I wish I could do these things on a bike but I’d never be crazy enough to try:
Make sure you watch at least until the 3:10 mark.
Best of 2008: Songs
- Top 5 Songs of 2008
- Killing the Blues by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss: “Leaves are falling, just like embers, in colors red and gold they set us on fire.” The opening lines to this song touch my soul but I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because of the beautiful imagery or maybe it’s a reminder of the even finer chorus to come. More likely it’s the wondrous way that Robert Plant and Alison Krauss blend their voices. Of course, it’s all of those and more. Accompanied by a sublime slide guitar and a restrained rhythm section, Plant and Krauss turn this John Prine song into their very own.
- Last Month of the Year by the Blind Boys of Alabama: This song epitomizes everything I love about the Blind Boys: a jumping rhythm section, call & response vocals, great singing and the unique sound that only the Blind Boys can deliver. If you’ve never heard them, check out their appearance on Austin City Limits if you get a chance. There is nobody like the Blind Boys of Alabama.
- Little Wing by The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Although I’d heard Jimi’s original version of this song (from Axis: Bold As Love), I never grew to love it until I heard Stevie Ray Vaughn‘s instrumental cover a few years ago. Last year I discovered that the Jimi Hendrix Experience Box Set has two different versions of “Little Wing.” My favorite has to be the sublime live version which reminds me greatly of the SRV cover.
- Stewball by Peter, Paul and Mary: I first heard this song when I was a teenager in the 80’s. It appeared on the legendary “Hangman Album” by Mason Proffit. While that version is good, it only begins to hint at the beauty of this version by Peter, Paul and Mary. In the PP&M canon, this song is right up there with “Puff the Magic Dragon” and “500 Miles”. You can find it on their third album, In The Wind, or on one of several greatest hits compilations.
- Da Da Da by Trio: Fifteen years before Volkswagen used it in their 1997 ad campaign, my old friend Arnie Walthoff introduced me to this strange song. In a music landscape dominated by MTV, Prince, Michael Jackson and Huey Lewis, it was a revelation to my teenage ears. Shortly after I arrived at Wartburg College a few years later, I stumbled upon a reel of tape at our college radio station with this song and other German pop songs. I played it on my radio show announcing it only as a cool song for which I did not know the artist. Within minutes several people called in to tell me that the artist in question was German band, Trio. It took until this year before I was finally able to lay my hands on the CD but it was well worth the wait.
Click the song titles to hear a sample of the song in the iTunes Music Store. You can get iTunes here.
Best of 2008: Introduction
This is the first in a series of posts describing my favorite music from 2008. To be eligible, an album only had to be added to my music collection in 2008, but not necessarily released in 2008. Some long-time favorites with which I had familiarity but had not previously owned were only eligible for “Honorable Mention” along with a few others that didn’t quite make the Top Albums list.
In order to make it into the Top Albums, a CD had to saturate my listening time for an appreciable length of time. Although I have ranked them, distinguishing between any two of these CDs is very difficult indeed. When I obtained each it probably remained in heavy rotation at home, on my iPod and at work for several weeks, often receiving two or three plays per day. This is the quality level required to make the Top Albums.
This year in listening was markedly different than recent years. In the past, most of my music listening occurred while biking to work or while at work. Because of my job change, neither of those times were practical until my office was closed in September. Since then, however, I’ve had ample time to listen to music while working and I take full advantage of it.
In the coming days, I’ll have articles delineating my picks for Best of 2008. In addition to the Best Albums, I’ll list my favorite songs.
If you are interested in my past picks, I have articles for 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.
Road Trip 2010 revisited
Awhile back I wrote about a potential future road trip we might take in the summer of 2010. The intent was to visit family and see the sights along the way on a trip that encircled nearly all of the continental U.S. According to my calculations then, the trip would involve 16 days for just the driving, never mind time taken for family and recreation. Given the unlikelihood of having 4 weeks of vacation by next summer (I have about 2 days at this moment), here is a revised itinerary:
- Portland
- This 1326 mile length will take two days. Stopping point will likely be Salt Lake City.
- Colorado Springs (Tina’s dad, Leroy)
378 miles/5.5 hours - Albuquerque (Jan and Tom)
1010 miles/14 hours - Houston (home to Tina’s grandfather, TQ)
354 miles/6 hours - New Orleans (stopping in Baton Rouge to visit my nephew, Wally, for a few hours)
546 miles/8 hours - Jacksonville (stopping in Pensacola to visit cousin Beth)
139 miles/2 hours - Savannah (Mardy and Steve)
765 miles/12 hours - Cleveland (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)
344 miles/6 hours - Chicago (various sights)
377 miles/6.5 hours - Riceville (stopping in Dubuque to visit my old friends, the Sunleafs
- This stretch of 1800 miles is a two or three day drive. Stopping points will be dynamic.
- Portland
That reduces the trip to 12 or 13 driving days. I would expect we would take extra days in Cleveland and Chicago and have all the equipment for your kids, although we could see the HOF in the morning and drive to Chicago in the evening. We’ll also need several days in Riceville for a probable family reunion.
She scratches a letter into a wall made of stone
The boys have been on Spring Break since the middle of the week before last. Thomas had a tremendous amount of homework for his reading class that he needed to catch up on. Some of that was from the week he missed while out sick but most of it was not. He’s supposed to read for 20 minutes a night and then spend 10 minutes filling out a little form about what he read. He has to do those six times a week and was behind seven weeks for a total of 42 reading logs. Because of that, he was also a bit behind in math and social studies. Thus, Thomas has spent most of his spring break doing homework.
I picked up Halo 2 from Half.com for $10 a couple of weeks ago. Since then the boys and I have been enjoying it tremendously. After Graham finished it, he asked me for my Halo 1 disc for Mac which he finished a few days later. Nothing brings a family together quite like killing aliens.
As a reward for finishing all his homework, we took Thomas to Best Buy last night and bought Halo 3 for him. Tonight he’s celebrating with his friends Ziad and Gabe by playing Rock Band and Halo 3 on our Xbox. They are quite raucous but they will hopefully quiet down as the night progresses.
What’s on Thomas’ Hard Drive?
This image speaks volumes about Thomas. He made it using Disk Inventory and marked it up with Skitch. Code Monkeys, How I Met Your Mother and Doogie Howser are all television series. Click the image to see it full size.
Join the Ring Family 2009 Bracket Challenge
As in last year, I’ve created a group for anyone who wants to join us in predicting the winners of the 2009 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Participation requires a free membership at ESPN.com. Brackets must be completed by Wednesday, March 16, 2009. Even if you know nothing about college basketball, it’s still fun to see how well you do as the tournament progresses. It’s even more fun when you beat the pants off of Thomas!
World Builder
A strange man builds a world using holographic tools for the woman he loves.
This award winning short was created by filmmaker Bruce Branit, widely known as the co-creator of ‘405’. World Builder was shot in a single day followed by about 2 years of post production. Branit is the owner of Branit VFX based in Kansas City.
Vital Statistics
Bike odometer: 2523
Van odometer: 154556
Aches & pains: miniature frost bite on my elbow (turned black), back in spasm for 3 days
Current reading: My Name Is Red by Orhan Pamuk, Cross-platform GUI Programming with wxWidgets
Recent listening: Coverville, Live from Austin, TX by Neko Case, The 99 Most Essential Beethoven Masterpieces, Weird Al Yankovic, Final Boss by MC Frontalot
Recent viewing: The Thing, The Tick, Numbers, Coraline, The Daily Show, Battlestar Galactica, This Week with George Stephanopolous, Meet the Press, Firefly, Welcome to Macintosh, Fringe, Confessions of a Superhero, Lost (Season 1)
Recent playing: Chain Factor, Galcon
Recently accomplished: Can recycling for Scouts, Coldplay tickets for Thomas, found outlet for Boy Scout can recycling, yard debris, Valentine’s Day plans, volunteered to be Troop 820 Treasurer, visited Evergreen Aerospace Museum
Imperative To Do: Freecycle, get rid of MacRenewal Macs, recover network functionality on old Tivo. Read their multimeter reviews for more information.
Off To School
Graham forgot his book AND his cello when we left for school this morning. Fortunately, he remembered when we were only a block away. I snapped this after he had retrieved both. Yes, that’s snow again. It snowed a little overnight.