I rediscovered my reading mojo over the past few weeks. It helped that I found a book I had been trying to locate for a year or more, and then two other great reads on top of that. Walk This Way: Run-DMC, Aerosmith, and the Song That Changed American Music Forever - Geoff Edgers First is the book I’ve been trying to find for at least a year, since I read a brief excerpt before it was published.
We’ve hit that moment in fall that is both lovely and sad: the last burst of really warm, humid weather before things change. We are scheduled to have the pool closed on Wednesday, so last weekend was our final chance to swim. Friday I cranked the heater up to be sure the water was tolerable. That took the chill off but we may not have needed it Saturday as the temperature burst into the 80s.
open.spotify.com/playlist/… “Ain’t Talkin' ‘Bout Love” - Van Halen Been listening to a lot of VH this week. Like a pretty high percentage of white dudes (and some dudettes) who were born between 1965 and 1980. “When You’re Gone” - Lydia Loveless I’ve been waiting for Loveless’ new album for nearly four years. In the period since her last album, she got sober, got divorced, fought with her record company/the music industry, and pulled back from the public eye.
Chart Week: September 16, 1989 Song: “Friends” - Jody Watley with Eric B & Rakim Chart Position: #33, 14th week on the chart. Peaked at #9 the week of August 26. For some reason I’ve struggled with this entry. I’ve been working on it for two weeks but can never seem to find the right tone. I’m setting a timer for 30 minutes and when that’s up, you get what I’ve got.
Ted Lasso As with the first month of shows, Ted Lasso continued to shine in the final five episodes of season one. Sure, there were predictable, clichéd choices in how the show progressed. But the dynamic between the main characters is what carried the program. I believe I said this last month but it was a little shocking how good Jason Sudeikis is in the emotional moments of Ted’s life. Hannah Waddingham and Juno Temple were both outstanding, too.
Fuck, cancer got Eddie. Hard rock wasn’t necessarily my thing. But I learned that Eddie Van Halen was one of the 10 or 20 coolest people on the planet in the early ’80s and it was a good thing to know about and like his music. Shame that David Lee Roth was so atrocious in this performance because Eddie sounded as good as ever. RIP. youtu.be/Jm4leF-hZ…
A lot of ground to cover so let’s get into it. Today is a first: first sick kid day of the year. M is home for the first time in her high school career with an upset stomach. L also seems to be getting a cold, which is delightful. Usually C is the first to fall when illnesses begin circulating. The 2020 primary parental hope is that one symptom doesn’t turn into two, which turns into quarantining and testing and whatnot.
First off, apologies. I had a morning project that took longer than expected then lunch duty at St. P’s and I am a bit behind. Better late than never, though. open.spotify.com/playlist/… “Ghosts” - Bruce Springsteen. HOLY SHIT!!! The lead single off Springsteen’s up-coming album, the title track “Letter to You,” is pretty good. But this? Again, HOLY SHIT!!! Best song he’s put out since 1987? Maybe his poppiest song ever? And, like so many things, it seems like the perfect song for a moment when pretty much everything seems horrible.
My reading pace has fallen way off over the past month. I tried to start a book I was very much looking forward to reading but couldn’t focus and gave up. That lack of focus is most of the problem. Where I’m usually itchy and nervous if I’m not reading in my free time, I currently lack the motivation or excitement to start something new. I also got new glasses a few weeks back and my eyes, as always, are slow to adjust to the new prescription, which makes it difficult to read at times.
It’s time for the weekly Monday sports review! Gale Gale Sayers was waaaaaay before my time. He retired about six months after I was born, and his final two years in the NFL were slowed by a series of serious injuries that robbed him of his breath-taking speed. But there were uncles, and friends of uncles, and other people their age who would get emotional when they talked about watching him play in his prime.
Another week when I’m not terribly prepared to share a playlist of (mostly) new music. I’ve reached the point in the year when I start looking backwards and doing some tentative work on my Favorite Songs of the Year list. While there has been plenty of new music in the middle half of the year, and some of that music quite good, there’s clearly been a drop off from a very good start to the year.
A couple kid milestones to share. First, C got her braces taken off yesterday. This was both early and late. She was originally pegged to be in them 22–24 months, and this was just month 17. But it was also late because she missed an appointment during lockdown so likely would have had them removed 4–6 weeks ago had she stayed on that schedule. She was thrilled to get them removed, although a bit bummed that some of the ceremony that goes with having them taken off has been wiped out by the Covid era.
It was a weekend dominated by watching sports, mostly on the TV. Friday night we went to an (outdoor) fundraiser that a high school friend of S’s was throwing. This is her pal who nearly died of Covid back in April. He brought together a few well-connected friends he has (one is an NBA player) to throw a neighborhood concert that would raise money for families that were struggling with expenses because of Covid-related hospital stays.
For most of this week I’ve been listening to A) the new Doves album, which is awesome, and B) working through Steven Hyden’s The Best Bruce Springsteen Songs, Ranked list. As of Thursday night I am just past the mid-point of the list. I’ve discovered some songs that are new to me that I’ve really enjoyed while building more respect for and knowledge of The Boss' full catalog. Because of that, I haven’t listened to much new music.
It only took six weeks for Tom Breihan to roll through the 20 number one songs of 1984. 1985 has some bangers, for sure, but we’re approaching the point where I’ll be more interested in his words than in the songs themselves. In the comments, people ranked the Number Ones of 1984 in their preferred order. Believe it or not I’m not registered to comment; not sure why but I’ve never signed up.
The fall 2020 kickball season has come to an end for our family. L’s team capped their season Wednesday with a run-rule win against the nearest parish. L had a grand slam, a three-run triple, and a single to close out the season. She didn’t kick quite as well this year as in the past. I’m not sure if that’s because she hasn’t played soccer in a year, or just from her body changing - she’s stretched out more over the past few months - and her form changing along with it.
Football is back! After three weeks of high school action, the college and pro ranks joined in this weekend to give us another nudge towards a sense of normalcy. Let’s run through the weekend’s happenings. High School CHS played arch rival BCHS on Friday. CHS was ranked #1 in 5A, BCHS #1 in 3A. Despite the difference in size (CHS is a natural 4A school, with about 350 more students and draws from a bigger geographic region), this is a pretty even rivalry.
open.spotify.com/playlist/… “Child’s Romance” - Nap Eyes This song sounds soooooo Australian. Yet this band is from Nova Scotia. Even if they aren’t from my favorite musical continent, I still really dig this song. All kinds of good bits in it. “Mustang” - Strange Not sure there’s anyone in music right now like Bartees Strange. He combines a variety of disparate influences into a unique sound. He’s also a pretty interesting cat.
Over the weekend I dug into the blog archives a little bit. I would pull up a random month from the past and scroll through the entries, skimming any that jumped out at me. I had thought a good quarantine project would be to re-read through the entire history of the site, but I never got around to that. Maybe that can be a winter project. As I went through Septembers of the past, I realized to keep with precedent, I should throw together some NFL predictions for the upcoming season.
A late return after the long holiday weekend. My in-laws have been in town since last Wednesday, which has adjusted my daily routine a little. Our Labor Day weekend was pretty low-key. Friday night was so cool that we kicked on the outdoor fireplace for the first time this season. A couple of the girls hung out with friends on Saturday. On Sunday we hosted a light family gathering at the pool.