I'll Sleep When I'm Dead

I skipped out on plans to meet some fellow bloggers today so that I could get an extra hour or two of sleep before work. My sleepiness is my fault. I work second shift and so I usually get home around midnight. As is my routine, I surf the web, read blogs, and sip a beer or two. Last night, in addition to this, my Arianna was restless and kept getting out of her bed. And so I spent a lot of extra time trying to sing her to sleep. (I don't know any lullabyes so I just make up words and hope she isn't too critical of my false rhymes.)

At 2 A.M., I made my way to bed and called it a night. After getting up at 6 and helping to get the kids dressed and into the van for school, I came back to bed with my alarm set for 10 A.M. and with intentions of meeting friends at Mothership BBQ. But at 9:30, apartment maintenance was knocking at my door so that they could replace the door to my laundry room. So I stay up and let them do their thing and smile because one of the guys looks just like Michael Bolton. It's not everyday that Michael Bolton fixes your door. And I don't mean the Michael Bolton from Office Space. ("Why should I change my name. He's the one who sucks.")

Anyway, I'm fighting the urge to play the original "When A Man Loves A Woman" while he works. I'm guessing he knows about the resemblance and I don't think I'll fuel the fire. He might like it.

The door is fixed. Back to bed.

Wiggle

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) — The lead singer of the hugely popular children's group The Wiggles announced Thursday he will stop performing after being diagnosed with a chronic condition that causes dizziness, fatigue and nausea. more>>

I've seen The Wiggles on television a number of times. I guess the nausea is contagious.

Speaking of "wiggle" and speaking of bad, here's Dylan circa 1991 singing "Wiggle Wiggle" in concert. My dad and I saw him on this tour at Vanderbilt and it was pretty much the worst concert ever.

You Cut Off Tom Waits?

I'll say it again. You cut off Tom Waits?

It was a pleasure to see Tom Waits' appearance on The Daily Show. He chatted with John Stewart for a bit and John was clearly a fan. He asked a few questions, listened intently to Tom's replies and shared how nervous he was to be talking to him. Simply, the respect level was huge.

And then after a break, Tom took the stage to perform "The Day After Tomorrow." With only his guitar and Larry Taylor on standup bass, it was strikingly beautiful. It's a powerful and heartbreaking attempt to tell the story of a young soldier at war. Twenty-one years old and thinking of home. Armed for battle and contemplating the senselessness of it all.

But I suppose the show was running long and so with the song at its most tender part, the credits crawled and The Daily Show concluded for the night. Now I understand that these things can't always be helped. Producers have to pack a lot into a half hour show (less with commercial breaks), but with only one interview - Mr. Waits - it just seemed that a minute or so could have been spared elsewhere for this. It's not like it was just another musical act that was doing the promotional circuit. This was a musical guest that the host was clearly honored and elated to have on his show.

Oh well. I just hope that the studio audience got to hear the song in its entirety. It's a good one on record, but I'm happy to know how exceptional it is live. I must have heard it a dozen or so times on the CD and never paid it much attention. But when I heard Tom Waits perform it at the Ryman Auditorium a few months back, his voice and those lyrics grabbed me in a way that still gives me goosebumps.

All in all, it was great to see him. Now back to another fascinating night of C-Span.

The performance:

Can't Blog Now, Watching A Charlie Brown Christmas

Nice.
A snippet:

"Sun Comes Up, It's Tuesday Morning"

Some days require a listen to perfect albums. With the kids' naptime finally arrived, I was looking forward to listening to some of the more experimental sounds from Tom Waits' new Orphans collection. I also planned to give a listen to the new Robert Plant nine disc set. Another choice that I found last night was a new 90-track set by The Doors.

But then I remembered a favorite album of mine from so many years ago that seemed perfect for relaxing in some well-deserved quiet time. And so now I am listening to The Cowboy Junkies' The Caution Horses. Margo and company soothe and satisfy. This is probably the most "comfortable" album I have ever owned.

My favorite lyric from "Sun Comes Up, It's Tuesday Morning":

Telephone's ringing, but I don't answer it
'cause everybody knows that good news always sleeps till noon.

Good advice, Margo. And thanks for singing so sweetly.

Tom Waits Interview (Pitchfork)

Photo by Danny Clinch

Tom: "'Alternative sound sources' is the technical way of saying it, which could really be anything-- maybe something you found along the side of the road. I think hardware stores can be fascinating if you go in there with a mallet! I look for things that are left of center, something you've only seen your whole life, but never heard. Hit it! With a stick! I have a guitar made out of a 2x4 that I bought in Cleveland. You know, in Iraq, you can't have a guitar in the window of a music store because it's too sexy. You know, the curves. So I could go over there with these 2x4 guitars and really take the country by storm."
(click here for the whole interview)

On Squirting

Newsweek's Steven Levy writes about Microsoft's Zune music player and the "squirting" of songs. Because every time I see someone walk by with an iPod or other music player and I wonder what they might be listening to, this sounds like a very cool thing. A fellow Zune listener within ten meters can send - or "squirt" - you a song from their playlist that you can choose to accept (yours for three days or three listens, whichever comes first).

Another cool feature allows you to see what songs are on a nearby Zune player. I'd love to see what the person on the treadmill next to me is listening to. As the article states, what a great way to get to know someone with similar musical interests. ("You like Robert Plant too? Care to squirt me some of that new box set?")

We sure do talk weird here in the future.

Dig it.

My dad always makes the very astute point that we parents tend to spend so much money on expensive presents for our very young kids when all they end up playing with is the box the present came in.

Today reminded me a bit of that point when I took them to the park so that they could play on this...


...but they spent most of their time playing in this.

Ari Conducts A Meeting

"Meeting ajourned."

Surely I'm Weird

I was recently tagged by a blogger friend of mine to do the "Six Weird Things About Me" meme. Is it weird that I can't think of one thing for that list? Maybe my head's just not in the right place for it right now. I've got lots of virtues and lots of faults, and I do think of myself as a bit eclectic and weird. However, I just can't put my finger on any one interesting detail that validates my weirdness.

I suppose my spouse would be able to compose a list of weird things about me pretty quickly. But if you'll excuse me, I have to go eat my ketchup and applesauce sandwich now.

Heroes Fans Take Note

Pop Candy's Whitney Matheson reports that The Sci Fi Channel will air the first six episodes of Heroes on Wednesday starting at 5 p.m. CST.

I work nights and still haven't hooked up my VCR since my last move so I haven't seen the show yet. Some folks I know seem to like the show and so I may try to check it out.

The Vince Young Legacy Started With A Hug

I watched and was wowed by today's game between our Titans and New York's Giants. The only thing that could have taken this team spirit emotion higher would have been a possible playoff run by Tennessee's team. That said, they sure played the role of spoiler in the most exciting way possible.

Between Pacman's interceptions and Vince Young's scoring drives, it was a beautiful thing to view. Jeff Fisher said, "Wow." Giant's coach Tom Coughlin said, "We're going to be sick about this one forever." And my wife said, "I think I want a Vince Young jersey." But she wanted that one before the game anyway.

My favorite moment was the joke of a sack attempt on Young by Giants rookie Mathias Kiwanuka. Facing fourth-and-10 in the waning moments, Young dropped back only to be hugged immediately by the speedy Kiwanuka. It was a sure sack and I was sure that New York would take possession and handily wrap up this game with a well-needed victory. But the sack was not to be as Kiwanuka quickly released his grip from our rookie QB, assuming I suppose that this was simply a two-hand touch contest and his job was done.

The hug complete, Young took off for a 19 yard run, guaranteeing the Titans a first down and an opportunity to tie the game. Score and tie they did. One more Pacman Jones interception and a field goal kick later and the rest was history. The biggest fourth quarter comeback in franchise history and it feels good to be a fan.

[Edit to add: In defense of Mathias Kiwanuka's mistake on the attempted sack, he says that he had his head down and thought that Vince Young had already thrown the ball. He was concerned about a possible 15-yard penalty for driving the quarterback to the ground and so released his grip. I hope he redeems himself next week against Dallas.]

Chimp Mothers Make Better Lovers

I recently read an interesting article on why male chimpanzees prefer older chimpanzee mothers over their younger counterparts.

Cross-cultural research suggests that men generally prefer to hook up with younger women. The same does not appear to hold true for chimpanzees. A new study finds that the males of that species go for older females in a big way. Chimp researchers have long suspected that the animals prefer older females as mates. For example, Jane Goodall, who spent nearly half a century studying the chimps at Gombe, Tanzania, noted that some males were extremely attracted to older females.

At Centennial Park With The Kids

With temperatures in the sixties and a rare day off from work on a weekend, we Paige and I took the kids to Centennial Park for a bit of fun and photography. Click here for the rest of the pics.
The tube of static electricity.

Foreshadowing, maybe?

Two Geese, Signifying A Day At The Park