End of Grateful Dead Downloads?

--- i can't hear.... again. very disconcerting. right ear this time. I feel like i have no hope that it'll clear up. I'm sure it will.

------- I thought I'd have a show ready to post tonight but the upload died... again. same old crap and i don't know why.

doesn't matter,
i'm thinking of removing all Grateful Dead (and related) show downloads
from this blog because in the past 3 days...

there've been over two dozen shows downloaded....

and ONE comment.

Pretty sad.

I don't see the point in continuing for so many completely ungrateful people. Those who do express your Thanks -- you're great people but it's all the others who give me very little inspiration to keep posting shows.

Not that it matters now, the following is from yesterday, never posted as I was interrupted and happily so , which now means much of it is completely outdated already....

Life gets busy. It becomes more smile-filled... and very interesting... and Mutterings become less important. Not they were important to begin with... just a fun blog post.

Finally, for this Sunday, here I go. Not much else to say. Well... always a lot to say, but I am in such a lazy mood this Sunday afternoon. Got 2 baseball games on now (watching the Cubbies) and 1 more later.

Also got a Euro 2008 football match on in a bit (Turkey vs. Czech Republic) and one U.S. men's World Cup Qualifier match later (against Barbados.) Love watching football in summer! Love watching baseball even more but hey, the Beautiful Game -- the World's Game -- is good anytime, really!

Went for a hike the other day, I guess two days ago, and nicely pulled my left hamstring. Yay. Hurts to move so I need to rest it otherwise I'm just gonna freakin' make it worse.

Unconscious Mutterings

a free association game -- I say... and you think ... ?

1. Purchase :: store

2. Squeaky clean :: mouse ... uhh, i guess the "squeak" made me think mouse

3. Blended :: whisky

4. Wednesday :: Thursday

5. Function :: gathering

6. Look down :: at what?

7. July? :: yes

8. Raspberry :: beret

9. Assertive :: forceful

10. Cracker :: jacks

Video: Prince - Raspberry Beret... unfortunately the Purple One is a total jerkwad and has forced the removal of all sound from all his videos on Youtube. What a dillhole.

What's the opposite of brain freeze?

There needs to be an amendment to the Constitution of the United States that bans HOT weather.

Thursday afternoon, as I drove down the Parks Highway to catch my flight out of Anchorage, the temperature over that part of central Alaska was around 60° (F) -- just absolutely gorgeous.

A 6 hour drive and 13½ hours in airplanes and airports later, I arrived in a place called Hell... no, I'm not talkin' Hell, Michigan, Hell a.k.a. South Carolina... Charleston, in the Lowcountry, to be more specific.

Charleston is a beautiful city, interesting history, cool downtown, great restaurants... or so I'm told ;) I've seen some o' that, maybe one day I'll explore it some more... just not when it's 420 degrees outside.

Walking out of the airport terminal made me feel as if someone had thrown me into a sauna. There's nothing civilized about sweating through your clothes the moment you leave indoors. This place ain't too bad in the winter but come on now, this is just sick.

I'm completely against more government; they screw everything up, waste our money, and call it okay. But at this moment it would be nice if the government controlled the weather. If our politicians truly care about the people they're supposed to be serving, they'd finally give them comfort in their environment i.e. TURN THE HEAT DOWN!!!!!

Now, I don't mind hot weather in small doses but this is insane.

What happens to a person when they live with this day in and day out? Quite simple, really.



It melts your mind.

FORRRRRRRRRRRRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm not a golfer but I know all about the game and I could probably shoot par if someone put a bag o' clubs in me hands ... is that a proper golfing term? "Shoot par"?? Anyway, it's been years but I've worked on a few golf courses in my day... caddying, specifically, was the best job I've ever had. Well, being a peasant for rich men who drive Bentleys and Beemers isn't exactly rewarding like working in EMS, but roughly $10 an hour CASH with NO taxes and no set hours? Sweet. I mean you could show up and work a Wednesday afternoon and take the whole next week off if you want. That last part was very bad for learning discipline but it helped me Mailorder a lot of Grateful Dead tickets while spending my summers at the Jersey Shore.

Hey, speaking of the Grateful Dead and golf -- any Grateful Golfers out there? Somehow, completely out of the blue, around this time last year I stumbled upon A Walk In The Park and over there Jay Flemma really digs golf... hey, that's what he's blogging about! He does it quite well, too... some good writing from what I've seen.

And he also digs the Grateful Dead and sometimes, like in the link there, the two come together.

The U.S. Open just kicked off this morning out in La Jolla so if you're interested, swing on over... haaa!!! swing... get it, like swing the golf club... HAA!!! Swing on over and give him a read!

Meanwhile... I'm outta here. I'll be back tomorrow... long, long, long day ahead. I'm going to Tahiti. Or Saudi Arabia? Well, after all the hours I'll spend driving and in the air and in airports, it'll seem like I've gone that damn far!

TLEO

Yay.

August 4, 1976 -- Roosevelt Stadium
Jersey City, New Jersey

Having some Cake with my Run

We don't often know what the future holds, do we? Mine just got messed up. . Kinda. Sorta. I wanna say it was unexpected... but deep down I knew something like this might happen eventually. Maybe this won't be messed up but it's certainly gonna be different and I'm not looking forward to it. At the same time, I'm not gonna make it the End of the World. It's not. So I've got to, to use damn clichés which I generally like to stay away from, keep my chin up and make the most of it.

South Carolina-bound. Hooray, I say completely sarcastically and with zero enthusiasm. The South in the Summer? Oh, that's a double hooray. The thing is, I have to do it. My dad, and this is just the weirdest timing because my friend's mom is in the hospital for tests due to something that happened to her recently... my dad needs surgery again. He ain't married to my mom anymore so she won't be able to help him. My damn brother, who only lives a few hours south in northern Florida, he's too tied up, something about needing the job he has otherwise he'll be in hell blah blah blah... so that leaves, ummmm... me. And what have I done lately, well, just about 4 years ago? Moved myself closer to the former Soviet Union than to my only family members. SO... this is just slightly inconvenient for me.

But I've got to do it.

What a crappy night finding this out. First inclination -- beer. Not a good one as I had to make a plane reservation first. With that out of the way -- beer. Sitting in a bar was oh so fun, I tell you what (about as much fun as watching paint dry... hmmm, but on acid that could be a ball of twine and then some!) Two pints, back to pack, sulk, etc.

Hip hip hooray, I'm leavin today,
why do I have to go?
why can't I just stay?

Oh, big ol' jet airliner,
how I wish you were gonna carry me to my home.
Oh-oh-oh big ol' jet airliner,
why don't you just drop me off in Rome? (not Georgia!)

61° - mostly sunny at 10:00 pm

Wednesday Night Run: 21 minutes 45 sec

+10 sec

XXXXXXXXXXXX ·June - 26 sec· XXXXXXXXXX

Run Time June: 1 hour 47 minutes May: 4 hours 46 minutes April: 3 hours 55 minutes

5th run in 11 days = still bad.

And now with the need to go to South Carolina to tend to my dad, I'm not sure how that's going to play in my running but the thought on that is -- not good.

In any case, concerning this run in the here and tonight, I added on a nice 10 seconds which is pretty good for me. All that 5 and 6 second junk, too little!! It still seems like I will never ever in this lifetime run a marathon but eh, I'm still keeping it in mind. For all I know, I can run one now. I'm just not attempting long runs... I'm working my way up and so I'm building to a 4-hour marathon time rather than just attempting it. Failure sucks. Not that I definitely would fail... but probably. So I'm gonna keep on taking it slow.

Feelin' good after my run tonight but as always, or almost always, it's the next day when I'll know if I have any aches or pains or strains to deal with. But for now -- I'm wondering why more people don't run when it can make a person feel so good! I suppose a good workout can do the same but how many people do either? I'm guessing not a lot. What a shame.

I'm already looking forward to my next run! Of course I'm not sure when that'll be but we'll see.

Running tunes came from this album o' the day...
	Cake Prolonging The Magic 1998

Satan Is My Motor
Mexico
Never There
Guitar
You Turn The Screws
Walk On By
Sheep Go To Heaven
When You Sleep
Hem Of Your Garment
Alpha Beta Parking Lot
Let Me Go
Cool Blue Reason
Where Would I Be?

What's with the pedal steel? That was probably one of my first reactions when I first listened to this album a few days ago. This is an alternative band, right? Pretty cool stuff. I didn't know anything good ever came out of Sacramento, California.

A running theme within this blog related to allllllll that music I listen to -- usually listening to a band it's the first time I've ever heard an album from that band and that again is the case here. I thought I had never even heard anything from Cake before but ahhh ha! Never There I heard somewhere once upon a time and probably more than once because I'm feeling like I know it kind of well. Nothing comes to mind, though. Drawing a super-blank... yeah, but what else is new?!

Anyway, the pedal steel is here and there, kinda showing itself when I was least expecting it. There's a good amount of horn, too, in a bunch of songs. The pedal steel I can't explain but the horn gives a bit of a ska sound. Meanwhile, the overall sound reminds me somewhat of Barenaked Ladies and more so of They Might Be Giants... the lead singer here even kinda sounds like the lead singer for TMBG. Another someone to compare this to might be Beck, but I haven't heard much of him. Just seems there's a quirky quality here that feels like it would be Beck-ish.

Lyrically funky might also be a way to describe this. Supposedly their previous albums would fit that description even more, so I'm lookin' forward to checking those out one of these days.

Unfortunately there's not a whole lot that's rockin' here. It's not mellow, per say, just on a nice calm beat through pretty much every tune. And for some reason I bet this would be great background music for an off-campus party at college. Yeah... I can picture that clear as day considering the places I lived back in Salt Lake City. This has nothing to do with the music here but it was so amazing how us non-Mormon out-of-staters seemed to always to drift to more non-Mormon out-of-staters. Man, that made for some wild times and wild parties in a place so well-known for the prim and proper Book of Mormon thumpers.

This music would have fit right in to, oh, any number of the keg parties we had once it was bye bye dorms. Whole 'nother topic!!! (And one I'd have a very difficult time recalling much of anything specifically!)

find a dload @ Musiteka

320 kbps mp3 download

"Never There" - Late Show with David Letterman, 1999

It Must Have Been The Rose Palace

After a beautifully mellow 12 hour shift at work, I almost went out tonight. Oh so close I was. My shift partner, Gabe, an Alaska native and former Army medic, a guy who's been whale fishing with a spear(!), said pitchers were on him. Problem there is I know he drinks Old Style... or some putrid crap like that. One of my flaws just might be my beer snobbery; I wouldn't let a mule dying of thirst drink disgusting piss like that. No, sir.

So home I came, or more specifically, this house I live in for home isn't Alaska for me, no, sir. I'm not sure where home is anymore. New York? New Jersey? New Hampshire? Not New Mexico but it seemed like the "New" state theme had to be continued there. What is it with me and "New" states -- born in one, grew up in another, have close ties to yet one more... and I've been to and loved New Mexico, maybe I'll go ski Taos there someday. Is that all of the "New" states? Hmmm... I think so.

Anyway, I kind of run with the thinking that home is where the heart is. And if that's true then I'm not sure where home is. I know where my bed is, where my dog is, where my Dead is... but that's not home. This place I do love but... it's somewhere else I need to be eventually. Great people here, good job, I've loved it... but it's somewhere else I need to be eventually.

Hey, ya know what, enough o' this mindless rambling... I worked, I'm relaxing, and I'm in a Dead state of mind...

Grateful Dead - March 22, 1969 Rose Palace, Pasadena, California Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Jethro Tull were also on the bill

Good Morning Little Schoolgirl,
Dark Star-» St. Stephen-» The Eleven-»
Turn On Your Lovelight

What stands out about this? It's the Grateful Dead in 1969, does it need to have something that stands out to be worth listening to? Hell no. Or look at it this way: the whole thing stands out because it's 1969 Dead. Just a great 50 minutes of music from first note to last. It's not flawless, unfortunately. St. Stephen cuts at some point not giving us what's surely another beautiful transition into The Eleven but oh well. And Lovelight fades out just after 12 minutes but again, oh well. The Dead were the middle band on the bill and it's unknown if this is their entire set for the night or if there was more somewhere in there (after Schoolgirl.) Still, this music is some of the best this band ever made! Definitely worth it!!

Source: Soundboard Master Cassette> Cassette> DAT> CD> SHN

Sound Quality: aside from a cut & a fade -- A to A+

3/22/69 Pasadena Listen @ Archive.org -or- Download It Right Here GD 3/22/69 Pasadena

3-22-69 aka 03-22-69 aka 3/22/69 aka 03/22/69 aka 69-03-22 setlist 320 kbps mp3 SBD download

	«------Handbill & Newspaper Ad (click either one to see bigger)

Reading, Writing, The World ... Who Gives a Crap

Why do so many key question words in English start with W? Who drank my last beer? When are we going to hijack the International Space Station? What do you think you're doing with that flame thrower? When was the last time I had sex with a goat?!?

Now that I've been sufficiently sidetracked... where was I? Ah yes, where did an entire day go? I went for a run Sunday night... had Monday off from work and now it's Tuesday morning. But where did Monday go? I slept. I read a little... I think a lot, actually. But what else? It's just all a haze and with no drugs or alcohol involved. "Crappy" day it was, I remember that. Drizzly, overcast, no blue sky so certainly no sun, mid-50's all day, maybe just barely getting over 60 (or about 16 celsius.) I wanted to go flying but the weather doomed that. I thought of taking some tunes hiking but for some reason I just never mustered up the enthusiasm to lace up the boots and go. Just a day with nothing incredibly remarkable.

Ahhh but I guess for the new generation of dillweeds, I mean kids, that's no big deal. Now I like kids just fine, no problems. If they disrespect me, I punch 'em... kidding, I'm kidding! I get along with kids without much of a problem at all but what I'm getting at is -- I knew there was a reason I generally hate technology: kids nowadays are getting pathetically stoopid because of it.

There's a recent book out called:
The Dumbest Generation: How The Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans And Threatens Our Future

and the dude who wrote it I saw on the FOX NEWS CHANNEL this morning. In the discussion he pointed out many of the ideas in his book (which can be seen at Boston.com) including the fact that kids, in general, are less interested in the world and even America and basically everything outside of their immediate realities. They don't give a crap about John Steinbeck, Benjamin Franklin, or the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. And why should they give a crap about what's happening in Zimbabwe or the problems with Communist Cuba and human rights abuses there or the asswipe "government" that's keeping millions of people suffering in Burma.

This ignorance amongst kids right now isn't just common, it's a valid way of living for these little twits.

IMing is a way of life for so many kids that they can't spell properly. For homework and email they have spellchecker which doesn't do much to help people learn the proper spelling of words they mess up.

Being an intellectual and expressing real Deep Thoughts as well as rock solid opinion, that's lame for them. I'll admit, sometimes I don't like putting too much thought into things, I just wanna keep it light and loosely organized and very informal ... but holy crap, Jack, to not only appear like a dunce but actually be a dunce, also... that's okay?!

And then there's things like Grand Theft Auto IV (a wicked popular video game) which only exacerbate the idiot factor which is backed up by lower grades in schools and more kids in remedial reading and writing classes.

Kids now also merely retrieve information from the internet when they have to write a paper and/or do their homework. They're not going through the motions to read and actually learn; just grab the info and use it. Done. Very little is retained when you're just taking information and not actually putting it into your head to make you a more well-rounded human being.

Now what does me despising technology have to do with this? Nothing really. I just knew all of this stuff is not a good thing for American society. The corporations and their marketing machines keep shoving it our faces like we're the damn morons if we don't take part in all of this. We've got money, this is what we should be spending it on. Duh.

Oh no, I don't have an iphone, what the hell is wrong with me? You don't have a Nintendo Wii? You've never played Grand Theft Auto? Nope, nope, nope and I've also never gotten driving directions from a damn GPS unit, and if I wanna rent a movie, I'm gonna go and interact with people there IN the store, and on my phone plugged into the wall I'm going to dial up the pizza place to order a pizza, not do it all mechanically online. And I'm going to go to the post office to get done what I need to do at the post office, again, no online bullshit. What's wrong with people?!?! Why does everyone want to become a dunce cap wearing dillhole only concerned about what Simon said about the most popular singer on American Idol?

Okay, now I'm really ranting, or I should say I'm done really ranting. I just don't get the "need" to have all this technology nor do I understand why it's accepted far and wide as what is right... when it's clearly wrong.

Yes, I will agree and add that technology is good for society (or for certain individuals) in some ways. Having a cell phone could probably be a nice thing stranded on the side of the road at 2 a.m. with a flat tire or something. Maybe it'll help a contractor with his business when he's on a work site. Technology aids me as an EMT sometimes when I'm providing medical care for a patient. But too many can't stop there... it's got to be a HUGE part of their everyday lives (much more than blogging & sharing Dead shows via mp3) ... and that is clearly dumbing down America. We already had a problem with people who aren't too bright because schools fail them, now we're experiencing the beginning of people who won't be very bright when they should be but technology has failed them.

From the book's website: "The technology that was supposed to make young adults more astute, diversify their tastes, and improve their minds had the opposite effect."

What is that going to mean for America The Beautiful as she faces the future? We, as a nation, are producing more janitors than intelligent, caring people. Not only is that bad for this great country but with less people looking outward at what needs to be fixed in far off lands, this is bad for the world. The United States is the most generous there is... but what about in the future when these kids now are mostly concerned about themselves while not even knowing what continent Zimbabwe is on?

Hmmm... and now as I'm about to go for a run before work at 9, I wonder how all the technology that's ruining this country is also playing into obesity in America. "Why play football when I can kill people playing video games?" "Why go for a hike when I can spend the next 12 hours IMing my friends?" Etc, etc, etc. Hey, want a bag or two of Doritos for while you're sitting around on your ass getting fatter as each hour goes by?

Thanks a lot, Al Gore. See what you've done?!

52° and light drizzly rain at 7:35 am

Tuesday Before Work Run: 21 minutes 35 sec

+6 sec

XXXXXXXXXXXX ·June - 41 sec· XXXXXXXXXX

Run Time June: 1 hour 25 minutes May: 4 hours 46 minutes April: 3 hours 55 minutes

4th run in 10 days = still bad.

There's something quite relaxing about running in a light drizzle and needing a long-sleeve shirt for the chillier temperature. This morning on the trail was a breeze, for the most part. The cooler weather really made it clear that when it's warmer, it's tougher to run because more energy gets used... or sucked out of me? I'm not sure which it is. Seems like more energy would get used when it's colder because, even with the heat the action of running produces, the body needs to work to stay warm. Hmm... but when it's warmer, it feel like I'm using, by the end of the run, twice as much energy and I'm twice as tired immediately after slowing down from that pace. I'll have to look into that. Alls I know is I finished my run with very little difficulty whatsoever. I had made up my mind to add a minimum of 8 seconds a run? Was it 8? Or 10-12? Maybe the latter. Didn't happen today. My first playlist didn't pan out for a good time and my 2nd playlist didn't pan out and I didn't want to spend a lot of time on that so I went with the closest I could get which was this measly 6 additional seconds. Ahhh well, better than nothing.

I'm still not thrilled with this less than 50% frequency but hopefully I crank that up a notch or two. Frankly I don't care if I run at 50% or not, so long as I make my End of The Month Goal. (But running at 50% will make me feel a lot better about being able to hit that 5 hour mark for June.)

Running tunes came from this album o' the day...
	Hunters & Collectors The Jaws Of Life 1984

42 Wheels
Holding Down To a D
The Way To Go Out
I Couldn't Give It To You
It's Early Days Yet
I Believe
Betty's Worry or The Slab
Hayley's Doorstep
Red Lane
Carry Me
Little Chalkie
Towtruck
Droptank
Mouthtrap
Lumps of Lead

'84 was a great year for tunes. Examples? None. Except this right here and now. The whole post-punk movement in the early 80's brought to light the excellence of many bands including The Cure, The Smiths, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Church, INXS, Midnight Oil and just a buttload of others. While not as famous worldwide as all of those, Hunters & Collectors would definitely be on the expanded list.

Awhile back I listened to The Poor, another Aussie pub-rockin' band from primarily the early 80's and they were like AC/DC rock while Hunters & Collectors is clearly in another category. This I knew beforehand -- Hunters & Collectors had one single (Where The River Runs Dry) popular in the U.S. almost 20 years ago. That song I still have on a mix tape made from the great Salt Lake City "alternative" radio station, KJQ.

Apparently this album marked a change for this band. Prior to this they'd been more prog rock. I haven't heard their earlier albums so I can't compare but knowing that I'd say in a song or three there are a few influences from that present here. Predominantly this is straight ahead rock with a distinct sound that make this their own. Definitely a great way to start a new direction.

find a dload @ Ausrock

Viva la vida or death and all his friends 320 kbps mp3 download

"Betty's Worry or The Slab" - Live, 1984

The Cure for good health could involve The Cure

After work tonight I was kinda stoked, yeah, stoked, to go out and have a couple pints, no more than that as I'd probably still have to drive the rest of the way home. I'd hit the local watering hole that many of the EMTs in town like stop in after their shift is done at 9. Then I remembered it's Sunday. Fairbanks is strange on Sunday nights -- like partially a ghost town. This is less true as the summer tourist season really starts going in a week or so but right now and on so so many Sunday nights -- snooze-o-rama. Whatever. Mmmm, but I was so craving a pint o' Guinness. I just didn't feel like sitting in a bar with 4 other people. This sure ain't Manhattan! Hell, it ain't even Manhattan, Kansas!

On the plus side, when I sat back down here and checked my email, there was some great stuff (understatement!) waiting for me, a few items I was so happy to see (understatement!) Click, read, whoa. Just whoa (understatement!) Going back to read a second time -- I was completely unable to sit through it... again. I had to stop and get up, short walk down the hall and back, twice now, mid-sentence.

If anyone actually read that paragraph, it means nothing to you unless you're the person who wrote me in which case --

Speechlessness can be such an interesting thing sometimes, can't it? Especially when it's related to matters that are only good. Man, oh my, sure helps make life interesting. Turns of events that are completely unexpected -- I wouldn't want to live without them!

Alright, time to save this and take my post-pints of Guinness run... except seein' as how I didn't actually indulge this evening, I'm just gonna have myself a nice run... probably exponentially nice on this night!

65° at 9:45 pm, partially blue sky amongst the clouds but mellow & way, way warm!

Sunday Nite After Work Run: 21 minutes 29 sec

+7 sec

XXXXXXXXXX ·seconds in June: 06· XXXXXXXXXX

Run Time June: 1 hour 4 minutes May: 4 hours 46 minutes April: 3 hours 55 minutes

3rd run in 8 days = still bad.

Okay, so it's not bad but it's not good enough.

The warmth in the air is something I'm having to adjust to. It's not bad but it's wearing me down a LOT more than 40 or 50 degrees. Still I was able to keep on truckin' to my End Cue, made it huffing and puffing a little bit but my determination was there so that's a good thing. Quit is ALWAYS a thought... but does it happen a lot or a little? A little = a very good thing and tonight was only a little. Body feels fine afterwards and I'll make sure tomorrow to see how I am the day after. Seems that's always when problems pop up. We shall see. I don't anticipate any... just sayin'.

Goal for June -- 5 hours. I've most definitely got to pick up the frequency of outings if I'm going to accomplish that. And if I don't succeed in that goal? The world will have to come to an end.

For tonight again I added 7 seconds. That's the way the music playlist shook out and that's about what I wanted. I'm gonna seriously start to think about adding more time from now on. Maybe 8-12 every time... no less than that. I'd really like to start moving a little quicker from one minute level on up to another. Of course I could probably do that in just a run or two... but I'm still gonna take it a little bit easy... just not so seemingly wimpy as I had been.

Running Tunes from my Album Of The Night...
	The Cure (self-titled) 2004

320 kbps
	The Cure: self-titled 2004 ... Part One The Cure: self-titled ... Part 2

Lost

Labyrinth

Before Three

The End Of The World

Anniversary

Us Or Them

alt.end

(I Don't Know What's Going) On

Taking Off

Never

The Promise

Twas many a moon ago when The Cure was absolutely one of my favorite bands. Saw 'em three times, the last being at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, summer of 1996. In the second half of '95 I had left SLC and moved to Missoula, Montana but when I heard The Cure was coming around (not to Montana) I decided to set up some plans to visit Utah again and see the show with my best friend Chris (plus some others.) "Wick" and I had seen The Cure together on two previous tours, back in NJ at Giants Stadium in summer 1989 (first North American show on the Prayer Tour) and at Nassau Coliseum in summer 1992 (final North American show on the Wish Tour... first and final shows, interesting how that worked out.)

GREAT concerts, all three of 'em! '89 was probably the best -- Love & Rockets and The Pixies opened. So sweet! '92 was supposed to be at a park in Queens, New York City but was changed to Nassau out on the island. We had been down at the shore essentially all summer but to drive back up for that show, that was on the schedule with tickets bought as soon as they went on sale. No Flushing Meadows (the park in Queens,) had to drive out onto the damn island (somewhat of a hassle but no biggie) but still a great show! And in 95, I didn't know the new [Wild Mood Swings] album as well as I did their past albums but still not bad, a powerful kick-ass fun fucking show!

My interest since then has waned, to say the least. This past 18 months or so has had my Cure intake at an all-time low. Even when I was seeing the Grateful Dead and Jerry Band quite regularly I listened to The Cure kind of often. Not lately. My mistake.

It may have been released like 4 years ago but this album is essentially brand new to me. Spinning it a bunch of times over the past few days has been a fucking pleasure. Took out for a run and listening again now and I'm almost kicking myself for not keeping up with this band. It's really no big deal as my primary musical interest is in something else completely different... but variety is nice and in musical past, The Cure has always been high up on the list.

Not the same Cure lineup as in the past but classic Cure shows itself in many of these songs. Still also present, and perhaps even more so than on Wild Mood Swing and Wish and Disintegration (I haven't heard Bloodflowers,) is a lot of loud guitar and a pretty heavy sound that is a million miles away from Killing An Arab!

I was skeptical what kind music the "new" Cure would make and if an aging Robert Smith still had it in him to make a killer album. At least in 2004 the answer is yes. And supposedly a new album is on the way, in September and the 2nd single is to be released in a few days. Perhaps I've got some renewed interest in The Cure now. Cool.

Yes, I'm still a hippie down beneath it all but hey, we like what we like and I happen to really dig the music of The Cure!

video for "The End Of The World"

"T'aint no reason not to mutter so mutter I shall" --Zooomabooma

Flip flops are bad for your feet and body. I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!! Not that I wish pain on people but I knew there was a good reason why I haven't worn (since I was about 6) the stupidest sandals EVER.

Q: What do you have against flip-flops?

A: I think they're stoopid and ugly. But of course if people really like them, and many do, that's fine. I'm not criticizing people, I'm criticizing an object... or I guess two objects but as a pair they're one object but anyway, then again, if you do wear them, then maybe you do deserve to be criticized for not caring about your health as much as you probably should. Just something to ponder.

Me, I'll stick to my non-flip-flips footwear, thanks. Or barefoot! Unfortunately it's a little freakin' cold for that here. In the late-spring and summer, not really cold, sometimes at night, just not warm enough. Man. That's just one of the many reasons I need to say Bye Bye, Alaska. I'll visit you again someday but you're just not fully doin' it for me. Which is almost crazy considering the AMAZING mountains here... and the immense wilderness and the beautiful lack of starbucks and stoopid big box stores and car dealerships and fast food joints every 80 feet not to mention zombies walking around on cell phones everywhere you look. What great country this is... but part of me just needs to go where I can be barefoot more often, where I can enjoy My Summer Self, my non-flip-flops beach bum kind of self... not my needing socks 300 days a year self. That just bites.

Anyway, before I head off to work in a half hour...

how about some mutterings? That is, after all, the point to this post.

It's fascinating how early so many people do this meme each Saturday night/Sunday morning. I wonder what the rush is. If you post early, you can get lots of people checking yours out. If you post later, like now, maybe 2 or 3... not that I necessarily want many people to stop here and see what I've put up... that's fine. I just like doing it and don't get the urgency.

Then again, there's so much I don't get in this world... like why Socialized healthcare is considered okay... or flip-flops.

Unconscious Mutterings

a free association game -- I say... and you think ... ?

1. Rambling :: Rose ... movie with Laura Dern and Robert Duvall. Was on like a night or two ago. I've never seen it. Hopefully someday.

2. Magnetic :: Field ... there's a band from the 90's called The Magnetic Fields. I've never heard 'em. Maybe someday.

3. Again! :: [no comment. pass. O.]

4. Acoustic :: Jerry Garcia ... and David Grisman

5. Mahogany :: wood, possibly very expensive, I hope lots of people use mahogany in building/renovating their homes nowadays because spending money for things that look nice is always more important than helping those in need in the world, particularly the children who will die while I type this post simply because they don't have sufficient food to eat. We don't die of starvation in America and other civilized nations... so wouldn't it be right to care more about those who do?

www.bread.org

6. Promises :: made, hopefully kept

7. Ill fitting :: a belly shirt on Homer Simpson

8. Sublime :: a band ... and they've covered the Grateful Dead

9. Poop :: seriously?!

10. Disoriented :: me after that last word

Jerry Garcia & David Grisman
"Friend of the Devil"
September 15, 1993 - Late Show with David Letterman

"T'aint the tunes, it's the 'tude" --Robert Hunter

No, there haven't been many GD or related shows added here lately. Eh... I've already added plenty, haven't I? Some people express their gratitude and I appreciate that and to those people I say thank you and you're welcome! But all the others who download without leaving comments -- man, I gotta tell ya, just doesn't do much to encourage someone to keep posting. Whatever. So maybe I'll get around to a show now and again but on a regular basis? I'm not so sure that'll ever start up again. The few who comment make it fun... but the many who don't really ruin it.

But for everyone who digs these tunes and appreciates that they're shared here for you, hopefully you'll like this show. If not then stay tuned, I might get around to something else in a few days.

Robert Hunter April 30, 2002 House Of Blues Chicago, Illinois

1st Set

Man Of Constant Sorrow, John Silver, Jack Straw,
Shelter From The Storm, Dry Dusty Road,
Yellow Moon-> Over The Hills, Deal,
Aim At The Heart, Brokedown Palace, Ship Of Fools

2nd Set
Bertha, Keys To The Rain-> La Bamba-> Keys To The Rain,
Tiger Rose, Malagueña Salerosa, It Must Have Been The Roses,
Hill and Gully Run, Mountains of The Moon, Promontory Rider

Encore
Into The Blue, Ripple, Boys In The Barroom

from Robert Hunter's Journal, April 30, 2002:

Tonight's show will be a test of sorts (aren't they all?) digging deep into the repertoire bag to provide an all new selection of tunes, other than "Out of the Blue" & my take on "Ripple" without which no show of mine would be complete. Over the years it remains my favorite of my co-creations. First time I can remember doing three nights in a row at the same place. Six hours of music. Whew! Fingers and voice holding up well due to hard rehearsal since last September. T'aint the tunes, it's the 'tude. Stop on by tonight if you're in town, but give a call first just in case.

When you're having technical issues and the show is supposed to start, what do you do? Why not treat the fans to a couple songs done a capella? Good idea! And why not make one of those two selections something done for the first time ever plus one from wayyy deep down in the bag, something also never done, sort of... something many Hunter fans don't even know, and something even fewer Grateful Dead fans know? Sure, why not!

As Tomie (Hunter's tech guy) gets things readied for a proper start to the show, Robert launches into an a capella version of the traditional folk song Man Of Constant Sorrow. Hmmm, I wonder why he chose this song. In the year prior to this show, the tune became widely known in America all thanks to the very popular film, Oscar-nominated film O Brother, Where Art Thou? starring George Clooney. Plus a few days before this last night at HOB Chicago, the 74th Academy Awards took place and Robert mentions seeing it. Mystery of why solved.

A tremendously rare tune came next with John Silver. Much like Terrapin Station is actually a song within the Terrapin Station suite, John Silver is part of the Eagle Mall suite that Hunter wrote a long, long time ago, in the late 60's he mentions in his book Box of Rain. Hunter broke out Eagle Mall for a very short while in February 1980 and this is perhaps the first time (and maybe the only time?!) John Silver has been "played" on it's own. Due to the technical problem when the first set was to begin, these couple of songs were quite possibly completely impromptu. No matter if they were or not, for devotees of Hunter's entire catalog of music, this is a treat.

In the past, well, specifically in the 1997 Albany show I have listened to, Jack Straw has been a fun quick tune with harmonica added for good measure. Here Robert slows it down and lengthens it, strips away the harmonica and the faster pace, essentially turning it into a ballad. A new arrangement for the song and while I'm not sure which version I like better, it's definitely interesting and according Robert himself, one which he was perfectly pleased with. The following Shelter From The Storm would have made Dylan proud, without a doubt. Just gorgeous and you can really feel Robert putting his whole self into this performance.

Off of Hunter's 1974 debut solo album, Dry Dusty Road picks up the pace and afterwards we get a mention of some guy named Garcia. Not a big story but still it's great to hear Hunter interact with the crowd during much of the show.

By just a hair, Deal was probably the crowd-favorite of the 1st Set while two nice GD ballads closed out the set.

As the second set got underway, Robert must have fully had the ballad theme in his head because Bertha here is not what one usually knows Bertha to be! Normally when this song kicks off a set, the kids they dance and shake their bones and everyone in the house is so happy to be alive!! Here in this house on this night, it's quite a bit different. Some really nice emotion gets poured into it but this is not a dancin' Bertha, this is a Bertha ballad and... pretty interesting.

Tiger Rose picks everyone up and listening really closely one should be able to pick out a little Jerry Garcia in the middle... sort of. Hunter, for just a brief 15 or 20 seconds, does a nice bit of Elizabeth Cotton's Oh Babe, It Ain't No Lie.

Unfortunately one guy in the House Of Blues didn't appreciate Robert's song selection as much as, well, probably everyone else. One of his outbursts of "PLAY SOMETHING GOOD" even caused a song -- Malagueña Salerosa -- to come to a grinding halt. His response to the heckler and the crowd's response to Robert's response -- priceless.

There were and are people who don't necessarily (or at all) dig Hunter's music even though they are thoroughly into the Grateful Dead. They love, for the most part, Hunter's words but their opinion is -- Jerry Only, Please. I hate to criticize what people like and dislike when it comes to music but my first reaction is -- that's a shame. To me, there's just something so very special about hearing the songs we love actually played by the man who wrote the words! And then when it comes to Hunter's shows, he, like the Dead, doesn't only play Grateful Dead music alone. He's an artist and while he was the Dead's primary lyricist for so many years, he also felt the desire to add some other stuff to his solo repertoire. Some don't care for all of it, some don't care for some of it... but others truly love the music Robert Hunter plays and they support him and appreciate him... and they sure as hell let that heckler know it!! "Those of you who don't like me, don't come out," Robert said. The crowd noise was unfortunately quite loud but he adds something along the lines of -- "there are plenty of people like what I do" ... and the crowd kept screaming. If that person stayed in the room after that, man, he sure got an earful from people who appreciated Robert being there doing what he loved!

The show finished out just fine after that, with Hunter's take on Mountains Of The Moon and his Promontory Rider being a couple favorites... plus the encores, of course.

Overall a nice show... it doesn't have many incredible highs for me but I can say this -- seeing Robert Hunter, spectacular show or not, is a treat and a half and I would have been so happy to have been there. Three shows in Chicago was something special for him as it's not something he did that often... if ever at all, not even in San Francisco.

from Robert Hunter's Journal, the next day, May 1, 2002:

Last night's gig, 3rd night at HOB, was definitely the capper. The guitar remote didn't see fit to function so I opened with ten minutes or so a capella, Man of Constant Sorrow and John Silver (from Eagle Mall) while O'Neil scrambled to fix it, finally plugging me in with the cord. Followed with about the best feeling Jack Straw I've ever managed, down at a slow crawl tempo which allowed the emotional development of the tune to manifest. Followed that with a "Shelter From the Storm" that had me muckin' through Dylan's murky terrain towards salvation 'til I felt the sting of the driving rain on my face. Then I started pulling stuff out of the old song bag: Tiger Rose, Keys to the Rain, Dry Dusty Road, Yellow Moon, Over the. Hills - on and on. Those songs wanted to be played, had missed me doing them, and they stood up and did tricks for me. I left the stage floating on air right back to the hotel room, hit the sack and was lucky I arranged for a 9 O'clock wake up call to get to the airport in time for a 1:15 flight to Philly. Airport was a breeze. The lady at the check-in counter recognized my name and I autographed a boarding pass for her. A sweet moment in often forbidding O'Hare.

Thank You, Robert!!!

Source: Neuman KM-140 mics> DAT> WAV> SHN

Sound Quality: music = A+
but in between songs there's loud crowd noise,
and it's sometimes difficult to hear Robert talk

Taper: Tomie O'Neil, Hunter's tech guy

Download The Show Right Here

4/30/02 Robert Hunter - House of Blues, Chicago

Part II - Robert Hunter 4/30/02

4/30/02 Robert Hunter - Part Three

4-30-02 aka 04-30-02 aka 4/30/02 aka 04/30/02 aka 02-04-30 download 320 kbps setlist