The BoormanBlog

So Bill S. wants to enter Red Embers in an American Idol type contest for rock bands. Today we went to an auto junkyard and filmed a video for “How It Ends”. Yes, it’s the same song we filmed a video for last year. However, the entry rules say that it has to be a live performance, no overdubs. So this was a LIVE version of How It Ends. I haven’t seen the footage from Friday, but Bill has, and he says it’s very good. Sounds promising!

Stay tuned…

Just a little open letter to the whole damn world:

It’s A Frickin’ PHONE!

So this Saturday, Red Embers will be at a local junkyard filming a live performance video for our yet-to-be-released-gem “How It Ends”. We filmed a concept video a few years back, but we’re filming a live performance for a reality show a la “American Idol”. Filming at a junkyard should be a total blast!!

Saw my 42nd Bob show in Uncasville, CT tonight. This one was a little better than the last, but not by much. I had a better view, the place was indoors and air conditioned, and the set list was slightly better; not by much though. I’d give this show a C+. Nothing great, just another show to check off:

Setlist - 06/27/2007 - Uncasville, CT

(courtesey of Bill Pagel’s ULTIMATE Bob Dylan Site)

http://my.execpc.com/~billp61/dates.html

This may be the worst Dylan concert I’ve been to. Look park may be nice enough to catch a small act, but a huge mainstream act like Dylan just isn’t appropriate.

The place only holds 2500 people. When you add in lawn chairs, blankets and what not, that doesn’t leave a whole lot of room for people to see. The audience was packed in like sardines, arranged chaotically. The outdoor venue had been baking in the 90+ degree heat and humidity all day.

The Dylan fans themselves also weren’t much help. The older ones still have this mindset of “I’m right, because Bob agrees with me”. An incorrect confusion from an incorrect premise.

Attention pathetic aging baby boomer losers: You have no idea what Bob thinks about most issues. Which is exactly why Bob’s just as big now as he was 40 years ago. If you really did know what Bob thought about most things, I bet your head would explode and you’d yell “Judas!” all over again. Even if you and Dylan managed to agree on anything, that doesn’t make either of you right. But what do I know. I wasn’t “there” in the summer of love. Whatever.

The concert itself pretty much sucked too. Bob just has been phoning it in lately. His voice is shot, I get that. But heck, he can at least try to hit SOME notes…ANY notes. It doesn’t have to be all rasp and croak for an hour and forty five minutes. The set list was pretty stale too. You can check it out at Bill Pagel’s ultimate Bob Dylan site (link below)

http://my.execpc.com/~billp61/062607s.html

Ugh. I’m taking a beating on Bank of America. No sooner I’m in than I’m down, albeit marginally. Bank of America (BAC) is set to report earnings on July 19th. I’m holding on at least until then.

FYI: I’m STILL holding on to Emcore (EMKR). That thing has been beaten down, but it just won’t die. It’s slowly crawling toward $6 from the upper $3’s. Part of the problem is that they are delinquent in their filings. That and the options scandal. Once those blow over though, it’s nothing but up!

Wow! So I went to a speed dating event (my 4th for those keeping track). Met a nice woman. The six minutes went by kind of slowly as we didn’t seem to have very much in common. She had never done the speed dating thing before, and she felt awkward. Still, afterward, she emailed me and said I struck her interest and was interested in getting together. We agreed on an asian restaurant near where she lived.

The dinner was pleasant enough, but the conversation seemed forced. I mentioned that I enjoy listening to talk radio. She asked if I meant NPR. I sheepishly said “erm…no…more like political talk radio”. Well, you can imagine the next line of questioning.

Silence.

Still, she stuck around for dessert (guess I can’t blame her, I was paying anyway). I walked her to her car and I said that if she would like to get together again, feel free to email me or call me. She said “likewise”.

So a few days later I email her asking if she’d like to get together that weekend. A few days later I get the reply:

“Chris: I am not interested in seeing you again. Best of luck and take care”

Youch! Well, at least I got an actual brush off this time. Usually the lovely women I take out just don’t reply to my emails. Whatever happened to manners?

I managed to get a short run of about 4 miles in on Tuesday. So today I decided for 12 miles. Let me tell you. After 10, I really REALLY wanted to stop, but I kept on keeping on.

After about 11 1/2 miles, I noticed on my spiffy GPS unit that I was at about 1:54. I thought “I would LOVE to get this 12 mile  run in under 2 hours”, so I started hauling…as close to sprinting as you can get after running 11 1/2 miles I huffed and puffed for what seemed like an eternity. The dumb thing was, I kept looking down at my GPS and noting the time…and how little of it passed since I LAST looked at it.

In the end though, it was worth it. I finished 12 miles in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 23 seconds.

This was a personal triumph for two reasons 1) I was DONE! lol! I don’t think I’ve run 12 miles without stopping to walk some before. Certainly not when I ran the half marathon last year. Certainly not when I was training. Come to think of it, I don’t think I ran 12 miles at all when I was training.

Next week: I’m trying for 13.1 miles. A half marathon…as training…NOT the goal. Who would have thought this a year ago!

Stay tuned!!

I’ve used these guys twice now, and for a local dial-up internet service, they are the tops. Don’t have to download any software. Just call them up, get a username and password, set your modem to dial one of the many local numbers and you’re good to go.

Sorry heartland, this is an upstate internet provider, so all the numbers are in the northeast. Still, for $9.99 for dial-up, it’s well worth it if you live in the area.

Sorry AO-hell. You’re just not cool anymore.

I hadn’t run all week since my last long run last Saturday (10 miles for those of you following). Basically, my hip was giving trouble, and there were other concerns outside of running taking up my time.

So today I was determined to run and not lose any more progress. The Hartford marathon requires one to average at least a 13 minute mile. I was averaging about a 10 minute miles thus far. I set my Garmin Forerunner, and at 6:00 this evening (!), I was off.

Unfortunately, my hip was STILL giving me trouble today, and proceeded to rebel against me as soon as I started. Moreover, my stomach started cramping up. I had stretched plenty, including my stomach, but that Quarter Pounder Value Meal I had hours earlier was beginning to catch up with me. My McDonalds indulgence would “repeat” on me several times during the run. Thankfully, I didn’t puke!

My hip gave me trouble for several miles, so I had to favor it, putting more weight than usual on my right leg. I choose to run with a full water belt today instead of half full, that extra weight didn’t help much. Needless to say, I didn’t break any of my records today. I ran slower than usual. Hopefully I didn’t damage my other hip today!

After about 5 - 6 miles, though, a funny thing happened. My left hip started to not bother me any more, I could run putting an equal amount of weight on each hip. Maybe it was the adrenaline, but it definitely felt like a “second wind”!

I must admit, however, once I passed 10 miles, I really, really REALLY wanted to stop running. I don’t care what people say, long distance running is at least as much a mental game as physical. I knew if I stopped, I’d kick myself for a week.

So I kept running…and I finished. 11 miles running the entire time. Time: 1 hour, 54 minutes, 54 seconds. A little over a 10 minute mile. Not too far from where I was averaging!

Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s Saturday night, and I must go out partying.