Favorite Songs of 2015
So I suppose I should finally do this. I won’t say this was the toughest time I’ve ever had putting a list together. While some years the songs kind of sort themselves, there have been plenty of Decembers when I’m still trying to figure out what to include and in what order right up until I made my list public.…
Kicking Off The Last Week
Last week of school before the holiday break. I could sense some anticipation as I drove the girls to St. P’s this morning. There are a series of parties and other holiday activities scattered through their weeks, and then they all get extra early dismissal on Friday. The first graders do an annual Living Nativity program that day, and then…
⦿ Friday Links
Just a few links this week. Drew Magary has become one of my favorite writers of late. He’s hilarious. Here is his epic takedown of the Williams-Sonoma holiday catalog. The 2015 Hater’s Guide To The Williams-Sonoma Catalog Scott Weiland’s ex-wife wrote a pretty powerful letter to the public in Rolling Stone. Scott Weiland’s Family: ‘Don’t Glorify This Tragedy’ Finally, I…
Friday Vid
The Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby Christmas Special, 1957 Ol’ blue eyes. The Chairman of the Board. Frank Sinatra was born 100 years ago tomorrow. I know a few of my friends will be gathering in the suburbs of Kansas City to celebrate the occasion. I will be here in Indy, listening to some of Frank’s best Christmas songs, drinking…
Year In Music Preview
I’ve been struggling with my Music Favorites lists this year. Where I normally love sifting through everything I’ve purchased, streamed, and downloaded over the past year to put together my favorite songs and albums lists, this year it’s been a bit of a chore. My first inclination is to say that is because this has not been a particularly good…
How Myths Get Busted
We are dedicated online shoppers. Have been for years. During the last 6–8 weeks of the calendar year, it’s a truly fantastic tool for doing your Christmas shopping. No fighting crowds in parking lots and malls. No picking through damaged boxes looking for that last one that hasn’t been touched by a hundred grubby hands. Fill up your virtual cart,…
⦿ Friday Links
(Standard disclaimer that I’m terribly behind in sharing links, I’ll do better starting next week, yada yada yada…) Let’s kick things off with a couple baseball links that are left over from October. First, a rather fine oral history of the 1985 World Series. Which, you may recall, was the last time the Kansas City Royals won the title before…
Friday Vid(s)
For some reason this week I was thinking not backward, to Christmases past, but ahead ten years or so to Christmases future. When M. and C. are in college and home for their breaks and L. is wrapping up her high school years. I wondered if I would still have my love of the various pop culture elements of the…
The Debut
There have been a few eagerly anticipated freshman debuts at KU over the years. As recruiting hype has grown over the past decade, the attention on those opening games keeps getting bigger. When you throw in an NCAA-mandated delay, it’s like Christmas morning getting delayed. I remember being unreasonably wound up to watch Josh Selby play his first game after…
November Books
A lighter month, as I tackled another beast of a book and then punted most of Thanksgiving week. With a strong finish – and December always includes a few traditional and quick reads – I’ll get to 52 books for the year. The Cartel – Don Winslow What is the official threshold that you need to cross for your book…