Hermitage Piano Trio

This was our last chamber music concert of the season and we had a surprise. It was an amazing performance especially when we learned that this group was a last minute fill in for the original string quartet that had illness issues and could not make it to Buffalo for the concert. The Hermitage Piano Trio, who are scheduled for next season, agreed to come to town and perform. The piano player had to fly in from Europe and arrived earlier today.

They performed a wonderful concert with a Russian feel. We enjoyed every moment and glad they were able to come to town and perform for us.

Got home in time to catch the end of the Sixers game... another amazing performance.

Don't Lose Control - Late Night FV

It's late night. Don't lose control. At least not on the dance floor. We know what that's like and I'm watching from the sound booth. I'm gonna play something next even more wild.

Sound booth memories.

Don't Lose Control - Late Night FV

1. Don’t Lose Control – Material, 1982
2. Big Business – David Byrne, 1981
3. The Space Between – Roxy Music, 1982
4. Telegraph – Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, 1983
5. A Forest – The Cure, 1980
6. Anyone Out There – Duran Duran, 1981
7. I Ran – A Flock of Seagulls, 1982
8. Hide and Seek – Martha & The Muffins, 1980
9. Masquerade – Berlin, 1983
10. Cambodia – Kim Wilde, 1982
11. Fireball – Alan Vega, 1980
12. A Song from Under the Floorboards – Magazine, 1980
13. I Zimbra – Talking Heads, 1979
14. Bloodsport – Killing Joke, 1980
15. Masoko Tanga – The Police, 1978
16. Concrete Jungle – The Specials, 1979
17. Papa’s Got a Brand New Pigbag – Pigbag, 1982
18. Helicopter – XTC, 1979
19. Precious – Pretenders, 1980
20. Trains, The Vapors, 1980
21. She Blinded Me with Science – Thomas Dolby, 1982
22. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. – A-Ha, 1985

A Summer Day in April

April 29th and it really felt like summer today. There's not usually any summer weather in April in Buffalo but today was different. The temperature was in the low 80's. We couldn't sit in our backyard sunroom because it got to 94 degrees in there. I was working out in the backyard and broke into a sweat. I was wearing a t-shirt.

We got a lot done in the garden today. We went for a walk too and we saw lots of flowering trees all over the neighborhood. It was also nice that although this spectacular day was a Monday we can enjoy every moment of it. I never thought for a moment about going to work but I did see some folks come home from work and try to get some garden work done. It's so nice to be retired.

Getting Mighty Crowded - Late Night FV

It's late at night and it's getting mighty crowded in the bar and on the dance floor. The mix starts off with Elvis Costello covering a Betty Everett song from 1964 and then gets going through a set of 80's New Wave. This mix is based on sets of songs I played at the Pastime Lounge during those years.

Some of these songs got a little overplayed at the time but I guess you had to be there. Kids in America indeed.

Getting Mighty Crowded - Late Night FV

1. Getting Mighty Crowded – Elvis Costello & The Attractions, 1980
2. Heart of the City – Nick Lowe, 1978
3. Let’s Go – The Cars, 1979
4. Kids in America – Kim Wilde, 1981
5. Strobe Light – The B-52’s, 1980
6. On Your Radio – Joe Jackson, 1979
7. I Want Candy – Bow Wow Wow, 1982
8. Watusi Rodeo – Guadalcanal Diary, 1984
9. Video Babe – Alan Vega, 1983
10. Mexican Radio – Wall of Voodoo, 1982
11. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go – Wham!, 1984
12. The Safety Dance – Men Without Hats, 1983
13. Dance Hall Days – Wang Chung, 1984
14. Close to Me – The Cure, 1985
15. State Farm – Yaz, 1983
16. Genius of Love – Tom Tom Club, 1981
17. Chant No. 1 (I Don’t Need This Pressure On) – Spandau Ballet, 1982
18. Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick – Ian Dury & The Blockheads, 1978
19. Message in a Bottle – The Police, 1979
20. Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) – David Bowie, 1980
21. Play to Win – Heaven 17, 1981
22. We Move – Visage, 1982
23. Reap the Wild Wind – Ultravox, 1982
24. Kiss On My List – Hall & Oates, 1980
25. The Look of Love (Part One) – ABC, 1983

Fish & Chips @ Cafe 59

Becky and I decided to go out for dinner this evening. We usually go out on a Wednesday or Thursday and usually on Fridays if we were heading out to an art opening. On this Friday evening we considered several restaurants but settled on one of our go-to favorite restaurants for a very good but unfancy dinner... Cafe 59 on Allen Street. We got a favorite table by the window and enjoyed a very nice time.

I had their wonderful Fish & Chips and Becky had their Chicken Finger Wrap. I had a couple of beers on tap... a Witte wheat beer from Ommegang Brewery in Cooperstown NY and then I followed that up with a Energy Dome Red Ale from Rare Form Brewery in Troy NY.

Overall a very pleasant evening. The restaurant was busy and the service was outstanding as usual. I've never had a meal there that wasn't delicious.

Love and Loneliness - Late Night FV

A late night sometime in the 80's pondering love and loneliness while sitting in the bar where I am spinning the records. I would play the song from 10 pm until closing time at 4 am. That's a lot of love and loneliness... or it could also be a lot of serious dancing.

Love and Loneliness - Late Night FV

1. Love and Loneliness – The Motors, 1980
2. Tears Are Not Enough – ABC, 1983
3. There She Goes Again – Marshall Crenshaw, 1982
4. Always Something There to Remind Me – Naked Eyes, 1983
5. Beat Surrender – The Jam, 1982
6. It’s Going to Happen – The Undertones, 1981
7. Dear Jerry – Monks, 1979
8. Boys Don’t Cry – The Cure, 1980
9. Nobody’s Diary – Yaz, 1983
10. Dancing with Tears in My Eyes – Ultravox, 1984
11. Lies – The Thompson Twins, 1983
12. Only When You Leave – Spandau Ballet, 1984
13. One Thing Leads to Another – The Fixx, 1983
14. I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do) – Hall & Oates, 1981
15. Somebody’s Baby – Jackson Browne, 1982
16. Who Can It Be Now? – Men At Work, 1981
17. What I Like About You – The Romantics, 1980
18. China Girl – David Bowie, 1983
19. Girlfriend is Better – Talking Heads, 1983
20. Would I Lie To You? – Eurythmics, 1985
21. Talk Talk – Talk Talk,1982
22. What is Love? – Howard Jones, 1984
23. All in Al (This One Last Waltz) – Dexys Midnight Runners, 1982
24. Gotta Broken Heart Again – Prince, 1980

4 Years Ago Today - Injecting Bleach

The maga republicans like to ask the political campaign question about whether you were better off four years ago than you are today. They should just leave it alone because four years ago any time this year is always about the pandemic and the trump response to it or lack thereof.

Four years ago today was that crazy rant by trump about fight covid by injecting bleach into your body. Yep, the president of the US said that and it came to symbolize how trump handled the pandemic and certainly destroyed what little credibility he had left by then.

Here is what he said... "A question that probably some of you are thinking of if you’re totally into that world, which I find to be very interesting. So, supposing we hit the body with a tremendous, whether it’s ultraviolet or just very powerful light, and I think you said that hasn’t been checked, but you’re going to test it. And then I said supposing you brought the light inside the body, which you can do either through the skin or in some other way. And I think you said you’re going to test that too. Sounds interesting, right? And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute, one minute. And is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside or almost a cleaning, because you see it gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it’d be interesting to check that. So that you’re going to have to use medical doctors with, but it sounds interesting to me. So, we’ll see, but the whole concept of the light, the way it kills it in one minute. That’s pretty powerful."

The infamous bleach press conference became a rally cry for trump's opponents and today is the anniversary of that chaotic moment.

You Can't Do That - Covers FV

Another covers mix but this one has a little Beatles thing going on and starts out with five of them. A closer too. But there are also lots of other great songs from many different artists from mostly the same time period. An hour and a half fun mix and part of my Final Version series.

You Can't Do That - Covers FV

1. You Can’t Do That – Harry Nilsson (The Beatles)
2. She’s A Woman – Jeff Beck (The Beatles)
3. Savoy Truffle – Terry Manning (The Beatles)
4. Help – Deep Purple (The Beatles)
5. You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away – Oasis (The Beatles)
6. All Along The Watchtower – The Dream Syndicate (Bob Dylan)
7. Friend of the Devil – Mumford & Sons (Grateful Dead)
8. Lawyer, Guns and Money – The Wallflowers (Warren Zevon)
9. Mr. Soul – Matthew Sweet (Buffalo Springfield)
10. L.A. Woman – Billy Idol (The Doors)
11. Baby It’s You – The Internationale (The Shirelles)
12. Little Bit O’ Soul – The Ramones (The Music Explosion)
13. Carrie-Anne – Ali Campbell (The Hollies)
14. Maggie’s Farm – The Specials (Bob Dylan)
15. Cupid – Amy Winehouse (Sam Cooke)
16. Lola – The Raincoats (The Kinks)
17. Shapes of Things – David Bowie (The Yardbirds)
18. Eight Miles High – Myracle Brah (The Byrds)
19. America – Yes (Simon & Garfunkel)
20. Inner City Blues – The Asteroids Galaxy Tour (Marvin Gaye)
21. A Day in the Life – Easy Star All-Stars (The Beatles)

Recycling Eclipse Glasses

Last week I read somewhere that there was a recycling program for gently used eclipse glasses run by the non-profit organization Astronomers Without Borders which re-distributes the glasses around the world during solar eclipses. They sponsor drop-off locations that collect the glasses and I saw that the public libraries in Buffalo were a drop-off location. 

I collected the eclipse glasses we used during the recent solar eclipse in our backyard with Sara, Eliza and Dan. I had four pair of the cardboard glasses I picked up at the library and Sara had four of the big plastic glasses she bought in anticipation of the eclipse. After the event had passed and I heard about the recycling I found six glasses around the house. Three plastic glasses and three of the ones from the library. I think Eliza kept a set for herself to take home which was fine. The others I put in a bag and set aside to take to the library.

Well, a week or so went by and the glasses sat in their bag first on the dining room table and then on the floor near the front door. Finally I grabbed the bag and put it in the car when I went out to my eye doctor appointment. After seeing the doctor I turned down Hertel Avenue and drove over to the North Park Library and dropped off the glasses. The staff there were happy to receive them and I was glad to put them to good use. They will be used in some Third World poor country during another eclipse where the people may not have access to the glasses like we have here in our country. They would just sit in a box for who knows how long if we kept them or we would just throw them away. Now someone else somewhere in the world will get to safely experience that solar eclipse totality like we did.

Eye Doctor Again

This afternoon I had another appointment with an eye doctor. This time it was my regular doctor and not the cataract surgeon but it was a post-op follow-up visit. Everything went well. About three weeks ago I had another appointment at Ross Eye to check my eyes for glaucoma and had some tests done by a technician. They also did some tests on my vision which was 20/20 without glasses. Part of my visit today was to go over the results of the test with Dr. McGraw. 

So everything went well. She reviewed the test from last month and every thing was good. There were no increases in the potential glaucoma problem from the previous test results last year. She also checked out my eyes from the recent cataract surgery and everything was good. Then she also did a regular eye exam and my eyes were very good. She said I had outstanding results from the surgery.

I talked with her about some of the issues I had with using reading glasses and it was unusual for someone my age to not have reading glasses prior to cataract surgery and she assured me I would adjust and get used to the new need for reading glasses. We also talked about using mid-range glasses for computer work. She gave me a script for both reading and computer glasses but it would be best for me to try over-the-counter glasses first which I have started using. She gave me some numbers for the glasses I should try out.

I made an appointment to see her again in six months. At that time I may not need to use the glaucoma prevention eye drops anymore. That would be nice. Overall she said I was doing very well.

Zios for Dinner

When Sean and Ashley were getting close to Buffalo on Friday Sean texted me asking about our plans for dinner. I suggested we get some take out food and asked any ideas. I got a response back... Zios! We had the menu out when they arrived later.

We ordered five sandwiches and the food was wonderful as usual. Their sandwiches are always delicious and well made.

The sandwiches this time... Rocco, Luther, Zio, Bro and Nana.

Becky put together a salad too.

Long Hot Summer - Late Night FV

It was a long hot summer and I played these songs every week in the sound booth of that artists hangout dive bar. It was a lot of fun and I really do miss doing that sometimes. 

Long Hot Summer - Late Night FV

1. Long Hot Summer – The Style Council, 1981
2. Come Live With Me – Heaven 17, 1983
3. Everything She Wants – Wham!, 1984
4. White Wedding (Part I) – Billy Idol, 1982
5. Don’t You Want Me – The Human League,
6. Burning Up – Madonna, 1983
7. Erotic City – Prince, 1984
8. Original Sin – INXS, 1984
9. Poison Arrow – ABC, 1983
10. Collapsing New People – Fad Gadget, 1984
11. Hungry Like a Wolf – Duran Duran, 1982
12. Talking in Your Sleep – The Romantics, 1983
13. I Don’t Wanna Dance – Split Enz, 1981
14. Only You – Yaz, 1982
15. People Are People – Depeche Mode, 1984
16. Haunted When the Minutes Drag – Love & Rockets, 1985
17. Why? – Bronski Beat, 1984
18. Take a Chance – Material, 1982
19. Come Out and Dance – Martha & The Muffins, 1984
20. Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin) – Scritti Politti, 1985

101 Magazines

Over the course of my adult life and delivered to the various addresses I've lived at over the last 50 some years Becky and I have had subscriptions to 101 magazines. Some of the were very brief and some we had for many years. Some were gifts that we didn't renew and others were for our children. We had subscriptions to magazines about music, art, politics, librarianship, computers, sports, films, cooking, home and gardens, economics, entertainment, etc, and etc.

So I'm going to break them down into manageable groups, make some lists and write about those magazines. I came up with the initial list by going to Wikipedia. First I did a search on the List of United States magazines which they broke down by categories such as entertainment and art, finance, children, lifestyle, music, sports, politics, computing, etc. Then I looked at the list of defunct American magazines. From these lists I came up with my personal list of magazines we had subscriptions to over the years and decades. I wrote them down in my notebook and added them up... 101 magazines.

Everybody Knows - Covers FV

Everybody knows this is another mix of cover songs from my Final Version series.

Everybody Knows - Covers FV

1. Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere – Ida (Neil Young)
2. Only Love Can Break Your Heart – Rickie Lee Jones (Neil Young)
3. Landslide – Antony & The Johnsons (Fleetwood Mac)
4. Wild Horses – Buddy Miller & Shawn Colvin (The Rolling Stones)
5. I Started a Joke – Kathryn Williams (Bee Gees)
6. Hurt – Johnny Cash (Nine Inch Nails)
7. Sour Times – The Civil Wars (Portishead)
8. Fearless – Mary Lou Lord (Pink Floyd)
9. Waves of Mutilation – Grant Lee Phillips (Pixies)
10. All Tomorrow’s Parties – June Tabor & The Oyster Band (The Velvet Underground)
11. Is That All There Is? – Cristina (Peggy Lee)
12. Speed to the Sound of Loneliness – Alabama 3 (John Prine)
13. Love Will Tear Us Apart – Nouvelle Vague (Joy Division)
14. It’s Too Late – Angie Stone (Carole King)
15. When Will I See You Again – Billy Bragg (The Three Degrees)
16. If You Could Read My Mind – Henry Jamison (Gordon Lightfoot)
17. Satellite of Love – Joseph Arthur (Lou Reed)
18. By The Time I Get To Phoenix – Nick Cave (Glen Campbell)
19. What Is Love? – Duncan Sheik (Howard Jones)
20. Once in a Very Blue Moon – Mary Black (Nanci Griffith)
21. Streets of Baltimore – The Little Willies (The Flying Burrito Brothers)
22. God Only Knows – David Bowie (The Beach Boys)
23. Lodi – Shawn Colvin (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
24. These Days – Tyler Ramsey (Jackson Browne)

Last Drops & A Glass of Beer

Celebrating my last session of cataract surgery eye drops this evening with a glass of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. One of my favorites. So the eye drops went on every day, at least twice a day, for a month for each eye. The charts were handy to keep track of the eye drop schedule. The whole process went on for five weeks but it's done now.

On Monday I got to my eye doctor to check things out but right now I'm enjoying this beer.

Starved For Love - Late Night FV

Another mix in my Late Night Final Version series. This one starts out in the late to mid 1980's before moving on to the early 80's and late 70's. It has an Americana feel with a touch of new wave towards the last half hour. The mix starts off with one of my favorite albums from 1988... Salty Tears from the band Semi-Twang followed by a group of songs from some other great albums from that time period.

Starved For Love - Late Night FV

1. Starved for Love – Semi-Twang, 1988
2. Long Gone Long – The Rainmakers, 1986
3. Painted Moon – The Silencers, 1987
4. One More Reason – Fire Town, 1987
5. Sweet, Sweet Baby (I’m Falling) – Lone Justice, 1985
6. One in a Million – The Romantics, 1983
7. Lovable – Elvis Costello, 1986
8. O Lucky Man – Grapes of Wrath, 1987
9. The Strangest Kind – BoDeans, 1986
10. Drive She Said – Stan Ridgway, 1985
11. Jammin’ Me – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, 1987
12. The New World – X, 1983
13. Pretty Persuasion – R.E.M., 1984
14. Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl) – Haircut 100, 1982
15. Doing Alright with the Boys – Joan Jett, 1981
16. Freedom of Choice – Devo, 1980
17. Into the Valley – The Skids, 1979
18. They Got Me Covered – Dirty Looks, 1980
19. Airport – The Motors, 1978
20. What’s A Matter Baby – Ellen Foley, 1979
21. Trouble – 999, 1980
22. My Best Friend’s Girl – The Cars, 1978
23. Girls Talk – Dave Edmunds, 1979
24. Mad at You – Joe Jackson, 1980

It's Election Interference He Says

Today began the first of Donald Trump's series of criminal trials and he was sleeping in court. He now has become the first former president in America to be tried in court as a criminal. Another infamous first to add to his disgusting resume. When he left the courtroom this afternoon he of course had to make some rambling incoherent which somehow did have one statement that made some sense although not in the way he intended. After going on and on about radical leftist Democrats being out to get him he called his trial election interference. Yes, it is about his election interference in the 2016 election by paying hush money illegally using campaign finance money to interfere in the election process by hiding his corrupt behavior with another woman while his (3rd) wife was pregnant. There was also another woman he had a 9 month affair with that was also part of the hush money scheme to keep that information from the public during his election campaign. Yes, election interference.

Actually all of his current and upcoming criminal cases can be described as him doing election interference to avoid losing the election in 2016 and his election interference with the results of his losing the election in 2020. It's all about him and his fear of being a loser... which he always has been.

Another aspect of this trial I thought has been amusing is the jury selection and the ability of perspective jurors to tell the court, with Trump sitting there listening, why they have prejudicial views about the defendant. Some have said, as New Yorkers, they have been aware a his corrupt activities for decades and strongly believed he has been criminally interfering in our democracy with his activities to keep himself in power.

All Lined Up - Late Night FV

We got all lined up. This mix has been around in various slightly different configurations for about 30 years. This is the Final Version and part of my Late Night series. Runs for an hour and a half this time.

These are many of the songs I played on the turntable in the sound booth at the Pastime Lounge during the 1980's during my many new wave sessions.

I made a Spotify version of this mix but unfortunately the title track from Shriekback is not available there so the mix on that site is called Situation.

All Lined Up - Late Night FV

1. Lined Up – Shriekback, 1983
2. Situation – Yaz, 1982
3. You Are in My System – System, 1983
4. Careless Memories – Duran Duran, 1981
5. Echo Beach – Martha & The Muffins, 1980
6. Nipple to the Bottle – Grace Jones, 1982
7. Rescue Me – The Equators, 1981
8. I’m A Wonderful Thing Baby – Kid Creole & The Coconuts, 1982
9. Help Me Somebody – Brian Eno & David Byrne, 1981
10. I Love You – Yello, 1983
11. Flesh For Fantasy – Billy Idol, 1984
12. True Love Pt. 2 – X, 1983
13. What We All Want – Gang of Four, 1981
14. Precious (12’ Version) – The Jam, 1982
15. Primary – The Cure, 1981
16. Telecommunication – A Flock of Seagulls, 1982
17. Who’ll Stop the Rain – Heaven 17, 1983
18. The Meaning of Love – Depeche Mode, 1982
19. Big in Japan – Alphaville, 1984
20. Pale Shelter – Tears For Fears, 1983

The Women of Lower Bohemia

I just found this flyer in a box of "stuff" up on the 3rd floor. We've been to Nietzche's so many times over the years but this event was very special seeing our 17 year old daughter performing on that stage in 2002. She was in some good company too.

Come Together - Covers FV

Coming together with another covers mix. An hour and a half mix that is part of my Final Version series. Lots of classics.

Come Together - Covers FV

1. Come Together – The Sweet Remains (The Beatles_
2. Everybody Wants To Rule The World – Patti Smith (Tears For Fears)
3. First We Take Manhattan – R.E.M. (Leonard Cohen)
4. All Along The Watchtower – XTC (Bob Dylan)
5. Touch Me – Clinic (The Doors)
6. Walking In The Rain – Grace Jones (Flash in the Pan)
7. I Want You To Want Me – Chris Isaak (Cheap Trick)
8. Whole Lotta Love – Perry Farrell (Led Zepplin)
9. L.A. Woman – Elephant Stone (The Doors)
10. Damaged Goods – Hotrats (Gang of Four)
11. Drive My Car – The Donnas (The Beatles)
12. Our Lips Are Sealed – Fun Boy Three (The Go-Go’s)
13. So Lonely – Gregory Isaacs (The Police)
14. Papa Was A Rolling Stone - The Pioneers (The Temptations)
15. The Way You Do The Things You Do – UB40 (The Temptations)
16. Pressure Drop – The Clash (Toots & The Maytals)
17. Won’t Get Fooled Again – Labelle (The Who)
18. Smiling Faces Sometimes – Angie Stone (The Undisputed Truth)
19. Every Breath You Take – Joan Osborne (The Police)
20. Go Your Own Way – Lissie (Fleetwood Mac)
21. Love Me Two Times – Joan Jett & The Blackhearts (The Doors)
22. Baby, I Love You – The Ramones (The Ronettes)

March 1972

March 1972 is written on the back of this photo of me on my Navy ship the USS Plymouth Rock. I haven't seen this picture in about 50 years and found it in a box of "stuff" on the 3rd floor. I'm wearing a hat with PR on it which refers to the name of the ship. 

In March 1972 I was on a Mediterranean Sea deployment cruise. If this was early March I was probably heading across the Atlantic Ocean. If it was mid March I was probably off the coast of Spain and if was late March then I was in the waters of Greece.

I don't remember where I am on the ship at this time. I'm standing in front of a hatch to another compartment and there is a loudspeaker above my head that was used for routine announcements and general quarters calls. I'm wearing my dungarees and bluejacket so I must have just come from being on deck. I certainly wouldn't be wearing the jacket if I was coming to or from my duty station in the engine room. Maybe this was early March and we were up on deck gazing at the Northern Lights which we saw several times crossing the North Atlantic. Otherwise it was warm off the coast of Spain and Greece but of course maybe it was night.

Lost Weekend - Late Night FV

A lost weekend listening to that new wave music. Lots of songs here from my DJ days at the Pastime. Some got a lot of spins.

Lost Weekend - Late Night FV

1. Lost Weekend – Wall of Voodoo, 1982
2. Careless Whisper – Wham!, 1884
3. She Loves the Jerk – John Hiatt, 1983
4. I Can’t Wait – Ric Ocasek, 1982
5. Brass in Pocket – Pretenders, 1980
6. Rescue – Echo & The Bunnymen, 1980
7. Bring on the Night – The Police, 1979
8. Sister Europe – The Psychedelic Furs, 1980
9. A Day Without Me – U2, 1980
10. Water On Glass – Kim Wilde, 1981
11. Europa and the Pirate Twins – Thomas Dolby, 1982
12. Saved By Zero – The Fixx, 1983
13. Today – Talk Talk, 1982
14. Ha Ha I’m Drowning – The Teardrop Explodes, 1980
15. Call Me Up – Gang of Four, 1982
16. Slippery People – Talking Heads, 1983
17. Power and the Passion – Midnight Oil, 1982
18. Demolition Man – Grace Jones, 1981
19. Work Shy – Fabulous Poodles, 1978
20. Cynical Girl – Marshall Crenshaw, 1982
21. You’re the Best Thing – The Style Council, 1984
22. Let’s Make This Precious – Dexys Midnight Runners, 1982
23. That’s Entertainment – The Jam, 1980

Table Hopping @ The Steer

We had another wonderful dinner at The Steer this evening but we also had a very unique experience... we sat at four tables to find a comfortable place. The reason was that the garage door to the patio was open and it was a rainy chilly evening with a very cool breeze blowing in on the tables. Actually the first table we sat at was next to the fireplace and it was too warm. Then we moved across the room but we were directly in line with the open patio area plus also under a ceiling fan. Then we moved to the table next to it and it was still too chilly. That breeze coming in off the patio was intense. That poor waitress was fine with moving us around and there were no other people in the dining room at that time. Finally we moved ourselves across the room to another table that was closer to the fireplace and completely away from the open patio door plus there were no ceiling fans above us. That was the sweet spot. Soon there were other people sitting at tables and I know some of them were not comfortable. One woman and her child sitting near the patio area ate and ran. 

The food and the service was fantastic. The waitress was very attentive. We both had chicken sandwiches but different. We also both had a Peroni Lager on tap.

The restaurant also had new lamps at each table that looked great and classy. The waitress said that the patio was in use yesterday and earlier today. It was a lot warmer earlier but as it got past 5:30 pm the temperature was dropping dramatically and there was a stiff breeze. The manager should have had that patio garage door closed. They weren't going to be able to serve dinners throughout the night with that room getting so cold.

A Treat From Sara

Sara brought me some bottles of Yuengling Lager from PA and then when out shopping with Becky at Trader Joe's she got me a bag of almond butter filled pretzel nuggets. She had heard Becky talking about my love for almond butter. She saw the snack and immediately wanted to get some for me.

So tonight I was sitting at my laptop doing some writing with a glass of Yuengling Lager and some of those delicious pretzel nuggets. Sara was also excited to see the Gumby on the window sill who was the star of so many of my social media posts. Well, I had to take a picture of the beer and nuggets with Gumby looking on approvingly and sent it to her phone.

Show Me - Late Night FV

A late night mix of mostly early 80's new wave music. Most everything here I played in the sound booth of the Pastime Lounge back in the early 1980's.

Show Me - Late Night FV

1. Show Me – ABC, 1983
2. Mirror Man – The Human League, 1983
3. Rocket from a Bottle – XTC, 1980
4. Revenge (Against the World) – Martha & The Muffins, 1979
5. I Will Follow – U2, 1980
6. Stand or Fall – The Fixx, 1982
7. Temptation – Heaven 17, 1983
8. Wonderland – Big Country, 1983
9. The Overdraft – Warren Zevon, 1982
10. Fire from Heaven – Guadalcanal Diary, 1984
11. Here Comes the Rain Again – Eurythmics, 1983
12. Overkill – Men At Work, 1982
13. Where Did Your Heart Go? – Was (Not Was), 1981
14. Time (Clock of the Heart) – Culture Club, 1982
15. Mary Anne – Marshall Crenshaw, 1982
16. Hey Nineteen – Steely Dan, 1980
17. Steppin’ Out – Joe Jackson, 1982
18. Table Manners – Kid Creole & The Coconuts, 1981
19. Lucky Star – Madonna, 1983
20. Tokyo – Classix Nouverux, 1981
21. Inbetweenies – Ian Dury & The Blockheads, 1979
22. It Ain’t What You Do It’s the Way You Do It – Fun Boy Three 1982
23. Found Out Too Late – 999, 1980
24. No Shame – Monks, 1979

First Eye, Last Drops

My first eye surgery was on my right eye. That operation for the removal of my cataracts was March 13th. Since the day before I have been putting multiple drops in that eye and the left one starting the following week every day. The whole process for my right eye went on for four weeks and today was the last day.

I still have another week of these drops for my left eye but it feels good to make progress in completing this task. Most of the time Becky has put the drops in for me.

Feels Like Summer Now

Today it feels like summer. Before lunch Becky and I took a nice walk around the neighborhood. No jackets were necessary. I had a long sleeve shirt on and needed to unbutton the cuffs and roll of the sleave because it was so warm. After lunch Becky and I went out and sat in the backyard. It was a perfect sunny day and the temperature was 75 degrees. It feels like summer. It was actually getting hot. Inside  the backyard sunroom it was 94 degrees. That certainly feels like summer.

Katie called while we were on our walk. We video chatted for a couple of blocks and then said we would call her back. It's hard to walk and look at a phone at the same time. We see people doing it all the time but it is dangerous in so many ways. Phones can certainly be a distraction. We continued our conversation back at the house and eventually ended it to have lunch before going outside to sit in our lawn chairs. It got too hot and we came in where the house was a lot cooler than the backyard.

After dinner it was still warm out and we went for another walk around the neighborhood. Sometimes it takes a little longer for our walk because we stop and talk with neighbors along the way. When I was putting out some compost in the container at sunset I looked at the thermometer on the wall in there and it was still 92 degrees. It should be a little cooler tomorrow and then some rain on Thursday and Friday with temps in the 50's and 60's. 

Buffalo News Photo

Earlier this morning we got a text message from Katie letting us know that our pictures were in the Buffalo News today and she sent us a link to the online version. Yesterday was a beautiful cool sunny day and we had gone down to Canalside on the waterfront and apparently a Buffalo News photographer snapped this photo of me, Becky, my brother Dan, our niece Sara and her daughter Eliza as we were walking along the boardwalk past a display of Eclipse shirts. I do remember the guy taking pictures with a fancy camera but I thought he was shooting the ships at the Naval Park and not us. 

Later on we found out that Katie first saw the photo when Todd's mother Iris contacted her about it. Then she told us about it.

The photo in context... the online version.

Then the paper version

Eclipse Totality

We were very lucky today that we got to experience the Eclipse Totality. It had been very cloudy all day but just at the right moment when the sun and the moon were doing their thing there were some gaps in the cloud cover letting the solar show peep through.

We sat in chairs in the wayback of the backyard as were our neighbors in their backyards. We did get a good view although I was not looking because of my very recent eye surgery. I did get to experience the totality of day turning into night and that very eerie time just before and just after the totality.

Everything happened right on time and the totality began at 3:18 pm. The street lights came on as did our backyard security light. Very weird. The birds got all quiet too.

I played some music while we were sitting out there... one of my Sy Fy mixes seemed appropriate.