Having swapped days off this week, I have begun a four-day weekend to coincide with our local adult relaxacon, ConTraception. Later than usual this year, but never needed more. And now, on wiith the tunes!


1) He Fiddled While I Burned, Charline Arthur

2) The Future, Leonard Cohen

3) Cold, The Cure, Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia

4) Converging In The Quiet, Crystal Stilts

5) zmudowski, dp

6) Mr Soul, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, 10/22/86 Fox Theater, St. Louis Soundboard

7) Wednesday's Child, Emiliana Torrini

8) Message To Harry Manback, Tool

9) James Connolly, Black 47

10) Working Class Hero, Marianne Faithfull


Angelina-approved bonus tracks (she's sitting on my lap as I type, so she must like them):


11) Join Me In L.A., Warren Zevon

12) Sea Change, Jeff Parker

13) Ode To The Prostitute, The Bastard Fairies


Final packing left to do, then off to ConTraception. It will be good to see people again. This lack of con activity is getting to be a real pain.


*Quote from song 13, really.

This is a very cool idea, indeed. Buy objects at thrift stores, have an author writer a short-short story about one of the object, post item to EBay with story as description. Read the post. Final item is "Jonathan Lethem vs. The Missouri Shotglass." Alas, already out of my price range. The list of authors takes you to the individual stories.

Ganked from Crooked Timber, which also has an interesting post about fonts. No, really!

I woe up about 30 minutes ago as I type, raised myself up enough to look at the clock on the other side of the bed, which read 6:47, and flopped back down, secure in the knowledge it was Saturday, and I could go back to sleep. Until I thought about it some more, and realized it was only Friday. Damn. A bagel from Verminusrex and a can of Monster later, and it's music time.


1) eine Handvoll Nitro, The Vampires of Dartmoore

2) Too Drunk To Fuck, Nouvelle Vague

3) Secret Journey, Lucy Kaplansky

4) Across 110th Street (Part 2), Bobby Womack

5) My Love Grows Deeper Part 1, Nelly Furtado

6) Get a Haircut, Dad; Austin Lounge Lizards

7) Sexybacklism, ToToM

8) Uplock The Poprock, Aqua Luminus III

9) The Groom's Still Waiting At The Altar, Bob Dylan

10) Burned, Neil Young (and happy birthday to Neil, a day late)


Too much is not enough, so:


11) The Boy Done Wrong Again, Belle & Sebastian

12) Moments In Love, The Art Of Noise

13) Also Sprach Schmilsson Schmixon, Harry Nilsson


The last entry is a unique item, a mashup created by Harry Nilsson of Count Down's abdication and the resignation of Richard Nixon.

Apropos of nothing, this is just sick, bad and wrong Keyboard and monitor protection recommended.

This is the third and last Friday the 13th of the year, which is the most any year can have. Next year there will be only one, in August. Enjoy it, triskadecaphiles! I'm looking forward to a weekend with no agenda, other than some grocery shopping and early preparation for ConTraception 21. Hope to see some of my tens of readers there.

Last night Rohanna, Dragonet and I had the privilege of seeing a live performance by one of the greatest songwriters of the modern age, Leonard Cohen. Cohen has been touring on and off for over a year now, largely due to his manager having embezzled most of Cohen's earnings. Cohen started out touring in Europe, then covered much of North America, having gotten as close as Denver earlier this year. I had given up all hope of seeing him, assuming he had finished his tour and was resuming his retirement. When I saw the ad for his show here, I was shocked. When we got the tickets, I was even more stunned.

Last night I dropped the ladies off at the Midland, then found a parking place nearby (I had no interest in paying the $10 "event parking" charges for the Power & Light District). Walking back to the theater, I finally allowed myself to believe I was actually going to be seeing this show.

I hadn't been in the Midland since sometime in the '80s, and not since the renovation completed a year or so ago. I was pleased to find that AMC had left the beautiful art deco stylings of the 18927 building intact, and restored the venue to its prime.

At 8p sharp (just like it said on the ticket), nine-piece band came onstage. And then The Man himself, 75--year-old Leonard Cohen, came sprinting to his microphone, dressed in a sharp black suit and fedora. When the first of numerous standing ovations finished, he launched into "Dance Me to the End of Love," and the room became perfectly still. The set list was much the same as the "Live in London" cd/dvd currently available, featuring a mix of classic songs from Cohen's lengthy career. Though he is a little thinner in the higher ranges, that "gift of a golden voice" is still a powerful instrument, and was more than up to the 3.5 hour, four encore show. Early on, he told the audience "I don't know when we'll pass this way again, but for tonight, we're going to give you everything we've got," and he and the band proceeded to do just that.

Without a doubt, this was one of the best concerts I have attended. A once in a lifetime opportunity, ad a dream fulfilled.

The announcement is here! Rohanna and I will be attending SmofCon in Austin, Dec. 4-6, thanks to the good offices of NPulsifer. Looking forward to dining at Stubbs and otherwise checking out the island of sanity in the midst of Texas. Hoping to see lots of my tens of readers there.

Out Becking Glenn Beck. Prepare to guffaw. Keyboard and monitor protection warning in effect.

Another week gone,this one with less drama/trauma so far. I should have an announcement later today, if all goes well. Nothing earth-shattering, but it should be fun. In the meantime, some tunes.


1) Chains And Things, B.B. King

2) Stairway to Bootleg Heaven, DJ Earworm*

3) where there's a will, The Final Solution

4) agrippa's trilemma, gillicuddy

5) Shaded Water, Brian Eno

6) Carry That Weight, The Beatles

7) Girlfriend, Matthew Sweet

8) James K. Polk, TMBG

9) Oxford Comma, Vampire Weekend

10) Butterfly Radio, Avenpitch


yet more:


11) No Self Control, Peter Gabriel

12) Idiot Wind, Bob Dylan

13) Flee (to the hills), Bastardgeist


Tomorrow the smoker gets fired up again, this time for the KaCSFFS Thanksgiving meeting/dinner. Why so early, you ask? Well, the normal third Saturday is smack in the middle of ConTraception, of course! The meeting is at the Writer's Place, and here are the details:

Come feast with your KaCSFFS friends on Saturday November 7, 2009. This years Thanksgiving dinner will again be held at the Writer's Place, 3607 Pennsylvania, KCMO 64111. Starting time will be 5:30 PM for setup, dinner at 6 PM, with a short business meeting to follow.

Food assignment suggestions:
A - J Sides and Salads
K - R Drinks
S - Z Desserts

So if you're in the KC area, come on out and meet people and chow down. And going to ConTra wouldn't be a bad thing either. Saturday will be the last opportunity to get the discounted membership rate, as well. Plus smoked turkey!




*Dolly Parton - Stairway to Heaven vs. Eurythmics - This City Never Sleeps vs. Beatles - Because vs. Laurie Anderson - O Superman vs. Art Of Noise - Moments in Love vs. Beastie Boys - So Whatcha Want vs. Pat Benatar - Love is a Battlefield

Via Making Light.


Laptop Steering Wheel Desk.

Yep, what the label says. Read the reviews. My fave:

I am an OB-GYN and this has helped me take my practice mobile. It's the perfect height for my patients to sit on so I can examine them while I drive. I highly recommend!!!!

A big plus is it being an additional seat for your toddlers, just in case you need room for office supplies.


Stirrups needed!!!

Maybe some ridges in the plastic, we've had lots of sliders!

The partypoopers from the company include the following in the product description "For safety reasons, never use this product while driving. Easily convert your car into your personal automobile office with the Wheel Mate car desk by MobileOffice." Yeah, right.

Remember, Remember the Fifth of November
With Thermite & Magnesium so hot
Throw back a Molson*
So Erik V. Olson
Will never be forgot.

Happy birthday, fella. Hope the coming year brings you much happiness.


*The only beer I could think of at this hour that rhymed.

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, performing "The Theme from 'Shaft'" at the Cambridge Folk Festival. Don't worry, that sproing sound between your ears is perfectly normal.







Now, if they'd only cover "Black Hole Sun." Hey, it worked for Steve & Eydie!

to solan_t! Have a great one, sweet minion o' mine. As always, I am standing by for corset adjusting duty.

Started off the week performing a wedding for two long-time friends (of mine and each other), before he went into the hospital with pneumonia. Spent yesterday in the rain helping NPulsifer and Gisele move out of their dupplex and into their new home. Lotsa furniture, lotsa boxes, lotsa books, and the quietest trip in a car with a pet ever (lizards not being noisy, as a rule). They took their cat to the vet for teeth cleaning that morning, and took her to the new place when they picked her back up that evening, so the poor cat came out of the drugs in a whole new place. Wow, man. Have you ever really looked at your paw? Music to soothe the fucked up beast, or not.


1) The Long Winter, Allister Thompson

2) Out Comes The Evil, Lords Of Acid

3) Come Closer Together, Nine Inch Nails vs The Beatles

4) Shake, Synthesizer Shaikh

5) Revolution Earth, The B-52's

6) Dan Stepford, Austin Lounge Lizards

7) Lightnin' Hopkins, R.E.M.

8) Care Of Cell #44, Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs

9) Til the Wheels Fall Off, Amy Rigby/Todd Snider

10) Sycamore, Bill Callahan


And then these hapened


11) Cat People (Putting Out the Fire), David Bowie

12) Really Saying Something, Bananarama Ft Fun Boy Three

13) King Of The Road, Jim White


The weekend will be filled with cleaning the house for the reception Sunday (3 p.m., c'mon by!), Hallowe'en and, of course Falling Over (which follows from Springing Forward).

Srsly, running late


1) Burning House Of Love, X

2) Darkness, Brian Eno

3) Message To Love, Jimi Hendrix (Live At Woodstock)

4) Papa's Got A Brand New Bag (James Brown), The Sweet Vandals

5) Greenwich, To Rococo Rot

6) Desert Rose, Eric Johnson

7) Country Feedback (Live), R.E.M.

8) Autumn, The Strawbs

9) Hotel Yorba, The White Stripes

10) A Terraformed Existence, Kosovo


And some pudding, since you ate your meat:


11) Oasis, Amanda FUCKING Palmer

12) Serious Alchemist, Pseudosix

13) I Know There's An Answer (a cappella), The Beach Boys


Housecleaning weekend. Joy.

Tonight, I drank the last of a bottle of Port Ellen Islay Single Malt Whisky. It was a Signatory Vintage, and thus has its personal information on the bottle, thusly:

Distilled: 8.4.75*

Bottled: 13.5.99

Cask No. 1753

Bottle no. 61 of 250

I purchased the bottle on May 28, 2004, at the Gomer's Northland store. I noticed the Signatory can the bottle came in, noted the price, checked the info on the bottle, put it back in the can, put the can in the cart, and told Rohanna "We are buying this. If they have more, we are buying them all," because the price was $24.99. That is, just over $1/year. Sadly, they did not have any other such bottles. After ConQuesT, I looked this particular vintage online, where I found it for £149, or about $225 at the time.

Tonight just seemed like the right time to finish it off, and it was still wonderful. I shall keep th bottle, for the memories. Nom.

We went to the Flying Saucer for my natal celebration, down in the Power & White Light District downtown. They always list the latest additions to their selections on a big chalkboard over the bar, so that's where I looked first. I immediately saw what I wanted, Founders Breakfast Stout. I was not disappointed. Very rich, full of chocolate and coffee, and smoooooooth. I have not been excessively impressed with most of the beers I've had from Founders, but this and their Old Curmudgeon barleywine are definitely worth checking out.

I had the "Build Your Own" meat & cheese platter for dinner, with pepper salame, hot soprasetta, smoked
Gouda and Manchego. Om nom nom. With it I had a New Belgium Hoptober, which I have enjoyed greatly in bottles, but wanted to try on tap. It's a very tasty medium bodied ale with excellent mouthfeel and a nice, but not overwhelming, hop presence. As always, an excellent experience at Flying Saucer.

Now I am debating whether it's too chilly (48˚) to go out on the porch and have a cigar and finish off the bottle of Port Ellen that I paid a dollar per year for ($25) in 2004. Just enough left to enjoy. I'm thinking it's not that cold.

Just when where you planning on telling me about this, you fuckers!

713 malts available, two monthly public tastings. Gee, why would I be interested in that?

You're making me GO ALL CAPS DAY ON YOU EARLY, BASTARDS!

Thanks to Carol Doms for tipping me off.

Another week, another paycheck. Boss has ordered supplies, so perhaps we will remain open for a bit yet. Tunes.


1) The Sound Of Failure, The Flaming Lips

2) Purple Haze, Jimi Hendrix (Live At Woodstock)

3) Do Your Feeling, King Floyd

4) Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad, Eric Clapton (01/13/73 The Alternate Rainbow Concert The Rainbow Theatre London, UK)

5) Ice Rose, Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band

6) Someday, Doug Sahm

7) Love In A Refrigerator Box, Austin Lounge Lizards

8) Cosmic Vibration (An Afternoon Concert), A.R. & Machines

9) The End, Loose Salute

10) why you wanna treat me so bad, Prince (the ritz, 03/21/81)


and the penalty time:


11) Manic Depression, Gillian Welch

12) Stranded In Time, The United States Of America

13) Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas, Okkervil River


Super duper extra bonus from my childhood!

14) Tapioca Tundra, The Monkees


And since it's the 3rd weekend of the month, tomorrow is everything at once day. Dance practice for Rohanna, then to Lawrence for KanPoly, then back for the ConQuesT meeting and the KaCSFFS meeting afterwards, then off to a party. Sunday Ro and I will be back at Ren Fest, as tourists.

Dave Weigel, via Twitter:

BREAKING: Obama named God Emperor of Dune. Sandworm transformation in rose garden 8:30 am tomorrow.

Especially for the D&Ders and/or loan officers in the crowd.

Adventure Capital.