Our spot this time was between the lemonade and the bananas, opposite the bottled water (oh yeah, Whole Foods is a grocery store).
We were also in prime viewing location of the cheesecake sampling. I got more nervous as the slices dwindled, but thankfully there were a couple pieces left by the time we finished. I'm pretty sure I ran over there to get some and I'm pretty sure that Mudcat would have appreciated having more than a wee taste, since I chowed it down on the way back to our spot.
But I did assure him that it was a tasty treat. I'm nice like that.
Saw some familiar faces this time ~ the guy who danced his way past the cheesecake to the deli and then doubled back to scoop up the artichoke and spinach dip girl. She wasn't made out of artichoke and spinach dip, she was serving samples of it. And the couple who clearly have different wardrobe requirements for their jobs (she was in a skirt and really high heels, he was in shorts and boat shoes...and yes, they both were wearing tops). Or maybe they just have different ideas about what's comfortable to wear on a milk and bread run.
It just makes me chuckle to see people dancing while grocery shopping, but so does the concept of having live music in a grocery store. Even so, glad that it's us, because it really is a fun little gig.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
5/15 - Tavern Of Richfield
Ahh...a quaint little tavern tucked away in a quaint little town.
The Marcel Marceau gig, as I like to call it.
We are now officially "gig whisperers".
If you've ever seen the movie "Spinal Tap", you know that their numbers all go to 11...ours go into the negative.
We were actually asked to turn down (which just never happens) and not once, but twice.
Apparently, they were unaware of our motto: our music should be enjoyed, not endured.
The Marcel Marceau gig, as I like to call it.
We are now officially "gig whisperers".
If you've ever seen the movie "Spinal Tap", you know that their numbers all go to 11...ours go into the negative.
We were actually asked to turn down (which just never happens) and not once, but twice.
Apparently, they were unaware of our motto: our music should be enjoyed, not endured.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
6/9 - CONGRATULATIONS, JAKE!!!!
Jake is the King of the Blues Store Winner ~
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01_v9_p5PZY
This is an acceptable reason for missing a gig, don't you think?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01_v9_p5PZY
This is an acceptable reason for missing a gig, don't you think?
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
5/8 - Firehouse Grille & Pub
The Firehouse Grille & Pub is in a tiny town called Malvern. And I mean tiny. A population of 1,218 people sounds like it's not so small, but compare that to Strongsville (43,858), Chagrin Falls (4,024), even Geneva-On-The-Lake beats them out (1,545).
To "put" it into perspective: Put-In-Bay tips the scale with 128 (obviously they weren't counting summer squatters). And I do believe that the amount of people we had at this gig could double the population of PIB.
I should have told you at the very beginning to take your potty break now, grab a big mug of coffee and perhaps a small snack, because this is going to be a long one.
Okay, here we go ~
As we drew closer to Malvern, we noticed quite a lot of restaurant/bait shop combos and fortunately none of those restaurants were advertising sushi as their daily special or the catch of the day. And most of the bait sections were drive through for the fisherman on the move.
We finally get there (and yes, I had ample opportunity to ask "are we there yet?" during our drive....and ask it, I did) and as we turned right to go over the bridge into town, I swear we had turned into an abandoned dirt lot and I'm pretty sure that I heard banjo music playing in the background while Mudcat noticed that cell phone service had ceased.
That quickly faded to the welcoming "downtown" area. There was the Firehouse Grille (thankfully), a bank, and oddly enough a tanning place across the street. A few more shops lined the main street, but I was too busy wining about being cold to notice what they were during our walking tour before the gig.
We had some supper time treats before setting up and the food was quite tasty and reasonably priced, if you ever get the urge to drive to Malvern for a meal. A couple in the adjoining booth asked who was playing and as soon as the bartender called over to them that it was Project Mojo, the guy in the booth said, "oh, they're that NEW band" with not a very nice tone to his voice. I was both amused and a little frightened. They left shortly after, so I didn't have to find out if my fears were warranted. Turns out that we were labeled as "new from Cleveland" and the other bands for the month were listed as "returning".
Their shot for the month was Swamp Water. I wondered if it was an accurate description of the contents, so I looked that up too, only to discover that it's a combination of a variety of liquors, depending upon which recipe you choose, but the common ingredient is vodka.
And of all the things to see when I didn't have my camera with me ~ a wall mounted pay phone, complete with rotary dial. During our break, I asked the bar goddess if it was a working phone and she didn't know. Then I asked her if anyone has a cell phone in Malvern, because non of ours were getting a signal. She said that the only cell phone service that works there is Verizon, but it cuts out every time she goes into Brooster. So, wouldn't you think that Brooster is even smaller than Malvern? I did, but it's not (2,324).
So, the first set started out fairly generic...people alternating between singing along to some of the songs and ignoring us. It was pretty obvious that everybody knew everybody in town (as our new friend Paul pointed out to us) when any newcomer arrived, at least 4 people said hi and/or hugged them before they settled in. And it was pretty obvious that nobody knew us, because when we walked in everybody turned around seemingly in unison and stared at us for quite a disturbing amount of time before they turned back to their beverage at hand.
We had a tiny dancer named Capri. What a doll she was and not a half bad dancer, either.
The second set was like we were at a completely different gig all together. Maybe it was due to the reverse raffle at the church that got the town all revved up, or maybe it was because the people in Malvern like to let their hair down. I don't know why, all I know is that it was very different. Mudcat describes it as our "Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hide gig".
And we had another dancer, who wasn't so tiny. She was quite grown. I'm assuming that she and the guy and girl she was with had just come from a wedding reception, because they were dressed to the nines. Well, she was mostly dressed....on the outside. Apparently, she used all the money she saved on not buying undergarments to put toward the purchase of the dress, which was beautiful, but not long on fabric.
This chick was hugely fond of the "grinding" maneuver for her dancing and she was determined to captivate ME with that move. Although she ignored the boys during the song that would not end with her face and parts directly in front of me, she gave Jake some one-on-one attention.
And I do mean one-on-one. If she were any closer to him, she would have been inside his skin. She almost succeeded in at least being inside his shirt....tried to stuff her broken necklace (which must not have been intended to be worn while grinding) down the front of Jake's shirt while he was playing his guitar, singing, and trying to ignore her. I think he may have been temporarily traumatized.
Along with her grinding ability, she must be good at climbing trees, because she mounted the back of some guy at the bar with the greatest of ease and they "danced" together that way, making the space between my mic stand and them get smaller and smaller. Thankfully, they and my mic stand remained upright, which is more than I can say for the bar chair that was holding her purse while she was busy. She managed to scoop up her purse and the bar chair in one easy motion and as she walked away, the chair toppled in her wake.
Now, on to the guy she climbed.....he and one of his buddies were singing along to our songs, which in itself is not a bad thing at all. However, boys who sing along to "Harden My Heart" make me wonder about things....like for instance; they know the words, but do they know what the words mean?
He also was a HUGE fan of Jake's and got the entire bar to cheer him on during one of his solos.
We found out from our friend, Paul (remember Paul at the beginning of this?) that most everyone in town is a "Buckeye", so we played "Hang On Sloopy" at the end and I am not kidding you when I tell you that everyone in the bar was doing the O-H-I-O part. It was really loud and kinda cool to get that sort of response.
Thus ends the tale of our adventures in Malvern.
To "put" it into perspective: Put-In-Bay tips the scale with 128 (obviously they weren't counting summer squatters). And I do believe that the amount of people we had at this gig could double the population of PIB.
I should have told you at the very beginning to take your potty break now, grab a big mug of coffee and perhaps a small snack, because this is going to be a long one.
Okay, here we go ~
As we drew closer to Malvern, we noticed quite a lot of restaurant/bait shop combos and fortunately none of those restaurants were advertising sushi as their daily special or the catch of the day. And most of the bait sections were drive through for the fisherman on the move.
We finally get there (and yes, I had ample opportunity to ask "are we there yet?" during our drive....and ask it, I did) and as we turned right to go over the bridge into town, I swear we had turned into an abandoned dirt lot and I'm pretty sure that I heard banjo music playing in the background while Mudcat noticed that cell phone service had ceased.
That quickly faded to the welcoming "downtown" area. There was the Firehouse Grille (thankfully), a bank, and oddly enough a tanning place across the street. A few more shops lined the main street, but I was too busy wining about being cold to notice what they were during our walking tour before the gig.
We had some supper time treats before setting up and the food was quite tasty and reasonably priced, if you ever get the urge to drive to Malvern for a meal. A couple in the adjoining booth asked who was playing and as soon as the bartender called over to them that it was Project Mojo, the guy in the booth said, "oh, they're that NEW band" with not a very nice tone to his voice. I was both amused and a little frightened. They left shortly after, so I didn't have to find out if my fears were warranted. Turns out that we were labeled as "new from Cleveland" and the other bands for the month were listed as "returning".
Their shot for the month was Swamp Water. I wondered if it was an accurate description of the contents, so I looked that up too, only to discover that it's a combination of a variety of liquors, depending upon which recipe you choose, but the common ingredient is vodka.
And of all the things to see when I didn't have my camera with me ~ a wall mounted pay phone, complete with rotary dial. During our break, I asked the bar goddess if it was a working phone and she didn't know. Then I asked her if anyone has a cell phone in Malvern, because non of ours were getting a signal. She said that the only cell phone service that works there is Verizon, but it cuts out every time she goes into Brooster. So, wouldn't you think that Brooster is even smaller than Malvern? I did, but it's not (2,324).
So, the first set started out fairly generic...people alternating between singing along to some of the songs and ignoring us. It was pretty obvious that everybody knew everybody in town (as our new friend Paul pointed out to us) when any newcomer arrived, at least 4 people said hi and/or hugged them before they settled in. And it was pretty obvious that nobody knew us, because when we walked in everybody turned around seemingly in unison and stared at us for quite a disturbing amount of time before they turned back to their beverage at hand.
We had a tiny dancer named Capri. What a doll she was and not a half bad dancer, either.
The second set was like we were at a completely different gig all together. Maybe it was due to the reverse raffle at the church that got the town all revved up, or maybe it was because the people in Malvern like to let their hair down. I don't know why, all I know is that it was very different. Mudcat describes it as our "Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hide gig".
And we had another dancer, who wasn't so tiny. She was quite grown. I'm assuming that she and the guy and girl she was with had just come from a wedding reception, because they were dressed to the nines. Well, she was mostly dressed....on the outside. Apparently, she used all the money she saved on not buying undergarments to put toward the purchase of the dress, which was beautiful, but not long on fabric.
This chick was hugely fond of the "grinding" maneuver for her dancing and she was determined to captivate ME with that move. Although she ignored the boys during the song that would not end with her face and parts directly in front of me, she gave Jake some one-on-one attention.
And I do mean one-on-one. If she were any closer to him, she would have been inside his skin. She almost succeeded in at least being inside his shirt....tried to stuff her broken necklace (which must not have been intended to be worn while grinding) down the front of Jake's shirt while he was playing his guitar, singing, and trying to ignore her. I think he may have been temporarily traumatized.
Along with her grinding ability, she must be good at climbing trees, because she mounted the back of some guy at the bar with the greatest of ease and they "danced" together that way, making the space between my mic stand and them get smaller and smaller. Thankfully, they and my mic stand remained upright, which is more than I can say for the bar chair that was holding her purse while she was busy. She managed to scoop up her purse and the bar chair in one easy motion and as she walked away, the chair toppled in her wake.
Now, on to the guy she climbed.....he and one of his buddies were singing along to our songs, which in itself is not a bad thing at all. However, boys who sing along to "Harden My Heart" make me wonder about things....like for instance; they know the words, but do they know what the words mean?
He also was a HUGE fan of Jake's and got the entire bar to cheer him on during one of his solos.
We found out from our friend, Paul (remember Paul at the beginning of this?) that most everyone in town is a "Buckeye", so we played "Hang On Sloopy" at the end and I am not kidding you when I tell you that everyone in the bar was doing the O-H-I-O part. It was really loud and kinda cool to get that sort of response.
Thus ends the tale of our adventures in Malvern.
5/7 - Emerald Valley Golf Course
Emerald Valley....not to be confused with the Emerald City, which by the way was not green.
This was an interesting joint. It was once a full golf course until 30 acres were sold off to make a home for some new buildings. So, now it's a driving range with parts of the original course still in tact, but taken over by the Canadians. Canadians as in geese and there goslings (why aren't they called geeselings?).
This I just don't get ~ it was super duper warm in there and the bartender chick had on a turtle neck, a hoodie, jeans....and sandals, which were really cute, but I just don't get the winterization and summer time shoe item combo. Maybe she was going through a transitional phase.
Thankfully, it was not a patio gig because the sky just let loose with rain and wind. It was pretty intense. And of course, Mudcat played "Ridin' the Storm Out"....he's clever like that. As brutal as it was, it still did not keep the smokers from going out to have some puffs. I have no idea how they lit their cigs, much less kept them going. They're a very determined lot.
Jake's new technology loving friend kept Mudcat engaged during our break and he attached himself to Jake's 3 foot perimeter during tear down. I think the guy had quite enough of sitting with his wife and her 3 girlfriends. It started out with him and his wife being a cute little couple, but as the girls filtered in, we could see the will to live start to drain out of him.
Project Mojo: Unlike the Government, We're Here To Help.
This was an interesting joint. It was once a full golf course until 30 acres were sold off to make a home for some new buildings. So, now it's a driving range with parts of the original course still in tact, but taken over by the Canadians. Canadians as in geese and there goslings (why aren't they called geeselings?).
This I just don't get ~ it was super duper warm in there and the bartender chick had on a turtle neck, a hoodie, jeans....and sandals, which were really cute, but I just don't get the winterization and summer time shoe item combo. Maybe she was going through a transitional phase.
Thankfully, it was not a patio gig because the sky just let loose with rain and wind. It was pretty intense. And of course, Mudcat played "Ridin' the Storm Out"....he's clever like that. As brutal as it was, it still did not keep the smokers from going out to have some puffs. I have no idea how they lit their cigs, much less kept them going. They're a very determined lot.
Jake's new technology loving friend kept Mudcat engaged during our break and he attached himself to Jake's 3 foot perimeter during tear down. I think the guy had quite enough of sitting with his wife and her 3 girlfriends. It started out with him and his wife being a cute little couple, but as the girls filtered in, we could see the will to live start to drain out of him.
Project Mojo: Unlike the Government, We're Here To Help.
Monday, May 3, 2010
5/1 - Mojo's Coffee House
WE MISS YOU, BETTY! Please get better and stay better (although you're already better than most!).
It was all quiet on the western front, so we invented a new, fun game...I'll call it "random requests". Played some songs that we haven't done in a while and a couple that we've never done.
Swan showed up to save us from ourselves and stayed for the duration.
The doors were open and our music lured a woman and her daughter away from their intended route to the DQ and into Mojo's. They saw us through to the end as well.
The little girl looked at my cast and asked me how I broke my arm. The exchange went something like this ~
Lola: I fell
Little Girl: Down the stairs?
Lola: No, just walking
Then the Little Girl was speechless...just the look of "how is that possible????" on her face.
As they were leaving, she told me that she would say a prayer for my arm. How sweet is that?
And speaking of little girls, an even littler/more little/less big girl and her dad were taking a walk and she dragged her dad over to the patio to look in the window at us. She was wearing a headband that looked like giant flower petals, which made her face the face of the flower. Too cute. She and I played a little game of peak-a-boo and wave exchange until her dad had enough and insisted they continue on their way.
Geeze-o-petes, almost forgot ~ Congratulations, Jake (I mean, Blind Lemon Ockuly) on your naked teeth!!!!!
It was all quiet on the western front, so we invented a new, fun game...I'll call it "random requests". Played some songs that we haven't done in a while and a couple that we've never done.
Swan showed up to save us from ourselves and stayed for the duration.
The doors were open and our music lured a woman and her daughter away from their intended route to the DQ and into Mojo's. They saw us through to the end as well.
The little girl looked at my cast and asked me how I broke my arm. The exchange went something like this ~
Lola: I fell
Little Girl: Down the stairs?
Lola: No, just walking
Then the Little Girl was speechless...just the look of "how is that possible????" on her face.
As they were leaving, she told me that she would say a prayer for my arm. How sweet is that?
And speaking of little girls, an even littler/more little/less big girl and her dad were taking a walk and she dragged her dad over to the patio to look in the window at us. She was wearing a headband that looked like giant flower petals, which made her face the face of the flower. Too cute. She and I played a little game of peak-a-boo and wave exchange until her dad had enough and insisted they continue on their way.
Geeze-o-petes, almost forgot ~ Congratulations, Jake (I mean, Blind Lemon Ockuly) on your naked teeth!!!!!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
4/24 - Fox's Sports Bar
First, let me say that being at Fox's brought about some mixed emotions for me...some 20 odd years ago I bellied up to that very bar on occasion with my dear friend Marylin, who sadly lost her battle with cancer a few years ago. We threw back a lot of "vodsonics", but more importantly, a lot of laughter. Sorry, Mar ~ I just had a regular vodka/tonic this time around.
Okay, on to the gig ~
Jake was all kinds of happy. Not only did we have a stage (even though his happiness about the stage turned to loathing by tear down time), we also got to play loud. He likes that.
And he got to jam with Lightnin'. Lightnin' sat in with us for the last set and a good time was had by all. Thanks for coming out to play and thank you, Gina for indulging us.
You know how I was on a roll for a while with describing various establishment's bathrooms and then the "interesting" bathrooms were no more? Well, they're baaaaack....
The bathroom door was hand painted with a bouquet of beautiful flowers, which impressed me because this didn't seem like the kind of joint that would have a lovely bathroom. And it isn't, which I discovered once I got beyond the door.
The toilet tank was strapped down with some criss-crossed metal stripping (still not sure what that was all about) and I could still be in that stall reading all the eloquently put thoughts that covered the walls and door.
I just have to share one such thought (the others were pretty much potty mouth stuff and yes, pun intended). Scrawled across one wall was this ~ "Seriously, writing on bathroom walls? Who does that anymore?, which was followed by, "Obviously you do, bitch!", which was followed by, "Sounds like split personality to me".
And how is it that girls can walk in 5-6 inch heels, much less dance in them without snapping their ankles like twigs? I don't know if I could even sit wearing them. I had my day of wearing high heels, but 3" was considered high and 4" was considered CFM. Wonder what the girls are calling theirs (besides a challenge).
A couple (and I do believe that's the operative word here) of girls who were not only sporting the highest of high heels, but who were also wearing swishy little party dresses ("little" because of the girls' stature, but mostly because of the lack-o-material involved in the making of these dresses) danced and sang their hearts out to "Folsom Prison Blues". Not sure if it was the song, the swishing, or perhaps the alcohol, but one of the girls decided to cop a feel and the coppie didn't seem at all surprised nor bothered by this sudden and unexpected (at least to us it was unexpected) PDA.
Everyone seemed to enjoy the variety of songs that we did and the rain didn't dampen anyone's spirits. Wow, I just realized the play on words in that sentence. It would have been pretty clever had it been intentional...
Okay, on to the gig ~
Jake was all kinds of happy. Not only did we have a stage (even though his happiness about the stage turned to loathing by tear down time), we also got to play loud. He likes that.
And he got to jam with Lightnin'. Lightnin' sat in with us for the last set and a good time was had by all. Thanks for coming out to play and thank you, Gina for indulging us.
You know how I was on a roll for a while with describing various establishment's bathrooms and then the "interesting" bathrooms were no more? Well, they're baaaaack....
The bathroom door was hand painted with a bouquet of beautiful flowers, which impressed me because this didn't seem like the kind of joint that would have a lovely bathroom. And it isn't, which I discovered once I got beyond the door.
The toilet tank was strapped down with some criss-crossed metal stripping (still not sure what that was all about) and I could still be in that stall reading all the eloquently put thoughts that covered the walls and door.
I just have to share one such thought (the others were pretty much potty mouth stuff and yes, pun intended). Scrawled across one wall was this ~ "Seriously, writing on bathroom walls? Who does that anymore?, which was followed by, "Obviously you do, bitch!", which was followed by, "Sounds like split personality to me".
And how is it that girls can walk in 5-6 inch heels, much less dance in them without snapping their ankles like twigs? I don't know if I could even sit wearing them. I had my day of wearing high heels, but 3" was considered high and 4" was considered CFM. Wonder what the girls are calling theirs (besides a challenge).
A couple (and I do believe that's the operative word here) of girls who were not only sporting the highest of high heels, but who were also wearing swishy little party dresses ("little" because of the girls' stature, but mostly because of the lack-o-material involved in the making of these dresses) danced and sang their hearts out to "Folsom Prison Blues". Not sure if it was the song, the swishing, or perhaps the alcohol, but one of the girls decided to cop a feel and the coppie didn't seem at all surprised nor bothered by this sudden and unexpected (at least to us it was unexpected) PDA.
Everyone seemed to enjoy the variety of songs that we did and the rain didn't dampen anyone's spirits. Wow, I just realized the play on words in that sentence. It would have been pretty clever had it been intentional...
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
4/23 - Whole Foods
It still slays me to play in a grocery store, but we did it again and the people shopping there seemed to like our music. Even had an older gentleman dancing in the aisles.
And it also amazes me that for a smart girl (Master's degree....in science), I can be really dippy. I'll try to explain it the best I can for you to get the full effect. Here goes ~
An aisle to the left of us was this woman trying to get her grand daughter, who was sitting in the shopping cart to clap and cart dance, rather than chair dance (ooh, would that be dancing a la carte? I crack my own self up, but I digress...shocking, isn't it?). Anyway, the girl was having none of her grandma's enthusiasm. She was watching us with the most intent look on her face (perhaps she was a bit perplexed about a band in a grocery store).
So, let me clarify that I know with all certainty this woman is the little girls' grandma, because of the obvious age difference, but more so because this little girl was an exact miniature of the woman.
This little girl looked like an older version of the Gerber baby. She had the most beautiful blond hair, big expressive eyes, that little pouty mouth to go with the cheeks that strangers feel compelled to "pinch" and she was wearing what looked like her Easter dress complete with the white tights and white Mary Janes, topped off with a polite little white sweater. So, you see this little girl made quite an impression on me.
The dippy part is coming. Wait for it....wait for it....
After a couple songs of just the grandma dancing and clapping, they make their way down that aisle and out of sight, but in this case it wasn't out of sight/out of mind for me (well, the out of my mind thing pretty much always applies, but you know what I mean).
A few songs later, I look over at the aisle to the right of us where this same grandma is pushing a cart with a little girl wearing the same little Easter outfit, but this little girl is about 3 times bigger than the Gerber Girl and she has black hair. My first thought was that this grandma chick was not paying attention and took the wrong cart with someone else's kid in it and I was horrified at how she wouldn't have noticed.
And then I saw that grandma wasn't alone. The woman with her was clearly her daughter, who looked just like a younger grandma with black hair and an older version of the girl in grandma's new cart and she was pushing the cart with the Gerber Girl. She also had a baby in one of those front papoose things. And the baby looked just like her too. If it weren't for the women's sunny dispositions and the dark hair, they could have been from "Children of the Corn".
So, that's my dippy story.
This grocery store is more like a health food store with just about everything being all natural, organic, or "green" and yet a woman strolled by us with a McDonald's cup, sipping some kind of liquid that probably wasn't all natural or organic....but it might have been green (just not "green"). Clearly, she wasn't a health food nut.
And then there was the guy who had a bag of carrots in his cart. Not just any bag and not just any carrots. This was an industrial size bag, like 50 lbs. And the carrots were giant (maybe they grew next to the Perry power plant). I'm thinking that this guy either has a horse, a really big rabbit named Harvey or a big old juicer at home. Seriously, how much do you have to like carrots to buy that many at one time? Obviously, way more than I like them.
And it also amazes me that for a smart girl (Master's degree....in science), I can be really dippy. I'll try to explain it the best I can for you to get the full effect. Here goes ~
An aisle to the left of us was this woman trying to get her grand daughter, who was sitting in the shopping cart to clap and cart dance, rather than chair dance (ooh, would that be dancing a la carte? I crack my own self up, but I digress...shocking, isn't it?). Anyway, the girl was having none of her grandma's enthusiasm. She was watching us with the most intent look on her face (perhaps she was a bit perplexed about a band in a grocery store).
So, let me clarify that I know with all certainty this woman is the little girls' grandma, because of the obvious age difference, but more so because this little girl was an exact miniature of the woman.
This little girl looked like an older version of the Gerber baby. She had the most beautiful blond hair, big expressive eyes, that little pouty mouth to go with the cheeks that strangers feel compelled to "pinch" and she was wearing what looked like her Easter dress complete with the white tights and white Mary Janes, topped off with a polite little white sweater. So, you see this little girl made quite an impression on me.
The dippy part is coming. Wait for it....wait for it....
After a couple songs of just the grandma dancing and clapping, they make their way down that aisle and out of sight, but in this case it wasn't out of sight/out of mind for me (well, the out of my mind thing pretty much always applies, but you know what I mean).
A few songs later, I look over at the aisle to the right of us where this same grandma is pushing a cart with a little girl wearing the same little Easter outfit, but this little girl is about 3 times bigger than the Gerber Girl and she has black hair. My first thought was that this grandma chick was not paying attention and took the wrong cart with someone else's kid in it and I was horrified at how she wouldn't have noticed.
And then I saw that grandma wasn't alone. The woman with her was clearly her daughter, who looked just like a younger grandma with black hair and an older version of the girl in grandma's new cart and she was pushing the cart with the Gerber Girl. She also had a baby in one of those front papoose things. And the baby looked just like her too. If it weren't for the women's sunny dispositions and the dark hair, they could have been from "Children of the Corn".
So, that's my dippy story.
This grocery store is more like a health food store with just about everything being all natural, organic, or "green" and yet a woman strolled by us with a McDonald's cup, sipping some kind of liquid that probably wasn't all natural or organic....but it might have been green (just not "green"). Clearly, she wasn't a health food nut.
And then there was the guy who had a bag of carrots in his cart. Not just any bag and not just any carrots. This was an industrial size bag, like 50 lbs. And the carrots were giant (maybe they grew next to the Perry power plant). I'm thinking that this guy either has a horse, a really big rabbit named Harvey or a big old juicer at home. Seriously, how much do you have to like carrots to buy that many at one time? Obviously, way more than I like them.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
4/21 - Gobs-o-Gigs
I am so sorry for the delay in gig updates, but in my defence there really are an awful lot of shiny things around here to distract me, which accounts for a couple missed blogs, and then I decided to test out gravity to see if it still works and found out the hard way by breaking my wrist that yes, gravity does still work (do not try this at home...or anywhere else for that matter).
Okay, enough with the excuses and/or whining. Let's get to some serious gig updating. I'll do my best to remember the ghosts of gigs past.
Ready? Here goes ~
3/19 - Old Whedon Grille
Once again stupid, stupid, stupid basketball takes precedence over us....the nerve. But, it wasn't until the very end of the gig that we got shut down. Thankfully, it was a late starting game.
We got there too early to set up, so decided to take a stroll through "Stepford" (and we saw some wives). As we were coming back through the park, we saw a car pull out of a spot directly in front of the bar, so we picked up the pace to cross the street, Mudcat went one way to get the van from the nearest parking space we could find, which was about 3 blocks away and I went the other way to stand in the newly open parking space to hold it for him. I was not only successful in holding the space for him, but I also annoyed a couple people who tried to pull in there, but couldn't, because I was standing right in the middle of it pretending to be completely oblivious to them.
The place we were set up in was wee and there was a TV hanging from the wall right above and somewhat behind Jake's head. It reminded me of Max Headroom. Remember him from the 70's or 80's? Of course Jake had no idea what I was talking about and looked at me like I'd gone off the deep end (hmmm...I get that look a lot from him).
3/20 - The Pub
Always a fun time and to make it even more fun, Betty & Bernie were there with their entourage and Mike & Sue came with their peeps and Dave & Patti were there too. Jake's friend Chris and his crew were there as well. Lots of good company, but during the break, we felt like a couple at their wedding reception going to each table only getting to spend a brief moment with each person.
It was still a little bit chilly, so the industrial strength ceiling heaters were on full blast, including the one directly above us. I asked the boy who was hostess for the night if he would please turn off our heater. Being that it's high up, this boy had to stand on a chair and stretch to reach the controls (and he's tall to begin with). He was quite reluctant to do it for me, because the uniform for everyone (boys included) is a kilt. He looked down at his kilt, back up at me and asked me if I noticed what he was wearing. I asked him if it was really true then about what's worn (or not worn) under a kilt. He said that he wears boxers under his. He was still reluctant to climb up there and risk having anyone see his underlings. I promised that I wouldn't look up his skirt if he didn't look up mine. He didn't think that was a fair trade, but turned the heater off for us anyway. I can't tell you how tempted I was to say, "nice boxers" after he climbed down, but I refrained.
3/26 - Whole Foods
Missed this gig due to the gravity test, but Mudcat reported that someone did a long distance request and held up their cell phone while he and Jake played their song. And the boys were an end cap this time rather than being set up in the "dining area".
3/27 - Mustard Seed
Once again, missed because I was still nursing my wound and wouldn't ya know it ~ Greg finally makes it out to see us with his son, Elliott and I missed them. He called from there to harass me about sitting at home on the couch with my feet up, eating chocolates and drinking wine. What are friends for?
4/3 - Mojo's Coffee House
Betty & Bernie were there to offer support and this time, Sarah was with them. Since this was our open mic night, we forced Sarah to come up and sing. What a voice that chick has! I was a little concerned that she might be my replacement. Thanks for jamming with us, Sarah. Hope you had as much fun as we did.
4/10 - McCarthy's (Strongsville)
The stage there was giant and multi-levels! What a treat, although I did feel like we were miles apart from each other.
Many thanks to Betty & Bernie for their continued support and for gathering a group together to cheer us on. Sorta felt like rock stars.
Some guy who was clearly feeling no pain decided to invite himself up to "sing" with me.
We had tons of requests and oddly enough, we knew all of them. Ended up playing overtime to get all the requests in, but enjoyed every minute of it.
4/15 - Milestone Bar and Grille
The weather was so nice that pretty much everyone was on the patio....except us.
Our new friend, Karen was a hoot! She stayed for quite a while. If you get a chance, check her out at www.miscellaneousyammering.blogspot.com.
If The Sleeper has a brother, Big Al is him. Pretty scary....
Thanks to Mark & Gina for coming out (and for not sitting on the patio)! Too funny that when they walked in Mud was singing the "Gina works the diner all day" line from "Living On A Prayer".
4/16 - Laurello Winery
I do believe their stage is the smallest stage EVER. We were pretty packed up there and with my wing still in a full arm cast, I kept bumping into Mudcat and had to turn sideways in order to sing and play the maracas at the same time.
For some reason, my mic stand was being a little tipsy and I swore I was going to end the night with a fat lip and/or chipped tooth to go along with my lame wing.
As we were leaving, I caught the toe of my boot on the floor strip going out the door and almost did a pinwheel thing out of there. Jake was behind me and was convinced that I was going down. Hopefully, I sing better than I walk.
4/17 - Mustard Seed
The place was packed all night. Re-mark-able. During our break, we went to the back banquet room to sit and some people actually sought us out to tell us how much they enjoyed us. Pretty cool, huh?
And as always, there was at least one screaming child (hopefully not because of our music) and a "clean up on isle 6" in the grocery store below.
.
.
.
Okay, I'm finally caught up on my gig reports. Did you make it all the way through?
Okay, enough with the excuses and/or whining. Let's get to some serious gig updating. I'll do my best to remember the ghosts of gigs past.
Ready? Here goes ~
3/19 - Old Whedon Grille
Once again stupid, stupid, stupid basketball takes precedence over us....the nerve. But, it wasn't until the very end of the gig that we got shut down. Thankfully, it was a late starting game.
We got there too early to set up, so decided to take a stroll through "Stepford" (and we saw some wives). As we were coming back through the park, we saw a car pull out of a spot directly in front of the bar, so we picked up the pace to cross the street, Mudcat went one way to get the van from the nearest parking space we could find, which was about 3 blocks away and I went the other way to stand in the newly open parking space to hold it for him. I was not only successful in holding the space for him, but I also annoyed a couple people who tried to pull in there, but couldn't, because I was standing right in the middle of it pretending to be completely oblivious to them.
The place we were set up in was wee and there was a TV hanging from the wall right above and somewhat behind Jake's head. It reminded me of Max Headroom. Remember him from the 70's or 80's? Of course Jake had no idea what I was talking about and looked at me like I'd gone off the deep end (hmmm...I get that look a lot from him).
3/20 - The Pub
Always a fun time and to make it even more fun, Betty & Bernie were there with their entourage and Mike & Sue came with their peeps and Dave & Patti were there too. Jake's friend Chris and his crew were there as well. Lots of good company, but during the break, we felt like a couple at their wedding reception going to each table only getting to spend a brief moment with each person.
It was still a little bit chilly, so the industrial strength ceiling heaters were on full blast, including the one directly above us. I asked the boy who was hostess for the night if he would please turn off our heater. Being that it's high up, this boy had to stand on a chair and stretch to reach the controls (and he's tall to begin with). He was quite reluctant to do it for me, because the uniform for everyone (boys included) is a kilt. He looked down at his kilt, back up at me and asked me if I noticed what he was wearing. I asked him if it was really true then about what's worn (or not worn) under a kilt. He said that he wears boxers under his. He was still reluctant to climb up there and risk having anyone see his underlings. I promised that I wouldn't look up his skirt if he didn't look up mine. He didn't think that was a fair trade, but turned the heater off for us anyway. I can't tell you how tempted I was to say, "nice boxers" after he climbed down, but I refrained.
3/26 - Whole Foods
Missed this gig due to the gravity test, but Mudcat reported that someone did a long distance request and held up their cell phone while he and Jake played their song. And the boys were an end cap this time rather than being set up in the "dining area".
3/27 - Mustard Seed
Once again, missed because I was still nursing my wound and wouldn't ya know it ~ Greg finally makes it out to see us with his son, Elliott and I missed them. He called from there to harass me about sitting at home on the couch with my feet up, eating chocolates and drinking wine. What are friends for?
4/3 - Mojo's Coffee House
Betty & Bernie were there to offer support and this time, Sarah was with them. Since this was our open mic night, we forced Sarah to come up and sing. What a voice that chick has! I was a little concerned that she might be my replacement. Thanks for jamming with us, Sarah. Hope you had as much fun as we did.
4/10 - McCarthy's (Strongsville)
The stage there was giant and multi-levels! What a treat, although I did feel like we were miles apart from each other.
Many thanks to Betty & Bernie for their continued support and for gathering a group together to cheer us on. Sorta felt like rock stars.
Some guy who was clearly feeling no pain decided to invite himself up to "sing" with me.
We had tons of requests and oddly enough, we knew all of them. Ended up playing overtime to get all the requests in, but enjoyed every minute of it.
4/15 - Milestone Bar and Grille
The weather was so nice that pretty much everyone was on the patio....except us.
Our new friend, Karen was a hoot! She stayed for quite a while. If you get a chance, check her out at www.miscellaneousyammering.blogspot.com.
If The Sleeper has a brother, Big Al is him. Pretty scary....
Thanks to Mark & Gina for coming out (and for not sitting on the patio)! Too funny that when they walked in Mud was singing the "Gina works the diner all day" line from "Living On A Prayer".
4/16 - Laurello Winery
I do believe their stage is the smallest stage EVER. We were pretty packed up there and with my wing still in a full arm cast, I kept bumping into Mudcat and had to turn sideways in order to sing and play the maracas at the same time.
For some reason, my mic stand was being a little tipsy and I swore I was going to end the night with a fat lip and/or chipped tooth to go along with my lame wing.
As we were leaving, I caught the toe of my boot on the floor strip going out the door and almost did a pinwheel thing out of there. Jake was behind me and was convinced that I was going down. Hopefully, I sing better than I walk.
4/17 - Mustard Seed
The place was packed all night. Re-mark-able. During our break, we went to the back banquet room to sit and some people actually sought us out to tell us how much they enjoyed us. Pretty cool, huh?
And as always, there was at least one screaming child (hopefully not because of our music) and a "clean up on isle 6" in the grocery store below.
.
.
.
Okay, I'm finally caught up on my gig reports. Did you make it all the way through?
Friday, March 19, 2010
3/13 - BW3
So glad that the crowd didn't turn ugly like the weather did! It was normal-ish when we started, just a little spritz-o-rain, but by the time we were finished the rain turned to snowiness. Of course, it was just in time for us to load the van. What a lovely treat.
But inside it was warm and welcoming. How could you not feel warm singing "Margaritaville"? And the couple who requested it not only sang along, but danced too....well, he danced...with someone else....it was alright, though. No fight broke out.
Wally and Chris made it out to see us. Thanks, you guys! It was great to see you both again.
The gig closed out with Parker and the MVP of pee-wee hockey helping us out on percussion. Parker requested the Charlie Brown song, but sadly we couldn't honor his request. And we call ourselves professionals.
But inside it was warm and welcoming. How could you not feel warm singing "Margaritaville"? And the couple who requested it not only sang along, but danced too....well, he danced...with someone else....it was alright, though. No fight broke out.
Wally and Chris made it out to see us. Thanks, you guys! It was great to see you both again.
The gig closed out with Parker and the MVP of pee-wee hockey helping us out on percussion. Parker requested the Charlie Brown song, but sadly we couldn't honor his request. And we call ourselves professionals.
Monday, March 15, 2010
3/6 - Mojos Coffee House
Our open mic night at Mojos is really starting to catch on!
Catfish joined us again and it's always great to have him there, especially when he does his "Violet" song. Great falsetto.
Our new friends, Austin and his dad Larry came out and brought their entourage along. Austin is 15 and a heck of a guitar player/singer/song writer. We certainly wish him the best with his music. Austin did 3 numbers on his own and then Larry joined him for a song. He also sat in with us on a couple songs at the end. A good time was had by all.
Harmonica Dave still wouldn't come up and play, but he's a nice boy so we'll let it go.
And Peanuts his own self graced us with his presence (not presents). Thanks for stopping out.
Mostly, thanks to Betty for being our best supporter EVER!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
2/26 - Doogan's
HUGE snow storm, so we thought the place would be like a ghost town, but when it comes to an overabundance of snow, those eastsiders are pretty resilient.
We do a run of songs from our hometown peeps who've made it big (Pretenders, James Gang, Outsiders, The Choir, Tracy Chapman) and one guy was able to name all the artists. Pretty impressive. Well, it's impressive to us (mostly because someone was actually listening....).
One of the guys who works at Doogan's asked if we do any opera. Wow, that's a first. And by the way, we don't.
A Cav's game was on and we were humbled every time people started clapping wildly during the songs, because they weren't clapping for us. Although, we did get a good response after each of our songs...still, not basketball worthy.
Hoping to play back at Doogan's during the summer so that we can be on the patio. Stay tuned to the schedule.
We do a run of songs from our hometown peeps who've made it big (Pretenders, James Gang, Outsiders, The Choir, Tracy Chapman) and one guy was able to name all the artists. Pretty impressive. Well, it's impressive to us (mostly because someone was actually listening....).
One of the guys who works at Doogan's asked if we do any opera. Wow, that's a first. And by the way, we don't.
A Cav's game was on and we were humbled every time people started clapping wildly during the songs, because they weren't clapping for us. Although, we did get a good response after each of our songs...still, not basketball worthy.
Hoping to play back at Doogan's during the summer so that we can be on the patio. Stay tuned to the schedule.
Monday, February 22, 2010
2/13 - The Mustard Seed
Yes, finally getting around to writing about the Valentine's Day Eve gig.
Well, being Jakeless made it way less interesting, but don't worry about me....I'll be alright.
With it being Valentine's Day Eve, obviously there were lots of couples, but there were also families, which sort of surprised me. One small family was a man with his little girl, so of course we used her name in the "Amy" song. Her name was Emma. In talking with Emma during our break, I was told that she liked my dress, her dad has 3 guitars, and that she liked my dress.
I also discovered that most of the songs I do are not very romantic AT ALL. Most of them are about good love gone bad or bad love gone worse. Very nice for Valentine's Day. But everyone was either fine with that or they were ignoring me and had no idea what I was singing. Probably the latter of the two.
So, if anyone has a romantic song suggestion, please let me know. Or I could just write one....
Well, being Jakeless made it way less interesting, but don't worry about me....I'll be alright.
With it being Valentine's Day Eve, obviously there were lots of couples, but there were also families, which sort of surprised me. One small family was a man with his little girl, so of course we used her name in the "Amy" song. Her name was Emma. In talking with Emma during our break, I was told that she liked my dress, her dad has 3 guitars, and that she liked my dress.
I also discovered that most of the songs I do are not very romantic AT ALL. Most of them are about good love gone bad or bad love gone worse. Very nice for Valentine's Day. But everyone was either fine with that or they were ignoring me and had no idea what I was singing. Probably the latter of the two.
So, if anyone has a romantic song suggestion, please let me know. Or I could just write one....
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
2/6 - Mojo's Coffee House
Thanks to all who braved the cold and snow to come out and play ~ especially Betty, Little Pat & Mark, and Ted & Nora. Also out and about were a couple of familiar faces and some strangers, who will hopefully turn into familiar faces.
Dave and Ron (a.k.a. Catfish) stopped in after their recording deal. With it being open mic night, we thought that Dave might join us with his harmonica, but he could not be coerced. Catfish did some originals and sat in with us during the last half of the gig. Loads of fun!
And congratulations, Andrea on your new catering business. We wish you much success.
Dave and Ron (a.k.a. Catfish) stopped in after their recording deal. With it being open mic night, we thought that Dave might join us with his harmonica, but he could not be coerced. Catfish did some originals and sat in with us during the last half of the gig. Loads of fun!
And congratulations, Andrea on your new catering business. We wish you much success.
Monday, February 1, 2010
1/30 - Java Cafe
Betty, thank you SO much for coming out (sorry about the time mix up) and for staying. You are the way best chick EVER!
Jake's entourage was there to offer support as well.
And we were graced with an appearance by Peanuts. Once again, I'm sorry that we didn't get to chit and chat with you. Thanks so much for stopping out. See you at your b.day bash.
Mudcat broke a string early on in the gig, but like a Boy Scout he's always prepared. Jake and I made the best of it while Mud was re-stringing.
We had another tiny dancer, but this guy decided to incorporate surfing moves into his dance and made use of the entire length of the place. Pretty entertaining.
There was a window to the side of us that looked out to the parking lot (lovely view, by the way) and I noticed a tow truck drive by. It was one of those tow trucks that have the car sitting up on the bed of the truck, like the car is on a stage. This particular car was some maroonish car (and yes boys, that's the most important thing about a car to me). That sighting in itself was no big whoop. Some time passed (pretty sure it was time and not gas) and the very same tow truck with the very same car passed by again. Wasn't sure if the driver was circling the parking lot because he was bored or if his GPS was doing the "recalculating" thing and he just couldn't find his way out.
Some girl was there trying to take artsy fartsy pictures of a glass coffee mug. She kept moving the mug around and trying different shots. Not sure if she took any pictures of us. We're probably not as photogenic as a glass coffee mug.
The Java's turtle brownies were a big hit with Mudcat. I got distracted by something shiny and forgot to get a sample (how is that possible, that I could forget about food???), so I did the next best thing and made my own version of them last night. And not to toot my own horn, but they're most dee-lish. Pretty doubtful that there will be any left to share at the next gig.
Note to Jake: the same thing happened to me with the car alarms today in the parking lot of the grocery store...you're not alone.
Jake's entourage was there to offer support as well.
And we were graced with an appearance by Peanuts. Once again, I'm sorry that we didn't get to chit and chat with you. Thanks so much for stopping out. See you at your b.day bash.
Mudcat broke a string early on in the gig, but like a Boy Scout he's always prepared. Jake and I made the best of it while Mud was re-stringing.
We had another tiny dancer, but this guy decided to incorporate surfing moves into his dance and made use of the entire length of the place. Pretty entertaining.
There was a window to the side of us that looked out to the parking lot (lovely view, by the way) and I noticed a tow truck drive by. It was one of those tow trucks that have the car sitting up on the bed of the truck, like the car is on a stage. This particular car was some maroonish car (and yes boys, that's the most important thing about a car to me). That sighting in itself was no big whoop. Some time passed (pretty sure it was time and not gas) and the very same tow truck with the very same car passed by again. Wasn't sure if the driver was circling the parking lot because he was bored or if his GPS was doing the "recalculating" thing and he just couldn't find his way out.
Some girl was there trying to take artsy fartsy pictures of a glass coffee mug. She kept moving the mug around and trying different shots. Not sure if she took any pictures of us. We're probably not as photogenic as a glass coffee mug.
The Java's turtle brownies were a big hit with Mudcat. I got distracted by something shiny and forgot to get a sample (how is that possible, that I could forget about food???), so I did the next best thing and made my own version of them last night. And not to toot my own horn, but they're most dee-lish. Pretty doubtful that there will be any left to share at the next gig.
Note to Jake: the same thing happened to me with the car alarms today in the parking lot of the grocery store...you're not alone.
1/29 - Flat Iron
The full moon was so incredible! It was the Wolf Moon and the brightest moon for the entire year, which also made it appear to be enormously huge, but it was just regular moon size.
Because of it's brightness, Mars (but not the candy bar) was visible to the left of the moon. Okay, enough with the science lesson.
There was a guy sitting at the bar who looked like a cross between Sammy Davis Jr. and Stevie Wonder. He was telling tales of his grand adventures from the 60's. I pointed out to him that it's common knowledge that if you can remember the 60's, then you weren't really there.
Well, our new friend Tim was an interesting character. Came in wearing sunglasses (why yes, it was a night time gig) and he left them on for quite some time. But what was even more interesting /borderline disturbing, was when he asked me if he could smell my hair. He was sitting about 8-10 feet away from us and just yelled it out (during the gig). I've got to say that's a first for me. Just to set the record straight ~ I said no.
Jake was our resident comedian....started to play "I Shot The Sheriff" when a couple of policemen came in for their supper break. Mudcat compromised and we did "White Rabbit" instead.
Because of it's brightness, Mars (but not the candy bar) was visible to the left of the moon. Okay, enough with the science lesson.
There was a guy sitting at the bar who looked like a cross between Sammy Davis Jr. and Stevie Wonder. He was telling tales of his grand adventures from the 60's. I pointed out to him that it's common knowledge that if you can remember the 60's, then you weren't really there.
Well, our new friend Tim was an interesting character. Came in wearing sunglasses (why yes, it was a night time gig) and he left them on for quite some time. But what was even more interesting /borderline disturbing, was when he asked me if he could smell my hair. He was sitting about 8-10 feet away from us and just yelled it out (during the gig). I've got to say that's a first for me. Just to set the record straight ~ I said no.
Jake was our resident comedian....started to play "I Shot The Sheriff" when a couple of policemen came in for their supper break. Mudcat compromised and we did "White Rabbit" instead.
Friday, January 29, 2010
1/23 - Mustard Seed
The joint was hoppin' with a private party (but people kept oozing out to listen to us, so that was nice) and with regular diners. And the bar had its fair share of people (probably for the giant lava/glitter lamps).
Wearing stripes appeared to be a requirement to get into the party. Or perhaps it was a Where's Waldo convention...it could have been.
The absolute best part of the entire gig was Sadie. She was so freakin' cute I can barely stand it! Probably 2-ish years old and her percussion instrument of choice was the cabasa. She definitely liked that better than the maraca.
During the chorus of the Pure Prairie League song "Amy", we changed Amy to Sadie and looked at her while we sang it. The look on her face was complete shock and utter disbelief that we knew her name (we asked her dad, we're not psychotic....I mean psychic), but that look quickly changed to a look of horror, because we knew her name. Sadie ran back to the safety of her dad's arms and when she saw that he was smiling, she realized that it must be alright and started to relax again. Wonder how many times that incident will come up in future therapy sessions.
And her side kick looked like he was straight out of a Baby Gap add. What a little cutie pie he was (didn't get his name) and he was most interested in the cabasa as well, but only after Sadie had it in her little mitts.
We saw some familiar faces and I'd like to believe that they came back to see us.
Much thanks to Betty and Bernie for coming out to show their support!
Wearing stripes appeared to be a requirement to get into the party. Or perhaps it was a Where's Waldo convention...it could have been.
The absolute best part of the entire gig was Sadie. She was so freakin' cute I can barely stand it! Probably 2-ish years old and her percussion instrument of choice was the cabasa. She definitely liked that better than the maraca.
During the chorus of the Pure Prairie League song "Amy", we changed Amy to Sadie and looked at her while we sang it. The look on her face was complete shock and utter disbelief that we knew her name (we asked her dad, we're not psychotic....I mean psychic), but that look quickly changed to a look of horror, because we knew her name. Sadie ran back to the safety of her dad's arms and when she saw that he was smiling, she realized that it must be alright and started to relax again. Wonder how many times that incident will come up in future therapy sessions.
And her side kick looked like he was straight out of a Baby Gap add. What a little cutie pie he was (didn't get his name) and he was most interested in the cabasa as well, but only after Sadie had it in her little mitts.
We saw some familiar faces and I'd like to believe that they came back to see us.
Much thanks to Betty and Bernie for coming out to show their support!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
1/16 - Brewsters
Only 8 days in their new location and you could never tell. Well done!
Thanks to the Big Guy and his crew for coming out. It was great to see you guys again.
During our break (well, mind and Mudcat's), the bartender came over to jam with Jake....hey, I think we should start calling open mic nights "Jammin' with Jake". Whatdya think? It was fun to listen to them. Mud and I sang with Jake on the first song, but then we left them to their fun.
Our new friend, Andy requested "Gypsy", but I don't know that song (well, I know it to sing along on the radio, but not to pull it off my own self). So, I'll learn that one to do the next time we play at Brewsters (Feb 20th). Thanks for the suggestion!
Thanks to the Big Guy and his crew for coming out. It was great to see you guys again.
During our break (well, mind and Mudcat's), the bartender came over to jam with Jake....hey, I think we should start calling open mic nights "Jammin' with Jake". Whatdya think? It was fun to listen to them. Mud and I sang with Jake on the first song, but then we left them to their fun.
Our new friend, Andy requested "Gypsy", but I don't know that song (well, I know it to sing along on the radio, but not to pull it off my own self). So, I'll learn that one to do the next time we play at Brewsters (Feb 20th). Thanks for the suggestion!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
1/15 - Whole Foods
Whole Foods as in the grocery store. Seriously. At least we weren't an end cap.
It was fun doing the sound check. I systematically wandered around the store to hear how far the sound carried. Got to the back of the store to the wine and beer section (yes, I came back) and then things started to get spotty from there on over to the produce section. Turned around and walked down the center isle and started picking up the sound again by the chips (yes, I came back).
It was interesting playing a gig while people were doing their grocery shopping. The deal was that from 5-7pm for $5 you can sample 5 different foods and wine. With the food you can go back as many times as you want, so it's a pretty good deal. And one of the sample foods was spicy macaroni & cheese and you know how I love m&c. I missed out on getting a sample, but don't worry about me....I'll be alright.
There was a woman in there with her teenage boy and girl and she just could not decide on a dairy item. She came back to the same spot 3 times and just stood there staring into the display. I'm not sure if she was doing the same thing that I do with the refrigerator, expecting some food item to have magically appeared from 5 minutes before when I last looked, or if she was just mesmerized by dairy products. Either way, her kids were having none of it and came over by us. Apparently we're as boring to them as watching their mom watch the dairy case. Oh well, could be worse.
And we had our tiny dancers again. Made their own dance floor in front of the bakery....until their mom put the kabash on that.
One chick stands out from all the rest. Even the boys noticed her and not because she was blonde....although, they may have noticed her hotness first and her odd fashion sense second. Anyway, remember those navy blue down parkas from the 70's? This one had a twist to it and I'm thinkin' that she either got it on the clearance rack after it had been marked down so much that the next price adjustment would have been for the store to pay her to take it off their hands or she paid an exorbitant amount of money for it, because it was a designer one of a kind coat (let's hope it's one of a kind). Okay, here goes and I am so not exaggerating ~
Imagine one of those navy blue down parkas that's been streamlined to be form fitting (that part is fine), but then imagine that streamlined parka and the shoulders of the worst bridesmaid dress from the 70's melding into one garment. The top of the coat looked like a giant bow with her head being the knot......hey, wonder if that's where the expression "knothead" comes from.
Mud thought that the shoulders of the coat were a safety device to protect her head in case she happened to fall off her boots with the 4-6 inch wood heels. It was hard to tell just how spiky they were, but they had to have been at least 4 inches.
Perhaps her coat doubles as a floatation device...
I swear her outfit looked like it was costume reject from the movie "Earth Girls Are Easy". Honesty, who dresses like that to go grocery shopping (or ever)?
It was fun doing the sound check. I systematically wandered around the store to hear how far the sound carried. Got to the back of the store to the wine and beer section (yes, I came back) and then things started to get spotty from there on over to the produce section. Turned around and walked down the center isle and started picking up the sound again by the chips (yes, I came back).
It was interesting playing a gig while people were doing their grocery shopping. The deal was that from 5-7pm for $5 you can sample 5 different foods and wine. With the food you can go back as many times as you want, so it's a pretty good deal. And one of the sample foods was spicy macaroni & cheese and you know how I love m&c. I missed out on getting a sample, but don't worry about me....I'll be alright.
There was a woman in there with her teenage boy and girl and she just could not decide on a dairy item. She came back to the same spot 3 times and just stood there staring into the display. I'm not sure if she was doing the same thing that I do with the refrigerator, expecting some food item to have magically appeared from 5 minutes before when I last looked, or if she was just mesmerized by dairy products. Either way, her kids were having none of it and came over by us. Apparently we're as boring to them as watching their mom watch the dairy case. Oh well, could be worse.
And we had our tiny dancers again. Made their own dance floor in front of the bakery....until their mom put the kabash on that.
One chick stands out from all the rest. Even the boys noticed her and not because she was blonde....although, they may have noticed her hotness first and her odd fashion sense second. Anyway, remember those navy blue down parkas from the 70's? This one had a twist to it and I'm thinkin' that she either got it on the clearance rack after it had been marked down so much that the next price adjustment would have been for the store to pay her to take it off their hands or she paid an exorbitant amount of money for it, because it was a designer one of a kind coat (let's hope it's one of a kind). Okay, here goes and I am so not exaggerating ~
Imagine one of those navy blue down parkas that's been streamlined to be form fitting (that part is fine), but then imagine that streamlined parka and the shoulders of the worst bridesmaid dress from the 70's melding into one garment. The top of the coat looked like a giant bow with her head being the knot......hey, wonder if that's where the expression "knothead" comes from.
Mud thought that the shoulders of the coat were a safety device to protect her head in case she happened to fall off her boots with the 4-6 inch wood heels. It was hard to tell just how spiky they were, but they had to have been at least 4 inches.
Perhaps her coat doubles as a floatation device...
I swear her outfit looked like it was costume reject from the movie "Earth Girls Are Easy". Honesty, who dresses like that to go grocery shopping (or ever)?
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
1/9 - The Pub
Yikes ~ I've been neglectful in my updates. I'm oh so too very sorry.
We do like playing at The Pub. This time around we had the support of Mike and Sue, Swan and company, and Jake's entourage. Thanks everyone!
There was a group in the back of the room who were quite good at chair dancing and one of the girls in the group may have imbibed just a wee bit much, which caused her to stop on their way out, sing at maximum volume into her imaginary microphone, which in turn caused extreme embarrassment to the guy who was with her, who I'm assuming was her designated driver.
When his verbal cuing didn't work, the gesturing toward the exit finally got his point across and got her moving again, but her microphone must have been cordless, because she continued to sing into as they made their way out the door.
We do like playing at The Pub. This time around we had the support of Mike and Sue, Swan and company, and Jake's entourage. Thanks everyone!
There was a group in the back of the room who were quite good at chair dancing and one of the girls in the group may have imbibed just a wee bit much, which caused her to stop on their way out, sing at maximum volume into her imaginary microphone, which in turn caused extreme embarrassment to the guy who was with her, who I'm assuming was her designated driver.
When his verbal cuing didn't work, the gesturing toward the exit finally got his point across and got her moving again, but her microphone must have been cordless, because she continued to sing into as they made their way out the door.
Monday, January 11, 2010
1/2 - Mojo's Coffee House
First gig of the new year!
Andrea was out because she hurt her neck, so we're hoping that you're back in the swing of things soon. We missed you.
Betty & Bernie, our true supporters braved the cold to cheer us on. We started with a request for the "theme song" (Betty's absolute favorite song in the entire world!) and then did an all request gig. We got to request songs too, so that was fun.
And Jake actually sang, which is a way good thing! There will be no more getting out of it now, buddy.
We started doing open mic night the last time we were at Mojo's, which was a lot of fun, so now we're on the look out for people who come in with a guitar....or what we think is a guitar.
This guy came in and sat down with his coffee at one of the tables in front. The boys mentioned that we should invite him up to sing and/or play. So, I start over to his table, but he's not there (potty break). I didn't want to stand there and wait for him, so I decided to come back up to the mic by the boys. However, I noticed that there was no guitar at the table and thought it was odd that he would take it into the bathroom with him. He came out and sat back down at the table guitarless. So, of course I had to give Jake grief about seeing things and Jake kept insisting that the guy really did have a guitar when he came in.
After a bit, the guy goes out for a smoke break and when he comes back in he has a guitar over his shoulder (or not). Jake and I look at each other, Jake's look being an "I told you so" look and mine being an "I'll be damned, he really did have a guitar" look. We both looked back at the guy and the guitar was gone. Then Jake and I looked at each other again, both with the "light bulb just went off" look and said, "hood".
From just the right angle, the way that the hood of his coat was bunched up, it looked like the neck of a guitar in a back pack case, but from all other angles it just looked like a hood.
It was a lot more amusing as it was happening.
Andrea was out because she hurt her neck, so we're hoping that you're back in the swing of things soon. We missed you.
Betty & Bernie, our true supporters braved the cold to cheer us on. We started with a request for the "theme song" (Betty's absolute favorite song in the entire world!) and then did an all request gig. We got to request songs too, so that was fun.
And Jake actually sang, which is a way good thing! There will be no more getting out of it now, buddy.
We started doing open mic night the last time we were at Mojo's, which was a lot of fun, so now we're on the look out for people who come in with a guitar....or what we think is a guitar.
This guy came in and sat down with his coffee at one of the tables in front. The boys mentioned that we should invite him up to sing and/or play. So, I start over to his table, but he's not there (potty break). I didn't want to stand there and wait for him, so I decided to come back up to the mic by the boys. However, I noticed that there was no guitar at the table and thought it was odd that he would take it into the bathroom with him. He came out and sat back down at the table guitarless. So, of course I had to give Jake grief about seeing things and Jake kept insisting that the guy really did have a guitar when he came in.
After a bit, the guy goes out for a smoke break and when he comes back in he has a guitar over his shoulder (or not). Jake and I look at each other, Jake's look being an "I told you so" look and mine being an "I'll be damned, he really did have a guitar" look. We both looked back at the guy and the guitar was gone. Then Jake and I looked at each other again, both with the "light bulb just went off" look and said, "hood".
From just the right angle, the way that the hood of his coat was bunched up, it looked like the neck of a guitar in a back pack case, but from all other angles it just looked like a hood.
It was a lot more amusing as it was happening.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
12/26 - The Mustard Seed
Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear.
Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair.
Fuzzy wasn't fuzzy, was he? NO ~ it was Jake!
Apparently, a battle of the wills ensued and she who held the clippers won. Try to remember this life lesson, weed hopper....never go up against the will of a woman.
Bernie, Betty (the Clipper Queen), and David were there to cheer us on. Thank you! It's always appreciated.
It was a fairly sparse group, being the day after Christmas and all, but we got a great response from everyone, so that made it nice.
Abraham, the new manager has everything under control and we look forward to working with him again.
Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair.
Fuzzy wasn't fuzzy, was he? NO ~ it was Jake!
Apparently, a battle of the wills ensued and she who held the clippers won. Try to remember this life lesson, weed hopper....never go up against the will of a woman.
Bernie, Betty (the Clipper Queen), and David were there to cheer us on. Thank you! It's always appreciated.
It was a fairly sparse group, being the day after Christmas and all, but we got a great response from everyone, so that made it nice.
Abraham, the new manager has everything under control and we look forward to working with him again.
12/19 - BW3
Anno sat in with us during the last set and what a great time that was! Thanks for stopping out and pleeeeeeeeeeeze join us again when ever you can (and it doesn't just have to be at BW3's, you know). I'd forgotten how much fun it was to sing "Closer To Fine" with the other girl's part and I was so excited that I completely lost track of where I was in the last part of the song
....amateur.
Betty and Lindy were there as well to offer their support. Lindy's new friend, Steven was quite a piece of work, but he at least attempted to give Jake the thumbs up during one of his solos. And by the way, "attempted" is the key word in that sentence. He was feeling no pain.
This was our first winter-ish gig, so the back dock and steps were nicely coated in ice and then topped with snow. Having mastered the art of slipping on snow covered ice, falling, and braking my wrist many moons ago, I was just a wee bit terrified of a repeat performance so I made the boys risk life and limb while I stood in one spot holding the door that didn't require any holding.
But I did tell them to be careful....does that count?
....amateur.
Betty and Lindy were there as well to offer their support. Lindy's new friend, Steven was quite a piece of work, but he at least attempted to give Jake the thumbs up during one of his solos. And by the way, "attempted" is the key word in that sentence. He was feeling no pain.
This was our first winter-ish gig, so the back dock and steps were nicely coated in ice and then topped with snow. Having mastered the art of slipping on snow covered ice, falling, and braking my wrist many moons ago, I was just a wee bit terrified of a repeat performance so I made the boys risk life and limb while I stood in one spot holding the door that didn't require any holding.
But I did tell them to be careful....does that count?
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
12/12 - The Pub
This was a patio gig. All right, fine then ~ technically it was indoors, because the patio was enclosed for the winter and there were 850 heaters out there (I asked them to turn off the one directly above us), but I'm still counting it as a patio gig.
The Dunder Mifflin Christmas party was being held out there. Well, that's what Mudcat was calling them anyway, but we swear that one of the girls in their party was Angela. "Michael"
asked Mud if he could come up and make an announcement that the first 2 drinks were on him and then it was an open bar. Mudcat said that was fine, to just come up to the mic when ever he was ready. Very early on, the party started to thin from the 30 people they started with and it appeared that it was happening after each person finished their second drink. Coincidence? I think not. Anyway, when it eventually got down to "Michael" and "Dwight", Mudcat had to be a smartass and ask him when he wanted to make his important announcement.
Thanks to Betty, Bernie, and company for coming out and staying and thanks to Bernie for the barley sodas!
Mr. Peanuts made a guest appearance, but unfortunately we didn't get to talk with him because we were in the middle of a set and Peanuts left before we finished. We waved to each other, so that will have to do for now, but next time I expect double hugs.
Kevin and Jeff were the servers in the patio and they were wearing kilts. Well, not just the two of them, but all the boy servers. I really wanted to ask THE question, but I figured that they've probably been asked so many times that its cleverness was lost long ago....plus, I'm thinkin' that some things are just better left unknown. Anyway, they were very nice boys and took good care of us.
And what's a gig post from me without mentioning the bathrooms? Well, let me tell you about the bathrooms at The Pub. Actually, it's not so much the bathrooms themselves (very nice and clean), but more the journey to get to them....Across the patio to the side bar, through that section and down a small hall to the front door, a sharp right turn took me to the main bar area where the tile floor and my boots did not play nice together, eventually made my way between the bar and the booths without actually falling, to the plushly carpeted back dining room. A slalom course took me through the tables to the back of that area, then a sharp right turn down a ramp to finally arrive at the bathrooms on the left. I really could have used a GPS...or a rest stop along the way.
The Dunder Mifflin Christmas party was being held out there. Well, that's what Mudcat was calling them anyway, but we swear that one of the girls in their party was Angela. "Michael"
asked Mud if he could come up and make an announcement that the first 2 drinks were on him and then it was an open bar. Mudcat said that was fine, to just come up to the mic when ever he was ready. Very early on, the party started to thin from the 30 people they started with and it appeared that it was happening after each person finished their second drink. Coincidence? I think not. Anyway, when it eventually got down to "Michael" and "Dwight", Mudcat had to be a smartass and ask him when he wanted to make his important announcement.
Thanks to Betty, Bernie, and company for coming out and staying and thanks to Bernie for the barley sodas!
Mr. Peanuts made a guest appearance, but unfortunately we didn't get to talk with him because we were in the middle of a set and Peanuts left before we finished. We waved to each other, so that will have to do for now, but next time I expect double hugs.
Kevin and Jeff were the servers in the patio and they were wearing kilts. Well, not just the two of them, but all the boy servers. I really wanted to ask THE question, but I figured that they've probably been asked so many times that its cleverness was lost long ago....plus, I'm thinkin' that some things are just better left unknown. Anyway, they were very nice boys and took good care of us.
And what's a gig post from me without mentioning the bathrooms? Well, let me tell you about the bathrooms at The Pub. Actually, it's not so much the bathrooms themselves (very nice and clean), but more the journey to get to them....Across the patio to the side bar, through that section and down a small hall to the front door, a sharp right turn took me to the main bar area where the tile floor and my boots did not play nice together, eventually made my way between the bar and the booths without actually falling, to the plushly carpeted back dining room. A slalom course took me through the tables to the back of that area, then a sharp right turn down a ramp to finally arrive at the bathrooms on the left. I really could have used a GPS...or a rest stop along the way.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
12/5 - Mojo's Coffee House
This was our first open mic night at Mojo's and I do believe that it was a success.
Don and Ron both brought their guitars with them. Ron (Kingfish) played some of his originals during our break. He plays at the Flying Monkey, but of course I can't remember the days.
Anyway, when he launched into his twist on Johny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues, I just couldn't sit still and went up to play the cabasa while he sang. Then Mudcat joined us and then Jake filtered his way up there, followed by Don.
The boys jammed together to a few more tunes and then Don took his turn at a couple songs.
Mudcat, Jake, and I finished up the gig and ended by request with a repeat of our version of "Time Won't Let Me", which is Don's brother Tom's song (Tom King of the Outsiders). Betty and/or Bernie caught it on video, which Mud posted, so if you have a spare moment, check it out.
And speaking of Betty and Bernie, thanks for being there for us. Your support is greatly appreciated (even if Jake won't admit it!). Also thanks to Colleen for stopping out and to Joey for helping out with percussion.
Don and Ron both brought their guitars with them. Ron (Kingfish) played some of his originals during our break. He plays at the Flying Monkey, but of course I can't remember the days.
Anyway, when he launched into his twist on Johny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues, I just couldn't sit still and went up to play the cabasa while he sang. Then Mudcat joined us and then Jake filtered his way up there, followed by Don.
The boys jammed together to a few more tunes and then Don took his turn at a couple songs.
Mudcat, Jake, and I finished up the gig and ended by request with a repeat of our version of "Time Won't Let Me", which is Don's brother Tom's song (Tom King of the Outsiders). Betty and/or Bernie caught it on video, which Mud posted, so if you have a spare moment, check it out.
And speaking of Betty and Bernie, thanks for being there for us. Your support is greatly appreciated (even if Jake won't admit it!). Also thanks to Colleen for stopping out and to Joey for helping out with percussion.
12/4 - Riders Inn
Christmas trees as far as the eye can see....they were for a silent auction to benefit the Morley Library. What clever ideas! Not sure how long the auction is going on for, but if you're interested in a miniature theme tree and/or helping the library, give them a call.
Paul and Little B were there to offer support and chit chat during the break. They're just so cute together.
Samantha (the resident horny cat) was missing, so I'm thinkin' that she may have been out trying to break her litter record again.
Our new friend, Lynn (a.k.a. the hostess) offered up some requests. She was pretty excited about having the songs "dedicated" to her.
And once again, I judged by appearance and shouldn't have, but let's see if you would have come to the same conclusion ~
A guy at the bar who was wearing short sleeves to show off his tattoos (actually looked like one giant tattoo, because his arms were completely covered in them) yelled out "awesome tune!" when I was singing Jewel's You Were Meant For Me song. And for those of you who are familiar with the game "what Lola heard", it was "you're out of tune!". Anyway, I wouldn't have thought he would be into that song. Then as he was leaving, he stopped to listen and sing along for the ending of the Motel's song Only The Lonely. Again, didn't think that song would appeal to him. I was pleasantly surprised.
Paul and Little B were there to offer support and chit chat during the break. They're just so cute together.
Samantha (the resident horny cat) was missing, so I'm thinkin' that she may have been out trying to break her litter record again.
Our new friend, Lynn (a.k.a. the hostess) offered up some requests. She was pretty excited about having the songs "dedicated" to her.
And once again, I judged by appearance and shouldn't have, but let's see if you would have come to the same conclusion ~
A guy at the bar who was wearing short sleeves to show off his tattoos (actually looked like one giant tattoo, because his arms were completely covered in them) yelled out "awesome tune!" when I was singing Jewel's You Were Meant For Me song. And for those of you who are familiar with the game "what Lola heard", it was "you're out of tune!". Anyway, I wouldn't have thought he would be into that song. Then as he was leaving, he stopped to listen and sing along for the ending of the Motel's song Only The Lonely. Again, didn't think that song would appeal to him. I was pleasantly surprised.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
11/14 - Mustard Seed
Ah...the place with the giant glitter lava lamps at the bar. I love those things!
But here's something I do not love ~ a ringer for the Salvation Army was out front. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the ringers or the SA, but it's not even Thanksgiving yet. If they're going to start that early in the season, then why not just do it all year long? And what happened to their uniform? I know the ringers haven't worn them for years, but I'm just now ranting about it. Okay, I think I'm over it now.
Oh, my goodness the cutest little boy EVER was there with his parents having some supper time treats. He had to have been about 2-ish. Watching him was entertaining enough when he was looking at Jake and Mudcat with wide eyed wonder and then started playing along with them on his air guitar, but when he launched into playing the air drums (complete with cymbals) I thought I would die.
And I also thought I would die (or at least need Jake's help) when I tried to stand up after squatting down to zip up the mic stand bag. Mud and I went on a 15-ish mile bike ride and then took a walk after that in the morning/afternoon before the gig. But don't worry about me...I'll be alright.
The good news is that we're now playing at the Mustard Seed once a month through the summer!
Ah...the place with the giant glitter lava lamps at the bar. I love those things!
But here's something I do not love ~ a ringer for the Salvation Army was out front. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the ringers or the SA, but it's not even Thanksgiving yet. If they're going to start that early in the season, then why not just do it all year long? And what happened to their uniform? I know the ringers haven't worn them for years, but I'm just now ranting about it. Okay, I think I'm over it now.
Oh, my goodness the cutest little boy EVER was there with his parents having some supper time treats. He had to have been about 2-ish. Watching him was entertaining enough when he was looking at Jake and Mudcat with wide eyed wonder and then started playing along with them on his air guitar, but when he launched into playing the air drums (complete with cymbals) I thought I would die.
And I also thought I would die (or at least need Jake's help) when I tried to stand up after squatting down to zip up the mic stand bag. Mud and I went on a 15-ish mile bike ride and then took a walk after that in the morning/afternoon before the gig. But don't worry about me...I'll be alright.
The good news is that we're now playing at the Mustard Seed once a month through the summer!
Thursday, November 12, 2009
11/7 - Redhawk Grill
Apparently, the Ohio State game was the main attraction. According to the manager, the place was packed for the game and then everyone left. There were just a handful of people throughout the evening, but at least we never out numbered them. That's good, right? Even the Beatles had it rough before they became a household name, but why doesn't that make me feel better?
After we had set up and I was making the final adjustments to my area, our new friend, Michael comes up to me and says, "oh, I see you have a stick". Stupid me wondered how the hell he knew that I drive a stick, so along with the deer in the headlights look I gave him, I also said, "what?".
And then he pointed to the Bose tower....never mind. Michael stayed for the duration and he seemed to like us as much as he liked the Bose "stick".
Our entertainment (or at least mine, anyway) was watching these 2 guys shoot pool. One of the guys had quite a flair with the cue, but that didn't help his game...unless the game was to see how many times he could land the cue ball in the pockets.
And there's the ever amusing hand driers in the bathroom. I'm pretty sure the force of the air that shoots out of them could propel a small child across the room. Dries the hands pretty quickly, though.
Apparently, the Ohio State game was the main attraction. According to the manager, the place was packed for the game and then everyone left. There were just a handful of people throughout the evening, but at least we never out numbered them. That's good, right? Even the Beatles had it rough before they became a household name, but why doesn't that make me feel better?
After we had set up and I was making the final adjustments to my area, our new friend, Michael comes up to me and says, "oh, I see you have a stick". Stupid me wondered how the hell he knew that I drive a stick, so along with the deer in the headlights look I gave him, I also said, "what?".
And then he pointed to the Bose tower....never mind. Michael stayed for the duration and he seemed to like us as much as he liked the Bose "stick".
Our entertainment (or at least mine, anyway) was watching these 2 guys shoot pool. One of the guys had quite a flair with the cue, but that didn't help his game...unless the game was to see how many times he could land the cue ball in the pockets.
And there's the ever amusing hand driers in the bathroom. I'm pretty sure the force of the air that shoots out of them could propel a small child across the room. Dries the hands pretty quickly, though.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
10/24 - Mojo's Coffee House
Unfortunately, I missed this gig because I was at a memorial service. However, I can still do the blog from Mudcat's report of the gig. Here goes ~
It was good. (he's a man of many words)
After some interrogation, when I was almost to the point of shining a light in his face to make him talk, he fessed up that Betty and Bernie were there.
Then there was a lull in the conversation.
But, I was able to get more information from him ~ Grandma Jake was there and also our new friend Don.
Maybe Mudcat should start writing the gig blogs....or not.
Unfortunately, I missed this gig because I was at a memorial service. However, I can still do the blog from Mudcat's report of the gig. Here goes ~
It was good. (he's a man of many words)
After some interrogation, when I was almost to the point of shining a light in his face to make him talk, he fessed up that Betty and Bernie were there.
Then there was a lull in the conversation.
But, I was able to get more information from him ~ Grandma Jake was there and also our new friend Don.
Maybe Mudcat should start writing the gig blogs....or not.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
10/17 - BW3 (Broadview Hts)
I made it back from my niece's wedding in Loudonville (yeah, you can't get there from here) just as the boys were finishing with setting up. It felt like I'd been driving for half my life.
Carl, Madeline, Jeff, and Robin came out to see us! It meant the world to me to have "Uncle Carl" at one of our gigs.
Deb ventured out and I wanted to officially meet her, but she snuck out the second that we ended.
And our greatest supporters, Betty and Bernie were there as well. I'm sorry that I didn't get to talk with you, it's just that I haven't seen Carl in about 112 years and I spent all my break time talking with him and his family.
Did any of you see the giant beer mug? Oh, my goodness! It had to be 3ft tall. Honest. I watched the bartender filling it and to get the last bit of beer into it she had to set it on the floor and pour beer into it from a regular beer glass. To carry it, she held it from the bottom and had the top part of it leaning against her shoulder. I'm pretty sure that I couldn't drink that much beer in one sitting, but if I could manage it,I'm very sure that it would be warm by the time I finished. Wonder how much that thing cost.
I caught some guy giving a girl the "once over" look. He must have felt me watching him, because he looked over at me (after he was finished ogling that girl) and then quickly looked away. The guy was more than old enough to have been that girl's father, so it was kinda creepy.
And this has absolutely nothing to do with that, but Jake insists that he's not moonlighting as a real estate agent. Mudcat and I have our doubts.
I made it back from my niece's wedding in Loudonville (yeah, you can't get there from here) just as the boys were finishing with setting up. It felt like I'd been driving for half my life.
Carl, Madeline, Jeff, and Robin came out to see us! It meant the world to me to have "Uncle Carl" at one of our gigs.
Deb ventured out and I wanted to officially meet her, but she snuck out the second that we ended.
And our greatest supporters, Betty and Bernie were there as well. I'm sorry that I didn't get to talk with you, it's just that I haven't seen Carl in about 112 years and I spent all my break time talking with him and his family.
Did any of you see the giant beer mug? Oh, my goodness! It had to be 3ft tall. Honest. I watched the bartender filling it and to get the last bit of beer into it she had to set it on the floor and pour beer into it from a regular beer glass. To carry it, she held it from the bottom and had the top part of it leaning against her shoulder. I'm pretty sure that I couldn't drink that much beer in one sitting, but if I could manage it,I'm very sure that it would be warm by the time I finished. Wonder how much that thing cost.
I caught some guy giving a girl the "once over" look. He must have felt me watching him, because he looked over at me (after he was finished ogling that girl) and then quickly looked away. The guy was more than old enough to have been that girl's father, so it was kinda creepy.
And this has absolutely nothing to do with that, but Jake insists that he's not moonlighting as a real estate agent. Mudcat and I have our doubts.
10/16 - Brewsters
Once again, most everyone was in the "beerarium" (kinda like a terrarium, but different), but some people ventured out for a bit.
A woman who was in one of the booths on our side of things came up to us and told us that she really liked us and that she could listen to us all night. Then she headed for the door. But not to leave, like I thought she was going to do. Some people came in just then and she went to exchange pleasantries.
There was a gentleman, who appeared to have come directly from work parked in a booth when we got there. He was intently working on something on his computer while he had dinner and some libations. This man stayed until 10:30. I want to believe that it was because he was enjoying the music and not because he was a workaholic...perhaps it was a combination of the two.
And once again, I'm mistaken for a girl who "plays for the home team" (not that there's anything wrong with that...for them). I just don't butter my bread on that side.
Once again, most everyone was in the "beerarium" (kinda like a terrarium, but different), but some people ventured out for a bit.
A woman who was in one of the booths on our side of things came up to us and told us that she really liked us and that she could listen to us all night. Then she headed for the door. But not to leave, like I thought she was going to do. Some people came in just then and she went to exchange pleasantries.
There was a gentleman, who appeared to have come directly from work parked in a booth when we got there. He was intently working on something on his computer while he had dinner and some libations. This man stayed until 10:30. I want to believe that it was because he was enjoying the music and not because he was a workaholic...perhaps it was a combination of the two.
And once again, I'm mistaken for a girl who "plays for the home team" (not that there's anything wrong with that...for them). I just don't butter my bread on that side.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
10/10 - Riders Inn
Samantha, the resident cat (the one with the record number of litters) seems to have mellowed with age, because she hadn't had another litter recently nor was she pregnant. Turns out that her boyfriend, Cal got the big snip. She did manage to find her way outside while we were there (but this time it wasn't my fault), so by the time we make our way back again (Dec 4th ~ mark your calender) we'll be able to tell if she's loyal to Cal or if she's trying to break her own record.
There was a couple who came from Strongsville (for the food, not for us) who really enjoyed Mudcat's version of "Stray Cat Strut", especially after seeing Samantha dart through the pub on her way outside via the door that was left open (did I mention it wasn't my fault this time?).
Our new friend, Dave moved in from the bar to watch Mudcat maneuver his guitar strings around. Dave had to sell his guitar when he was in FL for gas money to get back to OH. He misses his guitar, but doesn't miss FL.
And what's a gig without an absentee song request? Dan came through for us this time. We did "Rock Me". He left just after we started and didn't come back in until we were well into another song. He must have had a really long cigarette or a really big beer to consume, because "Rock Me" is a fairly lengthy song.
We got quite a lot of other requests from Dan's friend, who didn't leave even when we didn't know her requests. But, I wrote down her requests so that we can learn them and add them to our song list. Whatdya wanna bet that if she's there again in December, she'll request something else that we don't know.
Samantha, the resident cat (the one with the record number of litters) seems to have mellowed with age, because she hadn't had another litter recently nor was she pregnant. Turns out that her boyfriend, Cal got the big snip. She did manage to find her way outside while we were there (but this time it wasn't my fault), so by the time we make our way back again (Dec 4th ~ mark your calender) we'll be able to tell if she's loyal to Cal or if she's trying to break her own record.
There was a couple who came from Strongsville (for the food, not for us) who really enjoyed Mudcat's version of "Stray Cat Strut", especially after seeing Samantha dart through the pub on her way outside via the door that was left open (did I mention it wasn't my fault this time?).
Our new friend, Dave moved in from the bar to watch Mudcat maneuver his guitar strings around. Dave had to sell his guitar when he was in FL for gas money to get back to OH. He misses his guitar, but doesn't miss FL.
And what's a gig without an absentee song request? Dan came through for us this time. We did "Rock Me". He left just after we started and didn't come back in until we were well into another song. He must have had a really long cigarette or a really big beer to consume, because "Rock Me" is a fairly lengthy song.
We got quite a lot of other requests from Dan's friend, who didn't leave even when we didn't know her requests. But, I wrote down her requests so that we can learn them and add them to our song list. Whatdya wanna bet that if she's there again in December, she'll request something else that we don't know.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
10/2 - Mustard Seed
Now, this was an interesting gig indeed! The Mustard Seed is a grocery store with a very nice restaurant situated on its upper level (all grocery items are on the lower level). The back wall of the grocery section was open to the restaurant section and we were able to have a bird's eye view of the shopping that was going on while we were singing. If you've ever been to Trader Joe's, it was like that but way, way bigger.
The best thing about this place was the giant lava lamps on the bar, but instead of the globs-o-goo, they were filled with glitter. Pretty neato peato.
There were signs on the edge of the stage advising that children were not allowed on the stage without constant adult supervision....you guessed it, Mudcat was our designated adult.
Oooh, and there were some pretty cool stained glass items hanging around. One was right behind us. They also had some photography on display in the back hallway. The restaurant was like fine dining combined with a coffee house feel. Very unique and well put together.
We had a good time and everyone there seemed to enjoy themselves too (which is always a plus). Bernie was our support group for the evening. And thank you for the yummy dessert items!
Now, this was an interesting gig indeed! The Mustard Seed is a grocery store with a very nice restaurant situated on its upper level (all grocery items are on the lower level). The back wall of the grocery section was open to the restaurant section and we were able to have a bird's eye view of the shopping that was going on while we were singing. If you've ever been to Trader Joe's, it was like that but way, way bigger.
The best thing about this place was the giant lava lamps on the bar, but instead of the globs-o-goo, they were filled with glitter. Pretty neato peato.
There were signs on the edge of the stage advising that children were not allowed on the stage without constant adult supervision....you guessed it, Mudcat was our designated adult.
Oooh, and there were some pretty cool stained glass items hanging around. One was right behind us. They also had some photography on display in the back hallway. The restaurant was like fine dining combined with a coffee house feel. Very unique and well put together.
We had a good time and everyone there seemed to enjoy themselves too (which is always a plus). Bernie was our support group for the evening. And thank you for the yummy dessert items!
9/26 - Mojo's Coffee House
Once again, Betty and her crew come through for us! Thanks to all who helped make the gig a "success" and more fun.
Our new friend, Don was there too offering up sound check advice.
Still trying to get Jake to sing more ~ he's just not having it. And during one of Mudcat's songs Jake was displaying signs of boredom, so I decided to annoy (I mean amuse) him with doing the bump. Silly me didn't consider the fact that he had no idea what the hell I was doing....he looked a wee bit horrified. But, don't worry about him....he'll be alright.
The rain decided to hold off for us through the entire gig when it wouldn't have mattered, since we were inside. But of course, as our luck would have it the rain started up just as we were finished and packing up to leave. I guess we must have been living right (at least for a few hours), because it let up to a super fine mist that didn't amount to anything while we were loading the van.
Other than that, I got nothin'.
Once again, Betty and her crew come through for us! Thanks to all who helped make the gig a "success" and more fun.
Our new friend, Don was there too offering up sound check advice.
Still trying to get Jake to sing more ~ he's just not having it. And during one of Mudcat's songs Jake was displaying signs of boredom, so I decided to annoy (I mean amuse) him with doing the bump. Silly me didn't consider the fact that he had no idea what the hell I was doing....he looked a wee bit horrified. But, don't worry about him....he'll be alright.
The rain decided to hold off for us through the entire gig when it wouldn't have mattered, since we were inside. But of course, as our luck would have it the rain started up just as we were finished and packing up to leave. I guess we must have been living right (at least for a few hours), because it let up to a super fine mist that didn't amount to anything while we were loading the van.
Other than that, I got nothin'.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
9/23 - The Hyatt Arcade
This was a lunchtime gig, so we were Jakeless. I don't like being Jakeless.
And this was also our official like 500th gig, even though we celebrated our 500th gig at the Jackalope...kinda like Veteran's Day (observed). And no, I'm not comparing us to our veterans, just how the day is always observed on the closest Monday to the actual day.
The Arcade has been around for a bazillion years and it was pretty neato-peato to play there. We were on the bridge that connects the sides on the 2nd floor.
Being a lunch time gig I figured that everyone would be too busy chowing down and watching their time to pay any attention to us, but some people were actually clapping for us. We even had a few come up from the 1st floor level on their way out to tell us that they enjoyed our music.
It was a pretty uneventful gig, which was actually quite refreshing. We just tried to blend in to the scenery.
This was a lunchtime gig, so we were Jakeless. I don't like being Jakeless.
And this was also our official like 500th gig, even though we celebrated our 500th gig at the Jackalope...kinda like Veteran's Day (observed). And no, I'm not comparing us to our veterans, just how the day is always observed on the closest Monday to the actual day.
The Arcade has been around for a bazillion years and it was pretty neato-peato to play there. We were on the bridge that connects the sides on the 2nd floor.
Being a lunch time gig I figured that everyone would be too busy chowing down and watching their time to pay any attention to us, but some people were actually clapping for us. We even had a few come up from the 1st floor level on their way out to tell us that they enjoyed our music.
It was a pretty uneventful gig, which was actually quite refreshing. We just tried to blend in to the scenery.
9/19 - Rush Inn
I'll borrow one of my mom's legendary comments of "that was different" to describe this gig.
And I'll add country and karaoke to the Sleeper's list of the types of bands that we are...motown, reggae, jazz.
There was this nice chick who wanted to sing "Danny's Song" and "You Were Meant For Me"
(which we don't do, but Jake knew them), so I stepped down and she stepped up to sing them. Then we returned to our regularly scheduled program.
Then one of the men at the bar decided to test Mudcat's multi-tasking abilities. While Mud was
playing his guitar and singing his song this man came up to chat with him and ask him if he knew a particular Faith Hill song. And yes, Mudcat was able to throw in conversation to his juggling act, but that talent was lost on this man. He just shook his head with a combo look of disappointment and disbelief because we didn't know his request.
So, the life and times of Project Mojo continued on as usual to carry us to our break.
About 3 seconds after we sat down, a girl from the bar came up and asked Mudcat if we knew that same Faith Hill song (of course, I can't remember which one...). When Mud told her that the man who she was sitting next to already asked him that and we still didn't know it, she became quite defensive saying that her friends want to hear her sing it and the only other song she knows without having the words to look at is the Jewel song, but she already sang that one.
Then she launched into a list of about 5 more country songs and after each one that we didn't know, I told her that we really aren't a country band. So, she went back to her first request and became more and more adamant that we learn it - right now. She even asked the boys "what if I just start singing and you guys just play along". Mud tried to explain to her that it would be a lot easier to do that if he had actually heard the song before. Wrong answer (for us, not for her).
She found the song on her phone and then shoved the phone toward Mudcat's ear. After listening to it for a brief moment, he politely told her that he could hear the vocals, but couldn't pick out the chords and that he was sorry. She was flabbergasted saying, "I can't believe you can't hear that....I can hear it". Then she grabbed her phone from Mud and said, "maybe he can hear it" and shoved it in Jake's direction. So, while Jake was doing the same polite thing of listening to the song, she tells me how she's been in country music singing competitions and that she's done quite well and that her friends really want to hear her sing. I refrained from telling her that her friends might have a better chance of hearing her sing if they would all leave and go to a bar that was having karaoke night.
Then she turned her attention back to Jake and he politely told her that he couldn't get the chords from listening to it on her phone either and that he was sorry too.
Now, wouldn't you think that's where the story ends?
But wait, there's more ~
That took up our entire break time and we apologized once again and took our places back on the stage. She followed us up there and was still trying to get Jake to listen to it one more time to figure it out.
HONEST.
Mud decided to rescue Jake and launched into a song that we knew that was not a country song.
And no, those people never left. They stayed and took turns giving us the hairy eyeball.
I'll borrow one of my mom's legendary comments of "that was different" to describe this gig.
And I'll add country and karaoke to the Sleeper's list of the types of bands that we are...motown, reggae, jazz.
There was this nice chick who wanted to sing "Danny's Song" and "You Were Meant For Me"
(which we don't do, but Jake knew them), so I stepped down and she stepped up to sing them. Then we returned to our regularly scheduled program.
Then one of the men at the bar decided to test Mudcat's multi-tasking abilities. While Mud was
playing his guitar and singing his song this man came up to chat with him and ask him if he knew a particular Faith Hill song. And yes, Mudcat was able to throw in conversation to his juggling act, but that talent was lost on this man. He just shook his head with a combo look of disappointment and disbelief because we didn't know his request.
So, the life and times of Project Mojo continued on as usual to carry us to our break.
About 3 seconds after we sat down, a girl from the bar came up and asked Mudcat if we knew that same Faith Hill song (of course, I can't remember which one...). When Mud told her that the man who she was sitting next to already asked him that and we still didn't know it, she became quite defensive saying that her friends want to hear her sing it and the only other song she knows without having the words to look at is the Jewel song, but she already sang that one.
Then she launched into a list of about 5 more country songs and after each one that we didn't know, I told her that we really aren't a country band. So, she went back to her first request and became more and more adamant that we learn it - right now. She even asked the boys "what if I just start singing and you guys just play along". Mud tried to explain to her that it would be a lot easier to do that if he had actually heard the song before. Wrong answer (for us, not for her).
She found the song on her phone and then shoved the phone toward Mudcat's ear. After listening to it for a brief moment, he politely told her that he could hear the vocals, but couldn't pick out the chords and that he was sorry. She was flabbergasted saying, "I can't believe you can't hear that....I can hear it". Then she grabbed her phone from Mud and said, "maybe he can hear it" and shoved it in Jake's direction. So, while Jake was doing the same polite thing of listening to the song, she tells me how she's been in country music singing competitions and that she's done quite well and that her friends really want to hear her sing. I refrained from telling her that her friends might have a better chance of hearing her sing if they would all leave and go to a bar that was having karaoke night.
Then she turned her attention back to Jake and he politely told her that he couldn't get the chords from listening to it on her phone either and that he was sorry too.
Now, wouldn't you think that's where the story ends?
But wait, there's more ~
That took up our entire break time and we apologized once again and took our places back on the stage. She followed us up there and was still trying to get Jake to listen to it one more time to figure it out.
HONEST.
Mud decided to rescue Jake and launched into a song that we knew that was not a country song.
And no, those people never left. They stayed and took turns giving us the hairy eyeball.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
8/29 - Jackalope
Thanks to Rhoda and Rick for coming out to help us celebrate our 500th gig!
It was a slow start, but there was some sort of reunion party going on in the bar that spilled over and pretty much filled the patio area. They were still going strong when we were packing up to leave.
I was in the midst of a lovely summer cold, so I had all my items around me...Kleenex, cough drops, hot tea with honey, ice water with lemon. And I lived to tell the tale.
Jake was forced to sing (HA! HA!). Someone requested Pink Floyd and he's our PF guy.
The wind was constantly pulling the door open and banging it closed about 2 feet away from Mud and I think he may have lost his mind for a brief moment...but, not to worry ~ he's like a Boy Scout (always prepared) and fetched a bungee cord from the van to strap the door closed.
We look forward to being back at the Jackalope next summer (they don't have entertainment through the fall and winter months).
Thanks to Rhoda and Rick for coming out to help us celebrate our 500th gig!
It was a slow start, but there was some sort of reunion party going on in the bar that spilled over and pretty much filled the patio area. They were still going strong when we were packing up to leave.
I was in the midst of a lovely summer cold, so I had all my items around me...Kleenex, cough drops, hot tea with honey, ice water with lemon. And I lived to tell the tale.
Jake was forced to sing (HA! HA!). Someone requested Pink Floyd and he's our PF guy.
The wind was constantly pulling the door open and banging it closed about 2 feet away from Mud and I think he may have lost his mind for a brief moment...but, not to worry ~ he's like a Boy Scout (always prepared) and fetched a bungee cord from the van to strap the door closed.
We look forward to being back at the Jackalope next summer (they don't have entertainment through the fall and winter months).
8/29 - John Talk Radio Interview
Here's the link to the interview ~ http://www.blogtalkradio.com/john-darlington
Poor Jake...his phone took a dump right in the middle of the interview, so we did the Lucy/Ethel thing with my phone between us and both of us straining one ear to hear.
I was a little nervous, not knowing who or how many people were listening to us, but I tried to sound like a normal person and not ramble on...you know how I get.
And Jake and I decided to let Mudcat do the bulk of the answering to John's questions. Not sure how Mud felt about that decision...but, oh well.
Here's the link to the interview ~ http://www.blogtalkradio.com/john-darlington
Poor Jake...his phone took a dump right in the middle of the interview, so we did the Lucy/Ethel thing with my phone between us and both of us straining one ear to hear.
I was a little nervous, not knowing who or how many people were listening to us, but I tried to sound like a normal person and not ramble on...you know how I get.
And Jake and I decided to let Mudcat do the bulk of the answering to John's questions. Not sure how Mud felt about that decision...but, oh well.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
8/15 - Mojo's Coffee House
The Mojos were back at Mojo's.
Thank you to Betty and her crew who made the gig worthwhile (again)!
Our new friend, Don was there and did a video of us on a couple of songs.
He had the camera aimed at me when I was singing "Carousel Dream" and it made me nervous. I wasn't sure where to look, so I end up coming across as having some horrible affliction where my eyeballs constantly dart about. Or I suppose it could look like I'm all hopped up on something and paranoid beyond belief. Either way, it's a little disturbing to watch.
The other song that Don recorded was "Stray Cat Strut". At least Mud and Jake (who likes long walks and candlelight dinners) looked normal.
The Mojos were back at Mojo's.
Thank you to Betty and her crew who made the gig worthwhile (again)!
Our new friend, Don was there and did a video of us on a couple of songs.
He had the camera aimed at me when I was singing "Carousel Dream" and it made me nervous. I wasn't sure where to look, so I end up coming across as having some horrible affliction where my eyeballs constantly dart about. Or I suppose it could look like I'm all hopped up on something and paranoid beyond belief. Either way, it's a little disturbing to watch.
The other song that Don recorded was "Stray Cat Strut". At least Mud and Jake (who likes long walks and candlelight dinners) looked normal.
8/14 - Kepner's
I don't know how many of you have ever been to Hudson (that's where Kepner's is), but it's a quaint little town that's a wee bit too picture perfect, bordering on Stepford Wife-ish. Then we combined Steven King into the mix and were afraid that we would be stuck there forever with no way out, but no.
Everyone seemed to know everyone and I'm not sure how they were able to tell each other apart, because almost all the women had the exact same hair cut with the majority of them even having the same hair color.
And then there was the girl who like talked like non stop and like I like couldn't like believe that she could like make like a 3 word sentence like turn into like an entire like paragraph. She actually talked LIKE that.
Oh well, it was actually a fun gig. The place was hoppin' even up until 1-ish when we were leaving. I was amazed at the amount of people who showed up after midnight...guess I'm showing my age, huh?
I don't know how many of you have ever been to Hudson (that's where Kepner's is), but it's a quaint little town that's a wee bit too picture perfect, bordering on Stepford Wife-ish. Then we combined Steven King into the mix and were afraid that we would be stuck there forever with no way out, but no.
Everyone seemed to know everyone and I'm not sure how they were able to tell each other apart, because almost all the women had the exact same hair cut with the majority of them even having the same hair color.
And then there was the girl who like talked like non stop and like I like couldn't like believe that she could like make like a 3 word sentence like turn into like an entire like paragraph. She actually talked LIKE that.
Oh well, it was actually a fun gig. The place was hoppin' even up until 1-ish when we were leaving. I was amazed at the amount of people who showed up after midnight...guess I'm showing my age, huh?
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
8/7 - Jackalope
JAKE IS BACK!!!! I'm just a wee bit happy about it....
Our new friend, Madeline was quite the crazy chick. She had long blond hair, was about 8 feet tall with legs up to her ears, wearing a skirt that was as short as she was tall, with CFM shoes (girls ~ you know what those are, but in case you're unaware it stands for Come F_ _ _ Me). During the course of her dancing, she decided to flick her shoes off and in doing so sent one of them sailing through the air, coming to land on a woman sitting at a table about 10 feet away. I saw the shoe flicking and sailing part, then looked at Jake to see if he saw it. Not only did Jake see that, but he got to see it actually hit that unsuspecting woman. I looked back just in time to see her shocked reaction. I still can't believe that a fight didn't break out right in front of us. Luckily, the actual shoe part hit her and she wasn't impaled by the never ending spike that served as a heel. It's all fun and games 'til someone gets an eye poked out.
She wasn't the only one who went home worse for the wear. Our favorite bus boy (is it still politically correct to say "bus boy"...oh, who cares) was coming out of the bar into the patio area and a waiter (I know, I know...they're all servers now. Don't care) was going from the patio area into the bar. The BB pushed open the door and continued on, while the waiter stepped up onto the ramp in front of the door and was reaching out toward the door handle. The open door stopped when it hit the waiter's foot and the BB stopped when his head hit the door. That poor kid probably had one terrific head ache. I talked with him later and he said that it hurt, but he had to keep working so he just carried on. Just so you know, the waiter felt horrible and kept asking the BB if he was okay and apologized every time they crossed paths.
And there was lots of activity on the pier. A group of boys seemed to be quite the fishermen and being boys they were fishing while laying on their stomachs looking into the water and pointing, so it looked like they were giving the fish directions to their hooks.
Other than the minor accidents, it was a great evening. The place was packed all night, there were quite a few people who were dancing (and no, there is no dance floor), a lot of people were singing along and we actually found a couple of Dan Hick's fans.
We're hoping for that kind of group (or the same group plus more) back there on the 29th to help us celebrate our 500th gig. No, I didn't type an extra zero in there...five hundredth gig. So, if you weren't part of that group and you're not afraid of flying stilettoes, come on out on the 29th and join in the festivities. Better bring some protective head gear just in case.
JAKE IS BACK!!!! I'm just a wee bit happy about it....
Our new friend, Madeline was quite the crazy chick. She had long blond hair, was about 8 feet tall with legs up to her ears, wearing a skirt that was as short as she was tall, with CFM shoes (girls ~ you know what those are, but in case you're unaware it stands for Come F_ _ _ Me). During the course of her dancing, she decided to flick her shoes off and in doing so sent one of them sailing through the air, coming to land on a woman sitting at a table about 10 feet away. I saw the shoe flicking and sailing part, then looked at Jake to see if he saw it. Not only did Jake see that, but he got to see it actually hit that unsuspecting woman. I looked back just in time to see her shocked reaction. I still can't believe that a fight didn't break out right in front of us. Luckily, the actual shoe part hit her and she wasn't impaled by the never ending spike that served as a heel. It's all fun and games 'til someone gets an eye poked out.
She wasn't the only one who went home worse for the wear. Our favorite bus boy (is it still politically correct to say "bus boy"...oh, who cares) was coming out of the bar into the patio area and a waiter (I know, I know...they're all servers now. Don't care) was going from the patio area into the bar. The BB pushed open the door and continued on, while the waiter stepped up onto the ramp in front of the door and was reaching out toward the door handle. The open door stopped when it hit the waiter's foot and the BB stopped when his head hit the door. That poor kid probably had one terrific head ache. I talked with him later and he said that it hurt, but he had to keep working so he just carried on. Just so you know, the waiter felt horrible and kept asking the BB if he was okay and apologized every time they crossed paths.
And there was lots of activity on the pier. A group of boys seemed to be quite the fishermen and being boys they were fishing while laying on their stomachs looking into the water and pointing, so it looked like they were giving the fish directions to their hooks.
Other than the minor accidents, it was a great evening. The place was packed all night, there were quite a few people who were dancing (and no, there is no dance floor), a lot of people were singing along and we actually found a couple of Dan Hick's fans.
We're hoping for that kind of group (or the same group plus more) back there on the 29th to help us celebrate our 500th gig. No, I didn't type an extra zero in there...five hundredth gig. So, if you weren't part of that group and you're not afraid of flying stilettoes, come on out on the 29th and join in the festivities. Better bring some protective head gear just in case.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
7/31 - Bootleggers
They have a way cool patio and there was even a stage for us! It overlooked a pond with a fountain and their golf course. And from where the stage was situated, we got to see the sunset while we played.
We had quite a gathering early on and a few parties ended up staying. I'm going to believe they stayed for us and not for the beer.
Later in the evening, there was a gathering of young pups to celebrate Monica's 22nd birthday. We sang our birthday song to her and repeated the "stand up and take a bow" verse and I guess she figured that we were going to keep singing it until she did it, so we only had to sing that verse twice. I was shocked and amazed that she and her friends were singing along to all the "oldies" and one of the girls even requested "Ring Of Fire".
They have a way cool patio and there was even a stage for us! It overlooked a pond with a fountain and their golf course. And from where the stage was situated, we got to see the sunset while we played.
We had quite a gathering early on and a few parties ended up staying. I'm going to believe they stayed for us and not for the beer.
Later in the evening, there was a gathering of young pups to celebrate Monica's 22nd birthday. We sang our birthday song to her and repeated the "stand up and take a bow" verse and I guess she figured that we were going to keep singing it until she did it, so we only had to sing that verse twice. I was shocked and amazed that she and her friends were singing along to all the "oldies" and one of the girls even requested "Ring Of Fire".
One of the birthday girl's friends came up and asked me if we knew "Amos Mountain". I told her that I didn't know what song she meant and she said,"you know..." and then proceeded to sing "Amos mountain high enough...". I politely told her (and without laughing) that now I know what song she means, but we don't know it. I'll never be able to hear Diana Ross sing "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" without singing it as "Amos Mountain". I guess it's her version of "there's a bathroom on the right" and "excuse me while I kiss this guy".
And speaking of requests...."Man Who Sold The World" was requested by yet another one of Monica's friends and since we were still Jakeless we couldn't do it. I told Mudcat that Jake will never believe us that someone requested his favorite song. Next gig we'll have Jake back. YEA!!!!!!
Friday, July 31, 2009
7/30 - Best of the West
This was kind of like a trade show, but with the common theme being "best' rather than a specific industry or product. And the last I checked, "best" meant that there could only be one. Apparently, that's not the case on the west side.
This event was sponsored by West Shore magazine. The local businesses that were voted in as the best were the participants. There were restaurants, bars, catering services, wine stores, car wash, spas, salons, jewelry, ties, etc. It was pretty much all over the map as far as products.
Mudcat and I could be pretty much all over the map up on stage with tons of room to move about...we're still Jakeless (now he has a video to show how much we miss him). The being Jakeless part of it we weren't crazy about, but it was pretty cool to be up there looking out into the sea of people, which made us hugely thankful that we had our own space. We were told that attendance was about 500 people this year.
Saw some familiar faces in that sea of people; the crew from Rozi's, Peggy, Mudcat's niece, and Janet and Marsha (no, not the Brady Bunch Jan and Marsha).
Mudcat had a fan right from the get-go. A young-ish girl who kept coming up to the stage to listen to us (him) and she ended up requesting that we do an Eagles song. Gotta give her parents credit! We completely expected her to request Miley Cyrus.
Chris decided that it was open mike night and came up to sing and play (Chris brought his own guitar, but Mudcat let him use his). He did a song by himself, which he pulled off, but then tried to sing along with Mud (not to be confused with sing along with Mitch) and "tried" is the key word. He exited stage left during the first verse, but ended up coming back up when he realized where he left his beer.
According to Trish, the chick in charge of this event, we were well received and she'll keep us in mind for other events and/or next year's Best of the West. We had fun too!
This was kind of like a trade show, but with the common theme being "best' rather than a specific industry or product. And the last I checked, "best" meant that there could only be one. Apparently, that's not the case on the west side.
This event was sponsored by West Shore magazine. The local businesses that were voted in as the best were the participants. There were restaurants, bars, catering services, wine stores, car wash, spas, salons, jewelry, ties, etc. It was pretty much all over the map as far as products.
Mudcat and I could be pretty much all over the map up on stage with tons of room to move about...we're still Jakeless (now he has a video to show how much we miss him). The being Jakeless part of it we weren't crazy about, but it was pretty cool to be up there looking out into the sea of people, which made us hugely thankful that we had our own space. We were told that attendance was about 500 people this year.
Saw some familiar faces in that sea of people; the crew from Rozi's, Peggy, Mudcat's niece, and Janet and Marsha (no, not the Brady Bunch Jan and Marsha).
Mudcat had a fan right from the get-go. A young-ish girl who kept coming up to the stage to listen to us (him) and she ended up requesting that we do an Eagles song. Gotta give her parents credit! We completely expected her to request Miley Cyrus.
Chris decided that it was open mike night and came up to sing and play (Chris brought his own guitar, but Mudcat let him use his). He did a song by himself, which he pulled off, but then tried to sing along with Mud (not to be confused with sing along with Mitch) and "tried" is the key word. He exited stage left during the first verse, but ended up coming back up when he realized where he left his beer.
According to Trish, the chick in charge of this event, we were well received and she'll keep us in mind for other events and/or next year's Best of the West. We had fun too!
7/25 The Room On Lorain
Well, we're still missing Jake (and he has the voice mail message as proof).
Oh, the conversations that we overhear...this organ donor (non-helmet wearing) motorcycle guy meanders up to the bar after parking his bike on the sidewalk right in front of the door, orders a beer and announces to Katie (the bartender) that he does not have insurance. First: he can't afford it and second: if he gets in an accident he'll be dead anyway, so why bother. Great logic.
The ironic thing is that Katie works for an insurance company during the day.
But that's not the best one. I do believe this overheard conversation tops his ~ a girl at the bar proclaims that she is itching out her ying-yang (her words, not mine). Go ahead and say it with me....ewwwwwwwwwww.
Two girls came in who appeared to be having a girls' night out and who also appeared to be expecting a different clientele with whom to share their excursion, decided to stay for at least a shot and a beer, which they downed in about 3 seconds (beer included). Apparently, bubble gum liqueur mixed with Red Bull (which they called a "bubble bomb") is quite tasty. I'll take their word for it.
And once again, the detailed, step-by-step instructional hand washing poster in the women's bathroom continues to amuse me. My favorite part is the last item under the heading of when to know that you need to wash your hands ~ "when hands become visibly soiled". Yeah, I'm thinkin' that would be a good time...
Well, we're still missing Jake (and he has the voice mail message as proof).
Oh, the conversations that we overhear...this organ donor (non-helmet wearing) motorcycle guy meanders up to the bar after parking his bike on the sidewalk right in front of the door, orders a beer and announces to Katie (the bartender) that he does not have insurance. First: he can't afford it and second: if he gets in an accident he'll be dead anyway, so why bother. Great logic.
The ironic thing is that Katie works for an insurance company during the day.
But that's not the best one. I do believe this overheard conversation tops his ~ a girl at the bar proclaims that she is itching out her ying-yang (her words, not mine). Go ahead and say it with me....ewwwwwwwwwww.
Two girls came in who appeared to be having a girls' night out and who also appeared to be expecting a different clientele with whom to share their excursion, decided to stay for at least a shot and a beer, which they downed in about 3 seconds (beer included). Apparently, bubble gum liqueur mixed with Red Bull (which they called a "bubble bomb") is quite tasty. I'll take their word for it.
And once again, the detailed, step-by-step instructional hand washing poster in the women's bathroom continues to amuse me. My favorite part is the last item under the heading of when to know that you need to wash your hands ~ "when hands become visibly soiled". Yeah, I'm thinkin' that would be a good time...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
