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Boyz and the Spa: Not Necessarily in That Order
2007-10-15 23:57:00
We just returned from four days in the Catskills, spa-ing, reading and napping. I feel totally rested and relaxed! Listened to “Boyz” again. I think I’m done tweaking it. It’s not perfect by a long shot, but I’m not sure exactly what to do to make it sound better. I think it ...
More About: Music , Order , Sari

Latest Tune
2007-10-07 04:36:00
My ears are starting to ring because of all the time I’ve been spending playing with all the bells and whistles in Ableton Live. Here’s my latest effort, composed with about 8 different loops and mastered in Ozone3. It’s called Name That Genre. Share This
More About: Music , Tune

Inspiration
2007-09-16 21:59:00
My adventures in electronic music continue. I’ve posted another song to Last.fm, called “Try Try“. I think it is better than “If At First”, but I may have mucked it up in the last stages by adding an autopan effect to the bass tracks. In this (final?) version, the bass sounds as ...
More About: Music , Inspiration

I?m not an artist; I only play one on Last.fm
2007-09-06 03:28:00
I’m not an artist, but a couple of days ago I took advantage of the upload option at Last.fm so as to express my creative efforts somewhere, in relative anonymity.  The upload access form required that I identify myself as Artis t , or Manager, or Both.  I said Both.  So now my Catalogue boasts a single ...
More About: Music , Play

My Excuse
2007-08-27 23:29:00
Yes, I know it’s been an awful long time since I posted.  I have a good excuse though … I’ve found another creative outlet in digital audio.  Several weeks ago I remembered that I’ve always wanted to know how Crystal Method and Propellerheads and Adam Freeland, among many other favorites, do their magical thing with ...
More About: Music , Excuse

Frost Nixon
2007-08-03 00:32:00
Peter Morgan’s only slightly fictionalized version of the events behind David Frost ’s interviews of former president Richard Nixon is a simply stunning. Before I was old enough to vote, I experienced my first episode of political disgust over the Watergate scandal. I remember how disappointed I was when McGovern lost to Nixon ...

Jimmy Page a Plagiarist??
2007-07-24 02:39:00
You never know what you’re going to stumble upon in Metafilter. Will Shade’s ‘expose’ is a poorly written diatribe by a man with an ax to grind (no pun intended). This must be old news to all the Jimmy Page devotees out there. Somehow I missed it. Simply shocking! Shocking, ...
More About: Music , Jimmy Page

Way Behind
2007-07-08 22:52:00
I’ve fallen way behind on my posts here. I suffer from short attention span syndrome, and there have been a million and one distractions in the last month: A couple of weeks after the Tonys, we headed to Emerson Spa & Resort in the Catskills for a four day weekend. This is as close ...
More About: Travels

A Tony Affair
2007-06-15 02:55:00
What an extravaganza. We arrived with a group of corporate sponsor types and found our seats, on the floor and center. As we squeezed by the couple in the seats adjacent to ours, they greeted us as though they had been expecting to see us and that we would, of course, know who ...
More About: Tony , Affair

Celebrity
2007-06-10 04:36:00
So it turns out we are going to attend the Tony Awards tomorrow night, at Radio City Music Hall. D was given tickets by a business associate. At first I wasn’t really interested … then I realized that unlike the televised awards ceremonies, there probably won’t be commercials. And I guess it’s ...
More About: Celebrity

Back in Boston
2007-06-06 04:08:00
D spent last week in Boston on business, so for the weekend we agreed that I would fly up to meet him. He booked us a beautiful room at the Four Seasons Hotel adjacent to the Boston Public Garden. We spent Saturday at the MFA, and we walked through damn near every gallery. I ...
More About: Travels , Back

Socialites
2007-05-14 00:26:00
What strange and beautiful creatures. The recent article on the Socialite Rank web site in New York Magazine reads like the world’s most decadent banana split …. and I am guilty of indulging. Put plainly, I had no idea. The author, Isaiah Wilner, reports that Park Avenue Peerage is now the reigning blog dedicated ...
More About: Socialites

Cambridge 2007
2007-05-06 02:59:00
The last weekend in April we went up to Cambridge , MA. D had a business meeting there, so I spent a day preparing for a work event. Then, during a rain break, we headed out to Harvard Square. I guess it’s been 15 years. I was completely disoriented at first, but ...
More About: Travels , Ridge , Bridge

Gin Lane
2007-04-23 01:19:00
After work on Friday, we decided to try a new dining venue - Gin Lane on 14th at 9th Avenue. I was a little strung out after a tough week. In fact, I thought I might actually fall asleep in the middle of dinner. But a couple of drinks fixed that. We decided ix-nay on the house specialty cocktails. The descriptions were a little too syrupy. So we went with martini stand-bys and a bottle of petite syrah. D’s first gin martini arrived very wet. The second arrived very dirty. But in between he got a couple that were desert-dry, as he had requested. I enjoyed the atmosphere, particularly the greenhouse skylight that was open above big wood ceiling beams. Dinner was fine. The courses were pretty, but somehow they lacked flavor intensity. I have to say though, the shrimp cocktail was near perfection. And our servers were attentive and professional, and cute too. The thing is, we are getting really spoiled when it comes to dining in Manhattan. Powered by ScribeFire. Share ...

Led Zep Marathon
2007-04-15 18:39:00
Handsome and I have spent about 6 hours listening to Led Zeppelin in the last 24. There was a time in my life (a long, long time ago) when I dreamt of becoming as talented a musician as Jimmy Page. *snortle* Needless to say, that was crazy thinking. My auditory cortex is stunned every time ...
More About: Marathon , Mara

Grimaldi Bruna Barbera d’Alba Scassa 2004
2007-04-15 04:39:00
We opened the first bottle in the case we brought home from the Italian Wine Merchants.  I associate Barbera d’Alba with rich fruit, cherries and currants.  This bottle was a surprise.  When first opened, the alcohol overwhelmed, but after a half hour or so it smoothed out.  Or maybe we loosened up, heh.  I can never tell the difference. At any rate, the unexpected feature of this wine was its acidity.  I don’t usually taste citrus in red wines but this one is an exception.  Overall rating - drinkable, pleasant, good with food, not a ‘wow’. Share This
More About: Brun , Grimaldi , Grim

Wine-snob Wannabees
2007-04-14 02:25:00
A couple of wine-tasting courses and a trip to Italy, and now we think we can just walk right into Italian Wine Merchants near Union Square like we know what we are doing. D and I met up there after work on Wednesday, and the moment we stepped inside I started working up a ...
More About: Anna , Bees , Snob

Toys
2007-04-08 21:59:00
D bought a Macbook this weekend, and is completely engrossed.  I knew he would be, and I’m happy because he needs a new space to explore.  I’ve been keeping him company by exploring all of the new cool toys out there for Firefox.  Got Thunderbird set up with all of my e-mail accounts and RSS ...
More About: Toys , Toy

QuickComic
2007-04-08 04:38:00
My latest creative endeavor: Political Humor Share This
More About: Comic , Quick

The Furs at Irving Plaza
2007-03-31 03:43:00
I’ve been to a fair number of concerts, I guess. Clubs on up to arenas, stadiums, and speedways. And memorable performances: Led Zeppelin (1976), Rush (1977), Yes (1978), Aerosmith (1977). But I’ve got to say that the memory of The Psychedelic Furs at Irving Plaza (2002?) makes me smile the most. Maybe the ...
More About: Ving

Tonic
2007-03-25 23:40:00
Tonic is a venue on the lower east side of NYC that is known to jog a little off the beaten path. D and I have been there many times. The most memorable of which involved Marc Ribot and silly volumes of alcohol. On multiple occasions.   Once, I was in the elevator in my apartment building ...
More About: Tonic , Toni

Last.fm
2007-03-24 22:23:00
Where are the adults on Last .fm?  My profile page gets buzzed by 16 yr old boys.  In fact, 16 yr olds are most likely to comment on my posts as well.  And the 16 yr olds from Germany are remarkably literate. Maybe it has something to do with my musical preferences.  I’m a middle-aged woman with ...

2112
2007-03-22 02:59:00
As a Rush tribute, my high school guitar class (some 50 students) performed all of 2112 for an audience of puzzled parents and siblings one night in 1977. My memory is not particularly trustworthy, but vaguely I recall playing lead guitar on Twilight Zone. I’ve never thought 2112 was their best work, but ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship
2007-03-18 04:35:00
Guilty thrill: UFC on SpikeTV Tonight we watched a match between Drew Fickett and Karo Parisyan. Neither guy would quit, blood flying everywhere, amazing strength and agility, Karo won by unanimous decision. The fight club thing fascinates me, and makes me cringe. powered by performancing firefox Tags: ultimate fighting, UFC, martial arts, fight clubShare This
More About: Championship , Fight , Ultimate Fighting Championship , Champions , Ultimate Fighting

I almost forgot my SG ?
2007-03-16 01:26:00
I must be getting old, because it’s surprisingly hard to remember the guitars in my life. I’m just now remembering a Gibson SG with whammy bar, my first electric guitar. A christmas present when I was 16. There wasn’t any Led Zeppelin tune I couldn’t play rhythm to. *sigh* I wonder why ...
More About: Most

Picasso and Those Other Guys
2007-03-13 23:46:00
Sunday was Guggenheim day.  I’ve been thinking about Spanish things lately (don’t know why); e.g. travel, re-learning a language I used to be quite conversant in, art, wine, et cetera.  So when I saw an ad for the new exhibit at the Guggenheim I knew I had to go. The theme of the exhibit is the ...
More About: Other , Guys , Those , Hose , Picas