UPDATE

I'm a blog bum. Sorry for not updating sooner. At the gentle prodding of a couple of friends:

The interview was positive, but no contract yet.

My brother Steve is now a happily married man. Congratulations, Steve & Kari! I was honored to be a part of the ceremony. The best part: I didn't have to sing. That's one of the few weddings I've attended/been in where I didn't have a microphone in my hand. The bad news: I ate so much cake and other goodies while in LA that I gained 6 pounds. My brother is a bad influence on my eating habits, and I love every minute of it. But now I'll have to work that extra weight off so I'll be able to fit in my work clothes.

We hauled the ferns for the ceremony in my Blazer and there are a million little brown fern leaves in there. I wonder how long it will be before I work up the initiative to vacuum. Why do little things like that take me forever to accomplish... When I first got the Blazer I cleaned it twice a week, but that wore off in a couple of months.

My nephew and I are going to the Rush concert in Dallas in August. Just bought my tickets online. With the price of the Ticketmaster fee, in addition to the tickets, I got a year's subscription to Entertainment Weekly and 11 free songs on iTunes. Not a bad deal.

I'm debating about Taylor Hicks August 3rd and 4th. I don't think I want to go to the Coliseum in Biloxi (I wonder if it smells any better now....) I'd rather hear him at House of Blues, but I'd have to get somebody to go with me - I'm not dumb enough to go to New Orleans after dark solo.

Speaking of shows, I'm getting a group together for Pirates on Saturday. I hope it lives up to the previews. Even if it bombs (doubtful), it will be good to spend the evening with old friends. The sneak preview is tonight, so if you see it tonight or tomorrow, don't tell me about it until Sunday...

INTERVIEW

My School Desk, originally uploaded by Xochiquetzal-Sil:).

I have an interview this Thursday at 10 with an elementary principal. I'll keep you posted...

Mayday! Mayday!

Maypole
Originally uploaded by sfPhotocraft.

I can just picture my grandmother running around in a white linen gown, laughing with the other kids and bringing flowers to her mamma. Back when my Grannie was a little girl, she and and the rest of the folks in Burgess, Mississippi had a big party each May 1st. They hung baskets of May Day flowers and wove floral garlands. Otherwise proper Methodist and Baptist families even danced like pagans around a Maypole!

My own experiences with this holiday are a lot less festive. I've never actually celebrated May Day. The closest I ever came was making a construction paper basket of flowers in grade school. The teacher had run them off on the mimeograph machine. My classmates and I colored them with crayons, cut them out with our dull safety scissors, and glued the tabs together with our smelly non-toxic paste. I remember being annoyed that I got light blue construction paper instead of yellow. Some party!

There's no Maypole downtown today. Nobody is passing out baskets of flowers. I wonder why we don't celebrate May Day anymore. I guess the families living in MS around 100 or so years ago were closer to their European roots and their "old country" customs. Or maybe Mayday is dying out because it's not commercial enough to catch Madison Ave's eye.

SIGNED UP FOR BLINGO YET?

SEE YOU IN THE FUNNY PAPERS

Dilbert rules!, originally uploaded by indsight.

My sorry local paper runs Dilbert only on Sundays. To get my daily fix, I visit Yahoo. Its virtual Funny Papers are free! All your favorite comics are there. Which strip will you read first?

MAKE YOUR OWN COMIC AT COMEEKO.COM

Originally uploaded by Tinker*Tailor.

New online toy ALERT: You can easily make your own photo COMIC STRIP at Comeeko.com. Once you've tried it, good luck getting anything else accomplished for the rest of the day: Addictive fun at it's best.

Don't feel like making a comic? You can view and rate ones that others have posted at the site.

To read my 1st comic, just left click it and follow the link to flickr. And check out the new flickr group I formed for Comeeko fans.

Speaking of addictive. I've lost track of how many flickr groups I formed in the last year. There's a group for just about anything already, but occasionally I post a photo that needs a group and find I'll just have to create the group myself. Some still only have a handful of members, but others have really taken off. Either way, it's one of my favorite things about flickr.

Now if I can just get a nickel for everyone who visits my photo stream...

TIME FOR A HAIRCUT?

Time for a haircut?, originally uploaded by Tinker*Tailor.

What's your verdict?

BOWLCUT

5 years old, originally uploaded by Tinker*Tailor.

I'm digging out old photos again and posting them to flickr. I ran across this one. Looks like Mom used an actual bowl for this haircut.

GOOD CLOTHES

J.C. Leyendecker Kuppenheimer Ad - Diver, originally uploaded by Mamluke.

Ties in with that last entry. In Heaven, I'll be able to draw like Leyendecker. He's awesome!

SOMEWHERE IN TIME

tailor, originally uploaded by D'Arcy.

My parents and I live examples of the generation gap on a daily basis. Sometimes the ensuing tension proves frustrating, but most of these incidents are just harmless reminders that times change. For example, I overheard Daddy talking about Mars Robert the other day. That's ancient-speak for (Master) Robert E. Lee for all you non-Southerners. He's always using archaic colloquialisms. And then today he asked me if it's time to take his shirt to the tailor to have the collar turned. He was dead serious. Do tailors even turn collars anymore? I told him he should just throw it away.

There was a time when my family had a lot of their clothing tailor-made. They picked out the pattern, fabrics, buttons, and trim. Why don't we do that anymore? When we crossed over to wearing retail, I was too little to understand why we started buying off the rack. I doubt it was economics, as Dad's income increased through the years. Maybe society as a whole changed and we blindly followed.

Over Easter weekend, I visited Samantha & Steven - married friends of mine. On the way to the seafood place for dinner on Saturday, we passed a Seamstress Shop and I marveled that she could stay in business in this day and age. They testified that her workmanship was excellent and that she always stayed busy. I have a few dress shirts with overly long sleeves that might just need to pay her a visit. I guess having something altered is the next best thing to wearing custom-made, and I like the idea of supporting a local entrepreneur rather than buying from a big-name chain. Maybe I should bring Dad's shirt and ask her to turn the collar.

APPLICATION

My Classroom, I, originally uploaded by Robert Pollack.

Looks like I'll be a classroom teacher again soon. (I hope.) I turned in my application last week and confirmed it with the District Office today. Now it's up to one of the principals (and God) whether or not I'll be working in that district next year. I'll keep you posted.

HAPPY EASTER!

Happy Easter!, originally uploaded by Patrick Q.

Don't eat too much candy :0)

ADMIT ONE

Audio Adrenaline, originally uploaded by echobase_2000.

The year I turned sixteen, Audio Adrenaline started singing songs about Jesus. Somewhere along the line, I stopped listening to them, but last night, I ended up at their show in Laurel, MS. It's their farewell tour, so they sang a lot of old songs. It made me feel melancholy. I sat way in the back, never danced, and barely even clapped. I just listened and sometimes sang along. And I remembered.

Audio Adrenaline was never my top choice in music. But they did find their way into the mix. I suppose I started listening to them because all my friends did. But I got burned out on them. I remember throwing Bloom and Underdog in the trash.

Hearing them again and watching them tell their fans goodbye allowed me to revisit and release a lot of old memories. I can't exactly say I had fun at the concert, but I was glad to join in on the goodbyes.

SIGN THE INTERNET RADIO PETITION

Zenith - Long Distance, originally uploaded by InfraKen.

I got an email alert from Free Press this morning asking for my support in protecting indie internet radio. I signed the petition and now I'm passing Silver's letter on to you. Please consider clicking the link and adding your support:

Online music is in danger. A recent ruling by an obscure regulatory board threatens to put independent and public radio on the Internet out of business.

The "Copyright Royalty Board" is dramatically increasing the royalties "webcasters" must pay every time they stream a song online. Public Internet radio like NPR is especially at risk.

The rules could shut down nonprofit and smaller commercial Internet radio outlets and force larger webcasters to play the same cookie-cutter music as Clear Channel. So much for new online alternatives.

Rescue internet radio. Sign the petition.

This is not just another petition. The Copyright Royalty Board isn't used to hearing from the public, so your action can really make a difference. And we need to stop them before the new charges go into effect.

Artists must be compensated for their work. But the new regulations don't even differentiate between public outlets, small upstarts, and the largest commercial companies. The proposed increase would silence many outlets that play independent artists and musical genres you can't find anymore on the radio dial.

As soon as smaller webcasters start to attract a sizable audience, the royalty costs would be astronomical -- and likely fatal. And nonprofit stations like NPR should not be forced to pay so much money that they actually fear an increase in their listeners.

Industry-wide consolidation has destroyed musical diversity and shut out independent and local artists on broadcast radio. We can't let the same thing happen on the Internet.

The Copyright Royalty Board -- or if necessary, Congress -- needs to fix the rules so that artist and musicians thrive alongside a new generation of Internet radio webcasters. Send them a message by adding your name to our petition.

Tell your friends.

Our goal is collect 50,000 signatures by Monday. Help us get there by telling all your friends that now is the time to take action.

Thanks for all you do,

Josh Silver
Executive Director
Free Press

COLLIERS IN JAPAN...NOW ONLINE

colliers, originally uploaded by Patrick Q.

Alice & Sean Collier are friends of mine who live in Japan. They are sharing their experiences on their new homepage. Thought you might want to check it out.

NEW MUSIC

from behind, originally uploaded by joanna eleanor.

I got an email from emusic yesterday offering 50 free downloads. I was skeptical that I'd even be able to find 50 worth the trouble, since they don't have the same mainstream talent as iTunes. I found out that they do have lots of idie musicians and classic hits - not worth a subscription, but nice for an afternoon perusal.

I was pleasantly surprised when my search for new Christian music turned up Isa Couvertier, pictured above. I'd never heard of her, but her pure lyrics and catchy melodies make her stand out from the pack. She's the newest addition to my Christian singer/songwriter playlist. Finally, there's someone to keep Sara Groves and Matt Kearney company.

I also downloaded some songs from Enter the Worship Circle. I love that series, but every time I buy the CD's I end up giving them away. And I stumbled across the song, "Better than Life" by Julie Meyer - definitely worth the download.

Totally unrelated: The road trip was a blast. Maybe I will move to Oxford someday, or at least Pontotoc... It would be nice to live in a town where generations of my family were born and raised. Walking those streets, I loved feeling a stronger sense of history and connection with the past.

GOOGLE

offee, originally uploaded by Pose.

Google Maps still amazes me. Ryan and I are meeting at Starbucks in Hattiesburg in the morning. Since he's from out of town, I wanted to email simple directions. Two clicks later, and the job was done. They may not have all their ducks in a row, but I have to give them a gold star in geography!

ENTERPRISE HIGH

Mighty storm, originally uploaded by Newsblogpicture.

My thoughts and prayers are with the survivors of this week's storms. Seeing the photos and hearing the news reports struck a nerve, reminding me of Katrina. I was impressed that the Mayor in AL asked everyone watching the news to pray for the town. I thought I'd pass that request on here.

ETSY IDEA #1 & ROADTRIP MANIA

Glitterboard Mansion for Kelsey and Neilio., originally uploaded by icklebird.

I think I've found my first craft idea for etsy. I'm making a note of it here so I remember. The patterns for these retro houses are from the book Vintage Christmas Crafts by Sara Toliver. ISBN #1-4027-2791-7. Su has some construction tips for them on her blog.

Update on the roadtrip: Ryan just called and asked me to drive up to Oxford this weekend to see the University Theatre Department's production of Noises Off. Cool.

FLAMES ON THE SIDES OF MY FACE

Flames on the side of my face..., originally uploaded by Hilly_Blue.

Let me begin by stating the obvious: Madeline Kahn was a comic genius. This screen capture is from my all-time favorite movie scene. Do you recognize the movie?

It's one of those films I used to watch with friends - reciting the lines and laughing the whole time. It's right up there with Monty Python's Holy Grail.

Speaking of having a good time with friends, I'm just about dying to have an old skool road trip. If not to go camping, then at least a day trip to a concert. Heck, I'd settle for driving to Mobile for dinner at a decent restaurant. I just emailed a friend to see if we can put something together.

I finally got around to tweaking my preferences for last.fm; one of the features is a local concert calendar. Check out the three choices it highlighted for next month:

Taylor Hicks (!) @ House of Blues, NO on Wed. the 14th.

Paolo Nutini (Irish-Italian guy who sings with an Irish accent) @ Soul Kitchen, Mobile on Thursday, March 15th.

Shane & Shane (Christian singer/songwriting pair) @ St. Timothy UMC in Mandeville on Sunday, March 18th.

I wish I could attend all three. If I manage to go to one, it will be my first time to do anything majorly social since I returned home from overseas. I don't think I've even been to a movie. (What's playing, anyway?) My big day each week is grocery shopping. When did I start acting like a senior citizen?!