First entry of 2006

It's another year, and I am so glad to be on the planet! This looks to be a year in which those who have been abusing their power may get their day of reckoning. George Bush, who lies for a living, was caught red handed, assuring people in 2004 that "whenever you hear about the government wire tapping, there is a court order involved." It turns out that W has acually been authorizing wire tapping of American Citizens and others including members of the United Nations since shortly after 9-11. The argument that it would jeapordize National Security to go through legal channels to get this authority doesn't hold water, as the administration could have tapped any phones they wanted to and then gone back retroactively for formal authority, if they had wished to. Why didn't they do it legally if it was that easy? That, my friends, is the 6 million dollar question, and if you ask the right questions, you get some interesting answers. Could it be the administration was wire tapping political opponents and others who may have opposed their policies but in no way shape or form posed a threat to the security of our nation? I believe this may be the case. After all, this is the group that got on the TV, stared straight at the cameras and talked about "mushroom clouds" knowing all the while that Sadaam Huissein didn't have the ability to launch a bottle rocket at us at the time. So today, Bush says "I assure you that everything I have done is perfectly legal, otherwise I wouldn't have done it." Richard Nixon was famous for saying "if I do it, then it is legal, because I am the president." Shrub has fallen into the same sort of circular logic, and it may end up being his undoing. "Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely." I don't remember who said that, but it was one of the first things I learned in college in a political science class. Whether you are the president of the United States, the leader of the 700 club, an administrator in charge of federal employees or a guy in Rome in a $10,000 hat, if you start assuming that your actions are right because of who you are, you WILL paint yourself into a corner eventually. It is assuring to me to know that, because then I don't feel like it is my responsibility to "right all of the wrongs" I come across. That is a big fucking job, and a person could wear themselves out trying to do it. So hears to you and yours. My New Years wish for myself is that I breathe in gratitude and breathe out forgiveness every day this year. If I do that, I will have a good year. This much I know to be true. Peace.

Happy Holidays!!

Yeah, I meant to say happy holidays and not Merry Christmas. I said that to someone today, and she responded with, "I don't want to be politically correct, "Merry Christmas." Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, you know... the usual suspects in the neo-conservative nazi party of america, talking heads for the sorriest administration we've had in this country since Warren G. Harding (actually, I don't know if he was a bad President, but I'm on a roll) have created ANOTHER distraction called "the war on Christmas." Their premise is that secular humanists, liberals, non-christians and Jews are scheming to take the Christ out of Christmas. These blow hard apologists for the Bush/Cheney juggernaut that has taken this country from record surplusses to record deficits, from years of relative peace to perpetual war, from good relations with other countries to open hostility, from gains in protecting the environment to unspeakable giveaways to the worst polluters, from reductions in poverty to a wider gap than ever between rich and poor...these right wing pseudo christian bigots are so full of hate and fear they see a conspiracy on the door of every refrigerator. Since they don't want to focus on what is in front of all of our noses, the insane amount of money it takes to support this stupid war, the fact that Frist, Delay, Libby, Abramoff and several other prominent repulicans are under indictment or worse, the fact that the conservatives got their asses kicked this week on ANWR, the Patriot Act and the "Reverse Robinhood Budget,"...they deflect and conjure up a bogus conspiracy that is really just a poorly veiled batch of anti-semitism and religious intolerance dressed up in tinsel and garland.
The mood in this country is shifting, and I am looking forward to the day when O'Reilly and the rest of them are off the air because noone wants to hear their hatred spewed upon them anymore. That day is coming, as is the day when a spirit of decency, cooperation, fiscal discipline, fairness, environmental stewardship, economic equality, religious freedom, support of workers rights and partnership with the rest of the world community returns to this fine nation. Until then, I refuse to participate in this fiasco called Christmas that is really just a bunch of corporate hype designed to stress people out and push them farther into debt. I haven't bought one Christmas present, and my sweetie and I are going up to Mount Rainier to spend a few nights in the wilderness, where God speaks, if we are listening, every day. So happy holidays to you and yours. Let's pray for peace and sanity and a return to decency in this country. Let's face it, 2005 was fucked up, but we can do better!!

Remembering John Lennon

25 years ago today, John Lennon was murdered by an insane fan, supposedly enraged by his perception that the former Beattle had "sold out." I was attending the University of Nevada Reno, working in Lincoln Hall as a Resident Assistant, when the announcement came over the radio in my room, "John Lennon has been shot, he was pronounced dead on arrival." I remember going outside and finding people gathering together, crying, holding each other. I felt as if a piece of me had been stolen, that's how strongly I identified with John Lennon. I called the only person I could think of who loved Lennon more than I did, my brother John. He answered the phone "John is dead." We consoled each other, although neither one of us could find even a semblance of a silver lining. To this day I can't. I do know this, John Lennon was one of the most amazing song writers in history, and he will always be dear to me.

Alex

This is Alex, my daughter. She will be 17 years old in a week. She is a very talented visual artist, kind to animals and her younger brother, an up and coming guitar player and a gifted writer. I am so grateful that she is in my life. She's wearing an "Anomaly Records" hat and she is standing in front of my bad, 1982 Toyota Corolla station wagon. Yes, that is a Peace flag.

Mayor Gridlock

Here is our mayor, who only this month was heralded by Rolling Stone magazine as an environmental trailblazer for his work to fight global warming. A couple of weeks ago, he made sure that there will be hundreds of thousands of stinking, polluting cars gridlocked on Seattle's freeways for years to come. The mayor and the rest of the City Council blundered their oversight of the monorail project, then scuttled the whole thing by bad mouthing it to the press and forcing the people to vote a FIFTH time for it. From now on and for ever, I will refer to him as mayor Gridlock.

First Audio Blog

Strange news

Last night, I closed one of my posts with the question "do you smell cars burning?" I'm not advocating violence. I don't think it solves anything, and I believe the violence being done by the young men in France has as much to do with an absence of positive initiation experiences for young adults as it does with alienation and being disenfranchised. That being said, Bill O'Reilley and the rest of the republican mouth peices on Fox "Doublespeak" (to call it news is an insult to journalism) ought to be careful about pointing fingers at France and calling it a failed experiment in socialism. We have plenty of folks who are one 48 ouncer away from burning cars in neighborhoods that aren't a lot nicer than the government housing projects in France. A case in point is an act of arson that occured this last week in West Seattle, in a neighborhood called White Center. Some one decide to, you guessed it, light a car on fire. Hmmm... Was this a random act of violence or the beginning of a revolution? Time will tell.

I saw the line

The new movie about Jonny Cash, "I Walk the Line," is outstanding. I just read the review of the movie in The Stranger for this week, and I think the critic must have been a "Hootie and the Blowfish" fan. T-Bone Burnett put the music together, and Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon did their own vocals. I guess that is the standard after Jaime Fox nailed "Ray." If you are a musician, go see this movie. Hell, go see it if you aren't. The scene where Johnny plays Fulsom Prison blues for a young Sam Phillips is amazing, and the concert scenes made me feel like I was right there watching it, except nothing you heard back then had the kind of fidelity the movie was recorded with. So, it's kind of like eavesdropping on an earlier time, only with better sound. I saw a sneak preview of the movie last night, and I think I might go to opening night this weekend.

I don't feel any safer, in fact...

I was standing in line at my favorite Indian/Pakistani lunch place the other day, and a middle eastern gentleman shot me a nervous glance. On another day, in another time, I might have overlooked it, but it is today, and war is being waged in our names by a group of religious zealots that failed to plan what to do if the people of Iraq did not meet us with open arms. Three years later, more than 2000 American soldiers have died, with countless Iraqi civilian casualties, many of them women and children. While Vice President "Himmler" lobbies the congress for the authority to abuse detainees, we are creating entire generations of islamic terrorists, trained to give their lives for what they perceive to be a holy cause. No, President kill-again, I don't feel safer, and I won't until you and every last one of your bigoted, narrowminded zealot cronies are safe behind bars, where you belong. I feel shameful for assuming that the man standing in line ahead of me in a turban may be planning to kill himself and take me and 25 others in the restaurant with him. But the greatest shame goes to the crew in Washingtion that exploited the good will of the planet after the attacks of 9/11 and exploited this nation's fear to satiate their lust for oil and profit in a land that posed no threat to us whatsoever. Hundreds of billions of dollars later, American's who have been made homeless by the hurricanes this season are facing evictions from the squalid "fema-camps" they have been living in, while the republican-controlled government plans another tax cut for the wealthiest. Meanwhile, fresh science on global warming states the obvious, the planet is getting warmer and this is causing weather changes, like more ferocious hurricanes in the Atlantic ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. What is that smell? Are there cars burning?

It's October of 2005

Fall is here, ready or not. I love the Puget Sound, but I always feel a little shudder go through my body this time of year, thinking of the long dark winter ahead.
Nancy J and I spent a week in Austin Texas at the Austin City Limits Music Festival. If you love live music, I recommend the event. We saw Wilco, Coldplay, Dave Alvin, Spoon, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Death Cab for Cutie, the John Spencer Trio and others. The event is coordinated almost entirely by volunteers, and I was amazed at how well it was laid out logistically, never a line for food, water, bathroom, transportation. The one thing the organizers had not planned for very well was 108 degree weather and no rain for weeks preceeding the event. The dust storm kicked up by 65,000 happy listeners on the last day saw people grabbing whatever they could fix for a bandana and wrapping it around their noses and mouths to keep the dust from clogging their lungs.
I came back from Austin in a bit of a funk and I am not immediately sure why. Partly it is that I really don't love my job anymore, but there seems to be more. I think it is the realization that I'm not anchored in Seattle as firmly as I have been and that I have the opportunity to be around family in a city that I might like even more than this one. For now I'm just breathing and taking small steps, testing the waters of change and uncertainty and adventure once again to see if I am brave enough or crazy enough to wade in again.

They are wrong for that

I picked up the New York times yesterday, Monday, August 29th. There was a story in the international section with a bi-line that read "PROCUREMENT." The story was about Bunnatine H. Greenhouse, a black female who was a career civil servant, working for the Army Corps of Engineers. Ms. Greenhouse was demoted in her position for doing what the taxpayers pay her to do, making sure that the government was getting what it paid for. She raised objections to a 7 BILLION dollar no bid contract that was awarded to Haliburton subsidiary Kellog, Brown and Root. Her argument was that, if the contract was being awarded without competition because of the urgency of the war, then it made sense for the contract to be of shorter duration as well. This sounds logical, but it cost her her rank in the federal service. Ms. Greenhouse, who is a true patriot in my eyes, called a $165 million dollar contract awarded to KB&R for logistical support in the balkans without competition "the most blatant and improper contract abuse I have witnessed in the course of my professional career." She also said that the defense secretary's office had improperly interfered in the awarding of the contract. If you don't know what's going on here, I'll break it down to you. When I was a procurement specialist with Job Corps, I signed a conflict of interest statement every time I sat on a panel. Since Job Corps contracts are competitively bid, I would be fired on the spot (and I should have been) if I had made my decisions based upon interests I had in a company that was bidding on the project. For instance, if I had a friend who ran a company that runs Job Corps centers (and I have several) it would be completely unethical for me to use my influence to help that person secure the contract, or to be swayed in my decision making because I had a relationship with that person, or worse, something to gain financially by helping him/her out. When we were attacked on September 11th, 2001, the Bush administration started exploiting opportunities to help their friends and financial supporters get rich. A big chunk of the BILLIONS and BILLIONS of dollars that is being spent in Iraq and Afghanistan is being done on a no-bid, non-competitive basis. We've seen the effect of these contracts over there, with Haliburton getting caught overcharging for fuel, food, etc. So the companies are given these huge contracts to provide a service, then they rip the country off in the process of providing that service. If you are not mad, you are really not paying attention. WAKE UP!

It's been a while

since I posted here. I've had my "issues" with this blog. I tend to get fairly personal, and from time to time I question whether that is worth the trouble that it can cause. Then a part of me says, if I am trying to be truthful and talk about what is going on with me, what harm could come from that? I'll continue to sort it out and post any "aha!" experiences right here.
My life is very full now. I have some say in that, there are activities that are optional, meaning, pretty much all of them. I choose to go to work because I don't know how I would pay my bills if I didn't, but that in itself is not a very good reason. I'm active in a couple of fellowships that help me stay sane and balanced, therefore, these activtities seem like necessities rather than luxuories. I'm involved with a young woman that I love to spend time with, and, if it is a luxory, it's one I am grateful to have. I spend several hours a week working out to be able to keep my body in decent shape. Do I need to do that? The answer is no, but I am pretty miserable when I'm not getting my endorphins from working out, and, I am concerned with how I look, so I feel better when I am in shape. I've been putting a lot of time into practicing the bass guitar and recording new songs with my Experience Songwriting Project partners. This too may seem frivilous, but I get so much enjoyment out of it, I can't imagine life without it. So, my dilema is, I've gotten myself involved in more things than I can really do, but I am hesitant to unload any of them, because they are all, with the exception of work, dear to me. I don't feel terminally unique in wrestling with these problems, and I can think of about 1000 problems that would be more of a drag than having too many things I love to do and too little time to do them. I feel better having stated the situation. If I keep breathing, take whatever actions seems appropriate and stay on the path, the outcome will be revealed, and it could be better than anything my little mind could dream up.

So little to do, so much time

No, strike that, reverse it. (If you saw the original Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder, you'll remember that line). Nan and I watched "Two Cow Garage," "Grand Champeen" and "The Radio Nationals" last night at the Sunset. Two Cow Garage ruled, as they did last time I saw them. This trio from Columbus Ohio plays country music like it should be played, loud and dirty. The Radio Nationals are calling it quits, and that is going to leave a gap in this town's alt-country scene. I so want to put a band together, but can't imagine finding the time. No worries. I have really been blessed the last several years. If I keep trying to be a decent person, working hard, staying clean, I believe better things will happen to me than I can probably imagine. That's been my experience so far. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying playing acoustic gigs, getting more and more confident on the bass, collaborating with the ESP group on a new recording, etc. It's all good.

First recording session

Ben Wah, Will, Kelly K and I got together yesterday at Kelly's studio in Shoreline. I was having trouble hearing myself in the headphones, and I'm not thrilled with my bass line, but I'll get another shot at it this weekend. I am thrilled to be working with this group again. I really like the laid back vibe and the way people are coming together and supporting one another. Next week Vickie A, Tracy and maybe Kelly B will join us to wrap up song number 1. My daughter Alex is in town, a budding guitar player, and she seemed to enjoy herself at the studio, watching us knuckleheads try to pull a rabbit out of a hat.

The Experience Songwriting Project (ESP) lives!

In May I wrapped up a nine month certificate program co-sponsored by the EMP and the University of Washington Extension College. The program was taught by three prominant Seattle musicians, each offering their own take on the art of tune-smithing. Sean Nelson, lead singer for Harvey Danger and writer for the Stranger, took the helm the first semester, the introductory course, where we broke down songs by their basic components, chorus, verse, bridge, etc. Sean researched his lectures well, and his delivery was awesome. He also had a real flair for picking up on the direction the class was leaning and letting the students go that way. Second semester brought Carrie Akre of Hammerbox, Goodness and a flourishing solo career. Carrie was brought in at the eleventh hour, but she looked like she'd been doing it all her life. She helped us focus on claiming our artistic selves, developing a habit and a practice of writing regularly. We wrapped up semester two with a late night gig at Hattie's Hat. Third and final semester brought Jon Auer of Posies fame. This semester was devoted to production, and Jon worked with each of the lucky 13 who had stuck it out, producing our songs and helping us record them at Glenn Sound and at various other local studios. He helped the class put together an excellent CD, which we named the Experience Songwriting project, and the experience wrapped up on May 25 at a gig at the Science Fiction stage at the EMP.
Boy, what a long introduction to get what I wanted to talk about, which is that the ESP group has continued to collaborate. We are meeting for the next two Wednesdays at Kelly Krisjanson's studio to begin work on the next album. We're recording one of Will Morgan's songs as an ensemble. We also have a gig scheduled for August 19th, a Friday, at the Flying Lion Cafe in West Seattle. It's looking to be an excellent summer.

Greenlake Almost Free Music Hall

I played a new venue on Saturday nigh. The former Presbyterian Church on NE Ravenna, now operated by the Presbyterian Counseling Services, has opened it's doors as a music venue, and I was lucky enough to be one of the ones to kick it off. Ned Olsen's son opened up, followed by Mike Kerrick and the Happy Pappy Band. I finished the night off with a good set, although I was a complete spaz with harmonica and capo changes. The venue has potential, and I look forward to returning, both as a performer and a listener.
I went to see Billy Corgan at the Moore on Monday night with Nancy. My friend Bjorn has worked for Billy for years, and he was providing IT support on this tour, which was very "hard-drive" dependent. I think the album "The Future Embrace" is brave. Artists who depart from their formula often get attacked by their loyal fans and often by the industry itself, which leans heavily toward conformity. The album strikes a strange balance between melancholy and hopefulness that I find intriguing and sweet. Billy C announced to the crowd that he was putting the Pumpkins back together, and the result was thunderous applause.
Kelly Krisjanson from the Experience Songwriting Project is putting together a recording session for the next two weeks at his home studio. The first song we work on will be one of Will Morgan's. I'm pretty excited about collaborating with this group some more.

Karl Rove is Bush's Achille's Heel

In the Greek tragedy written by Homer, Achille's is unstoppable until Hector shoots an arrow at his one vulnerable spot, his heel. As the investigation continues into Karl Rove's involvement in outing an undercover CIA agent, it looks like the Bush administration's own hubris will be it's undoing, a theory (and hope) I've had for some time. Here are the facts. Joe Wilson, former U.S. ambassador to Africa, wrote an article critical of the Bush administration's claims that weapons grade uranium had been smuggled in from Niger. History shows us that Wilson was right. The nuclear threat claim was based on a falsified memo that noone but the White House chose to take seriously. The Bush administration, led, as always, by mastermind Karl Rove, wasn't looking for the truth back in 2003. They had been planning to go to war long before the charade in front of the UN and Colin Powell's famous Power Point show. The Downing Street memos, recently released minutes of top secret meetings of the British cabinet, show that the Bushies had a flimsy case for Iraq being a threat and were "dummying up intelligence reports to suit their aims." So when Wilson's article comes out, Karl Rove retaliates, as he is known to do. But this time, he made a serious miscalculation. Valerie Plame, wife of ambassador Wilson, was an undercover CIA agent working on tracking down weapons of mass distrucion world wide. In other words, Rove's leaking the information to a NY times reporter that Joe Wilson's wife was a CIA agent put many people at risk, operatives Ms. Plame had been working with, members of the front company that had been set up to mask Ms. Plames work and others associated with her work. So Karl Rove outs this CIA agent and then lies under oath to the Congress and the American people about his involvement. He is a crook and a liar and a traitor to this country. He violated his oath of office and his top secret security clearance. He should be removed from his position, banned from public office for life and prosecuted as a traitor and a war criminal for his involvement in the lies and manipulations that were used to get this country to go to war. This administration is the filthiest, most corrupt, arrogant, misguided bunch of theocratic war mongers we've seen in 100 years. Rove needs to go, then Cheny, Rumsfeld, W, the whole lot. They all should be removed from office and brought up on charges for repeatedly placing the best interests of themselves and their political cronies ahead of the good of the country. Can I hear an Amen?

I think I'm getting pretty good at this

Last weekend was dope. I picked up a ticket to see John Doe and Lucinda Williams at the new Summer Nights venue, South Lake Union. I prefer this venue to the pier, personally. John Doe was awesome. He alternated between acoustic and electric guitar, doing songs off his solo albums and reaching back for an X tune or two. He did a Dave Alvin song called "Fourth of July," and it brought tears to my eyes as I sang along. Here are the lyrics:
"She gives me her cheek when I want her lips, but I don't have the strength to fight it. On the lost side of town, in a dark apartment, we gave up trying so long ago..."
Anyway, John Doe is the shit, and I can't wait to get his new album, which is getting rave reviews.

Lucinda looked and sounded great. She looked like she was having a genuinely good time. She made a comment at one point about how much she was touched by the crowd's reaction to her songs. Good for Seattle. She said she had written 23 new songs, and she tried a few of them out. My favorite two were in true Lucinda Williams form, one a lament about a lover who couldn't stay out of jail and the other a rail about a boastful man who can't get her motor running. If I didn't know better, I'd say she was sober, but it sure hasn't diminished her muse.

I recorded a Michael Clark song called "Los Alamos Blues" on Saturday. Dylan Fant, owner of 1Shot Studio recorded it for free as a promotion for the studio. We laid down a guitar track, then lead vocal, then a harmony track and finally a short harmonica solo. I was mixed, mastered and out the door in three hours, and I didn't feel rushed. The young man knows what he is doing, and I am thrilled with the finished product. Now I just need to put this little solo project together, while I am still "among the quick."

I have a little gig at the Celtic Bayou, a cajun/irish place, which is pretty funny, cause I'm half cajun and half irish. Nancy and I are going to go have dinner (anyone care for Shepard's Jambalaya?) and then I play a 30 minute set at 11:00.
I'm not sure if it's the confidence I gained while taking the EMP class, 25 years of experience catching up on me, the fact that I am playing pretty much constantly or just "clean living," but I am feeling like I can pretty much shred through anything I play right now. Whatever it is, it doesn't suck.

Meanwhile, across the world, our young men and women keep dying for a lie and a ruse. Is anybody else out there getting pissed?

Thank you Ms. Auer for being the first person to comment on this blog. I'm glad your benefit for the school went well.

If others are reading this, send me a comment, ok? I won't bite.

Jon Auer and Me

Jon Auer and Me
Posted by: podman.

This is a picture of the CD release party at the Science Fiction Museum at the
Experience Music Project, May 25, 2005. Yes, I was pretty excited to have a musical idol sing and play guitar with me on one of MY songs. He produced my song on the ESP album and laid down one of the sweetest vocal harmonies in history. If you are a song-writer and you want to boost your skills, take the EMP-UW songwriting certificate program. It made a believer out of me.

Spoon rocketh my world

Nancy and I caught the Spoon show at the Showbox on Saturday night. Britt Daniels and crew came to play. The sound was flawless, and the songs carried the night, no need for a lot of head bobbing or stage theatrics. The crowd was mesmorized by the powerful lyrics, great musician-ship, infectious grooves and Austin laid back charm. Buy any spoon album you can find, put your headphones on, turn it up and smile.