Gigging

In case it's been lost in the jungle of all the other posts that have been made on this blog, Uncle Rico the Band is playing at a poolside party at the Elk's Club in Iowa City on Saturday night. I am so excited to be playing! We rehearsed twice last week (Monday and Wednesday) and rehearse for a final time tomorrow night. We will have gone through all three of our sets twice after tomorrow night's rehearsal. Randy, who is our Gary's (guitar/vocals) brother, has been running our sound through the PA to get things ready for Saturday. I have been especially happy with the way Alex's Yamaha electronic drums have sounded coming through the PA. The PA speakers are set up in what I would call a living room while the four of us play our instruments in what I would call a bedroom. Previously, I would use my cell phone to record our rehearsals with my cell phone in the same room as our instruments. However, at Wednesday night's rehearsal, I put my phone in the living room with the PA speakers. I like what I hear when I listen to the recording.

These are the songs we are playing.

Set 1

Ring of Fire	57	Open HH	84
I've Been Everywhere	58	Jet	106
Oh Boy	58	Jet	96
Squeeze Box	53	Tamb & Click	68
Jet Airliner	58	Jet	61
Margaritaville	53	Tamb & Click	66
When the Sun Goes Down	53	Tamb & Click	53
Stand By Me	58	Jet	60
500 Miles	58	Jet	65
It's the End of the World	58	Jet	104
Just Like Heaven	4	Rock Kit	77
I Melt With You	4	Rock Kit	77
I Saw Her Standing There	57	Open HH	80
Love Her Madly	1	Oak Custom	74
I Will Survive	57	Open HH	60
Rock'n Me	58	Jet	62
Royals	57	Open HH	42

Set 2

You May Be Right	58	Jet	75
Blister in the Sun	58	Jet	87
What I Like About You	57	Open HH	80
Jenny / 867-5309	58	Jet	70
Brown Eyed Girl	53	Tamb & Click	73
Escape	58	Jet	88
Dancing Queen	58	Jet	54
I Ran	58	Jet	73
Wonderful Tonight	58	Jet	24
Folsom Prison Blues	58	Jet	104
Hot Stuff	57	Open HH	77
Bad Case of Loving You	58	Jet	74
Johnny B Goode	58	Jet	80
Sweet Caroline	58	Jet	65

Set 3

Hey Jealousy	58	Jet	77
Blitzkreig Bop	57	Open HH	89
I Wanna Be Sedated	57	Open HH	81
Should I Stay or Should I Go	53	Tamb & Click	56
Basket Case	58	Jet	88
Fight For Your Right	57	Open HH	67
Sweet Child O Mine	58	Jet	42
Paranoid	57	Open HH	87
Rock and Roll All Nite	57	Open HH	72
Rockin' in the Free World	57	Open HH	73
Brown Sugar	58	Jet	66
Your Mama Can't Dance	57	Open HH	76
Pump It Up	57	Open HH	69
Lola	57	Open HH	83
Oh Boy	58	Jet	96

 

Anti-Fox Video? On My Blog? Wow...

Is Your Poop Normal?

http://greatist.com/grow/what-poop-shape-frequency-means-about-health?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Greatist%20Daily&utm_campaign=Greatist%20Daily%202014%20-%20Manual&utm_content=Final

Negative Resolution

Two of the bands I grew up listening to - Ratt and Queensryche - have now ended any hope I have ever had of seeing the bands in concert. It seems like every time either band would come to Cedar Rapids, there was a reason I couldn't attend. Back in April 2014, Ratt vocalist Stephen Pearcy left the band and more recently, Geoff Tate has ended a dispute with his former bandmates.

Planet of the Apes Sequel Soon

On Tuesday night, Alex and I watched the 2011 movie about the planet of the apes with the idea being to go see the sequel at the Elkader theater today. It's nearly 11 AM and Alex is just now arising from slumber.

I think I will be seeing the movie alone.

Lamb of God in a Car

Missing the Donkey and Elephant

http://humanevents.com/2014/08/15/on-obamas-foreign-policy-clinton-got-it-right/

Too Good For Their Own Bad

Came across this the other day in the RoboHelp 11 User Guide. I nearly burst my gut from laughter.

So then, I searched for "RoboHelp 11" in the user guide:

Happy Friday

The old school mentality is that technical writing is not about being friendly. Instead, the focus was always about facts and how those facts were able to used to accomplish something in either hardware (like instructions for putting together a bookcase) or software (like instructions in the online Help for Microsoft Word. That premise seems to be an afterthought in this job advertisement:

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An online school for web developers is searching for a person to fill their position for a Work at Home Technical Writer.

Candidates will be responsible for the following:

• Writing teaching materials that cover technical topics
• Create work geared toward beginning and intermediate audiences

Applicants must meet the following qualifications:

• Knowledge of, or excitement to learn, many of the topics like AngularJS, Rails, Python / Django, HTML, CSS, JavaScript and Node
• Experience writing technical content, such as user guides, marketing materials or even corporate non-technical audiences
• Ability to translate complex lessons into short, clear and friendly tutorials and simpler lessons
• Engaging writing style, in a friendly and accessible voice that beginners will trust

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Final Post for the Night

One final thought for the night... I was in to work today very early today. I think I will have a busy day tomorrow. Thus, I think I am going to bed. Farewell.

Spider-Man 3

Again and again, I think my favorite thing to do is to watch a show, a movie or even a pro wrestling match that I have seen previously. "The Middle" or "Spider-Man 3" or the Hardy Boys v the Dudley Boys, a match made for greatness - channeling my inner Yoda - matter not that previously I have seen.

I still don't understand why the common thread among opinions about the Spider-Man trilogy is that it isn't as good as the other two. Over on IMDB, the "thecowardlylorin" opens his review here with these words, "My feelings after watching the third film are somewhere in the neighborhood of satisfied, but that feeling is fairly disappointing. Satisfied more or less means adequate and to follow a sequel that I consider excellent with a film that's only adequate is a certainly a step down." Finish reading the review, though.

I like it.

What Time is It?

It's bacon time!

There's An App for That

I'm waiting for a cake. I just realized that I can use a blogger app. This is my first post with it.

Work Out a Deal to Retain Rey Mysterio

Rey Mysterio Deserves Release from His WWE Contract to Allow Return to Mexico | Bleacher Report (via http://ble.ac/teamstream-) http://teamstre.am/1AiiIEb

Agree with this article or not, Mysterio has quite the legacy.

Not Today

As the impact of Robin Williams taking his own life through suicide ripple through the people that knew and loved him and admired his comedic genius, another article worth reading has surfaced. Ben Stein is quoted as saying this:

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I carry with me a gift from a friend who said it had saved his life many a time. It is a simple piece of paper that reads, “NOT TODAY.” It has brought me peace and salvation many a time. Anyone can get through just one more day and by tomorrow you might feel completely different.

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What a simple phrase with such a powerful meaning!

Sequels

Here's an article about movie sequels that makes a lot of good points regarding actors returning to what are perceived as successful franchises. I found the article only because I was interested in reading more about a "Mrs. Doubtfire" sequel.

Out of It

I just got an email that advertises a concert this weekend and, wow, I have never heard a single one of the bands that are headlining this festival! Am I that far out of the mainstream music loop or the underground music loop seems to be the question I cannot answer.

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Echo Park Rising 2014 is THIS WEEKEND friends!

Our headliners include Allah-Las, De Lux, Cherry Glazerr, GoldLink, Matthewdavid, Woods, Peanut Butter Wolf, Doja Cat, Mexico 68, Myron & E, Together PANGEA, Very Be Careful, Fresh & Onlys, The Far West, Subseulo DJs, Buttertones, and Burger Vs. Lolipop!  Check out the poster below for the master list.

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Sorrow and Grief

We start this Tuesday with an article about Robin Williams, who is dead. BREAKING: Actor and comedian Robin Williams found dead at 63 screams the headline in my email inbox. It was the first of many articles that will be published about his life. In this first article, I found this part of the article to be relevant to me.

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"In his 1986 one-man show at New York's Metropolitan Opera, Williams revealed that he'd managed to get clean. But it was a crushing realization that the change wasn't a miraculous one. "I realized when I became a former alcoholic, I was the same a**hole," he said."

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This is the second article about his death and this is the third article.

Before being sucked into a long list of links to articles about a deceased comedian, I wanted to capture what happened to me this morning at my 7 AM dentist appointment today. When I arrived shortly before 7, there was a woman / fellow patient waiting outside. The door, apparently, was locked, but, as I walked up to the door, the receptionist unlocked the door. After we both went through the door and checked ourselves in at the receptionist desk and, as I sat down on a couch in the waiting area, I felt the urge to talk about Robin Williams with someone. I said to this stranger I had never seen before, "I think Robin Williams would find it funny that we were waiting in line to get into the dentist office." She chuckled and that led into a really nice chat while we waited. When I get some more free time, a summary of our conversation could end up on this blog.

For the moment, though, I wish Robin Williams wouldn't have taken his own life. Does it mean he went out on his own terms? I would accept that statement. He didn't end up being a forgotten doddering old man at a nursing home who slowly deteriorates in front of the staff's eyes. He didn't die by a car accident on a random trip to the grocery store. The aforementioned woman said that she thought there were discussions about a "Mrs. Doubtfire" sequel and that he had several projects in the works. I'm not sure how the premise of a sequel to "Mrs. Doubtfire" would pan out, but who knows what the script would be like. A quick check through Google confirms her statement about a sequel.

I along with everyone else that is alive today will never know what great ideas were simmering in Williams' mind because, bluntly, those ideas were all silenced the moment Williams' heart ceased to pump blood.

Done! Well, Kind of, Sort Of....

We got home from Elkader and as soon as we did, Alex and I mowed and got the Ford unloaded. While there remains additional tasks to complete prior to being able to prepare for Uncle Rico rehearsal tomorrow night, at 6:42 PM, it feels good to know that those tasks are done.

Fare Thee Well

Leaving Elkader now for home today and when I get back home today, I will needing to get the Yamaha electronic drums ready for tomorrow night's Uncle Rico rehearsal. I also need to actually practice as well. But....

I will need to mow the lawn first. I will likely listen to music while I am mowing. But.....

I will need to unload the truck before I can mow.

Alberto Del Rio is Gone from WWE!

Big news in the wacky world of WWE is that Alberto Del Rio is no longer with WWE!