As I write this, we’re a little more than 24 hours to go until we move into 2020. A change in year. A change in decade. All that, plus a Presidential election and such.

2019, stressful as it’s been in some cases, has been surprisingly productive and successful for me. Sure, my day job continues to be frustrating, though some shifting in responsibilities has made me rather indispensable, and allows me to use some skills I haven’t gotten to use for a while. I am waiting anxiously to see whether the number of times I’ve pulled our department out of the fire translates into decent pay increase (I should actually know by now, but given the scheduling of things, I don’t). The good news, I guess, is that this job isn’t likely to go anywhere any time soon.

In my other job, that of Semi-Professional Rock Star™, I’ve probably had the most productive year of my life. For one, I made more money, by a significant margin, than I spent, on this hobby that almost pays for itself. I played a bunch of great gigs up and down the east coast with the Humdingers and as myself (including my shot as “Special Filk Guest”, and successfully wrangled and maintained a regular paying gig as open mic host at Castleburg in town, and this gig looks to continue all the way through the coming year. I also got my songs featured on some national, if niche, media, like The FuMP and Filkcast, which is pretty cool, if I do say so myself.

Also, I took a big step and recorded and released my own record, which, while not exactly setting the world on fire (yet), has already made back the money I invested in producing the physical CDs, which is nice; I won’t go broke on the deal. In any case, going ahead and putting my stuff out there, both live and for sale as recordings, is kind of a big deal and involved me stepping way out of my comfort zone. The Chuck of even five years ago wouldn’t have been able to do it.

Yay me.

I’ve mostly maintained my svelte figure (I’m maybe ten pounds heavier than I want to be at the moment, but my clothes still fit, and I was able to speed-hike three miles in 40 minutes this morning), am still taking care of myself physically and mentally, and as a middle-aged man, that helps – I’m still in better shape than I was in high school, which is indeed something at age 45.

Oh, and Phoenix, the awesome cat, came into my life this year. I wasn’t originally down with adding another cat, but given her story, and her personality, I kinda had to go with it, and now I have a new best buddy for life. I’ll take it.

All these things in my life kind of needed some commemoration. My lovely wife and eldest daughter decided to enable that with their Christmas present to me:

I think it captures most of it. It took me 45 years to decide what was worth emblazoning on my body for the rest of my life. This is it.

Happy New Year, folks.

As this entry posts, I will be beginning my final day at work for the year 2019. And honestly, there hasn’t actually beeen a whole lot of “work” happening this week, or honestly, the last part of last week. I have largely put my programs in stasis at this point, knocked together all the documentation I’m actually able to (because people I need to tag have been off for as long as two weeks already -seriously, people take the whole month of December off around here), taken care of the last of the phone calls, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t running out the clock looking up political analysis online or *gasp* occasionally reading a library book.

As I’ve described in past years, I really have a hard time getting into the holidays anymore…especially this year, which has been a bit of a roller-coaster, emotionally and financially; big highs, low lows, interminable middles. I’ve got most of my holiday shopping done; it’s going to be mostly low-key this year anyway. I’m just one of those peoplw who end up being a bit down for the holidays for all kinds of reasons; my usual atypical mental health slate, with the added benefit of Seasonal Affective Disorder, which I’m sure is aggravated by the fact that I’m so damned busy or the weather isn’t cooperating or whatever and I can’t get outside in the sun and away from these flourescent lights.

At this point, I’ve mostly accepted that this is going to happen, and just try to get through it. Taking a break from the office, if only for the change of scenery, does help a bit, which I’m looking forward to.

Given all that, summoning up the energy to host open mic on Wednesday night was a challenge, but I pushed through it, in part through the help of good friends, good beer, and some talented people that really forced me to step up my game. My playing was not terrible, though I was honored to be upstaged by a whole bunch of new faces who showed up and brought the goods. And, with Wednesday wrapped, I am done playing shows for the year, which, given how much I’ve played out this year, a welcome relief.

Speaking of playing out, though, in discussions with my fellow performers and the staff from Marscon about schedule, I got word Wednesday afternoon that I’m not only playing with my usual compatriots The Blibbering Humdingers, likely sitting in for a set with Dimensional Riffs, and filk circling with the best of them, the organizers of this shindig have seen fit to give me my own set on Saturday, for which I’m much appreciative (both to the Marscon staff, and to my lovely spouse, who poked and prodded me and raised the subject with the right people when I wasn’t so good at promoting myself). So, come next month, I’m going to be BUSY.

That’s what I have for the moment. As holidays usually go around here, I tend to slow down my posting (as I tend to be offline more) during these times, but I expect that I’ll have thoughts on the historic events in the public square on Wednesday night once I see how everything plays out, and I usually do a couple of year-end wrap up things, so look forward to that.

Anyway – tunes. The usual Spotify discovery playlist, which tracks pretty well with the kind of musical stuff I’ve been listening to lately. Starts off strong with a 90s group I didn’t really appreciate when they were a thing, and #8 is one of the better band names I’ve seen in a while (as the AV Club’s “year in band names” hasn’t posted yet).

If I don’t see ya, Happy Holidays:

1. “Here and Now”- Letters to Cleo
2. “Moonage Daydream” – Zen Guerrilla
3. “Delaware” – Drop Nineteens
4. “Corona” – Calexico
5. “Polyester Bride” – Liz Phair
6. “Damn Good” – David Lee Roth
7. “Never Enough” – L.A. Guns
8. “Drive That Fast” – Kitchens of Distinction
9. “Academy Fighting Song” – Misson to Burma
10. “Virginia Reel Around the Fountain” – The Halo Benders
11. “Hey Jack Kerouac” – 10,000 Maniacs
12. “Rock Brigade” – Def Leppard

Just a quick note to let the world know that one of my tunes from World’s Okayest…, “Filker At The Mundane Hootenanny”, is being featured on the most recent episode of Eric Coleman’s Filkcast

Eric (of the excellent band Cheshire Moon) has spent the last few episodes of 2019 featuring tons of filk releases from the past year, and was nice enough to include me in this edition, along with such luminaries (and friends) as Ashley Hamel, Rhiannon’s Lark, and the Beadrills.

It feels pretty great to have my stuff embraced by the community that’s given me so much enjoyment over the years. I hope the folks listening get something out of my humble contribution to the lexicon.

Anyway, I encourage you to take a listen, if you’re so inclined!

Since Saturday, I have put over 1300 miles on my car.  My ass aches in protest.  To give you an idea of what that works out to, I started a nearly fifteen hour audiobook on the first leg of the trip (down to Gastonia NC for Cavendish’s annual Butterbeer release and wizard celebration/market); I currently have about four hours left.

The actual business of driving wasn’t so bad; traffic was nice and cooperative in all respects.  The duration, however, wears on you, especially if your body is beginning to show signs of middle-aged wear.

The event down there was fun, anyway; I enjoyed playing music with my friends who make up the Blibbering Humdingers, as well as sharing the stage with our fellow wrockers Hawthorn & Holly.  The folks who came to see us play seemed to enjoy it; I just with there were more of them.  Timing was kind of weird this year, with the beer release happening at 3pm, and music not going on until 5pm.  3pm?  Line out the door.  5pm?  room was kind of sparse. Last year, the Butterbeer (a nice caramel ale – though I think I liked last year’s better) started flowing just as we were going on.

What matters is that we sounded good, even if the “muggle market”, which was hidden back in the brewing space behind the taproom, wasn’t exactly hopping.  I found a couple of nice little gifts for family, however, and had a couple of decent brews as well; can’t ask for much more.

The drive home was a little more eventful, owing to a bad reaction to a hotel breakfast yogurt smoothie that might have turned.  Let’s just say that I got to know the rest area facilities of I-85 a bit more intimately than I’d have liked, but thankfully, that’s all mostly settled.

Arriving home Sunday afternoon, after spending a little time just lying down not driving, the spouse and I went out to pick up a few groceries and swing by the Kroger bar for a pint, and ended up having a nice time with the regulars who got there for a little celebration earlier in the day, and were still around, even if we’d thought we’d missed it.

Monday started my last week at work for the year, trying to close things down for a couple of weeks, and afterwards, I spent four more hours in the car back and forth to SBC to pick up the oldest who wrapped her last final Monday morning.  It’s nice to have her back.

But yeah, my ass continues to ache.

Been a quiet one this week; work is dragging, as people are already starting to take their holiday time off. I’ve been spending my time putting ongoing projects into stasis and getting the last of the year-end stuff done before I pop out after next week.

I’ve also been feeling pretty darned terrible; something has settled into my lungs that I can’t quite shake, but that’s par for the course this time of year. I’ve primarily been pushing through the workday, coming home, eating something (I made a huge pot of refried beans in the Instant Pot on Monday, and it’s been feeding me all week), and passing out early in hope that lots of rest will nip this latest bug in the bud and get rid of it before the weekend.

Because this weekend I have a Humdingers gig down in NC on Saturday at Cavendish Brewing Company in Gastonia for their annual butterbeer release. Had a blast at this one last year, and am looking forward to playing with my friends, as well as being able to play the sideman again rather than being the main attraction. No pressure.

That’s all I got – I’ve been keeping pace with the headlines, of course, because that’s what I do, but I hesitate to comment, as by the time I type something, it’s overcome by events. But, if you’ve been paying attention as well, check out the other post I put up Wednesday night (because given the circumstances described earlier, I hadn’t turned my personal computer on since last weekend) about DJ’s Impeachment Carols, that we knocked out this past Saturday.

On to tunes. Eclectic mix popping out of Spotify’s algorhythms this week, pretty heavy on 70s/80s pop rock. Have never heard #6 before, though I’m now sort of obsessed. Also, #8 is one I hadn’t heard in a while, though it’s not a terrible piece from late period fat-Vince Crüe, and damn…I haven’t heard #2 since I bought Hormonally Yours back in high school. Think I’m gonna go down that rabbit hole later:

1. “Nemesis” – Shriekback
2. “Stay” – Shakespeare’s Sister
3. “Glory” – Television
4. “Walking On A Thin Line” – Huey Lewis & The News
5. “Too Hot To Handle” – UFO
6. “Eaten By The Monster of Love” – Sparks
7. “He Can’t Love You” – Micheal Stanley Band
8. “Angela” – Mötley Crüe
9. “Picture Show” – John Prine
10. “Going Down To Liverpool” – The Bangles
11. “Tumbling Dice” – Linda Rondstadt
12. “Coming of Age” – Damn Yankees
13. “(You Can Still) Rock In America” – Night Ranger

So on Saturday (before, one should note, the actual Articles were introduced) my friend and I did a thing:

D.J., internet-famous political pundit, Filk Ferret, and genuinely all-around good guy, writes a lot of songs; his particular specialty is parody, but he’s got some excellent originals as well.

These tunes grab both those interests, twist ’em together and tie them up with a holiday bow covered with official redactions. Given that it’s both the holiday season and impeachment season, my friend was inspired to write a handful of “impeachment carols”, and in five hours or so on Saturday afternoon, we recorded and published them, because given the immediacy of both the style and subject matter, he had to strike while the iron was hot.

We had a lot of fun, and the songs themselves are fun. I share them both because I’m proud of the work we did (again, this is D.J.’s show; I just slid some sliders, pushed some buttons, and played a little guitar), and I hope people might find themselves amused in a topical sort of way.

The best I can say about this week is that it’s gone by quickly. I haven’t accomplished much of anything, to be honest. Oh well, the last couple of weeks have been pretty busy; I should just enjoy the quiet.

Some good news related to projects I’ve been involved with the last couple of months, though:

• Jonah’s Songs of the Faithless kickstarter project closed up successfully, almost tripling the initial funding goal, and it looks like we’re all but done with the recording. This project’s going to be a pretty great one; I can’t wait to hear the finished result.
• My friends the Misbehavin’ Maidens were nice enough to include my record on their 2019 Nerd Music Holiday Gift Guide, in the company such musical luminaries as The Doubleclicks, Sunny Larsen, and Rhiannon’s Lark. As I said in another context earlier this year, it’s an honor just to be nominated.
• Speaking of the record, I am happy to note that after being out for two weeks or so, I’ve more than broken even on the financial investment of having the physical CDs pressed; anything further is gravy (which will make my Christmas shopping a bit easier to handle); this isn’t to say that I wouldn’t be delighted to take your money in exchange for a digital download or compact disc!
• Oh, and for those playing along, I’m five days into December and am still in the running to win Whamageddon!, though it was touch and go there for a bit yesterday when a cover version came up on the pet store soundtrack when I was stocking up on cat food.

So yeah, I guess my efforts are bearing some kind of fruit, feels kinda nice to have a couple of wins.

Let’s end this one on a positive note, shall we? Good. On to the tunes. As usual, random spew from the Spotify Discover Weekly playlist. Kinda alt-country this week, with side trips into buttrock and glam metal, which is just fine with me. Also, #5’s title and opening bars did summon an audible chuckle from me

1. “This Town” – The Go-Go’s
2. “Bluebird Wine”- Rodney Crowell
3. “I Don’t Care About You” – Fear
4. “Stone In Love” – Journey
5. “Teenage Wristband” – The Twilight Singers
6. “Runaway Train” – Adam’s House Cat
7. “Long Way To Love”- Britney Fox
8. “(I Live For) Cars and Girls” – The Dictators
9. “Wait for You” – Bonham
10. “Keep Pushin'” – REO Speedwagon
11. “Soul Sister” – Blue Mountain
12. “Simple Man” – Junkyard
13. “Say What You Will” – Fastway

Early yesterday afternoon, word came that Senator Kamala Harris has suspended her campaign for president.

Given recent polling (she’d been stuck in the high single digits since around June, after her breakout “That Girl Was Me” moment) and the behind-the-scenes campaign turmoil, I’m not necessarily surprised, though I’m more than a little saddened; she’d been one of my favorites since the beginning.

The Senator really did (and likely continues to) have a lot going for her as a candidate: a successful prosecutor, district attorney in San Francisco, California Attorney General, and United States Senator. She’s got tremendous passion, knowledge, charisma, and tenacity (see her work on the Judiciary Committee during the Comey firing and during the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings), has been a significant voice supporting progressive immigration reform (and opposition to the current administration’s policies), and as a mixed-race (Jamaican/Indian) woman, she looks a hell of a lot more like the larger American population than the crop of mediocre rich white guys she’s continually surrounded by in government.

But despite that, she had trouble getting traction in the crowded field, and didn’t articulate her positions on issues as well as some of her primary opponents have, and, as that NYT piece linked above indicates, her campaign was not the most organized affair.

Those issues aside, I really admire her ability and presence, and I really hope we haven’t seen the last of her, and I don’t expect we have. I hope she remains a strong voice for the party; this just wasn’t her year.

We also lost two more largely anonymous white guys (Sestak and Bullock) that most people didn’t even notice were running, but that’s honestly not really much of a story.

Of those who remain, I like a few, though my heart currently belongs to Elizabeth “I have a plan for that” Warren. She’s smart, accomplished, has a great story, an ambitious progressive vision for the country that, as a teacher, she’s able to articulate effectively (if people would only listen), and has shown herself willing to take on the rich and powerful in order to make things better for all of us (she’s got the billionaire and establishment running scared, actually).

But what’s really sold me on her isn’t all that, it’s this, a simple exchange with an LGBTQ+ teen at a town hall in Iowa this weekend, where she was asked about a time when someone she looked up to didn’t accept her, and she tells a heartfelt story about not aligning with her mother’s expectations, and then proceeded to offer comfort and encouragement to the kid.

Yeah, I maybe teared up a bit (as did others who’ve seen it). While Senator Warren’s got a plan for everything, she’s also got something else a lot of other politicians (and people in general) lack: Genuine Empathy. I think that’s something we maybe need more of in our national discourse.

Welcome!

My debut solo record is now available, and may be purchased in the following ways:

• as a digital download via my bandcamp page (currently free or name your price, in this age of pandemic)
• as a physical cd via kunaki
• or you can find me in person, at a show, on the street, wherever!

For you folks just discovering me, this site has, since 2002 or so, been my personal blog. I talk a lot about music, gigs, and the creative process here, so if you’re into that sort of thing, stick around! Fair warning, however; I will also talk about the mundanities of life: like family, pets, non-music hobbies, pop culture, what I had for dinner last night, politics, depression, complaining about my day job, and other random musings that have nothing to do with my occasional forays into rock stardom.

I hope you’ll poke around a bit, get to know me better!

The long weekend was, for the most part relaxing, particularly Thursday and Friday, where I mostly hung about, doing laundry, watching MST3K, and cooking tasty food. Was offline for the most part, though I did take advantage of a couple of small black friday online deals, but nothing particularly serious. Saturday, we hung out with friends, sampling some adult beverages and watching The Mandalorian. It was nice.

There was just way too much Sunday for my taste, however. I got up early and ran a couple of quick errands, then set off on US 460 W to deliver the eldest back to campus, with a stop half-way to re-record some stuff for Jonah’s project (as I’m essentially the east coast engineer) with one of the localish participants. The first leg wasn’t bad, and included burritos, so I won’t complain. Locating my friend’s house was less easy, as it wasn’t where the GPS said it was, and I had to deal with a couple of narrow, steep, slipperly driveways before hitting the right one. One was particularly steep, slippery, and obscure, such that I bottomed out slightly and knocked the front clip on my car slightly askew – luckily, it mostly snapped right back into place, though I currently have some tape on one of the panel gaps for security. It was, as they say, the last thing I needed.

The recording, however, went well, though the rest of the trip, out and back (in spite of the stop for a pint at Loose Shoe), was colored by the auto bang-up, and I was kind of stressed, and tired, as it worked out being about five hours round trip. And, as we realized the kid left her laptop at home, I need to run back out that way tomorrow.

Yay.

Keep telling myself, only three more work weeks this year…