Last week I complained that the new music had dried up. Well, that changed quick! At one point this week my playlist of songs to review was back up over 30 tracks. A lot of those got sampled and immediately deleted, but a decent chunk moved into my rotation. And then I tweaked some of my playlists to pull out tracks from this year that had gotten lost in the shuffle a bit.
I ended the last entry in this series noting something happened following my visit to the VW dealership that changed my car search. I’m sure you’ve been on pins and needles since reading that, anticipating the next reveal. Wait no more! Later that evening I got a text from a VW sales manager saying they would love to work with me to get out of my Tesla lease early and into the Tiguan they wanted me to drive.
Thoughts from an eventful Tuesday night. Midterm Election I don’t write much about politics here anymore. I try not to devote too much time to that realm since it tends to get my blood boiling. Try as I might, though, politics is much harder to avoid than it used to be. Both because it has infested every aspect of our lives and because of the damage our Shithead in Chief has done.
Once I began test driving cars, it seemed dumb to stop just because my decision day was months away. To make accurate comparisons between my candidates, I needed to drive them within close proximity to each other. Right? Plus I just like test driving cars. I get a limited window to try different things before settling on one. Might as well dive all-in and feast when I had the chance.
Holy crap, it’s November! This was one of the greatest Octobers ever, from purely a weather perspective, here in Indy. I’m already regretting not enjoying it more. The weather definitely began to change over the weekend. It was still warm, but mid-60s instead of mid-70s. We had more clouds than sun. Tuesday looks above-average for the high, but after that, we get into more seasonable air quickly. It was another laid-back weekend for us, even with the holiday falling on Saturday.
Welp, another light month. In Octobers past I could blame it on watching baseball and Halloween baking shows. I was totally out on baseball this year, and I gave up on the Food Network after last year’s disastrous shows. My excuse is going to be I have a 7-10 day period coming up where I have to take it easy, so I’m saving the new season of Scrubs, The Diplomat, and some other stuff for that stretch.
NSFW Warning A very raw track included this week. I’ll note it below so you can skip if needed. Since returning to Apple Music a year-and-a-half ago, my daily playlist has pulled in songs from over a dozen smart lists. I’ve carefully designed it to ensure I am balancing new music and old. The master smart playlist is capped at 100 songs. This week I noticed it was often filled with less than 100 tracks.
Two weeks ago I put $100 down to get on the Rivian R2 reservation list. What to do next? Just sit around until late winter and then start test driving other options? Hell no! I figured I could do some more whittling of my list now while the weather is nice. If the R2 was #1 on my list, the Honda Passport TrailSport would be #2. At this moment it’s the only other more midsized SUV I am considering.
For the first time in ages I’ve hit a reading lull. Some of it is because of my schedule recently. Most of it is because two books that I began just did not work for me. Still, two more additions to the pile of finished books. Biological War - Annie Jacobsen The exciting follow-up to her nightmarish Nuclear War: A Scenario. Sarcasm intended. The format here is a little different.
I moved away from Kansas City 23 years ago. In that time I’ve had a lot of great visits back to my hometown. This past weekend was easily one of the best ever. This trip had many of the usual elements of my returns. Attending a game of some kind. Eating some of my favorite foods. Hanging out with some of my favorite people. There was something special in the air this time, literally, that elevated this trip.
“Radio Station” - Ex:Re. Back in my podcasting days I liked to start episodes with a song that had something to do with radio. So it made sense to throw this in as track one this week. “Emma” - fish narc. Second fish narc track of the month! Not as much Lemonheads in this one, although still plenty of Power Pop. “i think he’s got a girl” - Slayyyter.
Two weeks ago, S asked when I was going to start test driving cars. I told her I would probably wait several months. Three years ago I started test driving in February and had plenty of time to pick something I liked by April. Why mess with my system? However, one night last week I fell into a YouTube car video rabbit hole. After watching a few, I launched my handy, dandy car buying spreadsheet and made a new tab for 2027.
The NBA is back! More importantly, so is Tyrese Haliburton. After a gap year of sorts, the Pacers should be in the mix of a suddenly super-deep and formidable Eastern Conference. I’ve listened to approximately one million hours of NBA podcasts over the summer. I should share some of that knowledge with my readers. Or at least type it up into a blog post so I can pretend I am educating someone else and that time wasn’t wasted.
A few weeks back I got an email from Tesla with details about the approaching end of my Model Y lease. It was a check list of standard stuff most auto companies send out near the end of a contract. I was already thinking about that date, but the email prompted me to think about pulling the award winning Car Shopping Chronicles series from the shelf, blowing off the dust, and cranking it up for season three!
Another weekend jam-packed with sports for me to consume. Before we get to that, I have to mention the weather here. Following a summer-like week, fall bucked its head over the weekend. We went from 90° Wednesday to 33° Sunday morning. Yikes! Friday was rainy and dark and chilly. Fortunately Saturday and Sunday days were gorgeous and seasonal. The week ahead looks like classic, beautiful fall weather. Jackets in the morning, short sleeves in the afternoon, a quick cooldown as the sun sets.
It’s been some, long week in our house. Multiple health issues sent things off the rails the past few days. Everyone is safe, which is the most important thing. That explains the lack of posts the past few days. Let’s see if I can hack together a decent playlist for you. “Vinegar Swimming Pool” - World News. WN’s debut full-length album finally comes out today. It’s been a long wait, what with singles and an EP sprinkled over the last 18 months or so.
It was an interesting weekend in many ways. I’ll begin with the normal day-by-day accounting and then share the latest health issues in our house. Friday Friday was the end of CHS’ week of homecoming activities. The seniors claimed the Spirit Stick earlier in the day, sweeping every category. L was pretty proud of that. She dressed as Alexander Hamilton on USA day and organized her friend group for some pretty spectacular outfits on the other theme days, so she did her part in earning points.
“Tongue” - Fontaines D.C. One week until the new FDC album arrives. This is another step in a different direction for them. “Roar Of The Heliac Goat” - mercury. Not sure what the hell this song is about, but the title and grungy sound are an ideal match for the spookiest month of the year. “Violins” - Blondshell. I found Blondshell’s new album to be quite good.
Before we get to the (almost) quarter of the season review, a few thoughts on what has become one of America’s favorite subjects: Carlie Irsay-Gordon standing on the sideline for Colts game. Here’s my take: I think she’s trying too hard. She wants to be an active owner, a person who makes informed decisions. As a woman she’s automatically going to be dismissed by a lot of men in football. By standing with the team and taking notes, by asking coaches questions, by listening to the play calls, she shows the world how seriously she takes the job.
Chart Week: September 24, 1983 Song: “It Must Be Love” - Madness Chart Position: #37, sixth week on the chart. Peaked at #33 for two weeks in October. As I was listening to this countdown, I had a revelation: 1983 was the year I learned about disappointment. That may seem like a strange thing to say when I had experienced the double-barreled whammy of my favorite baseball team losing the World Series and my parents divorcing within about eight weeks of each other in 1980.