Category: Life in General

Derek Trucks Band and Santana at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD

Posted on by chappyshi

I saw the Derek Trucks Band and Santana with my sister, brother-in-law, and two friends at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD, last night. The show was awesome. We had been wanting to see Derek Trucks, who is the nephew of Butch Trucks, drummer for the Allman Brothers Band. Last year they didn’t tour in the States at all that we could find…just Europe. Ed, my brother-in-law found that they were playing at Merriweather and snapped up some tickets. Santana was certainly an added bonus.

April is certainly the earliest I have gone to a pavilion concert. It was good that we had pavilion seats because there was a light rain/mist going on all day. I think that we are having a cool and damp spring. Yesterday was no exception. The temperature never got over 50 degrees and there was a light breeze. We really had to bundle up to stay warm but it was well worth it.

Derek Trucks opened up starting right on time at 7:00 PM. They managed to get in seven songs in 50 minutes or so. You can see the playlist here. I sensed the end was near so I jammed off for a much needed bathroom break. The set did end while I was making my bladder gladder. I came out and there were 100 guys standing line. Merriweather’s restroom facilities suck and always have!

Santana, who has been around for years, but I have never seen, was unreal. I am not sure what those around me thought but, to me, as good as Derek Trucks was, he just seemed to be dwarfed by Santana’s performance. Santana hit his mark at Woodstock while Derek picked up the guitar at 9 and was playing with the Allmans at 11. He started the Derek Trucks Band in 1994. I think that Santana just has a bit more experience…

Derek sat in on a few Santana tunes and certainly held his own though. It was all very impressive. Look here in the not too distant future to check out Santana’s set list. Overall, another great show which was a great way to start off the concert season. BTW, if you are going to Merriweather, I recommend parking in the Columbia Mall parking lot. It is only short walk across Little Patuxent River Parkway to Merriweather and it is a lot easier to get out of after the show.

A Bird in the Binos…

Posted on by chappyshi

I bought new binoculars specifically for birding just recently. I took them out for the first test today and was most impressed. The binos are Vector Viper’s, 10×42. Compared to my old Pentax binos I bought at the Navy Exchange on the Naval Post Grad School in Monterey, California, in 1989, the Vipers can practically see into the future!

I got out for a brief walk today in the neighborhood and spotted the usual Carolina Wrens and Chickadees, Robins, Cardinals, and Doves. I saw three blue Jays, which is good, they dropped out of circulation for awhile, an American Goldfinch, two pairs of Mallard Ducks, one, maybe two, Downy Woodpeckers, and a dead, partially eaten Raccoon.

The binoculars were awesome. To paraphrase from the Greaseman, you can see a tweeter’s peter with these things.

Self-Checkout Honeymoon Is Over

Posted on by chappyshi

The self-checkout honeymoon is nearly over for me…the one at the grocery store that is. Not only do the stores seem more crowded than usual but all those individuals who were afraid of using the self-checkout lines when they first came out all of a sudden found their balls. It doesn’t help that there might be only three checkout lines, two of which might be 15 items or less, manned at a time, but there are often self-checkout lines that are not open. What’s up with that? Is the computer tired or on a break?

Now people who might only have gone through the line with a few items are going through with carts full because there aren’t enough regular lines manned. Then you have people who really can’t figure out the device interface, don’t have their store card and/or means of payment ready, or who are just plain slow or stupid.

Today I got stuck behind a woman who was doing it all one handed. You know what I mean? The old one-handed self-checkout? Not a pretty sight. She had this purse the size of a Hefty bag locked in to her body with one hand and arm. Somehow she was scanning her items while facing away from the scanner. Needless to say she was not too speedy. Then the chute filled up and rather than have her perfectly capable and energetic son fill the bags, she did it herself in no big hurry.

Then to make matters worse, she had two large plastic containers from the salad bar, one of which had two beets and a few beans from a three bean salad and the other of which had about two tablespoons of shredded carrot. First of all, what a waste of plastic. Second of all, the one with the carrots wouldn’t even register on the belt because it was too light. So we waited for the guy to clear the error. He just cleared the entry and put the item at the end of the chute with one of those WTF looks on his face.

Rant on:  First of all the self-checkout lines are not the convenience they once were. Second of all, what the hell can you make with two tablespoons of shredded carrots, two beets, and some three bean salad that necessitates wasting two perfectly good plastic containers, which hopefully but doubtfully were made from recycled materials.

Rant off:

Odd Bald Eagle Sighting

Posted on by chappyshi

I was looking out my office window today where I have seen red-shouldered hawks in the trees or on the light pole…saw one a couple of weeks ago eating a bird…when I saw what had to have been a bald eagle flying over. I lost sight of it and ran to the front of the building where I saw it again, unfortunately heading away from me. My office is about 4 or 5 miles from the Potomac River where I assume this bird was nesting. I’ve seen one a couple of times on the Potomac up near Point of Rocks but that is probably 15 miles upriver. Bottom line is that it was an exciting sighting.

Turkey, a Great Example of a Democratic Islamic Republic

Posted on by chappyshi

The Washington Post article, “Ban on Head Scarves Voted Out in Turkey, Parliament Lifts 80-Year-Old Restriction on University Attire,” by Zehra Ayman and Ellen Knickmeyer, dated February 10, 2008, gives me the profound impression that there is a chance for democracy and human rights in the Middle East.

As envisioned by the founder of modern Turkey , Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey would be secular. A strong military influence from all levels of society and government has, until recently, ensured that religion would play a minor influence in the daily lives and government of Turks.

While there has alway been a rebellion against these policies, it is has been only in the past five to ten years that this Islamic activism has gained a foothold in society and in government. Considering recent events in the Middle East and Islamic strongholds elsewhere, this should come as no surprise.

According to the article, a burgeoning middle-class is becoming more religious and apparently more influential on the ground. This surprises me in some ways since, according to the western media, the lower-classes in the Middle East are more likely to turn to and accept religion as a vehicle of change.

Either way, my spin on this is as follows. Who cares if an individual wants to wear a scarf out in public? I admit to being a bit freaked by Burhkas but come on. She could be ugly, she could be pretty, or should could be a he. What are you going to do? Wearing a Burhka probably doesn’t make it any easier to smuggle in a suicide bomb than wearing a long skirt or coat does.

I am glad that Turks are comfortable enough in what seems to be the most democratic, Western leaning country in the Middle East to electively shoot down a law that really had no place in the modern world.

Back on the Treadmill

Posted on by chappyshi

After a long absence, I am writing again. January, and the last five months of 2007, were busy and depressing. I had one grandmother pass away at the end of July and another on the verge of doing so, or so it seemed, from early August until she passed away in late January. Besides my usual personal battles, I have fought with three bouts of a skin rash which got progressively worse with each occurrence, starting in October.

The last bout covered almost my entire body resulting in serious discomfort for about five weeks including the entire time I was in Toronto for work. Also while in Toronto, I caught the first cold I have had in two years. I normally like to take advantage of my work travel to sightsee, hike, ski, etc., but this trip was mostly work and hotel room, not very exciting, as you might imagine.

What with my 93 year old grandmother being pretty sick, I made a few road trips back and forth from Virginia to Jersey to see her. I did the 560 mile round trip at least a couple times on the two-day weekend. At long last…grandma was ready to go…she passed away on January 20th. My parents were due to fly in the next day from Wales. My uncle was already there. They scheduled the funeral for the following Saturday.

I drove down 500 miles from Toronto on Friday, attended the funeral and alienated myself from my family on Saturday, and drove 500 miles back up to Toronto on Sunday. Then I worked for two more days and drove 490 miles south to Seven Springs, PA, for our annual group ski trip. Including my aborted first attempt to get in to Canada (more on that later), I wracked up 3500 miles on my car in five weeks.