Party on, Rufus.

I was so sad to hear of George Carlin's death this morning. Last year, I had the pleasure of hearing him speak about his life for something that was to be broadcast on the radio. He was so snarky and full of life and entertaining. He had the greatest stories and even after 2 + hours of recording, I was left wanting to hear more. RIP George. You will be missed.

Meet My Dog: Isabella Claire Puddy Kessler

RIght Here Right Now

It was such a beautiful day yesterday that M and I decided to head into Fells Point after work to walk around and check out Soundgarden and the Natty Boh store. Windows down, Ethel on the XM, found a parking spot in no time. The Boh Store was kind of a waste. I was looking for this cool shirt I saw at the O's game last Friday but it wasn't there. Plus it was HOT in there. We pretty much walked in and back out, wondering how that guy does any business. Anyway, from there we headed to Soundgarden. If you're local to or familiar with the B'more area, then you know Soundgarden. It's pretty much the greatest music store ever. CDs, vinyl, dvds, lotsa used stuff for sale. And it looks like they're expanding to hold even more stuff including video games soon. Nice.
I always feel like a kid in a candy store in there, never knowing where to start looking first. I quickly picked up the new Fratellis CD ($9.99) and set off looking for the used CD section. Found the Essential Neil Diamond for $9.99. Almost got it. Decided against it and put it back. M was excited about some old Bowie stuff in great condition but left those there too. Then on to the $5.99 or 2 for $10 bin. Lots of great CDs in there. The sad thing? I had almost all of them. It was like someone stole my entire CD collection out of my apartment and was selling it at Soundgarden for cheap. *sigh* How depressing. My entire life in CDs are only worth $5.99 a piece. See, I was thinking of selling off alot of my CDs because of a stupid $160 speeding ticket I got the other day. (That a story for another time.) But if they're only worth selling for $5.99 a piece, I bet I'd only get a buck or two for each. and I'm not parting with 150 or so of my personal collection.
So back to the shopping - I ended up with a copy of Jesus Jones -Doubt. Surprisingly, I don't own this. I think I have it on cassette which these days is pretty much like not having it at all. M was not impressed but I loved me some Jesus Jones in the 90s. So there ya go, Fratellis and Jesus Jones. M got The Pixies and some other stuff that I can't remember. Plus we both got some free compilation CD they had at the front counter. Always a good way to discover new music.
Put the Jesus Jones in the CD player on my way to work today. Not as good as I remember. But still worth the $5.99. However, the Jesus Jones made me think of Ned's Atomic Dustbin. Kill Your Television. Grey Cell Green. Happy. Not Sleeping Around. Now I wish I had looked for Ned's. Looks like I'll be making a return trip to Soundgarden. Ned's is even better than Jesus Jones. When I worked the weekend overnights at HFS and I was running short on an hour, I would always fill with Ned's Atomic Dustbin. Or 40 Acres. Or Oasis if I needed something long. But I digress. Ned's rules.
One more thing. The new Fratellis? Eh. So disappointing. Was expecting so much more. It's catchy but nowhere near as awesome as Costello Music. I wonder how much I'd get for it at Soundgarden if I tried to sell it back to them?

On an unrelated note, Lit Up by Buckcherry is on Lucy XM 54 right now. Excuse me while I crank it up and sing to myself in my studio....

Random Sightings

At my job, you never know who you're going to run into walking down the hall. Just the other day, Night Ranger walked by my studio. And on my way out the door to go home yesterday, I passed last year's American Idol Jordin Sparks. (who is way smaller in person that she appears on tv. and I don't mean that in a "fat" way but in a "big/tall in stature" kinda way. She always towered over Seacrest on the show. She's tall but not too tall and very pretty.) There's always some random band recording down the hallway and usually, if I ask who it is, I'm familiar with them even if I don't recognize what they look like.
But my favorite sighting has to be the day I swear Nick Lachey thought I was stalking him. He was making his rounds of all the different studios and it seems that everytime I had to leave my studio, he was whereever I was going. Standing out talking to my coworkers? He walks by. On my way to get my lunch out of the kitchen? Walked right by him. Done nuking my lunch? There he is again. Later on, on my way to the bathroom? Yup. Nick. Right there. It almost got embarrassing. Heh. and I'm not even a fan of his. But he is way cuter than he looks on tv. Also, 2 people who I used to think were big a-holes but turned out to be way cool and way nice? Sebastian Bach and Constantine Maroulis. Go figure.

I am barely breathing....

...but I'm still here. It's been a difficult week or so and I'm not ready to talk about it yet. So no blogging. Because while I'm sure there are plenty of other things to write about, this whole thing is at the forefront of my mind. and weighing heavily.

I'll spill all eventually. But right now, I don't wanna talk about it. Sorry.

I know I don't look my age but this is ridiculous.

Get this...I got carded for CIGARETTES today. Not alcohol but cigarettes. Isn't 18 the age for buying cigarettes? I know alot of people mistake me for being in my 20's but a teenager? No way.

The look on the guy's face when he saw my ID was priceless.

And before you start getting on my case about the smoking thing, yes, I know. You thought I quit.

It's been a shitty week. Case closed.

So this is 40.

40 is the new 30 is such bullshit. 30 is 30. 30 will always 30. As 40 will always be 40. Why do we feel the need to create new sayings just to make us feel younger? What is wrong with being who we are?

I admit, turning 40 was the first time I actually was apprehensive about a birthday. I've always loved my birthday. It's my very own national holiday and I celebrate it big. Why not commemorate the day I was brought into this world? Age is only a number and all that. I passed 30 with ease. 35? No problem. 39? Bring it on. But 40. 40. 4-0. It just sounds SO OLD. Especially since this isn't exactly how I'd envisioned my life at 40 when I was younger. I pictured the typical married with 2.5 kids, nice house, white picket fence, blah blah blah. Instead I'm single with a bulldog, renting an apartment in the city and in debt up to my ears. And I wouldn't change a thing. Well, maybe I'd change that debt thing. But the rest. Not really.

So why was 40 such a big deal? I dunno. And the fact that I was so freaked by it bothered me. "Have a party" is what everyone said. "You have to. You're turning 40." Really? Okay. I guess. Big parties aren't my thing. Especially ones I'm planning. You stress over all the details and then once it happens, you worry if everyone is enjoying themselves. But I soldiered on, trying to plan the perfect 40th birthday party. And hating every minute of it. Luckilly, life intervened and a friend planned her wedding the same day as my party. Minor attempts to reschedule my little shindig didn't work out so I scrapped the whole thing altogether. Thank the lord. I ended up celebrating my birthday my way, spreading it out over the whole Memorial Day weekend. And it was one of the best weekends ever. Really. Friends. Family. Food. Lots of food. A Carvel ice cream cake (thanks Mom!). Drinks. Lots of drinks. Plus my karaoke debut (fueled by alot of those drinks). Good times.

Now it's all over. And I'm just here. And I'm 40. And that's okay. I'm the same me I was at 39. My face didn't fall over night and my body didn't head south. In fact, I find that my attitude is the only thing that's undergone a minor adjustment: I just don't give a shit anymore. In a good way.

Say it loud: I'm 40 and I'm proud!