CVS is my new favorite store

We recently got a new CVS store here in Wilmington. And as a
promotion, they sent out flyers with some pretty good coupons. I found
a stack and wanted to see what I could get for the money. Here is a
receipt from one purchase (this does include other coupons from the
Sunday paper as well). The top number circled was my total: $6.16. The
bottom number circled was my savings: $46.90. They didn't know what
hit them. In addition, I transferred two generic prescriptions
totalling approximately $13 and got two $25 gift cards. It doesn't
happen very often, but it feels good to be the winner for a change.

Our first swing as man and wife

I was looking through my wedding photos the other day and this is one that I never really noticed before. I like the contrast of her smile and my look of shock.

Requiem for Charm City: A Remembrance for The Wire

I will start out with this statement: I don't know what took me so long. For the past two months, spanning from June to July 2009, the Hamiltons have had ongoing relationship with the Baltimore City Police Department. To say that it is over, well it's hard to say the words. All of what they say is true, it was quite simply the greatest, most compelling series ever seen. Every scene says so much, whether it's rogue Detective McNulty mouthing off to his superiors, or Lt. Daniels seeing what is wrong with his city and choosing his words so carefully, that he picks them one at a time. By spending equal time in police settings and on the streets, you see both the how and the why of the situation and it helps you realize any answers to America's Drug Problem, and in Baltimore specifically, are just as complex as the problems. Also, by showing such detailed portraits of the main characters, the good guys and the bad guys emerge, but not necessarily by their job description. There are cops that are just plain evil and there are dealers with a moral code and plenty that in the grey. As you continue to watch, you realize that there was probably more thought put into this series than any on record. Choosing Tom Waits' "Down in the Hole" as the theme song stands a stroke of genius, especially have the original and covers changing each season. Visually, the creators took full advantage of placement and scenery to convey the actions at hand. As an example the photo attached is from Season 5: Episode 3. Young Marlowe Stanfield, a young buck whose rise to power is too fast for his own good and has to find places to distrubute his new found fortune and sits in a church office with Propostion Joe, another Baltimore mainstay and a minister going over which "charity" to divert his funds. The print of Riviere's "Daniel's Answer to the King" subtly conveys that dangerous den where these men find themselves. I could go on, but one last prop is due, to the late great Omar Little. The walking embodiment of another Waits' creation, "Black Wings", Mr. Little is the most complex, fascinating character in a series ever. An equal opportunity hood, he employed women, loved men, and paid no heed whatsoever to who ruled the corners, because he knew they did not rule him.I will watch other shows, but they all will be weak and small in comparison. My summer just became a little less interesting, but I wouldn't have traded it for all the lake trout in the world.

Weekly Recommended Album # 4 American Water by Silver Jews

With apologies to Editors Jenkins and Ivey, I missed last week's deadline. I will try to do better. Well, the last note set off an interesting firestorm, well actually more like a small campfire over the viability of live albums. Glad I could get some people talking. This week I thought about throwing a title out there that would be out of left field like " The Cool" by Lupe Fiasco or anything by the band Can, but this selection while somewhat popular, brings me back to it over and over: American Water by Silver Jews. Frontman David Berman's wordplay is well reknowned on all SJ albums, causing you to pay attention to lyrics possibly more than any artist. And while other SJ albums have great songs, namely Black and Brown Shoes from The Natural Bridge, American Water seems to be the most complete album.An album that starts out with: "In 1984, I was hospitalized for approaching perfection" only sets the table for good things to come. I maybe sucker for Berman's country poetry with its protestant thighs, digital deer and honkytonk psychiatrists, but listening to it this week made it seem just as fresh as ever. The best line of the album may be "I am the trick, my mother played on the world" from Send In the Clouds, a line that easily could have shown up in anything from Eminem to Slayer.

Black and White in Color- The Movie

I originally thought of this blog's title just as a play on words... Black and White in Color. My love of photography factored into it in addition to those awful colorizations of classic B&W movies they did in the 80's. Anyway, I was googling the title just seeing what would show up and low and behold there is a movie with the Exact Same Name! It seems to be a French film from 1977 that won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. It seems to be a comedy about the French trying to fight WWI in colonial Africa against the Germans. Odd setting for a comedy, but it's worth a look and now in my Netflix queue. Updates to come.

Weekly Recommended Album # 3- The Tigers Have Spoken By Neko Case

I personally think that live albums get sort of a bad rep. To provide a work analogy, studio albums are really presentations to the public as to what an artist is about. A debut album is like a resume, an introduction that allows the artist to give a brief overview of training, influences and experiences. Subsequent albums are more like powerpoints that give a bi-annual overview as to what the artist is up to at the time. Live albums are different. A live album allows the listener to tag along to see the artist at work. This is why Johnny Cash at Folsum Prison and Elvis at Madison Square Garden are so timeless. This is why I am recommending The Tigers Have Spoken by Neko Case. Essentially a live compliation album, it is a good showcase for all of Ms. Case's talents namely her songwriting and her choice of covers and that smoky twangy voice that is her trademark. Recorded over three shows, Neko uses her backup band The Sadies to full effect on such tracks as "Train from Kansas City" and "The Tigers have Spoken". She does Loretta Lynn proud with her cover of "Rated X" and does a haunting "Wayfaring Stranger". But what makes that album is how she plays off the crowd to step it up a notch on nearly every song.

2009 All-star game moment

It was a pretty short all star game this year, with few memorable
moments. The one thing I remember is that, for some reason, Fox showed
this creepy guy for 5 long seconds with no explanation whatsoever.

Weekly Recommended Album #2

This is the soundtrack to a Wim Wenders film from 1997. If you lived in New York , Chicago or LA and you blinked you probably missed it. If you lived anywhere else, you didn't need to blink you missed it anyway. I vaguely remember renting it but that is about as far as it goes. When it comes to Mr. Wenders: Wings of Desire=Greatness, The End of Violence= Not so Much. But the soundtrack, oh the soundtrack. Mr. Wenders either has a very good ear or a little bird with great taste was doing some whispering. Either way, this is an album not to be missed, even the sound clips from the film actually add to the album. Recommended tracks: "A Little Drop of Poison" by Tom Waits, a great song that I am not sure is available anywhere else. "Everytime I Try" by Spain, usually Spain songs are good for navelgazing and nothing more, but this moves slightly faster and with more feeling. "Bailare (El Merecumbe) by Raul Malo, the lead singer of the country band The Mavericks is so melodic, you find yourself singing along to a song completely in Spanish. Other artists include a Michael Stipe/Vic Chesnutt duet, an early track from Ryan Adams and Whiskeytown and DJ shadow adding some atmospherics as well. That's the good news. The bad news is that it seems to be out of print, but if it is a bargain bin, walk it up to the counter with a smile that says "I just took candy from a baby", because you just made a steal.

Swinging

I thought I would post a couple of pics from LA from my digital camera. This is one of Juan Pierre swinging at a high heater. Taking pictures of batters swinging is a guessing game, you try to time it just right.

Steak #1 Yatz's Subs and Steaks

Here are the ground rules:
1. Each steak will be ordered the same : Small steak with just fried
onions and provolone. I don't want any sauces like ketchup or mayo to
get in the way of the taste.
2. Each steak will be judged on a scale of 10, with 2 points each for
roll, steak, toppings, seasoning and the value for the price.

Not a bad steak overall, the roll was crusty and soft I'd give it a 2.
The steak was done throughout, but there could've more of it, I'd give
it a 1.5. Onions and cheese were in good amount, so that's a 2. The
sandwich was a little bland, could've used more s & p, it gets a 1.25.
The sandwich was $5 which for a 6 inch seems to be a bit steep, so
that gets a 1. But I would go back in a pinch. Total 7.75/10

Wilmington cheesesteak tour

After the excitement of visiting the city of angels, we are back to
the daily grind of Wilmington. For a little motivation, I have decided
to go on Wilmington Cheesesteak Tour 2009. I have lived in Wilmington
now for a little over a year, so I figured this would be a tasty way
to explore. First I will start on Union street, what I christen
"Cheesesteak Alley" where there are no fewer than four sub shops
within a quarter mile. First up is Yatz's at 626 N. Union.

Home sweet sort of ...

Landing in BWI, picture blurry just like my eyes.

On the way home...finally

Our layover from LA to Baltimore was in Albequerque where the airport
has a distinct Southwestern flair. The terminals look like adobes.

Goodbye to LA

One last picture of where we stayed in Venice. Of course, the day we
leave is the only day we had sunshine in the morning.

Fireworks on the 4th

Since we also had a balcony, we had a great view of the Venice
fireworks. Unfortunately, there is only so much you can do with the
camera on the iPhone.

Best shower ever

In this nice condo they also have the best shower ever. Two shower
heads from the ceiling, side showers coming from the left and right
walls and a wraparound bench made of marble.

Fire table

The condo that we stayed in Venice is a penthouse with crazy
amenities. This is a picture of a fireplace table on the balcony. The
one holding the margarita is Misty, a gold medal swimmer that swam
mile in the pacific on Saturday morning just for the fun of it.

Venice Beach

Unfortunately, the iPhone has some limitations with the camera but
here is a typical venice scene: young family on the beach and an 80
year old man running in a speedo.

$15 drinks taste the same as $3 ones

Last nite we went to a swanky LA bar (it was actually in Santa Monica)
called the Viceroy. It was interesting to see where celebrities hang
out, but not so interesting to pay $15 for drinks that cost $3 at
happy hour everywhere else.

Thursday in LA- Getty Villa Museum

Today, we went to the Getty Villa museum. The smaller of the two Getty
museums, this has nothing but Roman and Greek antiquities. It was
great day to go because of the good lighting for shadows and
reflections.

Bentleys, Bentleys and more Bentleys

People really know how to spend money on cars here. This is one of six
Bentleys we saw on Wednesday.

Ice cream malt cup

This is a frozen confection here at the stadium. They have frozen
lemonade cups and soft serve like most parks, but I have never seen
these before. It tastes like a Wendy's Frosty but frozen completely
solid.

The field at Dodger Stadium

We picked a good game to attend, a getaway game versus the Colorado
Rockies. Most of the attendance was made up kids in summer day camps.
The stadium itself is 47 years old which makes it, believe it or not,
the 3rd oldest ball park behind Fenway Park and Wrigley Field. It
doesn't have the same ammenities as newer parks like actual
restaurants and air conditioned stores, but it is aging quite well
like most people do in SoCal.

LA cheesesteak?

They even have cheesesteaks at Dodger Stadium. Coming from the Philly
vicinity, I am a little skeptical.

"World Famous" Dodger Dog

It's really just a $5 dollar footlong, just not the subway kind.

Parking lot number

My sister was nice enough to get us tickets to Wednesday's Dodger
game. This is the charming way they identify parking lot numbers.

Dinner on the beach

After one layover in music city, and another five hours of flying, we
finally arrived in LA. Pretty exhausting, but in the end it was
definitely worth it, watching the sun go down with a picnic supplied
by my sister, Karen.

One airport looks just like all the others

This is the view of LAX
from my airplane seat. It seems to all run together, so I do feel
bad for the people that do a lot of traveling for a living. I know I
would end up in the wrong city half of the time because I could not
tell the difference.

One airport looks just like all the others

This is the view from my seat at the Nashville airport. Notice the
invisible sign that says: Welcome to the Home of Country Music.

One airport looks just like all the others

I am in LA county all this week and thought I would post what I am
seeing. Here is the view from my seat at BWI airport.

Oriole Bird Alter Ego

This is a picture of my new hat. My favorite part is how the evil
oriole bird is wearing a hat with the happy bird on it.

King of Pop Retrospective

In the following days, we will hear so much commentary (enough to make you unplug your TV)about Michael Jackson's Life and Career, I wanted to take a moment to breakdown an album and add really think about the music. I just have two albums : Off the Wall and Thriller and random Jackson 5 songs, but we'll stick with Off the Wall.

Off the Wall-1979

Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough- A great choice to start his first solo album. Already a pop wunderkind, he had enough success with the 5 that he could have retired early at 21 and cashed in the royalties. With that bass line intro, the young Mr. Jackson laid down the gauntlet for allcomers and established the first chapter of the most dynamic music presence of the last 50 years.

Rock With You- This is the second most well-known track and it is pretty solid. His voice makes what sounds like the last gasp of disco sound like, well, the first breath. Fresh and tight, it makes you wonder where disco went wrong.

Workin' Day and Night- Cowbell, Cowbell, Cowbell then horns, the rhythm guitar, then more horns. Very busy song, first song on the album ( and possibly his career) where Michael shows some swagger. Very underated, people should talk this one more.

Get On the Floor- Solid, but not exactly memorable, very disco. Most notable for Michael goes from high to low octaves. Lots of the grunts that would later on be parodied so often.

Off the Wall- Let's call this a prequel to Thriller. Michael experiments with the spooky atmospherics that would should up later in, well you know.

Girlfriend- This what the Motown sounded like in 1979. Very melodic and mellow. The "do-do-do's" allow Michael to pay homage to Smokey Robinson among others.

She's Out of My Life - The other single from the album. Anyone else singing this would require breaking the album in half in anger. Michael is able to spin this cheese into something heartbreaking. Everyone should hear this before passing judgement.

I Can't Help It- Again not to memorable, but there is not a bad song on the album. But the fact that Stevie Wonder wrote it, makes it kinda disappointing.

It's Like Falling in Love- This seems like a very good karoke song, which in 1979 meant singing into your hairbrush in front of the mirror.

Burn This Disco Out-A real toe-tapper. Not sure if Michael want to light a fire under disco's ass or burn it down to the ground. Impressive none the less.

Fisheye Powerlines

WWIII Propaganda: Because somebody blogged

WWIII Propaganda: Because somebody blogged
Originally uploaded by Brian Lane Winfield Moore

I admire the hard word put into this.

Weekly Recommended Album #1

After all the hardwork put in from my friends Mr. Ivey and Mr. Jenkins, I thought I would put in my little contribution to the music critic consortium. I applaud Mr. Ivey for listening to Tom Moon's suggestions and giving his own impressions and Mr. Jenkins for going through his entire audio library. This will sliightly different, and a little half-assed as well. I will try to every week recommend one album from my collections that I think deserve a listen, and welcome your comments if you think I am full of it. So without further ado...Ballad of the Broken Seas- Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan-Released 2006I have to admit that 97% percent of my recent music acquisitions have come via our local public library, an unexpected and bountiful resource. I checked this out without a listen and added it to iTunes and listened to the album on a ride home from the beach. Very pleasant surprise, with Lanegan much more weathered from his Screaming Trees heyday and Campbell as delicate as ever, possibly moreso than with Belle and Sebastian. Not so brief summary: Imagine in 1964, Phil Spector decided to take a break from the wall of sound and do a simple side project with his friends Leonard Cohen and Marianne Faithful. They record a dozen songs, including Hank Williams cover and call it a day, saving a beautiful time capsule before time took its toll on their vocal chords.

First Posting

This is the first posting, so there is not much to it, just trying to see how it all works.