Fourth grade poems, some more

It's been awhile since the last selection from my fourth grade book of Poems for Everything. Fear not, the wait is over! Here we have:

A Special Birthday

Wonderful state
Is 142 years old
State no. 30
Called the Badger State
On Wisconsin is our song
Nicolet was the first Frenchman
Super land
Inland lakes
Nothing can compare

I'm not really sure what was so special about the 142nd birthday of Wisconsin. But hey. Inland lakes! Can you feel the excitement? "Super land" was a total copout, though. I couldn't think of anything more state-specific that started with S? What about, for example, "sweet-ass crancheddar"? I should write another one of these.

I can feel it

The busy season is about to start. I have a ton of things coming up at work, social stuff to plan, there's this little holiday happening in a month ... I just need to take a deep breath and not panic. Easy, right? Sure.

Suuuure.

This past Friday and Saturday I saw Wilco at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. The shows were a far cry from the Barrymore, though fun in a different way. I took my mom to Friday's show - it was her first Wilco concert, and her first concert of any kind since she and my dad saw Paul McCartney at County Stadium in 1993. She really had a good time, which made me happy. The Aud is about as mom-friendly as you can get, and we were even in a row with extra leg room. Califone opened Saturday's show, and were excellent. They began with my favorite song - "Horoscopic Amputation Honey". Glenn joined them for "Michigan Girls" and "Pink & Sour". Actually, he also joined Califone the first time I saw them, in autumn of 2003. Bobb Bruno performing before Wilco's set each night was an unexpected bonus. I think the last time I saw him was in La Jolla, with the Polar Goldie Cats. In Chicago he traded the cat-eared hoodie for his bunny suit. Over the course of both nights, Wilco chose a good selection of different songs. No huge shockers (though they did debut yet another new song on Saturday night) but a nice mix. I haven't been listening to any non-album songs aside from hearing them live (even recordings of them from shows I attended are taboo) and I can't tell you how cool it is to have my only associations for a new song be based on seeing it performed right in front of me.

I have to be honest, though - I try not to be too bad of a venue snob, because as my experiences with U2 have proven to me, one can see a fantastic show pretty much anywhere. But. For example. On Saturday night my seat was on the aisle, in Row N of the orchestra. Technically, it had a really nice view of the stage - until the crowd stood up. I was able to see if I leaned over far enough, so that was okay. But from that spot I also had a good view of the whole first tier of the orchestra. Which meant that I was intermittently distracted by people streaming past me back and forth from their seats, to use the bathroom or visit friends or buy beer or Chex mix or candy bars. Especially during the brand new song, there was a steady stream of people heading to the lobby, and most of the rest of my section sat down. It was kind of like ... do you realize there's actually a band onstage, and they can see you? Don't get me wrong - people pay for their tickets, and have every right to come and go as they please during the concert. And it's stupid to let the behavior of others dictate how much you enjoy something yourself. But while weaving in and out trying to see between the heads and shoulders in front of me, as people brushed past in the aisle, I couldn't help thinking - there's no way this can hold a candle to the intimacy and excitement of a good GA show, acoustics be damned. This isn't exactly a revelation, but the point was driven home to me anew.

I know GA shows can be loud, and if you're not up front there are plenty of chances for people to bump into you and block your view. But the difference is that if you want to be, you can be up front. And even if you're not, your position in the crowd will generally match your level of investment in and caring about the show. That's the beauty of GA. Anyhow, the Aud experience is what it is. Wilco plays a great show wherever they are. The Auditorium is a beautiful place, full of history, and I obviously am willing to pay for tickets to see shows there, time and again. But in terms of concert venues, I know where my heart is.

Edited to add crazy shot of glowing bunny onstage:

The Thanksgiving I get

Well, on Thanksgiving Eve I saw something I never thought I'd see - Wilco playing the Barrymore. They used to play the Barrymore, years ago, but had been in larger Madison venues for at least the past five years. But thanks to the timing of the show, or some magic post-birthday enchantment, they played the Barrymore last night. Not surprisingly, I was there. So were many of my Madison friends, as well as out-of-town guests U, Dick, Paul, and special late edition Evonne. I suppose Paul was also a surprise late edition, but somehow, not that shocking.

We lucked out with the weather (the Californians will just need to take my word for it) - it was sunny and 54 degrees. In late November! Evonne got to explore the coffee shops (and bacon) of Willy Street and Atwood Ave., Uyen got some quality work time in on State Street, Dick had a diner Reuben, and Paul - in an unprecedented event - failed to check out the nearby record store. Granted, it was open for two hours and fifteen minutes on Wednesday.

The show was quite good, but the whole thing seemed a little weird to me. I think because, you know, I was at the Barrymore seeing Wilco. The stage is low, there was no barrier, the ceiling stars were twinkling merrily. We were just so close. The Detholz! opened the show, and even though I just saw them in Sooz and Sam's basement a couple of months ago, I had forgotten how much I enjoy them - the keyboardist in particular. All of the Mike Jorgensen mentions were pretty funny.

Wilco played a lot of new songs - six of them - including "Shake it Off" for the very first time. The whole show had a pretty informal feel, which was nice. The Barrymore crowd is usually pretty mellow, and this was (mostly) no exception. John and his wife are brand new parents of a baby girl, which was mentioned throughout the night (including a really sweet dedication by Jeff of "What Light"). Jeff chalked some rustiness up to the fact that they were up all night boiling water and getting towels. People were throwing flowers onstage, too - one bouquet clearly meant for John, and then later a lone rose skidded to a stop near Nels before the encore began. As he picked it up, a decidedly masculine voice from behind me yelled, "I LOVE YOU NELS!" Awesome. I caught a stray flower that Jeff picked up from the stage and tossed out after the show, and only later did it occur me that it was a pink carnation. Groan.

After the show we headed to The Weary Traveler (appropriate!) for some late night beer, sustenance, and acoustic guitar entertainment before U had to go back to the bus and the rest of us crashed at my apartment. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Let's have a ball

I had a great birthday weekend. Friday U joined me, piloting The Boat. We both managed to get some work done (her way more than me) and also Ate-a-Pita. Then Maudie and Trish arrived (yay!) and eventually we headed to Largo for my Jon Brion birthday show. We had enough people to fill both of our tables for four. I looked over the new menu items, but I'm still all about the Largo salad. Ditching an old standard dinner choice at Largo can be fraught with peril.

Jill Sobule opened for Jon, accompanied on most of her songs by Greg Leisz on pedal steel. It was my first time seeing either of them, and I wouldn't mind doing so again. Jon came on around the usual time - freshly back from England, according to Flanagan - and proceeded to play for about three hours without a break between sets. Happy birthday to me, indeed. U is, of course, the JB setlist queen, but I can mention some random highlights. Very early in the set, Jon gave us a little crash course and demonstration of all of his pedals and what they do, which I loved. I'm astoundingly clueless when it comes to gear, and Jon's nice, succinct summations of each pedal's function ("This one takes a sound this big and adds something this big down here") were very informative.

The first half of the set was, I believe, pretty much Jon's own stuff. I particularly adored the harmonica and toy piano (celeste?) version of "Knock Yourself Out". Then for the second half, Greg Leisz came back out on pedal steel, and Benmont Tench was called out to play piano. I was so happy to see Benmont. Favorite Benmont moments of the night: his solo during "I Don't Hurt Anymore"? Maybe? I can't remember now for sure, but I do know that I had a stupid grin on my face the whole time. Also, the part during another song (damn, I'm bad at this) when he started throwing some little celeste accents in along with his standard piano work. In the covers department, there was a lovely rendition of "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue", and a healthy dose of Beatles covers, including a sort of guitar riff medley by Jon. I also thoroughly enjoyed "Gigantic".

After the show, as we were leaving the club, we noticed a commotion a few doors down that was preventing us from walking to our car. "Hey, that ho-bag in pink. That's Paris Hilton," U said with a touch of horror. The ho-bag in pink stalked into a club, and we were able to pass.

Saturday's weather was absolutely gorgeous. We brunched at Hugo's, and then headed to the Getty Center. I thought the Getty was great: awesome views, impressive architecture, beautiful gardens, interesting water features, and of course, art. For free. I had no idea what special exhibitions were going on until we arrived, but one turned out to be paintings of Caspar David Friedrich and Gerhard Richter. Gerhard Richter is one of my favorite painters, so I was extremely pleased. There were also some excellent photography exhibitions. After an hour or two of art, we grabbed some drinks and spent a long time soaking up the perfect weather on a grassy slope overlooking the gardens. Children tossed paper airplanes and had rolling contests down the hill. I chose not to dwell on the fact that I'd be back in the Wisconsin winter the next day.

Saturday night, after some Persian/Irish ice cream, we saw ASSSSCAT at the UCB Theatre. Jello Biafra was the guest monologist, and he was fairly entertaining, if also fairly self-important. The improv was very funny. (I'm limbering up for the Second City marathon next month.) We finished up the night at an excellent cafe in Los Feliz, on Evonne's recommendation. Trish's friends joined us, and we hung around until closing time.

And then on Sunday I came back here and it was 40 degrees. The end!

I have cheated Father Time!

By flying to California on the day before my birthday, I have managed to remain 26 for two extra hours! Take that ... getting older! Yes, this will be my second birthday spent in sunny California. Specifically, sunny Los Angeles. With Jon Brion playing his only November Largo show on one's birthday, is there really a choice? No, there is not. I see friends, Persian ice cream, and a Largo salad in my future. And who knows what else!

The Decemberists Players Present

Ah, there's always plenty of audience participation at a Decemberists show. Saturday night in Chicago was no exception to the rule. (The show was at the Riv ... it occurred to me that I've seen the Decemberists five times now, and Colin twice - all in Madison or Chicago - and not once at the same venue.)

I was feeling seriously lazy after my late Friday, and I briefly entertained the notion of passing this one up. But in the end I just couldn't do it. I've found in general that as tempting as it may be, the "doing nothing" option is never the choice I'm happiest with afterward. Also, I already had a ticket, I love The Crane Wife, and I've never had a bad time at a Decemberists show. So down I went.

Alasdair Roberts, along with drummer and bassist, opened the show. He was ... Scottish. The music was fine; your typical traditional Celtic-type fare. His accent was the best part of the performance for me.

The Decemberists took the stage around 8:30 and launched immediately into "Leslie Anne Levine". Yay! They actually played only six of the ten songs on The Crane Wife (or 9 of 13, depending on how you look at it) but they were the songs I most wanted to hear, so that was fine with me. They played "The Crane Wife 1 & 2", and "3" in order, apparently for the first time.

Besides the new songs and the opener, we also heard "We Both Go Down Together", "The Engine Driver" (swoon), "July! July!" into "16 Military Wives" (fun!), and an encore of "Red Right Ankle" and "A Cautionary Song". Oh, and a snippet of, um, "Clampdown", after Colin misheard someone's request for them to "play 'The Final Countdown'".

Aside from the usual singalongs, the first major crowd participation bit came when Colin decided to divide the theater down the middle and pit the right side against the left side in singing the end of "16 Military Wives". I happened to be on the front line - lucky me! In addition to singing we were encouraged to leer, growl, and shake our fists at the opposition.

The second crowd participation bit came when, during "A Cautionary Song", half of the Decemberists made their way to the middle of the floor, had the crowd form a circle, and Colin announced that "The Decemberists Players" were going to reenact for us the battle at the end of Lord of the Rings. Having never seen the battle at the end of Lord of the Rings, I can't remember specifics, but I know that there were elves and Orcs and Chris Funk was a big bird. I could have done with one more song to close the show, with the whole band onstage, but oh well.

No mandolin was destroyed at the end of this performance, unlike last time I saw the band, but it was still a fun night.


The band


Colin


John Moen during the LOTR reenactment

A Tribute to Sun Ra, or November Rain

Wednesday we had gorgeous weather. Sunny, almost 70. And then Friday, when I left my office around 4:00 to get something to drink, I was quite startled to see that snow was whipping past the windows in thick clumps, and everything outside was covered. This was particularly great, because I was supposed to drive down to the Hideout for Thurston Moore's Sun Ra tribute that night. It took me about an hour an a half to get from work to I-90, and I almost didn't do it ... but the weather forecast for Chicago promised only rain, at least until after midnight. And a little past Janesville, as advertised, the annoying snow turned to less annoying rain. Whew. So...

The Sun Ra tribute at the Hideout was really cool. It was the kickoff to a weekend symposium on Sun Ra, and featured a couple of performances. First up was My Barbarian, a ... band ... from L.A. that was hilarious and pretty entertaining. They're heavy on the performance art. I looked them up just now and found the following: "If Gwar was a children's show", and (from the L.A. Times) "retarded/brilliant". That about sums it up!

After some between-set Sun Ra tunes, the main event took the stage. Thurston Moore on guitar, Jim Baker on keys, and the awesome Avreeayl Ra on drums. My background and knowledge of music-making can't do it justice with a good description, but I enjoyed it very much. They ended with a dreamier, slower piece after a frenzied beginning. And I'm hoping Kris has some good pictures.

When the show was finished, Tim gave one last TimSpeech. I said hello to Señor Cline on my way to the bar, and upon my return to the music room I noticed that two cops were making their way in. But no worries - they were just Thurston fans. Ha. I love the Hideout. Anyway, I drove back to K-town in the rain (no snow!) and that was Friday.

Edit: What do you know, Kris does have some good pictures!

Eight

That is the number of spiders we found in the apartment between last night and this morning. Five in the living room, one in the tub, and one in each bedroom. What the heck? Whatever; they just need to not be here. I swept the ceilings and upper corners and things with a broom, but all I probably accomplished there was displacing all the remaining spiders, who will now be roaming boldly around the place looking for new homes. Ew. Ewwwww.

So it's election day! I hope every single person who is reading this (and who lives in the USA) has voted, or will be voting. I cannot wait. If Wisconsin can manage to become the first state to defeat a same-sex marriage ban, I will be so incredibly proud of us. I don't have a lot of hope, but it could happen.

The Poetry of Gregg Typing, 1958: Pt. 5

Oh, I have been waiting a long time for this one.



N O V E M B E R A G A I N
by Mike Trent

When the dark sky is scowling
With a snow-clouded face,
And the wild wind is howling
In a leaf-chasing race;
And the frost is out prowling
And there's mist in the glen,
There is no use in growling--
It's November again!



Past editions:
Gregg Typing, Second Edition: 1958
The Poetry of Gregg Typing, 1958: Pt. 1
The Poetry of Gregg Typing, 1958: Pt. 2
The Poetry of Gregg Typing, 1958: Pt. 3
The Poetry of Gregg Typing, 1958: Good Friday Edition