Category: 4 – Entertainment

Should be obvious.

Clare and I Go To Fredericksburg, VA, for Our Anniversary Weekend Away

Posted on by chappyshi

Our second anniversary was September 26, 2022.  We had made arrangements to stay at the Richard Johnston Inn in historic Fredericksburg, VA, on Saturday, the 24th, roam about town, eat well, and attend LifePoint Church Fredericksburg before heading home on Sunday.  As it was, after having made our reservations, we found that a couple whose wedding earlier in the summer we helped out with and are now mentoring, go figure, was scheduled to get baptized on the 25th.  After conferring, Clare and I decided to see if we could push our reservation at the Inn back to the following weekend and were successful at doing so.  So we were able to attend the baptism and join Ernest and Patricia along with an old friend of Ernest’s and her family for a long lunch after church.  It was a great day!

Anyhow, we headed off to Fredericksburg the next Saturday, 1 October, in the midmorning.  We made good time getting to Fredericksburg including finding a nice back way into the historic district and our lodging.  We were very early for check-in but were graciously allowed to park the car in the Inn’s parking lot as needed.  As we were anxious for a cup of coffee, we parked the car and headed off on foot, in the on-and-off rain, for Agora Downtown Coffee Shop, a couple of blocks down Caroline Street from the Inn.  They were doing a pretty brisk business but we were able to get served in a timely and pleasant manner and  get the last available table to sit at.

There we plotted out our next move which was to hit the Visitors Center and get some info on good places to visit, mostly indoors out of the rain.  The plan turned out to be to hit Chatham Manor first, have lunch at Amy’s Cafe next, and then go to the Gari Melchers Home and Studio, also called the Belmont House for reasons as yet unknown to us.  All these stops were on the east side of the Rappahannock River from historic Frederick.  We wouldn’t have known anything of that side of town had we not somehow managed to get routed into town that way from i95.  It worked out quite well as we bypassed lots of one-way streets and stoplights and got the parking at the Inn with ease.

Chatham Manor is now a National Park Service property having been willed to it on the passing of the last and longest owner, JohnLee Pratt.  It was built in 1771 and occupied almost ever since.  Before the Civil War, the plantation was “home” to nearly 100 slaves.  During the Civil War, it was home to thousands of Union troops and a field hospital.  The house and the gardens are beautiful.  The house unfortunately was missing what looked like wonderful porticos on the riverside.  From the house, the view looked out over the Rappahannock to historic Fredericksburg.  The overlook served as a good vantage point for Union cannons, two of which are still pointed across the river.

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From Chatham Manor, we headed back north up the road along the river to the historic town of Falmouth where we had lunch at Amy’s Cafe.  They were doing a pretty good business of what looked like a combination of locals and tourists including people in town for Mary Washington College’s parents’ weekend.  There was some covered outdoor seating but given the cool weather and rain we opted to eat inside.  Clare enjoyed a cup of chili and half turkey sandwich while I relished a turkey wrap with chipotle mayonnaise and some homemade freshly cooked potato chips.  The food was so good we went back on Sunday for bowls of chili and more potato chips before driving home!

Our next stop after lunch was at Gari Melchers Home and Studio.  Gari was an American artist, mostly a painter, with a career based on a variety of different styles.  He was said to be not stuck in one particular style as many artists can be.  His studio on the property consisted of three good-sized rooms and one smaller room with paintings on display, many of them his.  The house was gorgeous.  We had a great docent who showed us around both the house and the studio.  She was very friendly, easygoing, and informative.  The grounds themselves were very nice but as it was early fall, there wasn’t a flood of colors like we might have seen there in the springtime.

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We got the call while we were touring the studio that our room, the Peyton Mae, was ready so when we left the site we headed to the Inn to get settled in….no pun intended.  Our room, which we forgot to take a picture of, was comfortable with a decent view out the back of the Inn over the garden sitting area and off to a park on the other side of the street next to the river.  Unfortunately, that view of the park and river was partially blocked by new condo construction.  It’s a shame we can’t just leave a good thing alone.  The room did not have an en suite bathroom but did have a private one for us right across the hall.  There were very nice bathrobes available to keep us covered up as we traveled the 10 feet back and forth from bedroom to bath.

After relaxing a bit and pondering our dinner options, we decided to skip Fahrenheit 132 Restaurant and Cocktail Bar and consider both Rebellion Bourbon Bar and Kitchen and Billikens Smokehouse At the Chimneys.  All came well recommended.  Fahrenheit was a good 8 or 9 blocks away from us while the other two were within two blocks.  We leaned toward Rebellion but it looked pretty busy and mostly had handheld entrees which weren’t what we were looking for at the time.  So we headed back toward Billiken’s which was down the street a block past the Inn but got distracted by Sammy T’s, where we had lunch last year, and ended up stopping there.  I had a very nice Mediterranean shrimp couscous dish with sundried tomatoes, olives, etc., while Clare had a vegetarian dish based on Summer squash that was unfortunately pan-fried or baked a bit dark as to be nearly burnt on one side of the cubes.  She ate most of it nonetheless.  It did taste good!

Somewhere, sometime in our ventures, we ended up at Riverby Books.  As always, we could spend hours in bookstores.  This one, which we have visited before, has one of the greater selections, on three floors, of used books that I have seen.  Contrary to my usual book purchases, I got three relaxing mystery adventure type easy reading books for those times when I just need to mellow down easy and not strain my brain on non-fiction political, cultural, current events, and/or religious subjects.  I found at least one John Le Carre book that I hadn’t yet read.  I didn’t even realize he had any new books out since the last one I read which I believe was “The Constant Gardener.”  I see looking online that there are many more out there that I have missed.  My fascination with John Le Carre dates back to probably the early 70’s when I read “The Spy Who Came In From the Cold” and “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”

To cap the evening off, we went for ice cream a few doors down from Sammy T’s at Abner B’s (Abner Butterfield Ice Cream Company) where I had a delicious coffee ice cream w/ chocolate chunks in it and Clare had a tasty mint chocolate chip if I remember correctly.  By the time we got back to our room, it was getting late so we settled in to chat, review our day, and read a bit before calling it a night.

I slept fitfully.  Clare and I have problems sleeping sometimes on our queen-size bed so the full-size in the room made for a challenge.  First-world problems right?  I was up in the morning Sunday around 0700 so I got decent and went down to the common area to get us some coffee so we could wake up and do our prayers and devotionals in the quiet of our room before breakfast at 0900.  Breakfast was fresh fruit, more coffee, with a hot from-the-kitchen frittata, toast, and hash browns. That made for a tasty, pleasant way to get the day started.  We had a good time talking with a couple from Ashville, NC, who were on a road trip and were in Fredericksburg for a family reunion.  There were fewer people sharing breakfast at the large table in the common area than last year during high covid!  The Inn was booked up but it was just the four of us at the table for breakfast.

Our plan was to go to the 1115 service at Lifepoint Church in Fredericksburg.  Since we had a bit of time before we had to check out and leave for church, we ventured out, again in a bit of rain, to Agora for a cup of good coffee.  I bought a pound of beans, a Peruvian Ethiopian blend to bring home with us.  We enjoyed our coffee at the shop before wandering back to the Inn to get in the car to head to church.

Lifepoint was good as usual.  The worship music was enriching and enlivening and the “At The Movies” series they had just started was good.  The movie for discussion was “The Pursuit of Happiness.”  The theme of the message, if I remember correctly, was that along the path of life and in pursuit of our goals we may run into many obstacles and difficulties but with faith in God and his plan for us, we can overcome.  At church, we ran into Jonathan who is the Next Steps Director.  We met him last year when we visited and he remembered us.  He’s a really great guy and a strong asset for the church especially in the position he is in, welcoming people and helping them find their place in the church.

Last but not least, I found in my pocket while we were worshiping the key to our room at the Inn.  When we got to the car after the service, I called the Inn to let them know we would be returning the key shortly.  Since we were back downtown and had been thinking again of coffee, we left the car in the Inn’s parking lot and walked back down to Agora for another cup of coffee.  It was a nice way to wrap up the weekend in Fredericksburg before we drove home.  The drive was mercifully easy and quick so we got home with plenty of the afternoon left to continue to relax, restore, and spend time together before we had to think about the work week ahead of us.

 

Why Is the Super Bowl Still Held On Sunday?

Posted on by chappyshi

Seems silly after all these years.  Here are some comments:

I am not spending a lot of time on this now.  I used DuckDuckGo and Google to search for “why is the super bowl always on Sunday.  The previous three links had better responses than I generally found.   ESPN and the NFL did not chime in.  Most response seem to think that since Sunday was NFL football day it was only natural that the Super Bowl should be held on Sunday also, no matter the consequences of the next day being a work day for many people.

Dalyan, Turkey, Day 2

Posted on by chappyshi

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Tuesday was a day to familiarize ourselves with Dalyan town. We had to find ATM’s and a store where we could get a decent price on sundry goods like water, beer, snacks, etc.  Uncle Cliff had to find the post office from which he could buy a phone card and then figure out how to use it.  That took a couple of days and attempts to contact his wife Ruth since the instructions on both the phones and cards were in Turkish only.  He eventually got through but had to leave messages for two days before he finally reached her on day 3.

After a fair amount of walking around town and a delicious lunch of Turkish pancakes, we walked back to the hotel to hit the pool, cool off, and freshen up.  After that it was nearly time for happy hour.  We have been doing that partly at the pool bar and partly behind our rooms enjoying some gin that that the folks brought in en route from Wales.  The hotel frowns on bringing in your own booze and food so we try to keep it low key and not party down from our own supply at the pool.  That is kind of a downer but what can you do?

We walked back into town for dinner at a place that had riverside seating and a view of the Lycian tombs carved into the mountain across the river.  The setting was great and the food very good as it has been for the whole trip thus far.  I have to admit that my legs are bothering me from being out of shape, nerve or hip damage, and water retention.  The last walk home of the day from Daylan is usually not too fun and still pretty warm.

Fortunately the AC works fine in the room I am sharing with Cliff.  He has the downstairs room with a double and I have a single upstairs.  It is nice to be able to retreat to the AC after a trip to town or sweatfest around the pool.  I have to admit to not spending much time in the room other than for sleeping.  The days have been busy and, the heat notwithstanding, it is nicer to be by the pool, the river, or the bar.  Fortunately, despite the time change (7 hours), I have slept pretty well.  I usually get a power four or five hours and then toss and turn a bit before getting up.

Istanbul, Turkey, Day 5

Posted on by chappyshi

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It is my last day in Istanbul.  I am leaving for Dalyan, Turkey, tomorrow for a week on the Aegean Sea with family.  I have greatly enjoyed Istanbul I am not sure that will miss it.  After 4.5 days of doing the tourist thing, I am ready for a break.  I remember asking my Uncle Cliff, who will be in Dalyan with us, whether he was interested in seeing Istanbul with me.  His response was that he was not much of a city person which I realize but it was worth asking.

Looking back I realized Cliff would have gone nuts in this city of 17 million natives and God knows how many tourists.  My hotel is at the heart of the tourist district.  All I have to do is walk 200 meters to insanity that lasts from about 0800 until 2000.  The fact that I have seen everything I wanted to see in four days and still have not been in a vehicle is a testament to the location but I am done.  I do not need to see another mosque for quite a while and I look forward to not having some many cool thing to take pictures of if that makes any sense.

I am still an overweight beer swilling slob but at least I got another good day of walking in today.  If ever I could use and enjoy a hot tub, now would be the time.  I think if I were flying home to D.C. today, I would have to be paraplegic so I could manage the flight without my legs driving me nuts. I walked from the hotel to the Mosque of Suleymaniye the Magnificent which was awesome but, as I said, I am starting to feel like a character in the “Red Mosque of Death.”  I am no longer minaready!

From the mosque, which was built on of the seven hills of the city, think Rome, I walked down to the Spice Market and across the street to the Galata Bridge, famous for being a hot fishing spot for locals and a so so place for seafood for tourists.  On the way, I came across yet another huge mosque, the New Mosque.  The fisherman do their thing from both sides on the top of the bridge and restaurants are located underneath with a break in the middle for boats to get through.  My intent was to cross the bridge and go up into Galata tower which was reputed to have the best view over all of the city.

The tower lived up to its reputation but I am lucky I lived walking up to it.  Thankfully there was an elevator that took you up nearly to the top.  There were the usual tourist traps near the top, a restaurant and a night club that no one was really using.  I can see where the club might have been cool, at night with a 360 degree view of the city, including the Golden Horn and Old Districts. I cannot imagine getting down the hill from there after a few drinks though.  Talk about rolling drunks….

Anyhow, after exiting the elevator, you go up two more stories on a spiral staircase…more on spiral staircases later.  The staircase is adequate for one person, one way but had to handle multiple people both ways including those individuals who thought for some dumb reason that they needed to take pictures of each other on the staircase.  Slowly we turn and all that.

The capper, pun intended since we were at the top of the tower, was the instruction to go around the outside viewing area passage way, which was about as wide as the average back street in the Old District, two feet.  The sign clearly said to go around to the right, clockwise. There was no clock wisedom for about half the crew.  As I worked my way around to the right, I battled the idiots that didn’t get the picture.  Oh, and speaking of pictures, did I mention that getting around the viewing area was made difficult not only because of the wrong way Randy’s but because of…wait for it…the people that had to take pictures of each other while on a narrow walkway 100 feet off the ground.

Before I forget, I have to mention that today seems to be the driest day I have had here with a wicked nice breeze blowing off the water.  I have been up on the rooftop terrace for about three hours and am just loving it, Laughing Gulls notwithstanding.

And so, after a lotta Galata, I headed back down from the tower and back across the bridge.  I stopped at a seafood restaurant for lunch which was good but expensive.  I ordered the grill swordfish with a salad.  That came with bread and spices and herb in oil to dip it in.  I only ate have the bread and half the salad but the swordfish came out grilled on a skewer with only five or six pieces on it.  At 55 TL with tip I thought that was pricey but it was recommended.  Once again, I wish I could have had a doggy bag.  I could have cut my meal expense by a third if I could have taken my leftovers with me.

After lunch, I generally followed the tram line back up to Hagia Sophia from where it was a short walk back to the hotel.  As usual, I washed up, read, and cooled off for awhile.  Since then I have been on the rooftop terrace writing and talking to Craig and Karen, the Aussies.  I wanted to work on photos but the brilliant sunshine made viewing the laptop screen difficult enough that doing so was nearly impossible.

I think it is time now to get some grub.  I might see about getting a small pizza so I can save half of it for breakfast tomorrow. Since I am heading off to the airport at 0500, I am not sure what my eating opportunities are going to be in the morning.

I ended up going to the Sultan Hostel Cafe where I had a couple of brews and ordered a the pizza.  I ate half of it and saved the rest for breakfast as planned.  While there there was a woman who I assumed was Turkish.  She looked very pregnant and apparently felt very pregnant.  One of the waiters at the place appeared to be the father of the child.  She was riding him unmercifully.

First she demanded candy and after he brought it to her, she chowed down on 2 or 3 chocolate bars and a bag of gummy worms. Then she ordered some salad that she just shoved into her gaping maw complaining about the food the whole time.  Meanwhile, the future father sat with her to eat a pizza out of which he got only about two slices.  It was pretty funny to watch his coworkers come over and steal slices when he wasn’t looking!

Last night was the Euro Cup soccer final featuring Spain vs. Italy..only a moderately huge rivalry.  They had three wide screens in the place and the manager was, in a very biased manner, giving out the best seats to his cronies.  Eventually he asked ne if I would move over join the pregnant monster at her table.  I was afraid but I agreed.  Come to find out the woman is from Swansee, Wales, and has been teaching preschool for five years in Istanbul.  She was not as far along in her pregnancy as I imagined.  She was at 6.5 months and preparing to head home to have the baby in Wales before she lost her National Health coverage.

She got all excited when told her we were going to Dalyan noting that she had been there a couple of times and really enjoyed it.  I bailed out of the eatery shortly before the soccer match.  It was really filling up w/ spectators and I had no interest in the match so I gave up my seat for someone that cared.  Oddly, I noted on the way back to the hotel that after one block there were hardly any lights on.  I stopped at my usual corner store to get some water where the proprietor told me that power was out all over the district.

That did not seem to be the case because lights were still on in some places. The desk clerk at my hotel told me that power outages are common enough that some places, including hotels were required to have generators.  Of course mine did not have one. Thankfully, as per my custom, I had a flash light with me.  I went in and packed up my bags then went out and chatted up the cabal of desk clerks in the area and the the Aussies, Craig and Karen.

I crashed at about 0030 which was stupid because I had to be up at 0430.  Thankfully it had been a fairly cool day with a strong wind so I opened up my balcony door which made for a comfortable, albeit short, sleep.  the off to Daylan.

On a final note for this entry, if I never see a another spiral staircase again in my life I won’t regret, after repeatedly climbing the spiral staircase up and down three flights between my room and the roof top terrace in my hotel, I am done with them.  They were narrrow and dark and since I was drinking beer on the roof I kept having to go down three flights to my room to use the bathroom.

Istanbul, Turkey, Day 4

Posted on by chappyshi

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Well, again I sit on my balcony at 0600. I hit the fart sac at about 0030 this morning and still woke up at about 0400. I shut off the AC and opened the door to the balcony since the temperature was 70 degrees or less.  Of course the gulls were raucously laughing like drunks at a Robin Williams show but by now I just block them out.  I managed to cheese out a another hour and a half of sleep before succumbing to the avian comedy show.

I spent some time last night on the rooftop terrace chatting up some of the other guests in the hotel.  It was the first time anyone hung out there in the evening other than myself.  I had intended to work on my photo collection, which continues to grow, but that was a wash.  Instead I learned a bit about Jason and his wife, whose name escapes me.  They are both living in Bahrain and stopped here in Istanbul en route Sweden where the wife is from.  Jason, who hails from near Whitefish, Montana, teaches ancient history but I am not sure what his wife does.  She’s been in Bahrain ever since her Dad, who is a tennis pro, moved there.

Craig, who needs to take a chill pill…talks incessantly, and his wife Karen are from Melbourne, Australia.  Craig is an HVAC tech but I am not sure what Karen does.  Her family emigrated to Australia from Holland in the early 1950’s.  They are on a crazy trip that took them from Australia to Holland, Ireland, here in Istanbul for eight days and then they are stopping in Dubai on their way home.  On another human interest note, while having a brew at the Sultan Hostel and Restaurant, one of the waiters saw me reading the Washington Post and asked me where I was from.  I said Washington, D.C. of course. He asked me if I knew where New Jersey was and when I told him I was born there he got all excited.  He had lived in central and norther Jersey for 12 years.

Speaking of the Sultan Hostel and Restaurant which is on the strip hotels, bars, and restaurants near my hotel where I have been hanging out when not seeing the sights, I must address the silly traffic on that road.  Yesterday, early evening, on my fourth day of hanging out there, and enduring the traffic, including tourist bus after tourist bus blowing nasty, hot diesel dike fumes on me, I realized that the level of traffic could not be normal.  There is no way all those eateries almost everyone of which has outdoor, roadside tables, could have survived.

I know from having walked it that the only place that traffic could be going was the coastal highway to which the only route was through a two lane underpass that the tram passed over.  It was no wonder the traffic got so backed up.  I found out from the waiter who had lived in Jersey that, due to road construction, all the traffic including every stinking tour bus, from the tourist area that included Hagia Sophia, the Hippodrome, the Underground Cistern, the Blue Mosque, and Topkapi Palace has to take this route out of the area.  What a buzz kill!

As mentioned in the previous paragraph, I learned a bit more about the area I am staying in.  I misread the directions to Topkapi Palace, my first destination yesterday.  Instead of what should have been a ten minute walk to the Palace entrance, I took an hour walk all the way around the grounds of the palace on the coastal highway path.  As one should have inferred from my previous notes, I needed the exercise.

The morning was beautiful, people were jogging and biking on the path and even at before 1000 in the morning, men were fishing and, apparently, swimming in the, what I have read is not very clean, water.  The landward side of the path consisted mostly of the ruins of what I assumed were the old city walls.  I managed to get all the way back around to the entrance to the official palace grounds by walking through a lovely, shaded stretch of parkland bordered by the palace, a military compound, and the Museum of Islamic Technological History.

The touring agenda yesterday was Topkapi Palace and the Grand Bazaar.  Both were a bit overpowering. As previously mentioned, what should have been a ten minute walk to the palace turned into an hour.  By the time I got there the madding crowd had already arrived.  I had to bypass the kitchen area because that was already closed.  Some of the interior parts of the complex had lines so long that I just did not have the patience to wait.  Accordingly, I ambled about, saw what I could, which was a lot, learned a bit about Ottomand history and took lots of pictures.

As has become my routine, I came back to the hotel to rest, read, and cool off for a while before heading back out.  It was recommended that one take the tram to the Grand Bazaar but it was only about 400 meters to the tram and then another 400 meters to the bazaar from there so I hoofed it.  Let me say before I forget that hoofing it around here is not unlike most places I have been in Asia.  The tourists are clueless stopping everywhere and anywhere to take pictures of the sites and their travel mates.  Digital cameras have done for tourism what the Nazis did to Europe.  The locals, probably immune to the rudeness, barrel through the crowds like bulls in Barcelona.

Nonetheless, I made it to the bazaar intact which might have been strange.  Since the bazaar is reputed to be pickpocket hell I didn’t carry my usual load of cameras, binos, accessories, etc., but just took my point and shoot and my travel guide.  The travel guide, which has a suggested tour of the bazaar, was virtually useless.  Once you get inside that maze of corridors in the bazaar you might as well just give up the plan. Having to stop every 30 meters to consult the map and the signs made it pretty difficult to enjoy and get a feel for the place.  I had no intention of buying anything so I did not really need to get anywhere in particular.

As it was I just rambled about totally lost, took some pictures to record the feel of the place, had some lunch and somehow miraculously exited the labyrinth at exactly the point the guide said I should.  800 meters later I was back at the hotel for round two of rest and relaxation, cooling off, reading, and showering up. The best part of the bazaar was stopping for a late lunch at a restaurant recommended by the Rick Steves Istanbul travel guide, Kardeslar (Brothers) Restaurant.  It was tucked up two flights of stairs in a han.  There was a party of Israeli’s eating there with a Texan who obviously live here and one very Oriental looking Turk there when I arrived.  The dining area sat only about about 25 people on an open terrace protected from the sun by an arbor of grape plants.  Speaking Turkish would definitely have helped because I wound up eating what the waiter recommended; stewed meatballs and potatoes, a variety of mezes, and beans.  The food was awesome and, since there was enough food for two people, the price at 29 TL was quite reasonable.  Wish I had a doggy bag…or maybe not…

After that I had intended to have a couple of brews on the rooftop terrace and work on my photos but ended up doing some maintenance tasks such as backing up the photos and wiping the flash disk so I could have a fresh start.  It was then that I met the folks from Australia and then later the folks from Bahrain came up so it turned into social, instead of anti-social hour.  Much later I ended up at the Sultan for a night cap before returning to the hotel for much needed sleep.

And breakfast starts in four minutes.  I have to enjoy this morning since it is my last in Istanbul.  Tomorrow I will be up early again but headed of to my flight to Dalaman and road trip to Dalyan.  More news from there!

Lost Rhino Brewing Company Update

Posted on by chappyshi

I have been out to Lost Rhino twice in the last three days with great results.  They have seven beers on tap but are selling no food yet so you can only buy a sampler and/or take a tour.  The sampler option is great…you get six tasters for five bucks.  The beers are awesome.  They have an IPA, an Imperial IPA, a Pilsner, a Belgian Dubbel, an unfiltered Dunkel, a Christmas beer that still tastes good and a Belgian Gold that finishes like a Saison.

They will soon begin construction to create a brew pub environment in which they will sell a limited selection of food and be able to sell beer by the glass.  Right now the seating environment is a bit weird.  NTL, they were doing a booming business this afternoon w/ tastings and tours going on.

I highly recommend their beers.  The brewers came from Dominion Brewery which got raped by Budweiser and a brewery from Maryland whose name, maybe Fordham, escapes me.  The owners sold out.  I have read that one of the owners regrets doing so.  Some of the beers that Dominion brewed and sold are now brewed at other breweries under the their original names from Dominion.

Growler prices are quite reasonable particularly if you have your own growlers.  Lost Rhino sells the good growlers (not the screw tops) for $20 each.  You can find the same ones cheaper on the Internet.  NTL, for their mainline products, the IPA, Pils, and New River, you can get your growler filled for $8.  For the seasonals, expect to pay about $12 for a fill up.  You can also buy some of the beers in large bottles such as 22 ouncers.  They also have a great selection of shirts on sale including long and short sleeved T’s, hoodies, golf shirts, and button downs.

Unfortunately, Lost Rhino’s website needs some work.  They don’t post the beers on tap for the day nor do they post their expansion plans.

Drive Me Snow Blind Crazy

Posted on by chappyshi

Pulling in to my apartment complex tonight I got blocked by a van in front of me.  The driver got the front wheels over the first speed bump but seemed to have a problem getting the back wheels over it.  Now take into consideration that we had a wintery mix going for about 30 minutes w/ an accumulation of perhaps 0.2  inches.  It was a moderately sized speed bump so of course I wasn’t surprised that the dumb ass had to stop before he tried to take his rear wheels over that Mont Blanc of an obstacle.

I figured he was going to get out and put on the snow chains but he was wise to that realizing that putting them on the rear tires of a front wheel drive van would have been pointless.  Accordingly, he put his vehicle in reverse probably figuring to return back over the speed bump, put the chains on his front tires, and then motor his way over the speed bump using his  chained front tires to pull both front and rear wheels over it like Hannibal crossing the Alps.

Dumb ass…I passed on the left and pulled into my parking  spot.  I was a bit breathless from the high altitude when I got out of my car and had to wade soul deep through the “wintery mix” to get to my lofty, snow graced apartment but after a strenuous 30 seconds was able to successfully make my way to warmth and safety.  Thankfully, I did not get stranded in a “wintery mix”  drift and have to chew my arm off and drink my urine to survive.

Wasn’t there a movie?

Tedeschi Trucks Band at the Warner Theater, Washington, DC

Posted on by chappyshi

My brother-in-law Ed and I saw the Tedeschi Trucks Band at the Warner Theater in Washington, DC, a couple of weeks ago.  It was a good 2.75 hours of tunes.  Mike Madison and some guys with whom I gather he is trying to form a band opened up.  Thanks to Mike they were good, but w/o him they were squat.  Susan Tedeschi dominated the vocals when DT and they rest of the crew came out.  ST sounds like Bonnie Raitt now more than ever.  Mike Madison was relegated to the far right back of the stage behind the brass section, alto sax, trumpet, and trombone (dude also did a good voice solo not unlike Stevie Wonder), with another backup vocalist.

I am listing to Revelator, their newest album, right now and Susan is talking about not wanting to get out of bed.  I would hate to be DT and have my soul mate possibly lay down the “I will be your lead singer or else” rap on me.  But I surely would not sleep w/ Mike Madison.

It was a very interesting concert w/ two drummers, the brass, three singers, etc.  The playlist was mostly based on Susan’s songs including a number of Motown covers that I recognized and knew, but now don’t remember.  She did do a song that Joe Cocker does tho I am not sure it is an original Joe Cocker and I am sure I was one of very few people there that recognized it.

Speaking of Mike Madison, Ed and I ran into him on the back side of the Warner as we were going to the parking garage.  Nice garage, you could get to the Warner from the same street coming out of the garage but had to go all the way back around the building to get back to your vehicle.  So we are around the back side looking one of those tour bus things w/ a trailer on the back, probably band vehicles, when we come around the corner and I see this guy that had to have been Mike.

He was by himself walking toward the bus, no one else was out there, looking at his phone when I saw him and said, “Mike, are you Mike Madison?”  He kind of looked at me like I was a nut for a minute.  I pointed him out to Ed and by then he was walking away and I was looking for the words I couldn’t say like, “Dude you can sing.”  I would have liked to shake his hand or get a picture but it all happened so fast.

Thanks to Ed for driving…especially on the way home in the rain.