A decent Tuesday May 10 awaits us. Not great, but decent.

If I still worked at a record store, these are the new CDs I'd be telling you about.

Alison Brown Stolen Moments

Renée Fleming Haunted Heart

Robert Earl Keen What I Really Mean

Dave Matthews Band Stand Up

Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation Mighty Rearranger - Got my tickets for the Ryman Auditorium show. Thanks Dad!

Weezer Make Believe

Lucinda Williams Live at the Fillmore

Various Artists Live from the Bluebird Café Vol. 1

And on World Press Freedom Day, no less.

Kenyan first lady storms into newsroom...

Joshua says that you are the coolest for checking out this blog. That's right...you, baby.

Star Wars on my TV? I can't wait.

http://www.ksat.com/entertainment/4412547/detail.html?ontheside=story

And Loudon too?

Thursday morning is good because Loudon Wainwright III has a new album. Check out Here Come The Choppers. It's making my day.

Well, off to familial duties while Loudon plays in the background.

I should just call off from work on Tuesday.

So, April 26 almost snuck past me without me knowing what a great day for music fans it was. No matter your resource, get it going and pick up 3 CDs and cancel all appointments for a few days to give them your full attention. Buy, and listen to in no particular order: Bruce Springsteen's Devils & Dust, Ben Folds' Songs for Silverman, and John Prine's Fair and Square. Can't these guys space it out a bit? Of all the great rockers out there, these guys really make me want to disappear into the liner notes and lyric sheets.

Satellite maps are back. Thanks Google.

http://maps.google.com/

I bring you great romance novel titles.

http://www.worldoflongmire.com/features/romance_novels/index.htm

Mitch Hedberg 1968-2005

Mitch Hedberg has passed away. I love his comedy and encourage everyone to buy his CDs.


"I used to do drugs. I still do drugs. But I used to, too. "

" I had a stick of Carefree gum, but it didn't work. I felt pretty good while I was blowing that bubble, but as soon as the gum lost its flavor, I was back to pondering my mortality."

" If carrots got you drunk, rabbits would be fucked up. "

" This shirt is dry clean only. Which means...it's dirty. "

" I think Pringles initial intention was to make tennis balls. But on the day that the rubber was supposed to show up, a big truckload of potatoes arrived. But Pringles is a laid back company. They said "Fuck it. Cut em up."

" An escalator can never break: it can only become stairs. You would never see an "Escalator Temporarily Out Of Order" sign, just "Escalator Temporarily Stairs. Sorry for the convenience."

" You know they call corn-on-the-cob, "corn-on-the-cob", but that's how it comes out of the ground. They should just call it corn, and every other type of corn, corn-off-the-cob. It's not like if someone cut off my arm they would call it "Mitch", and then re-attached it, and call it "Mitch-all-together".

Play ball. Pause. Smell a flower. 

On Fire, Into Fire!

My new favorite rock band

While at work, I strike up a conversation with a girl whose boyfriend is in a band called the Burden Brothers. He used to be in Ministry and GWAR. My interest piqued (I love Ministry), I turn to Rhapsody later that night at home to check out what they sound like. Well, they rock indeed. And now, it is your turn to read up on them, tell your friends about them and go see them when they play in your town.

"We're travelin' down that lonesome road"

I am thirty-five years old and I think that the first rock song I really paid attention to was "Flirtin' With Disaster" by Molly Hatchet. Their lead singer, Danny Joe Brown, died today of diabetes complications.

From the mouths of salespeople...

So, in respect to familial growth, our Chrysler Cirrus will no longer do as a means of comfortably transporting the 5 Murfreesboro Béziats. And so it is that we search a bit and settle on buying a 2002 Honda Odyssey. It stresses me to no end to be making payments on a vehicle, something I have never done. But I agree with my beautiful wife that it is both necessary and in our budget.

Cutting to the chase, my favorite part of the story is after we have signed all of the paperwork and are just about to get into the Odyssey and drive home. My wife is strapping our young crumbsnatchers into their carseats and the saleslady and I are standing together watching. This is when she quietly says to me, "Michael, you are really blessed." There is a slight and steady pause, just enough for me to wonder where she is going with this. Will she say that I have a lovely family? Will she stay in sales mode and touch on the excellent safety features or the great deal I got? She finally nods her head while gazing at the van and finishes, "You got the one with leather seats."

Oh boy. Blessed indeed.

Because I'm a man...

...I could watch this all day long.